# The Simpsons (1989)

> A long-running animated sitcom following the Simpson family and the eccentric residents of Springfield, skewering American politics, media and everyday life.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/1313

## Facts

- Seasons: 38
- Episodes: 807
- Episode runtime: 24 min
- Status: Returning Series
- Genres: animation, comedy
- Created by: Matt Groening
- Network: FOX
- Cast: Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith, Hank Azaria, Harry Shearer, Gillian Anderson, Johnny Cash
- TMDB rating: 8.6/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096697/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: brisk
- Intensity: mild
- Complexity: accessible
- Violence: mild
- Tone: irreverent, satirical, warm, absurdist, sardonic

## What critics say

Widely regarded as a pop culture landmark whose early seasons are its high point, with later seasons seen as diminished in wit and freshness.

## Synopsis

The Simpsons (1989-present) is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for FOX, one of television's longest-running scripted series with 38 seasons and more than 800 episodes. Homer Simpson, voiced by Dan Castellaneta, is a bumbling safety inspector at the Springfield nuclear power plant, and his wife Marge (Julie Kavner), son Bart (Nancy Cartwright), daughter Lisa (Yeardley Smith) and baby Maggie share his household. Each episode is a self-contained comic story built from everyday family mishaps, workplace blunders, school scrapes and small-town schemes, all unfolding in the fictional average American town of Springfield with its enormous supporting cast. Voice actor Hank Azaria and Harry Shearer, who plays neighbor Ned Flanders and power plant tycoon Mr. Burns, populate the town with recurring eccentrics. The show's engine is the comic friction between a loving but flawed family and the institutions around it, while its satire takes sharp aim at politics, media and American culture. Its tone is irreverent yet warm, dense with quotable pop culture references and celebrity guest appearances. Fans of Futurama, Family Guy, King of the Hill and South Park will find resonance in its animated satire. Because the story runs in the present, its air years frame the setting, and it remains a defining touchstone of animated television.

## Shows like The Simpsons

- [Animaniacs (1993)](https://ember.film/tv/72)
- [Married... with Children (1987)](https://ember.film/tv/4027)
- [South Park (1997)](https://ember.film/tv/2077)
- [Frasier (1993)](https://ember.film/tv/3282)
- [The Loud House (2016)](https://ember.film/tv/59790)
- [Duckman (1994)](https://ember.film/tv/1181)
- [SpongeBob SquarePants (1999)](https://ember.film/tv/359)
- [Family Guy (1999)](https://ember.film/tv/1350)
- [Shin Chan (1992)](https://ember.film/tv/28240)
- [The Munsters (1964)](https://ember.film/tv/1610)

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