I have been a loyal viewer of The Simpsons forever. I was one of those kids who wasn't allowed to watch it, but I always managed to be sneaky and watch it anyway. It has been a part of life for many people my age. Hell, it's been on for 20 years now! I can even recite many lines from episodes past, which makes my husband think I'm crazy.
It used to be a great show, back when the comedy was at least halfway subtle. For the past, oh, 8 or 9 years, the humor has continuously gone downhill. Now it's more like "Let's hit the viewer over the head with bizarre situations and half-assed jokes that we will explain in case they don't get it, even though it's so obvious".
The Simpsons has, dare I say, jumped the shark. Admittedly, it has had a few somewhat funny episodes in the past few years, but nothing spectacularly funny. I believe, like many fans, that the best years were in the mid to late 90s. I truthfully have no idea why it is still on. Anymore it's like beating a dead horse. The movie was actually good, but does that really make up for the crap they have been passing for episodes?
I have continued to watch it though, hoping it would get better. Sure, in the back of my head I kept thinking "Ok, this is really starting to suck", but I would have never really admitted it until this past Sunday. The most recent first run episode, as of this writing, aired on January 27th 2008 and was titled "That 90's Show". I hate to be a Comic Book Guy here, but can I just say "Worst. Episode. Ever". Maybe not the worst episode ever, but it has to be damn close.
The Simpsons has never really been known for following canon, but come on! I can forgive re-writing history to a certain extent, but this is just insane. I don't understand why they think they have to work within a certain time frame. It just doesn't work. It's stupid to keep placing arbitrary years on certain events in their universe, and then to keep pushing the years further and further up. Can't it just be timeless?
They just had to take a stab at the 90's though. Some parts of the episode were somewhat smile-inducing, but nothing was laugh out loud funny. Most of it was actually painful to watch. Canon has been re-written once again to say Marge went to college in the 90's and they didn't have any kids until later. That totally cancels out the whole unplanned pregnancy after high school angle that we had been fed for many years. As I said, I don't expect the most sensible time frame from this show. There is a point, however, where even when you don't expect a consistent back story, that the whole thing somehow becomes just preposterous.
As if that wasn't bad enough, now Homer was the one who invented Grunge. That's stupid enough as it is, but then we get the bad Kurt Cobain jokes. The worse one had to be when Homer's band was playing a show and a guy picks up a phone and says "Kurt, this is your cousin Marvin. Marvin Cobain. I think I've found that sound you were looking for" as he holds the phone up towards the music. The joke was cringe inducing enough, but then he just had to say "Marvin Cobain" like we didn't get it the second he said "Kurt". Yeah, it was weak.
Anyway, I have let my nerd flag fly high for long enough tonight. I never thought I'd have so much to say on one crappy episode of The Simpsons. I usually only get this nerdy when it comes to anime. Anyway, I will probably continue to watch the Simpsons, but from now on it'll be most likely in one of those "Well, nothing else is on" situations.
If this crap continues, please let the damn show die already. 20 years is enough!
It used to be a great show, back when the comedy was at least halfway subtle. For the past, oh, 8 or 9 years, the humor has continuously gone downhill. Now it's more like "Let's hit the viewer over the head with bizarre situations and half-assed jokes that we will explain in case they don't get it, even though it's so obvious".
The Simpsons has, dare I say, jumped the shark. Admittedly, it has had a few somewhat funny episodes in the past few years, but nothing spectacularly funny. I believe, like many fans, that the best years were in the mid to late 90s. I truthfully have no idea why it is still on. Anymore it's like beating a dead horse. The movie was actually good, but does that really make up for the crap they have been passing for episodes?
I have continued to watch it though, hoping it would get better. Sure, in the back of my head I kept thinking "Ok, this is really starting to suck", but I would have never really admitted it until this past Sunday. The most recent first run episode, as of this writing, aired on January 27th 2008 and was titled "That 90's Show". I hate to be a Comic Book Guy here, but can I just say "Worst. Episode. Ever". Maybe not the worst episode ever, but it has to be damn close.
The Simpsons has never really been known for following canon, but come on! I can forgive re-writing history to a certain extent, but this is just insane. I don't understand why they think they have to work within a certain time frame. It just doesn't work. It's stupid to keep placing arbitrary years on certain events in their universe, and then to keep pushing the years further and further up. Can't it just be timeless?
They just had to take a stab at the 90's though. Some parts of the episode were somewhat smile-inducing, but nothing was laugh out loud funny. Most of it was actually painful to watch. Canon has been re-written once again to say Marge went to college in the 90's and they didn't have any kids until later. That totally cancels out the whole unplanned pregnancy after high school angle that we had been fed for many years. As I said, I don't expect the most sensible time frame from this show. There is a point, however, where even when you don't expect a consistent back story, that the whole thing somehow becomes just preposterous.
As if that wasn't bad enough, now Homer was the one who invented Grunge. That's stupid enough as it is, but then we get the bad Kurt Cobain jokes. The worse one had to be when Homer's band was playing a show and a guy picks up a phone and says "Kurt, this is your cousin Marvin. Marvin Cobain. I think I've found that sound you were looking for" as he holds the phone up towards the music. The joke was cringe inducing enough, but then he just had to say "Marvin Cobain" like we didn't get it the second he said "Kurt". Yeah, it was weak.
Anyway, I have let my nerd flag fly high for long enough tonight. I never thought I'd have so much to say on one crappy episode of The Simpsons. I usually only get this nerdy when it comes to anime. Anyway, I will probably continue to watch the Simpsons, but from now on it'll be most likely in one of those "Well, nothing else is on" situations.
If this crap continues, please let the damn show die already. 20 years is enough!
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