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Post by Jeremy on Oct 15, 2023 6:35:55 GMT -8
Oh yeah, that episode about the decline of the middle class was painful, particularly the unsubtle musical number about how boomers are ruining America. (Technically, Bart is old enough to be a boomer, but I digress.)
Anyway, the show has been around so long that you could easily go the shorthand route and (roughly) divide it up by decade.
1990s are the golden years 2000s are the bumpy Family Guy-lite years 2010s are the more consistently decent though rarely great years 2020s are the big-swings-and-big-misses-but-sometimes-unexpectedly-solid-hits years
The show has now in its 35th season, having cycled through multiple cultural shifts, including six presidential administrations and the most radical technological boom in recorded history. It predates Twin Peaks and Goodfellas, and more time has passed since the premiere of the series than between that premiere and the end of I Love Lucy. And yes, at least one of the show's current writers (Broti Gupta) was not even born when the show premiered.
Past a certain point, the show has been on so long (and so incidental to the cultural conversation) that lines start to blur together, and "Eternal Moonshine of the Simpson Mind" is considered a modern-era episode, despite being over 15 years old by now. For the broader culture, I think the only thing that could really define a decisive break between Simpsons "eras" is one of the six main actors (who have all been with the show since Season One) at last stepping aside and getting recast. (Presumably by AI, at this rate.)
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Post by ThirdMan on Oct 15, 2023 6:58:10 GMT -8
As I've got just under two more months of being subscribed to Disney-Plus (at $2-per-month), I've considered at least going through their compilation of Simpsons Treehouse of Horror episodes that I haven't seen (which is a lot of them at this point), if only for the occasional weirdness of the eps (and not so much the humour). I will likely never catch up on the series in its entirety.
But hey, if you guys want to single out a dozen or so regular episodes that are well worth checking out from the past 15 years, I'd certainly consider giving those a look as well.
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Post by Jeremy on Oct 15, 2023 9:07:13 GMT -8
Not to flex, but I posted a whole article about some very good 21st-century Simpsons episodes a few years back. May be worth consulting. And yes, the Treehouse of Horror episodes have remained consistently creative, with some spot-on parodies in recent years ( Parasite, The Babadook, et al). There was also a Thanksgiving version a few years back ("Thanksgiving of Horror") as well as a full 22-minute parody of It last year (with Krusty as Pennywise, of course). I kind of loved that last one.
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Post by ThirdMan on Oct 15, 2023 19:03:12 GMT -8
Not to flex, but I posted a whole article about some very good 21st-century Simpsons episodes a few years back. May be worth consulting. And yes, the Treehouse of Horror episodes have remained consistently creative, with some spot-on parodies in recent years ( Parasite, The Babadook, et al). There was also a Thanksgiving version a few years back ("Thanksgiving of Horror") as well as a full 22-minute parody of It last year (with Krusty as Pennywise, of course). I kind of loved that last one. I will certainly (re-) check-out that list, once I'm done with the Halloween specials (do you have some particular favourites from Seasons 31-34?). It appears I stopped watching the show regularly around Season 13 or 14, because I hadn't seen the first few Treehouse of Horror eps from S14 on (I'm sure I'll happen upon a few in the middle which I randomly caught on TV, though).
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Post by Jeremy on Oct 16, 2023 5:48:28 GMT -8
There was a time in my life when I had gotten bored with The Simpsons at large (probably the late-2000s seasons), but I still made a point of watching the Treehouse of Horror episode each year. Always look forward to those.
Regarding recent seasons, some standout episodes (apart from "Thanksgiving of Horror"* and It parody episodes previously mentioned:
"Bart the Bad Guy" - lampooning the success of the Avengers and Hollywood's increased reliance on blockbusters
"The Way of the Dog" - Santa's Little Helper origin story, including some flashbacks to the show's 1989 pilot episode
"The Dad-Feelings Limited" - Comic Book Guy origin story; hate the title but the episode is good
"Uncut Femmes" - Fun heist episode that focuses on (of all people) Chief Wiggum's wife
"The Man from GRAMPA" - Spy parody, including a sincere homage to The Third Man (that music!)
"The Last Barfighter" - One of the "Bar Wars" episodes from Cheers by way of John Wick
"The Star of the Backstage" - A musical episode; a lot of people seem to hate it but I was charmed
"A Serious Flanders" - I think we've discussed this one in the past; it's a very good parody of modern prestige dramas
"Pixelated and Afraid" - A lot of people love this one; I didn't, but I had a bit of a fever when I was watching so I wasn't fully focused
"Lisa the Boy Scout" - A very unusual "what if" episode; I will say no more, although I think Sepinwall called it one of the best TV episodes of 2022
"My Life as a Vlog" - A whole episode shown as vids on a computer screen, a la Unfriended or Searching. (I think this is what Quiara was referencing earlier)
After so many seasons, a lot of episodes start to blur together, so it's even more impressive when they make one that stands out.
