The Simpsons has seemingly retired their iconic gag of Homer choking Bart when he gets frustrated, with Homer making a self-referential statement that: “times have changed.”

Homer has been choking Bart since 1989 but apparently that will no longer be the case. During a scene in the episode which aired on October 22, Homer explained that he doesn’t do that anymore in a conversation.

While it’s the comment was a joke in and of itself it does appear that the gag just isn’t a thing anymore. Some social media users praised the change but ironically, at least one fan pointed out that removing the gag gave it more gravitas and made it feel worse than it was.

is it just me or is the simpsons stopping homer from strangling bart a bit ??? confusing.

it was a joke, but now i feel like all this time ive been watching homer abuse his son. before, it was just tom and jerry esque humour. idk idk idk. just thoughts

— abi / biznatch (@coldwarrabies) November 5, 2023

Meanwhile other fans point out that choking kids has never been ok and that removing the gag feels like it tacitly implies that back in 1989 it was (it wasn’t).

Good! I watched The Simpsons growing up every day, and because of the influence it’s had on my life I’ve always assumed it was 100% ok to throttle kids.

Now they’ve removed these scenes, I’ve suddenly realised choking kids to near death is wrong and won’t be doing it in the… https://t.co/2GOrc8sthq

— Jaack (@Jaack) November 5, 2023

The Simpsons is currently owned by Disney after the company acquired 21st Century Fox.