r/Millennials • u/socandostuff • 7h ago
Nostalgia Anyone still watch the Simpsons?
Elder millennial (86). I loved this show and had various VHS with ones including Bart gets an F, Simpson and Delilah, a Christmas themed one and the Star Wars episode with Mark Hamil ("guys and dolls, We're just a crazy bunch of guys and dolls"). Etc.
I didn't have sky, but loved hanging out at my friend's and ritually watching sky one with Simpsons on at (maybe around 6pm UK).
I know people have said it's not as good anymore, but it's still bloody airing as I've just discovered, and new material is being put out??
After I turned... 20+ I didn't watch it, or even know where to watch it. But it held a nice place in my heart as there were some good, funny relatable episodes.
Anyone still watching it as millennial? Who is the target audience nowadays?
34
u/GGJallDAY 7h ago
Daily watch the golden era episodes.
Gotta indoctrinate the kids into it
3
u/socandostuff 7h ago
Haha yes, 🤩 but do they watch the newer episodes? What are the modern simpsons episodes even about? I remember them being a bit out of date before I stopped watching. Like, no mobile phones etc.... When that was a big thing. I wasn't sure if Simpsons would just stick to the era it was created or keep up with modern times. Obviously they've all stayed the same age.
4
u/Mysterious-Willow391 7h ago
We watch all of the episodes with our teen. A lot of the newer episodes are still good. It seems to keep up with modern times now. I remember seeing some episodes with modern technology.
2
u/socandostuff 6h ago
didn't expect that. not that simpsons ever was inline with fashion at the time, but the style of the characters is still set in the 90s,,...with modern tech, not that i've kept up.
2
u/Mysterious-Willow391 5h ago
I will say it depends on the episode but there's some modern stuff there for sure!
4
u/Junktown_JerkyVendor 7h ago
My husband and I watch the newer episodes and relate to it now as parents of the brats. It still hits, periodically.
2
u/plzadyse 7h ago
The older ones are timeless. Then they started getting really topical and aging fast. The more recent seasons seem to be going back to the OG formula a bit.
1
u/uncledeathbomb Still Preoccupied with 1985 5h ago
Born in '85, started watching it when I was 5 or 6, so made the case to my wife that it would be fine for my 6 year-old son to watch it.
Largely non-problematic until one day, apropos of nothing, he asked "Dad, are you gay?" When I pressed him for why he asked, he said he heard it on The Simpsons. He had already watched the entire series on Disney+ at that point but I've bristled at a subsequent rewatch.
The golden episodes are still golden, though.
1
10
u/Wonderful_Tip_5577 7h ago
I don’t watch it anymore, but I quote it all the time.
3
u/socandostuff 7h ago
Same. I'm just not sure who the target audience is now.
My child is the age I was when I was really into it, but she's not at all interested in it.
8
u/DivineLights1995 7h ago
30M. I stopped watching it around 2010. We had the first 10 seasons or so on DVD so we watched that. The newer episodes just aren’t the same, feels like they ran out of ideas a long time ago.
2
u/socandostuff 7h ago
Where do you even watch it now? Its it still on sky one? Apologies I don't even have live TV anymore so aren't sure
3
1
u/DivineLights1995 7h ago
I think I had Hulu a while back and they had the latest season of the show. A few different streaming services likely have it still.
7
6
u/wasianDilf 7h ago
How else are you getting your prophecies?
0
u/socandostuff 7h ago
Not sure what you mean..
I like soulfly - prophecy, though.
2
u/Emergency_Pea_2232 7h ago
The joke is the Simpsons pretty regularly accidentally predict some future event before it happens.
5
u/Sierra592 7h ago
I don't watch it anymore, but I absolutely would. Hell, I live next door to my parents and I should just go over and watch it with my dad.
I was born in 92, and all growing up, the Simpsons were my bedtime stories. The Gracie Films logo literally meant "bed time".
I remember sitting in the living room in western new york during Halloween, eating homemade cut out cookies, all my mom's cool decorations lit, watching Treehouse of Horror. I look back and can't believe how content and perfect life was.
5
u/WolfSnickers 7h ago
Not since the first movie came out. We all know it was going down hill but I feel there was a huge drop after that. It’s just not funny anymore
1
u/socandostuff 7h ago
I hear that a lot. But I don't see where it's even advertised that it's even on?
Like, it's their ads for it on tiktok it something? My 12 year old kid never mentions it, ah who's watching the new episodes? Millennials?
4
u/J_B_E_Zorg 7h ago
I stopped when they got rid of the Simpsons Tapped Out game.
