The Simpsons still cool?

[Reply #40 on:]

Yea, BBC 2 are showing how poor their 6-7 PM lineup is. They repeated the first few seasons of The Simpsons 5 times a week (yes, once a day) for a long time, and during that period they repeated the shows more then once.

I would like to see some newer episodes, i don't know how many times i've seen some of them!

[Reply #41 on:]

 

Originally posted by User_names_suck:
 see most of these things make it very hard to take you seirously, you actually have no shame about getting off on a cartoon character

Deal with it.

[Reply #42 on:]

 

Originally posted by aslate:

I would like to see some newer episodes, i don't know how many times i've seen some of them!

yer same here it's really geting on my nerves, cause when i went on hoilday (about three years ago) i saw an ep on sky that i still have not seen here!, anyways BBC2 are now airing this Dating Shite and then Top of the Pops 2, my 6 o'clock's are really boring,

[Reply #43 on:]

The Scully era didn't start the downfall of The Simpsons, but it sure made the slope a lot steeper. Many die-hard fans were complaining about Mike Scully's management of the series. It was the time when slapstick comedy and outrageous situations were most common. What happened to the mocking of family values and everyday events?

Recently, I was lucky enough to catch some Simpsons from the early season in the reruns. That was more of a relief.

[Reply #44 on:]

I said it before - and I'll say it again. This poll is biased. You have options like "I love it despite the Scully era, I love it but not the Scully era, I like it despite the Scully era & I like it but not the Scully era." That's 4 choices devoted entirely to whether you like Scully's era or not. Yet still not one choice for Al Jean. Leelaholic really should have put more consideration into the choices of this poll.

Personally, I can't believe people out there LIKE Al Jean's era. It basically took everything that made the Scully era bad, and then multiplied it to make the show worse than ever.

[Reply #45 on:]

 

Originally posted by Beamer:
Leelaholic really should have put more consideration into the choices of this poll.

Yes, because we all know how internet polls are legally binding.

[Reply #46 on:]

And The Simpsons jokes now old, crap and pointlees like this:

Lisa:   Bart, I hope you don't believe your own hype.
Bart:   Number of miracles performed by Bart:  Two.  Number of miracles performed by Lisa:  Zero.
Lisa:   How can you believe all this mumbo-jumbo?  The bucket came off Dad's head because the bright lights heated it, causing the metal to expand.
Bart:   Heat makes metal expand.  Now who's talking mumbo-jumbo?

and this:

Homer: Okay, who needs another lamb rack?  Lisa?  [offers her some meat] Ham hock?  Tri-tip?
Lisa:   Do you have any food that wasn't brutally slaughtered?
Homer: Well, I think the veal might've died of loneliness.

and this:

Lisa:   I can't believe those idiot judges were impressed by glowing plastic tubes.
Homer: [wearing a garland of glow sticks] Look, Lisa! It glows. [waves one in front of his face fascinated] Ooooh.

and this:

Lisa: The bird sanctuary -- they've ruined it!
Homer: No, they didn't.  They just surrounded it with something wonderful, like a raisin covered in chocolate, or a monkey in a cowboy suit.

and this:

Babcock: Folks, I've got some spare tickets if you'd like to stick around for the race.  [holds up some tickets]
Lisa: That's very sweet but we have a full day of hiking planned.
Homer: We can hike anytime.  This is our chance to see cars driving.  [takes the tickets]

and this:

Lisa: Bart, do you know how many trees died to make those menus?
Bart: I don't know.  A million?
Lisa: You're ruining the Earth!
Bart: True, but I gots to get paid.  Money equals funnies, sister.  [picks up an "Itchy and Veronica" magazine] Oh, Betty.

and this:

Marge: Bart, it's so sweet of you to take the family out to Krusty Burger.
Bart: Hey, some people in this family are doers, and some are don'ters.
[looks at Lisa]
Lisa: [points at Bart] Don't you call me a-- [a menu is placed on her finger]
Homer: Take that, Lisa's beliefs!
[Homer, Bart, and Marge laugh]

and this:

