Creaphis
I will deliberately take a contrary position just for the sake of writing incredibly long arguments
Posts: 3991
Registered: 10-05 |
kristus said:
Fox probably want Simpsons to remain on air more than the people actually making the show.
I think this is true. Fox obviously takes a lot of pride in all the records that Simpsons has broken for most episodes, most seasons, etc., but they've only earned those records because they let Simpsons turn into one of those tired institutions like Saturday Night Live. Will anyone who makes or watches the show care when it's gone?
I haven't watched many recent episodes but my impression from what I've seen is that every line is written without any thought for what will follow it. A scene is set. A writer wracks his brain for the funniest thing he can think of for a character to say. He settles on something as fresh and natural as a lolcats caption. With that line immortalized in graphite, he strains to think of something another character could say in response. He settles on a line that's even more groan-inducing. This process is repeated until the episode is padded to twenty-two minutes long and then our intrepid writer goes home and drinks himself to sleep.
In old (read: good) Simpsons episodes, funny moments were perfectly orchestrated - everything in each scene builds to the next gag, yet you never know what or when the joke will be. Sometimes things are just funny and you don't know why. It helps that the characters actually do things, rather than stand stock still in the center of their living room. Some episodes even had wholesome messages that tied the whole episode together and left you feeling connected to the characters. Everything else on TV is tedious moralizing or anarchic hedonism, but Simpsons got the balance right. Hell, I would play it in Sunday school.
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10-06-11 21:59 
