The List: #9 The Simpsons

#9
Number of Seasons (To Date): 19
Years Active: 1989 - Present
Network: FOX

The Simpsons is probably the most quotable show ever, and to prove it, I will put a quote at the end of every sentence. "You gave both dogs away?! You know how I feel about giving!" The show has been on for 20 years, and while it has declined in the last 7 years or so, it was near perfection for the first 10 years or so. "Poke the monster with a stick! Tuppens a jab! Come on, queue up lads!" Some of the greatest comedic stories of the last quarter century have happened in Matt Groening's Springfield, USA. "Don't call me Mr. Scorpion, Homer. My name is Mr. Scorpio. But don't call me that either."

The Simpson family, led by the moronic Homer, is partially based on creator Groening's own family. "You've been rubbing it in my nose since I got here! Your family is better than my family, your beer comes from farther away than my beer, you and your son like each other, your wife's butt is higher than my wife's butt! You make me sick!" I don't know what that was like for him as a child, but his family became a gold mine in his adult years. "Excuse me, Mr. Hutz. Are you a shyster?" Homer the simple-minded, Marge the frustrated homemaker, Bart the troublemaker, Lisa the misunderstood genius and Maggie the baby seem to be wacky adventure prone; every week, something bizarre tends to happen. "Hello, Jerry? Homer Simpson. Remember last month when I paid back that loan? Well now I need YOU to do a favor for ME." They have been on every continent except for Antarctica, been targets of a homicidal maniac, saved the career of Krusty the Klown multiple times, and have been at the center of a murder investigation. "What? How dare you! If I ever find out who this is, I'll staple a flag to your butt and mail you to Iran!"

The series satirizes American life and morals. "Bart, you're the closest thing to a man in my life...and that's so depressing, I think I'm gonna cry." With maybe one or two exceptions (like Ned Flanders), the entire city of Springfield is morally bankrupt. "Oh, and you must find the jade monkey before the next full moon." Most characters are based on archetypes, such as the teacher who is jaded with the system, corrupt politicians, the town drunk and the evil businessman. "But sir, we found the jade monkey. It was in your glove compartment." But the characters are far from one-dimensional; these archetypes are used as a launching point for characterization, but characters are fleshed out far beyond their initial joke. "And the ice scrapers and the road maps?"

The Simpsons is a cornerstone of American pop culture. "They were there too, sir." Few other shows have gained as huge a following for the right reasons as this series. "Excellent. Everything is falling into place." For about 10 years, The Simpsons presented us with some of the most intelligent and biting satire on TV. "The only monster here is the gambling monster that has enslaved your mother! I call him Gamblor and its time to snatch your mother from his neon claws!"

Up next: #8...