LIST OF COUCH OPENINGS - Seasons 1-11 Episode numbers indicate the couch scene used when the episode was shown for the first time; in some cases, the one used in Canada is listed where it was "original" and the USA one was repeated Syndicated showings (for seasons 1-8) use these couch openings except where marked: * indicates the 1F01 opening is used = indicates the 7F14 opening is used (1) indicates the 8F24 opening is used (2) indicates the 3F23 opening is used ? indicates the episode has not been shown in syndication yet Note 9F21 uses only its first couch opening in syndication 7G02*,7G07* Bart is squeezed off and pops into the air; during the shot of the TV, he is seen coming down 7G03*,7G10* The couch falls apart when everybody is on it 7G04*,7G13 Homer is squeezed off his side of the couch 7G06*,7G12 Maggie is squeezed off and pops into the air; she comes right down into Marge's arms 7G09,7G01 Everybody fits on the couch 7F03,7F12,7F22, The couch falls through the floor 9F06* 7F02,7F13,7F23 The "Simpson Shuffle" (see notes) 7F01,7F15 The couch unfolds into a bed 7F05*,7F16* Maggie ends up in Marge's hair 7F08,7F14* Everybody fits, including Santa's Little Helper and Snowball II 7F07*,7F17* Grampa is lying on the couch sleeping 7F06=,7F18 Homer tips the couch over sideways; Maggie falls off, but lands on a couch cushion which is on the floor 7F09,7F19 The couch is gone; everyone looks around the empty spot 7F10*,7F20* Homer bumps the others off the couch 7F11,7F21* The couch tips over backwards; Maggie pops up from behind it 7F24*,8F22 The couch tips over backwards, and everybody crashes through the back wall 8F01,8F12 They sit, then Homer pulls Santa's Little Helper out from beneath him 8F03*,8F14 Everybody forms a pyramid 8F04*,8F16 A space alien hears them coming, pulls a cord, and disappears through a trap door in the floor 8F05,8F15* Bart lands on everyone's lap 8F06*,8F17 Homer gets to the couch first and lies on it; the others sit on him 8F07,8F19 The seat cushions are missing; when they sit, they "fall into" the couch 8F08,8F20 Two burglars are holding the couch as everybody sits on it; they are dumped off and the couch is carried away 8F09,8F21 Santa's Little Helper is on the couch and keeps everyone else off 8F10,8F23 Everybody cartwheels to the couch (Maggie falls in her attempt and hops there) and strikes a "Ta-Da" pose 8F11 Everybody bounces up and down on the couch; Homer bounces from one side to the other 8F13* Everybody except Maggie bang their heads together and lie unconscious on the floor 8F24 Everybody stops as the couch is occupied - by the Flintstones 8F18,9F15* The couch swallows everybody as it transforms into a monster 9F01*,9F12 The couch rotates 180 degrees through a secret door in the wall; an empty couch takes its place 9F02*,9F14* As Maggie is already seated, Homer, Marge, and Bart run "past the edge of the film" and scurry back to the couch 9F04 Simpson-sized skeletons sit on the couch 9F03 The couch deflates (as if filled with air) 9F05,9F17 Everybody has somebody else's head, which they remove and switch 9F07,9F18* There's a wooden chair in place of the couch; the adults share it, with the children on their laps 9F08*,9F13*,9F16*, Everybody forms a chorus line, which turns into a large 9F22*, 2F08, production number AABF17, CABF13, DABF06 9F09,9F20 Everybody is "miniature" and must climb the "giant" couch; Maggie has to be pulled up 9F10 Everybody sits, just before the room is filled with other regular characters 9F11,9F19 Everybody gets caught in a net that was spread on the floor 9F21a,1F08,1F21 Everybody runs into each other and shatters on the floor; Santa's Little Helper examines the damage 9F21b*,1F11 Everybody runs into each other and end up on the couch as a five-headed "blob" 9F21c*,1F09*,1F20 Everybody runs into each other and there's an explosion; eventually, the pacifier lands and bounces away 1F02,1F12,2F33 Everybody, plus the couch, is crushed by a foot that is reminiscent of how "Monty Python's Flying Circus" opens 1F01 Everybody stops as the couch is occupied - by an identical Simpson family 1F04 A Zombie Simpson