The blockchain and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) appeared on The Simpsons in the Halloween special episode Treehouse of Horror 34 of the well-known cartoon series. ‘Wild Barts Can’t Be Token,’ the episode’s first chapter, mentioned the overvaluation of on-chain NFTs multiple times. NFTs are a unique cryptocurrency asset that enables owners to authenticate their possession of tangible or intangible goods.
In the episode, the mayor of Springfield announces plans to digitise the city’s art gallery as Marge fights through the blockchain to save Bart, who is now a living NFT. Blue-chip NFTs such as the Beeple and the Bored Ape Yacht Club also make frequent appearances, with second-tier PFPs being shown as almost useless. Noah Bolanowski examined how the show depicted NFTs on social networking site X. Bolanowski is an NFT collector and advisor to Crypt Gallery, an IRL NFT gallery.
NFTs and cryptocurrency have previously been featured on The Simpsons. The ‘Frinkcoin’ episode from 2020 showcased Jim Parsons teaching the audience about cryptocurrencies, along with a singing ledger book and hints about Satoshi’s identity. A comedy from ‘The King of Nice’ from the previous year was Krusty the Clown, who loses all of his money on NFTs and is forced to use the celebrity-for-hire app, Cameo. Creator of The Simpsons, Matt Groening, has also made fun of cryptocurrency and blockchain in an episode of his other well-known cartoon series, Futurama, which parodied cryptocurrency miners and was titled “How the West Was 101001.”According to CoinGecko data, the most recent episode of The Simpsons seems to have little effect on the floor pricing of the Bored Ape Yacht Club, which went up 0.3% in the last day, and the Mutant Ape Yacht Club, which saw a 2.9% increase. By contrast, ether is now less expensive by 0.14%.
