Top 20 Worst Simpsons Episodes Ever

#20: That 90s Show

We guess The Simpsons also predicted the 2023 That 70s Show revival by using its title first... unfortunately, that doesnt make the actual episode any better. After discovering Marges diploma, she and Homer tell the kids about their time in the 90s, where Marge developed a crush on her college professor and Homer started a grunge band. While the '90s references were amusing, the episode falls apart by deconstructing the established, heartwarming love story between Homer and Marge just to appeal to the shows floating timeline. The two kept this story from their kids for so long, and after seeing them disrespect the shows continuity, we wish it could have stayed that way.

#19: Clown in the Dumps

To put it bluntly, it sucks to be Krusty the Clown in this episode. He loses his confidence after a celebrity roast, and then his father, Rabbi Hyman Krustofsky, dies before he can say what he really thinks of his sons comedy. The marketing said that a major player was supposed to die in the episode many mistakenly believed that Krusty would be the one to bite the dust. No disrespect to the Rabbi, but he wasnt exactly a staple for the show, so its easy to see why people felt his passing was anticlimactic. Other than that, it was a rather dismal episode that ended on an uplifting note.

#18: A Midsummers Nice Dreams

Remember when having guest stars MEANT something on this show? Season 22 forgot when they had comedy duo Cheech & Chong appear. When the duo breaks up, Homer ends up taking Chongs place in the act, and clearly, hes more excited about it than we were. Fans of Cheech & Chong may not appreciate their material being so watered down, while those who have never heard of them will be scratching their heads trying to understand their relevancy... so who was this episode for? While it ends on a happy note, the moment is ruined by a blatant Hulu ad. The side plot with Marge becoming a hoarder wouldve been funnier if it were the leading story.

#17: Bart vs. Itchy & Scratchy

You know were off to a bad start when there isnt a couch gag to ease us in. An all-female reboot of Itchy & Scratchy has Bart and his friends in an uproar. However, when Bart actually enjoys the reboot, he ends up falling in with a band of extreme feminists who cause pandemonium across the town. The Simpsons had tackled social commentary fairly well in the past, but here, they got lazy. They relied on stereotypes and painted modern feminism in a horrible light instead of trying to help us understand the real issues. Throw in another Lisa is the villain plot, and youve got the perfect episode to hate-not-watch.

#16: All Singing, All Dancing

Homer is horrified when he discovers that he accidentally rented a musical for movie night. The family then starts rewatching songs from the first eight seasons and thats the whole episode. Theres an amusing subplot when Snake breaks into the familys home to show his disdain for singing - ironically singing himself, but other than that, its mostly a cash-grabbing clip show. On the plus side, it features many of our favorite tunes, such as "The Monorail Song" and "Who Needs the Kwik-E-Mart?" But you know what would be better? Going back to watch the episodes we first heard them. Also, just because the familys aware theyre in a clip show doesnt make it any less lazy.

#15: The Fight Before Christmas

Are you in need of the Christmas spirit? You wont find it in this Treehouse of Horror rip-off. This not-so-festive stocking stuffer tells four different tales told in the Simpsons dreams. Bart's dream features him clashing with Santa with a rather predictable ending. Lisas tackles with her hatred of Christmas trees, ending in a bizarre Inglourious Basterds spoof. Marges dream has Martha Stewart turning her house upside down and then hastily leave. Rounding everything up is an amusing Muppets tribute guest starring Katy Perry who does nothing but look pretty. While there were genuine laughs to be had, the segments lacked the punch they couldve had.

#14: Whiskey Business

Do you watch The Simpsons to laugh or forget your problems? Well, this episode will fix that for you with some of the bleakest stories imaginable. Right off the bat, we see Moe feeling so hopeless that he tries to take his own life. His luck turns around when he gets a fancy new suit, but once the suits gone, so is his good fortune. The episode ends on a bittersweet note, where Moe manages to pick himself up and keep going in life... for now. Theres also a fairly sweet side-plot with Bart and Grampa, and a wasted, hastily-ended one with Lisa, but theyre not enough to cheer us up after watching Moes ongoing misery.

