The Simpsons: Classic Or Dud?

(* c. 2002 s. trife)

here in the UK it is diff. since i nevah had cable i have only watched a the first few and it's all brilliant, which me and sean agreed on.

After a while it just became so obvious that the writer's weren't really interested in carrying on any more, as demonstrated by Troy McClure's "and we'll continue to carry on until the point that the show becomes unprofitable" dig.

a total loss of innocence: homer's a fuckwad (no longer loveable), there's too many drug/alcohol/sex jokes, and everybody swears.

god bless reruns etc.

nobody cared when roseanne went down the tubes b/c roseanne was only ever a sitcom.

the simpsons generation

okay okay, it starts w/ a radiohead quote, and some of chris' writing is a bit lofty, but i think he makes some v. important points here that elevate the simpsons beyond the stuff of yr average sitcom

And I cared about Roseanne! I thought it was a terrific show for quite a while, and astoundingly terrible in the last two seasons.

One of my fave moments. I loved the caricature of the two as well.

Futurama is great also, but there just aren't the kind of moments where you can simply think about and collapse into a bout of hysterics.

(like my girlfriend and I last night, when we recalled the episode where Jasper is auditioning for something and is singing "This is the theme, from A Summer Place, from A Summer Place, the theme, from A Summer Place...")

Statements like this boggle my mind. The writing on "Roseanne" may not have been as sharp in the "lookit-this-reference-ooh-we're-smart" vein that "The Simpsons" writers have always veered towards, but the characters and their relationships were WAY more human and affecting. Even when the show sucked, the characters and relationships stood out compared to other shows on television. (Compare it to "Home Improvement", for one horrifying example. Even "Friends" is deeper than that shit.)

"The Critic" was awe-inspiring. I don't watch "The Simpsons" the way I used to, but it's still funny to me. Not as funy as "South Park", but funnier than most shows.

I don't think by saying it was "only ever a sitcom" I undermined the value that it had as such, Dan. But I think you'd be hard-pressed to prove that Roseanne ever transcended that in any way shape or form. Whereas the Simpsons, well...

Best jingle ever = "Call Mr. Plow, that's my name / that name again is Mr. Plow!"

*cuts to testcard*

The Critic was fantastic, yeah. Jay's dad was hilarious. The time when he thinks an owl in his garden is that neighbour bloke from Home Improvement nearly had me wetting myself. Hasn't been repeated for ages, sadly...

I like Family Guy, but it's very erratic in quality. The one where Death injures himself, leading to all living things becoming invincible, was really funny. But the episode straight after that one (I forget which one thanks to my terrible memory) was really weak. Also as someone else said it doesn't have the warmth of prime Simpsons.

What do people think of Space Ghost Coast To Coast? I love that - someone said of it that at times some episodes approach Dadaism. The one where everything is in black and white, Peter Fonda gets killed, the theme music is replaced by Rammstein and lots of strange subtitles keep appearing at the bottom of the screen was ace.

It's just one big car crash these days.

Lisa says something about the Simpsons not being a part of Springfield's "cultural elite," and Homer walks in brushing his teeth and says "Can you believe Flanders threw out a perfectly good toothbrush?"

Bart and Lisa have tracked down Krusty's estranged father the rabbi, and he shouts at them "I HAVE NO SON!" and slams the door.
Bart: "Awwww man, we came all this way and it's the wrong guy!"
Rabbi: (opening door a crack) "I didn't mean that literally!"

Milhouse's mom: "Well Marge, yesterday Milhouse told me my meatloaf 'sucked.' He must have gotten that word from your little boy, because they certainly DON'T USE THAT WORD ON TV."

And there are loads of great Simpsons episodes - some of the v. best - after 'Who Shot Mr Burns'!

i second that!!!

okay, i'll stop now.

Bart: "That's not a knife, that's a spoon"

Aussie kid: "I see you've played knifey-spooney before."

Greatest Simpsons moment EVAH. Except possibly the canyon ambulance rescue gag.

To be stupidly pedantic, it's "I nicked it".

"TO THE BEEMOBILE!"

"You mean your Chevy?"

"...Yes."

b-b-but "Pi is exactly three!" => that episode is klassik!!!

Around the five thousandth round of repeats The Simpsons ceased to be a television programme as we know it [plot, character development, all that jazz] and became part of the social landscape. It became so ubiquitous and self-aware it really has nowhere else to go than complete self-deconstruction.

Oh. That reminds me. Those of you condemning New Simpsons for being pointless/no longer funny, what's your take on the similarly absurdist Family Guy?

I'd totally forgotten about Andy.

This is what S1m0ne would have told us if it wasn't so fucking sappy.

"It's not your fault, Homer, it's those lousy writers! They make me madder than a...yak in heat!"

also a thomas pynchon reference. I am easy.

The Shift article that mark p recommends is OTM, but misses the other effect of the richness of the material: it's not just that there are things that everyone remembers, but there are things in there just for you, and that you can hold to your heart ("Brevity is ... wit").

Simpsons = Pop Music.

"you're adopted and I never liked you"

i just saw a promo for the new season that previews an episode where MARGE GETS BREAST IMPLANTS

this is fucking BUSH LEAGUE and it should be STOPPED

i walked past the telly and there was a caterpillar that screamed like a monkey

i walked past again and marge was being sentenced to death

Futurama is on Ch4 Wednesdays at 6:30pm. Classic.

That said, I'm really sorry that Futurama's getting cancelled. Dr Zoidberg is funnier than half the Simpsons cast put together.

As far as Homer-caused deaths go, do the Halloween episodes count? In the first part of XII (which I'm watching now for the first time) his dunderheadedness manages to kill Lenny, Carl, Moe and Bart.

The show, which also features the voice of "Harry Potter" author J.K. Rowling, aired Sunday in the United States and will air in Britain in January.

http://www.cnn.com/2003/SHOWBIZ/TV/11/22/blair.simpsons/index.html

What the fuck is The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet?

Season 11 (Mike Scully ran) is when it sucks utter shit and represents how bad the series remains today (Al Jean's bloated solo running).

xpost

Season 9 has some goodies though - The Last Temptation of Krusty, the one where Homer and Marge start having sex in public and a couple of others.

http://www.snpp.com/episodes/BABF05

Announcer: And now, back to your Tuesday morning movie.
[a boy who resembles James Dean in a leather jacket
runs out of a modest house, gets on a motorcycle,
and rides away]
Mother: Oh, I don't know what's the matter with Jimmy. He
won't do his homework, he only salutes the flag with
one finger, and he comes home every night with other
peoples' blood on his shirt.
Father: He's a rebel, I tell you, a rebel without a cause --
just like that boy in that popular movie we saw.
[Jimmy and his gang ride through a store, raising
havoc]
Homer: Yeah, that's the life for me, Marge. Cruising and
hassling shopkeepers.
Cop: [arresting Jimmy] When will you teens learn to be
uncool like everyone else?
Jimmy: Never, pops.
Homer: That's right -- never!
Jimmy: You can arrest me, but you'll never defeat the
Cobras. Nothing can defeat a motorcycle gang!
[close up on Jimmy's face as he's put behind bars.
A gang of bikers riding in a cloud of dust, and the
words "The End," is superimposed on the screen]
Homer: A gang -- that's the answer!
Lisa: Answer to what?
Homer: Hey, don't make me hassle you, Lisa.

Homer gets his gang together, the but the effect is less than
menacing. Moe has a motorcycle from the 20s, which sparks and
breaks down. At least he's better off than Carl and Lenny, who
don't have motorcycles at all. Even so, Ned is interested in
joining up, offering the use of his den (with bumper pool table) as
the gang lair. That's too good to turn down, so Ned's in.

After some beers and a game of pool, the club gets down to business.

Homer: The first meeting of Hell's Satans is called to order.
Ned: I move we reconsider our club name. Make it something a
little less blasphemous. After all, [chuckles] we don't
want to go to Hell.
Lenny: How about the Devil's Pals?
Ned: No.
Moe: The Christ Punchers.
Ned: The Christ ... I, I don't think you understand my
objection.
Homer: I'm the president the decision is mine. We're Hell's
Satans! Besides, I already made our club jackets. [holds
up a light blue windbreaker with "Hell's Satans" crudely
written on it, then passes them out to the gang]
The newly-christened gang rides around town. Homer is on his red
Harley, while Moe has finally resurrected his old motorcycle. (Or
maybe not -- it still trails a cloud of black smoke.) Carl has a
yellow scooter he rented from Hertz. Flanders is on a child's
bicycle. Lenny brings up the rear in a riding mower.

They pull up alongside Chief Wiggum, and taunt him by making oinking
noises. Wiggum vows he will put them in juvenile detention someday.
In retaliation, Homer quotes a line from the movie he saw Tuesday,
but gets the name of his gang wrong. Embarrassed, he make a few
quick "oinks" then makes a hasty exit.

H: you'll never defeat the Cobras pig.
W: hey I thought you guys were the Hell's Satans
H: Uhhh, oink oink oink

The gang loiters around the Kwik-E-Mart (gambling for pennies), until Apu chases them away with his mighty broom (although the broom upsets Manjula)

M: You said no more brooms
A: you knew I had a temper when you married me

Homer is pleasantly surprised to find his picture of Hell's Satans
in "Outlaw Biker" magazine. Marge is also surprised, but by a
different photo -- one of her in a nightgown, sound asleep. She's
been named "Cycle Slut of the Month," but that doesn't impress her.

Marge: You took a picture of me when I was asleep?
Homer: If you'd been awake you would have said, "no." You can
see the bind I was in.
Marge: [reading from the magazine] Her turn-ons include thievery
and liquor. Her turns-offs include underpants,
pedestrians, and justice -- [disgusted] Ohhh.

Then the guest stars come in (ugh) and the writers use the 'but we're scum only because we don't know any better' joke for the remainder of the show...that is, until they fence with the motorcycles themselves...and I'm quickly reminded that this is season 11

My guess is this script was a holdover from season 10 that got finished and aired in 11

x-post yet again

Meathook: Take off that jacket, man.
Homer: Okay. [takes off his club jacket]
Meathook: [pulls out a switchblade knife, then a switchblade
fork]
Now, eat it.
Homer: [meekly] All right. [cut to some time later, as
Homer finishes the jacket]
Ramrod: Hey, hey! Chew with your mouth closed, please.
Homer: [sucks down a sleeve] Done.
Marge: Okay, Meathook, I think he learned his lesson.
[maybe not, since Homer is putting on a sweater with
"Hell's Satans" embroidered on it]
Meathook: Aw, man, now you gotta eat that, too!
Homer: Ohhh.
Ramrod: You got anything else with our logo on it?
Homer: Caps and Frisbees, sir.
Meathook: You gotta eat them, too!
Homer: ... and some pogs.

gambling for pennies
grown men thinking they're invincible against going to juvie
motorcycle gang with only 1 1/2 motorcycles
printing up frisbess and pogs for your gang

Not Funny:
Fencing with motorcycles
running "resume" joke
any other "we don't know better" joke
john goodman's overall reading

http://www.abcarcade.com/the-simpsons-maker.html

and it's the same joke as the south park movie teaser

But who doesn't want to eat at The Zesty Fork?

