You know what The Simpsons is. But you likely don't know (or have forgotten) just how good peak Simpsons was between 1990 and 1996. You can make a strong argument it's peak makes it the best show is the best of all time.
This is difficult to convey across a feature about it. We can flag up our highlights. We recently rewatched the early series and this is where is struck us, once again, just how magnificent this show once was. And so instead of creating out own stuff on this blog, we're going to be lazy and flag up Matt Groening's once genius show. It's... peak Simpsons!
Yes, We're Going On About How Amazing The Simpsons Once Was
It's a bit of an online trope these days to drone on about how The Simpsons used to be amazing. We're doing nothing new here at all flagging this up. Fact is, the show is into its 35th season and has 768 episodes to its name.
Yet it's well past its peak and has turned into a bit of a bloated cash cow.
Most fans seem to agree that series one to eight were the best, but The Simpsons jumped the shark (as it were) in season nine (that's back in 1997) with The Principal and the Pauper episode. It's a stupid episode and makes a dumb revelation about one of the show's supporting characters—the episode suggested the writers were running out of great ideas.
Even series creator Matt Groening criticised it. As did voice actor Harry Shearer who plays the principal.
And, yep, the show has been in steady quality decline for a lone time.
The frustration comes from just how brilliant the show once was, as from series one to eight it was utterly unmissable. Each episode flowed from one to the next packed with incredible intricacies, social commentary, and an incredible depiction of average family life.
The writing team (which included the likes of Conan O'Brien) was a super smart, talented batch of folks who turned The Simpsons into a work of genius.
Those Joyous Simpsons Familial Struggles
Our favourite bit of the show is usually in the opening five minutes before a plot kicks in. You get to see the family larking about and the like and it's a joy to watch.
This is where the show peaked for us around season four through to six.
The wonderfully realised sense of common familial struggles. The sibling rivalries, children finding their place in the world, bickering. Bart and Lisa's relationship is a brilliant evocation of a brother and sister at odds, yet loving each other, battling it out into teenage years.
The pair are so different, yet similar. Lisa is a classic intellectual with a high level of intelligence. Academically, yet with social awkwardness and nerd status. Bart is, arguably, ADHD (and maybe even BPD), who struggles with academics. Yet there's no denying his incredible charm, wit, and natural feel for life.
It's a real joy to watch this eccentric family in action, with bumbling Homer Simpson causing all sorts of problems with his dim-witted behaviour. The two kids fit around that with their various principles (for Bart, that involves a lot of mischief making).
We must recognise Lisa as our favourite character. She's uncommonly smart and kind of stands out in her family with her progressive attitude. Whilst prone to some self-righteous behaviour (something we're guilty of... *snigger*), she has reason to do so—she's usually right about everything.
She has some great putdowns, but also struggles with insecurity issues and her disappointment with her father's often bizarre, idiotic behaviour. In this sense she's the show's misfit, but for decades she's quietly gone about being a great role model for young girls (and everyone else) out there.
Then there's Marge, the beleaguered matriarch (usually) cheerfully managing over the chaos.
In early seasons The Simpsons was quite grounded in its social commentary, often commentating on social issues facing America. They're a middle-class family and Homer, for some inexplicable reason, has a job as the safety manager at a local nuclear powerplant.
He's stunningly lazy and inept and constantly putting everyone's lives in danger.
The townsfolk of Springfield (the setting for the show) have this berserk habit or knee jerk, irrational behaviour. At the drop of a hat they'll riot over stupid. Such as over soccer matches as they find the sport (football) boring.
These episodes may be 30 years old now, but they've lost none of their sharpness. There's just a life-affirming brilliance to watching the show that resonates to this day, not least due to those incredible intricacies.
With writing so strong they could have a throwaway 10 second moment that other shows from the era, and now (including modern Simpsons), would kill to have. Oh yes, then there's the burping.
The Very Best of Barney's Burping
The Simpsons didn't shy away from dark humour. One of the clearest examples of this is with lovable local drunk Barney Gumble.
He drinks a lot of beer and his catchphrase is his burp.
Barney burps a lot. In one episode, in a really dark moment, it's implied he donates regularly to the local sperm bank and his genes are creating a new era of burping drunkards.
It's also implied Barney would be highly intelligent and accomplished (career wise) if he just laid off the beer. But he never does and Homer, his best mate, introduced him to the stuff.
Conclusion: Notes On The Simpsons' Decline
Now, we're sure some peeps out there blame the show's lapse in quality on the "woke mob" and all that nonsensical bollocks. The reality is the show has massively outstayed its welcome. Simply as it makes a lot of money, so on and on it goes.
Modern episodes are disappointing. The writers keep making references to online meme culture (such as the backpack kid dance) and the like. It's weak. But you take a show into 30+ seasons and it'll run out of ideas.
It's very guilty of Flanderisation (a term from the show's supporting character Ned Flanders). That's where characters lose any nuances and are defined by a single personality trait.
With Homer Simpson, his stupidity has been amplified and now all he does is very stupid stuff. A lot of surprising pathos and complexity of his character (portrayed as he was as a flawed, but well-meaning husband and father in earlier seasons) is gone.
The original writing team has long since moved on, too, so this is basically a different show now. Just one harking back to its glory years and riffing off what it once was. The occasional good moment still shines through, but modern Simpsons is a bit of a shame to watch. As it just makes you yearn for the days when it was outstanding.
What The Simpsons now represents is a message to other TV shows.
Wrap it up on a high and don't drag it out longer than you need to. Otherwise you risk ruining your legacy.
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