Ian Maxtone-Graham

Why is Ian Maxtone-Graham so unpopular with Simpsons fans? "Tennis the Menace" and "Alone Again, Natura-diddly" were pretty good episodes, I think.

I guess because hes only wrote the last few seasons. That means basically he doesn't have any classics. I personally thing hes bot that great. He has a couple good ones though.

A Perfect Void

Well, I think you kinda answered your own question. I believe the very same people who don't like him are the same ones whoe depise those episodes. I think though for some it's not that the stories weren't carried out well or that there aren't any funny moments...it's just that they don't like the storyline in general (especially "Alone Again..."). But I would have to let them speak for themselves. I don't have strong feelings about it one way or the other.

Kevin

On 29 Sep 2001 15:39:30 -0700, [email] (Bao) wrote:

It was the Independent interview (1998) that made people on alt.tv.simpsons dislike him:

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The surprise is that not all the writers are pop culture junkies. Though a Saturday Night Live veteran, Maxtone-Graham is a literature worm (he sneaks into Shakespeare classes at UCLA), and apart from Monty Python, hates TV. "I pretty much never turn it on," he snorts, "the shows are so crappy." He had barely seen The Simpsons before he started working on it. Was this a problem? He lets out a belly laugh. "We were pitching new names for characters and I pitched the names of all three members of the Flanders family [the Simpsons' neighbours]: Ned, Rod and Todd. Everyone was looking at me like 'Tune in, eight o'clock Sundays!'"

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and more importantly:

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"Todd's supposed to be the tinier one, but that changes and so do the voices." Maxtone-Graham knows such carelessness drives "the beetle-browed people on the Internet" to distraction. They seem to have no life except The Simpsons," he complains. "They see everything as part of a vast plan, but boy, is there ever no vast plan!" The fans took particular exception to "A Star Is Burns", in which Jay Sherman from The Critic comes to judge a film festival in Springfield. "I loved that one," says Maxtone-Graham, "but they thought it broke reality or something." He shrugs. "Go figure! That's why they're on the Internet and we're writing the show."

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http://www.snpp.com/other/interviews/ian.html

-Jouni

Geez...I'd never read that. What an ass!

"Jouni Paakkinen" wrote in message news:[email]...

There's nothing wrong with that. I hate TV, too. I do watch The Simpsons, some news, occasionally SNL, and educational shows. I won't watch TV sitcoms or dramas.

You know, that's really not so wrong. It could have been written better, but I agree with the idea. I wouldn't use the term "carelessness" as the interviewer did. That indicates the spin of "something is wrong if you don't follow continuity". I disagree. There are certainly people who have no life except the Simpsons on this group. I used to be quite that way, working my Simpsons website in every spare moment away from work and sleep. There's a value to that criticism.

I particularly agree with the criticism that people see the show as "part of a vast plan", and there is no vast plan. I now have a hard time assigning the same importance to the show that some other fans do. Knowing I was wasting my life making a website (before) eventually led me to give it up (FOX shutting it down sealed the deal =)

I also liked "A Star Is Burns", and I don't think the true fans' voice is unanimous in disliking 2F31. I think his most careless and stupid statement is the last line. "That's why they're on the internet, and we're writing the show." Of course, that's intended to be a hurtful statement. Not all internet fans can be included in the group he is criticizing. I think some people understand "The Simpsons" dynamic more than others, and there are many overly obsessive people who would tie the hands of the writers. All things considered, they still make a good show. It's not what it used to be, but maybe it can become something better than it is currently. I think there are some current valid criticisms from fans meant to help, not to smack the hands of the writers with a ruler. The best criticisms seem to come from people who are willing to consider other opinions, not those who hold on to an idea for dear life and refuse to see the situation any other way. If we avoid the certain pigheadedness that was prevalent here 4 years ago, and try to learn different points of view, we are more constructive fans than the ones Maxtone-Graham criticized.

Well said. Very well said.

• mirilidium

=v= I didn't like it.

=v= When Al Jean and Mike Reiss worked for _The_Simpsons_, there were lots of really funny movie parody gags. The latest McBain flick, the upcoming _Star_Trek_ sequel, etc. Then they left to make their own show, _The_Critic_.

=v= _The_Critic_ didn't really work for me. The only thing I liked about it was the funny movie parody gags, now largely absent from _The_Simpsons_.

=v= Then we get "A Star Is Burns," designed not from a creative impulse, but to cross-promote another show. Not a good premise in any event. There was nothing along the lines of the movie parody gags, just Jay Sherman. The episode had a lot of good stuff in it, especially Barney's film, but it wasn't rich like a good _Simpsons_ episode is supposed to be. Where there was supposed to be another level of creamery buttery goodness, there was just hey, this is Jay Sherman, now laugh. Ugh. <_Jym_>

P.S.:  Just in case anyone's confused, this episode was written
not by Maxtone-Graham, nor by Jean and Reiss, but by Ken Keeler,
who I think is a fine writer who was working with a bad premise
there.  He also wrote the _Futurama_ episode that was sort
of about _Ally_McBeal_, but that was very different from
this situation and was extremely well-done.             .-.  .-.
    <_Jym_>                                            /  / /  /
  |\/\/\/|                                            /  / /  /

"Jym Dyer" wrote in message news:[email]...

I remember Matt Groening's "reservations" (underemphasis intended). I think its a bad idea, but the jokes were really quite good.

I liked all the films; Se�or Speilbergo, the beer nuts, the parody of that classic painting (the corner bar? Not sure of the name... or was that in 4F15? May have been in both episodes), all the McBain content, and other things I'm too lazy to stir up from the memory banks :)

Yeah. The original poster said that Maxtone-Graham liked 2F31, not that he wrote it. IIRC, Maxtone-Graham started in Season 8 with 4F05 (a lackluster piece of heh he hey!)

Keeler was certainly funny.

On Sun, 30 Sep 2001 16:49:03 GMT, "The Rack" wrote:

A HERETIC! LET'S PROSECUTE HIM!!!!

"H. Lee" wrote in message news:[email]...

sitcoms

Attention enemy craft! Turn around immediately, or we will be unable to prosecute you!

PS: Hey, Haynes. Wuzzup?

On Wed, 3 Oct 2001, The Rack wrote:

Don't be alarmed! Continue what you're doing! ... Aw, come on! Continue!!

/ Kristian

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|Kristian Ronge                                         |
|[email]    [email]             |
|(civil)                (skola)                         |

|d99, datateknik, KTH (Kungliga Tekniska H�gskolan)     |
|d99, Computer Science, Royal Institute of Technology   |
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I like the guy already!

"Jouni Paakkinen" wrote in message news:[email]...