I do not understand why we need a film of this.

I think he was referring to the fact that the whole wrecking-ball sequence was done using cell-shaded 3d graphics (like Futurama).

I love the Simpsons, but in all honesty I could care less about the movie.

What I am looking forwards to is the new Futurama movie/short series, where Bender is abducted by the (robot?) mafia and used by them for evil deeds.

it would've made more sense if they had come to their senses and cancelled the show, then made the movie.

Sadly, my fantasy world rarely meets up with reality, which is why y'all aren't busy building a massive statue of me right now.

last night fox BLEEPED OUT homer saying "masturbate"

and then i watch 2 minutes of the Cleveland Show and a 12 year old said "Dad, when do I get hair on my prick"

WTF?!

out-of-this-world moon waffles

Is it my imagination, or was tonight's episode closer to the series' peak (seasons 2-7) than any episode since...well, since seasons 2-7?

does anyone have any idea why the tracey ullman shorts have never been released on dvd? are there rights issues, or does matt groening just hate them that much?

You can find quite a few of them on youtube. Really nothing special, to be honest.

And some of them are on that 138th episode spectacular, bits of, anyway.

based on the handful i've seen i'd rather sit through an entire disc of them than any season since 1998.

Marge was having trouble to sleep. Late at night, she woke up. It was 4 AM. She was extremely uneasy, now. She knew she wouldn't be able to hold it for too long. She sat up, and glanced at Homer. He was absolutely silent.

She patted on his shoulder, quietly calling his name. He didn't answer. He didn't move. In fact, he wasn't even breathing. She pushed him, turning upside down, only to see that his body was completely slashed and cut.

She belted out a scream, and jumped from the bed, looking at that scene, in absolute terror. Without thinking, she left the room, supporting herself at the wall and breathing heavily, almost crying. She looked at the door to Bart's room, and walked in. Bart was lying away from him, and Marge knew that he could be dead, too. And he was. As she turned him to face her, she saw that his face was transformed into a red goo.

Marge ran out of the room, crying in despair... Lisa... She entered Lisa's room, sobbing violently. She saw Lisa, lying peacefully on her bed. Should I check her? She knew she was dead, but she was too curious. She slowly approached her, and looked at her. She was absolutely normal. Dead. There was nothing wrong with her. Marge cried, and that's when she was something at the corner of the room, something glittering - a pair of eyeballs.

All of a sudden, Marge felt all of her energies evaporating, as she realised there was nothing left for her, that she had nothing... nothing but fear. That night was only giving her more and more horrible surprises, and she felt completely helpless, unable to change the situation. And what was worse, it was all her fault. She left that happen, she caused it all. She stumbled across the corridor and stopped by Maggie's room. She slowly walked in, and looked at the crib... There was Maggie, completely motionless. She just didn't have the courage to go there. No, absolutely not. Marge ran outside the house, and looked around. She saw the Flanderses' house, and ran to their front door. She banged on the door, screaming for help.

There was no response. No matter how she tried, they just wouldn't respond.

In terror, she ran around the streets, looking for help. She saw a taxi cab parked on a corner, and rushed to it and cried for help to the driver. Only to find out he was dead.

Suddenly, Marge began to think that the entire situation was just pathetic, ridiculous. But that didn't help. Her family was what mattered, even if the entire town was, indeed, dead. And she knew who was the only one she could look for.

this show is getting pretty dark, god damn

Is it Flanderses' or Flanders' ? or Flanders's ?

flandereses.

stupid flanderses

I think officially it's "stupid sexy Flanderses."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtJ28qOEG1g

This is amazing. Stories about the monorail episode, Michael Jackson, Johnny Carson, Bob Hope, etc.

Matt Groening's first season idea on how to end the show is pretty awesome

It's the Bart would find out that Homer is actually Krusty the Clown and that Marge would take off her blue hair helmet to reveal that she's really a giant rabbit.

I watched through a bunch of the Treehouse of Horrors the other night, which were often the highlights of the seasons. Eventually i got to an episode where Bart and Lisa end up on the Regis & Kathy Lee Show, and then in the next skit everyone ends up on the Jerry Springer Show. Both segments were not very funny, and sort of nailed this bizarre cartoon down in the real world. I think if JSS had been featured on an earlier show it would have been a quick cutaway gag that satirized dumb TV, rather than something that was entirely willing to sell itself out to the lowest common denominator.

http://i.imgur.com/ChxAWhv.jpg

sad news! poor matt.

i just rewatched seasons 9, 10, and 11. 9 and 10 are actually both much much better than i remembered, with a couple of all-time classics in each. homer buying a gun, homer adopting a lobster, homer and lisa bonding at the museum -- all terrific stuff.

but 11 is borderline unwatchable, just episode after episode with lame jokes, aimless stories, and stupid pop-culture references that somehow seem way more dated and embarrassing than anything in the early seasons. the one where maude flanders dies, which i'd somehow missed seeing until now, is almost appallingly callous and stupid. hard to believe it's the same show that made a genuine tear-jerker out of homer eating the poisoned blowfish.

You might agree with this guy: http://deadhomersociety.com/zombiesimpsons/

I also agree with that guy, mostly.

I wasn't sure if there was a thread for this already but Simpsons marathon starts today :D

Hooray!
http://31.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lscpik1bvY1qg0rnuo1_1280.jpg

except I can't watch anything til my lunch hour

:(

this marathon is, um, on what?

FXX

as in the second FX channel, called FXX

ok, i figured this was irrelevant to me

watching season two... really starting to feel like a 25-year old artifact

http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/6228944/the-simpsons-every-music-guest-chronological-order

who else is mainlining this?

Our cable system doesn't carry FXX; otherwise, I'd be saying, "Just hook it to my veins!"
http://i209.photobucket.com/albums/bb153/idrow/02192004193413.jpg

mr veg had it on ready for me when I walked in the door (he'd been texting his fave screengrabs throughout the day)

loving this so much

http://rarerborealis.com/wordpressblog/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/110.jpeg

a lot of really good ones are late tmmrw nite so i set to dvr

but maybe i'll end up staying up watching them lol

Jon Vitti has been livetweeting this

Penny Wise @jon_vitti · 12h
The note is supposed to say “You are Lisa Simpson!” With an exclamation point. I didn’t catch it at animatic. It haunts me to this day.

Penny Wise @jon_vitti · 24h
I spent about ten seconds thinking about who Lenny and Carl should be. If you’d told me they’d be on TV for 25 years I would have been ill.

these are stretched to 16:9, right? even on the SD version of the channel that seemed like what was going on, unless i am dumb and have some stupid setting on. why would you do that.

i mean i hope they're stretched.

sadly, yes

I hope somebody gets fired for that blunder.

i get/share people's desire to fill their telescreens but i was surprised they also did it to the sd versions. anyway i happened to turn it on last night just as "lisa's substitute" was starting so obviously i am blessed enough not to complain.

(re: which, lol @ that john vitti tweet)

jon

those vitti tweets are a delight, love it

Isn't every Simpsons ep on DVD or something? What's the big deal?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DaOgZwk9rN8

Lol

What is this thing you guys are talking about, are they broadcasting every episode in order or sth

FXX is running a marathon.

The extra X is for BYOXX. (What's that extra X for?) That's a typo.

Yeah I was just curious as to the nature of this marathon. cause over here back in the day it was a "Simpsons marathon" like every day on the cable channels. But I guess in order is more of a "thing" in an Alan Partridge bank holiday/~binge watching~ sensev

It's probably more exciting to see a network playing actual good Simpsons episodes in bulk for once. AKA single digit seasons.

What I don't get here is the marathon-specific excitement. I mean, Simpsons is awesome, that's cool. But as the marathon is virtually unwatchable as a marathon - what, 8 1/2 days, with no commercials? - all this does is scatter your fave episodes across a ridiculously wide time span. Basically, for a while we have a Simpsons channel, or at least those with FXX have that. And that's cool, too. But there are going to be some choice eps at 2am, and some dross at prime time. And at some point it's going to be all crap, all the time (relatively speaking).

That's all true, to an extent, but once you hit season 3 eps, it's all killer/no filler for a solid five seasons. I don't think anyone's all-time faves happen before season 2 or after season 9.

That said, yeah, most of us probably already have those seasons on DVD anyway.

Watched a batch of s4 last night. Solid gold.

it's just fun to have a lot of simpsons episodes on tv, let's not get too bunged up about it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-ZasDTtg1U

I don't think anyone's mad

In fact I'll go out on a limb & say that ppl on this website of nerds are broadly in favour of Simpsons episodes from when it was consistently brilliant

You know a Simpsons bit that I'd forgotten about & suddenly remembered yesterday & it made me lol

"Works on contingency? No, money down!"

It would be super cool if the marathon mixed in some stuff you can't get elsewhere. But along with the aspect ratio tomfoolery, they're also, I think after the first couple of seasons, running the shortened syndicated versions of each ep. So in both cases, you're actually getting *less* Simpsons.

How many households have FXX? Is that a basic cable thing? Do people generally have both FX and FXX?

...

i have FX and a bazillion other channels but not FXX. the whole FXX thing seems kinda stupid tbh, like FX moved It's Always Sunny and some other older comedies to FXX but then just debuted some new comedies on FX.

If the quality of The Simpsons in general is anything to go by, FXX’s ratings will continue to get better and better for a few days, until the marathon reaches season 10 or so. At that point, audience numbers will gradually decline, and FXX executives will start to reminisce about how much better The Simpsons used to be. “Remember season four?” they’ll ask. “The Monorail song, dental plan, Whacking Day. Those episodes were great, ratings-wise.”

also a good opportunity for those of us w/out complete DVD seasons to DVR the eps we maybe want to keep around for the future

I always forget it's possible to do shit like that. What a time to be alive

Time to be alive was the summer of '12 when I found the first three seasons at a garage sale for $1 each

(hadda pay full store price for the next five seasons - "series" for Britishes - at the store after those first three whetted my appetite)

What season are they up to on fxx now

let me know when homerpalooza's on (tomorrow?)

they were about a third of the way into s6 a couple of hours ago - i missed The Shinning :(

also a good opportunity for those of us w/out complete DVD seasons to DVR the eps we maybe want to keep around for the future

― Mordy, Saturday, August 23, 2014 6:12 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

The season sets are around $10 each and have the correct aspect ratio, no commercials, and nice bonuses. I'd even take torrented copies over these FXX versions.

