Flat is certainly what we got with both The Simpsons and King of the Hill . Okay, it's not that original an idea, but it could have worked if it were done right. Instead, every choice was beyond obvious, with each of the Simpson's off-screen personae identical to those onscreen, making it a sort of twisted Ozzie and Harriet story, with nods to The Partridge Family thrown in. King of the Hill didn't even feel like a season finale, but they've had two very big finales in the past, one with Peggy Hill and a failed parachute, the other with an exploding Megalomart. Hard to top either of those, and maybe they were wise for not trying, but in casting an assortment of country western singing stars as guest voices, the cornpone content was cranked way up high.
Some episodes are good, most are so-so.
The finale didn't even try. This leaves us with Malcolm in the Middle , the only new show in the bunch, and its first season finale. One word, Benjamin. I swear I grew up with Malcolm's family as neighbors, the dysfunctional parents with children raised by wolves terror house that exists in at least one iteration on every suburban block. Parents hate these families but kids love them because they're the one chaotic refuge they can go to and get away with everything they can't do at home.