It may be on a lousy channel, but the Simpsons are on TV.
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In the medium of television, every once in a while,
a show comes along that defines an entire generation.
In this pantheon of shows, The Simpsons, stands tall.
But what exactly was the secret to the show's success.
The formula for the show's greatness
can be found all the way back in one single season, season four.
But before we take a spin with our favorite Springfield
residents, don't forget to subscribe to Nerdstalgic
so you never miss a video.
Boy, everyone is stupid, except me.
Although the show has been around for over 30 years,
the first eight seasons are widely
recognized as the golden age of the series.
During these seasons, the show kept a rotating group
of showrunners with a new runner taking over every two seasons.
Additionally, the show established a clear structure
for itself under the tenure of showrunners, Al Jean and Mike
Reiss, during seasons three and four.
This structure was seen as so effective,
it was revitalized again years later when Bill Oakley and Josh
Weinstein began their tenures as of season seven.
Cartoons have writers?
Ah, sort of.
Oh, yeah?
Well you and I could write a better cartoon than that.
But what exactly are the elements
that make up the perfect season of The Simpsons.
According to Bill Oakley, it goes something like this.
In a 22-episode season, you get six Homer episodes.
Three episodes each for Lisa, Bart, and Marge.
A sideshow Bob episode.
An episode related to Itchy and Scratchy, with the remaining
open to experiment with structure,
or give a spotlight to one of the show's growing
cast of side characters.
While some of these definitions are a bit vague,
this structure would provide the series with a winning formula
that both expanded on the rich characterization
of the central cast while also providing space to fill out
the world of the show.
Uh-oh.
A cute little character could take America by storm.
When looking at season four, it's
impossible to deny it's the best season of The Simpsons.
It's a season filled with iconic episodes, gags, and character
moments that are still remembered to this day.
It's obvious at this point in the series
that Homer is one of its key comedic elements.
Episodes like "Mr. Plow" and "Homer the Heretic"
give him plenty of great comedic fodder to work with.
However, each of these episodes also capture a vital element
of the character.
In "Last Exit to Springfield," we
see how much he cares for his family
through Homer's willingness to go
on strike to protect their dental plan because Lisa
needs braces.
Dental plan.
Lisa needs braces.
Dental plan.
Lisa needs braces.
Similarly, the episodes focused on the remaining members
of The Simpsons clan provide richer characterizations
than viewers would expect from most sitcom family archetypes.
Episodes like "Lisa the Beauty Queen" and "Whacking Day"
developed the progressive and activist-minded mentality that
would become a vital part of Lisa's characterization.
While all of the characters have clear emotional touchstones
in these early seasons, Lisa's episodes
always seem to have the strongest element of truth
to them.
Starting here in season four, the Lisa episodes
are focused on the tension between her need
to be understood and the ignorance
of the many adults around her.
From now on, I will speak out against the evils in society.
Looking at Bart, his character was perhaps
the one in the most danger of becoming
a two-dimensional caricature.
From the earliest days of the series,
Bart was the breakout character with his face plastered
on countless t-shirts with varying
degrees of authenticity.
Episodes like "New Kid on the Block" written by Conan O'Brien
made the key elements of Bart's character
beyond his real-world popularity, clear.
Lesser writers wouldn't let their cool guy character
express serious emotional vulnerabilities
with their father figure, like in "Brother
From the Same Planet," or show positive creative relationships
with a sister, as we see in "The Front."
Taking these three episodes to focus on Bart
were vital to making him more than a catchphrase spouting
device and into a well-rounded part of the cast.
I'll show them who's just a kid.
Bart, it's your bedtime.
I laid out your jammy jams.
Oh.
A side effect of the show's writing staff
primarily being young males for most of its run,
Marge Simpson is frequently an overlooked element
of the series.
But the strength of season four shines through even here
as it provides Marge with, arguably, her strongest
episodes in the entire series.
Episodes like, "Marge Gets a Job"
and a "Streetcar Named Marge" provide
important interior motives and desires that will continue on
throughout the series.
These two season four episodes show Marge's desire
to be more than a housewife and the way
she will occasionally make impulsive and somewhat
destructive decisions in order to escape
the mundanity of suburbia.
My life is pretty boring.
Last week, some Jehovah's Witnesses came to the door
and I wouldn't let them leave.
With the primary characterizations
of the central cast handled by the 15 spotlight episodes,
the rest would be fertile ground for the writers
to chase whatever wild ideas came to them.
Episodes like the "Annual Treehouse of Horror"
or so it comes to this "A Simpsons Clip Show"
gave the writers an opportunity to experiment with the show's
structure and completely break the format of not
only their series, but sitcoms in general.
The episodes focused on Itchy and Scratchy skewer
the animation industry itself with tons of inside baseball
jokes about writers rooms, award competitions,
and the daily grind of trying to make entertainment.
"Selma's Choice" cast a spotlight on Marge's sister
Selma whose insecurities about aging and missing
an opportunity to raise children provides a level of depth
to the archetype of the meddling in-law
that few sitcoms ever attempted.
"Krusty gets Kancelled" gives everyone's favorite clown
the chance to win back his audience
with an absurdly stacked cavalcade of cameos,
ranging from Johnny Carson to Elizabeth
Taylor, both hilarious and the ultimate flex of the show's
popularity.
What you got for us, some jokes?
Actually, I thought I'd lift this 1987 Buick
Skylark over my head.
Perhaps the most important non-central character spotlight
in the show's history, I love Lisa
took Ralph Wiggum, a character that barely existed
in previous seasons, and made him
into one of the funniest characters in the show
while filling him with genuine pathos.
If there were any episodes that proved the Simpsons could
sustain itself almost entirely on side characters,
it was this one.
You choo choo choo choose me?
But while this formula makes sense
on paper, just how effective was it in practice.
First, the fourth season provided the show
with a jolt of a ratings boost from its previous season.
It also stands with a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes.
While this season may only be ranked third on IMDb,
the two seasons that are ranked above it
are seasons six and seven, the two seasons
show ran by Bill Oakley, who explicitly used the structure
of season four as a model.
But if numbers aren't your thing,
it's clear from the show's cultural standing
that this season has the highest joke-to-episode hit rates.
It's a testament to the way the structure of the show
found the perfect balance to highlight its central cast
and provide new comedic material to the show's supporting cast.
The important thing is we're like a family.
Krusty, I--
Shut your hole.
Above all else, this is the season
where the Simpsons truly became the show we know it as today.
From the character designs to the performances to the comedy,
this is where the show that would last for 34 years
was born.
The Simpsons became a cultural juggernaut
and redefined for American studios what
an animated series could be.
And it all began with one perfectly structured season
of television.
What do you think?
Is the Simpsons magic still there?
Can this perfect season structure bring back the magic?
Let us know what you think, and don't forget to like, comment,
and subscribe to Nerdstalgic.
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