The Satirist's Dilemma: Why “The Simpsons” Matters

When it comes to cultural influence few can say they’ve altered the United States quite like Matt Groening.  Creator of a four-decade long show that first premiered as interstitials on “The Tracey Ullman” show in 1987 and somehow, through luck and timing became the longest running animated series, longest running sitcom and longest running primetime show in television history. And that’s not a good thing.

I contend “The Simpsons” longevity has done considerable damage to multiple generations and to the show itself, despite a few years of absolutely genius writing.  It has all gone on about 30 years and 500 episodes too long. The series can no longer be consider great. It’s modus operandi no longer irony. And the public has embraced some truly deleterious falsehoods about our world, and the four fingered yellow people are to blame.

And for a brief seven years.  I participated.

I never wrote for the show but did lend some witty copy to board games and the occasional talking toy. I orchestrated the production of acres of plastic and cardboard that ultimately ended up in landfills I assume.  I interacted with all five of the principal voice actors more than once, sat in on table reads, went to premiere parties at the House of Blues, but mostly I absorbed seasons one through nine by wrote.  And I did all from in Nakatomi Plaza, Century City.

The Simpsons took the lower middle class American family, dialed up the supporting cast with stereotypes and used this precept as a vehicle for social and political commentary. And it was the place for counter-culture treatise and poking the establishment with a stick.  Until the show, its crew and its message became the establishment.

The Simpsons tripled down on the notion of the slovenly dad who is to be disrespected.  Our country went from “Father Knows Best” to Homer knows least.  And while I’m aware of the “Honeymooners” and Fred Flintstone, no one in television has had the staying power of Homer. The middle class suburban American dad is the glue that holds this very fragile society together.  Denigrate him and you can witness the fomenting nihilism that surrounds us. Millions of depressed single women are pining “where did all the men go?”  Now you know.

We know of Hank Azaria’s mea culpa moment about performing the voices of Indian American Apu Nahasapeemapetilon and black co-wroker Carl, when he himself is not. The nerve of an actor pretending, how dare he.  His white guilt shining like protection money to the mob but not enough for him to return the tens of millions he made prior to his spiritual awakening.  To my knowledge he accepted no such penitence for the stereotyping of the fat white police officer in Chief Wiggum, nor did Dan Castellaneta the Scottish Groundskeeper Willie. These antics used to be mocked by the show, now they are the show.

I also credit the Simpsons for filling a generation, that’s thirty years, worth of Americans who think nuclear power is something to be despised.  As of this posting, it is the cleanest, most efficient, most environmentally-friendly source of reliable energy that humans are aware.   But “The Simpsons” perpetuated the lie that it is a scourge on society, on municipalities and on the Earth.  It is none of those things.  And as we force more of society to electric everything and close the best source of power that we know, one can only say – thanks Simpsons.

Because an animated show isn’t subject to the same visual aging that other shows’ actors endure, it was able to slip far beyond its usefulness.  “Breaking Bad”, “Seinfeld”, “The X-Files” all knew when to stop.  “The Simpsons” is like the all-star athlete who keeps playing into his 50s.  In the law of averages, “The Simpsons” has been bad far longer than it’s been good.  If it had stopped around seasons 9 or 10, it would be considered one of the greats.  Now, it’s just institution.  No longer magical, just there on Sunday nights like a blue haired discount at the Golden Corral.

A lesson in life.  Wise men know their limitations.  If they don’t, they become the very thing they used to despise. A stereotype, a cliché, a company man, white bread.

Instead of one flawless decade of D’oh, they opted for four decades of $dough$.  How’s that for anti-corporate counterculture?