MovieChat Forums > The Simpsons (1989) Discussion > Restoring The Simpsons to its past glory

Restoring The Simpsons to its past glory

posted 16 days ago by ReelReviews14 (1125)
11 replies | jump to latest

If they ever put me in charge of the franchise, I would declare EVERYTHING that happened post-season 10, and ESPECIALLY during the Disney years, to be null and void. I'd keep the events of season 1-10 as "canon", and age all the characters up a year, as they're pretty much played out everything they can at this point with Bart in the 4th grade.

That means The Simpsons revival would start with Bart in FIFTH grade (I'd give him a new classroom and teacher, but reference him having Mrs. Krabapple the previous year and ignore the recent seasons giving Bart a different teacher in 4th grade). Likewise, Lisa would now be in THIRD grade.

Since the awful later seasons "never happened", this means that Lisa would still attend the first church of Springfield with her family and is NOT some insufferable liberal know-it-all, Ned Flanders is still happily married to Maude, Marge's older cynical chain-smoking sisters BOTH have the hots for "MacGuyver", Abu is the regular cashier Homer talks to every day at the Quik-E-Mart, Harry Shearer would be back voicing Dr. Hibbert, and I'd ever bring back the long retired characters Troy McClure and Lionel Hutz, though you'd need a Phil Hartman sound-alike to voice them since Phil's no longer with us.

It would honestly be the ONLY way to make The Simpsons watchable again!

[–] hyperjet (645) 16 days ago

Good idea but I'd cut it off before season 9 and the Armin Tamzarian BS.

[–] strntz (11056) 16 days ago

That was a weird one - I think most Simpson fans pretty much ignore that like a bad dream.

[–] ReelReviews14 (1125) 16 days ago

Even the modern seasons ignore the "Principal Tamzarian" stuff and pretend it "never happened", so there's no need to worry about that since its already been declared defacto non-canon.

There's still plenty of good plot developments and storylines that happened in season 9 and 10, like Abu getting married in a Hindu wedding ceremony, Lionel Hultz becoming a real estate agent, Homer's middle name turning out to be "Jay", and a lot of iconic guest stars like Stephen Hawking voicing himself.

IMO, the real "point of no return" was when they killed off Maude Flanders in season 11. The "Behind the Music" episode should really be considered as the series finale.

[–] DoctorThirteen (10838) 16 days ago

I always hated that episode!

[–] Burk48917 (11075) 15 days ago

They nullify that themselves, at the end of the episode.

[–] strntz (11056) 16 days ago

The big problem is that there's very little from the early years that would pass in today's more enlightened world - stuff that made The Simpsons so great. In other words, the golden age is gone forever except of course for those early episodes.

But if you somehow get your wish, see if you can also add Blood and Guts Murphy back as well even though he died in Season 6..

[–] liscarkat (16907) 16 days ago

"more enlightened"

Okay. I know you're being facetious.

I quit watching when I couldn't stand Lisa as an "insufferable liberal know-it-all" anymore. If the show could be restored to its early-seasons quality, I'd watch it again. Unfortunately, it ain't ever gonna happen.

[–] strntz (11056) 16 days ago

I didn't have any problem with Lisa being liberal in the early years, but when they stopped being even-handed is when it stops being satire and reaches the insufferable level.

Like Mad Magazine. In the golden years, they'd spoof everyone - libs, cons, every ethnic group, every religious group, rich, poor, young, old, etc. and it was fun because everyone got skewered. Later, they not only targeted only the right exclusively but made also it *mean*.

Getting back to Lisa, I love the episode where she told the young handsome "activist" that she was a vegetarian. He replied with disdain that he was a "level 5 vegan" (he wouldn't eat anything that cast a shadow).. Although I haven't seen any episodes past season 16, I doubt they would pick on vegans or any liberals today.

[–] ReelReviews14 (1125) 16 days ago

Lisa wasn't portrayed as an enlightened liberal voice of reason in the early seasons, she was more of the "good kid" and model student, very polite and well-mannered and brainy... in contrast to the "underachieving and proud of it" and smart aleck troublemaker Bart. Except in the VERY EARLY (season 1) stuff, where Lisa was more of a younger female clone of Bart.

Same thing with a lot of the characters like Ned Flanders. Flanders WAS a devout Christian in the early seasons, but he got on Homer's nerves much more for being a "perfect neighbor" with an idealistic picturesque perfect wife and kids, than in the later seasons when Ned was a judgmental, arrogant, bigoted ULTRA fundamentalist protestant blowhard (which didn't even make sense, since the First Church of Springfield isn't some kind of hotbed of fervent evangelical "Hillsong style" protestants)

Hence I'd make sure any writers for a Simpsons revival try to focus on the way the characters are written around season 2-8, and outright ignore ANYTHING post-season 10. In fact, I'd even make sure they outright contradicted the "events" of the later seasons, to convey to the audience that those seasons are now non-canon.

[–] Sapphirelight (347) 16 days ago

You mean Bleeding Gums Murphy.

[–] spurtle467 (1518) 16 days ago

The Simpsons doesn't need reviving it just needs to be ended. With each new inferior additional series the legacy dies that little bit more. Enough damage has already been done, nothing can change that now. The only thing that can change is how much more damage.