Homer: Family meeting! Family meeting! [the rest of the family runs into the dining room and quickly takes their seats] Okay, people, let's keep this short.  We all want to get home to our families.  [all laugh] All right, first item:  I lost our life savings in the stock market.  Now let's move on to the real issue:  Lisa's hogging of the maple syrup.
Lisa:   Well, maybe if Mom didn't make such dry waffles. There, I said it.
Marge: Well, maybe if you'd eat some meat you'd have a natural lubricant.  [gasps, and turns to Homer] You lost all our money?
Homer: Point of order -- I didn't lose *all* the money. There was enough left for this cowbell.  [rings it softly, and the bell breaks apart in his hands] Damn you,

Magre Simpson, Lisa became a Vegetarian becoses its her rights not yours.

and finlly:

Kitenge: And now we sit quietly and wait for nature to unveil herself.
[a rhinoceros hatches from a large egg]
Lisa: Wait, rhinos don't come from eggs.
Homer: What did you just see, Lisa?
Lisa: I know, but--
Homer:[insistent] What did you just see?
[a giraffe sticks its head up through what looks like a prairie dog hole]
Lisa:   Oh, now, come on.

And is all Mike Scully fault that The Simpsons has gone downhill, He killed off Maude Flanders and he treated Lisa Simpson like a big piece of garbage.

But I sill like The Simpsons(only Lisa Simpson)

[Reply #47 on:]

In answer to the thread title:

The Simpsons still cool? Of course not! But the classic eps will always be cool 

[Reply #48 on:]

Don't you mean "clool"? 

Personally, I feel that the whole problem began when The Simpsons became "cool" (i.e. popular). Not to be elitist, but whenever a show gains mass appeal, the producers spend less time pleasing the original fanbase than trying to pull new ones in - hence why the show became "wackier" after Season 9. In a way, I'm glad Futurama never gained that sort of recognition, because it stayed true to it's roots right till the end.

[Reply #49 on:]

Chinese Representitive: The Simpsons still cool!  You pay later!  Later!

Anyway, The Simpons isn't as good as it once was (I don't think anyone'll argue that), but it's not yet at the point where it should give up the ghost.  Granted, it's slowing heading there, but there all still some quality eps (Tales From The Public Domain, I Am Furious Yellow, and Dude, Where's My Ranch? spring to mind.)  As far as I'm concerned, it's still the most dependably entertaining comedy on TV.  (Now that Futurama's gone, of course.)

[Reply #50 on:]

 

Originally posted by CyberKnight:
Don't you mean "clool"?   

Personally, I feel that the whole problem began when The Simpsons became "cool" (i.e. popular). Not to be elitist, but whenever a show gains mass appeal, the producers spend less time pleasing the original fanbase than trying to pull new ones in - hence why the show became "wackier" after Season 9. In a way, I'm glad Futurama never gained that sort of recognition, because it stayed true to it's roots right till the end.

aftter it became cool?
so that would be after the first season or 2 then

[Reply #51 on:]

 

God said:
I don't think The Simpsons is capable of being funny anymore. Just imagine if a season 2-4 episode aired nowadays. It would be so out of place, it's ridiculous.

An Audio Commentary from S2 (I think it was 'Dead Putting Society') made me laugh when they said "You could air this episode today and nobody would tell the difference". Though they were referring to the animation quality, the feel of the comment left the impression that the statement was a whole lot more general. The commentaries were recorded mid-season 13 (I believe) and I find it laughable how unable the producers of the show are to see how far it had fallen.

'Dead Putting Society' is actually a good comparison. It has Homer acting angry throughout the entire episode. But it's motivated by his jealousy of Flanders' lifestyle, and he channels his desire to better Flanders through Bart. The build-up, the situation, the events and the conclusion are all well-paced, have a gentle but genuine impact and ultimately leave you feeling like you've watched a story with added humour. The commentators seem to find the mere idea of Homer being angry as funny. "He's angry for no reason throughout the entire episode, that's great." No, that's not great. You've missed what the good points of your own creation were.

'Dead Putting Society' is one of my least favourite episodes of S2. Yet I still love it.

 

Cyberknight said:
About the only episodes that "worked" (at least for me) during the "Scully era" were the episodes which didn't follow standard format (e.g. Tales from the Public Domain, Trilogy of Error, Behind The Laughter, etc).

