The Simpsons

[Waffles]

Who's still watching The Simpsons? I don't think I'll ever stop watching this show... it's been a part of my life for as long as I can remember, and a staple of each and every weekend since my kindergarten days (there's a huge, six-hour-long block that plays nothing but Simpsons reruns each Saturday, with new episodes premiering on Sunday).

The current quality of the show is debatable, but its cultural impact certainly isn't. And, frankly, having it as the "ice-breaker" topic completely outweighs the shifting quality in my book. There's always a reference you can throw and someone who would get it. That's priceless.

 

[Gorse]

 

[Yousef]

I don’t watch it anymore. The Simpsons already had an extremely tough time blending into the culture of kuwait because it wasn’t “adult enough” to be aired at adult channels and wasn’t safe enough to be at a kid channels, instead it was relegated to the movie channel of all things. Because, Y’know, the best way to experience a long running tv show is to watch the movie adaptation over and over.
Miraculously, a few eps did air… can’t remember which though.
But you can kinda see how I couldn’t latch onto it as a kid cuz what was there to latch onto?
Jokes aside, I’ve given it a fair shake during my adult years (watch an adult show… as an adult? Why, that’s simply unthinkable!) and I liked it. There’s some jokes I’ll post here once i remember them. They’re my favorites. You can feel free to jog my memory though, and I usually hate jogging.

 

[Waffles]

You can feel free to jog my memory though, and I usually hate jogging.

I'll probably collapse the site faster than Nintendo if I start posting my endless backlog of jokes and references lol

 

[Yousef]

I'll probably collapse the site faster than Nintendo if I start posting my endless backlog of jokes and references lol

Wait! I remember!
This is the one. Or one of them. Yeah believe it or not this is One of my favorites. I’ll post more when i remember

 

[Waffles]

Wait! I remember!
This is the one. Or one of them. Yeah believe it or not this is One of my favorites. I’ll post more when i rememberView attachment 2873

Ahhhh... excellent choice ;D

 

[robocop2themovie]

i've heard that it is Good again

 

[VampireLord1024]

I haven't watched it in years, but I've just mostly seen some of the first few episodes from the earlier seasons.

 

[RetroLaw]

Haven't watched it for year, but it's more because it's not in my priorities rather than not liking it anymore.
I loved the show until maybe season 13 / 14, then not so much but it was still enjoyable, watched a few episodes from more recents seasons, I liked them.

 

[Ikagura]

I often saw short videos of scenes on Youtube but never actually watched every seasons.

I know that a lot of jokes aged (since the episodes were made after some events) and Bart and Lisa both knew floppy discs and smartphones (and Seymour was in 'nam despite his age being the same today).

 

[Strategist]

This is how I used to watch the Simpsons growing up

 

[Bonkers225]

I stopped watching around the new millennium. Not sure which seasons they were. Once I've heard they got rid of Apu because of some idiotic comedian trying to make a name for himself, and he was offended, I never went back, and never will other than watching the older seasons. My favorites will always be the 3 guys and a comic book episode, and Homer in the Mental institute with "Michael Jackson"

 

[Gorse]

Once I've heard they got rid of Apu because of some idiotic comedian trying to make a name for himself, and he was offended, I never went back, and never will other than watching the older seasons.

They've recently begun to reintroduce Apu in new episodes during group shots, though he hasn't spoken, yet. Give it 5 years and he'll be back – probably with his usual voice actor – as normal. Hari Kondabolu and his silly, silly documentary are now completely irrelevant.

 

[Cu-Neo]

I still watch the old episodes. One of my favorites is the threehouse of horror VI when Homer discovers the portal to the third dimension and he ends in the real world

Also I still play (sometimes) The simpsons hit and run

 

[Waffles]

They've recently begun to reintroduce Apu in new episodes during group shots, though he hasn't spoken, yet.

That's great to hear.

The fact that a show known for kneeling before no-one would give up such an important character just like that never sat right with me.

 

[Gorse]

The fact that a show known for kneeling before no-one would give up such an important character just like that never sat right with me.

