Thoughts & Things

Simpsons Love

My favourite show in the world is The Simpsons. It may not be what it used to be, but those early seasons are the highest quality of animated comedy that TV will probably ever bring us. I have actually been watching it for longer than I can remember. When I was two, my mother was pregnant with my younger sister, whom I was allowed to name (this was a task I took very seriously). I apparently initially asked to name her Maggie (although this was not allowed, and I eventually settled on Emily). Some of my earliest memories are of watching The Simpsons.

Honestly, this is one of those shows that I will always have a special connection to. My dad wasn't always around (military) but when he was watching The Simpsons with him was one of my favourite things to do. I know that between the two of my parents, my dad was the bigger Simpsons fan, and so some of my favourite childhood memories with him are just of watching the show together. I can also remember the show being really important to my mental well being. I have always been the type to need to heal with laughter. Whenever I had had a hard day, whenever I felt sad, I knew my favourite cartoon would be there for me. I even recall using it to heal my grief when people or pets passed away.

As an adult, The Simpsons still has that significance to me. It's there for me when I don't want a person to be. When I need to be comforted alone, it fits me perfectly. It works beautifully to cope with the stress of adult life. At the end of a long day, it's wonderful to just settle in and hear Homer tell the doctor to remember his hippopotamus oath or Bart imagining washing himself with a stick. Just seeing my favourite TV family do their thing makes the bad days better.

I actually started watching every single episode, in order. I am currently up to season fifteen. It is fascinating to see how the show has progressed over the years, in the visuals, the storytelling, the characters, and the jokes. It's also an absolute blast to see episodes I haven't watched in a long time, just for the sake of hearing jokes I didn't get as a kid that are now hilarious to me.

The Simpsons means a lot to me as a whole, and despite its decline in quality in more recent years (and it has been thirty years since it first aired on the Tracey Ullman show, so one could certainly forgive them for the decline), it will probably always hold that special place for me.

(I have committed to blogging daily with Give It 100. This is Day Ten.)