Top 10 The Simpsons Episodes with the Worst Ending
For every great ending The Simpsons delivers, there are plenty that fall flat. You know the ones, those endings that leave everything unresolved, feel like a slap in the face, or just make no sense at all.
Sometimes it feels like the writers just ran out of time and wrapped things up in the laziest way possible. Other times the final moments of an episode completely undercut everything that came before it.
That doesn't mean every episode on this list is bad from start to finish. Some are actually pretty good right up until the last scene ruins everything. Maybe the resolution feels cheap. Maybe it forces a joke that doesn't land. Or maybe it makes you wonder why you just spent 22 minutes watching in the first place.
Whatever the case, these endings left fans scratching their heads or, worse, outright annoyed.
-
Miracle on Evergreen Terrace
Unable to get the town their money back, the Simpsons return home and find everyone looting their house. Not wanting to stay mad at them, the townspeople decide instead to break into their home and take all of their stuff, leaving them with nothing but a wash rag, which the family all fight over.
Worst episode ever. And Season 9 was the worst season of the Golden Age (1-10).
One of my least favorite endings in Simpsons history.
-
The Principal and the Pauper
In a jump the shark moment, it's revealed that the man everyone knows as Seymour Skinner is actually an impostor who took the identity of a soldier he served with in Vietnam. The real Seymour Skinner returns home to reclaim his life. At the end of the episode, they strap the real Seymour Skinner to a train and ride him out of town, making the impostor the official Seymour Skinner. They just sweep everything under the rug, making the whole episode entirely pointless.
Worst episode ever. Even the creator of The Simpsons despised this episode.
Non-canon.
-
Lisa Goes Gaga
-
The Frying Game
That was such a mean-spirited ending. It made us believe that Homer was going to die for real until it was all a big setup for a freakin' game show. It's like they were trying for something dark but ended up goofing off and adding an unnecessary guest star, to boot. And that guest star is big-breasted actor Carmen Electra.
The ending is just one big cop-out, revealing that everything Homer and Marge went through was all part of a prank reality show.
-
Treehouse of Horror XVIII
-
The Squirt and the Whale
-
Day of the Jackanapes
-
Kill Gil, Volumes I & II
Gil gets fired after he gives away a special doll to Lisa that was supposed to go to his boss's daughter. The Simpsons invite him to stay, but he quickly overstays his welcome. When Marge is finally ready to tell him off, he's already gone. Instead of just being glad he's finally gone, she tracks him down at his job where he's successful, tears into him for overstaying his welcome, and gets him fired again.
I don't hate the episode as much as many in the fandom. I'm neutral. But it's ridiculous that Marge claims she never says "no."
-
Brother's Little Helper
The ending really makes no sense. After Bart goes completely bonkers, stealing a tank and shooting down a Major League Baseball satellite containing documents on everyone in Springfield, Mark McGwire shows up, distracts everyone with a long home run, and steals the documents, hiding them under his hat.
-
The Ziff Who Came to Dinner
-
?
Strong Arms of the Ma
-
?
This Little Wiggy
-
Large Marge
-
Flaming Moe's
-
Apocalypse Cow
-
The Boys of Bummer
Despite its flaws, it's still a decent episode, despite the cruelty.
-
My Big Fat Geek Wedding
-
Homer's Enemy
Imagine driving a man crazy because the other is incompetent. Imagine the incompetent one doesn't even want to work as a safety inspector or technical supervisor. He was better at his dream job, pin monkey. Imagine you had to quit your dream job to go back to your most hated job for more money.
The episode was good, but the ending really comes off as dark and mean-spirited. Frank Grimes has a meltdown while trying to prove to everyone what an idiot Homer is and accidentally kills himself. During his funeral, Homer, while asleep, asks Marge to change the channel, and everyone laughs, praising Homer as Frank Grimes's casket is lowered, turning his funeral into an afterthought.
-
Wild Barts Can't Be Broken
A curfew is put into effect for all the kids in Springfield thanks to Homer and his drunk friends destroying the school, with the kids being blamed for it. The kids get back at them by revealing all of their secrets via radio. When the adults find out, it leads to a standoff between the two groups, until all the senior citizens get tired of the noise and impose a curfew for everyone under 70, as all of the seniors voted and Homer didn't.
-
Trash of the Titans
After Homer carelessly dumps trash right under Springfield, the trash begins rising up, completely covering the town in garbage. As a last resort, the whole town is moved miles down the road, and the old Springfield is left a complete dump as a Native American looks on in horror at the now-trashed old Springfield.
This was one of the main reasons why I despise this episode. It is my least favorite episode of the season, although I enjoyed the scenes with U2 in them.
-
Kiss Kiss, Bang Bangalore
-
Bart vs. Itchy & Scratchy
-
Three Men and a Comic Book
I loved the episode, but in the end, you feel really bad for Bart, Milhouse, and Martin. After putting their money together to buy the rare Radioactive Man #1 comic, they end up fighting among themselves, and the comic gets destroyed in a very hilarious and cruel way. It ends up out in the rain as Santa's Little Helper tears it apart and, just for kicks, gets destroyed by lightning.
-
The Twisted World of Marge Simpson
The ending feels like it stopped out of nowhere and should have continued. The ending was too weak and could have been written much better. Otherwise, it was a solid episode.
That was hardly even an ending at all.
-
The Wife Aquatic
-
Who Shot Mr. Burns? (Part Two)
Canon ending: Maggie Simpson shot Mr. Burns.
Non-canon ending: Waylon Smithers shot Mr. Burns.
-
Little Girl in the Big Ten