The Simpsons predicted its "bad response" to the Apu controversy in a 1994 episode

The Daily Dot

Animator Hamish Steele points out that this week's Lisa Simpson was unlike the Lisa Simpson of 1994. As Ramon Ramirez notes, "Twitter users have pointed out that the Apu controversy is basically that time Lisa wanted a less-patronizing Malibu Stacy doll for young girls. In 1994’s 'Lisa vs. Malibu Stacy,' Lisa fights for institutional change by pointing out that the popular, Barbie-esque Malibu Stacy doll is stuck in 1950s gender roles that emphasize homemaking. In the end, the toy manufacturers she protests respond by releasing a new Malibu Stacy: It’s the same doll, but this time she comes with a new hat."

ALSO:

• "The tragedy of The Simpsons is not just that bad episodes now far outnumber the good ones," says Village Voice film critic Alan Scherstuhl. "It's that when called out by a brash smart younger generation, the Simpsons writers exposed themselves as just as fuddy-duddy clueless as George HW Bush did when he called out The Simpsons."
• "Hands off Apu Nahasapeemapetilon": "Indeed, Apu is now problematic," says Kyle Smith. "Apu has been appearing on the show for 28 years, but only in the last ten seconds did he become offensive. There may be a bit of opportunism at work here. It’s easier to cry racism than it is to get laughs."