http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/simpsons-the-couch-4100447.jpg

''"D'OH!!!"''

Currently (2009-2010) in its 21st season, ''TheSimpsons'' first aired from 1987 to 1989 as a series of animated shorts on ''TheTraceyUllmanShow''. Unofficially known as "Season 0," the original 48 ad-bumpers kicked off what is now well established as one of television's all-time classic series (which premiered December 1989). It has been recently signed for a ''twenty-first'' season- this will make it the longest-running prime-time sitcom in the US (worldwide that honour belongs to ''LastOfTheSummerWine'').

Depicting the animated adventures of the upper-lower-middle class Simpson family, the show started as a parody of DomCom conventions, but quickly incorporated elements of social satire, pop-culture references, and a mix of highbrow and lowbrow humor that has kept it popular year after year. Several tropes were actually developed or at least named by this show. Originally the show focused most of its attention on 10 year old Bart Simpson, but his dad Homer gradually took on being the most consistent protagonist.

One reason for the show's longevity is the massive cast of over 100 recurring characters it has built up over time, allowing the writers to work with a rich variety of relationships and milieus. Another thing that has established ''The Simpsons'' as being unique is an absolute refusal to acknowledge the passing of time. Bart has [[NotAllowedToGrowUp remained 10 years old]] and in general the show employs an active NegativeContinuity, sometimes even [[LampshadeHanging acknowledged in the show.]]

Roughly from about Seasons 4 - 10, ''The Simpsons'' was considered one of the most consistantly, amazingly funny TV Shows ever produced. However, times have changed. While some fans insist that even on an off week ''The Simpsons'' remains funnier than almost anything else on broadcast television, it is generally considered that the show has JumpedTheShark somewhere along the way. Viewership has decreased significantly over the recent seasons. Just ask {{Wikipedia}} - [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Simpsons#Criticism_of_declining_quality they'll tell you]].

[[TheMovie A ''Simpsons'' feature film]] was released in summer 2007. Perhaps not surprisingly, [[BrokenBase reactions were mixed]], with some fans claiming it to be on the level of the Golden Age episodes, and some considering it just an extra long Tarnished Age episode. It also introduced a character by the name of [[MemeticMutation Spider Pig]].

Check out [[Characters/TheSimpsons this character sheet]] for more info on FOX's "first family" of animation.

Many of the same people are also responsible for ''{{Futurama}}'' and while it certainly takes some comedic cues from this show, it is a far cry from a ''Simpsons'' clone.

Matt Groening has said he created the core family members in ''TheTraceyUllmanShow'''s production office waiting room after realizing he didn't want to sign the rights to his ''LifeInHell'' characters over to RupertMurdoch.

In 2009 the show began its 21st season, officially dethroning {{Gunsmoke}} as the longest running primetime American television series of all time (although SesameStreet, among others, still retains an even longer run with 40 seasons).
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'''[[TropeNamers Tropes Named]]:'''
* CheeseEatingSurrenderMonkeys
* CloseEnoughTimeline (Treehouse of Horror V)
* CouchGag (started the trend)
* DeanBitterman (the Dean in one-off ShowWithinAShow "School of Hard Knockers")
* {{Flanderization}} (Ned Flanders used to be only ''mildly'' religious, in that he was a typical "good American" who enjoyed going to to church on Sundays in earlier seasons. Other characters have been hit with it over the years.)
* GogglesDoNothing (Those goggles won't protect your eyes from real acid, Radioactive Man.)
* {{Jerkass}} (Used as a throwaway gag, then adapted by fans to describe Homer's CharacterDerailment.)
* {{Kwyjibo}} (Bart made up the word to cheat at Scrabble.)
* KentBrockmanNews
* TheKrusty
* LegitimateBusinessmensSocialClub (Fat Tony et al)
* MayorOfAGhostTown
* MyBelovedSmother (Agnes Skinner)
* PerfectlyCromulentWord ("Embiggens" is one.)
* ThePoochie (The character that named it was actually a parody of this type of character.)
* RalphWiggum
* {{Retirony}}
* StupidSexyFlanders (It feels like Ned Flanders is wearing nothing at all! Nothing at all! ''Nothing at all!'')
* TrashOfTheTitans
* WhereTheHellIsSpringfield (Does anybody know? The characters just won't tell us.)
* AWizardDidIt (used by Lucy Lawless to explain continuity errors in XenaWarriorPrincess)
* YouMightRememberMeFrom (such trope pages as ''this one''.)