The Simpsons' characters can still be funny (when they're in character, and not just charicatures),these episodes show that. 

 

HOMR wasn't that bad (it was a hell of a lot better than that awful "Simpson gene" episode).

HOMR was horrible in my opinion. "Let's make Homer a geniune person, yeah? Real feelings, he cares about his family and actually has some intelligence. But, naturally, people don't find human qualities in cartoon characters to be funny, so at the end of the episode, let's turn him back into an irresponsible, wacky, idiotic dolt who jumps through windows. That'll be HILARIOUS." Thing is, Homer had a lot of the qualities that he had in the earlier seasons during HOMR (despite the over-the-top manner in which it was done, and the intellectualism) and it was really sad to see them throw it all away again at the end.

Also, what's with all the unneccesary violence? Homer gets ripped apart by a badger, Homer slashes his wrist on a jukebox... Falling down the canyon in 'Bart the Daredevil' was funny because it had a purpose, and genuine consequences. I even liked the cutting off of the thumb in 'Trilogy of Error' because it had consequences (and formed a good storyline, with actual outcomes).

More pain does not equal more funny, Mr. Groening.

[Reply #52 on:]

 

Originally posted by SamuelXDiamond:
 'Dead Putting Society' is one of my least favourite episodes of S2. Yet I still love it.

Wow! it's one of, if not my fave ep of Season 2. It's one of the main reasons I bought the Season 2 DVD set, awesome stuff 

[Reply #53 on:]

I agree with everything SXD said.

I'm torn on "HOMR." While I found the premise to be rather stupid and unbelievable, I did enjoy the end result of "smart Homer."  We've seen Homer as "smart" (or at least normal) before, and it was refreshing to go back to that.

What I can't stand are these "sudden revelations" about the characters' backstories. I didn't like Homer's half-brother way back when, and I don't like all these new revelations (Homer finding Smithers' dad's dead body, the crayon in the brain, etc.) It cheapens the characters and turns them more into "Family Guy"-esque joke vessels. And the characters in "Family Guy" are not likeable at all..

[Reply #54 on:]

 

Originally posted by CyberKnight:
Don't you mean "clool"?   

Personally, I feel that the whole problem began when The Simpsons became "cool" (i.e. popular). Not to be elitist, but whenever a show gains mass appeal, the producers spend less time pleasing the original fanbase than trying to pull new ones in - hence why the show became "wackier" after Season 9. In a way, I'm glad Futurama never gained that sort of recognition, because it stayed true to it's roots right till the end.

I think a bigger problem with a show gaining mass popularity is that networks and producers alike try to keep the show going as long as possible.  Quality doesn't matter as long as they're still making money from it.  Star Trek is the best example I can think of.

And if the Simpsons is ever in danger of finishing, I'm sure somebody has a potential spin-off up their sleeve.

[Reply #55 on:]

Fred: You mean the Star Trek franchise, I presume?

[Reply #56 on:]

 

Originally posted by CyberKnight:

Personally, I feel that the whole problem began when The Simpsons became "cool" (i.e. popular). Not to be elitist, but whenever a show gains mass appeal, the producers spend less time pleasing the original fanbase than trying to pull new ones in - hence why the show became "wackier" after Season 9. In a way, I'm glad Futurama never gained that sort of recognition, because it stayed true to it's roots right till the end.

Remember this?:

"Bart Simpson: Underachiever 'And Proud of it Man!'"

or

"Everybody if you can do the Bartman!"

or

"More of the children in the study could name all the members of the Simpsons family then Vice-President Al Gore"

The Simpsons has always been popular.  Its just a sad fact that anything that is ever popular will go on past its prime.  I can't really think of one example to the contrary.  Even un-popular stuff like The Twilight Zone tends to jump (it didn't become popular until syndication mostly).


 

Originally posted by Teesside Inc:
And The Simpsons jokes now old, crap and pointlees like this:

I aint quoting that whole post, but anyone notice that EVERY SINGLE ONE of those jokes Teesside mentioned comes from 10-12, and thus have no relevance today?

