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Ryno_v Since: Dec, 2017
#276: Apr 30th 2019 at 2:39:49 PM

[up][up]there were jokes like the justin trudeau snc lavalin or Canada geting America fads six mouths later and i like the one with Nelson Dad at the end

Psi001 Since: Oct, 2010
#277: Apr 30th 2019 at 3:27:10 PM

It's sad remembering Lisa wasn't always a full on Soapbox Sadie and was just a precocious kid undergoing moral crises.

firewriter Since: Dec, 2016
#278: Apr 30th 2019 at 4:37:37 PM

[up][up]

Everyone has said this once and I will say it again. This show really needs to die.

Mario1995 The Dishonorable from Atlanta Since: Nov, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
The Dishonorable
#280: May 14th 2019 at 2:21:46 PM

[up]Said article also says, not too surprisingly, that Simpsons World is shutting down upon Disney+ taking over streaming rights. Good riddance.

"The devil's got all the good gear. What's God got? The Inspiral Carpets and nuns. Fuck that." - Liam Gallagher
tclittle Professional Forum Ninja from Somewhere Down in Texas Since: Apr, 2010
Professional Forum Ninja
#281: May 25th 2019 at 1:22:18 AM

Looks like a new Simpsons game is incoming: the writers and producers of the Simpsons will be hosting a panel at the E3 Colosseum on June 11th.

From my understanding, EA still holds the rights to Simpsons games, so will likely see the announcement during EA play on either the 8th or 9th.

"We're all paper, we're all scissors, we're all fightin' with our mirrors, scared we'll never find somebody to love."
amadeussyracuse A Wink's As Good As A Nod To A Blind Bat from Hyrule Since: Feb, 2018 Relationship Status: And here's to you, Mrs. Robinson
A Wink's As Good As A Nod To A Blind Bat
#282: Jun 8th 2019 at 1:14:32 PM

Look, I'll say this much for Season 30:

Some Season 29 episodes were so horrible I seriously started to question why I was still watching this show.

Season 30 episodes in general were at least acceptable enough that I'm willing to keep watching this show.

No, Mr. Bunker, "this here" is justice
Pichu-kun ... Since: Jan, 2001
...
#283: Jun 9th 2019 at 6:47:11 AM

I can't tell if Simpsons is stale or I am just out of touch with people my age. Looking at the descriptions of the last two season's episodes alone, they seem uninteresting.

But what makes the contemporary 1990s episodes different from the contemporary 2010s episodes? They're both pop culture filled and "now". Maybe it's just that the characters haven't modernized enough. It was also weird seeing Peanuts reference Harry Potter.

Edited by Pichu-kun on Jun 9th 2019 at 2:05:51 AM

Redmess Redmess from Netherlands Since: Feb, 2014
Redmess
#284: Jun 9th 2019 at 6:52:32 AM

Peanuts trying to stay relevant with pop culture references is generally considered to be the start of it's slide down.

In the case of the Simpsons, a large part of it was probably it's characters being flanderized into jerks, especially Bart and Homer, or into preachy nags like Lisa.

I also think Comic-Book Time and Negative Continuity is starting to seriously hurt this show, forcing writers to abandon backstory after backstory, several times over. But even though they adapt to modern times somewhat, they still remain the same characters. They are now effectively a full generation too young.

A related problem is, since they don't age, they don't really experience character development, or any growth at all, really. They are effectively in a "Groundhog Day" Loop of experiencing the same year over and over again, and after 25 odd years, there isn't really anything left for them to explore in that year. That's why it feels stale. It's not just that other shows have done the same plots before. It's that THIS show has done them before.

If they wanted to do something REALLY daring, they could spend an entire season aging the characters up one year each episode, then freeze the ageing at their new resting point. Homer and Marge would be grandparents, Lisa, Bart, and Maggie would be parents themselves. There would be so much new potential then. On top of that, it would be an opportunity to freshen up the wider cast of characters.

Edited by Redmess on Jun 9th 2019 at 4:11:41 PM

Hope shines brightest in the darkest times
J79 Since: Jan, 2015
#285: Jun 9th 2019 at 9:37:04 AM

[up] Peanuts was doing pop culture references as early as the 70s, I remember a strip mentioning Oliva Newton-John which was odd. I wonder if the reason they dont want to age up Bart and Lisa is that they may feel that it's too hard to write teenagers. I mean, the only recurring teen character that they have is squeaky-voiced teen who's just a joke character with no depth like Raphael or Just Punch The Ticket Man.

GlitterCat Since: Mar, 2018 Relationship Status: The Skitty to my Wailord
#286: Jun 9th 2019 at 12:38:38 PM

They frequently write Bart and Lisa as older though. Bart can drive a car, and get a pregnant 15 yr old girlfriend (the baby isn't his, and the problem is solved when the girl's mother reveals she is also pregnant and they plan to pass the babies off as twins.) Also they have Jimbo, Dolph, and Shauna as teens, Kearney is even older than he looks and has a young son.

see my completed Tangled (Varian) fanfic collection! https://archiveofourown.org/works/24467056/chapters/59049532
Blueace Surrounded by weirdoes from The End Of the World Since: Dec, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Surrounded by weirdoes
#287: Jun 9th 2019 at 12:45:49 PM

The feeling is like they wrote everything they could think of about them as kids and ended up using teenager material while keeping the design.

Wake me up at your own risk.
Redmess Redmess from Netherlands Since: Feb, 2014
Redmess
#288: Jun 9th 2019 at 12:50:28 PM

Wait, what? Bart can drive? And got someone pregnant? At 10?? When did that happen? HOW did that even happen?

