TMC
01-13-2021, 07:40 PM
https://screenrant.com/the-simpsons-animated-series-changed-tv-explained/
10
Revolutionized The Family Sitcom Narrative
The family sitcom genre had become a norm for every major American TV studio by the latter half of the 20th century, to the point of becoming a caricature in itself.
The beauty of The Simpsons was that it changed the genre despite using its usual tropes. Like all the other popular family sitcoms of its time, Groening's show also features a typical middle-class family in a generic American town. At the same time, the sheer unpredictability and tonal shifts of the show are what helped it overcome the tropes and give the sitcom an edgier twist with the medium of animation.
9
Politically-Charged Satire
The Simpsons has had its share of polarizing episodes in its long run. At the same time, the show also seemed to mock political spectrums in a straightforward manner without playing it safe.
Some of the episodes were revolutionary in the sense that they involved subject matter one wouldn't wish to air for a comedy show. In 'The Cartridge Family', Homer buys a gun to protect his family, ironically scaring them away. Another episode finds Homer getting his own political talk show. There are many other examples that show how The Simpsons was ahead of its times as today such political satire is common in animated shows like Bojack Horseman.
8
Larger Supporting Cast With Backstories
These days, it's common to see a sole backstory or episode dedicated to minor supporting characters like Mr. Poopy Butthole or Birdperson in Rick & Morty. But way back, animated shows like The Flintstones and Scooby-Doo didn't leave much scope to explore supporting characters other than the main ensemble.
The Simpsons succeeded at setting up a world on its own, with all inhabitants of Springfield getting their own moment to shine. Examples include Ned Flanders and Ralph Wiggum with their own bizarre traits, along with characters like Groundskeeper Willie with iconic quotes like him calling the French 'cheese-eating surrender monkeys'.
7
The Benchmark For Adult Animated Family Sitcoms
While The Simpsons weren't entirely R-rated material, neither was it marketed as a children's show. Adult animation at the time was present with films like Heavy Metal, that relied on graphic violence and sexual content. On the other hand, The Simpsons relied on a mature sense of humor and combined it with animated silliness.
The adult animated sitcom formula has now been reinterpreted in various other shows, with Family Guy, American Dad, and F is For Family being a few examples. However, it's arguably with The Simpsons that the adult animated sitcom subgenre arose in the first place.
6
Creating The Antihero With Questionable Morals
Whether it was intentional or not, Homer Simpson did revolutionize the concept of an antihero protagonist, be it for an animated show or a sitcom. Both Seinfeld and The Simpsons debuted in the same year, starring a lead character that has questionable morals and can be far from perfect.
The sitcoms in the past or animated comedies might show the lead character (more than often male) to engage in immoral behavior but he's forgiven towards every episode's third act, redeeming him of his shortcomings. The Simpsons unabashedly shows Homer punishing his children, being homophobic, and so on. However, nowhere does the show glorify his mannerisms. Dramas and action films may have long used the antihero, but it was a newer concept for the sitcom.
5
The Floating Timeline
One would often wonder how Homer, Marge, Bart, Maggie, and the rest of the ensemble never seem to age. Every show, be it animated or not, ends after a specific time on a note of closure. The protagonist achieves their goal or ends up undergoing a major life event like death or marriage.
It's hard to imagine such a definite end to a show like The Simpsons as it has been making use of a floating timeline. So, generations of viewers might get old but Bart Simpson might just be a school student. The series has been on air since 1989, but every season takes place in the year of its release, making use of the culture and politics of that period of time.
4
Addressing Homophobia
While it has had stereotypical characters like the Indian immigrant Apu and the gay couple Grady and Julio, The Simpsons has still tried making up for its drawbacks with some positive representation beyond the cisgender heterosexual identity.
In 1997, Ellen DeGeneres came out of the closet in Ellen sending shockwaves across the conservative world of American TV. Two months before that, The Simpsons episode Homer's Phobia was noted for addressing general homophobia that exists in American society. The episode featuring the openly-gay filmmaker John Waters received praise for trying to address social stigmas. Of course, in the present-day, more conscious narratives are being written by members of the LGBTQ+ community but The Simpsons still tried to create a difference rather than playing safe.
3
Creating A Cross-Generational Demographic
Cartoons on TV were more than often meant for young viewers until The Simpsons introduced a new cross-generational demographic. The Simspons had enough gags and slapstick humor to impress children while its aforementioned satire and expansive pop culture along with subtle adult jokes caught the fancy of older viewers too.
No animated show could achieve this feat before. The Simpson's legacy can be seen today with several similarly cross-generational teen cartoons like Adventure Time, and Gravity Falls.
2
Postmodernist Take On Culture
These days, quoting or parodying pop culture in shows has become quite mainstream. But The Simpsons played around with pop culture references with a fresh take for its animated medium. British cultural historian Christopher Cook equated the show to the Pop Art moment, adding that The Simpsons is 'one of the very first postmodern TV shows developed for mainstream US TV'.
He also says, 'Someone once defined postmodernism as an "aesthetic of quotations", in other words, it collages material from pre-existing works in unlikely ways. And the ‘glue’ that holds the assemblage together is irony, knowing where the references come from and how they have been replaced. I see a lot of that on The Simpsons.'
1
Lack Of Laugh Track
'90s sitcoms like Seinfeld and FRIENDS continued using background laughter, a classic sitcom element that has definitely not aged well and seems pretty forced in current times. In the real of animation, the Hannah-Barbara classics also resorted to such gags and gimmicks.
The Simpsons was revolutionary in the sense that despite its sitcom tones and narratives, it never resorted to using a laughing track. In this manner, the show clearly heralded an era of smarter animation that left it upon the viewers to figure out what's humorous for them, rather than giving them cues.