Regarding the "Dead Putting Society" commentary, by the way, they even admit in the commentary that they "might have overdone" Homer's anger in that episode.  And I agree.  He's actually much more likeable in your average season 14 episode then in Dead Putting Society.

 

Originally posted by Beamer:
Personally, I can't believe people out there LIKE Al Jean's era. It basically took everything that made the Scully era bad, and then multiplied it to make the show worse than ever.

Please explain that.  I'd like to see what you come up with.

[Reply #57 on:]

Seriously. What the hell was he smoking when he said Jean is worse than Scully? Reguarding Homer's increased likeability, I agree.

The Frying Game: Is willing to die in the electric chair to save Marge.

I'm Spelling As Fast As I Can: Sacrifices that sweet sweet Ribwich to see Lisa.

Poppa's got A Brand New Badge: Gets in a shootout to save the town.

Barting Over: Nearly gets himself killed in a skate show to win Bart back.

There's a lot more too.

Back offtopic: but do you think the mountain with Lisa's face carved on it is the Murderhorn? I just thought of it when typing that.

Back ontopic: As for other character's likeabiliy, Moe became 100000 times more likeable to me in Moe Baby Blues.

Edit: The best stuff is Al Jean and Groening eps (just look at my profile)

[Reply #58 on:]

When is there a mountain with Lisa's head on it?

[Reply #59 on:]

i think homer had pretty much always been a jerk
but its just he made amends for it,
such as in 'when flanders failed'
in fact he briefly wished flanders dead.
in 'lisa's pony' he delayed buying lisa's saxphone reed to have another duff,
in 'lisa the greek' he exploited lisa to get good betting odds on the super bowl.
these are examples from season 3.

and give the writers a break its probably hard
to come up with stories where you really care for the charcters after such a long time

[Reply #60 on:]

 

Originally posted by leelaholic:


Edit: The best stuff is Al Jean and Groening eps (just look at my profile)

has groening done extra credited work on later episodes?

[Reply #61 on:]

 

Originally posted by User_names_suck:
and give the writers a break its probably hard
to come up with stories where you really care for the charcters after such a long time

That's why they should end the series instead of driving it into the ground.

SKY-ONE viewers, "Moe Baby Blues" airs this weekend.  Be there, or leelaholic will hunt you down and slaughter you like the dogs you are!

[Reply #62 on:]

 

Originally posted by leelaholic:
Seriously. What the hell was he smoking when he said Jean is worse than Scully? Reguarding Homer's increased likeability, I agree.

There's more to quality than how likeable the characters are. Like how funny the jokes are. I don't know, the really new episodes just seem bizarrely bad, and I can't really put my finger on why.

[Reply #63 on:]

i agree with you to some extent. homer gets addicted to the ribwhich, marge gets into body building, the whole pre teen braves thing was strange,had forced emotion at the end and wasn't funny. and old yeller belly was quite good, but what the hell was with the beginning with bart, martin, database and nelson singing and playing a banjo

[Reply #64 on:]

Being in the UK and not having satellite TV I havn't really seen any of the newer Simpsons episodes, are they really sooo bad?

[Reply #65 on:]

I haven't seen any of the most recent, the last one I saw was the one where Marge takes up bodybuilding.  It was just so abysmal I stopped watching.

That being said, I'll try to watch "Moe Baby Blues" this weekend to see if the show's improved at all.

[Reply #66 on:]

 

Originally posted by leelaholic:

Back ontopic: As for other character's likeabiliy, Moe became 100000 times more likeable to me in Moe Baby Blues.

Edit: The best stuff is Al Jean and Groening eps (just look at my profile)

"Moe Baby Blues" really shows off what the show can do now at times, I agree.  Let's face it, he was a thin character, and the one time they tried to make him likable, "Dumbell Indemnity", he was made too unlikable for it to work at all (very mediocre, overrated ep btw).  "Moe Baby Blues" essentially gave real depth, and made me feel extremely sorry and happy for, a character that previously I had actually hated at points (most "Dumbell Indemnity" ).  They need to do that kind of stuff more consistantly, but they're doing it more often then people are giving them credit for.

