The Yellow Years
A "Simpsons" retrospective, 70 years later...
"Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire" (1989) was the first broadcast episode of the Simpsons proper, cementing the animated sitcom as more than a popular cutaway gag sandwiched between the Tracey Ullman Show. The show very quickly cemented itself in popular culture, going on to become the longest running television show in world history, as well as one of the most successful and lucrative franchises for Fox Entertainment.
"Lisa Goes Gaga" (2012), guest starring the titular Lady Gaga, was considered by contemporary scholars as the beginning of the major downturn in viewership, earmarked by the show's creators attempting to modernise by haphazardly inserting popular trends and tropes. Many in the younger generation would bitterly summarise this creative trend as the "Homer Get iPad" principle. While it kept being renewed for multiple seasons at a time, viewership continued to plummet from the upper millions to the lower thousands.
Graeme "Gunner" Hampton and
Roebuck Powell, who took over as showrunners from
Al Jean and
Matt Selman in 2038, considered to be the major reason for the show's uptick in quality and viewer reception. Both were responsible for the critical upheaval in the show's structure, introducing new developments that would continue through seasons instead of curtailing themselves at the end of a one-off episode, and, most pivotally, repealing the sliding timescale that meant the characters needed to stay the same age.
Season 40 kicked off the 'Hampton-Powell era" by opening with the canonical death of Centenarian character Mr. Burns, an event that set the stage for many storyline changes to come. As Bart and Lisa began attending Springfield High School, Maggie, known to many as the ever-silent baby character, was now walking and talking, voiced by actress Jacklyn Uweh. The "Mayor Marge" arc, despite its mixed reception, saw Marge move beyond her role as a housewife to an active member of the city council, allowing for plentiful colour commentary on politics.
The family at the time of this article's publication, c.
Season 60.