#13: I'm Just a Girl Who Can't Say D'oh

Remember the episode "A Streetcar Named Marge," a heartwarming episode where Marge gets involved in musical theatre? Well, imagine that, but without the humor or emotional pathos. In this attempt, Marge is directing a parody of Hamilton re-telling the founding of Springfield. Meanwhile, Homer joins a Daddy and Me class where the men just ogle the attractive supervisor. Suffice it to say, there was no sustenance to this episode. It felt more like a first draft of a story that COULD have worked, but became nothing more than dull musical theatre references, and an open admission to cashing in on Hamiltons popularity at the time. We get a cute scene of Homer and Maggie dancing together, at least.

#12: Every Mans Dream

Theyve had plenty of ups and downs, and yet Homer and Marge always manage to work things out and thrive. However, Season 27s opener takes a cynical turn in their marriage apparently, theyve been so miserable together that they end up separating and dating other people. Things only get messier when the whole thing turns out to have been a dream... inside another dream, inside yet another dream, being told on a random womans tattoo. What started out as a very bleak shift in Homer and Marges marriage turned into a cliched cop-out that made the whole episode a waste of our time. Maybe we were dreaming when this episode premiered because it was one agonizing nightmare.

#11: The Musk Who Fell to Earth

The episode starts out promising enough as the family deals with a bald eagle. Unfortunately, the fun is over when Elon Musk, voiced by himself, crashes the party. After that, he completely takes over the show the rest of the cast, especially Lisa, worship the ground he walks on, and he ends up costing the nuclear power plant employees their jobs. We cant even pretend to care about his budding friendship with Homer. The only thing more boring than the episodes story is Musks acting. The fact that the episode basically predicted him buying out Twitter makes it even more painful to watch.

#10: Homer vs. Dignity

If it wasnt for THAT scene, Homer vs. Dignity would have been an unremarkable episode. But they just HAD to have a panda sexually assault Homer. The episode sees Mr. Burns using a cash-strapped Homer as his prank monkey. In one instance, Homer is forced to dress as a panda and entertain people at the zoo. This is when things get really weird. A male panda thinks that Homer is a female, pounces, and physically drags him into his cave. Moes creepy commentary makes it even worse . . . Fans were understandably outraged, and many consider this the moment The Simpsons devolved into gross-out shock humor akin to Family Guy and South Park.

#9: What to Expect When Barts Expecting

This episode managed to be both redundant AND absurd. It starts with Bart accidentally impregnating his art teacher via a voodoo doll. Bart starts up a voodoo pregnancy clinic, and he and Homer are kidnapped by the mob so Bart can work his sex magic on Fat Tonys race horses. Its completely preposterous, and to somehow give it an emotional core, the episode falls back on the good old Homer is a terrible father and role model theme. That might have been fine except that the series was in its 25th season! We know full well that Homer is a bad role model! The whole plot felt like an outlandish coat of paint disguising a rudimentary Simpsons story.

#8: Kill the Alligator and Run

The Simpsons was already on a downward slope by season eleven, but Kill the Alligator and Run gave it extra momentum. This episode is widely panned by fans for being erratic and jumbled, and its easy to see why. First, Homer suffers a nervous breakdown after thinking that he only has three years left to live. Then the family goes to Florida and gets caught up in Spring Break. Then Homer accidentally kills the states mascot. So the Simpsons go on the lamb and begin working at a restaurant. All this and more in 20 minutes. Its absolutely chaotic, devolving quickly from down-to-earth and relatable to absurd farce. More like Kill This Episode and Run.

#7: The Greatest Story Ever Dohed

Its one of the most famous episodes in Simpsons history . . . for all the wrong reasons. The Greatest Story Ever Dohed sees the family traveling to Jerusalem with Ned. Homer of course acts like an ignorant buffoon, before getting lost in the desert and hallucinating that hes the Messiah. The episode received middling reviews from critics, but fans absolutely despised it. Some cited the episodes ludicrous storyline. Others blamed Sacha Baron Cohens disappointing, and incredibly grating, guest appearance. Regardless of the reason, this episode was rated the shows worst by online discussion group No Homers Club, and by quite a large margin.

