The Tipping Point Highlights Everything Wrong With Modern Simpsons

I might name myself a Simpsons fan, however as of late a extra correct time period could be ‘defender’. Whereas I agree with the remainder of the world that The Golden Age was higher than the trendy period (and presumably the best few seasons of tv to ever exist), it isn’t so easy to say that The Simpsons sucks as of late. It was wonderful (3-9), then it obtained steadily worse (10-17), then it improved (18-23), then it crash-landed (24-31), and now it’s recovering (32-35). However it’s a wavering restoration, with the final three seasons being amongst the present’s most inconsistent, culminating in final weekend’s The Tipping Level, a contender for the worst episode the present has ever seen.

Many will inform you that Lisa Goes Gaga is the present’s worst episode, however I feel the hate for that is overblown – as an alternative, it is The Musk Who Fell To Earth, a cloyingly sycophantic episode about how nice Elon Musk is. It was unhealthy on the time of airing, when Musk was simply the cool memebro billionaire, and has aged extraordinarily poorly when contemplating Musk’s present public persona. I feel I’ll proceed to decry The Musk because the worst episode ever, however it shares loads of similarities with The Tipping Level that spotlight the bottom lows of The Simpsons.

The Simpsons Brings Again Planet Of The Bass

The Tipping Level has a good sufficient premise, one that matches with the overall timelessness of the present that makes it nice, however with some trendy touches which have grow to be its trademark previous season 25 or so. Homer is sick of America’s tipping tradition, notably the obnoxious iPads swivelled in your face at each retailer you go to, with ever growing ‘instructed’ percentages. At a restaurant the place a service cost is already added, Homer turns into enraged at a field for extra gratuity and writes ‘$1 okay’, which is mistaken for ‘$10K’.

Ever the coward in these conditions, and unwilling to stroll again his new discovered repute for generosity, Homer agrees to pay the ten grand and retains tipping round city, finally getting stranded in Little Europe the place tipping is forbidden. Right here, he encounters Kyle Gordon and Ms. Biljana Electronica, who you may keep in mind from final 12 months’s viral hit Planet of the Bass. Otherwise you may not, because the world moved on awfully rapidly.

What lots of people do not realise is Kyle Gordon is a comic who commonly makes these songs as a wide range of completely different characters. He has Irish consuming songs, ’90s country-western feminist anthems, ballads of emo anguish, and parodies of the likes of Olivia Rodrigo. He is obtained a complete album out, he does stand-up, and he is a author for The Tonight Present. Kyle Gordon cameoing on the present is a good concept. However moderately than utilise his abilities, there was a nonsensical parody of Planet of the Bass – already a parody tune – about tipping, that neither rhymed nor was humorous, and went on for roughly the identical time because the legendary Planet of the Apes musical. Why did this occur?

The Simpsons Is Finest When It is Timeless

I typically favor when The Simpsons stays actually timeless, however perceive that 35 seasons in, and with a totally completely different set of writers than the times of season eight, issues will probably be completely different. When it contains issues like Alexa or esports or TikTok, it is talking to the trendy American household the identical means having two automobiles, one working dad or mum, and going to church on Sundays mirrored the early ’90s. However this was an extremely short-lived spoof document that was fortunate it trended for a few weeks. Why was it added to an episode that may take a 12 months to prepare when it was clear Planet of the Bass wouldn’t simply be stale, however lengthy forgotten about by then?

We have seen this many occasions with The Simpsons, particularly because it now makes use of the Treehouse episodes for film parodies nearly completely. It tries to have its finger on the heart beat, however it finally ends up months behind the curve, and months is being beneficiant. It has gone from the cool older brother to the loser uncle who simply thinks he is cool. South Park has a lot shorter manufacturing cycles and so could be far more reactive to the information, however The Simpsons has been doing it this fashion for 35 years. Certainly it has discovered by now what works.

I do not assume The Tipping Level is the worst episode of The Simpsons ever, although it’s the worst episode of what had been probably the most regular season of the 30s (Taika Waititi however) period up to now. However different current unhealthy episodes going again to season 34 are simply poor ideas, not that humorous, too sluggish, out of character, or any mixture thereof. That is simply common tv. The Tipping Level looks like an episode from the late 20s seasons, with weird cameos and makes an attempt to latch on to traits lengthy since lifeless that render the entire concept a waste of time. The season finale is subsequent week, and one factor is evident – issues can solely get higher.

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