Did the simpsons actually get worse after season 10?

cloud493

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PzLoCotf8v8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3T2dHHK1u9o

The show in question if anyone was interested.

old hippy

To me, the discussions about how bad the show has become have become predictable. I think the best criticism was around season 11 or 12, the later discussions just became a parody of themselves. Coming next; how Modern Family lost its mojo somewhere around mid season 3 and what the hell has happened to Brooklyn Nine-Nine lately?

SureYWouldntYa

I think Homer has sort of become more like Peter Griffin from Family Guy. Also, a Family Guy thing, "remember the time", and then they cut to a completely different scene, is something thats only been done on Simpsons since Family Guy came out

riffmongous

SureYWouldntYa wrote: »

I think Homer has sort of become more like Peter Griffin from Family Guy. Also, a Family Guy thing, "remember the time", and then they cut to a completely different scene, is something thats only been done on Simpsons since Family Guy came out

Or segments that go on at least 10 seconds longer than they should, damn you family guy

razorblunt

The Escapist hits the nail on the head for me!

brianregan09

Icaras wrote: »

I like the Frank Grimes episode, its one of my favourites but in typical post season 10 no ideas they invented Frank Grimes' son, to me this is just lazy.

The Armin episode is the exact point where it started to wrong for the Simpsons.

Two more words for ya Hank Scorpio !!!

My most favourite simpsons episode here...I didn't even hand you my coat !!!

Dirty Dingus McGee

Season 8 was the last season where you could make an argument it was improving.There were some truly great episodes in that season including my all time favourite "Homers Phobia"

Season 9 was the first season where you couldn't say the quality was getting better but it didn't decline hugely in my opinion.There were some excellent episodes but signs of the massive decline it was on its way to taking.

In season 10 it started to become more stupid and began to rely too much on the "Homer says something stupid" jokes and homers stupidity wasn't as charming anymore.

Dirty Dingus McGee

brianregan09 wrote: »

Two more words for ya Hank Scorpio !!!

My most favourite simpsons episode here...I didn't even hand you my coat !!!

Hammocks? My goodness, what an idea. Why didn't I think of that?

elfy4eva

Homer's character turned from a loveable dope, to a whining idiot.

Hematocyte

Article here written nearly 15 years ago that I think correctly identifies when and how the Simpsons changed for the worse.

http://www.snpp.com/other/articles/lostitscool.html

cloud493

Bit late for it to die a dignified death

ronnie3585

DazMarz wrote: »

Without question, one of the defining television programmes of all time. Nothing quite like it. At its peak in the mid-1990's, The Simpsons commanded a huge viewership in both the United States and around the world. Even today, it still widely recognisable, even if not as heavily watched.

The early seasons, up to and including Season 9, were bordering on genius at times. Season 10 was where the wheels started to come off. After that, it just kept limping on and on... until it had reached 26 bloated seasons. But many of the original fans (such as myself who would sulk for a week if I missed a new episode) have given up in disgust. A long time ago. I cannot remember the last time I watched a newer episode with any degree of seriousness. Wouldn't be bothered.

If you told me the title of an episode from the first 9 seasons, I could probably give you a brief synopsis and a few quotes from it. After that, I'd stare blankly at the mention of a title and not have a clue what it was about. Other than knowing it was crap...

For me, The Simpsons ended over 14 years ago. I have no desire to watch newer episodes. I barely acknowledge their existence.

One of the most horrible things about the whole thing is the transformation of Homer. He went from being a decent, loving man who was a bit slow, to a complete moron with a sadistic streak who inflicted cruelty without a hint of the decency of what went before. He is just not the same character. The Homer of the mid-1990's was one of the best characters ever. Now, nothing more than a used up joke, who's punchline has been heard a few times too many.

It will not end any time soon; as long as it is still a cash-cow for Fox, they will keep prodding the dying cow with a cattle-prod and force it to jump through hoops... until such time when she can jump no more and dies, despite attempts to stop it.

That's a beautiful summation which exactly reflects my feelings.

I still check in on http://deadhomersociety.com/ every now and again to remind myself of the sheer brilliance of The Simpsons, a show which was an enormous part of my youth, and went a long way towards shaping my sense of humour.

RIP The Simpsons.

