The Simpsons, despite telling nearly every story possible over the course of more than 800 episodes, is still finding new ways to disrupt its status quo. Experimental genre anthologies are nothing new for The Simpsons, with its “Treehouse of Horror” episodes becoming an annual Halloween tradition that’s currently 36 installments deep. Not all of these genre anthology pivots have been successful, and the less said about “Simpsons Bible Stories,” the better.
However, there have recently been some inventive anthology experiments that have earned The Simpsons the benefit of the doubt, like the Ray Bradbury-inspired “Treehouse of Horror Presents: Simpsons Wicked This Way Comes.”
The Simpsons developing their own sci-fi equivalent to Black Mirror is a no-brainer, and so it’s encouraging to see the concept receive its own Disney+ special, rather than simply being a segment in a “Treehouse of Horror” episode. That being said, with only two stories in the episode, it feels like “Yellow Mirror“ doesn’t fully commit to the bit. Past Disney+ specials have been double-episodes so that their concepts can cover more ground, like in “Extreme Makeover: Homer Edition.“
“Yellow Mirror” would be able to really thrive if there was a third story present. That being said, the two stories that are told – particularly the first segment – are solid enough to warrant “Yellow Mirror” becoming a regular tradition for The Simpsons that allows it to flex its sci-fi muscles more. It’s a successful proof of concept that leaves the audience wanting more.
The episode’s first story, “The Way We Wasn’t,” is an incredibly strong Simpsons story that returns to one of the series’ most celebrated episodes, “The Way We Was.” It’s a reality-shattering premise that deconstructs Homer’s relationship with the rest of his family and how they’re an essential emotional anchor.
Carolyn Omine is especially skilled at compassionate and bittersweet Simpsons episodes, whether it’s “A Mid-Childhood Night’s Dream,” “Ice Cream of Margie (with the Light Blue Hair),” and even “Halloween of Horror.” Omine doesn’t hold back in “The Way We Wasn’t,” and it reaches surprising emotional heights in only 12 minutes.
It’s a painful meditation on regret where Homer mourns and is haunted by a life that he never had. It’s absolutely gutting and a reminder of how much pathos and empathy The Simpsons can have when it wants to dig deeper into its characters. “The Way We Wasn’t” gradually evolves into a meta commentary on The Simpsons as a whole. Homer transforms into a Matt Groening analogue who takes great lengths to recreate his “lost family” and their hundreds of adventures together.
Homer’s abject sadness is the story’s focus, but this is also an angry, cathartic analysis of The Simpsons’ legacy. “The Way We Wasn’t” is meant to be tongue-in-cheek, but it’s actually quite acid-tongued in its execution. It’s a compelling look at an alternate timeline that also feels like The Simpsons working through its own identity crisis and fleeting apathy.
“Yellow Mirror’s” second story, “I Have No Tablet But I Must Stream,” is a much more conventional take on what one would expect from a Black Mirror parody. Maggie’s growing reliance on an AI-fueled tablet triggers a toxic codependency that spreads throughout Springfield’s infants. “I Have No Tablet But I Must Stream” is a decent commentary on tech addiction, targeted ads, and artificial intelligence that’s willing to go to some dark places. It’s a relevant story, but one that feels half-baked and predictable in its execution.
The message in this story, while strong, has a lot of generic padding between its multiple musical segments that function as alluring siren songs. “I Have No Tablet But I Must Stream” makes its point. However, there’s room for an extra layer of techno-paranoia that could have been explored or, alternatively, a condensed take on this story so that a third segment could be included. This story works in a vacuum, but it doesn’t help that The Simpsons has already tackled this topic in a more substantial manner in Season 31’s “Screenless.“ Sure, “Screenless” didn’t build to a potential AI apocalypse, but it had more to say and goes deeper on the subject.
The most frustrating thing about “I Have No Tablet But I Must Stream” is that it drags down the genuine greatness of “The Way We Wasn’t.” It’s unfortunate that an equally compelling concept couldn’t be cracked for the second installment, which would make “Yellow Mirror” a real triumph. It makes sense that The Simpsons would turn to a sillier and more frivolous story to balance out “The Way We Wasn’t” gutting emotional depths. It still needs to bring more to the table.
“Yellow Mirror” is ultimately a successful episode that pulls at the audience’s heartstrings and is just as interested in leaving them emotionally wrecked as it is in pushing tech-based terror. It’s fun, if not fairly disposable, which is often the case with anthology episodes. In this sense, the episode is the perfect type of experiment for a special on a separate streaming service. It doesn’t necessarily justify its existence or why these couldn’t have just been “Treehouse of Horror” segments.
At the same time, I’d like to see what The Simpsons does with future “Yellow Mirror” installments. There’s lots of potential here, especially during a time in which sci-fi anthologies seem to have greater value than horror detours.
The exclusive episode of “The Simpsons: Yellow Mirror” is available to stream as of today, August 26, only on Disney+.
