Season 17 Information

**Cartoonnetwork** · 03-27-2006, 01:37 PM

Bonfire of the manatees Unseen
Millhouse of Sand and fog C+
The Girl who slept too little B
THOH XVI C+
Marge's Son Poisoning B+
See Homer Run C-
The Italian Bob B-
Christmas Stories B+/A-
Homer's Paternity Coot C+
D'ohwhere B
My Fair Laddy A-
The Seemingly Neverending Story A-/A
Bart Has Two Mommies-I haven't watched the ending yet, but probably B-

Well, it certainly has had some real duds and bad decisions, and almost any episode has a seriously overlong gag (if not three like D'Ohwhere) but there are two things that they are getting increasingly better: animation and characterizations (well, except Bart's). I actually think Road To D'Ohwhere (even with the overlong gags), TSNS and My Fair Laddy were all pretty good ( the last one is in fact better every time you rewatch it, I would kinda like the Homer's subplot to go somewhere, though, cause it was pretty funny but it hasn't got a story). I also liked the Xmas Special, it was certainly better than the random three story episode. I don't know what to think about The Girl Who Slept Too Little, I also think it had a weird structure. And Marge's Son Poisoning could have been very good with a better characterization of Bart.

Paternity Coot I found it to be a total boredom of an episode and a pretty pointless one, while See Homer Run was cringeworthy pretty often, though a little more entertaining for some reason. Last Of The Red Hot Mamas was tolerable but it seemed a little half-assed, as if they could have done something much better with the same ideas.

I hate the decisions of giving Bob a family (not so much the decission but the way the family is portrayed) and Milhouse's parents getting back together (I hate that, Jean should have known this was one of the good changes in the series). However I don't think those two episodes were so bad on themselves. Italian Bob had a good amount of lol moments imo and Milhouse Of Sad And Fod I didn't find it so bad on itself, just a tad forgettable and a little boring (but not as much as the two last acts of Paternity Coot, which was really half-assed for me, there were some good concepts but it needed a lot of rewrites).

Overall mixed feelings. Season 16 had a more regular quality and it seemed like they were going in the right direction. This season is pretty mixed but the best three episodes or so are among the nearest to season 8 quality the show has produced under Jean's direction (I would repeat I include aspects like animation and characterization of secondaries, like Mr. Burns). Another thing I find curious is the style and premises of this season reminds me more of the Oakley and Weinstein tone (experimental episodes, development of a secondary, family conflicts) than the other Jean seasons, which were more reminiscent of Jean and Reiss style during season 4 (I'm talking about styles, not quality). I kind of missed the Mirkin-style touch currently, cause they can't manage to do episodes of that kind today.

One last criticism would be that there are some gags that doesn't quite fit. For example in My Fair Laddy If find it to have a very good subtle/gentle feeling overall but things like the change of sex mentioned in the beginning or even the Agness Skinner's gag (which was anyway good for a chuckle) seem to be kind of cheap sexual jokes. "Dream On bitch" in TSNES seems cheap use of curses. Smither's desire of changing sex in Road To D'ohwhere...and some overlong gags. Things like those substracts from the gentle humor and good characterization the staff is achieving at some moments and reminds me more of shows like Family Guy and South Park. I'm not a priest, I don't mind some curses or sexual jokes, but it has to be a good reason for them. I wonder wether the staff doesn't notice how those little details affect to the general feeling of the episode or they notice but just don't care, but I would prefer a couple of jokes less if the jokes are going to be of that kind.

**DotheBartman** · 03-27-2006, 05:30 PM

I've been kinder than a lot of people to this season, but I'd have to admit there are some emerging problems, and that the show seems to be slipping overall compared with 15 and 16.

At this point, I actually find that the saving grace has probably been an overall better humor quality. Yes, there are dud jokes, and the frequent gags that go on too long are annoying, but I'm finding that I'm groaning a lot less in general. In season 14 there could be several huge groans each episode, even episodes I otherwise liked.

Buuuut, the storytelling is getting gradually worse, and as Scully said it seems like it's getting harder to even tell what the episodes are trying to accomplish these days. They're very strangely structured sometimes, with lots of episodes where there's supposed to be some emotional arc but nothing is actually developed at all, and often plot points seem to just "happen" as opposed to there being any real logic or buildup. It's a weird middle ground where the actual plot points sort of make sense (usually), but still come out of nowhere and just don't fit with the rest of the episode. As soon as the Cheery Red Tomatoes get into their heist plan, for instance, Marge's storyline about wanting acceptance and friends is dropped entirely.