* YouWannaGetSued (Bart had the "shin'''n'''ing" in that one HalloweenEpisode, not the "shining". Get it right, people!)

'''Tropes Used:''' (among [[ItsBeenDone many,]] [[TropeOverdosed many]] [[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/relatedsearch.php?term=Main/TheSimpsons others]])
* TheAhnold (Rainier Wolfcastle. [[ArnoldSchwarzenegger The original]] makes an appearance as ''President'' Schwarzenegger in TheMovie, although, fittingly, he isn't really [[TheAhnold an Ahnold]] in this appearance.)
* AliensSpeakingEnglish (Subverted the hell out of with Kang, Kodos, and their [[StarfishAliens entire species]]: They are actually speaking Rigelian, which just ''happens'' to be identical to English.)
* AllGirlsLikePonies (including Lisa)
* TheAllegedCar (many examples, especially the car Crazy Vaclav tries to sell Homer in "Mr. Plow")
** ''Put it in H! Put it in H!'
* AmbiguouslyGay (Lenny and Carl in later seasons)
* AmusingInjuries (Homer suffers many of them. So does Hans Moleman.)
* ArsonMurderAndJaywalking (the Trope formerly known as "BusFullOfNuns")
* ArtEvolution - The oldest episodes seem remarkably crude, when compared to the standard of the more recent ones.
* ArtShift - If you notice, the Itchy and Scratchy cartoon "Spherical on 34th Street" is animated differently.
* AsianStoreOwner (Apu)
* AwesomeMcCoolname (Max Power! He's the man whose name you'd love to touch, but you musn't touch!)
** Bart has stated that when he grows up he plans to change his name to Joe Kickass, a name that is so cool Homer doesn't mind that it will be the end of the Simpson family.
* {{Badass}} (It's a bit of a RunningGag that Maggie Simpson is the most {{Badass}} member of the family.)
** Strangely, Homer shows some elements of this, especially in TheMovie. At least, I'd call knocking out a soldier in one punch and climbing up the side of a dome with just glue fairly badass. In the main series, he's often got involved in car chases that required him to kick someones ass.
* BawdySong (apparently, limericks about Nantucket qualify)
* [[{{ptitle1eleupbqazrw}} Beat Still, My Heart]] (In China, a monk pulls out Homer's heart and shows it to him. In another episode, Bart has a dream about his crush throwing away his heart after she told him she had a boyfriend.)
* BeardOfSorrow: Homer
* BecomingTheCostume -- in a Treehouse of Horror short
* BigBad - Charles Montgomery Burns
* BlandNameProduct (Malibu Stacy, obviously based on Malibu {{Barbie}})
* BonnieScotland (Groundskeeper Willie)
* BookDumb (Bart)
* BootCampEpisode (Bart is sent to MilitarySchool for doing mischief, Lisa joins.)
* BracesOfOrthodonticOverkill (the Trope formerly known as "LisaNeedsBraces")
* BrainySpecs (Homer finds glasses in one episode and immediately starts acting smart, even though the math he starts reciting is nonsense.)
** His screw-up itself was a ShoutOut to ''TheWizardOfOz'', where the Scarecrow makes the same mistake (uncorrected).
* BratsWithSlingshots: Bart Simpson (although he uses his slingshot less of late)
* BribeBackfire
**Wiggum: I hope you're not suggesting that I would take that necklace as a bribe. Think again, dirtbag, cause I can swipe it later from the evidence locker.
* BrokenRecord (Can't sleep clown will eat me)
** "Dental plan." "Lisa needs braces."
* BrilliantButLazy (Also Bart, unless he actually is dumb)
* BullyHunter: Bart pulls the trope off in "Bart the General" when he and the entire class bombard Nelson and his gang with balloons until they surrender... literally, as in sign a treaty.
** Martin Prince in the movie when he gets his own back on the bullies. See the entry on {{Crowning Moment of Awesome}}.
* BumblingDad (Homer)
* ButtMonkey (Quite a few, actually: Hans Moleman, Millhouse, and Gil)
** And there's Homer himself...
* CanonImmigrant: WordOfGod says that Milhouse was actually created for the ''Simpsons'' Butterfinger advertisements.
* CaptivityHarmonica (In an episode one of the kids play it while on the bus to a particularly dull school day. In another an actual prisoner lampshades this.)
