Slip Bart and Lisa a cyanide pill. Push Marge down a flight of stairs. Stand Homer in front of a firing squad. Do whatever you have to, but for the love of God, please put The Simpsons out of its misery. (The show is about to reach a record-setting 500th episode this weekend).
I say this as someone who, through the ‘90s and early ‘00s, was a huge fan of Matt Groening and James L. Brooks’ once brilliant show. It helped shape a generation’s worldview, and even their speech patterns. (If you want to know why some of us still say “dude,” it’s Bart’s fault).
While The Simpsons in 2012 isn’t the worst show on broadcast TV, it has settled into a robotic mediocrity that is depressing for those who savor its glory days. I watched several episodes last year, none of which were memorable. Groening and Brooks aren’t doing the show’s legacy any favors by letting it linger looong past the point when anything could remain fresh and inventive. So drop an a-bomb on Springfield and let’s commence with the grieving.
The Simpsons has been surpassed by Family Guy as the prime example of animated anarchy. American Dad is funnier than The Simpsons these days. Even the Cleveland Show is better. However, I still enjoy The Simpsons and would hate to see it go.
This is utterly ridiculous. The Simpsons is consistently good, sometimes great, and at it’s worst it is better than any other animated show with only Bob’s Burgers coming close. Family Guy is pathetic as the Cleveland Show and American Dad are. American Dad is the best of that lot, but not even remotely close to The Simpsons’ level, and Family Guy struggles to achieve even three actual funny moments in a single episode. It has become trendy to claim otherwise, but The Simpsons has not overstayed its welcome. Hulu comments on Family Guy episodes do not represent fact.
…and at its*
Bob’s Burgers is the worst cartoon on TV.
Well there you go, you think Family Guy is actually good, actually better than The Simpsons, and you think “Bob’s Burgers is the worst cartoon on TV.” That tells me all I need to know about how low your IQ must be.
I just stomped my foot twice for yes.
The problem with the Simpsons is that after 500 episodes the children have not aged a single year in the history of the series. Bart is still in 4th grade. Keep in mind you have president Clinton in episodes, and then Bush, and even Obama, that is almost 20 years of real world change, while the town of Springfield is still stuck in some mysterious time warp where the citizens never age. If they want to make this show glorious again, give us Bart and Lisa as teens and Maggie in grade school or junior high. I stopped watching years ago due this very reason.