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Post by Incandescence 112 on Oct 16, 2023 8:47:31 GMT -8
You'd think after 13 years, Adventure Time's writing staff might be out of fresh material, but you'd be wrong. Somehow, they took what could've been a gimmicky spin-off idea and turned it into a full-blown sequel to the original, delving deeper into the show's lore, bringing life to the now utterly tired multiverse concept, and providing a great character arc for the original show's breakout character. Doesn't hurt that the animation quality has gone through the roof and the doubled run-times allow for more breathing room. As embarrassed as I am as an adult to be so into a children's cartoon, this is great stuff and easily one of the best shows of the year.
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Quiara
Grade School
Posts: 775
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Post by Quiara on Oct 16, 2023 11:32:24 GMT -8
"My Life as a Vlog" - A whole episode shown as vids on a computer screen, a la Unfriended or Searching. (I think this is what Quiara was referencing earlier) Right, except I hated, hated, hated this episode - the most "how do you do fellow kids" episode of the show in recent memory, IMO. Otherwise I think Jer's got a pretty decent list there. I was about to quibble with "Lisa the Boy Scout," which I liked but felt a bit derivative of a classic episode or two (quite on purpose) - but then I could only laugh at how funny it is to realize that the show has been doing the "ah crap, we're out of ideas, why don't we get kinda meta!" episode to critical acclaim not merely in the past decade, or the past past decade, or even the rocky Turn of the Millennium years with "Behind the Laughter" and its ilk, but in the golden age as well with "22 Short Films" and arguably "Homer's Enemy." Oh, and also, the jokes at the IP owner's expense that are such a staple on the series feel a lot less fun when they're ""at Disney's expense"" instead of Rupert Murdoch's, because with Disney it feels much, much more like product placement (see "Bart the Bad Guy" for a prime example of this, which has a funny conceit but is obviously sort of toothless on that front).
I'd throw in "The Road to Cincinnati" as an episode that I personally liked from this decade.
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Post by Jeremy on Oct 16, 2023 16:24:26 GMT -8
You'd think after 13 years, Adventure Time's writing staff might be out of fresh material, but you'd be wrong. Somehow, they took what could've been a gimmicky spin-off idea and turned it into a full-blown sequel to the original, delving deeper into the show's lore, bringing life to the now utterly tired multiverse concept, and providing a great character arc for the original show's breakout character. Doesn't hurt that the animation quality has gone through the roof and the doubled run-times allow for more breathing room. As embarrassed as I am as an adult to be so into a children's cartoon, this is great stuff and easily one of the best shows of the year. As someone who has always been kind of lukewarm on Adventure Time (I like the show, but some of the weird quirks work better than others), it sounds like the extended episode runtimes for Fionna and Cake are an improvement? I've long felt the original series felt a little too tidy at 11-minute episodes, so longer eps might be up my alley. Also, the new show has a TV-14 rating, so I don't think they're trying to sell it as a children's cartoon. Right, except I hated, hated, hated this episode - the most "how do you do fellow kids" episode of the show in recent memory, IMO. Otherwise I think Jer's got a pretty decent list there. I was about to quibble with "Lisa the Boy Scout," which I liked but felt a bit derivative of a classic episode or two (quite on purpose) - but then I could only laugh at how funny it is to realize that the show has been doing the "ah crap, we're out of ideas, why don't we get kinda meta!" episode to critical acclaim not merely in the past decade, or the past past decade, or even the rocky Turn of the Millennium years with "Behind the Laughter" and its ilk, but in the golden age as well with "22 Short Films" and arguably "Homer's Enemy." Oh, and also, the jokes at the IP owner's expense that are such a staple on the series feel a lot less fun when they're ""at Disney's expense"" instead of Rupert Murdoch's, because with Disney it feels much, much more like product placement (see "Bart the Bad Guy" for a prime example of this, which has a funny conceit but is obviously sort of toothless on that front). It's funny to consider how seven or eight seasons is already a long run for a primetime sitcom. We think of the mid-90s seasons as part of "the early years," but by that point The Simpsons had already become the longest-running animated sitcom on TV, and became the longest running sitcom, period, about 20 years ago. And yeah, the Disney product-placement has gotten kind of irritating in recent seasons, though the show hasn't been half as bad as those painful new short films on Disney+.