* CardCarryingVillain (While Mr. Burns only called himself 'completely evil' once, and that was in the context of him wanting to go overboard from saying he's a [[AllGirlsWantBadBoys 'bad boy']] after [[spoiler:his girlfriend left him for Snake]], he does seem pretty damn aware that the various plans he has aren't very nice.)
* CatchPhrase (so many over the years)
** Lampooned in one episode, where everyone who had a catchprase appeared to belt it out. Then the entire group looks to Lisa, who's never had a catchprase.
-->'''Lisa:''' ''I'll be in my room.''
-->'''Homer:''' ''What kind of catchphrase is that?''
** Mocked in another episode when Lisa uses Bart's early catchphrases "ay carumba" and "don't have a cow, man". When he complains to Marge, she points out that he hasn't used it in years.
* CharacterDerailment: Homer went from a bumbling and oblivious but ultimately loving and well meaning husband and father to an unsympathetic jerk with no redeeming traits. Fans refer to the first as "Classic Homer" and the second as "Jerkass Homer". Homer is not the only altered character, but for the sake of peace let us leave this entry with the least controversial example.
* ChekhovsGun (feet in "Krusty Gets Busted")
* ChristianRock (Flanders is seeing a Christian Rock singer.)
* ChristmasEpisode (several of them, including the series premiere)
* CloserToEarth (To the point where, in the episode "Lisa The Simpson", Lisa discovers that the Simpson bloodline has a hereditary gene that causes severe intelligence loss with age, ultimately dooming the family to unsuccessful, moronic lives... except it ''[[WallBanger only affects the men]]''. All the women are smart and successful. This is presented as a happy ending, despite Bart's rightful concern for his future.)
* ConcealingCanvas (in Mr. Burns' mansion)
* ConsolationWorldRecord (in the episode Sweets and Sour Marge)
* CosmopolitanCouncil (The Republican Party in Springfield)
* CrowningMomentOfAwesome In the movie, thinking everyone is going to be blown up, Martin takes his revenge on his bullies, and it is amazing.
* CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming Both involve Maggie Simpson. First was her first word, [[spoiler: after Homer had lamented a few times throughout the episode that Bart and Lisa both called him Homer more often than Dad, her first word? "Daddy"]]. The other was the ending of the episode where Homer explains the circumstances of Maggie's birth, to clarify why there were no pictures of Maggie around the house. He'd been given a plaque when he went back to the plant, which stated "Don't forget: you're here forever", which [[spoiler: he'd altered using pictures of Maggie to read [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppJN-HM5KHQ "Do it for her."]]]]
* TheCruella (Mr. Burns of course)
* CryingIndian (At the end of Trash of the Titans, Chief catches an empty potato chip bag and sheds a single tear. His friend advises him not to look behind him, as behind him is the ruins of Springfield covered in garbage)
* CutHisHeartOutWithASpoon (Mostly Moe)
* DadaAd (Parodied)
* DanceSensation ("Do the Bartman")
* DeadBabyComedy (Progressively more so as the show loses the warm heart it once had)
* DeadManWriting ("Homer's Odyssey", "I Married Marge"; parodied in "Half-Decent Proposal")
* DeadPersonImpersonation (Principal Skinner, or rather Armin Tamzarian. The episode lead to one of the most explicit uses of NegativeContinuity in the series, with a judge ordering everyone never to speak of the incident (the return of the real Skinner) under pain of torture)
** Lampshaded in the episode ''I (Annoyed Grunt)-Bot'' with the following conversation:
-->'''Lisa:''' I'm keeping you! You're Snowball V, but to save money on a new dish, we'll just call you Snowball II and pretend this whole thing never happened.
-->'''Principal Skinner:''' That's really a cheat, isn't it?
-->'''Lisa:''' I guess you're right, ''Principal Tamzarian''.
-->'''Principal Skinner:''' I'll just be moving along, Lisa. Snowball II.
* DepravedKidsShowHost (Krusty. The. Clown.)
* DepthDeception (Leading to Kent Brockman welcoming his alien overlords)
* DesperatelyLookingForAPurposeInLife (Homer)
* DidNotDoTheResearch (Juan Peron was democratically elected despite what E Pluribus Wiggum states)
* DisasterDominoes (frequently)
* DisContinuity (The episode "The Principal and the Pauper", as well as being {{Hand Wave}}d out of canon at the end of the episode, is widely hated and disregarded by fans)
** Plus, Matt Groening has said himself that it's his least favorite episode (on the DVD, no less!)
** Another much-hated episode is "A Star is Burns," not so much for being poorly written, but for being made pretty much to advertise ''TheCritic''. ''Simpsons'' fans hated it for that reason, Groening had his creator's credit removed from the episode, and even fans of ''The Critic'' didn't like the episode, mostly due to the fact that Jay Sherman was shown acting completely out of character, becoming an uber-talented nice guy.
