A converted sceptic

Converted by family’s charms

THE SCEPTIC

Claire Egan

SSSSSSHHHHH! I dare not say it too loudly for fear of risking the derision of my super cool contemporaries, but folks, I must admit I have never been a Simpsons fan. While my declaration is hardly of seismic proportions, the fact that Simpsons mania has swept the globe and I have managed to remain immune to the charms of the Great Yellow Ones is noteworthy in itself.

I could suggest that it is due to my anti-cartoon moral and ethical principles, which have prevented me from viewing the Springfield quintet and their eclectic cohorts. However, the simple fact of the matter is I never ‘got into’ watching The Simpsons. My first brush with Bart and Co came way back in the ‘90s, when in our primary school a number of classes had to audition for the opportunity to perform the ‘Bartman’ dance in our local St Patrick’s Day parade. Needless to say, I was not picked and so began a silent cold war stand-off with the Springfield family which has continued for the past two decades.

While my friends and siblings viewed the series on a regular basis, I looked away. I failed to fall for the roguish charms of Bart and the idiotic antics of Homer and any attempts to settle down and watch the show ended in failure. A myriad of ‘experts’  claim it is the best animated series ever, a clever satire laced with humour and a sharp analysis of contemporary US life. And yes, while I acknowledge these facts, despite my best efforts at watching patiently in order to chortle at the misdemeanours of Homer, rejoice in the incoherent mumbling of baby Maggie (yes, I know she is a baby and cannot yet talk), marvel at the ingenuity of Lisa and attempt to forgive Marge for putting up with her lazy slob of a husband  – I just couldn’t do it!

And so, it was with a mix of curiosity and bemusement that I popped along last week to see this much-hyped flick. An environmental disaster has befallen Springfield and, yes you guessed it, Homer is the root cause of it. President Schwarzenegger encases the city within a dome, out of which the Simpsons escape. And so begins a frantic escapade in which Homer must redeem himself, save Springfield, resurrect his marriage and regain the admiration (if any) of his offspring! Phew...All of which has to be done in the space of 90 minutes! The theme is coherent, there is humour aplenty and the gags are multi-layered, appealing on so many levels to your average five-year-old to 50-year-old.

As a movie, I acknowledge its merits, applaud the witty script and satire of the production and appreciate the contemporary socio-economic and political analysis provided by The Simpsons. However, as for The Simspons television series, I doubt that I will be scheduling my Sky box planner to catch America’s finest in the weeks and months ahead. And, while I run the risk of being labelled ‘un-cool’, well you can – in the words of Bart himself – ‘Eat My Shorts’.