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Post by Incandescence 112 on Oct 16, 2023 17:47:52 GMT -8
You'd think after 13 years, Adventure Time's writing staff might be out of fresh material, but you'd be wrong. Somehow, they took what could've been a gimmicky spin-off idea and turned it into a full-blown sequel to the original, delving deeper into the show's lore, bringing life to the now utterly tired multiverse concept, and providing a great character arc for the original show's breakout character. Doesn't hurt that the animation quality has gone through the roof and the doubled run-times allow for more breathing room. As embarrassed as I am as an adult to be so into a children's cartoon, this is great stuff and easily one of the best shows of the year. As someone who has always been kind of lukewarm on Adventure Time (I like the show, but some of the weird quirks work better than others), it sounds like the extended episode runtimes for Fionna and Cake are an improvement? I've long felt the original series felt a little too tidy at 11-minute episodes, so longer eps might be up my alley. Also, the new show has a TV-14 rating, so I don't think they're trying to sell it as a children's cartoon. I would say that it sounds more up your alley, definitely. It does require you to remember the events of the series finale, so be aware of that going in. The 20-25 minute runtime and the serialized format helps in fleshing out the show's nifty lore, and the TV-14 rating definitely sees the show dial down the 'lolrandom' humor that I admit doesn't appeal to me that much in the original show either. But it retains the original show's charm, great character work, an penchant for weirdness that sets it apart from other Western animated shows. The original 300 episode run is admittedly sprawling and uneven, but one of the best things about it was how it kept changing, evolving, and improving over time, and Fionna and Cake impressively continues that trend.
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Post by Jeremy on Oct 17, 2023 5:43:23 GMT -8
Well, I'm not thoroughly familiar with the full Adventure Time mythology - beyond the first three seasons, I've only watched the show intermittently, and I haven't seen the series finale (although I probably absorbed fragments of it through online osmosis). It's a sometimes great but often very inconsistent show. But much of what I'm hearing about Fionna and Cake sounds interesting, and I'm sure my mind can fill in the blanks of what I've missed from the original show.
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Post by Jeremy on Dec 8, 2023 7:56:43 GMT -8
Okay, three more animated shows I watched recently - two big hits, one big miss:
Blue Eye Samurai, Season 1 - Probably the best animated series I've seen all year, and the best Netflix series as well. It's a combination of Mulan and Samurai Jack by way of Kill Bill - a dark, ultra-violent series set in feudal Japan, about a young woman - an outcast due to her biracial identity - who disguises herself as a man and sets off on a bloody quest against those who wronged her. The series' adult content level is surprisingly high, but it tells a compelling story, with a terrific protagonist whose motivations, we learn, are as brutal as her fighting skills. The animation is simply gorgeous, with vivid Japanese locales and some of the best action scenes you'll find anywhere this year. The show does have its issues - some anachronistic dialogue (lots of people here talk like modern-day Americans) and a few generic supporting characters - and the finale is a bit of a letdown, with the series trying too hard to lay the groundwork for Season 2. But it's a heck of a viewing experience overall.
Scavengers' Reign, Season 1 - Probably the second-best animated series I've seen this year. A sci-fi show centering on a few space explorers who crash onto a mysterious planet, this is another series that gets a lot of mileage out of strong animation. The world this series creates, populated by all sorts of weird and disturbing plants and animals, is a wonder to behold. The characters are likable and entertaining (we get just enough info about them through flashbacks to learn what each one's about), with the series shifting delicately between multiple storylines and survivors, each trying to find some form of escape. The show is carefully paced, going long stretches without dialogue and crafting an immersive atmosphere within which to tell the story. Like Blue Eye Samurai, it's quite violent at times, but not a show to be missed.
Disenchantment, Season 5 - All mediocre things must come to an end. I enjoyed this show well enough in its first two seasons, but it never really found its footing and just became increasingly bogged down by half-baked world-building. The S4 finale was quite awful, and I was about ready to give up on the series, but when word came down that the fifth season would be the last, I decided to keep with it and see how things resolved. Sadly, the show continues its earlier struggles, with each episode featuring multiple underwritten jokes and a storyline that lumbers toward its finale. The season is also packed with callbacks to prior seasons, filled with lots of appearances from characters who I guess I was supposed to remember. What can I say, folks, this was not a memorable show. Sometimes good, rarely great, usually underwhelming. I will probably forget I wrote this paragraph by next week.
(I was going to do a blurb on Invincible Season 2, but Amazon only released four new episodes, which seems kind of ridiculous after a 2.5-year break. Anyway, the show continues to be very solid, and quite faithful to the source material - albeit with occasional weird changes, like turning Science Dog into "Séance Dog." Curious how newcomers react to the mid-season finale, which adapts one of the more controversial decisions from the original comics.)
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