Simpsons World Has Shut Down Because of Disney+

Last week saw the highly-anticipated launch of Disney+, the new streaming service that is filled with Disney, Marvel, and Star Wars content as well as some old favorites from Fox. Ever since the two companies merged earlier this year, all of the classic Fox properties now live under the Disney umbrella, including The Simpsons, the cartoon that’s been running for 30 years. According to Polygon, now that the animated series is streaming on Disney+, the former site Simpsons World no longer exists. Previously, Simpsons World was the best place to stream episodes of the show as it only required a cable login. While Disney+ is only $6.99 a month (or $69.99 a year), the loss of Simpsons World is a bummer for reasons other than the price.

Currently, Disney+ only has episodes of The Simpsons in a 16:9 aspect ratio rather than the preferred 4:3 perspective. This has disappointed many fans, who have pointed out that some jokes are lost with this ratio. Here’s a great example of the difference:

On the bright side, a Disney+ spokesperson recently revealed they will be giving users the option to change the look for the series next year.

“We presented The Simpsons in 16:9 aspect ratio at launch in order to guarantee visual quality and consistency across all 30 seasons. Over time, Disney+ will roll out new features and additional viewing options. As part of this, in early 2020, Disney+ will make the first 19 seasons (and some episodes from Season 20) of The Simpsons available in their original 4:3 aspect ratio, giving subscribers a choice of how they prefer to view the popular series.”

It’s surprising that this error was made considering other classic shows like the original X-Men cartoon (which is having a different kind of problem on Disney+) and Boy Meets World are available in their original aspect ratios.

The wrong aspect ratio isn’t the only Simpsons related story of the Disney+ launch as fans were quick to notice one episode of the series was absent, the season three premiere. This episode, “Stark Raving Dad,” has become a topic of conversation in the years since, due to the fact that it features a prominent cameo from controversial pop star Michael Jackson.

If you haven’t checked out Disney+ yet and you want to give it a go, you can do that here.

Note: This is not a sponsored post, but if you purchase one of the awesome products featured above, we may earn a small commission from the retailer. Thank you for your support.