The ninth season of the American animated sitcom The Simpsons aired on Fox between September 21, 1997, and May 17, 1998. It began with "The City of New York vs. Homer Simpson". Mike Scully served as showrunner for the ninth production season. The ninth broadcast season contained three episodes with 4F-series production codes, indicating that they were hold-over episodes from production season eight, and two episodes with 3G-series production codes, which are not explicitly confirmed to be part of any production season but are speculated to be relabeled 3F-series (seventh production season) episodes. This makes it the first broadcast season to include holdover episodes from two previous production seasons.
This season includes the 200th episode of the show, "Trash of the Titans", which aired on April 26, 1998. Season nine won three Emmy Awards: "Trash of the Titans" for Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program (for Programming Less Than One Hour) in 1998, Hank Azaria won "Outstanding Voice-Over Performance" for the voice of Apu Nahasapeemapetilon, and Alf Clausen and Ken Keeler won the "Outstanding Music and Lyrics" award. Clausen was also nominated for "Outstanding Music Direction" and "Outstanding Music Composition for a Series (Dramatic Underscore)" for "Treehouse of Horror VIII". Season nine was also nominated for a "Best Network Television Series" award by the Saturn Awards and "Best Sound Editing" for a Golden Reel Award. Along with season ten, season nine has been cited by several critics as the transition between the series' classic era and its decline in quality.
The Simpsons 9th Season DVD was released on December 19, 2006, in Region 1, January 29, 2007, in Region 2 and March 21, 2007, in Region 4. The DVD was released in two different forms: a Lisa-shaped head, to match the Maggie, Homer and Marge shaped heads from the three previous DVD sets, and also a standard rectangular shaped box. Like the previous DVD sets, both versions are available for sale separately.
Voice cast & characters
This is the last season to feature the character Lionel Hutz, voiced by Phil Hartman. Following Hartman's death on May 28, 1998, Hutz was retired along with Hartman's other recurring character Troy McClure; his final speaking role as Hutz was five months earlier, in the episode "Realty Bites", and has since occasionally appeared as a background character.
Main cast Dan Castellaneta as Homer Simpson, Barney Gumble, Groundskeeper Willie, Mayor Quimby, Grampa Simpson, Kodos, Sideshow Mel, Krusty the Clown, Rich Texan, Hans Moleman, Blue-Haired Lawyer, Gil Gunderson, Jack Marley, Santa's Little Helper, Louie and various others Julie Kavner as Marge Simpson, Selma Bouvier, Patty Bouvier and various others Nancy Cartwright as Bart Simpson, Ralph Wiggum, Nelson Muntz, Todd Flanders, Rod Flanders, Kearney Zzyzwicz, Database and various others Yeardley Smith as Lisa Simpson Hank Azaria as Moe Szyslak, Carl Carlson, Duffman, Superintendent Chalmers, Apu, Comic Book Guy, Professor Frink, Chief Wiggum, Cletus Spuckler, Snake, Captain McCallister, Kirk Van Houten, Ernest, Lou, Nick Callahan, Leprechaun, Charlie, Legs, Bumblebee Man and various others Harry Shearer as Lenny Leonard, Kent Brockman, Judge Snyder, Principal Skinner, Dr. Hibbert, Dr. J. Loren Pryor, Ned Flanders, Herman Hermann, Kang, Reverend Lovejoy, Sanjay Nahasapeemapetilon, Rainier Wolfcastle, Waylon Smithers, Gunter, Jasper Beardsley, Eddie, Mr. Burns, George H. W. Bush, God, Otto Mann and various others
Recurring Doris Grau as Lunchlady Doris Pamela Hayden as Jimbo Jones, Milhouse Van Houten, Rod Flanders, Patches and various others Tress MacNeille as Agnes Skinner, Jimbo Jones, Dolph Starbeam, Cookie Kwan, Poor Violet, Belle, Billy, Crazy Cat Lady, Brandine Spuckler and various others Maggie Roswell as Miss Hoover, Maude Flanders, Luann Van Houten, Ruth Powers, Helen Lovejoy, and various others Russi Taylor as Uter Zorker, Martin Prince, Sherri and Terri, Wendell Borton and Lewis
Guest stars
Marcia Wallace as Edna Krabappel (14 episodes) Phil Hartman as Troy McClure, Lionel Hutz, Lyle Lanley and Noah (5 episodes) Martin Sheen as the real Seymour Skinner ("The Principal and the Pauper") Fyvush Finkel as himself playing Krusty the Clown ("Lisa's Sax") Joe Namath as himself ("Bart Star") Roy Firestone as himself ("Bart Star") Mike Judge as Hank Hill ("Bart Star") Andrea Martin as Apu's mother ("The Two Mrs. Nahasapeemapetilons") Jan Hooks as Manjula Nahasapeemapetilon ("The Two Mrs. Nahasapeemapetilons") Stephen Jay Gould as himself ("Lisa the Skeptic") Alex Trebek as himself ("Miracle on Evergreen Terrace") George Harrison as himself ("All Singing, All Dancing") Jim Varney as Cooder ("Bart Carny") James Earl Jones as the narrator ("Das Bus") Jack Ong as the Chinese fisherman ("Das Bus") Jay Leno, Bruce Baum, Janeane Garofalo, Bobcat Goldthwait, Hank Williams Jr. and Steven Wright as themselves ("The Last Temptation of Krust") Helen Hunt as Renee ("Dumbbell Indemnity") Rod Steiger as Captain Tenille ("Simpson Tide") Bob Denver as himself ("Simpson Tide") Michael Carrington as Drill Sergeant ("Simpson Tide") Paul Winfield as Lucius Sweet ("The Trouble with Trillions") Steve Martin as Ray Patterson ("Trash of the Titans") U2 as themselves ("Trash of the Titans") Paul McGuinness as himself ("Trash of the Titans") Brendan Fraser as Brad ("King of the Hill") Steven Weber as Neil ("King of the Hill")
Reception The ninth season is considered by some fans and critics to be the end of the Golden Age of The Simpsons. Alasdair Wilkins of The A.V. Club said: "From here on out, we're in The Simpsons' decline phase, though there's plenty of room to disagree just how stark the drop-off actually was." Chris Turner wrote in his book Planet Simpson that "one of the things that emerged was that [the staff] began to rely on gags, not characters, wherever that switch got flipped, whether it's the ninth or tenth season." On Rotten Tomatoes, the ninth season of The Simpsons has a 67% approval rating based on 6 critical reviews.