Go Harvey Go

Got to like TV Cream's 500 words on 500 episodes of the Simpsons:

FIRST CAME JUST 13, clumsily conceived and woefully realised, exactly like this sentence. Then 22 more: wavy lines, iffy voices and wacky scrapes smeared with sap – You Are Lisa Simpson – comic books, blowfish and gorges. Next, 24 steps to greatness via the land of chocolate, Rancho Relaxo, abandoned wells and the Leftorium: outstanding achievement in the field of excellence. Then throw up your hands and raise your voice: 22 slices of majesty, bed goes down, streetcar, Gabbo, Jub-Jub, choo-choose me, MONORAIL!

These are the imperial years, of Bobo and the Be Sharps, the inanimate carbon rod, the Spruce Moose and the one-eyebrowed baby. Cursive writing does not mean what you think it does: on and up through a near-faultless Matlock Expressway of a season 6, cross-promotional one-off excepted. Up on the summit, the Simpsons’ universe now unfurls from chimpan-A to chimpanzee: a mother-cherishing, soul-bartering, neighbour-baiting, flying-hellfish, last-gleaming, solid gold house of a show. And again with season 8: we should thank our lucky stars that they’re still putting on a programme of this calibre after so many years.

But then: we make it five – the number of decent episodes in season 9 and sole reasons to cling to a series suddenly hurtling downhill. Fully into the gorge with season 10: look – Rupert Murdoch, Homer getting remarried while drunk, and Ned who is actually 60 years old. The world’s smelliest tumour, “Guess how many boobs I saw today, Marge”, Lisa tricking Bart and Homer into thinking they have leprosy. Downwards, ever downwards, Homer raped by a panda bear – just think about that for a second, raped – by – a – panda – bear.

Flashes of glory – I Am Furious Yellow – mere flash in pans: “The professor told us not to let him get a boner”. Sinking lower, still lower: breast implants for Marge, Skinner saying “****”, cameo from James L Brooks, Homer fearing he’s becoming a gay. “The Simpsons are going to (complete as appropriate)” and are also going to despoil the legacy of erstwhile legends like Homer’s mum. Now it’s season 16 – count ‘em – and Patty comes out of the closet 200 episodes after it would have meant something.

Let’s do a pox party AND a satire on creationism as we can’t decide if we want to be crude or clever. Gore Vidal, Eric Idle again, Jon Lovitz again, The White Stripes, Stephen Hawking again, Metallica, Stephen Sondheim, Tom Wolfe, Kiefer Sutherland twice. The “most ambitious season yet” turns out to mean getting Lurleen Lumpkin from season 3 back for a few lines. New title sequence, high definition: who knows what barrels can be scraped between now and the time the show becomes unprofitable?

A third decade – is Gervais available again, because if not there’s the bloke who did Ali G or, get this, Rupert Murdoch – AGAIN. Wait: there’s no money, actors threaten to quit, there’s an episode with Moe pretending to be gay – could it, might it be…? But no – here’s season 23 – please let it become unprofitable, please let it become…

Hard to disagree that the first signs of trouble came in season 9 (with episodes like "The Principal and the Pauper", "Bart Star" and "The Trouble with Trillions"), before the plummet began in earnest in season 10.

And is it just me, or does Homer say "D'oh!" and "Mmm..." a lot less regularly than he did in the first ten seasons?

Also, the animation is far too refined now. Compare it with what's seen in season 5's "Homer Goes to College":

http://deadhomersociety.com/2010/08/02/animation-showcase-homer-goes-to%C2%A0college/

Ralf and Florian

I first noticing a decline in quality around 1998 and this was when I returned to it after falling out of the habit of watching for a while so the rot set in probably a good while beforehand.

Sunglasses Ron

I think in the (very good) Behind the Music episode, when they have the "Simpsons are going to Delaware!" clip, and Homer assures the studio guy that this is the last series, and when they put that line in a poor episode in the next series, it is as if the writers were begging to be allowed to stop, an SOS crying that they had run out of ideas. The whole episode was a satire on how the show was on the brink of being past its sell by date.

