'The Simpsons’ ‘Series Finale’ Leaves Viewers Shocked

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'The Simpsons' frightened viewers in its premiere of Season 36 by presenting what seemed to be its last episode. However, is the sitcom really coming to an end?

The episode called 'Bart’s Birthday' played out like the end of an age, and left fans confused as to whether the show was ending.

Is 'The Simpsons' actually ending?

According to The New York Post, 'The Simpsons' premier episode of Season 36, named 'Bart’s Birthday' was ran as a “Fox special presentation” and was one way of poking a little fun at the concept of a series finale, instead of an actual goodbye.

The premiere started with an animated version of Conan O’Brien, a previous Simpsons writer, hosting what was referred to as the “series finale” of The Simpsons.

O’Brien says, "It is an honor to be with you" for The Simpsons series finale, standing in front of the crowd along with animated past guests such as Mr. T and Seth Rogen.

Conan goes on to say that he knew he was the right man for the job because has has hosted the final episode of 3 of his own shows.

The truth is, Fox decided to end the show, Conan went on to say. Conan concludes by saying The Simpsons were such a special part of his career, so being there means the world to him. 

After making jokes that Fox has been attempting to end the show for years, Conan highlighted some clips he said contained unaired series finale scenes that were from "classic episodes," which included 2000’s 'Little Big Mom' and 1990’s “Bart the Daredevil.”

One huge surprise of the evening arrived when Conan’s character showed scenes of what was claimed as being attempts at unaired series finales prior to presenting the "final" episode, made using AI.

The show featured numerous drastic efforts at concluding the storyline of the show, which included Mr. Burns' death and Moe’s Tavern shutting down.

By the conclusion of the episode, Bart realizes that his next birthday means he’ll finally be turning 11 (despite being age 10 since the show started). Refusing to get older, Bart sparks up a confrontation with Homer Simpson, who chokes him, and causes the show to reset. Everything goes back to normal, pretty much deleting the "series finale".

Viewers were shown animated recreations of final scenes from episodes such as ‘Frasier,’ ‘Breaking Bad,’ ‘The Sopranos,’ ‘Succession,’ and 'Game of Thrones’ —all blurring the line further between reality and satire.

With all things going back to their normal state, the fake “series finale” ended, and left viewers relieved, yet amused.

The "series finale" was a real twist, but 'The Simpsons' won’t be over anytime soon. It’s the longest-running cartoon series, scripted primetime show, and sitcom in U.S. history. The Simpsons made its debut in January of 1990.

Despite the periodic decline in popularity, the show is continuously a cultural force, notorious for its uncanny capability of "predicting" the future.

'The Simpsons’ faux ‘series finale’ left viewers shocked

Fans gathered on social media to communicate their responses—which ranged from amusement to shock.

As aforementioned, the premiere that played out a drastic artificial intelligence-generated storyline contained key characters such as Mr. Burns and Moe, had some viewers genuinely thinking the animated sitcom was ending. However, many fans caught on eventually to the humor.

Here's what one fan had to say:

Someone else said they were fooled by the gag:

Some viewers were amazed that the show is still running after over 30 years:

Other viewers praised The Simpsons for its clever approach. Another fan added, “Well done”:

One fan summed up the prank:

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