#6: Moe Goes from Rags to Riches

Absolutely no one asked for a history of Moes bar rag. Yet here we are. This bizarre episode begins with a town meeting at Moes, where everyone laughs at the bond he shares with his bar rag. The rag then tells his Forrest Gump-ian story, as hes traveled surprisingly far and witnessed many notable events throughout history. It wouldnt be so bad if the jokes were actually funny, or if the episode intelligently commented on historical events, but it was instead completely aimless and laugh-free. Then theres a B-story involving Bart and Milhouse thats redundant and completely untethered from the rags story. The episode is a total mess.

#5: Saddlesore Galactica

Saddlesore Galactica was a major turning point for the show. And not in a good way. The episode starts with the family rescuing a diving horse and training it as a racehorse. OK, fair enough. But then rival jockeys kidnap Homer, take him to the underground Land of the Jockeys, and reveal themselves to be elves. Yes, actual elves. And with that, The Simpsons had officially jumped the shark, if it hadnt already. Or, should we say, entered the Land of the Jockeys. Looking back, its maybe not so bad, but at the time this was borderline sacrilegious. Its a historical episode in the Simpsons canon, one where the show completely abandoned all pretenses of normality and relatability.

#4: The Boys of Bummer

The Boys of Bummer took everything endearing about The Simpsons . . . and threw it out the window. In this episode, Bart becomes a victim of the towns malicious cruelty after blowing an important baseball game. Bart has been the town outcast before, but for much more legitimate reasons. Here he just blew a baseball game. That somehow warrants pelting him with food, persistently booing and jeering, and publicly ridiculing him on the radio. Bart has a nervous breakdown and eventually attempts to take his own life by throwing himself off the water tower. We dont mind dark humor, but the emphasis is supposed to be on HUMOR. This is pretty much just hateful.

#3: Love Is a Many Strangled Thing

This episode courted controversy, but lacked original or thoughtful commentary to back it up. The premise is actually pretty unique, as Homer takes intense fathering enrichment classes that prevent him from strangling Bart. However, the episodes content and message is dark and downright malicious. Homer suffers trauma from being strangled by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and his friends, and Bart becomes a heartless bully without Homer to strangle him. He even prank texts Moe rather than saving his father from being hung. Worst of all, Dr. Zander becomes disillusioned with Barts sociopathic tendencies and decides to murder him. Granted, there are some good laughs along the way, but you have to wade through some truly unenjoyable stuff to get there.

#2: The Principal and the Pauper

With The Principal and the Pauper, the shows Golden Age came to an abrupt and disappointing end. This episode infamously revealed that Principal Skinner is actually an imposter named Armin Tamzarian. The reveal, complete with a deus ex machina ending that completely negated the revelation, was despised by the shows fanbase, and many people consider it the shows official jump the shark moment. Even Matt Groening and Harry Shearer have disowned the episode, calling it a mistake that was disrespectful to the audience. The Principal and the Pauper started one of the biggest, and definitely the most famous, quality decline in television history.

#1: Lisa Goes Gaga

The Simpsons often features guest stars. But Lisa Goes Gaga put Lady Gaga front and center, and fans were not having it. The episode was basically a twenty-minute commercial for the singer, and many people called out The Simpsons for selling out and resorting to cheap gimmicks. The episode was also bad on a purely technical level Lady Gagas vocal performance was bland, and the show resorted to unoriginal jokes like making fun of her weird outfits. They also criticized the depiction of Gagas character, as some type of Christ-like savior who can sense when young girls are upset. Quick summary: Lady Gaga is a loving eccentric who makes outcasts feel better about themselves. There, we saved you twenty minutes.

Where do you think The Simpsons lost the plot? Let us know in the comments.