- Joined
- May 4, 2004
- Posts
- 10,760
So I've been buying classic seasons (2-8) of The Simpsons on DVD the past couple weeks since Disney+ is a shit service I refuse to pay for and the version of the show they have available is butchered.
I gotta say I'm really having fun going back through the seasons, the evolution of the series is really interesting to experience again. I stopped watching the show as it aired around season 10 or 11 and had been extremely disappointed by the previous couple of seasons. Specifically the dolphin episode being where I just knew everyone who made the writing good was nowhere to be seen.
The quality of the writing dropped off so fast it was incredible. After that I just gave up and moved on, which wasn't hard to do since there was Futurama, South Park, Cartoon Network was just starting to do weird stuff at night as well and there was even Family Guy. I never tried getting back into it later and I'm not going to get into "zombie" Simpsons etc. but I did catch a few random new episodes over the years and was always baffled by what the show had become. I saw The Simpsons Movie when it came out and knew without a doubt the show wasn't for me anymore.
Going back to it I was afraid that the series would seem dated in multiple ways, and it is. But I think it's actually made it age much better. It's not just nostalgia either, it's an incredibly well written show with some amazing talent behind those prime era episodes. Sure sometimes it's a little preachy or a little sappy. Every now and then there's a Lisa or Marge episode but those actually have some of the most memorable lines and gags from the entire series in them when you go back and watch them. Seasons 2 and 8 are a little rough but they also have a ton of classic stuff in them.
Also I appreciate the heart the show had as much as the jokes and general goofiness. That's mostly gone from stuff these days. Everything is mean, cynical, greedy or just stupid. The Simpsons had all those things as well but they always balanced them with more positive aspects and remained strangely relatable. I always felt bad that my sister's kids grew up without knowing how great the show had been, to them it was never anything but a time-slot filler before Family Guy.
TLDR: Classic Simpsons is still awesome.
I gotta say I'm really having fun going back through the seasons, the evolution of the series is really interesting to experience again. I stopped watching the show as it aired around season 10 or 11 and had been extremely disappointed by the previous couple of seasons. Specifically the dolphin episode being where I just knew everyone who made the writing good was nowhere to be seen.
The quality of the writing dropped off so fast it was incredible. After that I just gave up and moved on, which wasn't hard to do since there was Futurama, South Park, Cartoon Network was just starting to do weird stuff at night as well and there was even Family Guy. I never tried getting back into it later and I'm not going to get into "zombie" Simpsons etc. but I did catch a few random new episodes over the years and was always baffled by what the show had become. I saw The Simpsons Movie when it came out and knew without a doubt the show wasn't for me anymore.
Going back to it I was afraid that the series would seem dated in multiple ways, and it is. But I think it's actually made it age much better. It's not just nostalgia either, it's an incredibly well written show with some amazing talent behind those prime era episodes. Sure sometimes it's a little preachy or a little sappy. Every now and then there's a Lisa or Marge episode but those actually have some of the most memorable lines and gags from the entire series in them when you go back and watch them. Seasons 2 and 8 are a little rough but they also have a ton of classic stuff in them.
Also I appreciate the heart the show had as much as the jokes and general goofiness. That's mostly gone from stuff these days. Everything is mean, cynical, greedy or just stupid. The Simpsons had all those things as well but they always balanced them with more positive aspects and remained strangely relatable. I always felt bad that my sister's kids grew up without knowing how great the show had been, to them it was never anything but a time-slot filler before Family Guy.
TLDR: Classic Simpsons is still awesome.
