It hasn't ended, still by far one of the best shows on cable TV.
Why did the golden age of the Simpsons end?
41–50 of 147 posts
Re: Why did the golden age of the Simpsons end?
#42Purely anecdotal, but as a Simpsons fans many years ago (and not really following the show anymore), I think there are many of us who grew up with the Simpsons who simply don't have the time (as we've gotten older and have other chores and priorities to take care of first) to follow the show anymore.
not a time issue...the show just became not funny and kinda lame. I pinpoint it ~5 years before the movie came out.
Re: Why did the golden age of the Simpsons end?
#43Whenever we talk about Simpsons decline it always occurs to me that even in decline... the Simpsons is still pretty good. Perhaps that says more about its high points than the "decline".
I think the decline is largely bullshit nostalgia. I still watch Simpsons and I still think it's great.
It could be for some, though I remember distinctly feeling, years ago, that the episode called Homer Simpson vs The State of New York was the last solid episode, and the one with N*Sync was the first that I really didn't like and it was a marker for the transition to more farcical humor with celebrity cameos. It's just not my thing, and I gave the Simpsons many chances after that. There's a reason nearly all the current Simpsons memes come from the Golden Era.
Re: Why did the golden age of the Simpsons end?
#44Earlier quoted context omitted.
The Simpsons were pushing the envelope when the show came out, doing things that were considered almost radical at the time. But they are just stuck in time, following their formula while subsequent animated shows (e.g. South Park) have gone much farther than the Simpsons ever did. The show often also feels like the writers are just rehashing old ideas, and there seem to be a few archetypes of stories that just keep…
That's true of a lot of long-running shows. Even if they don't become worse in the sense that individual episodes are worse taken in isolation, they're often just repetitious and, as you say, stuck in time. You see this elsewhere too. In comic strips, for example, Dilbert is mostly stuck in some 90s version of cubicle life at a big company like Pac Bell. Don't really reaad it any longer but even when nothing is wrong…
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Re: Why did the golden age of the Simpsons end?
#45Earlier quoted context omitted.
Having a bad kid as a role model I think does impact children. I.e., Bart. Edit: I'm not sure people realize I'm not the grandparent, or that I was directly quoting him to answer the question?
So, all cartoons then? Bart is the archtype for screwing up amd learning your lesson. Omitting that seems worse parenting.
My kids have had no trouble screwing up and I try to help them learn lessons. There are many other shows that teach that same lesson without a cartoon cat and mouse filleting each other, dad drinking and bumbling around and choking their kids out.
I love The Simpsons; honestly I like Bob's Burgers more, but both shows live on a line between acceptable and unacceptable, like all adult cartoons do. They will find things that do the same and I won't know about it. But I don't spoon feed it to them.
I already give them all the vidya games in the world so they aren't starved for crude content. Also just living with me is all the crude TV-MA content they can handle. Mom and Dad are sort of fun to hang around (at least for Mom and Dad).
Re: Why did the golden age of the Simpsons end?
#46If you'd like to see something really terrible, try watching the fantasy Simpsons/Futurama-esque mess that is Disenchanted on Netflix.
Re: Why did the golden age of the Simpsons end?
#47Earlier quoted context omitted.
That's true of a lot of long-running shows. Even if they don't become worse in the sense that individual episodes are worse taken in isolation, they're often just repetitious and, as you say, stuck in time. You see this elsewhere too. In comic strips, for example, Dilbert is mostly stuck in some 90s version of cubicle life at a big company like Pac Bell. Don't really reaad it any longer but even when nothing is wrong…
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But even that aside the strip is just boring.
Re: Why did the golden age of the Simpsons end?
#48This analysis doesn't demonstrate anything, unfortunately, except that ratings declined over time and that writers changed over time. Any factor could have caused the show's decline (like less time given for script writing, less collaboration or rewrites, management directives to change aspects of the show, etc.) -- and it would show the same result.
Did you know, there’s a direct correlation between the decline in the perceived quality of the show, and the decline in Spirograph? Think about it!
Re: Why did the golden age of the Simpsons end?
#49[deleted]
Re: Why did the golden age of the Simpsons end?
#50Whenever we talk about Simpsons decline it always occurs to me that even in decline... the Simpsons is still pretty good. Perhaps that says more about its high points than the "decline".
I think the decline is largely bullshit nostalgia. I still watch Simpsons and I still think it's great.
Certain types of humor lend themselves to repeating and reliving, and get funnier that way. Think of all the people who quote the Simpsons to each other, or Family Guy, or heck even going back to Monty Python.
It's really hard to account for that aspect of people's feelings about old vs new Simpsons. Some jokes that were probably light chuckles at first viewing, have become iconic fodder for further humor in the years since. This is reinforced by time, but also by syndication.
It gets to the point where no possible new Simpsons joke will get the reaction as the old ones. New jokes just work in the brain differently from jokes we've lived with and referenced for years.
This is not unique to the Simpsons, it happens with any long-running show. The SNL "cowbell" or "David S. Pumpkins" sketches seemed kind of funny at first viewing, but the constant references since have made them seem way funnier.