I haven't looked out for new episodes for about 10 years, but I agree, there is just something not right about the sharp animation and the flatscreen TV's. The mdernisation of the family should have stopped at Homer's internet company that provided a vague- ish service

Fago123

Personally I think the decline of the show is hugely exaggerated and skewed with a large amount of nostalgia.

Does it hit the height of some of those classic season episodes? No. Does that make the current episodes awful? No.

Have the plotlines become more whacky and less grounded? Yes. Does that make them unfunny? No. Season 1 in particular concerned itself with a 'life lesson' and on re-watch now comes off as extremely preachy and most importantly in my opinion - not funny.

Is Homer a bit more one dimensional nowadays? Yes. Is the character still hilarious? Yes.

It seems a lot of people who complain about how bad its got are ones that checked out years ago? Maybe give some of the newer episodes a try?

Go Harvey Go

Go Harvey Go wrote: »

Hard to disagree that the first signs of trouble came in season 9 (with episodes like "The Principal and the Pauper", "Bart Star" and "The Trouble with Trillions"), before the plummet began in earnest in season 10.

"The Trouble With Trillions" is a great episode. Probably one of my all-time favourites!

Looking through the list of Season 10 episodes there are a few duds but still some very good episodes there. Season 11 is definitely where the number of duds start to outnumber the good episodes. (Saddlesore Galactica has to be one of the worst episodes of any TV show ever)

Go Harvey Go

Deleted User wrote: »

"The Trouble With Trillions" is a great episode. Probably one of my all-time favourites!

Its zany plot wouldn't have looked out of place at all in season 10, 11, 12 or 13, though.

"Bart Star", meanwhile, was an early Jerkass Homer episode.

Looking through the list of Season 10 episodes there are a few duds but still some very good episodes there.

"Homer Simpson in: Kidney Trouble" is certainly a dud, and I wouldn't be too gone on "Wild Barts Can't Be Broken" or "Monty Can't Buy Me Love" either.

I do like "Bart the Mother", "Treehouse of Horror IX", "Simpsons Bible Stories" and "Thirty Minutes over Tokyo", though. "D'oh-in' in the Wind" and "The Old Man and the 'C' Student" are pretty decent episodes, too.

Season 11 is definitely where the number of duds start to outnumber the good episodes. (Saddlesore Galactica has to be one of the worst episodes of any TV show ever)

"Kill the Alligator and Run" and "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad Marge" also received overwhelmingly negative reviews from critics.

"Beyond Blunderdome", "Brother's Little Helper", "Grift of the Magi", "Faith Off", "The Mansion Family" and "Missionary: Impossible" aren't episodes I'd remember too fondly, either.

"Eight Misbehavin'" and "Little Big Mom" are good, though ("Banana bread?! What the hell were you thinking?!" and "Feels like I'm wearing nothing at all... nothing at all... nothing at all!").

But there's little doubt that "Behind the Laughter" is the season's best episode.

Sunglasses Ron

Fago123 wrote: »

Have the plotlines become more whacky and less grounded? Yes. Does that make them unfunny? No. Season 1 in particular concerned itself with a 'life lesson' and on re-watch now comes off as extremely preachy and most importantly in my opinion - not funny.

Loads of great comedies take a while to evolve. Season One is, as you say, just a run of the mill cartoon. It took a year or two for them to start the sort of sharp satire and cultural comment/ lampooning that the glory days are beloved for. Plenty of classic comedies are the same- Father Ted, South Park, Only Fools and Horses. In the first few episodes of OFAH Del uses his French phrases correctly! It was only after a re think that JS realised it would be funnier to have him say them completely wrong.

Go Harvey Go

Go Harvey Go wrote: »

Its zany plot wouldn't have looked out of place at all in season 10, 11, 12 or 13, though.

"Bart Star", meanwhile, was an early Jerkass Homer episode.

It was zany but the jokes were good. The exchanges with Castro were great, I thought. ("It's full of WHAT?!" )

"Homer Simpson in: Kidney Trouble" is certainly a dud, and I wouldn't be too gone on "Wild Barts Can't Be Broken" or "Monty Can't Buy Me Love" either.

The kidney episode is definitely a real "jerkass" Homer moment. The episode was ok until he ran away the second time - that was just him being a total dick. "Viva Ned Flanders" is another dud episode - the premise of Homer and Flanders going to Vegas was cool but the whole thing about him being sixty was just ridiculous.

