The eighteenth season of the American animated sitcom The Simpsons aired on Fox between September 10, 2006, and May 20, 2007. The season contained seven hold-over episodes from the seventeenth season’s HABF production line. Al Jean served as the showrunner, a position he has held since the thirteenth season, while the season was produced by Gracie Films and 20th Century Fox Television.
The season finale, "You Kent Always Say What You Want", was the series' 400th episode. Additionally, the Simpsons franchise celebrated its 20th anniversary, as it has been on the air since April 19, 1987, beginning with shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show.
Voice cast & characters
Main cast Dan Castellaneta as Homer Simpson, Hans Moleman, Groundskeeper Willie, Louie, Squeaky-Voiced Teen, Krusty the Clown, Sideshow Mel, Gil Gunderson, Snowball II, Rabbi Krustofsky, Grampa Simpson, Barney Gumble, Mayor Quimby, Kodos, Santa's Little Helper, Rich Texan, The Leprechaun, Mr. Teeny, Bill, Arnie Pye, Count Dracula, various others Julie Kavner as Marge Simpson, Patty Bouvier, and Selma Bouvier Nancy Cartwright as Bart Simpson, Kearney Zzyzwicz, Nelson Muntz, Ralph Wiggum, Database, Todd Flanders, various others Yeardley Smith as Lisa Simpson Hank Azaria as Johnny Tightlips, Moe Szyslak, Carl Carlson, Sea Captain, Cletus Spuckler, Professor Frink, Chief Wiggum, Wiseguy, Superintendent Chalmers, Comic Book Guy, Disco Stu, Officer Lou, Snake, Kirk Van Houten, Apu Nahasapeemapetilon, The Grumple, Mr. Costington, Old Jewish Man, Gabbo, Drederick Tatum, Dr. Nick Riviera, Luigi Risotto, various others Harry Shearer as Otto Mann, Principal Skinner, Dewey Largo, Dr. Hibbert, Ned Flanders, Lenny Leonard, Reverend Lovejoy, Kent Brockman, Mr. Burns, Waylon Smithers, Kang, Rainier Wolfcastle, Judge Snyder, Marty, Officer Eddie, Birch Barlow, various others
Supporting cast Pamela Hayden as Milhouse Van Houten, Jimbo Jones, Rod Flanders, Janey Powell, various others Tress MacNeille as Lunchlady Dora, Lindsey Naegle, Dolph Shapiro, Opal, Agnes Skinner, Brandine Spuckler, Crazy Cat Lady, various others Russi Taylor as Martin Prince, Sherri and Terri, various others Karl Wiedergott as additional characters Maggie Roswell as Helen Lovejoy and various others
Special guest stars
Season 18 included guest appearances by: Marcia Wallace as Edna Krabappel (4 episodes) Maurice LaMarche as Orson Welles and various other voices (4 episodes) J. K. Simmons as J. Jonah Jameson and Tabloid editor (2 episodes) Kiefer Sutherland as The Colonel and Jack Bauer (2 episodes) Michael Imperioli as Dante Jr. ("The Mook, the Chef, the Wife and Her Homer") Joe Mantegna as Fat Tony ("The Mook, the Chef, the Wife and Her Homer") Metallica as themselves ("The Mook, the Chef, the Wife and Her Homer") Joe Pantoliano as Dante ("The Mook, the Chef, the Wife and Her Homer") The White Stripes as themselves ("Jazzy and the Pussycats") Fran Drescher as Female Golem ("Treehouse of Horror XVII") Richard Lewis as Male Golem ("Treehouse of Horror XVII") Dr. Phil McGraw as himself ("Treehouse of Horror XVII") Sir Mix-a-Lot sings "Baby Likes Fat" in "Treehouse of Horror XVII" Michael Chabon as himself ("Moe'N'a Lisa") Jonathan Franzen as himself ("Moe'N'a Lisa") Gore Vidal as himself ("Moe'N'a Lisa") Tom Wolfe as himself ("Moe'N'a Lisa") Elvis Stojko as himself ("Kill Gil, Volumes I & II") Natalie Portman as Darcy ("Little Big Girl") Eric Idle as Declan Desmond ("Springfield Up") Peter Bogdanovich as psychologist ("Yokel Chords") Andy Dick as himself("Yokel Chords") James Patterson as himself ("Yokel Chords") Meg Ryan as Dr. Swanson ("Yokel Chords") Stephen Sondheim as himself ("Yokel Chords") Jon Lovitz as Enrico Irritazio("Homerazzi") Betty White as Herself("Homerazzi") Ronaldo as Himself ("Marge Gamer") Stephen Hawking as himself ("Stop, or My Dog Will Shoot!") Rudy Giuliani as himself ("Stop, or My Dog Will Shoot!") Mary Lynn Rajskub as Chloe O'Brian ("24 Minutes") Ludacris as himself ("You Kent Always Say What You Want")
Episodes
Production This season and the following season were ordered in March 2006. Al Jean remained as showrunner, a role he had since the thirteenth season. This season included the 400th episode of the series and marked the 20th anniversary of the Simpson characters' debut on The Tracey Ullman Show. Regarding the show's longevity, executive producer James L. Brooks commented that the fan base of the show was being "replenished" with younger fans as current fans become older. He thought the work environment remained the same as it was in the beginning but with more creative independence.
