Matt Groening says that The Simpsons is inspired by British humour...?

Question

But I thought that a lot of Americans don't 'get' British humour. So how comes they like The Simpsons too? Or do they laugh at different points than we do?

Answer 1

Odd, considerng how much funnier Monty Python, Red Dwarf and Benny Hill etc. are than the Simpsons.... I think it's just wishful thinking on Matt's part.

Answer 2

The Simpsons is neither British nor humourous. Madness, yes, but humourous, only from time to time.

Answer 3

British humor is often cerebral and understated, whereas American humor is often too obvious (like if they don't hit you in the face with it, you won't know it's funny).

For instance, the play "Noises Off" was hysterically funny because of the situations. In fact, it was one of my favorites. But, when it was made into a movie in America, Carol Burnett was in it and, at least in the TV spots, she overdid everything, rather than let the situations stand on their own. I never saw the movie because of that.

I've always preferred British humor. It's just have problems understanding some of the accents.