* DisneyCreaturesOfTheFarce (The sex scene in the movie is an obvious send up of classic ''Snow White'' and ''Sleeping Beauty'' moments.
** Also, in "Homer the Heretic", after he finds religion, Homer is frustrated by the animals that flock to him whenever he goes outside.
* DoesNotLikeMen (Patty & Selma, especially if said "men" are anything like Homer)
* DudeNotFunny The several onscreen deaths during the BigDamnMovie, a late in the movie stoner joke involving Otto and "Baby Blaster". It might be a comedy, but there's only so far you can get with RuleOfFunny.
* EccentricTownsfolk (Pretty much all of Springfield)
* EverythingsBetterWithSparkles (Mr. Sparkle)
* EvilOldFolks (While most of the senior citizens are just cranky and incompetent, Mr. Burns is evil enough for all of them.)
* EvilTwin (In a non-canon Treehouse of Horror episode, Bart has a twin named Hugo. Turns out Bart's the actual evil twin)
-->'''Bart''': Oh, don't look so shocked.
* EyeScream (Regularly in Itchy & Scratchy, but at least once Homer nearly gets his eye sucked out of its socket)
* EyeShock (In one of the Halloween specials where Bart and Lisa are caught inside Itchy & Scratchy's show.)
* FailedAttemptAtDrama (Mr. Burn's attempted SmokeOut goes wrong and ends with him angrily throwing the money he was attempting to steal)
** Several times in "Homer to the Max"
* FakingTheDead (Done by Homer and Krusty in different episodes)
* FanDumb - been around so long that even ''professional'' reviewers get away with outstandingly negative reviews over the most trivial crap. Amusingly put into the series itself with the Comic Book Guy.
* [[FellOffTheBackofATruck Fell Off The Back Of A Truck-Truck-Truck]] (It really did!)
* {{Fetish}} (Marge seems to have a thing for Homer's bomber jacket he wore as "Mr. Plow.")
* {{Fiction 500}} (Mr. Burns)
* ForgotToFeedTheMonster (Mr. Burns' League of Evil)
* ForInconveniencePressOne (in "Bart of Darkness")
* FormerTeenRebel (Principal Skinner)
* FourFingeredHands (endlessly lampshaded)
* FullyAutomaticClipShow (several examples in the clip show episodes)
* FunnyForeigner (Apu, Uter, Groundskeeper Willie)
* FurBikini (During the opening of a show called "Eye On Springfield")
* GenreSavvy (Various characters have been known to demonstrate this on the rare occasions they fumble the idiot ball)
* GentlemanThief (Malloy in "Homer the Vigilante")
* GeographicFlexibility (Springfield has it in spades)
* GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff (Lisa, who isn't particularly well liked in the USA, is the most popular character in the show in Japan)
* GoLookAtTheDistraction: Reverend Lovejoy getting Ned to leave by telling him about a saint-shaped oil stain.
* GoodAngelBadAngel: I am evil Homer~! I am evil Homer~!
* GoodOlBoy (The Rich Texan)
* GoshdangItToHeck (Flanders, until a RantInducingSlight "broke" him; the earlier season had a pseudo-version because most of that language ''was'' considered horrible for TV then)
* GossipyHens (Mainly Helen Lovejoy)
* GrammarNazi (Linguo, Lisa's science project in "Trilogy of Error")
* GRatedDrug - lots
* GroupieBrigade (of elderly female opera fans in "Homer of Seville")
* HalfwayPlotSwitch (Constantly. Even lampshaded a few times)
* HalloweenEpisode (The annual ''Treehouse of Horror'' episodes)
* HangingJudge (Judge Constance Harm, a ''JudgeJudy'' parody)
* HappilyMarried (Homer and Marge sorta, Ned and Maude [[YouShouldKnowThisAlready until she dies]])
* HeadTiltinglyKinky (In the movie, with the sex scene)
** Kinky? Wasn't that just a joke on how people having sex would be {{Squick}} to animals?
* TheHedonist (one early episode has a self-help guru convince everyone in the town to be like this. It ends badly)
* HeroesWantRedHeads (in the movie, Lisa falls for an Irish boy)
* HeterosexualLifePartners (Lenny and Carl, anyone?)
