The Simpsons needs no introduction. At 34 seasons and counting it is the longest-running scripted series in the history of American primetime television. If Bart Simpson aged in real time with the show, he would now be in his 40s.
As a fan of the show, I present here a few short analyses about Springfield, from the show’s dialogue to its TV ratings. All code used for this post is available on GitHub.
Ratings for The Simpsons have declined over time
You Only Move Twice aired and remains the highest scoring episode with an IMDB score of 9.3. Ratings decline steadily after season 10 but the decline has largely tapered off. The lowest scoring episode to date came in season 23 with Lisa Goes Gaga (3.9).
600+ episodes
This matrix graph visualizes each episode as an individual cell, shaded according to IMDB score. This creates a heatmap, allowing you to see trends more quickly.
Average rating by season
Here we look at the difference between episodes within each season. Early seasons have a tighter grouping of episodes, meaning they all score roughly the same. Starting in season 6 we start to see a greater spread of episodes. Season 23 has the greatest range of scores within a season (± 4.4).
Random quote
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Quotes powered by The Simpsons Quote API. A great project!
Quotes provided from the wonderful Simpsons Quote API. It's available at https://thesimpsonsquoteapi.glitch.me/quotes and it returns a random Simpsons quote, character, link to their picture, and the direction the character is facing. I've used that last tidbit to make sure the character is always facing their quote.
Simpsons no-nos
In the book Cartooning with the Simpsons the authors include this full page graphic on what specifically to avoid when drawing the head of a Simpson. It is a great example of the effect that every detail can have on an observer!
Although The Simpsons is loved by many, it is evident that the show has seen its better days. As Matt Groening, the creator of The Simpsons once said: "The problem with doing a sitcom which has lasted more than 300 episodes is you're trying not to repeat yourself, you're trying to surprise the audience, and you're trying to keep everybody who works on the show surprised. As a result, the show has gone off in some very peculiar directions."