Are they really playing them in the wrong aspect ratio?!

Whiney's inner AV Club writer is unleashed

everything's bollixed up for widescreen TVs now, innit? we've regressed to when widescreen movies were panned and scanned for square box sets.

re aspect ratio.
most tvs now have as an aspect ratio setting.
if you have it set to auto, then the tv will stretch 4:3 programs to fill your screen.
however, you can normally select other aspect ratios and view the broadcast in the correct ratio.

if you have it set to auto, you are a savage

agree.

I don't actually have FXX, but I have heard they are cropping the image, not stretching it.

homerpalooza on right now fyi

The wild, shirtless lyrics of Mark Farner!

The Bong-Rattling Bass of Mel Schacher!

:D

I think you meant, "The Competent Drum work of Don Brewer!" there Veg.

I thought it was foot work

Go commit your hate crimes somewhere else, narc!

It's drumwork. Also: "Now when I listen to a really good song, I start nodding my head, like I'm saying 'yeeess' to every beat. Yes Yes Yes, this rocks! And then sometimes I switch it up like. No, No, No! Don't stop-a-rockin'!"

Homer Simpson, smiling politely

I have been busted once in my life (by private security) and had to seriously restrain myself from saying the hate crime line

“Look at these records: Jim Nabors, Glen Campbell, The Doodletown Pipers. Now look at her records, they stink!” – Homer Simpson

Poll pls

My jaw dropped when I found out The Doodltown Pipers were real:

http://www.317x.com/albums/d/doodletownpipers/enlargement.jpg

loool no way

Roger Miller called them The Poodletown Diapers.

Wow lol

Ladies and Gentlemen, The Poodletown Diapers...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f68av1Y91Dg

and Holy Crap, there was a NEW Doodletown Pipers in the early '70s (song by Paul Williams)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QfUNBfw5ATE

I only recently found out that the baseball players that Mr. Burns names in Homer at the Bat (Honus Wagner, Cap Anson, Mordecai "Three-Finger" Brown) actually existed. I thought they were just funny old timey names

"A-hoy-hoy" ws actually used as a telephone greeting once upon a time, too

yeah, it was Graham Bell's preferred greeting but Edison's "hello" eventually won out

man I forgot Sharry Bobbins was s8, an awful harbinger of things to come

Yeah, sticks out badly in s8 which is mostly fine

s8 has some great eps, but also one of the worst ever, The Secret War of Lisa Simpson (Lisa goes to Bart's military school).

I got choked up watching "The Secret War..." the first time I saw it when I was in high school. I'm thinking it might've tugged at something re: my relationship with my own sister at the time. Even now, I still think it is a solid and emotionally satisfying episode.

Sharry Bobbins, however, blows.

Maybe I should rewatch it, but the whole bit with Bart shouting "I believe in you!" felt desperate and tacked-on. There were far more poignant brother/sister moments in other episodes (Lisa On Ice, Bart vs. Thanksgiving, Bart Sells His Soul, the one where Bleeding Gums Murphy dies...).

DO none of you own the DVDs?!

you can't tell me you wouldnt watch a marathon lady

and who the hell owns 10 seasons worth, let alone 20

Sold the dvds a couple years ago

xp

I have 2-9 on DVD, but I'm still going to enjoy this nonstop Simpsons channel.

Veg: well you know I probably would, lol...but, when its full of ads, and (possibly) cut to syndication, I'm not sure I'd last long. Ive been watching S1-14 on my DVDs for years in what was often marathon-level amounts. Its part of the furniture to me now. Also, on TV here, up until recently the simpsons was on every night of the week, sometimes 2-3.

yeah yeah yeah

:)

i've got the first 9 dvds, wouldn't give em up for the world. don't have cable but i'd actually be more interested in watching some of the later stuff i'll prob never get around to otherwise.

I've seen a few people suggesting that seasons 24 and 25 are a big improvement after years and years of shite, can anyone confirm? I think the most recent episode I've seen, which I downloaded out of perverse curiosity, was season 23's 'Them, Robot', and it was all kinds of awful.

Wait, was the Sherry Bobbins ep done by Critic writers?

I recall lots of good jokes from Sherry Bobbins.

Like putting the words "Shut up Flanders, Okalee dokalee doo" to music. I dunno. I never disliked that one and I never thought it looked out of place within that season.

I liked Sherry Bobbins too. The Groundskeeper Willie scene has a few of my go-to quotables.

yeah I've seen a couple of new eps I was suprised I liked. fuck if I can recall what they were now but they weren't terrible ?

and who the hell owns 10 seasons worth, let alone 20

i have first 12 seasons! am very much physical media>streaming media, and don't have any pay TV options (Simpsons shows v sporadically on UK non-pay TV)

Yeah, I own seasons 1-11 on DVD and I've ripped them all, so I can basically watch them whenever.

I've seen a few people suggesting that seasons 24 and 25 are a big improvement after years and years of shite, can anyone confirm?

I can, sort of...I've only seen a few over the last few years, but they were fairly solid, with wall-to-wall jokes and some genuinely clever moments, kinda made me think that keeping the show on into infinity wasn't such a bad idea. In fact there was one moment on a recent ep that made me laugh as hard as any of the classic stuff. That said they've done a LOT of garbage episodes in the last decade so maybe I just got lucky.

Like putting the words "Shut up Flanders, Okalee dokalee doo" to music.

Probably my favorite gag of that episode, along with Itchy and Scratchy decapitating Tarantino.

Simpsons has been on so long it's impossible for me to tell if it's simply not funny anymore or if humor has shifted significantly over the past 25 years. Like, I wonder what 12-year olds make of current Simpsons? Or do fans of "Family Guy" think contemporary Simpsons is funny, too?

xp I think my favorite gag of that episode is "We can make a game out of it" "I got a better game, it's called 'whipping cupcakes.'"

http://i.imgur.com/cq3AtDO.gif

this is probably just me, but id love to read a long, in-depth, and possibly theoretical account of the artistic decline of the Simpsons.

yeah one of the cringeworthy things about nu-Simpsons is that there's a lot of dumb Family Guy-style humor on it. though I admit I used to love Family Guy when I was 15 so maybe kids today dig it too. I was worried that the classic episodes weren't going to hold up but they're still amazing. I'm surprised at how little 90's-referencing there actually turned out to be (as opposed to say, The Critic, though damned if I don't still love that show too)

xp i think the closest thing to that atm is http://deadhomersociety.com/zombiesimpsons/

oh thanks!

from that link:

To be sure, Zombie Simpsons does bear a cosmetic resemblance to The Simpsons. After all, the two shows share a great deal of their casts, as well as a few writers, producers, directors and artists. Even the surface similarities are fading with time, though. The fluid and vibrant hand drawn animation has been replaced by militarily rigid computer templates. The exquisitely talented cast members can’t resist a quarter-century of wear and tear on their vocal chords, and many characters now sound only vaguely like they once did.

Things have changed even more beneath the surface. The two have polar opposite senses of humor. The Simpsons trafficked in tightly plotted stories that were cynical, anti-authority social satires that often bordered on nihilism. They managed to get away with it thanks to a clever veneer of sweetness and slapstick. Zombie Simpsons reverses those priorities. It leans heavily on sweetness and slapstick, leaves plot threads all over the place, and only rarely musters even a fraction of the hilariously bleak cynicism that was a big part of what made The Simpsons what it was.

this is a bit of a strange take, isn't it? i guess i've never taken the sweetness--or better, something like the quotidian bits of family life that peak through in the early eps--as a veneer but sort of essential to what made the show so great? it's never funnier when Bart and Lisa are acting like kid, like actual (maybe a bit precocious) kids. caught a bit of the season 8 halloween special and Bart's gleeful taunting of Lisa (rubbing the balloon on his head, shocking her, then running away cackling) was such a wonderful little touch.

my feeling has always been that the show lost its way when it turned away from exploring Springfield (camping, trips to the water park, snow days, slightly dysfunctional family life, etc) to trying more directly to reflect the "real" world it was commenting on. i haven't really worked that idea out though.

that essay is great and p spot on imo

Yeah, that page is otm. Only thing I'd quibble with is the idea that "Marge Be Not Proud" was a harbinger of future crapulence.

Agreed - they criticize Bart's actions in the episode as uncharacteristic and maudlin, but I think it's always been clear that, whatever his relationship with Homer, Bart has always cared VERY much what his mother thinks of him. (From the very first episode! What tattoo does he get? "Mother.")

MOTH

my feeling has always been that the show lost its way when it turned away from exploring Springfield (camping, trips to the water park, snow days, slightly dysfunctional family life, etc) to trying more directly to reflect the "real" world it was commenting on. i haven't really worked that idea out though.

my equally sketchy idea is that the Simpsons as a family unit are best when yeah, they're a slightly dysfunctional family (with occasional bursts of absurd idiocy) contending with the cruel and chaotic world that is Springfield. The real problems arise when Homer becomes the chaotic centre of a chaotic world, so you're robbed of the necessary #dialectics and left with only a series of crazy things happening. And I agree that there's a real emotional core to the good stuff but it works because it's in that world where everyone's a bit stupid and everything's a bit messed up but in the end that can be alright. I think the emotional interruptions in the bad stuff don't work because the dynamics of the family and of Springfield don't justify any emotion.

ANYWAY I was surprised I hadn't heard about Moby's series of covers of the Mr Plow song until seeing Jon Vitti mention them on Twitter, I especially like this one:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htlsBsUKf4U

God, this episode where Moe sends a letter to Homer, Apu and Reverend Lovejoy saying he's leaving town with one of their wives... Uggghh. Especially the ending, where Moe says he did because they didn't appreciate their wives enough. Moe. Moe the bartender. The guy who threatened to shove a sausage down someone's throat and stick starving dogs up their butt.

my feeling has always been that the show lost its way when it turned away from exploring Springfield (camping, trips to the water park, snow days, slightly dysfunctional family life, etc) to trying more directly to reflect the "real" world it was commenting on. i haven't really worked that idea out though.