family crashes through the floor from below and sits on the couch 1F03 The couch is painted on a wall, which everybody runs through 1F05,1F13 A fat man takes up most of the couch; everybody squeezes into the tiny spot remaining 1F06,1F15,2F02*, The room is dark as five pairs of eyes go to the couch; 2F04 light reveals that it's only eyes, as eyeless bodies quickly enter, sit down, and reattach to the eyes 1F07*,1F19* Everybody sits, then notice they're on the set of "Late Show with David Letterman" as "Dave" turns face forward 1F10 Everybody pokes their head up from behind the couch (Maggie does it from behind a cushion on the couch) 1F14 Everybody sees two couches, then they each split into two halves, each half sitting on a couch 1F16 Everybody is shaped like a ball and bounces around before landing on the couch and returning to normal 1F18 Everybody sits, then Homer gets up, rips the FOX logo from the screen corner, and they all stomp on it 1F22,2F12 Everybody begins seated as if on an invisible couch; the couch comes in in pieces and forms itself atop them, causing them to fall to the floor 1F17,2F13 The floor is well underwater, and only the tops of everybody's heads are visible until they reach the couch (Bart is using a snorkel) 2F01,2F14* Everybody is "beamed aboard" the couch in original "Star Trek" style (complete with sound effect) 2F03 Everybody enters with a mismatched head and limbs (for example, one of Bart's legs is now Lisa's right arm, and Lisa's arms are where her legs should be) 2F05,2F15 Everybody bounces up off the couch and gets their heads stuck in the ceiling 2F06,2F18 Everybody chases the couch as it, along with the back wall, moves backwards away from them 2F07,2F16 Everybody runs by the same TV and couch again and again, all except Maggie grinning the whole time 2F09,2F19 Everybody runs to the couch from a different side (Marge runs down the side of a wall) in an M.C. Escher-style house 2F10,2F21 The "James Bond" film opening, only with Homer in front of the couch firing the gun 2F11,2F22 In black & white, everybody (wearing Mickey Mouse gloves) stands and makes circles with their hands 2F31,2F32 A giant Maggie, a slightly smaller Lisa, and so on down to a tiny (not younger) Homer, sit on the couch 2F20 The couch moves aside as everybody lines up in front of a police lineup height chart 2F17,3F12,3F22 The couch acts like a FAX machine, and a sheet with everybody (in couch-sitting position) on it comes up from the back of the couch and slides under it 3F01,3F13 Everybody, including SLH, Snowball II, and Grampa, are in nine squares "Brady Bunch" style (with the couch in the middle); everybody but Grampa runs to the couch 3F02,3F14 Everybody wears fezzes and drives in minicars, like Shriners 3F03,3F16 Everybody runs to the couch, entirely gray; their colors are then spray-painted in 3F04 Everybody descends from above, hanging by their necks from nooses; Maggie still sucks her pacifier 3F05,3F15 Everybody is a wind-up doll 3F06,3F17 Everybody is placed on the couch by a pinsetter, after Snowball II is scared off by the pin-clearing bar 3F08,3F18 Everybody is a sea-monkey and swims to a couch made of clam shells to stare at a treasure chest 3F31 A sequence of openings: 8F18, 9F02, 9F10, 9F09, 8F09, 1F02, 2F31, 2F09, 2F06, 1F17, 2F11, and 9F08 3F07,3F19 Homer pulls a drain plug from the floor, and everybody and everything is sucked down the drain 3F10 Everybody sits, then inside a mousehole, a mouse family sits on an identical couch 3F09,3F20 A big game hunter sits on the couch with a "Homer-skin run" on the floor and the others' heads on the wall 3F11,3F21 Everybody sits, under flourescent "black light", until Homer turns on the lamp 4F02 Death begins on the couch; as everybody runs up to the couch, they fall over dead 3F23,3F24 Everybody lands on the couch via parachute except Homer, who lands on the floor with an unopened chute 4F03,4F15 Everybody is in western gear as they sit on the couch, when then gallops away into the desert 4F05,4F09 Everybody is a clear balloon, which float onto the couch and then pop 4F06,4F12(1) A takeoff on the cover of The