The Critic and The Simpsons

   The Simpsons was one of the greatest animated series of all time and The Critic... was not. Both shows aired on the FOX network. The Simpsons was a cartoon centering on the misadventures of the chronically dysfunctional Simpson family and the town of Springfield where they lived. Having had great success with The Simpsons, FOX was anxious to get another animated hit on the air.

   Along came The Critic. The Critic told the story of Jay Sherman, a sad sack film critic who with his paunch physique and receding hair was physically a sort of mix of film critics Siskel and Ebert. The show centered on Jay's misadventures and was basically a Simpsons wannabe. It used alot of comic language perfected on The Simpsons but... it just didn't click nearly as well.

   Wanting to promote the show, to get more people to watch it, FOX arranged for a crossover with Jay Sherman appearing on the hit The Simpsons. Simpsons creator Matt Groening was not amused by the idea. He didn't want FOX using (abusing?) his show to help promote an inferior cartoon dud (my words there, not his). He refused to work on the episode in question leaving it to the rest of the staff.

   Although I do agree with his thinking, I have to admit it did little harm. In point of fact the episode was one of the funniest I've seen, although Jay Sherman's character had little to do with that. The premise was that Springfield was having a film festival. Jay Sherman arrived to serve as a judge. The episode featured hillarious films made by Springfields various denizens. The best had to be Barney Gumble's. Barney was Springfield's resident drunk, always drinking, belching and all around inebriated. An apparently very happy character, Barney's film was a dark autobiographical look at his life, utterly different than what you would expect. The film ends with a shot of Barney lying in a gutter while his voiceover assures, "Don't cry for me 'cause I'm already dead." Wow!

   A later episode of The Simpsons also featured a quick cameo appearance from Mr. Sherman

Other Simpsons Crossover Links
The Simpsons and Cheers
The Simpsons and The Flintstones
The Simpsons and Futurama
The Simpsons and King Of The Hill
The Simpsons and The Tracey Ullman Show
The Simpsons and 24
The Simpsons and The X-Files

Links To Simpson Web Sites
New Springfield: It's a helluva town!
The Simpsons Emporium


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