Is this the end, or just the start?

Rating: 10/10 (15 December 2007)

Everyone, on Earth knows about The Simpsons, and everyone also knows that the series has been going a bit down hill lately. The 'newer' Simpsons is by no means bad, but when compared to the older stuff it simply doesn't hold up as well. The flaws seem to be reusing of plot lines, over and over, more jokes, but them not being thought threw as well(it's machine gun humor,get off as many gags as fast as you can, and often it doesn't work) and jumping on the band wagon on a couple of things.
The question is, how does the movie play. Does it fallow the flaws of 'new' Simpsons because the well is simply to dry, does it somehow go back to the good old days, does it end the series on a high note, or is it the last nail in the coffin, or does the series not end at all.
Well, the film doesn't swing back to the good old days, BUT it shows the 'new' style can be good if done right, very, VERY good.
Plot lines are reused like crazy in the film, heck, the Simpsons once again move to a new location for a bit, but a lot of the plot is jacked up to an over the top level, which oddly makes it feel epic in a way. This makes the plot stand out and 'seem' like something new.
The comedy style is the machine gun brand, but where the flaw was in the show with a lot of the gags being rushed and not working because of it, this time around they pull off the pace. Every joke, despite the speed of them all, pays off well. I think it's due to the shear amount of writers. Once one of them couldn't come up with any more 'fast' jokes, another one picked up the slack and they all somehow banded together and made it work.
Then there was the last flaw, the band wagon. Many 'newer' episodes dealt with issues in todays world and went along with trends going on, and often they didn't pull it off to well and came off as, well, out of place. The film deals with todays problems, but this time they thought things out, and it comes off like a really kind hearted and nice South Park bit. It works, oddly, but it still does.
So, this is NOT classic Simpsons. This is the 'newer' Simpsons, but fine polished. It shows that even though things have changed, the well isn't dry yet and the series can still work, darn well! It's obvious from the end that this is not meant to be the end of the series, but for once a lot of old school fans may not see that as a bad thing. This is a new start for the series and has raised the bar for the show.
Bravo in making the new stuff work, and yes the film is funny, smart, and quick witted. Enjoy.