* HeyIsThatStillOn (Seasons 11-13 had several meta-jokes about the show ending soon, running out of ideas, etc. These fell by the wayside as the seasons just kept piling on with no end in sight.)
* {{Housewife}} (Marge)
* HoYay: Lenny and Carl. Also [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]].
--> '''Lenny:''' I can't tell where Carl ends and I begin!
--> '''Carl:''' See, comments like those is why people think we're gay.
* TheHyena (Dr. Hibbert)
* HypocrisyNod (Sideshow Bob makes one of these in his televised rant against television)
* HypocriticalHumor (far too many usages to count)
** Any "outsourcing" jokes, considering the animation of the show is done in South Korea.
* IgnoredEpiphany (Burns has had a few of these about treating people better)
* IHaveNoSon (parodied by Krusty's dad)
* {{ILLKILLYOU}} -- ''The Shinning''
-->'''Homer:''' Hmm. Cable's out. Think I'll have a beer. Hmm. Not a drop in the house. What do you know.
-->'''Marge:''' Homer, I'm impressed! You're taking this quite well.
-->'''Homer:''' I'LL KILL YOU! I'LL KILL ALL OF YOU!!!
** Mayor Quimby's nephew is on trial for allegedly beating a waiter half to death (MakesSenseInContext:
----> '''Quimby's Lawyer:''' Are you a violent man?
----> '''Quimby's Nephew:''' [rehearsed lines] Of course not. I love each and every creature on God's green Earth.
----> '''Quimby's Lawyer:''' Then ''surely'' you would never lose your temper over something as trivial as the pronunciation of the word "chowder"?
----> '''Quimby's Nephew:''' THAT'S CHOW-DAH!! CHOW-DAH!! I'LL KILL YOU!! I'LL KILL ALL OF YOU!! ESPECIALLY THOSE OF YOU IN THE JURY!!
* ImagineTheAudienceNaked (used twice)
* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice - Mel Gibson's guest appearance.
* IncrediblyLamePun: ''Nightmare on Evergreen Terrace'' -- WordOfGod said so.
--> '''Willie:''' ''[to a Latin speaking Martin]'' You may have mastered a dead tongue, but can you handle a live one?! ''[strangles Martin with his tongue, Freddy Kruger-style]''
* IndestructibleEdible - "Foolish customer! You cannot harm a Twinkie!"
* InstantWebHit - The ''Angry Dad'' video
* InstrumentOfMurder (Julia's blowgun/baton in "Homer of Seville")
* ItsAllMyFault ("I called him a dumb dog")
* IWantMyJetPack - the episode "Lisa's Wedding."
* IWouldSayIfICouldSay
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold - Homer and Bart are the most prominent, but characters ranging from Moe to Willie to Nelson have all demonstrated this trait at one point or another.
* JumpTheShark - Not only the current state of the show according to many fans, but as a sight gag parodying the concept within the show.
* JuryOfTheDamned - Halloween episode "The Devil and Homer Simpson."
* JustIgnoreIt - Halloween episode "Attack of the 50-Foot Eyesores."
* KangarooPouchRide - During their trip to Australia. Bart and Homer try to ride a kangaroo but the pouch is full of slime.
* KidsAreCruel (Gave the page its quote)
* LastDayToLive When Homer was believed to have eaten a poisoned fish at a Japanese restaurant.
* LevelAte (Homer's Land of Chocolate)
* LifeImitatesArt (The [[http://albuquerque.isotopes.milb.com/index.jsp?sid=t342 Albuquerque Isotopes]] AAA baseball team.)
* LiveActionAdaptation (A [[http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8008463048690287283&q=live+simpsons&pl=true live version of the opening credits]] was created in 2006 as a promotional short in the UK.)
* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters (Over one hundred and counting)
* LongRunners (It will pass {{Gunsmoke}} with its 21st season.)
* LongSpeechTeaTime -- (Marge just gets ready for bed while Homer rambles off all the jobs he had before his bodyguard gig, including "hippie," "Smithers," and "homophobe.")
* LosingYourHead (Homer in "Treehouse of Horror XVI")
* ManOfAThousandVoices (Dan Castellaneta, Harry Shearer and Hank Azaria qualify for that trope from their work on this show alone.)
