1. A Totally Fun Thing That Bart Will Never Do Again
People are never satisfied by endings. Fans would be (somewhat justifiably) mad if The Simpsons did end on the time-loop suggested by Al Jean, but they'll be equally as disappointed if the ultimate finale isn't some Harry Potter-esque happy ending for every single character who ever appeared, sending them off into a bright shiny future. The ideal ending for something as huge as The Simpsons is the much-parodied Animal House freeze frame finale, with each character being framed in turn with a block of text describing what happened in their lives after the credits rolled. Something which The Simpsons itself has mocked, and couldn't exactly do sincerely. Which is why A Totally Fun Thing That Bart Will Never Do Again is so genius. Or at least, its final moments are. Another season 23 episode that somehow managed to actually be good if not great. Returning home from an idyllic cruise has Bart contemplating his life, and whether he's happy with it. It ends with him elderly, and happy. It doesn't so much tug at the heartstrings as rip them out. It's a beautifully judged emotional beat for a character who rarely gets them. And there's an original song. The Simpsons writers love making up songs.
Tom Baker is the Comics Editor at WhatCulture! He's heard all the Doctor Who jokes, but not many about Randall and Hopkirk. He also blogs at http://communibearsilostate.wordpress.com/