― ryan, Tuesday, August 26, 2014 11:25 AM (5 days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

this seems like another way of just saying "they ran out of ideas and started getting desperate". even the episodes that try to explicitly stick to springfield stories without 4 cameos (like the one mentioned in the post above) basically hold these characters upside-down and shake them until their spare lunch money falls out. the well's run dry. how many more moe-centric stories can you write?

a friend of mine, who is an avid fan and a sentimental, nostalgic thinker about tv, has always said his favorite episode of all time is "bart vs. thanksgiving". which is a poignant episode with a typical tearjerky season 2 ending, but the reason he loves it is because (even though bart runs away for a spell) it's all centered in the home, completely on the family functioning within the home, and there are all these quiet moments of the simpsons just sort of being their basic selves. (i always think of bart emptying the canned cranberry sauce.) those S2 episodes were all about pinning down the family's character tics and especially their vulnerabilities but this one does a lot of work you don't really see anywhere else. i think of the last decade of simpsons as being the complete opposite of that episode.

Or do fans of "Family Guy" think contemporary Simpsons is funny, too?

― Josh in Chicago, Tuesday, August 26, 2014 9:55 AM (5 days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Yes. Plenty of nu-Simpsons apologetics out there.

a friend recommended that i watch the "That 90's Show" episode in s19 where Marge goes to college & Homer joins a grunge band called Sadgasm

i didnt like it, mostly bc it just wasnt that funny and it all seemed like echoes of other stuff

and the homer junkie/insulin joke was kind of awful

"That 90s Show" is one of the worst episodes of the entire series

iirc

it felt like a bad parody

"That 90s Show" is one of the worst episodes of the entire series

2nded

"That 90s Show" is one of the worst episodes of the entire any series

the "That 90's Show" episode in s19

what could possibly go wrong

regrets, ive had a few

i saw part of a late-season Treehouse of Horror where Homer becomes the grim reaper - that was p funny

there's an episode from (i think) the same era where homer has a very realistic dream about killing grampa that struck me at the time as being prob the worst and unfunniest thing i'd ever seen on any sitcom, let alone my one-time favorite show ever.

sitcoms just aren't designed to last 25 years. it's impressive enough that there's even a decade (erring on the generous side) of good-to-great simpsons.

South Park still manages a few good-to-great episodes per season and they're on no. 18 this year, but they benefit from shorter episode orders and a much smaller/more consistent creative team.

Consistent in terms of actual personnel, I mean. The actual hit-to-miss ratio has been iffy for a long time, but I don't think it will ever have a "zombie" period as long as Trey and Matt are present.

I didn't see the episode, but I know in one of the latter day THOH episodes there's a scene where Homer pushes Krusty into a woodchipper, resulting in this. Hilarious!

http://www.simpsonspark.com/framegrabs/kabf16/frame098.jpg

To be fair, that's no worse in the gross-out column than the inside-out dance sequence that ends one of the peak-era THOHs.

Wasn't there a THOH episode around the beginning of the shitty Simpsons era where Homer's head gets smashed in and they show his brain hanging out? I think that was the same season his thumb got chopped off (in the Linguo episode, which admittedly had a few funny bits).

there's an episode from (i think) the same era where homer has a very realistic dream about killing grampa

OMG I remember that one. He was suffocating him with a pillow. I had this spasm of horror thinking "wtf are they taking the piss out of euthanasia or something?" and then it was a dream, and ok, humans do think such things but ugh.

But as to gross-out, cmon thats been there since the early days. The THOH where the mist turns them all inside out and THE DOG STARTS EATING BART.

Wait, simon just outlined that duhoy, sorry.

there's an episode from (i think) the same era where homer has a very realistic dream about killing grampa that struck me at the time as being prob the worst and unfunniest thing i'd ever seen on any sitcom, let alone my one-time favorite show ever.

sitcoms just aren't designed to last 25 years. it's impressive enough that there's even a decade (erring on the generous side) of good-to-great simpsons.

― (The Other) J.D. (J.D.), Sunday, August 31, 2014 3:50 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I think this was a Sopranos reference? iirc

So, there WAS a punchline there, it was just a Family Guy "hey, a reference" "joke"

http://cfs7.tistory.com/upload_control/download.blog?fhandle=YmxvZzYwNDBAZnM3LnRpc3RvcnkuY29tOi9hdHRhY2gvMy8zODYuSlBH

spoilers geez

krusty through the woodchipper or grampa getting suffocated are kind of like if they had the horrendous inside out mist but then didn't tack on the inexplicable and hilarious song and dance number

lol crazy http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/03/business/media/the-simpsons-marathon-lifts-ratings-for-fledgling-fxx.html

Just tried watching "The Old Man and the Lisa". Made it half-way through and realized there hadn't been a single joke. Season 8 is the cut-off point imo.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIZ_gDOrzGk

That's great.

was gonna say, when they warped through to psychedelic wormhole-land, "looks like paul robertson"

S10 is on Channel 4 in the evenings when I get home, and it's pretty awful.

The Old Man and the Lisa justifies its existence with this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=utZvVVMIboI

also 'Contemporize, man'

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/harry-shearer-leaving-simpsons-795539

Harry Shearer just peaced the fuck out.

prob too much to hope for that the rest of the cast will quit in solidarity

This show is never going to end is it

http://images.rapgenius.com/dtk5wp4eyzg024e4d1mnlbdws.500x384x1.jpg

This is probably more prophetic than we realized in terms of what the show is likely to become as it progresses ad infinitum and slowly sheds its key players:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m78gYyTrG7Y

I hardly ever watch new episodes of this show but I did catch that one and it was one of the freakiest things I've ever seen on a major network really

Ditto. Can't remember shit about the ep, though, and I probably turned it off in disgust at the first commercial.

i basically always watch the episode up to the first commercial and then turn it off.
hertzfeldt is a genius of course

by the way, Shearer is 71 years old, I don't see why this is an issue at all. I'd wager that voiceover artists could probably do most of the voices better than the original actors at this point; maybe it's just me but I think a lot of the characters sound different now

It's not just having the recognisable voice, it's performing the part, a sense of comic timing, etc. You can't just get a mimic or impressionist in.`

maybe it's just me but I think a lot of the characters sound different now

I watched a new episode where Marge became some sort of genius sandwich maker. She sounds more like Patty or Selma now.

It's not just having the recognisable voice, it's performing the part, a sense of comic timing, etc. You can't just get a mimic or impressionist in.`

― NotKnowPotato (stevie), Thursday, May 14, 2015 11:55 AM (12 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

otm. Timing/rhythm is everything, not to mention improvisation skills. Shearer and Azaria used to improvise a significant chunk of Skinner/Chalmers dialogue.

Shearer's a genius obviously and deserves to do whatever he wants - nonetheless I am surprised that anyone walks away from this kind of money, good for him

prob too much to hope for that the rest of the cast will quit in solidarity

― (The Other) J.D. (J.D.), Thursday, May 14, 2015 7:59 AM (8 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Hasn't the rumor always been that the rest of the cast hasn't been in solidarity with Harry Shearer for a long time? I thought I'd heard that he and Julie Kavner record their lines separately from everyone else (and each other) but maybe that's an old thing. He's certainly got a rep for not being particularly good vibesy

xp good voice actors are like supernaturally good though, it would be more the case of getting a good voice actor who can obviously do a passable mr burns voice rather than getting someone who can happen to do a good mr burns. (i'm thinking here of one futurama dvd commentary where like five of them do perfect zoidbergs.)

He's worth $65 million and has had the same job for 25 years, seriously who would blame the guy?

xp not that i endorse the simpsons being dragged out for any longer than it already has been, obviously

Also, who cares what happens to the Simpsons?

Keep it on for another 25 years and have Billy West do all the voices, who gives a shit?

reanimated corpses of former loved ones don't bum you out?

I think 15 years has been enough time to mourn "the Simpsons" as you once experienced it

can't mourn something that isn't gone, is the problem

Whiney otm. Simpsons have been dead for a long time

http://deadhomersociety.com/

I live in hope that they'll someday do with the show what they do with the Treehouse of Horror comics and just hand the property over to a series of random creators and see what they do with it.

Or just basically let the people who are doing the couch gags keep doing their thing for an entire episode.

Shearer should've retired at 60 - pulling the plug on this show 11 years ago sounds about right

Hasn't the rumor always been that the rest of the cast hasn't been in solidarity with Harry Shearer for a long time?

if the stories are true, pretty much everyone who's ever worked with him hates Harry Shearer

I'm thinking maybe Fox loses the merch rights if they stop making new episodes. can't think of any other reason they are still being made.

All the main actors took a 30% pay cut in 2011, wouldn't be surprised if Fox tried to get them to do that again.

Shearer played probably all my favorite characters. Lots of dopey authority figures:

Mr. Burns, Mr. Smithers, Ned Flanders, Reverend Lovejoy, Kent Brockman, Dr. Hibbert, Lenny, Principal Skinner, Otto, Rainier Wolfcastle and others.

connnnnnnnnnstancy

Hasn't the rumor always been that the rest of the cast hasn't been in solidarity with Harry Shearer for a long time? I thought I'd heard that he and Julie Kavner record their lines separately from everyone else (and each other) but maybe that's an old thing. He's certainly got a rep for not being particularly good vibesy

― Your Ribs are My Ladder, Thursday, May 14, 2015 12:13 PM (39 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I don't think this is the case, only because of the improvising Shearer and Azaria do. But Shearer's the only cast member to publicly call out the show's crapulence, and that might've rubbed some cast members the wrong way.

Supposedly, though, none of the cast are on speaking terms with Nancy Cartwright, due to her Scientology robo-call as Bart.

Do you have a link to those Shearer callouts?

http://www.sfweekly.com/2001-04-25/culture/shearer-delight/

And while there are those among us who believe the show needs to be put out of its misery--the nonstop barrage of reruns now serves only to remind us of how sharp the decline has been in recent years--Shearer will say that he finds doing the show now as rewarding as he did a decade ago, but only on occasion.

"It depends on the script," he says, sounding at first like a man trying his best to be diplomatic. "There are writers' names that, when I see them on a script, I get very happy and look forward to the week, because I know there's gonna be a pretty sound script that is satirical but smart and not just sort of pointlessly parodic, if I may. And there are other writers' names that make my heart sink. It's sort of unavoidable this far along that that's going to be the way it is."

Though he never comes out and says it--It's time to kill The Simpsons--Shearer does say there have been many times when he and the other cast members have had to castigate writers for being too careless with the characters. He mentions one episode in particular: "The Principal and the Pauper," which aired in September 1997. Writer Ken Keeler handed over a script in which Principal Skinner (voiced by Shearer) is revealed to be, in fact, a former "no-good street punk" named Armin Tamzarian--a little plot point that negates seven years' worth of back story. When Shearer saw the story, he was quite unhappy. And unable to do a damned thing about it.

