The Simpsons season 36 finale hints at a long-awaited tragic fate

The Simpsons has always balanced its satire with surprisingly heartfelt moments, and its 36th season finale, titled "Estranger Things," is no exception. It focuses on Marge’s death and her family’s emotional breakdown, but a detail in the background suggests more disturbing motives lie within the story of other Springfield characters. During Marge’s funeral, there is a blink-and-you-miss-it scene at a cemetery gravestone that suggests Moe Szyslak has tragically taken his life.

Moe’s suicide attempts aren’t clear from any dialogue in the show. Instead, it must be pieced together using a visual gag. His grave has been depicted in a way that shows him putting his head in an oven, which makes a gloomy reference to one of his most noted attributes as a Springfield character: his lifelong battle with depression. This is something the television is best known for exploring throughout the years. Moe’s battle with himself serves to highlight dark comedy, yet has been handled with surprising sensitivity in many episodes, and grimly, this end seems both shocking and painfully appropriate.

This iteration of Moe's fate features in one of The Simpsons' many alternate futures in various timelines, allowing the show to examine possible scenarios for its characters without affecting the main continuity. However, this more bleak outcome is impactful, especially for those who know Moe’s back story. Unlike previous glimpses of Springfield’s future where clamoring Moe was kept alive through old age, “Estranger Things” showcases a timeline where his personal struggles tend to result in loss.

This is the approach to storytelling that The Simpsons has always excelled in, blending absurdism and deep emotion. While the show is still focused on satirical surrealism, its strings will remain its characters’ essences. For Moe, a quintessentially defeated man, this outcome is tragic after all the decades of inner turmoil.

Moe’s death reflects a long history of silent suffering in The Simpsons

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Moe Szyslak has never been happy hiding his unhappiness. Since Season 1, he has been listed as a sideshow for laugh tracks, a sore-headed supporting character, and, every once in a while, the emotional center of bouts that explored existential yearning. His struggles with mental health (often treated with a mix of slapstick humor and seriousness) have been an ongoing focus of his storyline. From near-bridge-suicide in “Moe Baby Blues” to a botched hanging in “Whiskey Business,” Moe’s story, time and again, circles back to his emotional distress.

Remotely, the referential suicide attempted in the series finale is not just for the sake of inconsequential humor; it is the light, dastardly payoff to one of the deepest character arcs of the series. And this potential future—while almost certainly not cast in stone—is somber. It is, at least, a reminder of the challenges the show has consistently dared to portray, even when slumped down at the counter of Moe's Tavern.

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