Beatles' "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" 4F04,4F19(2) Bart is green; Homer changes TV channels, turning Bart pink; Homer slaps Bart on the head, turning him normal 4F01,4F14,4F21 Everything and everyone is upside-down - until everyone falls off the couch and onto the "ceiling" 4F07,4F18 Homer puts a coin into the "Vend-A-Couch", then bangs the back wall; the couch then falls on him. 3G01 Everybody flies in on jet-packs; Maggie flies in last and lands on Marge's lap 4F08,4F17 Everybody is involved in a giant Whack-A-Mole game; Homer ends up getting whacked 4F10,4F16 Grampa is sleeping in a convertible bed, which they convert back to a sofa (with him in it) and sit on it 3G03 The couch remains empty while everybody waits outside as Homer struggles to open the front door 4F11 The couch is in an "America Onlink" window, which takes its time loading everybody before being interrupted 4F13 The couch is sliding on the deck of a ship; when everyone (in raingear) sits on it, a wave covers them 4F22 To the tune of "Sweet Georgia Brown", everybody enters dressed as Harlem Globetrotters 4F23 Everybody runs to the couch dressed in space suits; the couch then "lifts off" into space 3G02 Homer stands in front of the couch; the top half then comes off (and lands on the couch), revealing Marge, then Bart, Lisa, and Maggie 5F02 Everybody sits on the couch, then metal helmets fall on their heads and they are shackled in before being electrocuted 5F01,5F10 Everybody has their rear ends on fire as they sit on a water-filled couch 5F03,5F12,AABF05 Everybody sits on the couch and is crushed into a rectangular block auto-crusher style 5F04,5F13 Bart spray-paints everyone onto the couch, adding an "El Barto" signature 5F05,5F14 Three men in towels are on the couch, which is part of a sauna 5F06,5F15,AABF06 Everybody sits, then a human hand spins the picture 5F07,5F16 The couch is inside a snow globe 5F24 The floor is a treadmill; Homer falls and says "Marge, stop this crazy thing!" George Jetson-style 5F08,5F17,5F20 Nelson pulls the couch back, and everyone ends up sitting on the floor 5F23 Everyone is miniature (like in 9F09), only this time Santa's Little Helper takes Homer away in his mouth 5F11,5F18,AABF04 Everyone is a frog (Maggie a tadpole) jumping to a lily pad; Homer turns on the TV with his tongue 4F24 A vine grows in the middle of the room; everyone appears as a fruit or vegetable 3G04 A takeoff on "Rocky & Bullwinkle" where everyone pops up from out of the ground 5F09 Everyone except Bart runs into Bart's classroom, where he writes "I Will Not Mess With The Opening Credits" on the chalkboard 5F21, AABF16 A number of Springfieldians are sitting in chairs in front of the couch, as if in a movie theater 5F22, AABF12 Two firemen carry the couch and catch everybody falling from above - except Homer, who falls through the floor AABF01 Freddy Kruger of "A Nightmare on Elm Street" and Jason of "Friday the 13th" sit on the couch and wonder where everyone else is 5F19, AABF09 Marge carries in a laundry basket and hangs the others on a clothesline AABF02, AABF10 The couch turns into an amusement park ride AABF03, AABF11 Everybody is put under a hair dryer and ends up with someone else's hair; the weight of Marge's hair causes Maggie to tip over AABF07, AABF15 The floor opens and everybody falls while "riding" it "Dr. Strangelove"-style AABF08, AABF18 The couch, floating on water, hits an iceberg and sinks; Maggie resurfaces on a cushion AABF13, BABF08 An adult Bart and Lisa and a young Homer (with a Maggie doll) and Marge go to the couch; Homer takes the remote from Lisa, but Lisa slaps his hand and he gives it back AABF14 Everybody slips on banana peels, but end up on the couch anyway (Maggie ends up in Marge's arms) AABF20, BABF05 The couch is a paper shredder; everybody ends up sucked into the couch and comes out in strips AABF23, BABF14 Everybody stops as the couch is occupied - by the Simpsons from "The Tracey Ullman Show"; all ten of the Simpsons run off screaming AABF22, BABF18 Everybody is white with numbers "paint by numbers" style; artists enter and paint in