10 Worst Things FOX Did To The Simpsons
7. So. Much. Merchandise.
It might seem harsh to criticise Fox for the amount of Simpsons merchandise considering how much cool stuff there is out there. However, they’ve clearly created a business model where merchandise is superior to everything else, and in some ways that may be responsible for the decline in episode quality.
When Disney acquired Fox’s properties, the four big animations were naturally sized up together. Bob’s Burgers, Family Guy, American Dad, and The Simpsons were all looked at in terms of what they brought to the table. One of the takeaways was that episode quality didn’t necessarily feature very highly. The rumblings around the business suggested it was total sales that are most important to Disney.
The fact that Disney likes money shouldn’t come as a surprise.
American Dad, with viewing figures so low it had already been contracted out away from Fox, also rakes in the least merchandise: it’s very vulnerable. However Bob’s Burgers, considered the most reliable cartoon at the moment, is second lowest on merchandise. If Disney’s priority is indeed simply money, Bob’s Burgers might not be long for this world.
Fox’s ruthless Simpsons merchandising might have kept it alive then, but at the cost of turning it into a parody of itself.