"I said, "That's so wrong. You're taking something that an audience has built eight years or nine years of investment in and just tossed it in the trash can for no good reason, for a story we've done before with other characters. It's so arbitrary and gratuitous, and it's disrespectful to the audience,'" he recalls. "Then it was, "OK, action.'" He laughs. "Really."

Shearer otm about that terrible episode

Looking at the ratings, the show itself has become a loss leader, right? And has been so for at least a decade, right? First season averaged nearly 30 million viewers. Last year it was at about 5.

(million)

From 2004:

http://www.simpsonsarchive.com/other/interviews/shearer04.html

In an exclusive interview with Teletext Total Entertainment he says: "I rate the last three seasons as among the worst, so Season 4 looks very good to me now." He admits he rarely watches old episodes as they outshine the undeveloped recent offerings. He explains: "It makes me sad. They used to have whole scenes."

Given his discontent with its current state, where does Shearer think The Simpsons can go next? "Up," he jokes.

Unfortunately, that going up never happened.

In a progressively more balkanized television environment, 5 million viewers is still respectable. The question is are any of them awake.

Or alive.

https://deadhomersociety.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/votingrepublican.png

i was gonna say, networks would be very very happy to have a new show hit 5 million. i haven't watched a new simpsons episode since the turn of the millennium, but somebody's watching them. i'd be curious to know the demographics. are they mostly 12-year-olds? or 35-year-olds? or what?

It's a constantly rotating audience of former fans wondering, "Hm, this is still on? Wonder if it's any g--TURN IT OFF, TURN IT OFF!"

Next week, another completely different audience of 5 million tuning in out of curiosity, only to have their suspicions confirmed.

can't mourn something that isn't gone, is the problem

Hey, if I as an actual relation to the show was able to move on years ago, you should too.

John Ortved's Uncensored Unauthorized Simpsons History is a great oral history of the show, btw. Heavily recommend this to everybody.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Simpsons-Uncensored-Unauthorized-History/dp/0865479399

The Armin Tamzarian episode is great, fuiud

It's the midichlorians of the Simpsons.

I always liked the line "I poached some fish for your trip, Mr. Tamzarian.
They're full of tiny bones."

whenever something is advertised as "uncensored" i imagine they're interviewing andrew dice clay or something.

Book is worth it just for the examination of everything Sam Simon brought to the show

xpost Nah, just a lot of Al Jean talking explicitly about his penis.

Good book, though, seriously.

Speaking of Al Jean, from EW.com: http://www.ew.com/article/2015/05/14/simpsons-harry-shearer-exit-al-jean

How they can't do make a Dr. Hibbert soundboard, I dunno.

Forgive the syntax, I'm eatin'.

when this show finally does end i have to wonder how many ppl involved with it will admit it was total garbage for the last two decades. i mean matt groening seems like a smart guy, and you still see interviews with him from time to time where he insists the show is as good as ever.

It kind of seems weird to be airing contract disputes and stuff in public just kind of a shit thing to do, trying and shame him publicly by saying "The other cast members have signed on, why not him?" and hold it over his head. I guess this is the way things are done nowadays...?

I feel like as long as there is Fox this show will be on, unfortunately

"showrunner"

Speaking of Al Jean, from EW.com: http://www.ew.com/article/2015/05/14/simpsons-harry-shearer-exit-al-jean

I misread that URL and had a brief moment of elation. Besides the whole "it's been on for 20 years longer than it should've been", I remain convinced that Al Jean's tenure as showrunner for the bulk of those 20 years is the main reason the show sucks now.

when this show finally does end i have to wonder how many ppl involved with it will admit it was total garbage for the last two decades. i mean matt groening seems like a smart guy, and you still see interviews with him from time to time where he insists the show is as good as ever.

― (The Other) J.D. (J.D.), Thursday, May 14, 2015 3:18 PM (15 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

One of the only times (possibly the only time) Groening made a public stink about the show was the Critic crossover/film festival episode (an episode better than the last 15 seasons combined). He hated the idea of the crossover so much that he insisted his name be removed from the credits.

lol, yeah, according to wikipedia he's still pissed about that episode and refused to participate in the dvd commentary. but apparently he wasn't similarly bothered by that fuckin' horrible family guy crossover they did last year.

Critic crossover was the first to really violate continuity in a gross

problem is it was still pretty funny

gross WAY

and yet, here we are now
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ecYoSvGO60

Critic crossover was the first to really violate continuity in a gross

hahaha lol you are so fucking tendentious. The Simpsons has NEVER particularly cared about "continuity" as such (Google "Simpsons flexible reality," which they talk about constantly in the commentaries, especially as it relates to things like how much Homer makes at work/how poor the family is or isn't), and that episode violates "continuity" less than things like Marge vs. the Monorail, Homer's Barbershop Quartet, Krusty Gets Kancelled, Deep Space Homer and others, all of which aired before it.

Aside from the character being from a different television series, rather than just "a generic film critic character," what in that episode "violates continuity" in a way which hadn't been done before, and does so more than, say, Ernest Borgnine going on a scout camping trip with Homer and Ned, or Leonard Nimoy transporting away from Springfield?

and that episode violates "continuity" less than things like Marge vs. the Monorail

iirc, in the commentaries, this episode is often brought up as the turning point in the series, the first time unaccountably bizarre things happened to the characters/town (e.g., the Escalator to Nowhere).

yeah I really do not get Groening's hatred of the Critic episode unless he really just dislikes Jon Lovitz for some reason

i like the critic episode and agree "violating continuity" is a misleading shorthand for what makes it different, but the episode IS a promotional crossover for a sitcom Groening had nothing to do with. The simpsons world may have already grown surreal and celebs were already incorporated into it, jay sherman isn't turned into a simpson - he shows up looking like Jay sherman. I think - as James L Brooks sure did - Groening could have been more magnanimous about letting the guys who made the simpsons what it is give their new show a boost, but i can also understand why groening begrudged it

by the way you can rewatch all of The Critic on youtube and it's still really funny, even if nearly all the references are fairly dated. it definitely at times can resemble a good Simpsons episode.

Yeah croupier gets at what i meant by vilating continuity = jay sherman retains his own unique look

this is fun:

http://www.avclub.com/article/stagger-down-memory-lane-46-simpsons-greatest-visu-219451

should've included
http://vignette3.wikia.nocookie.net/simpsons/images/b/b4/Monstromart.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20100826143509

That oral history suggests that outside of the source material, Groening's steering of the show has very little to do with the golden years - that's like 90% Sam Simon and George Meyer.

Fox still makes the show because it still rates! It's a way safer bet than some new pilot - it's a genuine cash cow.

I saw this Harry Shearer live show about 10 years ago where he played music with his wife. It was called something like "This Ain't The Simpsons!" or something like that. He said at the top of the show that he wouldn't be doing any voices or playing and Spinal Tap tunes or anything like that. He then played bass and sang some gently satirical political songs and mellow easy-folk songs by his wife. It was super weird.

"Fox still makes the show because it still rates! It's a way safer bet than some new pilot - it's a genuine cash cow."

Would anyone notice if they just aired reruns of season 12-to-whatever?

probably. most nu-Simpsons episodes I've seen are packed with some fairly specific pop culture references

fox built a functioning network around the simpsons; i think continuing content from the brand is valuable to them

fxx if i'm not being clear

I mean it's a 'big deal' that FXX has all 600 whatever episodes and did the marathon but I don't think it matters to anybody running or watching that channel whether there continue to be more episodes thrown on the pile, whoever is tuning in no doubt prefers the early days anyway.

christ Ribs that sounds awful.

I guess he needed more time to devote to things like this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9HtoWea72A

he has a syndicated radio show and its so fucking bad

all due respect to al jean's "shame about harry, as we've decided to take it out of cruise control in season 28" i'm bummed shearer's issue seems to be yet another contract squabble. would love for a cast member to just say "i've been doing this for a quarter century and it's been mediocre for most of that, movin' on with life, byeee"

Is that not the implication here

Did you read his tweets and/or the first sentence of my post?

If you are 70 years old and you decide to retire then god be with you and fuck anyone who wants you to keep working til your in the grave.

whoever is tuning in no doubt prefers the early days anyway.
― some dude, Friday, May 15, 2015 11:59 PM

I read that as end of Whiney.

rip whitney, u were just getting good

all due respect to al jean's "shame about harry, as we've decided to take it out of cruise control in season 28" i'm bummed shearer's issue seems to be yet another contract squabble. would love for a cast member to just say "i've been doing this for a quarter century and it's been mediocre for most of that, movin' on with life, byeee"

― da croupier, Friday, May 15, 2015 5:51 PM (5 days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Is that not the implication here

― Οὖτις, Friday, May 15, 2015 6:49 PM (5 days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Did you read his tweets and/or the first sentence of my post?

I know that's what he's saying in public but it seems like with his other public comments/not enjoying the show in general that he's using the current contract renegotiations as a pretext to leave, that's all I was getting at. Like I think "i've been doing this for a quarter century and it's been mediocre for most of that, movin' on with life, byeee" is how he really feels but "CONTRACT DISPUTE" is what he has to say in public.

Also he is 71 and has had a full and awesome career even wo the Simpsons. Is he supposed to just keep working on a project he no longer believes in until he dies?

capitalism says

YES

actually capitalism says, whatever, don't need you anyway. JUST LIKE ALWAYS

Just make a soundboard there must be a zillion clips of him speaking every syllable in every conceivable voice by now.

Or just put this on a loop
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YCUerhFPUo

yeah i was thinking a soundboard would probably be more convincing than any other actor picking up the job. even with the occasional [MR. BLACK]-style awkwardness.

http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lg8g8mXUbD1qb5x09o1_500.png

Was looking for The Lemon of Troy, keep coming upon Russian bootlegs with dubbing, LOL.

Also the Simpsons has been on so long, and in syndication so long, it is absurd that I have to sign up for a cable company in order to watch this stuff online. There is a Simpsons episode probably flying through my room at this very minute. Heck, there is probably a Simpsons episode tearing through the Martian atmosphere at this moment.

Just give it away, guys. You can still sell your Bart t-shirts.

You can get the DVD box sets up to about S15 dirt cheap, theyre only about $30 a season here and we pay insane prices for media.

That's cool, I'll just sit down and have a nice tall glass of turnip juice.

lol

http://vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/simpsons/images/1/11/Tumblr_mcu2n9is8I1qzycpbo1_500.png/revision/latest?cb=20121215223327

"Sounds like Springfield's got a discipline problem..."
"Maybe that's why we beat them at football nearly half the time!"

So many great gags in that episode. It's easily the best Milhouse episode, imagining camouflage turning him into a spooky Cheshire Cat-style supernatural stealth ninja, and then meeting his doppelganger, who is also known as Milhouse, the two of them reconciling with a pained embrace, declaring "So this is what it feels like when doves cry."

