YVAN EHT NIOJ!

Is there a show thats turned from greatness to garbage to the extent that the Simpsons has/did

As in, one of the funniest shows of all time for the first 8ish seasons.....to an absolute *******ization of its former self?

I like to pretend the show went off the air in 1998 or so, but own every DVD season up to then and DVR any episodes from that era.

This marathon will very quickly remind everyone in the coming days how far it fell.

My eyes! It's like looking into the Ark of the Covenant!

That's because Futurama came out in 99.

I still watch the Simpsons. It's not the comedy gold it once was for sure, but I still enjoy it.

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Is there a show thats turned from greatness to garbage to the extent that the Simpsons has/did

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It is still a good show, the problem is that it used to be an incredible show, and nothing can really compare to the classic or golden years, whatever you want to call them.

The more recent seasons also don't have the nostalgia bonus points. As someone who has been watching them since they were shorts on Tracey Ullman, I can remember where I was when all those classic episodes aired, and even the commercials for them. That adds a lot to the experience for me.

The impact of those Golden Years on tv cannot be stated enough. One example is Parks and Rec. Parks reminds me so much of the Simpsons in the way that they build up the city and secondary characters. Pawnee is it's own character just like Springfield. It's been stated on this thread how much heart those old episodes had (kinda like Parks). While the show still has moments and glimpses of greatness, but there were SEASONS of greatness.

Hopefully the writers are watching the marathon and notice ways to make it better. Following them on Twitter has been a blast this past week. The background stories are a lot of fun.

Great comparison. You could say Seinfeld as well.

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Great comparison. You could say Seinfeld as well.

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Parks reminds me so much of the Simpsons in the way that they build up the city and secondary characters. Pawnee is it's own character just like Springfield.

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This, to me is the brilliance of Greg Daniels, who along with running parks and the office, and writing for the Simpsons, and Seinfeld, also ran King of the Hill, a show that also created a full world that really drew viewers in. (To me, Parks and Rec feels like a live action King of the Hill)

This weekend, I always got giddy when I saw Greg Daniels name pop up during the marathon. And the writers that work for him end up doing great work: BJ Novak, Mindy Kaling, Dan Goor just to name a few.

[This message has been edited by TajMaballer (edited 8/27/2014 1:37p).]

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Parks reminds me so much of the Simpsons in the way that they build up the city and secondary characters. Pawnee is it's own character just like Springfield.

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Shelbyville and Eagleton also both have a similar feel to them.

That's probably why they beat them in football nearly half the time.

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YVAN EHT NIOJ!

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I flipped on FXX the other night to see which one was on. I see Bart with a headset mic and yelled Join the Navy like an idiot.

Dr. Hirscbach is on the current treehouse of horror episode. Did not know that happened.

Current as in aired on 8/27/14 at 9:30p central.

Sympathy bump?

*shrug*

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Sympathy bump?

*shrug*

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Looks like it's in the heart of the down years.

Heroes went from greatness to garbage in one season.

I'd like to see the ratings for the marathon. I bet there's a downward spike steeper than the Springfield gorge

Someone up above posted that the decline coincides with the start of Futurama. Don't know if that's the case or not, but it might explain some of it.

It's damn hard to be funny and fresh for 20+ years. It's hard to do for 5. The Simpsons has it a little easier because it's not relying on cute kids that will grow up to be ugly, awkward teens.

But that's a disadvantage, too. They have handled that aspect by showing glimpses of the future (Lisa's Wedding, etc.).

The extent to which the quality of this show dropped off and how quickly it dropped off is really something though.

I think I had 81 stopping somewhere around 2000.

I wish Phil Hartman was still around. Troy McClure and Lionel Hutz were great characters that were always a part of my favorite bits.

I stopped watching the show regularly around season 10 but have had the Simpsons on throughout the day while doing chores and have found that there are still some decent episodes to be found. The food blog episode was great.

I quit watching it in 1998.

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I quit watching it in 1998.

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Yep

A little icon just popped up. Apparently this marathon has set the Guinness record for world's longest uninterrupted airing of a TV program.

Watched a few today. The Christmas Episode where they take in borders had me laughing.

Homer: they were the suckiest bunch of sucks that ever sucked.

Marge: HOMER!

Homer: gotta go my damn wiener kids are listening.

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I'd like to see the ratings for the marathon. I bet there's a downward spike steeper than the Springfield gorge

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The NYTimes had a piece on them today. It was a ratings blockbuster and was apparently actually pretty consistent.

Did they show the movie, too?

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Did they show the movie, too?

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Yup! Aired between seasons 18 and 19 (when it was released)