Fox Debuts Irish-Themed Simpsons Episode Across the Pond

[oliverfeng2]

http://www.dvdsetshop.comThe Simpsons are going to Ireland for St Patrick's Day.

An Irish-themed episode of The Simpsons will premiere Tuesday in Ireland and the U.K., marking the first-ever non-American debut of one of the show's episodes, according to Variety. The episode revolves around Homer and Grandpa Simpson as they travel to Ireland to open a pub.

Simpsons producers James L. Brooks and Al Jean, as well as Nancy Cartwright, the voice of Bart, will be in Dublin for the premiere. Stateside, Fox will run a clip from the episode (which airs Sunday) in New York's Times Square all day. Additionally, the network is sending out people in Marge Simpson costumes to bars in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Boston. The Marge lookalikes will hand out codes for Simpsons cell phone wallpaper and ringtones.

This blowout is the latest in Fox's yearlong celebration of the hit cartoon's 20th anniversary.

 

[Captaindemotion]

It wasn't a bad episode. I hardly ever see brand new Simpsons these days and I'm inclined to agree that it is past its best. Still, plenty of laughs though - the general theme of modern Ireland working too hard and taking things too seriously to party any more was pretty well observed. Mind you, it was about 12 months or so out of date, given how many jobs have been lost lately! Best bits were the re-named US companies based in Ireland - Mick O'Soft, etc.

 

[SiorX]

I'm not entirely sure why they aired it over here first, cause it felt to me like most of the Simpson's overseas episodes - firmly aimed at a US market. It was pretty apparent that they did the bare minimum of research (there's a few fairly glaring errors). Most of the jokes were designed to resonate with US stereotypes. Even when they were trying to undermine stereotypes, they're doing it with an eye to the US audience, not for the Irishwho've been rolling their eyes for decades at the chronic inability of television producers across the Atlantic to find an actual Irish person to consult or to voice a character. (I reckon the English and Scottish have much the same problem, and everyone forgets the Welsh.)

I'm not saying that's a bad thing. Local injokes don't travel so well when you're a population of 4m on a small rock in the Atlantic rather than the country which currently controls most of the world's pop culture. It just seems a bit silly to make a thing out of showing it this side of the pond first where nobody's going to appreciate the gesture.

(I quite liked the Bloomsday gag.)

 

[Hermiod]

It wasn't too shabby. It gets points for Colm Meaney anyway.

 

[Captaindemotion]

^ KUDOS also for the 'Once' duo.

 

[Brikar99]

I'm not entirely sure why they aired it over here first, cause it felt to me like most of the Simpson's overseas episodes - firmly aimed at a US market. It was pretty apparent that they did the bare minimum of research (there's a few fairly glaring errors). Most of the jokes were designed to resonate with US stereotypes. Even when they were trying to undermine stereotypes, they're doing it with an eye to the US audience, not for the Irishwho've been rolling their eyes for decades at the chronic inability of television producers across the Atlantic to find an actual Irish person to consult or to voice a character. (I reckon the English and Scottish have much the same problem, and everyone forgets the Welsh.)

I'm not saying that's a bad thing. Local injokes don't travel so well when you're a population of 4m on a small rock in the Atlantic rather than the country which currently controls most of the world's pop culture. It just seems a bit silly to make a thing out of showing it this side of the pond first where nobody's going to appreciate the gesture.

(I quite liked the Bloomsday gag.)

Well they didn't make some kind of exclusive episode for Ireland, they just aired it there first.

 

[Hermiod]

^And since Sky One is available in both the Republic of Ireland and the UK, we saw it here too.

 

[SiorX]

I'm not entirely sure why they aired it over here first, cause it felt to me like most of the Simpson's overseas episodes - firmly aimed at a US market. It was pretty apparent that they did the bare minimum of research (there's a few fairly glaring errors). Most of the jokes were designed to resonate with US stereotypes. Even when they were trying to undermine stereotypes, they're doing it with an eye to the US audience, not for the Irishwho've been rolling their eyes for decades at the chronic inability of television producers across the Atlantic to find an actual Irish person to consult or to voice a character. (I reckon the English and Scottish have much the same problem, and everyone forgets the Welsh.)

I'm not saying that's a bad thing. Local injokes don't travel so well when you're a population of 4m on a small rock in the Atlantic rather than the country which currently controls most of the world's pop culture. It just seems a bit silly to make a thing out of showing it this side of the pond first where nobody's going to appreciate the gesture.

(I quite liked the Bloomsday gag.)

Well they didn't make some kind of exclusive episode for Ireland, they just aired it there first.

That was my point. It wasn't an episode for Ireland, and it wouldn't have made much sense for it to have been, given the target audience. That's just why it seemed to me a bit cracked to make a thing of showing it on Sky first.