As well, I'm noticing more and more plotlines lately that just sound sort of bad from the get go. Sometimes they seem to get lucky and the episode will be funny enough to overcome this ("Bart Has Two Mommies"), but ultimately I'm still left scratching my head as to why they were initially greenlit. Episodes like "The Italian Bob", "Homer's Paternity Coot", and the coming "Million Dollar Abie" don't seem like they would have ever been greenlit just a couple years ago even. And we're not talking episodes that are fresh and innovative even, but rather regressions...plots that are just poorly structured and planned, and sometimes retreat into the most base and annoying of tv cliches (Someone finds out their real father is someone else, characters go on a reality show and it causes conflict, someome goes into a coma).

All that said, I'm still enjoying the show, apparently moreso than some people. I think it has some problems to fix, but I do still enjoy it, and I don't expect any show to ever reach the level of this show's prime, even if the current Simpsons staff were to fix all the core problems. The annoying thing is just that some of the core problems are so obvious and seem like they should be easily fixable by now.

**bovine_university** · 03-27-2006, 08:47 PM

Bonfire of the Manatees - D+
The Girl Who Slept Too Little - B
Milhouse of Sand and Fog - C-
Treehouse of Horror XVI - D+
Marge's Son Poisoning - B
See Homer Run - C
The Last Of The Red Hat Mamas - C
The Italian Bob - C+
Simpsons Christmas Stories - C+
Homer's Paternity Coot - F
We're On The Road To D'ohwhere - C
My Fair Laddy - B+
The Seemingly Never Ending Story - B-
Bart Has Two Mommies - D-
Homer Simpson , This is Your Wife - B

It's tough to say really whether or not this season has been better than last year so far. I remember that season 16 had alot of really good storylines, but the humor was almost always lacking and as a result episodes came across as kind of dull. I feel that this year has been improving in some ways, and getting worse in others. While not in an extreme way, this year is almost going in the opposite direction last season did. I've found myself laughing more this season, but the plots have been suffering.

The humor and characterizations have been pretty good so far, (except for Bart which has been mentioned already) and not only that but there has been some ambitious and creative story-telling decisions taken this year that really wasn't present last year (TSNES's plot structure, the musical portion of SCS, Gervais' as a guest writer, and to a lesser extent, the musical parody of MFL). Animation has also been very strong, making for some very entertaining moments.

However, last season had very mature plots that kept me interested, whereas this year has been making alot of sloppy story development decisions. Multi-segment episodes have had segments with terrible endings (THOH XVI's final segment, the middle segment of SCS), subplots have been brought in and used in awkward manners (Lisa's subplot in TLOTRHM just putters out, Homer and Marge's subplot in MOSAF needlessly takes over) or were just forgettable (WOTRTD or MFL), and sorry to single out the Italian Bob, but that Deus Ex Machina ending was absolutely terrible. Some episodes even seem to lack direction for periods of time in their story (SHR, HPC, HSTIYW). The stories last year were much tighter and had alot more focus than this season's.

In the end I guess why I still prefer 17 to 16 a smidge so far is that as important as a good story is, I watch the show primarily to laugh. Plotlines have been sloppy this year, but I have been laughing more, and for me that kind of makes episodes more memorable. The creativity and ambition haven't hurt either. Time will tell if this season can continue, but it might be a rough trip, since pretty much every episode I was anticipating has aired already, and I'm not as excited about the remaining ones.

(By the way, I'm sorry about all the abbreviations, but I just didn't want the post to get any longer)

**Binky** · 03-28-2006, 06:03 PM

Now this is interesting. There's going to be 3 Simpsons episodes in a row on May 21, starting at 7 PM. I doubt that'll be a new episode, but maybe the 7:30 PM one will be new, and of course the 8 PM episode will be the season finale. It also looks like Fox is going to air Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story as Family Guy's season finale (8:30 to 10:00).

http://files.kasa.com/programming/1_e60521.htm

**grissom** · 03-28-2006, 06:19 PM

3 episodes is nice. All of them being new would be really nice, but it won't happen.

**Tomacco** · 03-28-2006, 08:37 PM

Originally Posted by Binky

Now this is interesting. There's going to be 3 Simpsons episodes in a row on May 21, starting at 7 PM. I doubt that'll be a new episode, but maybe the 7:30 PM one will be new, and of course the 8 PM episode will be the season finale. It also looks like Fox is going to air Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story as Family Guy's season finale (8:30 to 10:00).

http://files.kasa.com/programming/1_e60521.htm

Lame about FG. They should never air it on TV, if you ask me. They'll have to edit parts too. I'm sure they'll cut out the movie-feature stuff that book-ends it too.

My guess on The Simpsons is that the first two episodes will be repeats, like they did in season 12.

