Shark Bytes

The Simpsons- born: 1989. Died: 2001.

The 2002-to-Present Simpsons is just bad and sad.

It has become so Bad that it has become super-super painful to watch.

Why do people still watch?

The Simpsons are Dead and have been for the last six years.

I think Family Guy is more like the Simpsons was in the golden years, then The 2002-to-Present Simpsons is.

I once hated Family Guy, but it had grow into a great show.

I once loved The Simpsons, but it has grow into one of worst shows ever.

The Simpsons not only jump the shark, they married the shark.

The term jumping the shark need to be change to "The Simpsons".

Gargle hit the nail on the head. The show today may call itself "The Simpsons", but the Simpsons family is no longer the Simpsons family. They've all changed so much, even in looks, going from "crudely drawn" to overly perfect digital ink and paint, that the Simpsons is no longer the Simpsons. It's The Meta-Simpsons. Season 20 is coming. Here's hoping it will be their last, and that they can finally rest in peace after a decade of suffering.

As for Family Guy, it's "The Simpsons: Manatee Gag version and Shock Value version". Anything they can do The Simpsons has already done better.

To Gargle:

AMEN.

ONE reason why The Simpsons jumped? Okay...I'll try: it's the Simpson family. I'll contrast the early season versions with the newers ones:

HOMER

Early: Stupid, bufoonish, goofy, incompetent, loud, sweet and sincere man who loved his family more than his own life. He was often thoughtless becase he was too dumb to understand, but always apologized and was never *knowingly* selfish.

New: Really, really really stupid, rude, crude, mean, intolerant, nasty, selfish jerk who cares only for himself and is "too dumb" to care about his family.

MARGE

Early: Way too patient for her own good, caring, unflappable, slightly eccentric but sensible moral center of the family, and is completely oblivious to the fact that they're a load of nutcases.

New: ditzy, stupid, jealous, nagging, closed-minded, "Hello Kitty"-type of creepy mom and mean, disparaging wife who blames her family for everything.

BART

Early: mischevious, rebellious, disrespectful, smart-mouthed, underacheiving, skewedly intelligent, mean-but-goodhearted brat.

New: Bitter, cold, nasty, passive, malicious, cruel, unloving "teenager". Still rude, but no longer rebellious.

LISA

Early: Hyper-intelligent, morally sound,sensitive, knowlegable, wise, slightly anti-social, genius with a fierce resolve to do what's right. Her values and spirit are contantly trampled on by society, but she still loves her family.

New: Snotty, overly-intellectual, self-absorbed, whiney, pretencious, arrogant, elitist, self-rightious, disparaging little creep whose activism comes from her radically left-wing views. Like Bart, she acts just like a teenager.

MAGGIE

Early: quiet, unnervingly capable, independent, clever, vaguely sinister, wise baby who understood everything aroud her perfectly.

New: Background character who does absolutely nothing.

I've watched this show since it first debuted and it continues to be one of my favorites but i can't agree with those who say it never jumped. I can't pinpoint the exact moment when it did but for me it hasn't been as sharp or focused in many years. The last Halloween special wasn't very funny and the characters seem to get sillier and more non-sensical with each season. I agree that Family Guy is a parody of this show, an obvious one, but it's gotten away with that because it takes more risks, risks that the Simpsons used to take but no longer do.

Both Family Guy and the Simpsons jumped. The only reason people would like Family Guy over the Simpsons is if they're enthralled by extreme shock value.

I looked at all the reasons why this show jumped the shark(which I think it hasn't) and one makes no sense. The same charcter, different actor(Homer) is incorrect. Dan Castelleneta has voiced Homer since the Tracy Ullman days. Until the second season Homer sounded different but Dan decided to make his voice more original.

I will have to disagree with stardust.