Reception Critical response Robert Canning of IGN gave the season a 6.6 saying it was "Passable" and that "Now in its eighteenth season (go ahead, say that out loud: 'eighteen seasons'), The Simpsons continues to supply America with a decent half-hour of comedy every Sunday night. However, most long-time fans of the show agree that the last several years have seen the program in constant decline. Looking back at this particular season, there's little evidence to prove them wrong. Though we were treated with at least a few hilarious gems this year, the mediocre (to the downright terrible) heavily outweighed the great."
Colin Jacobson of DVD Movie Guide called the season "lackluster" and said it was a step back from the previous season. He attributed this to The Simpsons Movie "absorbing much of the show's talent" and concluded, "Season 18 will be a must-see for Simpsons fans, but it's not a great offering." Stuart Galbraith IV of DVD Talk wrote, "Season 18 on DVD certainly has some evidence of that, but almost every episode still offers at least a laugh, and some of the episodes in that collection are quite funny." John Schwarz of Bubbleblabber gave it a nine out of ten, saying, "For both die-hard Simpsons fans and seasoned series stalwarts alike, this collection is a must-have. If you like the special features, you might want more at the end, but there's so much commentary on the episodes that it'll keep you busy for a while."
Awards At the 35th Annie Awards, Alf Clausen and Michael Price won the award for "Best Music in an Animated Television Production" for "Yokel Chords" while Ian Maxtone-Graham and Billy Kimball won "Best Writing in an Animated Television Production" for "24 Minutes" Jeff Westbrook won a WGA Award for "Kill Gil, Volumes I & II" while Matt Selman was nominated for "The Haw-Hawed Couple" and John Frink received a nomination for "Stop, or My Dog Will Shoot!".
The series also received a British Comedy Award nomination for "Best International Comedy" a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Animated Program for "The Haw-Hawed Couple" and an Environmental Media Award nomination for "Best Television Episodic Comedy" for "The Wife Aquatic".
Nielsen ratings The show ranked 60th in the seasonal ratings with an average of 8.6 million watching it and a Nielsen rating of 4.1/10.
Blu-ray and DVD release Series showrunner Al Jean reported in April 2015 that The Simpsons would no longer see home media releases after the seventeenth season, claiming an inability for DVD sales to keep up with the rise in streaming and downloads, as well as a boom in FXX reruns, and Fox's on-demand video service, FXNOW. Jean reassured that bonus features commonly featured on the DVDs, such as commentaries for each episode, would still be available, now packaged with the digital format.
In 2016, audio commentary for the 18th season was made available exclusively through FXNOW.
On Saturday, July 22, 2017, it was announced during the 2017 San Diego Comic-Con panel that, due to fan demand, the eighteenth season DVD would be released after all on Tuesday, December 5, 2017, in the United States and Canada by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, ten years after it had completed broadcast on television. The Complete Eighteenth Season Set DetailsSpecial Features 22 episodes 4-disc set (DVD) 1.33:1 aspect ratio AUDIO English 5.1 Dolby Digital Spanish 2.0 Dolby Surround French 2.0 Dolby Surround SUBTITLES English SDH Spanish Optional commentaries for all 22 episodes Welcome Back, Loyal Fans! Deleted Scenes (Only on Disc 4) The Mook, the Chef, the Wife and Her Homer Jazzy and the Pussycats Please Homer, Don't Hammer 'Em Treehouse of Horror XVII Moe'N'a Lisa The Wife Aquatic Revenge Is a Dish Best Served Three Times Rome-Old and Juli-Eh Homerazzi The Boys of Bummer Crook and Ladder 24 Minutes Extra Deleted Scenes Jazzy and the Pussycats Treehouse of Horror XVII G.I. (Annoyed Grunt) The Wife Aquatic Rome-Old and Juli-Eh Homerazzi You Kent Always Say What You Want Special Language Feature The Mook, the Chef, the Wife and Her Homer Czech 2.0 Dolby Surround German 2.0 Dolby Surround Italian 2.0 Dolby Surround Hungarian 2.0 Dolby Surround Multi-Angle Animation Showcase The Mook, the Chef, the Wife and Her Homer Featurette A Conversation with Fat Tony Bonus Episode: "22 for 30" Release Dates Region 1 Region 2 Region 4 Tuesday, December 5, 2017 Monday, December 11, 2017 Wednesday, December 13, 2017
References
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