On the plus side I think "The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace", "Lisa Gets an "A"" and "Mayored To the Mob" were all good episodes from Season 10. Also "Mom and Pop Art" just for the scene with Homer running at the grill with the umbrella and shrieking!

"Kill the Alligator and Run" and "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad Marge" also received overwhelmingly negative reviews from critics.

"Beyond Blunderdome", "Brother's Little Helper", "Grift of the Magi", "Faith Off", "The Mansion Family" and "Missionary: Impossible" aren't episodes I'd remember too fondly, either.

"Eight Misbehavin'" and "Little Big Mom" are good, though ("Banana bread?! What the hell were you thinking?!" and "Feels like I'm wearing nothing at all... nothing at all... nothing at all!").

But there's little doubt that "Behind the Laughter" is the season's best episode.

I actually don't mind "Kill the Alligator and Run", funnily enough. It's not a classic episode but I don't think it's as bad as others seem to. There were a few good lines in it (Homer: "Guess how many boobs I saw today Marge? Fifteen. Marge: "I'm beginning to dislike the man with the whip") And I think "The Mansion Family" is redeemed by the scenes with Mr. Burns in the clinic.

The others you mentioned though are pretty poor though - "Grift of the Magi" and "Faith Off" in particular are terrible. "Hello Gutter, Hello Fadder" is another one I never cared for - Homer's botched suicide attempt was again so out of character.

But although Season 11 was the first to have more than just a few duds, I think Season 12 was the first where I really struggled to find any redeeming episodes.

Go Harvey Go

Deleted User wrote: »

"Viva Ned Flanders" is another dud episode - the premise of Homer and Flanders going to Vegas was cool but the whole thing about him being sixty was just ridiculous.

And let's not forget the two marrying those cocktail waitresses while raging drunk, before trying to run away from them...

Also "Mom and Pop Art" just for the scene with Homer running at the grill with the umbrella and shrieking!

Plus the opening scene, with Homer in the hammock ("You put the beer in the coconut and drink it all up, you put the beer in the coconut and throw the can away..."), and the doormat scene ("So long, The Simpsons! ...D'oh!").

The others you mentioned though are pretty poor though - "Grift of the Magi" and "Faith Off" in particular are terrible.

"Grift of the Magi" features the late, great Gary Coleman - but also a plot that is far too absurd.

Bart cracks his coccyx while he and Milhouse are dressed up as ladies, then Fat Tony builds a wheelchair ramp system for Springfield Elementary that's made out of breadsticks, and demands $200,000 for it even after it collapses, then a toy company purchases the school in order to get ideas for a new toy...

And was there really much point in stealing all the Funzos and destroying them when the company would still keep their huge profits?

And don't get me started on the ending.

In "Faith Off", meanwhile, surely Milhouse should have known that his vision was still bad after Bart threw his glasses off? And in any case, how could he mistake the sound of an approaching van for the sound of a dog?

"Hello Gutter, Hello Fadder" is another one I never cared for - Homer's botched suicide attempt was again so out of character.

And at the end, Maggie bowls a perfect 300 game but Homer refuses to have her beat him... :mad:

But although Season 11 was the first to have more than just a few duds, I think Season 12 was the first where I really struggled to find any redeeming episodes.

"A Tale of Two Springfields" is probably Jerkass Homer at his worst; he's little better in "Children of a Lesser Clod" (although Arnie Pye has his day of days in this episode); the Prisoner sequence in "The Computer Wore Menace Shoes" might have worked better if Homer had been dreaming it all along; and talk about shoehorning guest stars in "Tennis the Menace".

Dishonourable mentions, too, for "Homer vs. Dignity", "The Great Money Caper", "Pokey Mom" and "New Kids on the Blecch" (despite the Yvan Eht Nioj bit).

Not every Season 12 episode is bad, though. "Trilogy of Error" is very good, as is "Lisa the Tree Hugger". "Skinner's Sense of Snow" is undoubtedly a much better Christmas episode than "Grift of the Magi". "Day of the Jackanapes", of course, features Sideshow Bob, Krusty quitting showbusiness (again) and Me Wantee!

