Remember cross-section jokes on The Simpsons? Fun little bonus gags whenever the show wanted to do an interesting camera move? Whether it was Shiva running the core of the planet-
Aliens buried next to a wishing well-
Or between the floors of the house-
There was always a cure little bonus, a blink-and-you'll-miss-it joke that's there to keep the audience glued to their sets, watching episodes over and over again. A perfect microcosm of the densely-layered comedy of the show at its best.
It also represented a lot of work on the part of the show's entire creative staff. Work that the creators of the modern Simpsons aren't at all interested in doing. Here are two examples of cutaway shots from the more recent Simpsons. First, a bit from the opening credits-
What's in the attic? An "I didn't do it" T-Shirt, a small version of the giant stone head, I suppose the joke being that it's impossible to put it up there. Also one of those fake Furbies. and that's it for references and Easter eggs.
On the next floor is grandpa taking a bath. Which, from a 'humour' standpoint, isn't really much of anything. More significantly, there's just a brown bar between the floors, with no attempt at a joke.
Notice anything funny even being attempted this time? Of course not! I mean, I suppose it`s interesting that the various pieces of debris are breaking out of the 3D space of the Simpsons universe, falling 'around' the floor rather than through it. That's more likely the result of lazy animating than an attempt at humour, though.
Then they land on the couch, with nothing humourous landing around them. Because why bother? If this sequence weren't inept enough, check out this cutaway from a subsequent episode-
This is what contempt for an audience looks like. There is literally nothing between the floors. The artists took time from their schedules to draw and animate the absence of a joke. There has to be someone out there who cares about the Simpsons, doesn't there? Young, hungry, non-sociopathic writers who'll actually stay until 3AM if that's what it takes to put a quality episode together?
At this point, literally anything would be better than what they're putting out.
Aliens buried next to a wishing well-
Or between the floors of the house-
There was always a cure little bonus, a blink-and-you'll-miss-it joke that's there to keep the audience glued to their sets, watching episodes over and over again. A perfect microcosm of the densely-layered comedy of the show at its best.
It also represented a lot of work on the part of the show's entire creative staff. Work that the creators of the modern Simpsons aren't at all interested in doing. Here are two examples of cutaway shots from the more recent Simpsons. First, a bit from the opening credits-
What's in the attic? An "I didn't do it" T-Shirt, a small version of the giant stone head, I suppose the joke being that it's impossible to put it up there. Also one of those fake Furbies. and that's it for references and Easter eggs.
On the next floor is grandpa taking a bath. Which, from a 'humour' standpoint, isn't really much of anything. More significantly, there's just a brown bar between the floors, with no attempt at a joke.
Notice anything funny even being attempted this time? Of course not! I mean, I suppose it`s interesting that the various pieces of debris are breaking out of the 3D space of the Simpsons universe, falling 'around' the floor rather than through it. That's more likely the result of lazy animating than an attempt at humour, though.
Then they land on the couch, with nothing humourous landing around them. Because why bother? If this sequence weren't inept enough, check out this cutaway from a subsequent episode-
This is what contempt for an audience looks like. There is literally nothing between the floors. The artists took time from their schedules to draw and animate the absence of a joke. There has to be someone out there who cares about the Simpsons, doesn't there? Young, hungry, non-sociopathic writers who'll actually stay until 3AM if that's what it takes to put a quality episode together?
At this point, literally anything would be better than what they're putting out.
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