the dirty jokes and lesbians are what their fans want, it's other people who would disagree with those things.

whereas killing off a beloved character would be the opposite - outsiders wouldn't care, and the fans would be pissed.

so it's a difference between pissing off outsiders in order to cater to the fanbase, and directly pissing off much of the fan base. not saying they 100% won't, but what they've done so far is very different to what you're suggesting