Its not like any show is infailable anyway.  Just look at The Simpsons' "glory years".  I pretty much like every 1-8 episode to a certain degree (maybe its bias), but certain episodes like "Bart's Elephant" and "Homer Goes to College" just make me cringe at points and seem to have pretty much every problem of the Scully era, just to a slightly lesser degree.  Or, look at Futuram.  In its final Mcseason I suffered through "Three Hundred Big Boys", which was no better then most of the worst Simpsons episodes lately, and there was also the very mediocre "Obsolutely Fabulous".

[Reply #67 on:]

 

Originally posted by DotheBartman:
 Please explain that.  I'd like to see what you come up with.

In Season 10 - The Simpsons began to get really weird and whacky. Now I normally love that in a show - but the writers just couldn't seem to pull it off right here. Characters lost their personalities and just became one-liner spurting machines, and the offbeat humour just wasn't funny anymore. However, I really can't tell the difference with Al Jean's new episodes anyway. They still lack the heart and humour of the old episodes - basically all they seem to have done is up the weirdness meter.

Whether or not Al Jean is trying to make a difference here - I can't tell. The writers are just as lousy as they were in Season 10, and the show's just as awful as it was then. The only Season 14 episodes I really liked were The Great Louse Detective, S'cuse Me While I Miss The Sky and the episode where Homer went to that Rock 'N Roll Fantasy Camp, and even they weren't up to the standards set by Seasons 3-9. Keep in mind I haven't seen Moe Baby Blues yet, but still - there's my opinion.

[Reply #68 on:]

I agree that season 10 was a big downfall.  I would place season 9 (most overrated season ever, save for maybe 5) as the actual jump the shark point myself, but that's just me.

But I don't see the weirdness factor being upped at all.  Its going down if anything.  There aren't any loch ness monsters, kill badgers, troll jockeys, rhinos hatching out of eggs...there have been some overly wacky things (special flying skateboards?) but its no worse then the Scully era and in fact is still a lot better.

And whether you think they're succeeding or not, I don't think there's any denying that they've been trying to restore the emotional core.  Just look at Moe Baby Blues (which I realize you haven't seen, but still), Bart of War, Brake My Wife Please, Three Gays of the Condo, Dad Who Knew Too Little, and A Star is Re-Born as clear examples.  Mind you I didn't think all of those succeeded (mostly the latter two I mentioned), but I still don't see how it can be denied that they are TRYING.  And when it has worked, the show has had more heart lately then pretty much anything else on tv.  That's sad I guess, but IMO its the truth.

[Reply #69 on:]

 

Originally posted by DotheBartman:
But I don't see the weirdness factor being upped at all.  Its going down if anything.  There aren't any loch ness monsters, kill badgers, troll jockeys, rhinos hatching out of eggs...there have been some overly wacky things (special flying skateboards?)

It's gotten more real definitely. I mean, everyone keeps praising South Park and it hardly makes a damn bit of sense. Seriously, a dragon comes to get them because they won't stop saying shit? What???   

[Reply #70 on:]

 

Originally posted by leelaholic:
Seriously. What the hell was he smoking when he said Jean is worse than Scully? Reguarding Homer's increased likeability, I agree.

The Frying Game: Is willing to die in the electric chair to save Marge.

Is that the episode where it all turned out to be a TV show, or something? That was ridiculous. Showed that the writers are absolutely 100% incapable of telling an actual, complete story. And the "emotional" part, with Homer willing to die for Marge seemed awfully phony to me. Not that it matters. Making Homer unlikeable wasn't the only thing that Scully did wrong.

 

I'm Spelling As Fast As I Can: Sacrifices that sweet sweet Ribwich to see Lisa.

Poppa's got A Brand New Badge: Gets in a shootout to save the town.

Barting Over: Homer dresses up like a ghost to scare nuclear-powered alien monsters away from the town of Springfield.

There's a lot more too.

I wish I had seen these episodes, so I could bitch more accurately. But these situations are so ridiculous, it makes the emotion hard to buy into. I guess it's good that Homer isn't as much of a jackass as he used to be. But I find it hard to care either way, now.

SXD: that commentary stuff is really interesting. I haven't seen the season 2 DVDs yet, but reading that makes me want to cry. If the writers don't even know what made season 2 work, then there's really no hope for the show to improve.

