The Simpsons season 28 explained

Season Number:28
Bgcolor:
  1. A80F11
Showrunner:Al Jean
Num Episodes:22
Network:Fox
Episode List:List of The Simpsons episodes

The twenty-eighth season of the animated television series The Simpsons began airing on Fox in the United States on September 25, 2016 and ended on May 21, 2017.[1] On May 4, 2015, Fox announced that The Simpsons had been renewed for season 28.[2] The season was produced by Gracie Films and 20th Century Fox Television. This season was the second of two seasons ordered by Fox in May 2015. The primary showrunner for the season was Al Jean. In November 2016, the series was renewed for a twenty-ninth and thirtieth season.[3]

This season includes the 600th episode of the show, "Treehouse of Horror XXVII".[4] On August 31, 2016, it was announced that an episode titled "The Caper Chase", inspired by Trump University, would air sometime in 2017; the episode aired on April 2.[5]

This season also includes the show's first hour-long episode, "The Great Phatsby", a parody of The Great Gatsby.[6] Other noteworthy events and gags include a Pokémon Go-themed episode ("Looking for Mr. Goodbart"),[7] couch gags spoofing Robot Chicken and Adventure Time, an episode that shows how Homer learned to feel better with food ("Fatzcarraldo"), Mr. Burns hiring all of the Simpsons (except Homer) to become his "pretend" family ("Friends and Family"), and Glenn Close returning as Mona ("Fatzcarraldo").[8]

This was the final season scored by longtime Simpsons composer Alf Clausen. This also marked the first season where former recurring guest star Kevin Michael Richardson joined the regular supporting cast, starting with the episode "The Last Traction Hero".

Episodes this season were nominated for three Emmy Awards and one Writers Guild of America Award.

Episodes

See also: List of The Simpsons episodes.

Voice cast & characters

See main article: List of The Simpsons characters.

Main cast

Supporting cast

Guest stars for the season included Amy Schumer, Pendleton Ward, Allison Janney, Sarah Silverman, Taraji P. Henson, Keegan-Michael Key, chess grandmaster Magnus Carlsen, Patton Oswalt, Lizzy Caplan, Michael Sheen, and Jason Alexander.[9]

Production

This season, along with the previous season, was ordered in May 2015. Seven episodes were holdovers from the previous season.[10] Executive producer Al Jean continued his role as primary showrunner, a role he had since the thirteenth season.[11] Executive producer Matt Selman was also the showrunner for several episodes, a role he performed since the twenty-third season.[12]

This season, series regular Harry Shearer wrote his first episode of the series.[13] Writer David M. Stern, who had not written for the show since 1999, wrote the series' first direct sequel of the series, "Kamp Krustier," which follows from the fourth season episode "Kamp Krusty."[14] Guest writers for the season were Dave King, Peter Tilden, Ron Zimmerman, and Simon Rich.[15] [16] [17] [18]

To acknowledge the milestone of the series reaching 600 episodes, all 600 episodes aired consecutively on FXX in November and December 2016.[19] For the 600th episode, a version of the couch gag could be viewed in virtual reality in partnership with Google.[20] Jean commented that it was becoming more difficult to think of original stories with the prevalence of other adult animated television shows that did not exist when the series started.[21]

This season featured the series' first one-hour episode, focusing on rap and hip-hop culture in depth.[6] Composer Alf Clausen had difficulty scoring the episode because of his inexperience with the genre, which caused conflict with the producers. This led to Clausen's firing at the end of the season as the producers were looking to reduce the cost of producing the series.[22]

Reception

Viewing figures

For the 2016-2017 television season, the season earned a 2.1 rating in the 18-49 demographic, which was the 24th best performing show. It averaged 4.81 million viewers, which was the 92nd best performing show.[23]

Critical response

Jeffrey Malone of Bubbleblabber gave the season a 7 out of 10. He thought that the show had a habit of combining plots into a single episode where both the main plot and sub-plot should be given their own episodes. He felt the best episodes this season focused on the history of Simpson family.[24]