* MakeOutPoint (Springfield being what it is, it overlooks the nuclear plant)
* MalignantTumor (It's the standard plot format)
* {{McLeaned}} (Maggie Roswell/"Maude Flanders". Maggie eventually came back, but Maude Flanders is still dead.)
* MediumBlending (The 3D CGI Homer and live action bits in Treehouse of Horror VI)
** 3D CGI and claymation are also used when the characters watch parodies of Pixar, Davey and Goliath, the California Grapes, etc.
* MemeticMutation (Some of the catchphrases)
* MetaGuy (Comic Book Guy)
* TheMovie (with the creative title of ''The Simpsons Movie'')
* MurderByCremation ("Funeral for a Fiend")
* MushroomSamba (a few episodes, but "El Viaje Misterioso de Nuestro Jomer" is the most well-known)
* MyCard (Malloy again)
* MysteriousInformant (Smithers, in the "Who Shot Mr. Burns?" two-part episode)
* MysteryBox (what Mr. Burns tries to bribe some safety inspectors with)
* NegativeContinuity (for some details, such as whatever reason Homer is dumb)
* NewAgeRetroHippie (Homer's mom Mona, although she's much more sympathetic and less out-there than many [=NARTHs=])
* NewJobEpisode (More than any other franchise, ever)
* NightmareFuel (Yes, not even Our Favorite Family is immune to this stuff. We're looking at you, ''Treehouse of Horror''.)
* NoAccountingForTaste (Marge's marriage to Homer has been seriously questioned in the show several times, and compared to her taking care of a Manatee... ''unfavorably'' compared, since when she cared for them they gave her a sense of usefulness and accomplishment.)
* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed ([[strike: Arnold Schwarzenegger]] Rainier Wolfcastle and [[strike: Mike Tyson]] Drederick Tatum, to name two.)
* NoseTapping
* NoTimeToThink: In "Homer Defined", Homer uses "Eeny, meeny, miney, moe" to guess which button to press to prevent the nuclear reactor from melting down. Successfully. ''Twice.''
* NotAllowedToGrowUp: In a mock behind-the-scenes exposé, Lisa accuses the producers of slipping her "anti-growth hormones."
* NotWhatISignedOnFor: The original settlers of Springfield and Shelbyville split into two feuding groups when some of them found out their pilgrimage ''wasn't'' about getting to [[KissingCousins marry their cousins]].
* ObjectCeilingCling: Bart sticks a waffle onto the ceiling, which Homer mistakes for God. Marge pries the waffle off the ceiling and Homer eats it.
** "Mmmm, sacrelicious."
* ObnoxiousInLaws (Patty & Selma)
* OddCouple: Homer and Marge, obviously.
**Also, Homer and Skinner while they are "sequestered" due to a jury "deadlock". Skinner points this out. Homer tells him to shut up.
* OddlySmallOrganization (All over the place, but most often the Springfield Police and Mafia)
* {{Omniglot}}: Bart and Homer share the ability to rapidly become fluent in any language they encounter.
* OpiumDen (in a ''Treehouse of Horror'' segment)
* OurFounder: Jebediah Springfield
* OvenLogic (Marge and her Raisin Sponge Cake)
* OverlyNarrowSuperlative: Lisa calls ''Yertle The Turtle'' "possibly the best book written on the subject of turtle stacking".
* OverlyLongGag: Used ''very sparingly'' in the early seasons, and up to a couple of times ''per episode'' in more recent ones.
* PingPongNaivete (Bart)
* {{Playboy}}: The cover girl for the November 2009 issue? [[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/8300463.stm Marge Simpson herself.]]
** [[BrainBleach AUGGGHGHHHHHHHHHHH CANNOT UNSEE]]
* TheProblemWithLicensedGames (with few exceptions, most ''Simpsons'' games are terrible. The arcade game, however, is regarded as a classic.)
** The more recent ''Simpsons Hit & Run'' is also viewed in much the same light as the arcade game.
** As is ''The Simpsons Game'' which was decent and had some genuinely hilarious moments.
* PushPopPlot - the episode "The Seemingly Never-Ending Story."
* RearWindowInvestigation, RearWindowWitness ("Bart of Darkness")
* RebusBubble ('''Homer + Beer = [[spoiler:Car Crash]] President Homer''')
* RetroactiveWish ("I sure hope there isn't an ice-cream round!")
