Why isn't The Simpsons Good Anymore?

The Simpsons is one of the greatest television shows of all time, anyone who says otherwise is just kidding themselves. Not only is it the perfect dysfunctional family on television but the writing and characters are for the most part timeless. But I like many people think the same thing, The Simpsons really isn't what it used to be. Now why is that? I mean I'll watch a brand new episode from time to time and it'll get some chuckles out of me, hell every so often they'll having me laughing out loud. So really it's not like the show has plummeted to a shocking degree, it's just slowly and slowly been getting weaker with every passing season, but why is that?

Well I watched some new episodes and noticed several big changes to the show that could be reasons why people don't think it's as good as it used to be, or at least, why I don't think it's as good as it used to be.

1. They changed the score.

I know this might seem like a very small thing but the score is a very large part of an identity with any product, including TV Shows. We all know Doctor Who's classical yet alien music, or Seinfeld's funky beats inbetween transitions. The Simpsons also had classic music like that, a lot of wind instruments. When you hear that score you instantly connect it to The Simpsons, and they've changed it. This gives the show a completely different vibe and honestly, it's not nearly as welcoming or as memorable. The Simpsons already had an identity, and we fell in love with it, changing the backbone of that identity...that's not my Simpsons anymore.

2. The show has lost its heart

In the classic Simpsons, you get the feeling that this family, while dysfunctional, they still loved each other, and would always be there for each other, but these days, they don't even behave like classic Simpsons, they feel like impersonations of the classic Simpsons. Not to mention, they've just become so much more unlikeable these days, now that was kind of the thing in the show, they were technically always unlikeable (I mean if you knew Homer Simpson in real life you'd wanna strangle that guy). But there was always that sense of purpose behind their fights and their lies, you knew at the end of the day, they were a family. Today's show, while I'll admit do attempt to give it heart from time to time, it never feels genuine because there is no real struggle to prove that they care for each other, it's one thing to say you love someone, it's another to actually show it, and they just don't show it.

3. Too many pop-culture references!

Now I get it, The Simpsons has always references pop-culture, but the thing about the classic Simpsons is they were smart with their references, they would poke fun at things that they knew would stand the test of time, but today's Simpsons make too many references to things that will be dated 20 years down the line. The best example of this is in the Treehouse of Horrors' episodes, the classic Simpsons would make a parody of The Twilight Zone while new Simpsons parodies Twilight. Now seeing as The Twilight Zone is still watched & talked about today, nearly 60 years since it first started while the other is hated & forgotten by anyone over the age of 16, in fact making fun of Twilight now in 2014 is already considered beating a dead horse. And when referencing the Twilight Zone, you don't even need to have seen it in order to get the jokes, but with Twilight, you need to already know why it's stupid in order to find it funny. And while yeah, certain celebrity cameos in classic Simpsons episodes are dated, but the jokes and stories still work even if you don't know who the celebrity is, nowadays they'll make so many references to a celebrity's career that if you don't know them then you don't get half the jokes. In fact in one episode they actually had Justin Bieber appear for literally two words and they even gave a warning message saying Justin Bieber is going to be appearing in the next scene, yeah, how many people are going to understand that joke in 20 years?

And on top of that, the classic Simpsons always had this timeless feel to them, and this is proven by the fact that the show is 26 years old and a lot of the classic Simpsons is still hilarious to this day. But today's Simpsons focus more on spoofing modern day society and making pop culture references, everyone has an iPod and sees movies in 3D and these are all things that are going to be dated 20 years from now, unlike The Simpsons 20 years ago which is still funny and still makes sense today.

I think I've made my point, now go and enjoy your incredibly awesome 10-12 season long show that is one of the greatest television shows of all time.

-Danny