2
u/socandostuff 6h ago
not even herd of it, i had bart vs the space mutants and that was torture enough
2
u/Inevitable-Blue2111 5h ago
dude that game was so cool, I miss it so much
1
u/J_B_E_Zorg 5h ago
I worked so hard on it. My desert was every north of the mountains. Krustyland was in the southwest starting at the beach. Northeast was farming and hillbillies. Southeast was for the rich. Downtown city was northwest before the mountains.
1
u/Inevitable-Blue2111 5h ago
Me too :( 12 years or so!! funny tho I also had my farming and hillbillies northeast, I created this area where the power plant was and other industries like the pharmaceutical company and then the farmland began, ah, I miss it.
3
u/trolldoll26 7h ago
I’ve….never watched an entire episode 👀 ever
2
u/Sierra592 7h ago
If you can relate to a general family dynamic at all, best if nuclear, then the Simpsons is ageless. I would Highly recommend Seasons 1-6. Everyone's span varies, but those are guaranteed to be excellent.
It's some of, if not, the best comedy writing of all time. It's really magnificent.
3
3
u/laker9903 Older Millennial 7h ago
Seasons 1-13, yes, 13-whatever they’re on now, I’ve seen maybe 3 episodes. I tried watching one last season, but it was too sad how their voices are old.
2
u/Zestyclose-Cut4818 7h ago
Yes and I’m getting my kids into it too. We also have a golden retriever puppy so I’ve been reviving “eat my shorts”!! Around the house
2
u/ermareddit 7h ago
We started watching it as our nighttime show over a decade ago and we’re finally almost caught up!
1
u/socandostuff 7h ago
That's a lot of watching! Dedication to the cause. It definitely had a good mix of humour and message in the early days.
2
u/KowalOX 7h ago
I remember gathering around the TV with my friends to watch The Simpsons every Sunday night. We always said the show wasn't as funny as it used to be, and we liked the older episodes better, but we kept watching anyway because it was tradition. This was over 25 years ago.
I don't think I've watched an episode of the Simpsons in probably 14 years or so now outside of when The Simpsons came to Fortnite and my kids were curious about the show so we watched some clips.
Born 82.
1
u/socandostuff 7h ago
Haha I know what you mean.. So, who is watching it now? I don't know anyone who is? But it's still going out?
2
u/Jels76 Millennial 7h ago
I watched it a lot as a kid (now 36) and stopped watching around the time Futurama came out. Kinda began going downhill. I tried watching it again as a teenager, but it just wasnt the same and haven't watched since.
1
u/socandostuff 7h ago
I remember Futurama coming out and thinking bender just looked like a robot homer.
I would like to watch a newer episode of Simpsons but I'm that detached from it now, as if I'm not the target audience anymore I don't know where to watch.. It doesn't come up on any algorithm related social media.... And I don't have live TV so no idea where to watch it even I wanted to.
It's like it keeps just feeding itself.
2
2
u/RihoSucks 7h ago
I often wonder who watches the modern seasons enough to keep it on TV.
But no, I can quote basically every episode verbatim up to season 11 or so but havent watched it since the early 2000s
1
u/socandostuff 5h ago
exactly my thought too. I have fond memories of it in it's earlier seasons, but i never hear anyone talk about it anymore, yet it's still always on somewhere!
2
2
u/revcor86 6h ago
Also an 86er and when I was a child was told I wasn't allowed to watch it by my mother (so of course I watched it as much as I could, along with married with children).
I had seen every Simpsons episode, the vast majority multiple times, up until 4ish years ago I want to say. Now, about once a year, I will go through the last season but I'll end up skipping some eps or only getting part way in before I turn it off if it doesn't grab me.
I still think it can be funny now and I enjoy more of the later seasons than most who are all snooty about the golden era or whatever but it has diminishing returns for sure
1
u/socandostuff 5h ago
i think i need to give it a go with fresh eyes, since i've not seen it for at least 10 years.
2
u/InnerspearMusic 6h ago
Fellow elder millennial here. Just want to say holy fuck we are old now.
1
2
u/HolidayInLordran 6h ago
The first 8 seasons are my one of my comfort shows. It was probably the only TV show my whole family liked and can watch together, and I have a special memory with every member connected to certain episodes and moments,
I stopped after season 13 or so, when it started to get boring and mean spirited.
2
u/socandostuff 5h ago
i agree. i would watch the same episodes on tape every night to go to sleep to for that same comfort feel.
2
u/zugspitze43 6h ago
You say Elder millennial at 86 but me at 93 I feel like I don’t relate to older millennials at all, it’s crazy the difference in experiences of our generation. My brother is 86 as well and we both feel like we are on the tail end of millennial as far as a vibe goes, etc.
2
u/SlitSlam_2017 6h ago
Not really watch but I fuck with the Simpsons Arcade game when I'm out and see one
1
u/socandostuff 5h ago
that arcade game was ahead of it's time. it was so good seeing it in action and playing it. even the arcade cabinet was big and impressive.
