Now, it’s no secret that The Simpsons has been showing its age of late. After a record-breaking three decades of the show, it’s easy to understand how things could have gone south a little. The Simpsons’ golden age, as even the staunchest fans will tell you, is far behind it.
However you might feel about the current state of the show, it’s important not to lose sight of the thing that made us fall in love with it in the first place: its unforgettable cast of characters. Over the years, countless Springfield residents have come and gone, but who do we miss the most and who would we happily see bow out?
We Miss: Lionel Hutz
After the tragic death of Phil Hartman, voice actor extraordinaire, The Simpsons lost two iconic characters: TV ‘star’ Troy McClure and the hilarious and inept lawyer Lionel Hutz.
It’s Simpsons policy to retire characters played by departed voice actors, rather than replace those who brought them to life. Both of Hartman’s Springfieldians are sad losses, but we favor the unscrupulous Hutz just a little more, for the silly plotlines he’s been an integral part of.
Phase Out: Hans Moleman
Across the sitcom universe, there are a wide array of characters who mostly exist just to be the unfortunate butt of every joke. For poor old Hans Moleman, that’s what life has become. He’s a walking visual gag.
Whenever Moleman appears, viewers know that some awful disaster or other is about to befall him. For some, though, this sort of character has diminishing returns and becomes a little cheap. Yes, we all enjoyed his ‘Man Gets Hit By Football’ short at the Springfield Film Festival, but it was a heck of a cheap shot.
We Miss: ‘Bleeding Gums’ Murphy
Yes, we know. In the pantheon of all-time Simpsons icons, Bleeding Gums is hardly a Ned Flanders when it comes to popularity. The jazz musician only made a handful of appearances and didn’t exactly dazzle us with his personality and character development when we did see him in action.
Despite all of that, he had a vital role to play. He was a man who seemed to understand and appreciate Lisa Simpson, a girl who is just trying to do what’s right and is often shunned and ridiculed for her goody-goody, super-smart ways. He tried to nurture her musical gift, an influence that has been sorely lacking in her life.
Phase Out: Helen Lovejoy
In a tight-knit community like Springfield, you’re sure to meet all the usual suspects. The every-neighborhood-has-somebody-like-such-and-such people. One of these stereotypes is the gossiper and/or trouble-stirrer, a role that Helen Lovejoy definitely has covered.
Reverend Timothy Lovejoy’s wife is infamous for her gossipy ways and distressed howls of “won’t somebody please think of the children!?” She appears just a little too often to be one of those funny one-trick fringe characters, and has started to wear more than a little thin as a result.
We Miss: Edna Krabappel
What a wild ride Edna Krabappel had during her time on the show. She began her run as Bart Simpson’s long-suffering teacher, but fans grew to learn more about her and watch her get involved in various relationships (and absurd storylines) along the way. A very popular character.
Sadly, as was the case with Lionel Hutz and Troy McClure, her voice-actor’s death (Marcia Wallace ed away in October of 2013) meant that Krabappel’s long run on the show came to an end. She left The Simpsons happy, married to Ned Flanders.
Phase Out: Luann Van Houten
Do you that exchange Marge Simpson had with Luann Van Houten in “A Milhouse Divided”? Luann tells Marge that she’s a changed woman and suggests Marge forgets everything she thought she knew about her. Marge confesses in response that she didn’t really know anything about Luann in the first place. Neither do we.
After the pair’s divorce (which was instigated in a party at the Simpsons home that went so awry it would’ve been at home in a Treehouse of Horror episode), we only tended to see Luann and Kirk Van Houten having bitter exchanges (or Luann parading her latest beau to make Kirk jealous). We don’t really know anything about either of them beyond that, and though they’ve gotten back together and split apart again since (they’re currently remarried), we’re none the wiser as to their actual characters.
We Miss: Sideshow Cecil/Cecil Terwilliger
Throughout its long history, The Simpsons has had its share of heavyweight guest stars. David Hyde Pierce may not be the biggest name the show could drop, but casting him as Cecil Terwilliger, Sideshow Bob’s vengeful brother, was an absolute stroke of genius.
As fans will know, Sideshow Bob is played by none other than Kelsey Grammar, star of Cheers, in which he played Doctor Frasier Crane previously). For the Simpsons episode “Brother From Another Series,” David Hyde Pierce (who played Niles Crane in Frasier) voiced Cecil Terwilliger, who had come to Springfield to exact revenge on his elder brother for ruining his dream of becoming Krusty the Clown’s sidekick. The interplay between the two brothers was just as pompous and hilarious as it was on Frasier, and fans of both shows were eager for more.
Phase Out: Sideshow Mel
Speaking of Krusty the Clown’s sideshows, Melvin Van Horne was the man drafted in to replace the criminal mastermind that is Sideshow Bob (who is constantly either in prison or a fugitive). He’s quite a unique character, with his unmistakable appearance, dramatic and sophisticated voice and penchant for slide whistles.
As with Helen Lovejoy, though, he’s a Springfieldian who makes dramatic announcements in a crowd and... that’s about it. In all this time, we’ve learned almost nothing about him, beyond his name and the fact that he owns poodles.
We Miss: Fat Tony
Fat Tony, Springfield’s resident mob boss, has been behind all kinds of memorable and diabolical schemes. His demise from a heart attack in “Donnie Fatso” left a hole in Springfield’s criminal underbelly that had to be filled by somebody of equally large proportions. Super conveniently, though, it turned out that Fat Tony had a cousin, the toned Fit Tony, who took his place.
The strain of being Springfield’s mob boss caused the once-toned man to overeat, becoming Fit Fat Tony before taking over the Fat Tony moniker. He is now physically identical to his departed cousin, which is totally fine, but long-time fans will always that this isn’t the original Fat Tony.
Phase Out: Chief Wiggum
Yes, we know, it’s utterly outrageous to even consider phasing out a Springfield icon as well-established as Police Chief Clancy Wiggum. These legends are the characters that hold Springfield together, after all.
Having said that, though, it’s also true that they’re the very same characters that have taken the biggest hit as the show’s seasons have gone on. Even Homer Simpson himself has begun to tire some with his ever-more-ridiculous shenanigans. In Wiggum’s case, his dim-witted shtick has become more than a little played out.