First, there is not a specific generation that watches The Simpsons. I know people from ages 9 to Lord only knows what enjoy the show, which I think has a lot to say about the show's appeal. Secondly, Family Guy is primarily the same thing. I think the only reason it may seem better is because it has more sexual refrences which are not necessary. Thirdly, whereas Lionel Hutz and Troy McClure are hilarious, they are not the best characters.

RIP Phil Hartman.

I feel that The Simpsons is still one of the most intelligent and funniest programmes on TV BUT the generation (i.e. mine) that watched the show religiously and made it popular have moved on. When I was younger when the show first started, I understood the immediate slapstick comedy and as I have grown I have discovered the various intellectual layers of the show...now I am way too familiar with the show, I'm bored of it. We now want instant laughs and one-liners, which we can now get from Family Guy.

Saying that, it jumped shark when Phil Hartman died as Lionel Hutz and Troy McLure were the best characters on it.

Put me down as one who thinks the show has gone way downhill. It should have ended around 1999. From 1991 to about 1999 it was hilarious, now it's just rehashing the same basic plots again and again.
Am I alone in thinking that Bart and Lisa still being kids is part of the reason this show sucks now?
The Simpsons proves without a doubt that any show will start sucking if it's on too long.

I agree with most of the posters, and although the show is very popular with a new generation, I don't watch it any more.

In addition to the knocks on pop culture, the wonderful flashbacks, the silliness of the show, the Simpsons stood out for other reasons-

1. Distinct characters
2. Smart, clever comedy
3. The stories were intersting and well thought out. There was a true beginning, middle, and end.
4. Relationships- For a cartoon, the show was like many great sitcoms that are very funny and feature relationships that make you laugh, are emotional, and make the show work.
5. Touching- Who didn't feel something when Homer's mother got into the VW Van at the end, or Marge and Homer rode on the bicycle while raindrops keep falling on your head played, or Marge leaving the country club that she wanted to belong to,
6. Honoring history- Whether it was a tribute to the Flinstones, or All in the Family, the Simpsons paid homage to the great comedies and cartoons before it.


I miss those days.

I may be in the minority, and I did like the Frank Grimes and Hank Scorpio episodes.

The Simpsons has jumped the shark for sure. But I'd be hard pressed to know exactly when it happened. The sheer longevity is a tribute, not to the ongoing quality, but to the original height from which the show has fallen. I would guess (because I don't bother to watch anymore) that the Simpsons circa 2008 is only about 20% as funny as the Simpsons circa 1991. But still, even today I'll sometimes catch some episode in syndication that I've never seen and it will give me a couple of good chuckles. So I can understand how younger viewers might enjoy the show.

At some point FOX or the creators of the show will pull plug. But when? What's the motive to keep it going? They are like the Rolling Stones of the television world, longevity for the sake of longevity. Nothing of value is currently being added to the Simpsons glorious place in television history. Let it go. But if you want to go out with a bang (unlike Seinfeld), bring back the fantastic writers from season one or two and have them craft a finally cut from that origianl clothe. Then those of us who love the show for what it was will have a positive closure for this amazing, sad, record setting sitcom.

I say the Simpsons is better than most of the stuff on TV the way I say stale soda tastes better than rotten milk. When you drank the soda earlier, it was delicious, but since it was left in the fridge too long, it's gotten really stale and tastes bad. Though not as bad as the rotten milk. Yuck!

We're so quick to attack the show, but the way I look at it is that The Simpsons, now, is still better than 75% of what's on tv. Okay, it's best seasons are behind it, but it's lasting power is INSANE! My generation knows and loves it, and while this generation is more of a "Family Guy" group, they still respect and laugh at the show. The problem is that when we talk Simpsons, we compare seasons instead of comparing it to the rest of tv. If that's the case, it remains one of the best shows on tv, just as it has been since its inception.

Lisa criticized Homer for converting to another religion in Homer the Heretic. Then Lisa herself converts to another religion in She of Little Faith. Funny, no? She's such a funny little hypocrite, isn't she?