Eoin Butler: writer, journalist and Mayoman of the Year
Tripping Along The Ledge
Blog
THE SIMPSONS COME TO IRELAND
The Simpsons premiered their Irish special at a screening in the Lighthouse Cinema in Smithfield this morning. The episode was slightly better than I had expected, but only because my expectations were very, very low.
It’ll air on Sky One tomorrow but, if you can’t wait that long, I can reveal that:
1. There are appearances from Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová. Who’d ever have thought the lead singer from The Frames would one day guest star on the Simpsons?
2. In the Q.&A. afterwards executive producer James L. Brooks mentioned that it takes about a year to make a Simpsons episode. It shows. The Ireland depicted is a prosperous country with a confident, optimistic population.
3. It’s unclear where O’Flanagan’s Pub (which Homer and Abe are tricked into buying) is supposed to be located. On the one hand, drinks are priced in euros. But when the pub is raided at the end (after Homer allows patrons to smoke) the police are wearing PSNI uniforms.
4. There was a joke about Kathy Ireland which no one laughed at, presumably because none of us had any idea who Kathy Ireland is.
5. Despite having a slightly more enlightened depiction of Ireland than in previous episodes, most of the cliches you’d expect are featured nonetheless: pubs, drunkenness, the Blarney Stone, Lucky Charms etc. Then again, as an Irish writer who was suffering from a crippling hangover, I was in no position to lecture anyone about perpetuating stereotypes(!)
March 16th, 2009 at 6:40 pm
Hate to say it, but the simpsons hasn’t been good in about ten years.
March 17th, 2009 at 12:00 am
Matt…Groening?
I’d rather watch some funny stereotypes than a cringey take on modern Ireland with Glenn Hansard. Remember Mr Plough, season six I think? That was their high watermark. Things slowly ebbed away from there.
March 17th, 2009 at 2:28 am
My favourite episodes are Monorail and Rosebud (the one on which Mr Burns loses Bobo the bear, symbol of his lost youth and innocence). Both flawless, despite far too many reruns.
I think the show lost it’s way when the writers started treating the Simpsons as cartoon characters, rather than a real family audience actually cared about.
March 17th, 2009 at 9:20 am
I met an american girl recently who wanted me to say the “they’re always after me lucky charms” line, I’d like to tell you I didn’t do it, but sex is sex and I’m not that proud
March 17th, 2009 at 1:50 pm
The Hank Scorpio episode, season 8 I think, was the high point for me, also the very early episode called ‘Daredevil Bart’ or something similar is a favourite. It’s death is well overdue.
March 17th, 2009 at 10:57 pm
@ ItWasMuyda (whose email address i can see) – but you drew the line at telling Israeli girls you were Jewish… why!?
March 18th, 2009 at 2:03 pm
Simpsons – the greatest slide in quality since Stevie Wonder
March 18th, 2009 at 3:42 pm
I suppose you can quote all the Hebrew scripture you want but theres no blagging your heritage when you get back to the bedroom 🙂
March 19th, 2009 at 12:33 pm
@ Peter81 – or Tomas Brolin!
March 23rd, 2009 at 3:12 am
There was a part of the episode where the spoken dialogue was:
Abe: I just had a nightmare, that I was back with your mother!
Homer: Oh, how I miss her.
… but the subtitles read:
Abe: I just had a nightmare, that I was in England!
Homer: Oh, how I hate them.
I guess they had second thoughts and redubbed that scene, but forgot to redo the subtitles.
August 10th, 2009 at 12:29 am
Awww – c’mon. Don’t diss The Simpsons. It’s alot better than watching the News!! It’s funny and smart and not annoying. How could you ask for anything more? It’s not Shakespeare folks… don’t expect it to be.
November 28th, 2011 at 6:01 pm
hey irishmen, take it easy1 have ya’ll seen the simpsons coming to italy? we are all a bunch of mafiosi waiting for a reveange, listening to opera and the coliseum is in the half of the countryside. stereotypes..and the italian-americans in the serie? fat tony, the boss, and luigi, the chef that puts every kind of s–t in his pizza ans spaghetti. it’s all to laugh about
December 28th, 2011 at 4:16 am
You dirty fucking micks don’t understand real humor. Name any TV Show that has come out of Ireland and become a worldwide phenomenon…actually name ANYTHING people even know about YE OLE Emerald Isle…other than the fact that you’re all a pack of booze guzzling, potato eating gypsies you couldn’t even trust with your mommas coin purse…Ya fooookin Pikey lovin Paddies. And YOU FUCKERS weren’t supposed to get the Kathy Ireland joke. It was meant for AMERICANS – and most of us know who Kathy Ireland is. Now go back to writing what you know about…drunken bar brawls – four leaf clovers – and fuckin Leprechauns.
January 19th, 2012 at 5:54 pm
Hold your horses there boko. Mick hater. Just because you can’t see anything outside your own country doesn’t mean that we don’t have any good TV shows in Ireland or made about Ireland. Maybe you didn’t hear about a thing called Father Ted over there across the water. And as for your patronising, ignorant and insulting assault on Irish life and culture, your clearly out of your depth. Fighting, clovers and leprechauns. You ignorant fool, Americans love to put us in that bag all the fucking time. I for one am sick of it. I won’t even try to explain the amount of films, plays, novels and everything else about this country has produced for the world to an ignorant eejit like you. (Sorry that’s Irish slang for a gob shite). If you did watch the episode you would have seen James Joyce mentioned and one of his best pieces of work Ulysses. One of the best books of the 20th century literature. Or Francis Beacon or Frank McCourt, W B. Yeats and his brother Jack B. Yeats. George Bernard Shaw. There’s so many writers, poets and painters that I could mention. That you probably don’t know or care about because your stupid. Not all of Americans are stupid but its people like you who give your country a bad name outside of America. Just shut your fat mouth up. You loud, fat, stupid, gun wielding, inconsiderate wanker.
March 13th, 2012 at 4:21 am
Hey asshole. That was the EXACT response I was hoping to get out of you. HAHAHA “I FOR ONE AM SICK OF IT”. “And as for your patronising, ignorant and insulting assault on Irish life and culture, your clearly out of your depth” HAHAHAHA Did my comment really get to you that badly? Boy you fuckers are more pathetic than I thought. Talking about Ulysses and other shit from 100 years ago…like anyone gives a shit. “One of the best books of the 20th century?” Oh really? Micks can read and write like other humans? I assumed you were all born on a barstool and forced to have sex with your drunken fathers…Go drink some whiskey and get molested by Father Ted you inbred Irish monkey. I’m sure that will help you through you’re time of need. And I over simplified because all the queer ass FOOOKIN PADDIES on this blog are over simplifying americans. Of course the Simpsons are going to be cliched when it comes to Ireland. THAT’s WHAT MAKES IT FUNNY. Just like you leprechaun sized fuckers would be cliched if you were doing a bit about America. And just because I like to hate on you dirty micks doesn’t mean I’m not educated. Quite the contrary. OF COURSE I’m going to be cliched. Don’t dish it out if you can’t take it. Dish out the potatoes that is. Does your family live in a caravan? Haha you’re all a pack of useless gypsies. Next time I need a ripe potato or a pot o gold I’ll give you a shout.
March 13th, 2012 at 5:03 am
You’re commenting on a three year old blog entry. I get an email every time someone comments on my blog. Other than me, no one will ever see what you’ve written here.
You should for a walk outside. Listen to the birds singing. Smell the flowers. I’m sorry your life is so shit.