The following contains spoilers for The Simpsons season 36 episode 8, “Convenience Airways,” now streaming on HuluThe Simpsons‘ latest parody of airline travel builds on the jokes and character development of previous seasons. The Simpsons latest season has been an interesting medley of long-running storylines and fresh material. This has allowed for unique combinations of the show’s legacy with new content, such as an episode that explored the long-running drama of the Hibbert marriage while also serving as a parody of recent TV shows like The White Lotus. This has been a good showcase for what makes The Simpsons such an enduring comed fixture.
The latest example of The Simpsons balancing modern comedy with long-running character elements is “Convenience Airways,” which focuses entirely on the titular family traveling aboard a commercial flight. The entire episode is an extended riff on the challenges of modern flying, from the innocuous to the potentially dangerous. In the process, The Simpsons uses character beats established in previous seasons to highlight some important character growth, even while finding new ways to poke fun at how air travel works. Here is how “Convenience Airways” builds on the last thirty-six seasons of The Simpsons.
The Simpsons Has Been Poking Fun At Air Travel For Over Three Decades
The Simpsons Have Been Going On Flights For Over Thirty Years
The Simpsons has been poking fun at air travel for three and a half decades, with “Convenience Airways” building off the previous gags and character development seen in those episodes. The Simpsons has always benefited from the animated nature of the show, which allows the characters to go to different settings with ease. This has meant the cast have gotten to ride in multiple planes over the years, with the show’s first international trip occurring all the way back in season 1’s “The Crepes of Wrath.”
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Since then, the show has poked lots of fun at the natural complications and conditions of flying, with plenty of gags about first-class travel, technology on planes, and the typical hindrances that occur when people take to the sky. Like most things in modern life, The Simpsons takes those universal complaints and filters them through an absurd and often cutting sense of comedy. This forms the majority of “Convenience Airways,” which fills an entire plan full of problem fliers for the sake of comedy.
Marge’s First Class Trip Is Way Different From Her Old Fear Of Flying
Marge Has A Much Easier Time Flying In Season 36 Than She Did In Season 6
One of the bigger character beats of “Convenience Airways” is focused on how Marge leaves Homer to watch the kids while she is given a first class ticket. Marge ends up relaxing so much that she sleeps for the entire flight, while also becoming one of the only passengers who doesn’t end up briefly imprisoned in the hold of the play for poor behavior. This is a far cry from how Marge flew in previous seasons of the show.
While season 3’s “Mr. Lisa Goes To Washington” saw Marge flying with no problem, season 6’s “Fear of Flying” revealed Marge’s deep-seated fear of air travel. The episode delves into Marge’s history and is one of the only times in the show that her father Clancy Bouvier actually appeared in the show. Marge overcame her fear of flying, allowing her to have a more relaxed time in the other trips she’s gone on throughout The Simpsons. It’s even reached the point where she can fully relax on a flight and actually get some sleep, as she does in “Convenience Airways.”
Homer’s Airline Anger Has Made Him Famous Before
Homer’s New Approach To Airline Anger Highlights His Character Growth
Much of “Convenience Airways” is focused on Homer, who struggles to keep his promise to Marge that he’ll refrain from lashing out at anyone on the flight. Homer’s struggles on airlines have seemingly gotten them kicked off most airlines, leading them to Convenience Airways in the first place. Homer’s bad antics on airlines have been played with before, with season 23’s “Politically Inept, with Homer Simpson” even using Homer’s freak-out aboard a flight as a springboard into television fame.
Homer’s calmer approach and commitment to making Marge proud actually highlights the minor ways Homer has grown and improved over the years.
Notably, Homer’s efforts to maintain his composure on Convenience Airways and a message of emojis from Marge (in reality Maggie playing with a sleeping Marge’s phone) convinces Homer to break up a potential riot and spare the airline the mob violence that was awaiting them. Homer’s calmer approach and commitment to making Marge proud actually highlights the minor ways Homer has grown and improved over the years. It’s a subtle showcase for the character development that has driven The Simpsons‘ main characters for the last thirty-six seasons, even while the status quo of Springfield remains consistent.
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The Simpsons
The Simpsons is a long-running animated TV series created by Matt Groening that satirically follows a working-class family in the misfit city of Springfield. Homer, a bit of a schmoe who works at a nuclear power plant, is the provider for his family, while his wife, Marge, tries to keep sanity and reason in the house to the best of her ability. Bart is a born troublemaker, and Lisa is his super-intelligent sister who finds herself surrounded by people who can’t understand her. Finally, Maggie is the mysterious baby who acts as a deus ex machina when the series calls for it. The show puts the family in several wild situations while constantly tackling socio-political and pop-culture topics set within their world, providing an often sharp critique of the subjects covered in each episode. This series first premiered in 1989 and has been a staple of Fox’s programming schedule ever since!
- Release Date
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December 17, 1989
- Franchise(s)
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The Simpsons
- Network
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FOX
- Seasons
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36