(The Walt Disney Company/Image Group LA)
Disney’s D23 Expo, the company’s biennial celebration of corporate consolidation, is in full swing down in Anaheim, and unlike last month at Comic-Con there’s some actual Simpsons news!
PANEL PIECES
Simpsons Sickos Hire “Sickos” Artist
Earlier today at San Diego Comic-Con, Simpsons producers announced the opening segment of this Halloween’s annual “Treehouse of Horror” episode will be guest animated by The Onion‘s legendary editorial cartoonist Stan Kelly.
A recent South Park episode making fun of President Trump caused a quite a stir, so it’s no surprise to see The Simpsons jumping on the bandwagon and “getting political.” And there’s nobody better to tackle the subject than Kelly, whose name is synonymous with political cartoons. A fixture in the pages of America’s finest news source, Kelly has been using his scathing wit to lambast anti-American elitists, scheming foreigners, selfish hussies, today’s no-good teens, and beeping gizmos since 1966. In recent years, “Sickos Guy,” a character originally from this cartoon, has “gone viral” as a “meme,”* perhaps due to his personification of today’s sick, modern times.
*Latest fad.
It is unclear if Simpsons producers were aware of Kelly’s clear distaste for the show, as expressed in this 2015 comic. Nevertheless, Kelly will soon join an illustrious group of cartoonists and animators who have been featured on the show, including Gary Larson, Roz Chast, Art Spiegelman, Eric Goldberg, Don Hertzfeldt, Alison Bechdel, Daniel Clowes, Bill Plympton, and Matt Groening. [Variety]
D23 Debrief
The Walt Disney Company recently held its biennial D23 convention celebrating Disney and its various properties, which thanks to corporate consolidation and a lack of antitrust enforcement also includes The Simpsons! Here’s a roundup of all the Simpsons-related stuff.
Simpsons Devotees’ Dreams Dashed by Disappointing Disney D23 Disaster
(The Walt Disney Company)
On Friday, The Simpsons held its second-ever panel at Disney’s D23 Expo, moderated by voice actress Yeardley Smith. A press release for the panel touted “a surprise so shocking it can’t even be announced in press release form!” Simpsons simps hoping for a big announcement of some kind – a new movie? A spin-off? A new game? The Ullman shorts? Cancellation??? – unfortunately had their dreams denied. Here’s a recap of the event.
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NEWS BRIEFS: Comic-Con 2014
The creator of The Simpsons shows off his sweet dance moves, the crew dashes the hopes of Comic-Con attendees, Homer chokes, Bob from Bob’s Burgers flies, and a showrunner becomes a lawbreaker.
- Witness the raw acting talent of Matt Groening as he interacts with a hologram version of Homer. [YouTube]
- A couple of of the questions from the audience at the Simpsons panel seemed a wee bit hostile:
Is there any way to inject fresh blood into the series? “No!” we’re told. But Matt explains that no-one ever leaves the show once they’ve joined the series.
The next young fan asks if The Simpsons is ever going to end? There are claps as Matt says the show is “going to be around for a while”. “We’ve got two years to run it into the ground and ten years before it ends,” he jokes.
When one of the most-asked questions about your show is about when it’s ending, maybe it’s a sign you’ve worn out your welcome? [Digital Spy]
- Maybe it’s funnier in context, but I’m a little baffled someone somewhere decided this scene where Homer struggles to breathe as Lisa helplessly watches was hilarious enough to show at Comic-Con. [YouTube]
- Here’s some footage from the upcoming Simpsons/Family Guy crossover featuring a surprise cameo from none other than Bob Belcher… which is no longer a surprise, sorry. [Entertainment Weekly]
Season 19: More Shit
Despite reports to the contrary, the next season is looking to be a continuation of the death spiral that was the past two seasons, if the Simpsons panel at Comic-Con is any indication. A look at what’s to come:
- Yet another Nelson episode: Really? Again? Who could have imagined that there would be so many goddamn episodes exploring the emotional life of the kid who says “haw haw?”
- Another slam at the on-screen FOX advertising bugs:
The panel was brought to a close with a clip from the upcoming season’s Halloween episode. In it, Marge is decorating cupcakes that look like jack-o’-lanterns. She pokes fun at the fact that Halloween “was last week,” but at the Simpsons’ house they’re still celebrating (a nod to the fact that the Halloween episodes never air on Halloween). While she’s speaking, the American Idol “bug” pops up on screen. Marge is upset by this, grabs her Dust Buster and sucks the logo up. She tries to start speaking again, but the Fox Sports “bug” pops up and a bunch of mini-football players run out. Marge kills them with bug spray. Next, 24 (along with a mini-Jack Bauer), Family Guy (with mini-Peter Griffin) and House bugs (with mini-Dr. House) appear. Marge grabs Jack and sticks him to the fridge with a magnet. Next, she “blends” Peter to death with a cappuccino frother. Lastly, she grabs Dr. House, sticks him in the microwave, and blows him up. Cut to the family sitting at the dining room table and Marge walking in with fresh baked bread. “Dinner is served,” says Marge. She slices off a piece of bread to reveal the various body parts of all these guys spelling out “Treehouse of Terror XVII.”
OK, it was kinda funny when Homer ate Joe Millionaire, but this is comedy cancer.
- More character returns: This time it’s Lurleen Lumpkin, the country singer Homer managed, and Sideshow Bob’s brother Cecil, following in the footsteps of such other pointless Jean-era returning characters as Homer’s Mother, Bob the RV salesman, Artie Ziff, and The Guy Who Originally Owned The Dog.
- Al Jean is going to remain showrunner forever: Says No Homers Club poster elephant6rawk, who was there and asked them if they plan on replacing Jean as guy in charge of the show any time soon. There is no hope for The Simpsons.
[IGN]
Tidbits From The Paley Television Festival
- Jon Bon Jovi was going to guest star, but he backed out because “the writers had his character covered with melted cheese at one point and insult Richie Sambora at another point in the script.”
- The Beatles don’t like talking about The Beatles.
- Matt Groening authorized a Bart Simpson asthma inhaler.
- Executive Producer Tim Long: “America doesn’t love Gil.” So why would you base an entire episode around him?
[Zap2it]