Everybody knows who they are. You’d literally have be living in a cave - outside of the local broadcasting regions - not to. For the last 15 years, audiences all over the world, from here to Outer Mongolia are on first name terms with them. They’re on our posters, our TV guides, our pencil cases and for the more die-hard fan, our novelty beverage conveyances. They are The Simpsons *queue theme tune*.

Whether we like them or not, these funny yellow critters are everywhere. Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie have become household names. Their journey from their humble beginnings in the 1980s as crude animated sketches to fill a gaping hole in the Fox Television prime time schedule to their multimillion dollar empire of merchandise, endorsements and, of course, television episodes, has given this all-American filmily the glitz and glamour A-list celebrities could only dream of. But enough of the promotion! For those of you living in those aforementioned caves, ‘let me break it down’. What is the show actually about?

Well, that’s not as simple to answer as it was, perhaps, back in 1994. Those were the glorious days of the Simpsons doing what they did best- and that’s pretty much nothing. Matt Groening, the shows creator, had an emphatic interest in the Routine American Family. (Now, the only RAF I know sports a whole lot of death defying airborne manoeuvres and international chaos) an in that case, ‘The Simpsons’ certainly does deliver. When the show hit America’s airwaves in 1989 it wasn’t long before we, here in the UK, were going crazy for it.

Set in Springfield, USA (a town VERY few fans can actually locate logically), Homer and Marge and their 2.3 children Bart, Lisa and Maggie have a go at family life. In the beginning, Homer holds down a blue collar job at the local Nuclear Power Plant as Marge heads the household and looks after Maggie. Bart and Lisa attend the local elementary school. It all sounds pretty normal and upstanding until the cracks in this perfect family portrait start to appear. Each episode tests the strength of Homer and Marge’s marriage, houses the introduction of a new character (that we’ll never see again), sees a major event through to an unpredictable resolution and it is said, each show remarks ironically on the American way of life. More recent episodes feature cameos by celebrities including Michael Jackson, Britney Spears, The Who and many more, in even wackier situations.

As an extreme fan of the show, I would have to say, the early to mid seasons of ‘The Simpsons’ show the family at its best with homely, yet outlandish and entirely fantastical storylines that work on screen and become as realistic as the big bucks the show’s producers are earning! And rightly so. Whether a devotee of drama or a fan of foolishness, ‘The Simpsons’ attracts the viewer on so many different levels.

Politically, ‘The Simpsons’ is able to stand proudly on the world stage, with its comments on American democracy, capitalism, commercialism, homophobia and xenophobia. Artistically, the show has moved from strength to strength with the employment of skilled animators and Foley artists. Financially, yes, the show’s producers are having a great time, but they’re not the only ones- comically, That Family will keep us laughing, enriched and fulfilled for years to come.

http://www.thesimpsons.com