Last night Fox aired the premiere of The Simpsons’ 26th season, and for the episode’s opening, Oscar-nominated independent animator Don Hertzfeldt imagined what the series would look like in its 800th season.
The show has brought on a lot of twisted minds to reimagine the couch gag in recent years—Guillermo del Toro, Michal Socha, Banksy—but Hertzfeldt’s gag is the strangest one yet, complete with his signature stick figure animations, surreal visions, and dark and absurdist sense of humor. Hertzfeldt’s cartoons aren’t for everyone, but it’s great to see that The Simpsons is still willing to hand over its reins to someone—a longtime fan!—with such a distinctive and even subversive vision. Plus the kicker is perfect.
Previously
This Movie About a Stick Figure Is the Best Animated Film of the Year
Watch a Great Short Film From Don Hertzfeldt, The Meaning of Life