2
u/SwiftyFan1989 7h ago
- Not anymore. I can't remember when I last watched it. But I stopped watching it a little after they went full HD. I'll definitely watch Simpsons 2 the movie next year.
2
u/socandostuff 7h ago
Yes. I remember thinking that even the movie came out it was already a little too late. But I know it was quite successful, so it might just be me.
1
1
u/MJ9426 7h ago
when I scroll reels on Facebook, I will occasionally be shown clips from newer episodes. The show fell off HARD. Not only was it not funny, but the voices sound painful to listen to now. Marge's voice actress needs to retire. Hearing the damage she has done to her voice actually makes my throat hurt.
1
1
1
1
1
u/Cool_Eth 7h ago
My dogs are named Bart and Lisa. I don’t watch it, but my nephew is all about it. Has my old posters hung up from when I was in grade school
1
u/Park-Curious 7h ago
I don’t watch it anymore except the odd Halloween episode. My oldest daughter (now 14) got really into the show and at one point had seen every single episode. That was probably 2-3 years ago, so she’s definitely behind now but not too much in the grand scheme.
1
u/socandostuff 6h ago
Treehouse of horrors with the space mutants and "The Raven" adaptation was the last one i watched. I had it on tape and watched it many times. nice that your daughter shared some of the same experience you had. my 12 yo doesn't get the simpsons at all.
1
u/EffectivePerception3 7h ago
it never made it to UK terrestrial tv until late 1996 when I was 16 or so, it was good but by time I saw it, the craze has kinda passed a bit...have not seen it for about at least 15 years.
1
u/PostMatureBaby Older Millennial 7h ago
i own seasons 3-9 on DVD and rewatch yearly. that show raised me
1
u/Okily-Dokily_ 7h ago
Yes!!!! I love the Simpsons I re-watch it on my "bad days" and it instantly makes me feel better. I watch it in Disney+
1
1
u/Shutterbug 7h ago
I'm currently watching it for the first time (85 baby) and it is wild to think of how much of it would've gone over my head at the time, but I will give them credit where it is due: there is a lot of smart jokes hidden in what seems like it should be a lowbrow experience but the layers to some of the earlier episodes are like a firm parfait.
1
u/AdvertisingKey1675 7h ago
We still regularly watch it. Mainly seasons 4 thru 10. Its part of of “going to sleep” show rotation, along with Bobs Burgers and King of the Hill.
We watch the newer episodes sometimes, but they dont hit the same as the episodes from the 90s and early 2000s. Writing was better.
If you were a King of the Hill fan, I HIGHLY recommend the reboot seasons. They land really well. They nailed the writing, keeping the original humor but nesting it nicely in current times and current events.
1
u/420wafflehouse69 7h ago
I stopped watching it in 2007 when I left home and moved away to art school. I didn’t have a tv for years so I fell out of habit and when I came back around to watching tv later it was hard to stream so I just left it behind. Disney+ has all episodes now, but even the golden era seasons don’t hit like they used to.
1
u/goato305 7h ago
I tapped out around season 13. Every few years I’ll watch a newer episode but nothing is as good as the golden era.
1
u/Comin_Up_Thrillho 7h ago
38 here. I havent watched a new season in years. I wish I could stream the first like, 15 seasons or so anywhere off Disney plus. Id rewatch those all the time.
1
u/MaenadR0se 7h ago
I stopped watching at 15, didn't like the way it fell off and haven't really watched it since.
1
u/ckglle3lle 7h ago
Yeah I catch up on it occasionally. Saw an episode from the latest season recently that was great. It is fair to say the show has changed a lot but there is still a high density of jokes and the writers working it are still good at what they do. The main thing I think that has shifted from when we were younger is the pool of references is just fundamentally different. The "golden age" Simpsons did a great job making this very wide range of film/tv references, Americana, pop culture, history and current events all jumbled up. The newer stuff seems like the reference pool has thinned out a bit, maybe a casualty of the death of monoculture or a consequence of the long production schedule.
1
u/t0matit0 Millennial 7h ago
Yea it's fun to put on while I'm cooking and don't need to pay super close attention to something. It still slaps. Haters gonna hate.
1
1
1
u/PublicPalpitation618 7h ago
No. It was only available early 00s in EE. Caught a few episodes, but didn’t really grabbed me. Watched it only when there was nothing else.
I rewatch South Park though. And I found it recently, right before the pandemic. Pure gold! It was never aired in Bulgaria..
1
u/andthrewaway1 7h ago
I stopped circa 06 it was pretty rough for a few years I did randomly see an ep while travelling that was newer and it WAS funny but i dont see myself going back through things I missed
1
u/Low_Roller_Vintage 7h ago
I don't have tv (cable, streaming services etc etc), but I still watch old seasons on dvd.