Is the motorcycles-circling-around-the-lemon-tree thing a specific reference? Mad Max or something?

Marge has some killer lines as well. "Homer, Bart's quit his tutoring job and joined a violence gang!" "Bart, you've graffito-tagged public property!"

tute on, son.... tute on.

LOL

Shake harder, boy!

Is it my imagination or has FXX started showing post-2000 episodes only? Like I know they outnumber the early seasons 2-to-1 now but still, I never seem to see any 90s episodes.

http://deadhomersociety.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/lemonoftroy5_thumb.png?w=512&h=384

Now Marge, you can’t blame all of Bart’s problems on your one little speech. If anything turned him bad it’s that time you let him wear a bathing suit instead of underwear. And let’s not forget your little speech.

Laughing so hard just reading all the quotes. Best. Episode. Ever.

so this is what it feels like...when doves cry
http://i.imgur.com/WD00g.png

I've got a van we can use....Flanders's!

I've never understood the Milhouse "when doves cry" thing.

They thought they were both alone in a world that's so cold.

Lemon Tree is def some kind of apex for the show - every line/joke lands

http://download.lardlad.com/sounds/season6/lemon5.mp3

Is the motorcycles-circling-around-the-lemon-tree thing a specific reference? Mad Max or something?

http://simpsonsscreenshotshowcase.tumblr.com/post/28337082192/lemon-of-troy-season-6-episode-24
http://www.themoviedistrict.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/madmax2theroadwarrior02A.jpg

http://40.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m7za1vM9Ik1rw41szo1_1280.png

The Nelson/Martin antics some of my favorite things ever.

https://simpsonsscreenshots.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/harktothetaleofnelson.png

haha yeah I was looking for anigifs of that

"Here's a tip: put a pinch of sage in your boots, and all day long a spicy scent is your reward."

TEAM DISCOVERY CHANNEL

"Spring forth, burly protector, and save me!"

"homer! bart's quit his tutoring job and joined a violence gang!"

i use "there's a-doin's a-transpirin'!" way too often in real life

― (The Other) J.D. (J.D.), Monday, November 25, 2013 4:38 PM Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

fwiw I say "spring forth, burly protector, and save me!" way too often irl

― Ayn Rand Akbar (Shakey Mo Collier), Monday, November 25, 2013 4:57 PM Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I just (partly cos of this thread I guess) changed my FB pic to this:
http://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/simpsons/images/2/2b/Gloria.png/revision/latest?cb=20120901085903

My other half is often gesticulating at me and hollering "heres your CROWN, your MAJESTY!" so it felt like a neat fit :D

When I die I'm going to ask St. Peter to look up how many times I made simpsons ref without actively realizing it

"uh... is what that kid would say. To the bluffs!"

Was this the most detailed Shelbyville episode? I feel like we don't know enough about Shelbyville.

Shelbyville was ranked 10th in "The 10 Best Dystopias" in the December 2005 issue of Wired magazine.

(http://simpsons.wikia.com/wiki/Shelbyville)

watching this now. pure gold.
http://38.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_l9i3ucVqLV1qc073co1_400.gif

http://40.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lw2frgGRti1qztjn5o1_500.png

Krabapple: The only books we have are ones that were banned by other schools.
Skinner: Well, the kids have to learn about TekWar sooner or later.

My other half is often gesticulating at me and hollering "heres your CROWN, your MAJESTY!" so it felt like a neat fit :D

Is he pretending to be Australian when he sez that?

The Lemon Tree ep. is seriously a series highmark, I think it's even greater than Last Exit to Springfield (good ep., but a tad overrated).

Did we ever do a ballot poll of classic Simpsons episodes? I remember the radio button polls for each season, but we need to determine through science the ILX Simpsons canon.

looks like the button polls went up through s9 (a logical cutoff point imo)? weird that no one polled the winners from those 9, that would be the easy thing to do.

one of many cases in bad need of an intermediate step between ballot poll and single-vote radio buttons. would be down to vote for ten or so faves from all the top X finishers of each poll, or something. way too many fantastic classics buried at #2 that are better than whatever won for seasons 7-9.

I was hoping someone would run a ballot poll too, but we did end up with a button poll for the winners from the first ten seasons:

SO IT'S COME TO THIS: The Ultimate 'Simpsons' Episode from Seasons 1-10

I probably voted for Marge vs. the Monorail in that but I am pretty sure at this point that the correct answer is Lemon of Troy. :)

haha, i totally forgot about the 1-10 poll, oops. those threads were all great btw.

except for the part where Lemon of Troy didn't win

http://www.cnn.com/2015/06/10/entertainment/homer-marge-split-simpsons-feat/

and a flashback episode inspired by the film "Boyhood."

The joke being that they never get older?

the accurate complaints about the show in 2002 are somehow sadder today

wow, that reads like a parody article.

"In the premiere, it's discovered after all the years Homer has narcolepsy, and it's an incredible strain on the marriage," Jean said. "Homer and Marge legally separate, and Homer falls in love with his pharmacist, who's voiced by Lena Dunham."

all these event episodes seem to have no conception of why people watched and enjoyed the simpsons

It's almost as if Al Jean has no fucking idea of what to do with The Simpsons. I feel like I'd need another 13 seasons of evidence before making that assertion, though.

the wikipedia episode summaries for recent seasons all sound like parodies tbh

"The Wreck of the Relationship"
Homer is tired of Bart not respecting him, so he attempts to parent Bart, by forcing him to eat broccoli. This goes nowhere, so Marge signs them up for the Relation Ship to solve their problems. Meanwhile, while Homer's away, Marge takes over his Fantasy Football league. On board the Relation Ship, Homer does not enjoy sea life while Bart excels at sailing and becomes mid shipman, much to Homer's dismay. Homer continues to disrespect his son's new ship role until he eventually eats a piece of broccoli.

who's voiced by Lena Dunham

never really understood the point (publicity vs expense) of the guest voices not playing themselves - unless we're talking Patrick Stewart Stonecutter magnitude

would the expense be that much? I'm guessing most of the guest stars are able to bash their part out pretty quickly

http://i.imgur.com/3MsN98C.jpg

At the risk of offending Seinfeld with my shameless PC-ness, The Simpsons was forever tainted for me by the Family Guy crossover episode (I don't like Family Guy already, but I really didn't like this gag):

Bart & Stewie prank call Moe at Moe’s Tavern.
Bart asks Moe if there’s a customer there with the last name Keybum, first name Lee. Moe turns and asks the bar for a ‘leaky bum’ and the customers laugh at him.
Then Stewie says he wants to try a prank call, and when Moe answers Stewie says ‘Hello Moe? Your sister’s being raped.’

There *may* be a way to do rape comedy - I'm still not convinced, not that I'm actively seeking the stuff out - but that right there is why I can't stand Family Guy, or recent Simpsons.

Ha, I actually thought it was way better when the guest stars played guest characters, like guest stars on any other show. Dustin Hoffman as Lisa's Substitute was A+. Pretty sure it wouldn't affect the financial logic either way - you still promote the episode as "featuring whoever," unless it's really key to the marketing that they get an image of your favorite celebrity, done in yellow computerized Groening style.

xpost yeah that sounds fucking awful

Then Stewie says he wants to try a prank call, and when Moe answers Stewie says ‘Hello Moe? Your sister’s being raped.’

wait is this real? 0_0

Weirdly there is a version of that same joke in the original Office (i.e. someone stopping a relatively innocuous process by dropping the horrific r-bomb, instantly making everyone very silent and uncomfortable) and it totally works with the character, who can *never* not say the worst possible thing. It's a legit character beat in that show. In Family Guy, it's the most juvenile type of provocation. If you, you know, have a sister who was raped, say, well hey, it's just a joke, lighten up.

x-post: Yep, real

I just realized I defended Ricky Gervais in a condemnation of Seth MacFarlane

jesus christ, picturing that joke making it onto the simpsons really bums me out, even with the last 15 years of disappointment.

^^^^

That's what I mean. I'm willing to let a decade and a half of mostly shitty eps slide because of what came before. But a joke like that makes you half wish the whole godforsaken thing never even happened.

Ha, I actually thought it was way better when the guest stars played guest characters, like guest stars on any other show. Dustin Hoffman as Lisa's Substitute was A+.

otm. Was just thinking about how great Anne Bancroft's guest spot was ("The Monkees weren't about music, Marge. They were about rebellion, about political and social upheaval!")

The local UHF channel showed the episode where Bart takes the rest home seniors out on a boat that sinks, and it was a laugh every 20 seconds. Why is it such a big deal that the last 15 seasons have sucked? Because over time, people are going to forget that those first 7-9 years were magic.

The Monkees weren't about music, Marge. They were about rebellion, about political and social upheaval!

it's funny because it's true

Guest stars playing guest stars - Hoffman's a good example. There was even a recent one where Tim & Eric played other characters, but still looked like Tim & Eric.

Given everything Homer has done, I love the idea that narcolepsy is this insurmountable marital deal-breaker.

Though it will be surmounted by end of episode, I'm sure.

based on her poor work on adventure time, lena dunham is not a good voice actor

i think this is my favorite simpsons moment:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBef_JGNjLc

Dustin Hoffman as Lisa's Substitute was A+. Pretty sure it wouldn't affect the financial logic either way - you still promote the episode as "featuring whoever," unless it's really key to the marketing that they get an image of your favorite celebrity,

DH was credited under a pseudonym, though. (Of course, we all knew it was him.)

It's almost as if Al Jean has no fucking idea of what to do with The Simpsons. I feel like I'd need another 13 seasons of evidence before making that assertion, though.

― Tarkus Aurelius (Old Lunch), Wednesday, June 10, 2015 10:46 AM (2 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

the wikipedia episode summaries for recent seasons all sound like parodies tbh

"The Wreck of the Relationship"
Homer is tired of Bart not respecting him, so he attempts to parent Bart, by forcing him to eat broccoli. This goes nowhere, so Marge signs them up for the Relation Ship to solve their problems. Meanwhile, while Homer's away, Marge takes over his Fantasy Football league. On board the Relation Ship, Homer does not enjoy sea life while Bart excels at sailing and becomes mid shipman, much to Homer's dismay. Homer continues to disrespect his son's new ship role until he eventually eats a piece of broccoli.
― THREE WOMEN IN THE LIFE OF TUFFY CRAG (soref), Wednesday, June 10, 2015 10:47 AM (2 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

This show is just a science experiment to see what happens when there are absolutely no good ideas left for a long period yet somehow it is allowed to keep existing.