And "Hungry, Hungry Homer" features the Mayor of Albuquerque - except in syndicated re-runs in the US. I don't think it's quite as good when it ends with Homer celebrating in the stadium...

donegal_man

Blay wrote: »

.................................................................. the one where Lady Gaga guest stars ................................................................................

Worst. Episode. EVER!

I think half the problem is that the level was so high that any slippage leads people to think that it's now awful. To be honest I still find that in general it's still one of the funniest things on television. I'd sooner watch even an average episode of the Simpsons than the best episode of the Millers.

Mr.Nice Guy

Fago123 wrote: »

Personally I think the decline of the show is hugely exaggerated and skewed with a large amount of nostalgia.

Does it hit the height of some of those classic season episodes? No. Does that make the current episodes awful? No.

Have the plotlines become more whacky and less grounded? Yes. Does that make them unfunny? No. Season 1 in particular concerned itself with a 'life lesson' and on re-watch now comes off as extremely preachy and most importantly in my opinion - not funny.

Is Homer a bit more one dimensional nowadays? Yes. Is the character still hilarious? Yes.

It seems a lot of people who complain about how bad its got are ones that checked out years ago? Maybe give some of the newer episodes a try?

It's not awful because the current episodes don't match the classic season episodes; it's awful because you can sit through whole episodes nowadays and not even smile once, let alone laugh.

The modern episodes aren't unfunny because they are whacky; they are unfunny because they are horribly written and now rely on lazy jokes, stereotypes, guest celebrities etc.

And while I agree with you Season 1 is not the funniest, they are still very watchable episodes in my view and much more likeable than the current guff which seems to be built on a premise that every minute must contain a gag.

With regards Homer still being hilarious, I don't see how any fan could find the current incarnation funny. I find the current Homer insufferably irritating and see it as a completely different character to the one that was so endearing in the classic episodes.

The show has been rotten for well over a decade and the fact that so many people seem to look towards the late 90s as the time the show began to slip suggests to me there is substance to the claims. To dismiss it as nostalgia is off the mark. I distinctly recall noticing a decline in standards back then and I know I wasn't alone in that.

Fans can tell when a show has lost its magic and The Simpsons has been scraping the barrel for well over a decade now.

It may be glossy and slick to the eye, but it's nothing but a well-polished turd; and the smell has been intolerable for far too long.

cloud493

I don't think its like, the worst show on tv. But it just doesn't compare, even with nostalgia factored in, the older seasons are much funnier than the crap we get now.

itsirishfarmer

you have to be American to get a ot of the jokes and its a year or 2 behind so the jokes are not relevant

briany

I don't think there's been a sitcom that's had the longevity of The Simpsons and when you take the fact that most sitcoms peak in their 3rd to 6th seasons where the chemistry has settled, and then decline, it's no wonder the Simpsons is now...I don't know what...It's not bad per se but it's just really really weird to me that it's been around this long. It sort of feels unnatural and a bit sad, like a person who's long since graduated but still hangs around their old school.

However, the fact that it's been on for 15 years since it's decline tells us that someone out there likes it. The US networks don't keep it on for nostalgic value. They keep it on because it makes them money.

Saw that Sideshow Bob was back when I signed into Hulu so decide to give it a chance. Accidently put on the Diggs episode which was terrible. A poorly written and boring 22 minutes that simply didn't work.

The return of Bob was more successful but that was solely down to Kelsey Grammer who was great even if the story was dreadful. The one great moment was the final scene where Flanders dreamy about Mrs. Krabapple which was poignant, understated and a fine farewell. It was the first time in years that the show actually did something interesting and moving. Real shame that every other episode I've seen in recent years has been so woeful.

cloud493

The dead homer society page is great reading

TheIrishGrover

This. Pic pretty much says it all. And, as others have stated, the characters (especially Homer and Lisa) have become very unlikeable: Lisa as just a shrill whiner now and Homer.... Homer is just a mean-spirited a55hole now. Just look at his a55hole pose in the "now" section. For Christ's sake: Homer grew up in the 90's now!!!!!

BopNiblets

A thought struck me a while ago:
After not watching for years, I have now seen less than half the seasons of the show... :0
Can I still call myself a Simpsons fan if I have only seen 12/26 seasons?!