**coltonwiggum** · 03-29-2006, 05:17 PM

Bonfire of the Manatees - C+
The Girl Who Slept Too Little - A
Milhouse of Sand and Fog - B+
Treehouse of Horror XVI - B
Marge's Son Poisoning - A
See Homer Run - B-
The Last Of The Red Hat Mamas - C+
The Italian Bob - B-
Simpsons Christmas Stories - B+
Homer's Paternity Coot - C-
We're On The Road To D'ohwhere - A
My Fair Laddy - A
The Seemingly Never Ending Story - A+
Bart Has Two Mommies - A-
Homer Simpson , This is Your Wife - A
This season has blown me away. After years of many crappy episodes, I was so aghast, and ecstatic! The average for this season thus far is:B+/A-! Horay!

**Nameless** · 03-30-2006, 10:45 AM

Originally Posted by Drunk Barney

Yeah, it sounds great. Infact, for me this is the most anticipated episode of the Season so far, alongside Marge's Son Poisoning. As I said before, I'm quite sure this ones written by J. Stewert Burns, which makes it even more exciting.

I don't think it's written by Burns, as it was said earlier that he was writing the evolution episode and he appears to only write one episode per production line.

**Drunk Barney** · 03-30-2006, 12:36 PM

Ah right, okay. Thanks for letting me know.

I wonder who will be writing it then? My guess is Matt Selman.

**TheFlandersMan** · 03-30-2006, 12:44 PM

Ah, what the heck. Here's my ratings:

Bonfire of the Manatees - D
The Girl Who Slept Too Little - A-
Milhouse of Sand and Fog - C+
Treehouse of Horror XVI - D+
Marge's Son Poisoning - B
See Homer Run - C-
The Last Of The Red Hat Mamas - C-
The Italian Bob - B-
Simpsons Christmas Stories - C
Homer's Paternity Coot - C-
We're On The Road To D'ohwhere - A-
My Fair Laddy - B
The Seemingly Never Ending Story - A
Bart Has Two Mommies - C
Homer Simpson , This is Your Wife - B

I like a few. I guess my favorites are Girl who Slept Too Little, Son Poisoning, D'ohwhere, Seemingly ending story, and Homer Simpson, This is your Wife. So far it's a lot better than season 15, and maybe a little better than and 16, but not much better. Compared to all of Jean's seasons, it's about average. Hmm, look at that, a familiar word for Jean.

**Old Man Simpson** · 03-30-2006, 04:16 PM

"Million Dollar Abie" looks promising, but I said the same thing about "Homer Simpson, This is Your Wife", and it turned out to be mediocre.

**Binky** · 03-30-2006, 06:54 PM

Here is probably the most interesting and cryptic promo yet for The Simpsons:

http://www.springfieldpost.com/index....msg108#msg108

I'm thinking it'll be about the movie's release date. Anyone care to place bets on it? :P

**Veryjammy** · 03-30-2006, 08:11 PM

Waited 17 years to hear....it has to be about the movie surely?

**DotheBartman** · 03-30-2006, 10:15 PM

I'm sure it'll be the movie, especcially with the other recent bits of news about it. I think they'll basically just say that it's being made though. I think they'll probably continue to be cryptic about the plot, and they probably can't set anything other than a rough/preliminary date at this point. The announcement will probably just be that the movie is in fact in the works and "coming soon" now.

**Simpsons Forever!** · 03-31-2006, 12:50 AM

Intriguing...I reckon it'll be either confirming the movie (some development pics or even a teaser trailer?) I doubt the latter, though. Or maybe just confirming the next two seasons? Another thought: Binky revealed there'd be 3 Simpsons episodes on 21st May, so could it be the first triple-finale? Either way, I can't wait to here more.

**Nameless** · 03-31-2006, 01:22 AM

I figure it'll either be an April Fool's joke or something about the movie, probably confirming what we already know.

Of course, you never know...

**Postmaster** · 03-31-2006, 02:46 AM

But sunday's the 2nd of April.

**Nameless** · 03-31-2006, 04:01 AM

it's the closest they can air an episode to the actual april fool's day, isn't it?

**grissom** · 03-31-2006, 04:09 AM

It's gotta be something about the movie. Even if it's not, it gives me something to look forward to aside from this episode, which looks awful

Galalimit · 03-31-2006, 04:11 AM

Originally Posted by Homer_Thompson

But sunday's the 2nd of April.

And halloween is october 31, but that doesn't stop them from airing the halloween episode an entire fucking week after halloween.

**Matt B.** · 03-31-2006, 04:12 AM

Originally Posted by Nameless

it's the closest they can air an episode to the actual april fool's day, isn't it?

Even if it is a April Fools Joke it wouldnt be aired on a Saturday and FOX learnrd about pulling a April Fools Joke From South Park

**Nameless** · 03-31-2006, 04:14 AM

Originally Posted by Galalimit

And halloween is october 31, but that doesn't stop them from airing the halloween episode an entire fucking week after halloween.