Similar to an experiment where one leaves what starts as a perfectly delicious sandwich on a table for 20+ years to see what it becomes after that kind of time.

I like the guy on the Simpsons who when asked if he saw something says that he sees lots of things

Similar to an experiment where one leaves what starts as a perfectly delicious sandwich on a table for 20+ years to see what it becomes after that kind of time.

and people who defend the show are sound like

https://s.yimg.com/os/publish-images/omg/2014-04-30/04204ed0-d089-11e3-8736-61f3afcd6c2c_homer.gif

https://joncantsleep.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/homer-simpson-sandwich.jpg
https://cdn.blog.bit9.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/homers.png
http://assets3.thrillist.com/v1/image/940108/size/tl-horizontal_main/the-most-iconic-delicious-sandwiches-ever-featured-in-tv-shows-and-movies

The show has been on so long you can apply "Simpsons did it!" to metaphors about the show sucking.

On the commentary tracks they say that whenever there's a big sandwich, it was a Conan O'Brien joke.

http://i.imgur.com/JeuZk.jpg

well that didn't last long

not really surprising

If the Onion A/V headline isn't "Excellent" I won't post for the rest of the day

welp, see ya tmrw: http://www.avclub.com/article/harry-shearer-returning-simpsons-221863

Guess Ted Cruz will have to find another job.

not really surprising

― Οὖτις, Tuesday, July 7, 2015 6:22 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

i thought you'd be more surprised, considering

I know that's what he's saying in public but it seems like with his other public comments/not enjoying the show in general that he's using the current contract renegotiations as a pretext to leave, that's all I was getting at. Like I think "i've been doing this for a quarter century and it's been mediocre for most of that, movin' on with life, byeee" is how he really feels but "CONTRACT DISPUTE" is what he has to say in public.

― Οὖτις, Wednesday, May 20, 2015 7:50 PM (1 month ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEIzuJZj03U

didn't the Simpsons do a couch gag kinda like this last year?

http://www.fox.com/watch/532793923689/7684601088

Go to about 11:20 in. Homer gets dosed and a Spacemen 3 track plays.

Really.

Yeah we covered this

P odd

The hell was with that episode overall!? It was a dream/no that bit was a dream/no the whole thing was marges dream actually/cut to WTF end bit with Lena Dunham.

Entire room full of us went "wtf" in unison when it ended.

Spacemen 3 bit was very sweet tho.

I loved it when they played Kate Bush - Pi

Ugh, guys. This is a long-shot, but I'm hoping that there's someone who can help me out. I haven't watched The Simpsons in about 15 years. There's one line I'm trying to remember from somewhere in Seasons 1-10. Here's where it gets impossibly vague. Somebody is doing something incredibly dangerous and Marge becomes very alarmed and either thinks or says "_______ can kill!" or "________ can hurt people!"

No idea what it is. Am I making this up?

Are you thinking of the whole 'Cannons are designed to hurt. They're designed to hurt!' thing from "Homerpalooza?"

That's the one! Thank you!

Oh, I guess I can finally catch up.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEoPJBhdVOE

lol. surprisingly watchable in high-res, an indicator of just how much of the first n seasons i have memorized.

Ah, how I've longed to be able to ignore the bottom half of a Youtube video!

haha yeah it would be wayyy better as just seasons 1-7.

frank grimes is in the top third. fuck.

https://frinkiac.com

http://frinkiac.com/meme/S07E24/1176157.jpg%3Flines%3D%0A+Cannons+are+designed+to%0A+hurt.

https://frinkiac.com/meme/S07E24/1176157.jpg?lines=%0A+Cannons+are+designed+to%0A+hurt.

nice.

i wanted to find that scene where homer's in a sports practice net (golf? baseball?) and some ball machine is firing a million balls at him and he collapses and the ball machine keeps firing balls while he lies there comatose/twitching. i needed it to explain to my boss why my job hasn't been working. does anyone have any clue what that episode was from?

*what episode that scene was from

It's from "Bart the Mother" in season 10.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSWjuH6qBXQ

https://frinkiac.com/meme/S10E03/189772.jpg?lines=+WOW%2C+YOU+SURE+GET+A+LOT%0A+OF+BALLS+FOR+A+QUARTER.

oh thank you so very much

outstanding

some of these are fucking intense
http://frinkiac.com/meme/S05E02/1066331.jpg

there's a tumblr dedicated to awkward simpsons screencaps that's super awesome http://dogswithbeesintheirmouths.tumblr.com/

or less awkward than extremely specific, mostly highlighting the quality of the animation

http://41.media.tumblr.com/05acf1a08dc9a0baad1b979c03e0ef44/tumblr_mn1tgauXoV1rcryxgo1_500.png

very good tumblr, i am happy

http://40.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m90z1aoOwU1rcryxgo1_540.png

ahhahha. it's amazing how many of these, had "the simpsons" never been a show with its own coherent universe, would make really fantastic weirdo pop-art pieces. a clown sitting at a control panel, looking disgruntled, while two working joes look on. just beautifully odd. would buy a coffee table book of these in hi-res.

These would be pretty neat as paintings!

I love these. I even made a craptastic macro in MS Paint when I should have been working.

http://i.imgur.com/BOef0zI.png

Don't ask me why - but I read that in the voice of Warner Herzog.

I think if an aphorism contains both the words "death" and "delusion" one is required to read it in the Herzog voice.

I watched a random "Top 10 best episodes" video from someone who seems like he's seen every episode. I think 5 of the episodes are 2000-2015 and I was wondering if any of them are actually worth checking out or if this guy is just crazy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYEetwfUf8s

The same guy put "My Sister My Sitter" in a separate "10 worst episodes" video leading me to believe his opinion might not be entirely trustworthy. Granted, it's a '97 episode, foreshadowing the show's decline, but it still has plenty of classic Simpsons jokes like "bad babysitting" and "yard king."

wow that is horrid. the episode where Homer and Flanders become bounty hunters looks really bad

my worst 10:
the season 1 episode where marge gets drunk and they visit marvin monroe
the sherry bobbins episode
the kid rock episode
gump roast, their laziest clip show
homer invents grunge
homer gets raped by a panda
4 from season 11 onwards I haven't seen or have forgotten

the sherry bobbins episode

*whips cupcake at u*

the sherry bobbins episode
the kid rock episode
gump roast, their laziest clip show
homer invents grunge
homer gets raped by a panda

abanana otm. These all suck.

idk i think there are a ton of great gags in the sherry bobbins episode. for instance when burns' heart starts beating again

I really should sit down and watch all of season 1 again, I have it marked down in my mind as this stretch of lame, finding-its-feet type shows replete with crap one-episode characters like Marvin Monroe and the Vietnam vet guy, but I rewatched a couple for the season polls a while back and remember being surprised how many classic bits were actually scattered in there. I think I was just soured on them having been, during my prime Simpsons viewership, seemingly the lion's share of what would get rerun.

I wasn't a big fan of season 1, but honestly I probably haven't watched it in 20 years, back when it would still show up in repeats.

But at least they actually had one-episode characters back then! And didn't feel compelled to turn every one-off gag character into a recurring part of the cast.

the princess kashmir episode from season one is top five all-time

abanana otm, those are some of the worst. I'd add the one where bart becomes a jockey, and the one where maude dies

Re: Sherry Bobbins, any season 8 ep is going to have great jokes in it, but that is definitely one of those episodes where things start feeling broader and lazier, and you can see a glimpse of where things are headed.

Season 1 had the awesome marge and Jaques thing!

I'd add the one where bart becomes a jockey

Actually my least fave episode ever. Not because there weren't things to come in later seasons that were considerably worse, but because it was the very first time where I recognized that they were just throwing shit at the wall and seeing what (barely) sticks.

michael jackson one will always be the worst to me. just the fact that i will always remember the lisa happy birthday song is reason enough to hate it.

Dr. C check out season 1. The early stuff still has plenty of sharp satire, which for me is the best part about the show.

it's a pretty weird season, almost as if it's its own separate show. the start of season 2 feels atmospherically aligned with 1 (homer has hair, bart gets an f), but somehow seamlessly builds into "Itchy and Scratchy and Marge," the last episode from 1990 which I think chronologically was the first truly classic episode. most of season 2 and some of 3 feels slightly more heavy handed with less goofiness than what followed.

season 1 sucks
anything past season 9 sucks

the end

well if you said "the end" then it must be true.

I too remember the Shary Bobbins episode being the first one where it clearly felt like the show was heading to crapness. First of all, because it's a whole episode parody of another piece of fiction, and those can easily become super lazy, unless you find an unique angle to it (like Simpsons did in that early "Lord of the Flies" parody), but in this episode they don't, so it just all the obvious jokes you get from "what if Mary Poppins was the Simpsons' nanny". And secondly, I think this was the first ep (no counting the Halloween ones) where they really broke the realistic mold the show always had. (Or did that leprechaun episode come earlier?) "Realistic" may sound like a weird word to describe The Simpsons, but I think one of its strengths was that despite all the weird and unusual stuff that happens, it was still grounded in real life, it didn't go for cartoon-style surrealism, and a lot of the humour come from that juxtaposition, that the characters feel more "real" than those in many live-action sitcoms, and because of that the absurd things that happen to them are more funny. But once the "realism" was broken and truly outlandish concepts started to become part of the show, it lost that edge.

before the dvd sets came out i had assumed the sherry bobbins episode was from much later, maybe not a terrible episode but a chilling portent of things to come. i'm glad someone else hates the michael jackson one, scott, an opinion i don't hear many sharing - it has good moments (the pink shirt) but with the thick corniness it stands out like a sore thumb just as the show's hitting its stride.

i recently rewatched season 1 and i was surprised by how good it was too, it becomes a very different show quite quickly but there's already a lot that stands out there.

The unauthorized oral history book kinda opened my eyes inasmuch as some of the creative people involved seem to think The Simpsons lost its footing after season 3, inasmuch as they saw the show as a heightened but still relatively grounded sitcom with real relationships and conflicts as opposed to the gagfest that it ultimately became. I'm still a bigger fan of the gagfest golden years but it is interesting to rewatch those earlier episodes knowing that they had a somewhat different show in mind.

inasmuch, inasmuch. It's early, yet.

yeah season 1 definitely feels like a much different show, with episodes touching on infidelity and suicide, they're not exactly the funniest but I think they're more interesting than the later stuff

true that seasons 2-8 had some relatively dud episodes but I don't think there's been one that's bad all the way through, even the ones mentioned here have a handful of great scenes

And secondly, I think this was the first ep (no counting the Halloween ones) where they really broke the realistic mold the show always had.

Your honor, counsel would like to introduce as evidence "Deep Space Homer," from Season 5.

