The Simpsons: 10 Most HATED Episodes

This wasn't the first time The Simpsons killed one of their characters, but if it wasn't enough to "comedically" off a character in response to the voice actors' request to leave the show over a pay dispute, timing it to chase ratings feels even sleazier.

When voice actress Maggie Roswell's request for a raise was turned down, The Simpsons' writers opted to pull a publicity stunt in promoting "the death of a major character" before the airing of "Alone Again, Natura-Diddly" - then proceeded to treat the event as an afterthought.

Maude Flanders suffers a zany and over the top death at a racing event in being hit by a barrage of t-shirts and falling to her doom. As ever, it's jackass Homer Simpson who taunted the cannon brandishing cheerleaders in the first place, prompting them to fire his way and hitting Maude by mistake. But the show doesn't stop there - it's later callously revealed that Homer had parked in the ambulance zone, preventing any chance of Maude's resuscitation.

From her funeral onwards, it's all treated as an extended gag in lieu of attempting any kind of profound exploration of death and loss. The episode bounces around from Ned grieving to dating to recovering in light speed. Suddenly, the show had morphed from hilarious, yet profound to cynical and cheap, leaving fans wondering just what had happened along the way.