The Simpsons as philosophy

Thanks to Bethany for pointing me to this interesting article about the Simpsons!

The Simpsons as philosophy

I've written before regarding my enjoyment of the Simpsons. I think they do a better job of making comment about society than almost any other television show in recent memory. There is much to like in this show. I often wonder why I don't watch it when it is broadcast more faithfully - which means, really, ever. I think that because there is no conherant story line as in Alias or West Wing I am not afraid of missing an episode - that means that I have no problem missing a whole lot of episodes - I know I can always catch them on DVD. And I have a lot of them on DVD, since I've already got seven seasons worth! Ironically, the very thing that keeps many people from watching episodic television - the idea that they can't jump into the middle of the story - is what keeps me watching.

Anyway, the article makes some interesting points and uses what is perhaps my all-time favorite episode to do it, "Homer the Heretic."

The Simpsons Seventh Season DVD

Reviewing a particular season of the Simpsons is tricky since ones enjoyment of the Simpsons is generally in two units – you either like them in general or you particularly like certain episodes. So the question of how a particular season is comes down to a few key episodes. In that regard, my favorite season is still probably Season 4 – any season with “Homer the Heretic” in it is a good one. So, are there any great episodes in Season 7? Oh yes.

• First of all, Paul and Linda McCartney show up in the “Lisa the Vegetarian” and, while it’s a bit preachy, I did like that they say that they visit Apu’s garden whenever they’re in Springfield.
• “Two Bad Neighbors,” an episode in which Former President George H. W. Bush moves in across the street to the Simpsons is lots and lots of fun. Homer and George get into a real feud.
• My favorite of the season, however, is “Homerpalooza” – not because it’s such a fabulous episode, but because the kids think their dad is so incredibly square when he explains all about old rock bands, who they were and who played with whom when old rock music comes on the car radio. It’s so much like me it’s scary. Of course, I never joined a rock tour and caught cannon balls in my stomach so it’s not entirely based on my life – but its close.

There are few clunkers in this season. Most of the episodes fit into the “another good Simpsons episode" category. Basically, if you like the show, there’s not reason not to like Season 7 – especially when you can buy it in a hollowed out head.

A review of 'The Gospel According to the Simpsons' by Mark Pinsky

When I was at the APCE conference in St Louis I looked over the Cokesbury books table and picked up a few things, one of which was The Gospel According to the Simpsons by Mark Pinsky. I picked up some other more serious books too but this is the one I read first. I have been watching the Simpsons on DVD for about two and a half years now (see my previous post about them) and presently I’m working my way through season 7. I find the treatment of faith to be remarkably even-handed on this show. The things about evangelical Christianity that the Simpsons mocks often deserve mockery. They go after the trappings of our faith rather than our faith itself. Do they cross the line sometimes? Yes, they do. But more often, I find myself reflecting on the critique in a way that makes me think more deeply about what the church is doing to people that we ought not do.

I found myself wondering, though, if there was a whole books worth of stuff about the spiritual side of the Simpsons. Once I got about a third of the way into this book I was pretty convinced that this book, at least, wasn’t it. Overall, my biggest problem with this book is that there’s too much reporting and not enough analysis. (The author is a writer for the Orlando Sentinel so maybe that’s what happens when a reporter writes a book.) This especially comes through in the first half of the book when Pinsky covers a number of the Simpson characters one at a time. Each chapter is mostly just a detailed review of the plots of some of the key episodes with too much detail. I found Pinsky’s discussion of Apu and Hinduism to be actually more helpful than his discussion of any of the Christian characters.

I was looking forward to the last chapter, called “conclusion,” with the hopes that I would finally get some real analysis but, alas, even that chapter was mostly a set of quotes – some even from my colleagues, Quentin Schultz and Bill Romanowski. I did find one quote, from Harry Shearer, the voice of many characters on the show, enlightening. Shearer suggests that one reason for the rich religious variety on the show is because the show is animated and the producers can have a much larger set of supporting characters than a typical situation comedy. As I thought about this I realized that the huge number of recurring characters in the Simpsons is, indeed, one of the things that makes the show special. You couldn’t have that many characters in a show with live people in the parts – no one would be willing to pay that many people to have them at their disposal. Overall, though, I ended the book with few insights that I hadn’t already thought myself from just watching the show.

The Simpsons

As long as I’m saying nice things about television, let me say some nice things about the Simpsons. I was never much of a Simpsons watcher until this year. A couple of years ago I was listening to a lot of Phish and heard via the internet that Phish was going to be on an episode of the Simpsons so I watched it. It was funny. Really funny. I realized then that I’d been missing out on some pretty good stuff. Lot’s of social comment, movie and television references and some pretty on-target lampoons of many things we hold dear.

This past summer, in preparation for a drive to Denver I bought a portable DVD player so “the kids could watch in the car” and also the first two seasons of The Simpsons for “the same reason.” And that’s when I really got hooked. Hooked enough on the crystal clear quality and commentaries, in fact, that I still don’t watch the Simpsons when they’re broadcast. I just can’t deal with commercials.

So anyway, now I’m part way through Season Five (yeah – I’ve gone a little overboard) and I have decided to list some of my favorite episodes:

1. Life on the Fast Lane – Marge Takes up Bowling – Season 1
2. The Way We Was – How Homer and Marge met – Season 2
3. Homer the Heretic – Homer skips church and meets God – my all time favorite – season 4
4. Homer's Barbershop Quartet – not a fabulous episode but it’s really about the Beatles and it features George Harrison – season 5
5. One Fish, Two Fish, Blowfish, Blue Fish – Homer eats poison food and has 24 hours to live. – Season 2
6. Bart vs. Thanksgiving – features my all-time favorite line from Marge’s mother: “I have laryngitis. It hurts to talk. So I'll just say one thing... You never do anything right.” – Season 2
7. Homer Loves Flanders - Ned and Homer become best friends. Includes many great lines like when Homer yells "Hey, Flanders, over here! I got us some kick-ass seats." The funny part is that they're IN CHURCH. - Season 5