have you ever read any interviews with mike judge on this topic

he says that the show is not meant to be ironic in any way

and that they stick up for things that would be deemed un cool in hollywood

thats why the show is so fucking awsome, it shows that you can be conservative and not be a bad person

and in the end hanks ends up being right about things, where as on a lesser show hank would learn some p.c lesson in the end and he would be wrong .

like the boy modeling episode remember how in the end he was right  in the hands of some swarmy type the show would be shit, the show respect and real insight to the world they are showing

and in that respect even in brooklyn people get the show

But that's the thing... sometimes Hank is wrong... sometimes he's right... either way, it's give and take... and THAT'S why the show's so good... and yes, I've read interviews with Mike Judge about the show.

Quote from: RegularKarateBut that's the thing... sometimes Hank is wrong... sometimes he's right... either way, it's give and take... and THAT'S why the show's so good... and yes, I've read interviews with Mike Judge about the show.

fair enough

but for their respect of conservative/all american values

they stand alone. And that kind of makes them very cool

my point is when other people do this kind of material they are very judgemental

and thats the part that bugs me, i do not want to see a king of the hill type show created by someguy who grew up in manhhatan and went to harvard

and i could also say that i would not want  to see someone like hank hill write a show like seinfeld

The Simpsons Voice Cast Stage Walkout
Source: Variety

The Simpsons voice cast have not shown up for two table reads in the past few weeks, reports Variety, holding up production on the show's 2004-05 season (its 16th).

Decision to miss work comes as negotiations to renew the contracts of Dan Castellaneta (Homer), Hank Azaria (Moe, Apu and others), Harry Shearer (Mr. Burns and others), Yeardley Smith (Lisa), Julie Kavner (Marge) and Nancy Cartwright (Bart) have hit an impasse.

Each of the cast is reportedly asking for approximately $360,000 an episode, or $8 million for a 22-episode season. Each member of the group currently pulls down $125,000 an episode.

The current work stoppage is reminiscent of the actors' salary negotiations in 1998. Back then, the cast made $30,000 per episode. Twentieth Century Fox TV went as far as hiring casting directors in five cities to replace the voice talent.

Apparently the actors work just six to seven hours to voice an episode -- which would mean $360,000 for a day's work, a figure that even Everybody Loves Raymond star Ray Romano doesn't match. It's also unclear whether the long-awaited "Simpsons" feature film, now in development, has any bearing on the series negotiations.

What it is: Greed is the desire for material wealth or gain, ignoring the realm of the spiritual. It is also called Avarice or Covetousness.

Associated symbols & suchlike: Greed is linked with the frog and the color yellow.

this onion article is just brilliant:

Suicide Letter full of Simpsons References


and whoever gets this picture is also brilliant..

hint: it's not about the quote.

'Simpsons' to open the closet
Source: Los Angeles Times

One of the veteran cartoon stars of "The Simpsons" is coming out of the closet. The betting on who it might be would seem to favor sniveling yes-man Waylon Smithers, who for years has harbored a secret crush on his boss, the evil nuclear tycoon Mr. Burns. But the show's producers refused to tell the audience at last weekend's Comic-Con if he's the one.

"We have a show where, to raise money, Springfield legalizes gay marriage," producer Al Jean said in San Diego. "Homer becomes a minister by going on the Internet and filling out a form. A longtime character comes out of the closet, but I'm not saying who."

Matt Groening, the show's creator, joked to the audience: "It's Homer!"

The cartoon's corrupt Mayor Quimby will also face a recall election in a forthcoming episode, similar to what befell former California Gov. Grey Davis last year. The producers won't say whether Rainier Wolfcastle, the Austrian action-star and Arnold Schwarzenegger parody, will run him out of office.

Groening said he still plans to make a feature-film version of "The Simpsons" but probably won't start on it until the conclusion of the TV series, which is heading into its 16th season.

am I way too late on the simpsons vs. south park vs. king of the hills discussion?  please say no.
I just caught up with this thread just now, and alguienEP was right about the lack of "moral" at the end of the King of the Hills shosws.  But on the same token, is anyone else sick of the "radical" morals that South Park has been attaching to the end of all their episodes?  I find them kind of lame.  And I know that show's riddled with irony and whatever, but I can tell the writers are actually trying to mean what they say in the end, and they're not as poignant as they think themselves to be.

I actually don't think it's annoying coming from South Park because I've never thought of it as anything more than their opinion with funny stuff and then that's it.  Nobody is looking to it for settling an argument (just look at the pro/antiwar 100th episode)

However, I saw a Simpsons a while back where it was SLAMMING you over the head with shit about how Rupert Murdoch/corporations are bad.  It goes beyond whether or not I agreed with it because it just wasn't funny and it wasn't clever in the least.  This gay episode sounds like it's going to be more of that.  It's so disappointing

Well, in the beginning, South Park WAS incredibly poignant.  That's what made it so great: its scathing social commentary that was also SUBTLE.  And subtlety is the key word.  South Park has totally lost it now, and has become a shadow, a formulaic parody of its former self.  Some of the turnabouts in the beginning seasons, where you think the episode is about one thing, but it turns out to be another, are really just genius.  The Simpsons was the only other show that ever did that.  The Critic didn't go that deep, Family Guy hasn't tried, and only Futurama has come close.  I don't even consider King of the Hill in the same universe as these, as it's just so poor an effort.  But wow, this thread is really old, and the subject has been discussed here and here, too.