* RiddleForTheAges (How Mr. Burns beat Bart and Lisa to the bottom of a laundry chute)
** (And how Grandpa took off his underwear without taking off his pants)
* ScreamsLikeALittleGirl (Homer does it the most, but Ned's is higher-pitched)
* SeeYouInHell ("...from Heaven")
* SelectiveEnforcement (The Trope formerly known as FlamingCobraSugarCellar)
* SelfServingMemory - In $pringfield, when Homer accuses Marge of being against the casino, flashes back to a very bizarre scene. Also used by Burns and Bart in the trial in Bart Gets Run Over By a Car.
* SesameStreetCred (Celebrity voices have been rumored to line up for years to get on the show. Even playing themselves.)
* ShootingGallery ("The Springfield Connection")
* ShowWithinAShow (''TheItchyAndScratchyShow'')
* SicklyGreenGlow (Anything radioactive)
* SimilarSquad - it's been used several times: a nice version of the family, a cooler version of Bart and Lisa, the inbred version of Springfield in Shelbyville.
* SimultaneousArcs ("Trilogy of Error")
* SitcomArchNemesis (Homer has Ned Flanders, and Bart has Sideshow Bob (and for some reason, Dr. Demento))
* SoBadItsHorrible - The panda rape thing. ''[=G.I.(Annoyed Grunt)=]'' and the military-bashing, too.
* SpinOff (Of ''The Tracey Ullman Show''. And the whole concept is spoofed in the episode "The Simpsons Spin-Off Showcase".)
* StabTheSalad (Several times, memorably in Sideshow Bob's first escape, Homer kept scaring Bart by wielding large deadly implements for innocent things)
* StrawFan (Comic Book Guy)
* StrawmanPolitical - More and more common as the show drifts leftward. Often provided by The Rich Texan.
** This is by WordOfGod the reason Flanders has become such a holier-than-thou JerkAss, with the writers admitting he was basically a TakeThat at their perception of the politicians in power having religious motivations.
** Probably most over-the-top in the episode where Springfield's local Republican party is shown to include literal monsters and that they meet in a brooding castle like a supervillain group. Sadly, this was still done in better humor and is less {{Anvilicious}} than many more recent examples.
* StraightGay (Waylon Smithers)
* StrangledByTheRedString (Marge and Homer will always get back together, even though Marge is repeatedly shown to be much happier and better off without him.)
* StripperCopConfusion (Chief Wiggum, but he goes along with the assumption for the money.)
* SuckECheeses (Wall E. Weasel's)
* SuddenAnatomy (When a sub-plot hinges on Homer not remembering Marge's eye color, a ''Simpsons'' character is drawn with irises for the first time)
* SummerCampy ("Camp Krusty")
* SuperFunHappyTropeOfDoom
--->'''Homer:''' [[SchmuckBait Ooh! Super Fun Happy Slide!]]
* TakeThat (Several different targets, frequently for unknown reasons. For example, Arby's must have pissed some of the writers off really good, being the recipient of at least 4 cheap shots.)
* TalkingToHimself (Half the cast is voiced by the same three or four people.)
* ThirteenIsUnlucky (The Treehouse Of Horror story "Nightmare on Evergreen Terrace" starts "on the thirteenth hour of the thirteenth day of the thirteen month" with a meeting to discuss the misprinted calendars bought by the town.)
--->'''Homer:''' Lousy Smarch weather!
* [[{{ptitlel9hiod7i}} This Is For Emphasis, Bitch!]]
* ThreeShorts (The annual Halloween episodes follow this format, as do assorted episodes on other themes: Christmas, revenge, the sea, etc.)
**Lampshaded in the episode Four Great Women and a Manicure. And this troper particularly enjoyed seeing another Ayn Rand reference.
* [[TitleTheAdaptation Title: The Adaptation]]
* ToBeContinued (Subverted in the movie.)
* TomatoSurprise (Referenced in Homer's poem:)
-->There once was a rapping tomato\\
That's right, I said "rapping tomato"\\
He rapped all day, from April to May\\
And also, guess what, ''[[NarratorAllAlong it was me.]]''
* TotallyRadical (Parodied with Poochie, who is instantly reviled by Itchy & Scratchy fans.)
