Fall TV Preview: the Simpsons

Falling in love always has its ups and downs. The love that The Simpsons and I share has been going strong for, well, 19 years now. We have our ackward getting to know each other phase, Seasons 1 and 2, and then we shared the best years between Seasons 3 and 8. And yet, the familiar set in during Seasons 9 and 10. By Season 11, I as bored. Sure, The Simpsons still made me laugh, but I had heard the jokes before. I flirted with others. Futurama went into a coma, Family Guy came, went and came back again. But Family Guy is a slut. By Season 17, I could barely look at The Simpsons across the table at breakfast. Was I to blame? No, surely, it wasn't me. I started ignoring The Simpsons, living on the syndicated memories we had shared.

And then just as sudden as my contempt appeared, during the episode, "My Fair Laddy" to be exact, I found myself laughing during the Season 18 finale. Hmm. Maybe I am just too harsh and judgmental a lover. I went back and started watching other episodes from The Simpsons' 2006-2007 season. It was as if The Simpsons had changed; they had listened to my nagging and complaints and decided to change. And oh, did we have the best summer. The Simpsons Movie exceeded my expectations. Sure, it wasn't awesome, but I laughed and remembered that we all age and sometimes we just start to slip.

Season 19 could really bring The Simpsons and I back together.

So let's look at what we can expect. The spots for The Simpsons Season Premiere on September 23 are already airing, and Lionel Ritchie can be seen reprising "Say You, Say Me" with Homer's lyrical changes. But what FOX isn't showing us is that Stephen Colbert is also starring in this episode in which Homer hires a life coach (Colbert).