Tv censorship is a notoriously fickle factor. With audiences’ requirements continually altering from one decade to the subsequent, sure issues that had been as soon as regular to joke about quickly turn out to be inherently unacceptable by right now’s sensibilities. Conversely, different, then-controversial humor is likely to be seemed upon as comparatively tame by fashionable audiences, main to those episodes’ vital reevaluation years after their preliminary launch.
Whereas these episodes proceed to endure their fair proportion of controversy, additionally they stay definitive merchandise of their time, illustrating how far audiences have come since these episodes aired on tv. In some circumstances, the explanation for his or her banned standing is likely to be justified, however on the time they had been launched, audiences completely adored the content material of those considerably problematic episodes.
“Episode 847” (Sesame Road)
It’s ironic to suppose that one of many nicest people in Hollywood portrayed one of the scary villains in cinematic historical past. Famously thought to be one of many kindest actors on the set of The Wizard of Oz, Margaret Hamilton nonetheless terrified audiences along with her portrayal of the infamously loathsome Depraved Witch of the West. Simply as audiences recoiled on the sight of Hamilton’s Witch in 1939, 1976 viewers expressed related derision upon seeing the character once more in Sesame Road’s “Episode 847.” After dozens of fogeys despatched in letters of criticism concerning the Witch’s “horrifying” look, Sesame Road eliminated “Episode 847” from syndication, ixnaying any probabilities of additional upsetting impressionable younger viewers.
“Dee Reynolds: Shaping America’s Youth” (It’s At all times Sunny in Philadelphia)
It’s At all times Sunny in Philadelphia has by no means shied away from some admittedly darkish humor. Living proof with Season 6’s “Dee Reynolds: Shaping America’s Youth.” As with a number of different banned It’s At all times Sunny episodes, “Dee Reynolds” incorporates a distinguished use of blackface in its episode’s principal narrative, primarily owing to the gang’s novice fan movie, Deadly Weapon 5. Although the episode is now not out there on streaming providers, viewers can nonetheless buy “Dee Reynolds” by web sites like Google and different digital suppliers.
“Cartoon Wars: Half 1 and a couple of” (South Park)
Just like the aforementioned It’s At all times Sunny in Philadelphia, South Park has gained a well-deserved repute for pushing the envelope when it comes to its graphic, typically lewd subject material. But even then, “Cartoon Wars: Half 1 and a couple of” stays a wholly totally different form of animal altogether. Satirizing the bigger leisure medium (with particular give attention to South Park’s artistic rivals at Household Man), “Cartoon Wars” left some viewers a tad uncomfortable with its satirical portrait of Muhammad, with Comedy Central censoring photographs of the Islamic prophet within the two-part episode’s second installment. In the end, when South Park was transferred to streaming providers like Max and Paramount+, the 2 firms notably left “Cartoon Wars” and several other different episodes off their on-line catalog, nearly completely as a consequence of every episode’s depiction of Muhammad.
“Superior Dungeons & Dragons” (Group)
Group’s “Superior Dungeons & Dragons” is notable for just a few causes. As most D & D followers will seemingly let you know, it’s one of many few mainstream sitcoms to function a largely correct portrayal of a Dungeons & Dragons sport in its entirety. Extra tellingly, the episode additionally presents a stirring have a look at psychological well being and melancholy, particularly by its sympathetic therapy of the research group’s ailing classmate, Neil. Sadly, numerous streaming suppliers eliminated “Superior Dungeons & Dragons” from their digital libraries owing to Ken Jeong’s lore-accurate look as a darkish elf – which strongly resembles using blackface. (One thing even commented upon by Pierce midway by the episode.)
“Mid-Life Crustacean” (SpongeBob SquarePants)
A fan-favorite episode for SpongeBob followers across the globe, “Mid-Life Crustacean” additionally packs in some surprisingly adult-oriented jokes all through its 15-minute runtime. Whereas it does an awesome job specializing in Mr. Krabs’ makes an attempt to reclaim his misplaced youth, involved dad and mom regarded “Mid-Life Crustacean” with a level of skepticism for its give attention to Patrick and SpongeBob’s panty raid on the finish of the episode. Due to this, Nickelodeon and Paramount+ halted “Mid-Life Crustacean”’s syndication, with Nickelodeon representatives citing the episode’s grownup humor as the explanation for its banned standing right now.
“Residence” (The X-Recordsdata)
On the time it was launched, “Residence” was broadly thought to be essentially the most horrifying episode of The X-Recordsdata to air on tv (which, contemplating the character of sure X-Recordsdata episodes, is definitely saying one thing). The primary X-Recordsdata episode to earn a TV-MA ranking, “Residence” solely aired as soon as in 1996 earlier than it was pulled from syndication, largely stemming from its disturbing subject material and graphic content material. Three years later, the episode aired as a extremely publicized Halloween particular, full with a community warning detailing “Residence’s” notoriety amongst mainstream viewers. Because of the episode’s austere recognition, “Residence” has since turn out to be way more available to look at on each streaming providers and community syndication.