The second episode of the ninth season, "The Principal and the Pauper" is often regarded as one of the most controversial episodes of the entire series. Many fans and critics reacted negatively to the revelation that Principal Skinner, a recurring character since the first episode who had undergone much character development, was an impostor, with some describing it as a jump the shark moment for the series. The episode has been criticized by series creator Matt Groening,Groening, Matt. (2006). "A Riff From Matt Groening", in The Simpsons: The Complete Ninth Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox, 0:36–0:40. and by Skinner's voice actor Harry Shearer. In his 2004 book Planet Simpson, Chris Turner describes the episode as the "broadcast that marked [the] abrupt plunge" from The Simpsons' "Golden Age", while Ian Jones of The Guardian called it the moment the "show became stupid": "Come again? A major character in a long-running series gets unmasked as a fraud? It was cheap, idle storytelling." Retrieved on August 17, 2008. In a February 2006 article in The Star-Ledger, Alan Sepinwall and Matt Zoller Seitz cite the episode when asserting that the quality of The Simpsons "gets much spottier" in season nine. On the 25th anniversary of the episode airing, Fatherly looked back negatively at the episode, describing the plot twist as the moment the show stopped being perfect, and the ending as mean-spirited.
On the other hand, some episodes of season 9 have largely been praised by critics and fans, including "The City of New York vs. Homer Simpson", which was included in Entertainment Weekly's top 25 list of Simpsons episodes in 2003, and in AskMen's top 10 list of Simpsons episodes in 2006. "The Cartridge Family" appeared in the Herald Sun's list of the show's top 20 episodes in 2007."The Simpsons Top 20". Herald Sun. 21 April 2007. pg. w09. Lisa Simpson's voice actress, Yeardley Smith, considers "Girly Edition" to be one of her favourite episodes, while Groening considers "Natural Born Kissers" to be one of his. A BBC News writer commented that "the common consensus is that The Simpsons golden era ended after season nine," while Tyler Wilson of Coeur d'Alene Press has referred to seasons one to nine as the show's "golden age."
Episodes
Nielsen ratings In terms of households, the show ranked just outside the Top 30, coming in at #32 with a 9.3 household rating and a 15 percent audience share. In terms of total viewers however, the show ranked inside the Top 20, coming in at #18 for the season, (tying with Dateline Tuesday) and being watched by an average of 15.3 million viewers per episode.
DVD release
The DVD boxset for season nine was released by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment in the United States and Canada on December 19, 2006, eight years after it had completed broadcast on television. As well as every episode from the season, the DVD release features bonus material including deleted scenes, animatics, and commentaries for every episode. As with the two preceding seasons, the set was released in two different packagings: A "Collector's Edition" plastic packaging molded to look like Lisa's head, and a standard rectangular cardboard box featuring Lisa with a backstage pass to a show at a club. The menus continue the same format from the previous four seasons, and the overall theme is various characters waiting in line at a club.
The Complete Ninth Season Set DetailsSpecial Features 25 episodes 4-disc set 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 25 episodes Introduction from Matt Groening Deleted Scenes The City of New York vs. Homer Simpson Lisa's Sax Treehouse of Horror VIII The Two Mrs. Nahasapeemapetilons Lisa the Skeptic Bart Carny The Joy of Sect Das Bus The Last Temptation of Krust Dumbbell Indemnity Lisa the Simpson This Little Wiggy Simpson Tide Girly Edition Trash of the Titans King of the Hill Special Language Feature Trash of the Titans Polish 2.0 Dolby Surround Portuguese 2.0 Dolby Surround German 2.0 Dolby Surround Japanese 2.0 Dolby Surround Animation Showcase The Principal and the Pauper Lisa the Simpson Illustrated commentary All Singing, All Dancing Lost Our Lisa Commercials Butterfinger - Aliens Butterfinger - Hit a Homer Butterfinger BB's - Philosophy CC's Chips - Parachutist CC's Chips - Homerdini "Sneak peek" at The Simpsons Movie Sketch Gallery Release Dates Region 1 Region 2 Region 4 December 19, 2006 January 29, 2007 March 21, 2007
See also
List of The Simpsons episodes
References General
Specific
External links