By Upon Disney+’s tremendous launch last November, millions of eager viewers took a dive deep into the likes of The Mandalorian and the Marvel Cinematic Universe catalogue, as well as the treasure trove of acquisitions from 20th Century Fox. This including 30 seasons of The Simpsons–no minor notch in the fledgling service’s belt. Though all was not well in the House of Mouse.
The problem stems from Disney+ blowing up the picture of the earlier (majority) of streamable episodes, which were originally broadcast in a 4:3 ratio back when your TV was closer to a monitor than a mini-movie theater. Streaming in a modern widescreen format, the picture was cut-off significantly. Don’t take my word for it:
All the classic Simpsons episodes on Disney+ are in cropped widescreen format — this means you miss out on tons of great visual jokes, like how Duff, Duff Lite and Duff Dry all come from the same tube. pic.twitter.com/cTy9adulFl
— Tristan Cooper (@TristanACooper) November 12, 2019
Paying customers were quick to point out the inadequacy, with Disney promising a fix. Lo and behold, a fix is indeed on the way. As per the official Disney+ Twitter handle, the first 19 seasons of The Simpson (the pre-widescreen years) are being retooled to stream in their proper ratio, with the updated episodes expected to “air” in May.
We appreciate our fans’ patience and are working to make the first 19 Seasons (and part of 20) of #TheSimpsons available in 4:3 versions on #DisneyPlus. We expect to accomplish this by the end of May.
— Disney+ (@disneyplus) April 2, 2020
Though we aren’t there yet, Disney’s response to the criticism and outrage seems to have been handled well, with results perhaps taking too long for the tastes of some, but chugging along nonetheless.
Tweet by @disneyplus [Twitter]