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I stopped reading at “Those of us who grew up loving Golden Age Simpsons didn’t love it because of the characters... We loved it because it was funny and that w
by hitekker 9y ago
I stopped reading at “Those of us who grew up loving Golden Age Simpsons didn’t love it because of the characters... We loved it because it was funny and that was it.”
I got into the simpsons as a kid because it was funny. But I stayed because of the characters and the relationships they have with each other.
That is audience retention 101.
For a more astute analysis, I recommend reading https://deadhomersociety.com/zombiesimpsons/ https://deadhomersociety.com/zombiesimpsons/ which comprehensively describes the history surrounding and storycrafting of the Simpsons
- Zanni 9y agoYeah, that was surreal. The appeal of the Simpsons for me was always the characters, and the fact that they genuinely cared about each other despite their dysfunctional family dynamic. Conventional wisdom says that it's not that the show-runners abandoned humor in favor of character but the other way around, abandoning the core of their characters' identities for cheap laughs, hence the birth of "jerkass Homer."
- hitekker 9y agoI'd consider the author's arguments seriously if he bothered to buttress them with more sources than one Matt Groening quote, and one link to the Statemen's. I would speculate that he didn't want to do the research, because his opinion is the opposite of the consensus, and because he didn't even seem to like the "Golden Age" Simpsons that much. Pretty shallow overall.
- craftyguy 9y agoI got into the Simpsons because they were funny, and watcted until they weren't. So I agree with the author here. I didn't care so much for the relationship development stuff, I felt there were already plenty of shows on TV that already filled that category.