The couch sequence on the Simpsons is one of the most reliable and comforting introductions on TV – always different and yet somehow always the same, as the family skitter in to some kind of surreal sight gag. But after well over 500 episodes, the producers are starting to farm the gag out elsewhere.

Recently we had Guillermo Del Toro's horror-filled take, and a Hobbit-themed epic, but now things get a little more whimsical and low-key. French animator Sylvain Chomet, director of The Triplets of Belleville and The Illusionist, takes the reins which a knowingly Gallic sequence: Homer eats snails, Bart attempts to make foie gras, and Maggie goes missing in typically slapstick fashion. Take a look at the clip below, which screens before this Sunday's episode in the US.

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