[Reply #71 on:]

Um... That isn't what I posted about Barting Over. You changed it to something that would never happen. If you have to make up stuff to bitch about, you have no reason to bitch.

[Reply #72 on:]

 

Originally posted by leelaholic:
  It's gotten more real definitely. I mean, everyone keeps praising South Park and it hardly makes a damn bit of sense. Seriously, a dragon comes to get them because they won't stop saying shit? What???   

No, people praise South Park because it's a sattire on American life. The whole dragon/shit thing was their little dig at the ridiculousness of TV censorship. South Park doesn't really make much sense - but then again, it never has. The whole point of the show is to completely exagurate everything and basically to point out just how stupid modern society is. The "shit" thing was making fun of the fact that the networks don't let people say it on TV, so to make fun of just how pointless that is - they go over the top with the consequences.

Anyway - back to The Simpsons, DotheBartman IS correct in the fact that The Simpsons is becoming a bit more realistic, but the storylines are just getting stupider. Like I said before - I normally LOVE pointlessness and stupidity, but only if it's done correctly. There's just something about the writing in new Simpsons episodes that's so offputting to me. They just can't seem to pull of the humour they used to, no matter what Al Jean has been trying to do to the show.

[Reply #73 on:]

 

Originally posted by leelaholic:
Um... That isn't what I posted about Barting Over. You changed it to something that would never happen. If you have to make up stuff to bitch about, you have no reason to bitch.

You think that'll never happen? Just wait for season 18, my friend.

Besides, it was a joke. My bitching about everything else still stands.

[Reply #74 on:]

 

Originally posted by DotheBartman:
And whether you think they're succeeding or not, I don't think there's any denying that they've been trying to restore the emotional core.

I totally agree that they've clearly been trying. But they've been failing. The situations are ridiculous, and the jokes aren't funny. It's just bad writing.

[Reply #75 on:]

I guess it won't be long before the next Simpsons season starts, and it'll probabaly set an all-time new low...

[Reply #76 on:]

Actually, I'll also have to disagree a little about Leelaholic's South Park point.  That show has always supposed to be ridiculous.  Whether it works or not is a matter of taste, but they haven't strayed from the point of their show by having dragons eat people for swearing too much.  Season one had talking poo and people getting turned into Pinkeye zombies.

Homer fighting radioactive monsters or whatever would NOT happen in any season of The Simpsons though.  Even SCULLY wouldn't have done that...well, I don't think so anyway.  Even he had some limits.

As for Otis' comment, I still don't see it...how would it have an all-time low?  Its pretty hard to beat seasons 10-12 in shittiness, and seasons 13 and 14, no matter what one thinks of them, just can't possibly be THAT bad in comparison.  Maybe people think seasons 13 and 14 are worse simply because they hadn't admitted to themselves that the show was shit in seasons 10-12 yet.
 

[Reply #77 on:]

I honestly don't think the Scully years were that bad. Superficially, the plot and characterisation were a little off and it had that crappy 'wacky' stuff, but it was still well written and funny. There are loads of great quotes from those seasons. I no longer think this is true.

[Reply #78 on:]

 

Originally posted by DotheBartman:
As for Otis' comment, I still don't see it...how would it have an all-time low?  Its pretty hard to beat seasons 10-12 in shittiness, and seasons 13 and 14, no matter what one thinks of them, just can't possibly be THAT bad in comparison.  Maybe people think seasons 13 and 14 are worse simply because they hadn't admitted to themselves that the show was shit in seasons 10-12 yet.
 

I really hated seasons 10 through 12 when they were first shown, but I admit that I've warmed up to some of them. Lisa in MENSA, Homer and Flanders going to Vegas, etc, weren't all that bad in retrospect. Aside from a few newer episodes ("Moe Baby Blues," "Mr. Spritz Goes to Washington." ),

I think the show has bottomed out. The NSync episode and the episode where Marge hosts the convict are the two worst episodes I've ever had the misfortune of seeing. I think the new seasons aren't bad, but just ultimately forgettable. And that could be worse than "bad."

[Reply #79 on:]

The Simpsons is no longer cool, mostly due to being repeated so much, I haven't seen the "bad episodes" yet