The Simpsons Season 35’s Weakest Episode Yet Brings Back 5 Major Problems

Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for The Simpsons season 35, episode 9.

While The Simpsons season 35 has been branded a return to form by critics, episode 9 proves that the show still has a long way to go in avoiding the pitfalls of recent seasons. The Simpsons is one of the longest-running shows in television history and, as a result, the animated family sitcom has been through a handful of distinct eras. While instantly popular with the viewing public, the first two seasons of the series are now seen as a crude but promising sign of things to come. Seasons 3 through 11 are regarded as the Golden Age of The Simpsons since the show’s writing became more ambitious and complex.

Although The Simpsons was renewed through season 36 in 2023, the series hasn’t enjoyed widespread critical acclaim for some time. Seasons 12 through 33 are often derisively referred to as “Zombie Simpsons” online, owing to their failed attempts to replicate the fresh, inventive style of the show’s best episodes. While these seasons include some classic outings, there is no denying that the quality of the series as a whole took a downward turn during this era. Recently, The Simpsons season 34 was praised as a return to form for the series, but season 35, episode 9, “Murder She Boat,” proves the show still struggles with the same major issues.

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5 The Simpsons Season 35 Episode 9 Prioritized Celebrity Cameos

Taika Waititi’s presence derailed a potentially good Simpsons episode

From its first season, The Simpsons could always leverage the show’s popularity to access A-list guest stars. However, early episodes of the series ensured that these celebrities played original, engaging characters, with stars like Dustin Hoffman, Michael Jackson, and Danny DeVito appearing in unique, memorable roles. As The Simpsons continued, the show began letting celebrities play themselves and this change resulted in low-effort cameos that amounted to little more than pandering. The Simpsons season 35’s Taika Waititi cameo saw “Murder She Boat” fall into this trap, as the show prioritized adding a big name to the outing’s cast list instead of focusing on the episode’s plot.

Taika Waititi got more screen time than most of the Simpson family members in “Murder She Boat,” but the director played a broad self-parody instead of an original character. His role mostly relied on the novelty of his presence, much like Elon Musk and Lady Gaga’s appearances in earlier episodes of The Simpsons. This is a significant issue for the series since the show’s popularity means The Simpsons could cast a new A-list actor in every episode, but this alone does nothing to improve the writing of the show. On the contrary, these unnecessary cameos limit the story focus and character development of the show’s main characters.

4 Minor Characters Dominated The Simpsons Season 35 Episode 9

The Simpsons devoted too much screen time to unimportant characters

The Simpsons has been around for 35 years and 750 episodes, so it is no surprise that the show’s cast includes some of the most iconic TV characters of all time. However, the series has also amassed a plethora of minor characters over the years, and not all of them need an equal share in the limelight. Often, lesser episodes of The Simpsons lavish too much focus and attention on the show’s minor characters, resulting in the eponymous family getting sidelined. This occurred in “Murder She Boat,” which featured a plot that focused on Comic Book Guy but somehow also involved Ned Flanders, Dr. Hibbert, and Milhouse.

Even Sideshow Mel and Rainier Wolfcastle got enough screen time to become tiresome, but not enough to give them compelling plots of their own. These characters are funny in all doses and, conversely, can become interesting in their own right when an entire episode is devoted to their development. However, the worst episodes of The Simpsonsoveruse one-note side characters without adding anything new to their personalities. Viewers didn’t learn anything about Wolfcastle or Sideshow Mel in “Murder She Boat,” meaning both characters got swathes of screen time each despite their respective roles adding little to the episode’s plot.

3 Season 35 Episode 9 Treated The Simpsons Cynically

The Simpsons forgot the show’s heart comes from its central family

When Comic Book Guy’s prize toy broke in “Murder She Boat,” Lisa failed to believe that Bart was innocent despite his protests. This was written off as a throwaway gag when it could have been a poignant plot point since the episode wasn’t invested in fleshing out its characters. In stark contrast, the superb season 35, episode 7, “It’s A Blunderful Life,” focused its emotional storyline on Marge failing to believe Homer when he was also accused of something he didn’t do. What made that earlier episode work was the decision to take Marge’s inner turmoil seriously, whereas Lisa’s arc with Bart was effectively ignored.

2 The Simpsons Season 35 Episode 9 Was Gimmick-Heavy

The outing was filled with too much attention-grabbing filler

While some of the darkest episodes of The Simpsons have focused on Bart’s rebellious streak getting him into serious trouble, these outings usually have a relatively straightforward story with clear stakes. This keeps them moving and engaging even when proceedings sometimes get surprisingly grim. In contrast, “Murder She Boat” was overstuffed and failed to find any emotional resonance as a result. There was the mystery surrounding Comic Book Guy’s toy, an over-indulgent musical number parodying The Love Boat, and a celebrity cameo. The episode had too much going on and too little focus on the title characters, as was typical in the infamously weak seasons 29-33.

1 The Simpsons Season 35 Episode 9’s Story Was Predictable

The answer to the episode’s mystery was easily guessed

Despite how chaotically overstuffed the episode was, it was easy to guess where the mystery parody plot was going. The Simpsons season 35 made Bart too sympathetic for viewers to believe that he would have destroyed the toy, and Waititi’s self-aggrandizement made it obvious that he was being set up as a villain. Every twist was telegraphed, whether it was Lisa running into the celebrity guest star after losing track of the villain in a chase scene or Bart mentioning his anger at Comic Book Guy shortly before the toy was broken.

The episode’s mystery being predictable isn’t a major problem in and of itself, but this is indicative of the larger issues with “Murder She Boat.” The outing tried to do too many things at once, from parodying murder mysteries to focusing on Waititi’s presence to addressing Bart and Lisa’s contentious relationship, to spoofing nerd culture. The slew of unnecessary supporting characters only intensified the issues. This was particularly unfortunate because earlier season 35 outings proved that The Simpsons can still succeed, provided the show steers clear of the pitfalls that caused problems in earlier entries.