"From what we're told, the teasers appear to come in at least two flavors. One of the teasers is simply Homer asleep on a couch. Another appears to be a riff on SUPERMAN movies. Both teasers indicate a July 27, 2007 release date. Both teasers are said to be rather short (30 seconds or so)."
I then said the "Superman" ad was real and not an April fools gag as the AICN story said it might be.
I saw Ice Age 2 tonight, and the version of the teaser that was playing has an announcer saying some stuff and "Coming in 2007!" with the Superman logo flying by, then it zooms out and you see Homer sitting on the couch saying "I forgot what I was supposed to say." The title logo comes up, then the words Coming in 2007 and Homer then says "Oh, we better get started."
Simple. Look at people who produce shows in general. Tim Minear is a showrunner who has been attached to many shows that have enough material to last decades. Wonderfalls, Firefly, The Inside (2-3 workable version mind you), Angel, etc. The test of a long lasting show is if it's able to reinvent itself and still work. The Simpsons has gone through many different writers over the years and has always been reinventing itself. Even seasons 1-3 are very different than 4-10... the current seasons just aren't up to par in terms of creative jokes or satire. Clever cultural references and the like are thrown out the window for a simple stab at Paris Hilton or a throwaway guest appearance by Britney Spears or Blink 182.
Remember when guest stars who were famous didn't always play themselves? Helen Hunt didn't try to marry moe... and Sara Gilbert didn't become Bart's crush.
The problem is not that The Simpsons writers have run out of ideas... there's really no way to run out of ideas with satire. There is always something new to poke fun at. The problem is that the writers rely on cheap laughs or simply recycle older story ideas. It's more a problem of being lazy or stooping to lowest level to make a joke work.
If the movie uses the current writers I'll be a little worried, but if thought and care is put into the production I'll be there opening night.
I agree with the person who suggested that James L. Brooks should be involved in this movie. I think he should be heavily involved in it, actually. One of the most fascinating bits of information that I've learned from the Simpsons DVDs is that Brooks was often the person that people relied on for big emotional pay-offs. For example, in the episode where Marge got mad at Homer and threw him out of the house, Brooks came up with what he says to get her forgiveness, and when Lisa had to say goodbye to the teacher that she had a crush on, Brooks came up with the touching ending.
He has always been great at giving the show an emotional centre, and in my opinion, the movie cannot be done right without that. I'm not saying it has to be really sentimental (some of the episodes are TOO mushy for me, like "Old Money", for example), but I think the movie should have a good balance of clever humour and genuine heart like the best episodes of the show (many of which occurred in its earlier seasons). On both The Simpsons and in his movies, Brooks has repeatedly proven that he can write moving and intelligent (rather than corny and manipulative) emotional dialogue better than almost anyone, and I think The Simpsons movie needs that kind of dialogue to succeed and please the show's fans.
I also really hope the movie gets done by an all-star group of writers from the show's best eras, like John Swartzwelder, John Vitti, Jeff Martin, George Meyer, Bill Oakley & Josh Weinstein, and Al Jean & Mike Reiss. They should also get some help from Conan O'Brien, although he's probably too busy with his other gig now (unfortunately).
I definitely agree on the emotion. What makes "The Simpsons", at least the earlier seasons, stand out even today against most comedic shows like "Family Guy" and what not is its heart. There are some really both hilarious AND touching shows there. This has the potential to be a really funny but touching movie as well. Here's hoping.
I'd love to see Brad Bird involved as well. Even though his role as a consultant was part time, (I think on the commentary, it's mention that he worked one day a week for them), it's seems he had a invaluable role in giving pointers and suggestions for some great episodes.
I've been following the Simpsons movie for awhile now, although as I said earlier had no idea the teaser was coming. I do know from various things that I have read online, that the movie is being helmed by a lot of the old-guard at the Simpsons and not so much the current writing staff. I'm sure that James L. Brooks is heavily involved as are some of the other writers fondly mentioned in this thread.
The only interesting part to me:With the exceptions of Ian Maxtone-Graham and Matt Selman, they're all early season writers! The most exciting thing for me is having Brooks back in the writers' room. He gave the early season's most of their heart.
It's weird to be excited about The Simpsons again...
Aint-It-Cool-News has a scoop of what the plot might be. Very minor spoiler...
"All of the original cast, and writers, are involved. The main plot is that a goof by Homer at the power plant results in the government putting a dome over the city limits of Springfield."