History EarlyInstallmentWeirdness / TheSimpsons

* Krusty himself often seemed more genuinely childlike and hyperactive in early episodes ("[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS2E9ItchyAndScratchyAndMarge Itchy and Scratchy and Marge]]" shows him having trouble not playing to the kids when trying to have a more serious discussion on air), compared to the acerbic, money hungry NiceCharacterMeanActor he is in most modern episodes. Bart's refusal to believe he could commit armed robbery in "Krusty Gets Busted" didn't quite age well, as Krusty getting into legal hot water through his ''own'' fault isn't uncommon in his later appearances. In "Krusty Gets Busted" and "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS3E6LikeFatherLikeClown Like Father, Like Clown]]", Krusty is shown having flesh colored skin underneath his makeup, whereas in later seasons Krusty's pale face and red nose are a medical condition resulting from heart disease and chain smoking and Krusty has to wear makeup to look normal.

* The first season was the only season with no Halloween episodes and had 13 episodes instead of at least 20.

* The show in its early years were ''much'' more cautious about how it used its SpecialGuest stars. Season 1 had only a couple of celebrity guests, none of whom played themselves. Season 2 was a bit more experimental, but only slightly so: despite the quantity of guests increasing, just three of them play themselves (Creator/TonyBennett, Music/RingoStarr, and Creator/LarryKing) and all of them remain distant from the events of the plot--Ringo Starr and Larry King never interact directly with the Simpsons family, and Tony Bennett only does so as a one-off gag. Season 3 marks the point where the show fully embraced the celebrity guest as an almost episodic tradition, with an increasing number of guests playing themselves and interacting with the main cast.

** Bart skateboards past a group of unknown Springfieldians waiting for a bus. He picks up the bus stop sign and the group chases the bus after it passes them. There are also no other recurring characters on the sidewalk when he skateboards, except Krusty's face appearing on TVs; this scene would incorporate more character appearances as the side characters got larger roles in the show.

* The [[OffModel off model designs]] of the Simpsons for the shorts. They were poorly drawn animations of facial caricatures and were gradually swapped for the current designs. They were [[MeetYourEarlyInstallmentWeirdness brought back on occasion]] to show how far they've come, such as in the last segment of "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS26E4TreehouseOfHorrorXXV Treehouse of Horror XXV]]".

** Similarly, other adult characters would have ''[[WesternAnimation/TheFlintstones Flintstones]]''-style beards like Homer. Other than Abe, Krusty[[note]]who was [[TheArtifact originally]] supposed to ''be'' Homer in disguise[[/note]], Herb Powell, and Lenny, no one else but Homer should have it.

''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' has changed a lot over its 30+ years on the air.

''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' has changed a lot over its 34 years on the air.

* In his debut episode, "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS1E5BartTheGeneral Bart the General]]" (as well as his only appearance in Season 1), Nelson Muntz is a genuinely sadistic bully who [[TheDreaded scares away everybody]], and targets Bart [[JerkasstoOne especially]]. In subsequent episodes, he became far more well-known for his mockery of other characters' misfortunes with his iconic laughter ("Ha-ha!") and for being a dim-witted, mean-spirited delinquent with a soft side underneath. He also becomes a friend of Bart's in later episodes (though their friendship is very inconsistent), with Milhouse van Houten and Martin Prince becoming his new bullying targets.

* Krusty himself often seemed more genuinely childlike and hyperactive in early episodes ("[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS2E9ItchyAndScratchyAndMarge Itchy and Scratchy and Marge]]" shows him having trouble not playing to the kids when trying to have a more serious discussion on air), compared to the acerbic, money hungry NiceCharacterMeanActor he is in most modern episodes. In "Krusty Gets Busted" and "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS3E6LikeFatherLikeClown Like Father, Like Clown]]", Krusty is shown having flesh colored skin underneath his makeup, whereas in later seasons Krusty's pale face and red nose are a medical condition resulting from heart disease and chain smoking and Krusty has to wear makeup to look normal.

** Bart skateboards past a group of unknown Springfieldians waiting for a bus. He picks up the bus stop sign and the group chases the bus after it passes them.