the colors AABF21, BABF12 Marge erases the Matt Groening signature on the floor; Matt appears and rewrites it (with his right hand) BABF01 Everybody appears as a character from a previous Halloween Special; Maggie disintegrates Lisa AABF19, BABF13 A bouncer lets everybody except Homer onto the couch BABF02, CABF15 A cement truck pours cement versions of everybody onto the couch; Homer breaks in two BABF03, CABF05 The couch rotates 180 degrees through the wall, replaced by Vincent Price with Ned Flanders shackled upside-down BABF07 Everybody slides down a fire pole - except Homer, who gets stuck in the hole in the ceiling BABF04, CABF16 Everybody is a crash test dummy; the couch crashes into the TV BABF06, CABF10 A psychiatrist is sitting next to the couch; Homer lies on it and says "Oh, Doctor, I'm crazy" BABF09, CABF09 Dressed in karate gear (with black belts), everybody chops up the couch BABF10, CABF11 Everybody (except Maggie) is driving a bumper car; Homer is bumped by the others against the back wall BABF11, CABF17 The couch is in Evergreen Terrace subway station; everybody gets aboard a train BABF16 Everybody (except Maggie) walks barefoot over hot coals BABF15 Everybody swings in on vines "Tarzan"-style; Homer swings out of the room BABF19 Bart puts a coin in the "magic fingers"; the couch vibrates its way off the screen BABF20 Bart puts a Whoopee Cushion under the couch seat, which Homer sits on BABF17, CABF21 Everybody freezes in mid-air as the camera pans "The Matrix"-style from the TV to the couch CABF01 Everybody (except Maggie) is dressed as one of the Teletubbies (and Maggie applauds as they enter) CABF04, CABF14 Everybody skateboards off a ramp onto the couch, except that Homer lands on the floor CABF02 Santa's Little Helper dances on his hind legs like Snoopy while everybody watches CABF03 The couch is inside a fishbowl; everybody is wearing scuba gear CABF06, CABF20 Everybody is in a football uniform and piles on a football; Maggie leaves the pile and spikes the ball BABF22 Everybody lands on the couch via a "Futurama"-style tube, except that Fry is in place of (and is then sucked up and replaced by) Bart CABF08 In front of a "valet" sign, the "teenage kid" pushes the couch into place CABF07 Everybody ice skates to the couch; Homer's end of the couch falls through the ice CABF12, CABF18 The couch is outside a prison wall; everybody is dressed in prison clothes as they tunnel to the couch CABF22 Everybody jumps off a sailboat, which turns out to be the sailboat painting above the couch DABF02 Everybody (except Maggie, replaced by a "7") is in the window of a five-reel slot machine DABF01, DABF11 A gardener trims a hedge into the shape of everybody on the couch DABF03 A giant clamp (like on the prize machines in arcades) grabs Homer by the head and lifts him off the couch DABF05 In black and white, Homer appears as Charlie Chaplin in silent film style, with the others as "extras" DABF04 Two "Repo Depot" men take the couch away DABF07 The pimple-faced teenager is making out with a girl on the couch DABF09 Blue Man Group perform in front of the couch DABF08 The couch opening is drawn as a flipper book in pencil, with the pages flipped by real hands DABF10 Everybody is a marionette, and they run into each other; the puppeteer, Matt Groening, gives up in disgust 7G08 (the Christmas Special), 7F04, 8F02 (the first two Halloween Specials), BABF21, CABF19 (the 11th and 12th Halloween Special), 7G05, 7G11, and 4F20 do not have couch openings The "Simpson Shuffle": everybody is in a line in front of the couch; they do two "Egyptian struts" (right arm up, left arm down, wrists at 90-degree angles) in one direction, then two in the other, then sit on the couch with arms in a "ta-da" position 9F04, 1F04, 2F03, 3F04, 4F02, 5F02, AABF01, and BABF01 are Halloween Special couch openings 9F21 used three openings (shown in order 9F21a, b, c); between openings, a clapboard marked "Couch Gag - Take 2 (3)" appeared, and someone shouted "Take Two (Three)" -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Last updated March 17, 2002 by Don Del Grande (del_grande@netvista.net)