Warning: SPOILERS for The Simpsons season 36, episode 18, "Estranger Things."

There have been no shortage of heartfelt episodes in The Simpsons season 37 shows a period of the future in which they become temporarily estranged.

Like many of The Simpsons’ best modern episodes, “Estranger Things” shows a deep love for everything about the characters that defines their relationships with one another. Forsaking her notorious distaste for cartoon violence, Marge embraces Itchy & Scratchy cartoons as something Bart and Lisa are able to share with each other. It’s one of many episodes of the series that celebrates the siblings’ ability to overcome anything with their combined talents. But behind the episode’s numerous feel-good moments, it’s hard to shake the feeling that the finale was also saying a secret goodbye.

The Simpsons Season 36 Finale Feels Like A Farewell To Itchy And Scratchy

Could The End Credits Be A Low-Key In Memoriam?

Technically, The Simpsons season 36 finale was announced as more of a welcome than a goodbye. After the retirement of veteran cast member Pamela Hayden, The Simpsons recast Milhouse for the first time ever. But while the finale says hello to the new Milhouse, the end credits play old Itchy & Scratchy cartoons backed by mournful Sarah McLachlan music. It could be a joke based on the initial plotline in which Bart and Lisa stop watching cartoons together, but many fans wondered if the show might be hanging its hat on those characters for at least a little while.

It's a concern that arises naturally from the episode’s very plot. Although The Simpsons isn’t exactly known for sticking to canon, this episode suggests a future in which seemingly all of Bart and Lisa’s peers turned their backs on Itchy and Scratchy for 35 years. And while the Itchy & Scratchy theme plays during the episode’s climax, the last appearance of the cat and mouse before the end credits is in a tacky reboot that tries to give the cartoon an urban rebrand. It feels very much like a meta joke about the segment losing modern appeal.

Itchy And Scratchy Have Been Around Since Before The Simpsons Premiered

The Cat And Mouse Were Around In The Tracey Ullman Days

Long before any of the seasons that various people consider to make up the Golden Age of The Simpsons, Itchy and Scratchy made their first appearance on The Tracey Ullman Show a full year before The Simpsons would air its first episode. The Tracey Ullman short “The Bart Simpson Show” begins with Homer deciding The Itchy & Scratchy show is too violent for Bart to watch, forcing Bart to devise his own means of entertainment. Since then, numerous episodes of The Simpsons involving Itchy and Scratchy have portrayed Marge as strongly disapproving of cartoon violence.

“Estranger Things” portrays Marge differently, as someone who merely sees Itchy and Scratchy as cute mascots who represent what little common ground her constantly bickering children are able to find. And there are definitely memories tied to Krusty’s cat and mouse costars, considering just about every member of the Simpson family has had a major storyline involving Itchy and Scratchy. If the show were to leave the characters behind due to changes in popular tastes, or even just to try taking things in another direction, it would be a major decision in The Simpsons’ franchise history.

How Losing Itchy And Scratchy Would Affect The Simpsons Season 37

Krusty’s Show Would Have To Make Some Changes

Although the series has already been diving into side characters’ histories to develop new ideas, such as the recent foray into The Simpsons’ Fat Tony origin story, some characters have received more focus than others. And while there are plenty of good Krusty stories in franchise history, Krusty typically seems to rely on The Itchy & Scratchy Show for the bulk of his success. Taking that away would force him to take his show in a new direction, possibly with the introduction of a new animated segment.

This could open the series to a variety of fresh ideas, including the possibility of having guest animators direct segments for Krusty’s show. Couch gags are one thing, but having guest animators do actual segments could attract those animators’ fans to watch more of the episode. However, there’s no telling if The Simpsons even could get rid of two characters as classic as Itchy and Scratchy without at least some backlash. Even if it turns out the series truly is saying goodbye to the characters, it may not be a very long one.

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