10
Revolutionized The Family Sitcom Narrative
The family sitcom genre had become a norm for every major American TV studio by the latter half of the 20th century, to the point of becoming a caricature in itself.
The beauty of The Simpsons was that it changed the genre despite using its usual tropes. Like all the other popular family sitcoms of its time, Groening's show also features a typical middle-class family in a generic American town. At the same time, the sheer unpredictability and tonal shifts of the show are what helped it overcome the tropes and give the sitcom an edgier twist with the medium of animation.
9
Politically-Charged Satire
The Simpsons has had its share of polarizing episodes in its long run. At the same time, the show also seemed to mock political spectrums in a straightforward manner without playing it safe.
Some of the episodes were revolutionary in the sense that they involved subject matter one wouldn't wish to air for a comedy show. In 'The Cartridge Family', Homer buys a gun to protect his family, ironically scaring them away. Another episode finds Homer getting his own political talk show. There are many other examples that show how The Simpsons was ahead of its times as today such political satire is common in animated shows like Bojack Horseman.
8
Larger Supporting Cast With Backstories
These days, it's common to see a sole backstory or episode dedicated to minor supporting characters like Mr. Poopy Butthole or Birdperson in Rick & Morty. But way back, animated shows like The Flintstones and Scooby-Doo didn't leave much scope to explore supporting characters other than the main ensemble.
The Simpsons succeeded at setting up a world on its own, with all inhabitants of Springfield getting their own moment to shine. Examples include Ned Flanders and Ralph Wiggum with their own bizarre traits, along with characters like Groundskeeper Willie with iconic quotes like him calling the French 'cheese-eating surrender monkeys'.
7
The Benchmark For Adult Animated Family Sitcoms
While The Simpsons weren't entirely R-rated material, neither was it marketed as a children's show. Adult animation at the time was present with films like Heavy Metal, that relied on graphic violence and sexual content. On the other hand, The Simpsons relied on a mature sense of humor and combined it with animated silliness.
The adult animated sitcom formula has now been reinterpreted in various other shows, with Family Guy, American Dad, and F is For Family being a few examples. However, it's arguably with The Simpsons that the adult animated sitcom subgenre arose in the first place.
6
Creating The Antihero With Questionable Morals
Whether it was intentional or not, Homer Simpson did revolutionize the concept of an antihero protagonist, be it for an animated show or a sitcom. Both Seinfeld and The Simpsons debuted in the same year, starring a lead character that has questionable morals and can be far from perfect.
The sitcoms in the past or animated comedies might show the lead character (more than often male) to engage in immoral behavior but he's forgiven towards every episode's third act, redeeming him of his shortcomings. The Simpsons unabashedly shows Homer punishing his children, being homophobic, and so on. However, nowhere does the show glorify his mannerisms. Dramas and action films may have long used the antihero, but it was a newer concept for the sitcom.
5
The Floating Timeline
One would often wonder how Homer, Marge, Bart, Maggie, and the rest of the ensemble never seem to age. Every show, be it animated or not, ends after a specific time on a note of closure. The protagonist achieves their goal or ends up undergoing a major life event like death or marriage.
It's hard to imagine such a definite end to a show like The Simpsons as it has been making use of a floating timeline. So, generations of viewers might get old but Bart Simpson might just be a school student. The series has been on air since 1989, but every season takes place in the year of its release, making use of the culture and politics of that period of time.
4
Addressing Homophobia
While it has had stereotypical characters like the Indian immigrant Apu and the gay couple Grady and Julio, The Simpsons has still tried making up for its drawbacks with some positive representation beyond the cisgender heterosexual identity.
In 1997, Ellen DeGeneres came out of the closet in Ellen sending shockwaves across the conservative world of American TV. Two months before that, The Simpsons episode Homer's Phobia was noted for addressing general homophobia that exists in American society. The episode featuring the openly-gay filmmaker John Waters received praise for trying to address social stigmas. Of course, in the present-day, more conscious narratives are being written by members of the LGBTQ+ community but The Simpsons still tried to create a difference rather than playing safe.
3
Creating A Cross-Generational Demographic
Cartoons on TV were more than often meant for young viewers until The Simpsons introduced a new cross-generational demographic. The Simspons had enough gags and slapstick humor to impress children while its aforementioned satire and expansive pop culture along with subtle adult jokes caught the fancy of older viewers too.
No animated show could achieve this feat before. The Simpson's legacy can be seen today with several similarly cross-generational teen cartoons like Adventure Time, and Gravity Falls.
2
Postmodernist Take On Culture
These days, quoting or parodying pop culture in shows has become quite mainstream. But The Simpsons played around with pop culture references with a fresh take for its animated medium. British cultural historian Christopher Cook equated the show to the Pop Art moment, adding that The Simpsons is 'one of the very first postmodern TV shows developed for mainstream US TV'.
He also says, 'Someone once defined postmodernism as an "aesthetic of quotations", in other words, it collages material from pre-existing works in unlikely ways. And the ‘glue’ that holds the assemblage together is irony, knowing where the references come from and how they have been replaced. I see a lot of that on The Simpsons.'
1
Lack Of Laugh Track
'90s sitcoms like Seinfeld and FRIENDS continued using background laughter, a classic sitcom element that has definitely not aged well and seems pretty forced in current times. In the real of animation, the Hannah-Barbara classics also resorted to such gags and gimmicks.
The Simpsons was revolutionary in the sense that despite its sitcom tones and narratives, it never resorted to using a laughing track. In this manner, the show clearly heralded an era of smarter animation that left it upon the viewers to figure out what's humorous for them, rather than giving them cues.