That's because of the World Series. If there were no World Series, they'd be able to air the THOH in October, although come to think about it it probably wouldn't get as good ratings then.

And yeah, it probably isn't April Fool's...just seemed a possibility.

**Adam** · 03-31-2006, 04:42 AM

Well someone submitted this ( http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0438097/board/flat/39745110 ) to the simpsons channel today. I passed it off as bullcrap until I saw that promo..

If you see the movie (Ice Age 2) you will see two attached fox short trailers; garfield 2 and Simpsons the movie. The simpsons trailer looked kind of like a superman spoof. It is very short- about 30 seconds- starts off with a close up of a big superman looking S than zooms out and it is Homer sitting on the couch in his underwere with a super"simpson" t-shirt. I was very surprised also. Titles at the end are "Simpsons the movie" and "July 27, 2007". This is the internet, i do not lie. I do film projection so i am lazy and did not feel like cutting the trailer off and running it through a projector! What i say to have seen I just looked at the film while building the print. But i promise every one who sees the film will see this teaser. Bye bye, i need to get back to work!

easily proven... anybody wanna go pay entry to see this movie, watch the trailers and then walk out and let us know within the hour

**grissom** · 03-31-2006, 04:49 AM

I'm still not convinced since that's from the imdb boards, but it sure is intriguing

**Nameless** · 03-31-2006, 08:31 AM

wasn't the movie supposed to come out in 2008? i have my doubts about that.

**DotheBartman** · 03-31-2006, 12:54 PM

The announcement, whatever it is (and come on, there can't seriously be many people who don't think it's for the movie) airs on Sunday night, and considering that the trailer doesn't seem to have really been seen by anyone yet (Ice Age 2 is out today, right?) I would guess that it isn't actually scheduled to start showing in theaters until Sunday or later. If this trailer business is true anyway, and despite the close proximity to April 1, I don't see any reason why it couldn't feasably be true. A bit blockbluster like Ice Age would be the perfect movie to premiere a trailer like for (much like they've premiered Star Wars trailers in front of Harry Potter, for instance). It'll get more publicity, and more people talking.

No way I'm seeing Ice Age 2, though I admit it would be tempting to catch a matinee at some point and leave once I've gotten my first glimpse of The Simpsons on the big screen...

Edit: Confirmation!

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr..._id=1002275630

**Simpsons Forever!** · 03-31-2006, 01:18 PM

HABF11 The Wettest Stories Ever Told

HIGH-SEAS ADVENTURES ON "THE SIMPSONS" SUNDAY, APRIL 23, ON FOX

When the Simpsons' plans for a nice family outing at the Frying Dutchman turn into a dining disaster, the family tries to salvage the night by telling different stories of disasters at sea. Lisa recounts the Mayflower voyage, Bart tells tales of Tahitian mutiny and Homer puts his own spin on the capsizing cruise ships on "The Wettest Stories Ever Told" episode of THE SIMPSONS Sunday, April 23 (8:00-8:30 PM ET/PT) on FOX. (SI-1711) (TV-TBA)
Voice Cast: Dan Castellaneta as Homer Simpson, Mayor Quimby and Groundskeeper Willie, Julie Kavner as Marge Simpson and Patty; Nancy Cartwright as Bart Simpson and Nelson Muntz; Nelson, Ralph and Kearney; Yeardley Smith as Lisa Simpson; Harry Shearer as Kent Brockman, Mr. Burns and Smithers; Pamela Hayden as Milhouse; Hank Azaria as Cletus and Carl.

**Tomacco** · 03-31-2006, 01:20 PM

Originally Posted by Simpsons Forever!

HABF11 The Wettest Stories Ever Told

I have no idea what this will be like, but I've never been a fan of these 3-story things, especially when they're straining like "Christmas Stories" was. I'm kind of shocked we're getting a THIRD one this year.

**Nameless** · 03-31-2006, 01:32 PM

I like the reintroduction of the Frying Dutchman and the sound of the first segment, but yes we're getting too many of these non-THOH tripartites.

Something about the Bermuda Triangle would have been good too.

**vox** · 03-31-2006, 02:06 PM

saw ice age 2 with some little cousins, and yes, it was there. it was the last preview before the movie started, so i was going to take a video capture with my phone, but i kinda lost faith in the rumor and put my phone away before it came on. but yeah, hollywood reporter has it right. two things of note:

the title, or at least tentative title appears to be "the simpsons movie"

the animation seemed a little different than the current season's. it may be my bad memory, but homer seemed ever so slightly off model, but it could be just that they rushed it. but it was funny.

and for what it's worth, ice age 2 was pretty good. if you remember, jon vitti was a consultant, so he may have had something to do with the trailer being premiered with ice age.

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