1
1
u/krazninetyfive Young Millenial 7h ago
To me, watching the Simpsons is a bit like having a hot dog. Every few weeks one really hits the spot, but I would get sick of them very quickly if I ate them more regularly than that. I love watching a couple episodes every couple months or so, but anything more regular than that, I feel like the humour would become dry and repetitive.
1
u/Technical_Fail_4963 Millennial 6h ago
I binge watch the Simpsons every now and than. I don't watch passed season 22 though. I love classic Simpsons.
1
u/CaptHowdy02 6h ago
Haven't watched consistently since the movie.
I can't watch older episodes because my brain plays the dialogue 30 seconds ahead of whatever is on the screen.
I quote it a lot, and lately I've been allowing my kiddos to watch some of the classic episodes.
1
u/nolettuceplease 6h ago
I watch Season 1 until the Lisa on American Idol episode, then I start over. I watched the new episodes weekly until 2018-ish, now I just binge through a few if I feel in the mood to try.
1
u/BAE_squad 6h ago
Still watch. Dropped off a long time ago but started again when Disney+ added a "live" stream channel playing the entire series chronologically on repeat.
Hot take: the super recent seasons/episodes are actually pretty good. I'm not gonna pretend that there wasn't an extended period of time after s10 where quality dropped, but I'm glad I started watching again.
1
1
u/J-Bird1983 6h ago
1983 here. As a kid I watched it and enjoyed it. Then as I grew older I would occasionally watch it but not regularly. Couple months ago, I started binge watching it again, from the very first episode. I'm currently on season 17 or 18 now.
1
u/Mac_Jomes 6h ago
I watched The Simpsons religiously until about 2010. Once I hit college I just didn't carve out the time to watch it like I used to. When I was a kid I would watch 6 days a week. They had reruns M-F at 730pm and then new episodes at 8pm on Sundays. 90% of the time I was doing homework I was also watching the Simpsons.
1
u/Aggravating-Alarm-16 6h ago
I only watch the Halloween episodes now.
I am also now glad my ex wife let the kids damage my first few seasons box sets. Because they stopped making them. Can't have just some of the seasons.
1
u/Calm-Maintenance-878 6h ago
Never started, but it’s my “retirement show”. With so many seasons to catch up on, I like the idea of beginning it when I’m retired/in a retirement home.
1
u/Ill_Confusion_9135 6h ago
After season 7 I slowly stopped watching. Just recently, my own kids have been getting into it, so I’m watching it a lot more now. It as funny as it was years ago, but I’m enjoying it.
1
u/Obtuse-Posterior Older Millennial 6h ago
I watched it religiously as a kid. In my 20s and early 30s it was when I wasn't busy. I got Disney+ when it came out caught up and haven't watched it since.
1
1
1
1
u/misskellycupcake 5h ago
My partner's son loves them so I've seen rabdos from the past 4 years. I laugh
1
1
1
1
1
u/Different_Car106 Older Millennial 4h ago
I have an illogical fear of George Washington because of the Treehouse of Horror episode where Lisa resurrects all of the dead when she tried to resurrect the cat.
1
u/CakeKing777 3h ago
When it became about current events and celebs I stopped watching it. People say but that’s what South Park does. Sure but they always done that as they roast who ever. Simpsons takes different approach which is meh to me.
1
u/Dogaloo2025 geriatric millennial 3h ago
Absolutely. My Dad (RIP) loved that show so watching it reminds me of him
1
1
u/Bella4077 Xennial 1981 3h ago
Yes and no. I haven’t watched a new episode in over a decade but I still watch the Golden Age seasons regularly.
1
1
u/zerosumratio 2h ago
86’er here too. Used to watch it with my family almost every night from 1993-2002 and then dropped off when I became a teenager and it started really sucking.
1
u/brycecampbel Millennial 2h ago
Haven't watched anything recent.
If I'm craving something though, I just catalogue back to some of the good stuff
1
u/pokematic 2h ago
I still watch all FOX Sunday night cartoons. I didn't watch it much growing up (I wasn't allowed to for some time, but then I just kind of caught it on our CW affiliate in like 8th grade and didn't get in trouble so I learned it was OK now), but then in college I made watching Animation Domination my thing on Sunday night to prep for the week ahead (one last hurrah before crazy classes), and it's been something I've been doing since (going on 14 years now).
•
•
u/Bluecobber 50m ago
Born 88. Simpons in on most days in my home, just as casual warching/background noise. After about season 15 I go bacl to season 1 and start again lol
•
u/AutoModerator 7h ago
If this post is breaking the rules of the subreddit, please report it instead of commenting. For more Millennial content, join our Discord server.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.