I think one of the cleverest South Parks in a while was the Violence/Nudity episode, and it fits into your turnabout definition I think.

Also, I'd like to clarify that I didn't mean people looked to the Simpsons to solve anything, I just feel that they suck now and that makes me mad.

Quote from: ono.bot.opoeiaWell, in the beginning, South Park WAS incredibly poignant.  That's what made it so great: its scathing social commentary that was also SUBTLE.  And subtlety is the key word.  South Park has totally lost it now, and has become a shadow, a formulaic parody of its former self.

I need some elaboration on that because, though the show has always been funny, this last season has been the best one in a couple of years.  They're not any less subtle or any more silly or over-the-top than they ever were.

Quote from: hacksparrowI need some elaboration on that because, though the show has always been funny, this last season has been the best one in a couple of years.  They're not any less subtle or any more silly or over-the-top than they ever were.

Watch episode 608 - Red Hot Catholic Love.  Not incredibly subtle, but it illustrates a sort of turnaround I was referring to.  The way things came full circle in this episode was inspired.  Still trying to find an even older episode that illustrates this, too, while blocking out the memory of most of season three ('cept Rainforest Schmainforest).  Oh, and 501 - Scott Tenorman must die is probably the most brilliant episode plotwise, and the whole twisting thing applies there, too.

Quote from: ono.bot.opoeia

Quote from: hacksparrowI need some elaboration on that because, though the show has always been funny, this last season has been the best one in a couple of years.  They're not any less subtle or any more silly or over-the-top than they ever were.

Watch episode 608 - Red Hot Catholic Love.  Not incredibly subtle, but it illustrates a sort of turnaround I was referring to.  The way things came full circle in this episode was inspired.  Still trying to find an even older episode that illustrates this, too, while blocking out the memory of most of season three ('cept Rainforest Schmainforest).

I don't remember the end of Red Hot Catholic Love or How To Eat With Your Butt but the Goobacks episode from this season is proof that they still have it.  That was one of the most brilliant ideas they've come up with on the show. Who would think to devote an entire episode to outsourcing (unless King of the Hill did, I don't know, I haven't watched the show since the first season)?  And the Good Times With Weapons episode? That's one of the best turnarounds they've ever had.  They've still got it.  

Yeah, the Michael Jackson episode was less-than-inspired, especially compared to some of the gems they've pulled out in past seasons.  But it was still funny.  Matt & Trey may not be quite as scathing as they used to be but the success of the show, for me anyway, has never hinged entirely, or even mostly, on how topical they are (though it does enhance the show sometimes: opening the Osama episode with the kids wearing gas masks was pure perfection).  

For me, it comes down to one thing (besides it being funny): are the kids still kids?  Yes.  The best thing about the show is that, after suffering constant disillusionment, disappointment, and flat-out ignorance for all these years, they're still the same 8 year old kids they were in the first episode.  That all-encompassing joke still makes the show worthwhile, best illustrated by Cartman crying after Kyle hit him at the end of the Saddam/Christmas episode in season 7.

And cut 'em some slack with Season 3... they were working on the movie at that point.

I actually got How to Eat With Your Butt and Red Hot Catholic Love confused, with good reason.  So ignore the former one as far as examples go, for now anyway.

Good Times With Weapons, if that's the episode I was thinking of, was brilliant, yes.  And if you'll look at the South Park thread here, you'll see I was really into the new season for a while.  The Passion of the Jew was horrible, though.  I never did see The Jeffersons 'cause it just looked so bad.  The only think I liked about "You Got Fucked in the Ass" was Butters' side story.  The death by tapdancing schtick.  So incredibly morbid, so vintage South Park.  But where the show lost me for a bit was when it started picking out such obvious targets and then trying to lampoon them in such a pedestrian manner.  They even saw fit to mock how at the end of most of the early episodes Stan or Kyle looks at the camera and starts saying something like "You know, I really learned something today."  The classic example, if I recall correctly, is the one about the coffeehouse and underpants gnomes.  The War episode, the 100th episode, was great in being up front about the show's own style.  For a while, though, the show just seemed to forget what it was good at, and again, become a parody of itself.

I don't really want the show to be topical.  I just want it to be funny and somewhat insightful and smart.  If it tries to be topical, it becomes obvious and flat.  The best shows are the ones that have the dichotomy going for it where you don't know what the show's really about until about 18 minutes in, or until the credits roll.