South Park has learned the same hard lesson as The Simpsons

[Danja]

When The Simpsons first hit television screens in 1989, it was clear who the star of the show was. The family(?) animation placed pineapple-headed Bart at the centre of its early episodes, and it didn’t take long for catchphrases like "Don’t have a cow, man" and “Eat my shorts!” to ingrain themselves in the minds of viewers.

But after the third season, then-writer Conan O'Brien presumably grew tired of repeating the same old tropes and basing the majority of the episodes around the four-fingered alternative to Dennis the Menace, because he then led the charge to shift the show's focus from Bart to Homer, increasing the range of social scenarios and activities from the schoolyard to the wider adult world.

After all, there’s only so many times a reasonable person can laugh at Bart saying "¡Ay, caramba!".

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/22-seasons-south-park-learned-120000130.html

 

[bigdaddy]

I wonder if I can get a job at Yahoo writing garbage. South Park is a satire, for 20+ years they did satire and whatever character best delivered it worked. The Simpsons is a family sitcom that devolved Homer into one of the stupidest humans ever. There is no comparing the satirical characters from South Park to Homer does increasingly stupid shit.

The modern episodes I've enjoyed of the Simpsons Homer is barely in because he's that useless and awful character.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

Frankly, I think the obsessive focus on Randy Marsh has been a little annoying this season.

The original formula of the first two seasons got tired fast, that's why season 2 is the worst South Park season. They fixed it in season 3.

And I agree, the worst era of the Simpsons is when it was essentially the "Homer Falldown Show".

 

[The Borgified Corpse]

South Park is kind of like a psycho-analysis of American culture, with Stan & Kyle as the rational Super-ego, Cartman as the raging Id, and the adults (often personified by Randy) as the easily manipulated Ego.

 

[StarMan]

Frankly, I think the obsessive focus on Randy Marsh has been a little annoying this season.

The original formula of the first two seasons got tired fast, that's why season 2 is the worst South Park season. They fixed it in season 3.

And I agree, the worst era of the Simpsons is when it was essentially the "Homer Falldown Show".

I dunno. I felt a bit short changed on Randy the last couple of seasons. Anyway it looks like we're finally laying off that sweet Tegridy after the last episode.

As for The Simpsons... I think I stopped watching about 15 years ago. Once in a blue moon I've caught a new episode and nothing I've seen has given me any encouragement to start watching again.

 

[Danny99]

I haven't watched new Simpsons on a weekly basis since I graduated high school in 2005 and when I do see a new episode on re-run, it lacks the smart humour of the good ol' days.

Their biggest downfall was changing Homer from a regular, if slightly less intelligent working slob to a moron. The episode plot became more and more silly and shoehorning in celebrity guests.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

I catch new Simpsons once or twice a year and someone it's nearly always an episode I've already seen.

Randy is definitely the best adult character, but that doesn't mean you want to see him be crazy in the same way every episode.

 

[StarMan]

^I'd have to agree. My favorite Randy episodes are from before they had an overarching story line each season... Bloody Mary, A NIghtmare on Facetime, More Crap and Creme Fraiche.

Although the Lorde story line has to be up there with any of the stand alones, if only for that infamous on-stage incident...

 

[The Borgified Corpse]

As for The Simpsons... I think I stopped watching about 15 years ago. Once in a blue moon I've caught a new episode and nothing I've seen has given me any encouragement to start watching again.

Yeah. I think I stopped watching around Season 12 and have never seen any cause to regret it. I recall an article somewhere saying that Mel Gibson's remake of Mr. Smith Goes to Washington was the last great Simpsons episode and I think that's probably true.

"Why did Mr. Smith kill everybody?"
"It was symbolism! He was mad!"

"I blame the internet. And the return of swing music." (I use that line to explain absolutely everything in every context!)

 

[JirinPanthosa]

That’s one episode I thought was awful, a combination of the Simpsons worst “Homer fall down” and “Celeb name tossing” tendencies, but there’s one I think is great a few years after.

One episode where the school gets separated by gender and Lisa poses as a boy because the teachers make the girls classes all about feelings and don’t challenge them.

I think that was S18.