Bill O'Reilly on 'Simpsons' Fox News jokes: 'How predictable'

The Simpsons have never been afraid to bite the hand that feeds them — or the right-pointing hand of their brother network. As part of its 25th anniversary celebration on Sunday, Fox re-aired the long-running comedy's pilot episode. The program's credits included a cheeky card that read, "Congratulations FOX on 25 years… We still love you.*" The asterisk pointed to a caveat: "This doesn't include Fox News."

In that night's new episode, Lisa Simpson also mused about why she loves Fox: "I like how the network is a daring liberal antidote to the right-wing network it gave birth to."

All in good fun, right? Well, not according to Bill O'Reilly, who featured the show's gentle gibes in his own program's "Reality Check" segment last night. "How predictable," he sniffed after airing the clip and calling the jokes "a cheap shot." See O'Reilly's segment, courtesy of Mediaite, below.

Also note the icon that appears to O'Reilly's left in this clip — apparently, The O'Reilly Factor has had it lying around since at least 2010.

The funny thing here, of course, is that O'Reilly's resigned outrage is as predictable as The Simpsons' Fox News ribbing. Either way, this clip has me convinced of something: O'Reilly himself needs to make a Simpsons cameo at some point. Can you imagine how great it would be to watch a debate between him and Lisa?

Read more:

Fox 25 years later: How the network changed the world

Homer Simpson is conflicted about Matt Groening's Springfield reveal. How do you feel? — POLL