I dunno, going to space is still something that happens in the real world, unlike flying magical nannies. I do agree that they shouldn't have made Homer an astronaut, though, that's a too far-fetched concept for a character like that.

doesn't really matter if the episode's as funny as Deep Space Homer

And secondly, I think this was the first ep (no counting the Halloween ones) where they really broke the realistic mold the show always had.

What Phil said. Also,
http://cdn.makeagif.com/media/8-05-2014/Luvfx1.gif

https://frinkiac.com/img/S02E08/630948.jpg

^^ one of my favorite moments of all time

been watching shows from this season on hulu and there is some funny stuff! i enjoyed the Boyhood episode a lot.

the last time i rewatched a bunch of simpsons i found myself feeling like the "poochie" episode, with its heavy-handed satire, unfunny meta jokes, and handful of annoyingly overquoted lines, felt like the beginning of the end even more than shari bobbins.

season 1 is great. tbh i'd rather watch the tracey ullman shorts or the butterfinger commercials with bart than try to watch a simpsons from the last 10 years or so.

http://frinkiac.com/img/S15E21/824949/large.jpg

http://frinkiac.com/img/S07E01/710926/large.jpg

http://frinkiac.com/img/S07E10/682347.jpg

http://frinkiac.com/img/S14E18/673131.jpg

i was hoping all these posts meant cancellation

the last time i rewatched a bunch of simpsons i found myself feeling like the "poochie" episode, with its heavy-handed satire, unfunny meta jokes, and handful of annoyingly overquoted lines, felt like the beginning of the end even more than shari bobbins.

madness

I remember the "Bart wins an elephant" episode being touted as the point of obvious deterioration.

Hey, the elephant episode. I love that. Reminds me of elephants.

haha if you go back and read the original reviews from the online simpsons archive those lunatics slammed basically every classic-era episode and mourned the falling-off from the glory days of seasons 1 and 2

The thing that bothered me most about the Sherry Bobbins episode wasn't the lack of realism, but the "Do a half-assed job/it's the American way" song. It's just so dumb and obvious and not really sharp on any level as satire or commentary. It felt like something that wouldn't have made the show in the prior seasons.

and i was like 14 when it came out, it's not like my sense of humor was that sophisticated or anything.

https://frinkiac.com/meme/S08E13/1280561.jpg?lines=++%E2%99%AA+%E2%99%AA+SHUT+UP%2C+FLANDERS+%E2%99%AA+%E2%99%AA%0AOKELY-DOKELY-DO+%E2%99%AA

Sometimes I wonder if we should rename ILX "the Simpsons sucked after season 10".

"shut up flanders / okely-dokely-do" is the best line/lyric of that episode. the premise and plot might be on the weaker side, but it's full of great jokes that are as good as anything else from that season. quentin tarantino on itchy and scratchy, charles bronson on the andy griffith show. "Good for you, Son. Giving up smoking is one of the hardest things you'll ever have to do. Have a dollar."

and yeah i recognize that the TV gags are very Family Guy but they seem a bit more inspired than "acknowledgement of pop culture = joke"

Sometimes I wonder if we should rename ILX "the Simpsons sucked after season 10".

Oi, don't you have a game of Knifey Spoony to go to?

>:|

;)

I watched nearly every episode when it came out for seasons 3-8. The Sherry Bobbins episode was the tipping point for me. Stale pop culture reference, stale jokes, and a mean-spirited meta ending. I see that the very next episode to air was the Poochie one, although Bobbins has a production code from the last season -- a good placement.

"Bart Gets an Elephant" was from season 5? Feels like an episode from 8 or 9. Not terrible, but a ridiculous premise that doesn't pay off.

I watched "Holidays of Future Passed" and "Barthood" yesterday as they have the highest IMDB user ratings for the zombie Simpsons era. They're OK -- no breathing room and random characters popping up to give one-liners, but they have some good jokes and some emotion.

I watched religiously through maybe 2000-ish but my faith had been wavering for a while. Opting to no longer pay for cable was at least partially inspired by the show's decline.

The elephant episode at least has that bit about how some animals are just jerks.

the elephant is an outlandish premise, but that episode is as full of high caliber jokes as any other in season 5

xp I think I wanna check out "Holidays of Future Passed" because it was reportedly intended as a series finale.

Did they ever follow through with Bart as supreme court justice in any of the "future simpsons" episodes?

xp i happened to see that one and i thought 'hey that was surprisingly decent', but not much more than that

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JTXQKK4C358

https://frinkiac.com/meme/S09E17/929778.jpg?b64lines=V0hBVCBBIFRJTUUgVE8gQkUgQUxJVkUu

Best thing about the Simpsons area of Universal, where I was earlier this week, is that they have the Simpsons playing on all the TVs while waiting in line. Made the line go so fast, and in some cases made you want to just hang in line longer. They should play classic Simpsons eps in all lines.

Only ride I went on twice at Universal, so fun. Tried to go on Harry Potter twice but it broke down while I was in line. (Simpsons eps would have helped there.)

Just looking through the episodes of season 11, the rot really started to set in. At least there a few decent ones from season 10

Season 13 is cool apparently? Someone said that upthread.

"Little Girl In The Big Ten" is cool. I might check out the other 2 Jon Vitti episodes from that season and start from there. I feel like I've seen the one where Homer is prescribed weed and replaces Smithers or something.

http://www.pudreteflanders.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/fishbulb-tattoos.jpg

"Strong arms of the ma" (season 15, the one where Marge becomes a bodybuilder) is an incredibly dark episode

two noted TV critics wrote a book ranking the 100 greatest US shows, and...

http://www.vulture.com/2016/09/tv-the-book-simpsons-best-television-show.html

Simpsons is basically the Rolling Stones of TV shows at this point - strictly based on entire output, there's more garbage than gold (the gold is still gold of course)

did you read the piece?

(bcz that is addressed)

I didn't read the whole thing but I did get to the paragraph where he defends the gems of latter years

Simpsons is basically the Rolling Stones of TV shows at this point - strictly based on entire output, there's more garbage than gold (the gold is still gold of course)

https://frinkiac.com/gif/S14E02/749457/753628.gif?b64lines=

more garbage than gold in most TV, Simpsons deserves its spot at the top of the trash heap

more garbage than gold in most TV

this is true of the medium in general, but truly great shows have a lower shit:gold ratio than the average imo.

i never watch it anymore but it will still be so weird when the simpsons finally ends

My favorite youtube simpsons archives of clips includes so many clean gems, including

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cbHA4zWlQHE

when the simpsons finally ends

this will never happen

I mean maybe if the Fox network/broadcast TV ceases to exist but otherwise nah

They'll never stop the Simpsons
Have no fears, we've got stories for years
Like centuries
Unending millennia of subpar Simpsons
Consuming our own waste and regurgitating it for you, again and again

OPEN YOUR MOUTH

3-12 as peak period is an unusual choice. I'm a 2-8 puritan (perhaps because most of these seasons were in reruns throughout high school for me).

yeah the show was actively garbage by Season 12. 2-9 sounds about right to me.

I've watched maybe one episode every like 2-3 years on average since it went downhill. It's like going to visit your mom except now it's just your mom's exquisitely-preserved corpse propped up in her favorite chair. It looks the same but whatever made it special and unique and loveable is long gone.

yeah same here, there seems to be a lot of puffed up edginess that I'd typically associate with something like Family Guy. still some good jokes and a lot of rapid-fire things that made me smile but yeah, nothing like it used to be maaaan

when the simpsons finally ends

this will never happen

― Οὖτις, Monday, September 12, 2016 12:01 PM (twenty-six minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

i dunno, feel like I can't see them continuing if they lose main cast members. harry shearer is in his 70s for example

We've watched a lot of Season 13. It's great. The accepted wisdom is wrong. Season 14 is where it falls off a bit

Either 11 or 12 is shit though (I forget which) so people can be forgiven for thinking it all went wrong earlier, but 13 is an all-time season

9-12 are the Mike Scully years, and that's where the truly despised episodes are.

i am part of the problem, i do keep watching (the first ten minutes) of each new episode

i think a lot of even classic-era episodes haven't aged well, there are lot of references contemporary to 90s pop culture that don't hold up. i would be curious to see how the legacy of the show holds for those without the proper context to appreciate it, now that a majority of the shows output is now bad (also younger people now are being saturated in animated not-strictly-for-kids programming which the simpsons pioneered)

Seasons 8-10 are my all-time favourites

season 13 is very underrated. that's like the decadent period of the Simpsons where the show sort-of eats itself. there's a lot of funny stuff if you followed it all the way up to that point.

xxp it's strange because I thought this would completely destroy the idea of rewatching The Critic because it's full of 90's references but somehow that show held up for me.

Looking at Wikipedia and yeah Season 9 is definitely where things started to slip but I still like a lot of those episodes. Can definitely see why majorly altering several characters' storylines would irritate some people but it was like...75% as funny as the good stuff and that's good enough for me

i think the clear demarcation is the itchy, scratchy, and poochie show, basically a meta commentary on the decline that was to come (also one of my favorite episodes). coupling that with frank grimes concluding that season, i dunno, 8 or 9 has to be the end of 'classic' era. i should revisit 13 though. i seem to remember being a kid and watching the one where they went to africa though and it was the first time i actively thought it sucked, not sure what season that was

for me it was killing Maude Flanders and then there was a kinda sucky episode where Bart takes care of a wounded bird or something, that was where I was like "hmm this is probably over"

(that said I haven't seen any of 13 yet besides the Angry Dad episode so I may watch those)

xp I liked the Africa episode, it was so deliriously stupid. Some good sight gags, too, like when Homer throws the suitcase into a spiderweb and a spider immediately crawls down and spits acid on it. "Eh, it was bound to happen."

yeah, when mike scully became show runner in season 9, the decline began. the roller-coaster after that was something I stepped away from after a season 11 or so

i have a theory that they still hire dudes straight from harvard and guys from harvard were actually cool and funny 20 years ago but suck shit nowadays.

i dunno, feel like I can't see them continuing if they lose main cast members. harry shearer is in his 70s for example

everybody is replaceable in animation. everybody. if they haven't stopped watching already, they aren't going to stop watching because the original voices leave.

xp

i'd side with the essence of the characters truly will get lost once dan/hank/harry leave, as they are the bulk of core, peripheral, and one-off characters. picking out which one-offs are Dan remains something i get distracted by while watching the show

that doesn't mean the show will stop!

there was a kinda sucky episode where Bart takes care of a wounded bird or something, that was where I was like "hmm this is probably over"

Perhaps not coincidentally the last episode Phil Hartman taped.

rip newsradio