French for Grapefruit

This is a hard Things I Like to write for two reasons.

1. I’ve been watching The Simpsons for more then 3/4th’s of my life, and for me at least, it is challenging to explain why I like something that has been a staple of my pop culture diet since I was nine. It’s like trying to explain why I like sandwich’s, or liquids.
2. What can I say that hasn’t already been said by someone else?

Look, we all know the show is brilliant. Hell, it’s probably one of the best ever. I mean, how many other shows that you grew up with have entire books, scholarly books, written about them? I could tell you how great the show is, but you probably already know. I could tell you why it’s so great, but you’d probably already know that to.

I could also tell you why I worship this show, but only on a very superficial level i.e. my favourite gags, jokes, parodies and satires. My top ten episodes. My favourite Halloween episode. My favourite Bart/Lisa/Marge/Maggie/Homer episode. My favourite extended cast episode. My Simpsons family favourite member. My favourite extended cast member.

But you’ve heard that before, from TV Critics and friends alike. You’ve probably had entire conversations with your friends made up entirely of Simpsons quotes. You know why you love the show, so what can I really tell you about it? What insight can I really offer?

All I can offer is this: The Simpsons has been my gateway into, well, everything since I came of age in the mid 90’s. It had probably exposed me as much… stuff… as anything else in my life has. The show is so far reaching, so expansive in what it mines for material, that is has practically been an education tool in and of itself.

Is there another show on television, especially another show who’s core audience was teens and young adults, that would make passing reference to the Forty-Seven Ronin and make it so funny that you’d want to find out what they were talking about? Is there another comedy that can make references to Ayn Rand and Hitchcock while parodying The Great Escape, The Birds & A Street Car Named Desire in the same episode and still make it funny to 13 year old me while exposing me to idea’s, people and art I had no idea existed?

Now, I know plenty of folks who’d probably say that it’s pretty damn sad a television show has been so influential on my life, but I challenge those people to look at the show seriously, not just as a cartoon or a simply comedy, but as something more. As a cultural institution; as something valuable, as something we can learn all kinds of things from.

Anyhow, that’s about the only original thought I had as to why I love the Simpsons.

And what the hell, here’s my all time top 10 episode list:

1. Marge vs. the Monorail
2. Cape Feare
3. You Only Move Twice
4. Deep Space Homer
5. Homer’s Barbershop Quartet
6. Whacking Day
7. Two Dozen and One Greyhounds
8. The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show
9. Homer Goes to College
10. Lisa’s Substitute

So, Homer and Lisa are probably my favourite characters, if you couldn’t already tell.

Just to mention, that list is nearly impossible to make. There are so many honourable mentions it’s kind of insane. If I’d wanted to I really could have made the entire fifth season a favourite. It’s just that good.

Later Skaters,
~Pamplemousse~
(Must Kill Moe! Weeeeeeee)