The American societal unrest of 2020-2021 was a crazy thing, and a lot of companies (especially in entertainment) made some pretty slapdash, spur-of-the-moment decisions because, hey, everyone else was doing it. Over the past two years, though, essentially all of those decisions have been walked back, because they would require significant restructuring of most sectors in the American private economy, and that's a system that can't afford to change drastically during a recession. Most creatives (and audiences) didn't really want them either, so they were easy to reverse.

Family Guy, the show that started all this hullabaloo off (with Cleveland's voice actor resigning in a very public way), just had an episode this year about how Hollywood went too far with its messaging during the early 2020s. That show and The Simpsons share a lot of the same creative staff, so it must be something that's continuing to weigh on their minds. I'm actually expecting a lot of culture to change from the mid-2010s norm in the second half of this decade.

 

[RetroLaw]

I still watch the old episodes. One of my favorites is the threehouse of horror VI when Homer discovers the portal to the third dimension and he ends in the real world
View attachment 3223
Also I still play (sometimes) The simpsons hit and run

" Oooooh, erotic cakes "

 

[ATenderLad]

I went looking for episodes I remembered liking after getting Disney Plus for a time. What followed was deeply depressing, I couldn't find anything because I was delusional about my own age. I loved the show for the first three seasons, apparently. Also a brief return for Who Shot Mr. Burns, it was advertised everywhere and I didn't want to miss out.

 

[Ikagura]

Apu is one of the few characters that was not portrayed in a bad way. He's a good father (despite the many childrens), loves his job and actually helps others while not letting them to lead his life.

Almost every characters are cliches as well (especially regarding the nuclear family that Homer and the others are) and the show is parodying America as a whole (but in a smart way).

Maybe it was a product of its time (the 90's) that overstayed its welcome like how Pokémon was massively popular in the mid-to-late 90's until the early 00's and the mania stopped.

On the other hand I'd have an easier time rewatching Futurama.

 

[Waffles]

On the other hand I'd have an easier time rewatching Futurama.

Same, but the new season was very rough for me to sit through.

 

[RetroLaw]

Apu is one of the few characters that was not portrayed in a bad way. He's a good father (despite the many childrens), loves his job and actually helps others while not letting them to lead his life.

Almost every characters are cliches as well (especially regarding the nuclear family that Homer and the others are) and the show is parodying America as a whole (but in a smart way).

Maybe it was a product of its time (the 90's) that overstayed its welcome like how Pokémon was massively popular in the mid-to-late 90's until the early 00's and the mania stopped.

On the other hand I'd have an easier time rewatching Futurama.

Killer avatar dude

 

[Ikagura]

Same, but the new season was very rough for me to sit through.

Mock me but I forgot it restarted.

The ending was already good enough for me I don't want them to make lesser sequels like The Simpsons...

Ending on a high note is good.

Killer avatar dude

Thank you. I thought that the spinning Blue Thunder gif would be an eyesore for people.

 

[Gorse]

Oh man – don't get me started on what they've done to Futurama! The original run was one of my favourite shows ever as a kid – it was smart and ceaselessly funny, with excellent characters and some really cool sci-fi concepts (especially for what was essentially just Space-Simpsons!). The trouble started with the DVD movies. The first and last one were great, but the second one was just boring and the third one was absolutely terrible. I actually remember being a kid and hoping they wouldn't bring it back after the last movie, but, alas...

When the show came back on Comedy Central, I knew that something was wrong. Episodes were far, far too reliant on then-modern pop cultural references, with stuff like iPhones and the cloud forming full episode plots. (Whose stupid ideas were those?) Not all of the new episodes were terrible, but many were just plain bland, and hold zero appeal for anyone watching past the year of 2011. By the time that incarnation of the show ended, I thought: Finally! It's over. It kind of ended on a poor note, which brings the whole thing down a bit, but at least that's that!

Now, I haven't even watched a full episode of the newest series. I've seen clips here and there, and it just seems like some generic "adult cartoon", like Bob's Burgers or Archer or whatever. I truly do not care what insights the 85-year-old writing staff has about cryptocurrency or blockchain or whatever. I just want those characters to rest. Please, god, let them rest.

 

[Waffles]

@Gorse: I like this take from AV Club's writer Zach Handlen regarding the post-cancelation years:

"it's as if a certain creative process, once interrupted, could never be resumed".

 

[Smiley Cat]

The Simpsons arcade game was one of my favorite arcade games as a kid.