Hope shines brightest in the darkest times
Blueace Surrounded by weirdoes from The End Of the World Since: Dec, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Surrounded by weirdoes
#289: Jun 9th 2019 at 12:54:44 PM

One of Bart's idiotic ideas accidentally saved the city from a fire, so as a reward, he asked for a driver's license, and met a teenager, who, unknown to him was pregnant and ran away to Utah to marry her since she discovered he was ten and the whole thing looked pretty bad.

Not kidding.

Edited by Blueace on Jun 9th 2019 at 3:56:13 PM

Wake me up at your own risk.
Pichu-kun ... Since: Jan, 2001
...
#290: Jun 9th 2019 at 2:07:41 PM

[up][up] Bart didn't get her pregnant. He probably doesn't even know how reproduction works.

Ryno_v Since: Dec, 2017
#291: Jun 9th 2019 at 2:34:41 PM

[up][up]There was also the time when Bart drove Nelson, Milhouse and Martin to the World's Fair.

TargetmasterJoe from Velocitron Since: May, 2013 Relationship Status: I like big bots and I can not lie
#292: Jun 10th 2019 at 4:58:40 AM

[up] And the time Bart stole the school bus when Otto was distracted with Metallica and proceeded to drive everyone to school.

Edited by TargetmasterJoe on Jun 10th 2019 at 7:59:20 AM

alanh Since: May, 2010
#293: Jun 10th 2019 at 7:11:06 PM

And in "Brawl in the Family" Bart has his own set of car keys and driving gloves.

chasemaddigan I'm Sad Frogerson. Since: Oct, 2011
I'm Sad Frogerson.
#294: Jun 10th 2019 at 8:17:59 PM

I remember one reviewer mention how Bart seems to be the hardest Simpson to for the current staff to write for, because he hasn't been Flanderized to the extent the rest of his family has. Homer's the brain-dead dunce, Marge the wet-blanket nagger, Lisa the preachy know-it-all, and Maggie the baby with a hidden edge.

But Bart? He hasn't been degraded to a single archetype in recent episodes, so his depiction varies depending on the episode. In some episodes, he's a little hellion and borderline sociopath. In others, he's pathetic wuss who lacks the spine of his classic years. Even within a single episode, his personality can shift from childlike to being knowledgeable about things far beyond his age bracket. So that's how you end up with episodes where Bart is put in an arranged marriage, dates a pregnant girl, is an Oscar-nominated animator, or sells nuclear secrets to China. And yes, those are all real episode plots.

Pichu-kun ... Since: Jan, 2001
...
#295: Jun 12th 2019 at 4:50:54 AM

I think Simpsons would be better if it was stuck in a perpetual 80s/90s Retro Universe instead of trying to modernize accurately. It just stands out when they do. The series was Two Decades Behind even when it debuted, nevermind now.

[up] (x11)Flash Beagle is one of my favorite Peanuts adaptations yet it reeks of 1980s. Now, if Charlie Brown pulled out a smartphone to text to Linus, that'd be weird. Modernizing works to a degree is fine, as long as it doesn't effect the aesthetic much. The Peanuts Movie did it well with its Ambiguous Time Period. Is it in the 1950s, 1960s, 2000s, 2010s? Who knows.

The Simpsons keeps on trying to apply contemporary stories to its characters and it comes off as weird. Maybe it'd be fine in Family Guy or South Park, but seeing Bart being into e-sports clashes. He's a 1980s/1990s character heavily inspired by 1950s/1960s characters.

Edited by Pichu-kun on Jun 12th 2019 at 4:57:40 AM

Redmess Redmess from Netherlands Since: Feb, 2014
Redmess
#296: Jun 12th 2019 at 7:40:40 AM

Also, the joke with early Peanuts references was often that they were pretty obscure even then, especially concerning baseball trivia.

Hope shines brightest in the darkest times
amadeussyracuse A Wink's As Good As A Nod To A Blind Bat from Hyrule Since: Feb, 2018 Relationship Status: And here's to you, Mrs. Robinson
A Wink's As Good As A Nod To A Blind Bat
#297: Jun 16th 2019 at 11:24:14 AM

Any thoughts on what episode should or will be nominated for the 2019 Animated Program Emmy?

There have been a few Treehouse Of Horror episodes nominated for the AP Emmy and I did think TOH XXIX was pretty good.

Mostly Season 30 was very meh for me but a few episodes did slightly rise above mediocrity for me like Baby You Can't Drive My Car and The Clown Stays In The Picture.

In particular I hope the show doesn't submit Bart's Not Dead or D'oh Canada for the AP Emmy.

No, Mr. Bunker, "this here" is justice
GlitterCat Since: Mar, 2018 Relationship Status: The Skitty to my Wailord
#298: Jun 16th 2019 at 11:37:59 AM

Animated program mad about the toy. Comedy writing Bart's not dead and daddicus Finch. Personally didn't care for these episodes, I think I would have chosen girl's in the band.

see my completed Tangled (Varian) fanfic collection! https://archiveofourown.org/works/24467056/chapters/59049532
Psi001 Since: Oct, 2010
#299: Jun 16th 2019 at 12:30:26 PM

Has anyone checked out Therealjims on Youtube? He has some really detailed and fun analyses about the show. He made this rather nicely thought out observations of the current situation with Stark Raving Dad: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cniQqgcVhf0&t=356s

Edited by Psi001 on Jun 16th 2019 at 8:31:22 PM

Yam Since: Jan, 2010 Relationship Status: Less than three
#300: Jun 19th 2019 at 9:10:26 PM

I have. The music he uses for his openings is super catchy and the "who really shot Mr. Burns" series is surprisingly good.

Edited by Yam on Jun 19th 2019 at 9:10:57 AM


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