** "Some Enchanted Evening" - the first episode written and produced, and meant to be the first to air - is notable in that it doesn't have a "true" CouchGag. The family rushes in, sits on the couch, and -- aside from Bart blinking twice and Marge blinking once -- that's it. The intent was that the pilot would play this scene straight, then every subsequent episode would [[TropeNamer play with or subvert it]]. The only other episode with this "gag" is "The Call of the Simpsons".

** Similarly, other adult characters would have ''[[WesternAnimation/TheFlintstones Flintstones]]''-style beards like Homer. Other than Abe, Krusty, Herb Powell, and Lenny, no one else but Homer should have it.

* Homer is not nearly so dumb in the earlier episodes, though he does mix up his facts (when he told Bart that UsefulNotes/AlbertEinstein turned himself all different colors when he invented the light bulb) and does initially come off as clueless to his wife's and children's emotional problems. He tends to be portrayed as rash and overly angry in the early episodes, in contrast to later episodes which tend towards depicting him as happy-go-lucky and easygoing. He is also not as much the BreakOutCharacter as he would become in later seasons.

* Homer is not nearly so dumb in the earlier episodes, though he does mix up his facts (when he told Bart that UsefulNotes/AlbertEinstein turned himself all different colors when he invented the light bulb) and does initially come off as clueless to his wife's and children's emotional problems. He is also not as much the BreakOutCharacter as he would become in later seasons.

* The overall dynamic in early episodes was that the Simpson family were dysfunctional misfits who failed to fit in among their relatively normal social group. As more and more supporting characters were established however, the premise became that the ''entirety'' of Springfield was a barely functioning {{CloudCuckooLand}}, with the Simpsons no more manic or incompetent than everyone else (and in some cases even the OnlySaneMan). This is particularly evident with Bart and Homer's dynamics in Springfield Elementary and the Nuclear Plant respectively, in early episodes they were singled out as exceptional failures, in later ones the joke is that the entire faculty is so corrupt and incompetent that they are simply another dent on their bad track record.

** Similarly, other adult characters would have Flintstones-style beards like Homer. Other than Abe, Herb Powell and Lenny, no one else but Homer should have it.

* In particular, there's "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS1E4TheresNoDisgraceLikeHome There's No Disgrace Like Home]]" (in which '''''Marge''''' embarrasses the family by getting drunk in public and '''''Homer''''' is actually ashamed of his family being dysfunctional. Later episodes, like "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS2E20TheWarOfTheSimpsons The War of the Simpsons]]" and "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS8E9ElViajeMisteriosoDeNuestroJomer The Mysterious Voyage of Homer]]" would have it the other way around). The writers' commentary cheerfully admits that pretty much everything in the episode is "wrong" compared to later seasons (except for the personalities of Bart and the ancillary/supporting characters, like Moe, [[ThoseTwoGuys Officers Eddie and Lou]], and Dr. Marvin Monroe), though that still doesn't stop it from having a scene that continues to be extremely popular (the climax where The Simpsons give each other electro-shock therapy and cause rolling blackouts all over the city).

* The early seasons were inconsistent with the Simpsons' home address before settling with 742 Evergreen Terrace. In Season 3's "Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington", mail addressed to Homer lists 94 as the house number. Season 4's "New Kid On the Block" has Bart give the address as 1094. "Homer's Triple Bypass" which is also in the fourth season actually has 742 Evergreen Terrace being the address for Snake Jailbird, who's house is next to Reverend Lovejoy's. In at least one case, the address given was completely different (430 Spalding Way)
* The overall dynamic in early episodes was that the Simpson family were dysfunctional misfits who failed to fit in among their relatively normal social group. As more and more supporting characters were established however, the premise became that the ''entirety'' of Springfield was a barely functioning {{CloudCuckooLand}}, with the Simpsons no more manic or incompetent than everyone else (and in some cases even the OnlySaneMan). This is particularly evident with Bart and Homer's dynamics in Springfield Elementary and the Nuclear Plant respectively, in early episodes they were singled out as exceptional failures, in later ones the joke is that the entire faculty is so corrupt and incompetent that they are simply another dent on their bad track record.

* One of the original shorts had Bart attempting to steal a bunch of candy bars from a store, then showing zero to no remorse for it even as Marge chews him out on it. This feels downright surreal given Bart would later establish there are lines he (generally) won't cross and him stealing something [[Recap/TheSimpsonsS7E11MargeBeNotProud would be taken much more seriously in the show proper]].