A Rear View of the Shark

Norbizness is really onto something here. I had never thought of there being a huge dropoff after one particular season; I had always assumed that the decline in quality had been gradual and episodic. But the dropoff between seasons 8 and 9 is really striking. Admittedly, some of my judgments are eccentric; gimmicky or not, I think Burns, Baby Burns and (especially) Itchy, Scratchy and Poochy are terrific episodes. And there are a few real duds; in addition to Norbizness’ choices, Mountain of Madness is as dull and unfunny as any show from the current season. But the Mary Poppins parody and John Waters guest slots are unassailable classics, and Homer vs. the 18th Amendment one of the best ever. (“I’m not going to lie to you Marge……Well, goodbye!”) And even the middling ones have a few good scenes. But 9 is remarkably bad. The 2 Skinners would be my j.t.s. vote if I were picking an episode, but there are many that aren’t really significantly better. The Last Temptation of Krust, I think. is the only one that would crack the top 10 from the pretty-good-not-great previous season, and that’s marginal. One of the best sequences–the Paint Your Wagon parody–is wasted on a clip show. The only thing preventing it from exemplifying everything wrong with the show’s decline is the lack of an international trip. Jesse’s emphasis on guest stars with nothing to do seems correct. (As for the Frankie Muniz question, this will have to be left to my co-bloggers, who unlike me find Malcolm in the Middle to have an aesthetic effect preferable to and different than standing next to a jackhammer without headphones for 30 minutes.)