What The Simpsons’ Lockdown Episode Says About Lisa’s Mental Health
The following contains spoilers for The Simpsons Season 34, Episode 20, “The Very Hungry Caterpillars,” which debuted Sunday, May 7 on Fox.
Lisa Simpson’s mental health has been an element of The Simpsons since the very beginning of the show. Season 1’s “Moaning Lisa” was a foundational episode for the character, exploring her depression from a very blunt and real perspective. Lisa’s attempts to simply ignore her problems ended up making things worse, and it was only when she found an outlet for her emotions through music that she gained some peace. As the show has progressed, her depression has remained an element of the character — particularly in episodes that highlight how isolated she can feel.
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Lisa’s struggles with anxiety become especially pronounced in Season 34’s “The Very Hungry Caterpillars,” with the effects of the lockdown on Springfield sending her into a mental chaos. It’s an interesting showcase for the way Lisa has evolved over the years into an outlet to explore mental health, particularly in children. It’s also the latest example of Lisa’s overarching character development in The Simpsons being revisited in modern episodes.
How “The Very Hungry Caterpillars” Forces Lisa To Confront Anxiety
“The Very Hungry Caterpillars” focuses on an infestation of caterpillars that descends upon Springfield, quickly overwhelming the city and forcing citizens indoors. A lockdown order quickly goes into effect, and the Simpson family deals with the pressure in different ways. But while Homer, Marge and Bart’s challenges are largely rooted in their interpersonal relationships with entrepreneurial neighbor Ned Flanders and Seymour Skinner, Lisa’s conflict is entirely internal. Falling down a deep well of anxiety, Lisa can’t stop herself from doom-scrolling for updates about the crisis.
Homer gives her an early Christmas present in a bid to calm her down: a new Malibu Stacy collection. But it isn’t long before the dolls begin voicing Lisa’s concerns for her. Lisa is left hiding under her blanket and helping her dolls create barricades to protect them all from the caterpillars — even shrinking down to their size in her head. But she eventually grows exhausted from their non-stop fears, and decides to try and focus on the small moments of happiness and optimism she can find in the lockdown.
Lisa’s History With Mental Health, Explained
Lisa’s problems with anxiety have become a more prominent part of her character in The Simpsons’ later seasons. Season 20’s “The Good, the Bad, and the Drugly” — featuring a guest appearance by Anne Hathaway — and Season 27’s “Halloween of Horror” gave her medication and a stress outlet respectively. Season 34’s alternate history “Bartless” suggested that Lisa’s mental health would be worse off without her brother Bart, whose ability to get her to lighten up was established as a positive aspect of their relationship. But Lisa’s attempts to overcome her fears reinforce one of the show’s emotional through-lines: confronting a tough world through the willingness to be happy with what you have. Lisa’s efforts to overcome her mental health issues is one of The Simpsons’ most effective ways of showing that, as her sad feelings are a constant for the character but she always finds a way to carry on.
It’s notable then that Lisa’s anxiety isn’t fully resolved in “The Very Hungry Caterpillars.” Although she confronts it head-on and resolves to try and keep her faith in the world and herself, her concerns don’t conveniently disappear. Similar to Lisa’s blunt appraisal of her poor self-image in Season 16’s Nelson Muntz-centric “Sleeping With the Enemy,” her mental health is something Lisa has to learn to live with. But the lesson she takes away from lockdown — as well as plenty of other tragedies and crises — is that she can overcome it through her inner strength, hope and faith in other people like her family. It’s a sweet sentiment, and one that’s especially effective because audiences have seen her grow to that realization over 34 seasons.
The Simpsons airs Sundays at 8:00 p.m on Fox and streams on Disney+ and Hulu.
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