Did 'The Simpsons' really kill off Marge? The answer is complicated
The Simpsons' season 36 finale, "Estranger Things," skips ahead to a future where Marge is the first Simpson to die.
Fans expressed shock over the death, but flash-forward episodes typically aren't considered canon to the series.
"Estranger Things," and the rest of season 36, is currently streaming on Hulu.
Sure, characters can die on The Simpsons, though it's pretty rare. Across 36 years and 36 seasons, only a small handful of Springfield's denizens have bit the dust, and they've primarily been smaller characters, such as Maude Flanders and barfly Larry Dalrymple.
Perhaps that's why social media has been abuzz in the month following The Simpsons' season 36 finale, "Estranger Things," a flash-forward episode about a future where matriarch Marge is the first Simpson sent to heaven.
Many fans are confused — is Marge Simpson really dead? Can the show continue without her? It is, after all, renewed through its 40th season, slated to air in the 2028-2029 season.
Yes, Marge dies in "Estranger Things," The Simpsons season 36 finale, though her death occurs many years beyond the series' main timeline. "Beloved wife, mother, pork-chop seasoner," reads her tombstone, which we glimpse as an elderly Homer weeps at her funeral alongside adult depictions of Bart, Lisa, and Maggie.
Lisa, now a successful NBA executive, later finds an "emotional will" Marge left behind in the form of a video. In it, she expresses her hope that Bart and Lisa would continue to look out for each other as adults.
They haven't been, of course, but the video inspires Lisa to try and mend her relationship with Bart, who's running an unlicensed retirement home out of the Simpson house, where Homer and his aging pals wreak havoc.
In the end, after rescuing Homer from Senior Protective Services, the family gathers to watch a rebooted edition of their beloved Itchy and Scratchy, which seems to have taken inspiration from Itchy and Scratchy's Poochie era.
Marge proudly watches over them from heaven. "I'm just so happy my kids are close again," she says before being informed by Ringo Starr, who's also deceased apparently, that they're late for the "heaven buffet."
Before sharing a kiss with the Beatle, Marge says she's "so glad we're allowed to marry different people in heaven."
No, Marge isn't dead in any way that will impact the future of The Simpsons moving forward. As any longtime fan knows, the show's numerous flash-forward episodes exist more or less outside of The Simpsons' canon, depicting possible futures rather than official ones.
Unlike, say, Maude Flanders' shocking demise, Marge's death in "Estranger Things" occurred outside of the main timeline. So, while you won't see a (living) Maude in future episodes of The Simpsons, you absolutely will continue to see Marge.
That's a good question. After all, a season 35 flash-forward episode depicted Homer's death. But, as "Estranger Things" points out, Homer's habits don't point towards a long, healthy life, whereas Marge is the kind of caring, maternal figure one imagines maybe could live forever.
The idea that Homer would outlive her is shocking on its face — the episode even features a song performed by Sarah McLachlan with the lyric, "Marge passed before Homer, if you can believe it."
The reaction recalls the furor around "Life of Brian," a season 12 Family Guy episode that killed off the family dog, Brian Griffin. That turned out to be something of a troll, however, as the show resurrected him two episodes later.
'We were all very surprised, in a good way, that people still cared enough about that character to be that angry," Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane said at the time. "We thought it would create a little bit of a stir, but the rage wasn't something we counted on.'
Seasons 1 through 35 of The Simpsons are available to stream on Disney+. Season 36, however, is currently only available on Hulu.
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