It’s been longed for since the early years, and 2007 finally saw the release of The Simpsons Movie.

With an exceptional demand and incredible expectations, the question is: was it ever going to match up? Since the first crude incarnations on The Tracey Ullman Show in April 1987 and the first proper episode in December 1989, the series has gone on to become America’s longest running sitcom and animated program.

Not only that, but it’s also been inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame and won 23 Emmy Awards and 24 Annie Awards – the animated Oscars – amongst a countless list of other accolades. When the film started to gain momentum in 2001, it became a painstaking labour of love, with ideas hit back and forth for longer than a tennis veteran’s match.

Not only that, but in a move traditional of any sequel in a Hollywood, creator Matt Groening took himself, and the screenplay writing back to the same bungalow where The Simpsons was originally pitched in 1987. Getting back to his roots was essential, as the television series was running concurrently with the film throughout, with doubts already lingering if it was possible to do both.

Even when it was seemingly completed, the writers continued to change and tweak sections long into 2007, before it finally hit UK screens on July 26. As more and more people filed out from watching, it seemed that the consensus was that it was good, but not jaw dropping in brilliance.

As the DVD comes out, it’s easy to say, “What did people expect?” First off, it’s a film. It’s not twenty-ish minutes long. There was no way the concept of the TV series could be left the way it was. There had to be a longer, involved plot, and sub-characters had to be thinned, not extended, otherwise it would resemble a So Solid Cru video.

Spider Pig became a running joke and a PR goldmine before the film was even released as word spread like a, well, pig in muck, and Ned Flanders took an essential role as he provided a socially realistic look at the way the Simpsons’ would have lived in their neighbourhood on a daily basis.

The creators have already given plenty of time to individual sub-characters in episodes such as 22 Short Films About Springfield and Halloween specials, so the stories were already there for all to see.

The movie length (87 minutes) was marginally longer than previous animated comedies in the same genre; only Family Guy and Futurama’s straight-to-DVD epics was longer – by two minutes in total – so complaints from quarters about it being too short can be curtailed. After all, would you want to watch a Simpsons movie that’s as long as Titanic – and more importantly, would the children?

It could be argued that South Park and Family Guy managed to cram in a tonne of jokes into their repertoire, but the audience for such programmes are considerably older than that of The Simpsons.

Also, The Simpsons hasn’t always been purely around gags, it’s about providing well-crafted entertainment. It straddles the Disney line of providing light adult humour through double entendres without making them crude, and showing serious, real-life scenarios in different contexts that inadvertently tutor children on the world, whilst hit a nerve within older generations.

The main focus is that of a child’s loss of identity and the overriding marital struggle of Marge and Homer, in amongst political stabs, religion and lighthearted love interest, and it is this that should be looked at as the main focus of it all. As Marge realises she can’t say she loves Homer, he sits huddled in the bedroom like a child, and it’s almost impossible to not want to help them out.
                       
The reason why? The Simpsons family and friends have become part of our life. Some have not known anything else in their lives, others have been able to see it progress from the start and enjoy every moment. Homer’s foibles have been accepted and learned to be loved, and the incredible genius of Maggie have never ceased to enthral – even more so with the ongoing line of her inability to talk.

So to see this movie as just another cartoon is the wrong line entirely. See it as a chance to see the Simpsons in quite possibly the most realistic way you’ll ever see them. Personalities are able to live and breathe – look at Lisa’s love life as an example.

Matt Groening never wanted the film to be in full 3D, or with the family portrayed as superstars, as they would totally destroy the magic and character of the show. What they did instead was create something much better (besides the use of CGI) which was allowing the characters to do the talking themselves.

This movie wasn’t about a laugh-a-minute gag reel-fest, it was about encapsulating the last 20 years from crude drawing to full on film. The film was the first major chance for the creators to move them on from that first show, as (nearly) every episode comes and goes without leaving any lasting impact on their lives.

For once, the Simpson family actually had a taste of ‘real life’ as things weren’t seemingly irreversible. Homer finally saw the results of his antics, and had to grow as a character to change it. It’s these one-off specials that should be used to enrich our understanding of the people involved, as the jokes are always going to be there.