Simpsons: Why Ralph Wiggum Was Killed Off (& Returned 1 Episode Later)
Although The Simpsons’ continuity can be tricky, when a character dies in a canon episode they remain dead for the rest of the series, but that was not the case of Ralph Wiggum, who died and came back in the following episode without a scratch. Created by Matt Groening, The Simpsons began as a series of animated shorts for The Tracey Ullman Show in 1987, where many characters made their first appearances. After three seasons, it was developed into a half-hour prime time show and made its official debut on Fox in 1989.
The Simpsons follows the daily adventures of the title family and other notable citizens of Springfield, both friends of the Simpsons and enemies. Among those is Ralph Wiggum, the son of Chief Wiggum and Lisa’s classmate. Ralph has become one of the series’ most popular and beloved recurring characters thanks to his bizarre, dim-witted, awkward behavior and nonsensical lines. His main role in The Simpsons has been that of comic relief, but he has also played key roles in a couple of episodes, the most memorable one being when he fell in love with Lisa. Given his popularity, Ralph Wiggum is one of those characters that will surely continue being part of the show for a long time. However, at one point the writers killed him, but they brought him back right away.
Ralph’s death was teased at the end of season 26’s episode “Simpsorama”, a crossover with Futurama. During the end credits, Ralph’s grave was shown, reading “2006-2017”. The episode aired in 2014, and even though it wasn’t a canon story, it sparked rumors about The Simpsons saying goodbye to Ralph very soon, which were later denied. However, in season 30’s episode “E My Sports”, which aired in 2019, Ralph drank too much water from a gutter spout outside the Simpsons’ house and his body exploded, marking the death of Ralph Wiggum – but he came back in the following episode, “Bart vs. Itchy & Scratchy”, completely unharmed.
The writers of The Simpsons haven’t given a reason to kill and bring Ralph back just like that, so it can be attributed to the nonsense of cartoons, even if the show follows a certain continuity with its dead characters – unless they die in a non-canon episode, such as the Treehouse of Horror specials or those exploring the future, as those deaths don’t count. Perhaps it was all part of the running gag of Ralph being close to dying various times through the series, with it finally happening in a canon episode. If anything, Ralph can brag about being able to survive drinking too much water and exploding.
In non-canon episodes, Ralph has died a couple of times, especially during the episode “Holidays of Future Passed”. First, he died after accidentally shooting himself in the head, and then his clones died either by getting hit by a truck, being crushed by the truck, or being set on fire as a result of the crash. In the end, it all adds to the weirdness and fun of Ralph Wiggum, who has the power of being brought back thanks to his popularity.