At what season does the simpsons begin to suck?

I'm asking this because I always hear people say it sucks nowadays, well I'm watching season 1 through 17 (1989-2006) and the quality never drops (except for the few unoriginal clip shows)

It started going down hill when Conan O'Brian left as a writer, imo. But I would say after the late 90s. I thought Futurama was better than the later Simpsons episodes.

Everyone seems to say that it got bad after season 10, but I didn't think it lost it's quality until season 16. Still even now there is the occasional pretty good episode, there's just a lot more crap episodes in between.

I have watched quit a bit of the Simpsons but I don't know the series all that well. But if you watch an episode from say, series 5 in comparison to a later season you can really tell the difference. There's lots of self referencing humor in the originals while the more modern is about a life story of a celebrity or something rather forgettable.

However I find the current ones aren't that bad. But it still doesn't match the classics.

Some time after Season 7. Then it went completely to shit once it stopped being a clever, well-written show and instead took the lazy route of chasing celebrities for guest parts as themselves every episode.

I can't pinpoint when it became bad, but I agree with BaronOfStuff in that it became shittier around the time they started putting celebrity cameos every other episode. The jokes are also less subtle, more political, and predictable. Too many episodes paroding pop culture, too. All characters are now caricatures of themselves. Homer went from being lazy and dim witted to retarded and borderline insane at times. Bart went from brat to sociopath. Lisa went from a sweet little girl to a super intelligent and progressive moral god. Marge went from loving wife and voice of reason to... boring, just boring.
There are still a few funny jokes in newer episodes, but on the whole is just, mediocre.

Depending on who you ask, sometime around seasons 7 to 9

I always felt season 12 was the start of when the series went to shit, 11 is last remotely good season.

I'd argue the series' actual turning point was the episode with Frank Grimes. That episode is just so mean-spirited in general it actually irritates me to see it.

That isn't to say that nothing after that episode is worth watching, though; there are some genuinely good episodes in the years afterwards, but the success rate really started dropping off, IMO.

Quast said:

Depending on who you ask, sometime around seasons 7 to 9

Agreed. Season 7 was when it started getting weird, but it took another season or two for it to go past the point of no return. Everything past season 11 or 12 is pure zombie Simpsons.

It wasn't a gradual decline over time. It was extremely good about 1-8, kinda weird in 9, and then a complete garbage fire from season 10 on.

weepodcast.com does an extremely good job explaining exactly why this is true.

Season 17 was bad.

Season 7 had the 138th Episode Spectacular and 22 Short Films About Springfield, which were symptomatic of the show running out of normal ideas, but the episodes were both quite good and purposely not a "normal" episode so it was fine. It also had Marge Be Not Proud, which was maybe the first blatantly maudlin episode since the golden era of the show had begun.

Season 8 had the chili pepper episode, which was the first real "post-golden-age" episode in my opinion. It was still a good episode, but I remember watching it when it first aired and feeling like something was "off" about it that didn't bode well for the direction of the show. It also had Homer's Enemy, which has been written about extensively as a harbinger of things to come.

Season 9 had the Armin Tamzarian episode which I personally have never had a problem with although a lot of people do. It also had "All Singing, All Dancing" which I think is probably the first genuinely bad episode of The Simpsons, and "Das Bus" where the die was irrevocably cast about the show just not giving a shit about wrapping up its own plotlines.

the quality of the show spiked off at some point, when the ideas just became less personal and more just funny dumb. also the celebrities were basically the only reason to watch the show.

that being said, though, i still watch it as a sort of daily ritual when it's on beacuse i still enjoy it, but i can admit that it's not really that great anymore.

HorrorMovieGuy said:

All characters are now caricatures of themselves.

That's a good and simple way of putting the problem I have with a lot of tv shows. This happens in Family Guy, American Dad, The Office, Parks and Recreation, Always Sunny in Philadelphia etc.

If you have netflix and watch an episode from the last season of a show, then one from the first, the characters are totally different people. It seems once someone's personality is developed there's no mystery or anything about them. They just become who they are and there's no deviation, while in previous seasons they seemed much more open-ended and interesting.

I cringe everytime I see Quagmire in a family guy episode. We get it, you're a sexual deviant nymphomaniac who objectifies women, its not funny anymore.

Btw is there any streaming services (netflix, amazon prime etc.) that have all the episodes of Simpsons? I thought Hulu had Simpsons at one point, but now that I see they only carry the last season. My devices that I have on my living room tv dont let me browse internet websites.

It was already well past it's expiry date, but the movie definitely should have been the conclusive end, meaning season 18 would have been the last. It's at fucking 27 now, good lord. Whore it out for millions though why not who needs integrity when you have several houses, cars and swimming pools right?

I felt Simpsons went from Great to okay around season 12, and started to suck hard at season 14.

The Simpsons should have ended after Season 8. 9-12 weren't bad, but after the 12th season the show really started to suck. The Simpsons movie wasn't much better.

Totally depends on who you ask :)

I don't think it's as simple to say it sucked and stayed there forever. I think 9-12 were the trashiest seasons in the whole run, 13 was a small improvement, but 14-19 were mostly "meh" or bad. Seasons 20 through 27 are pretty good though in my opinion.

I also get a feeling that most of the great episodes in the recent years are ones that are made without Al Jean at the lead. He should just step down.

40oz said:

That's a good and simple way of putting the problem I have with a lot of tv shows. This happens in ... The Office...

I'd like to bring up how this never happens in the original. It actually gets wrapped up in a meaningful, true-to-the-spirit way. The American money-grinding remake machine has warped the message anyways. Much respect to The Wire for killing the show after the first season of semi-suck.

Midway through Season 11.

While there were a few sloppy episodes in seasons 8 9 and 10, Faith-Off is the EXACT POINT the Simpsons were obviously off their A game.

I can't belive you dislike all these great episodes. Oh well, more joy for me.

dew said:

I'd like to bring up how this never happens in the original. It actually gets wrapped up in a meaningful, true-to-the-spirit way. The American money-grinding remake machine has warped the message anyways. Much respect to The Wire for killing the show after the first season of semi-suck.

Okay thanks.