Awards and nominations

At the 69th Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards, the episode "The Town" was nominated for Outstanding Animated Program. Actress Nancy Cartwright was nominated for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance for her performance in "Looking for Mr. Goodbart." The virtual reality couch gag in "Treehouse of Horror XXVII" was nominated for Outstanding Creative Achievement In Interactive Media Within A Scripted Program.[25]

At the 70th Writers Guild of America Awards, writer Simon Rich was nominated for the for his work in "A Father's Watch."[26]

Notes and References

  1. AlJean. Al. Jean. Al Jean. 734448004518805505. May 22, 2016. @87Loco87 @mxedtr @TheSimpsons yes with Monty Burns' Fleeing a Circus. August 8, 2016.
  2. Web site: Release . Foxflash.com . May 4, 2015 . August 8, 2016 . May 5, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150505181620/http://www.foxflash.com/fox/releases/fox-picks-double-d%E2%80%99ohse-simpsons%E2%80%9Drenewing-series-27th-and-28th-seasons . dead .
  3. Web site: Elizabeth. Wagmeister. November 4, 2016. 'The Simpsons' Makes TV History, Renewed for Record-Breaking 29th and 30th Seasons. Variety. June 21, 2024. August 14, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240814040627/https://variety.com/2016/tv/news/the-simpsons-renewed-season-29-season-30-fox-1201909858/. live.
  4. Web site: Bill. Keveney. Exclusive: 'Simpsons' reveals Treehouse poster. USA Today. July 15, 2016. August 8, 2016. January 31, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190131145502/https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/tv/2016/07/15/exclusive-simpsons-reveals-treehouse-poster/87114696/. live.
  5. Daniel. Kreps. August 31, 2016. 'The Simpsons' to Skewer Trump University on Upcoming Season. Rolling Stone. September 5, 2016. September 3, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160903050002/http://www.rollingstone.com/tv/news/the-simpsons-to-skewer-trump-university-on-upcoming-season-w437329. live.
  6. The Simpsons to do first-ever hourlong episode. Entertainment Weekly. Snierson. Dan. August 8, 2016. November 6, 2023. July 23, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230723062024/https://ew.com/article/2016/08/08/simpsons-hourlong-episode-taraji-henson-great-phatsby/. live.
  7. AlJean. Al. Jean. Al Jean. 809447108243693568. December 15, 2016. @jade210898 looking for mr goodbart, the cad in the hat.
  8. Web site: Fall TV Spoilers 2016: Exclusive Scoop On 41 Season Premieres. September 7, 2016. TVLine. September 7, 2016. August 14, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240814040613/https://tvline.com/gallery/fall-tv-2016-season-premiere-spoilers/fall-preview-simpsons-3/. live.
  9. Web site: Dan. Snierson. September 23, 2016. Simpsons season 28 preview: 600th episode, Homer and Marge sex drought. Entertainment Weekly. June 22, 2024. July 31, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240731041052/https://ew.com/article/2016/09/23/simpsons-season-28-600th-episode-trump-burns-schumer/. live.
  10. Web site: 'The Simpsons' Renewed for Two More Seasons . Wagmeister . Elizabeth . . 2015-05-04 . 2015-10-15 . December 2, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171202060823/http://variety.com/2015/tv/news/the-simpsons-renewed-season-27-fox-1201486963/ . live .
  11. Web site: Nellie. Andreeva. April 30, 2020. 'The Simpsons' Showrunner Al Jean Signs With Gersh. Deadline Hollywood. May 31, 2024. May 26, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240526035718/https://deadline.com/2020/04/the-simpsons-showrunner-al-jean-signs-gersh-2-1202922457/. live.
  12. Web site: Jesse David. Fox. June 5, 2023. 'The Simpsons' Is Good Again. Vulture. June 16, 2024. June 10, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230610163536/https://www.vulture.com/article/the-simpsons-is-good-again.html. live.
  13. Web site: Perkins. Dennis. The media's on trial in Harry Shearer's first-ever Simpsons script . The A.V. Club. October 23, 2016. October 24, 2016.