* TrainStationGoodbye (Lampshaded)
* TreeBuchet (Homer launched a rabbit into the horizon with one of these)
* UndeadAuthor (Groundskeeper Willie's story about the miner's strike)
* UnfortunateImplications (Homer's treatment of Marge can be at best mean and at worst abusive. It also doesn't help that the creators seem to want to hammer the message that a husband can be awful to his wife and she will always forgive him in the end.)
** (Also subverted when we find out that the woman [[ButchLesbian Patty]] wants to marry is male. He explains why he was hiding [to be a lady golfer] and why he hid it from her ["...you fell in love with me as a woman."] When he asks if she will marry him anyway, the music swells, and depite previously being not at all interested in men, it looks like she might...)
---> [[spoiler: '''Patty''': Hell no! I like '''girls'''!]]
--->Wedding guests pause, then applaud.
* UnsympatheticComedyProtagonist (Homer, who gets less sympathetic as the show ages)
* VerbalTic (Ned Flanders adds "diddly" to his words)
* ViolentGlaswegian (Groundskeeper Willie)
* TheVoiceless (Maggie)
* WelcomeToTheRealWorld: Homer goes through a mysterious portal behind the bookcase and ends up doing this at the end of the seventh-season "Treehouse of Horror VI."
* WellIntentionedExtremist (Sideshow Bob, though he wasn't really well intentioned at first)
* WholeEpisodeFlashback ("The Way We Was", "The Way We Weren't", the episodes about the birth of the kids)
* WholePlotReference (''{{Hamlet}}'', ''TheDeparted'', ''[[MrAndMrsSmith Mr. and Mrs. Smith]]'', ''MaryPoppins'', ''2010ASpaceOdyessey'', ''{{Dracula}}'', ''LordOfTheFlies'', ''SidAndNancy'', ''TheLadyAndTheTramp'')
* TheWoobie (Many characters could qualify, but Frank Grimes takes this trope to its logical extreme.)
* WritersSuck (In "The Front". Also, someone is fired for saying [[ViewersAreMorons viewers aren't morons]].)
* WritingAroundTrademarks (Lampshaded by the MaryPoppins parody, who says she's an original creation like 'Ricky Rouse' and 'Monald Muck')
* XanatosFuneral ([[spoiler:Homer spreads his mother's ashes, sabotaging Mr. Burns's missile launch]])
** Also, there's [[spoiler:Sideshow Bob's fake funeral, a ploy to kill Bart when he's saying goodbye to his old nemesis]].
* XDaysSince
** In the new opening: Lenny & Carl are changing the "days without an accident" one higher, then the QuittingTimeHorn goes off and Homer runs out, knocking them over in the process.
** A prison holds a sign counting the number of days since the last break.
** A redneck bar has a sign counting the number of days without a tornado. And it's reset between scenes.
** When Apu takes his citizenship test, the sign outside says something like "130 years without a civil war"
* XtremeKoolLetterz (Krusty's Komedy Klassic)
* {{Yakuza}} (After Marge hires the Mafia to help her pretzel business, the Investorettes hire the Yakuza to fight back)
* YawnAndReach (Homer tries to teach it to Abe. Skinner does this to Patty, but she doesn't like it.)
* YesMan (Smithers)
* YokoOhNo (Barney's girlfriend when he was part of the B-Sharps)
* YouAreATreeCharlieBrown (Bart and Milhouse play sheep)
* YouAreInCommandNow (Homer ends up in command of a nuclear sub)
* YouGetMeCoffee (Lisa wanted to be in a jazz band but was told she could sit in a chair instead)
* YouGottaHaveBlueHair (Marge and Milhouse have blue hair, Patty and Selma have periwinkle, the three Simpsons kids have yellow hair the same colour as their skin)
* YourHeadASplode (once in a reference to ''JohnnyTheHomicidalManiac'', as well as an ExplosiveDecompression)
* YouJustRuinedTheShot (Becky appears to be torturing the family in "It's a Mad, Mad Marge")
* YouMonster: Lisa shouts it at Homer in The Simpsons Movie, [[spoiler:after learning that it was he who caused the ecological disaster that got Springfield placed under a dome.]]
* YourWorstNightmare (In a "Treehouse of Horror", Bart and Lisa, in a parody of ''ANightmareOnElmStreet'', are being terrorized by Groundskeeper Willie in their dreams)
* YouSuck (Homer and to a ''much'' greater extent, Frank Grimes)
* ZillionDollarBill (Mr. Burns was said to own a trillion-dollar bill)
* ZombieApocalypse (In a "Treehouse of Horror" segment, Bart reanimates the dead)
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