  14. Web site: St. James. Emily. Emily St. James. The Simpsons' "Kamp Krustier" revisits a classic episode with surprisingly funny results. Vox. March 12, 2017. July 23, 2023. July 23, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230723215602/https://www.vox.com/culture/2017/3/12/14887250/the-simpsons-kamp-krustier-recap-review. live.
  15. Web site: Stephen. Press. November 2, 2016. Catching up with Needham's writing King. Hometown Weekly. June 21, 2024. August 14, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240814040643/https://hometownweekly.net/needham/catching-needhams-writing-king/. live.
  16. Web site: Andrew S.. Vargas. December 6, 2016. In This Hilarious Episode, 'The Simpsons' Go to Cuba Because Grandpa Abe Needs Medical Care. Remezcla. June 21, 2024. June 22, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240622173840/https://remezcla.com/film/the-simpsons-havana-wild-weekend-cuba/. live.
  17. Web site: Perkins . Dennis . Patton Oswalt is Bart's conscience on a disjointed Simpsons . . Onion, Inc. . Chicago, Illinois . February 19, 2017 . February 24, 2017 . February 22, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170222182618/http://www.avclub.com/tvclub/patton-oswalt-barts-conscience-disjointed-simpsons-250624 . live .
  18. Web site: Perkins . Dennis . Everyone gets a trophy on a sweetly well-crafted Simpsons . . Onion, Inc. . Chicago, Illinois . March 19, 2017 . March 25, 2017 . March 23, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170323230501/http://www.avclub.com/tvclub/everyone-gets-trophy-sweetly-well-crafted-simpsons-252344? . live .
  19. Web site: Daniel. Kreps. September 23, 2016. All 600 'Simpsons' Episodes to Air Consecutively This Thanksgiving. Rolling Stone. June 21, 2024.
  20. News: Snierson. Dan. October 6, 2016. Simpsons 600th episode couch gag can be seen in virtual reality. Entertainment Weekly. July 22, 2023. November 9, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201109045325/https://ew.com/article/2016/10/06/simpsons-600th-episode-couch-gag-virtual-reality/. live.
  21. Web site: Sandra. Gonzalez. October 20, 2016. 'The Simpsons' and the art of being in a class of your own. CNN. June 21, 2024. June 22, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240622173837/https://www.cnn.com/2016/10/16/entertainment/simpsons-600th-episode/index.html. live.
  22. News: Gene. Maddaus. 'The Simpsons' Hip-Hop Episode Cued Curtains for Composer. Variety. April 29, 2020. July 24, 2023. November 11, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211111154046/https://variety.com/2020/tv/news/simpsons-hip-hop-episode-composer-alf-clausen-1234593653/. live.
  23. Web site: Lisa. de Moraes. May 25, 2017. Final 2016-17 TV Rankings: 'Sunday Night Football' Winning Streak Continues. Deadline Hollywood. June 21, 2024. June 2, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170602132805/http://deadline.com/2017/05/2016-2017-tv-season-ratings-series-rankings-list-1202102340/. live.
  24. Web site: Jeffrey. Malone. May 28, 2017. Season Review: The Simpsons Season 28. Bubbleblabber. June 21, 2024. June 22, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240622173838/https://www.bubbleblabber.com/2017/05/season-review-the-simpsons-season-28/. live.
  25. Web site: Pete. Hammond. Patrick. Hipes. July 13, 2017. Emmy Awards Nominations: 'Westworld', 'This Is Us', 'Stranger Things', 'Atlanta' Lead Diverse List. Deadline Hollywood. July 22, 2023. July 27, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180727114850/https://deadline.com/2017/07/2017-emmy-nominations-list-all-nominees-1202127795/. live.
  26. Web site: WGA Awards: The Complete Winners List. 11 February 2018. Variety. Penske Media Corporation. Los Angeles, California. 23 February 2019. February 12, 2018. https://archive.today/20180212140844/http://variety.com/2018/film/awards/2018-wga-award-winners-complete-list-1202694807/. live.

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