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Fan Interview: Jouni Paakkinen

Copyright © The Simpsons Folder
This document is done
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Lets start with an easy one. I remember your 'Poll Page' which was a huge success, where you asked people's favorite characters, but who is your favorite character on the Simpsons and why?

I'd say my favorite character is Homer of seasons 1-4. I'm sure most of the dedicated fans have noticed the unfortunate change in his character. Homer used to a believable character, a little bit dumb, but still in the end a caring head of the household. Nowadays he is mostly a total idiot and a selfish jerk and I simply don't find his character as amusing and enjoyable as it used to be. I'm a fan of many minor characters, like Itchy and Scratchy, McBain, Frink, Kent Brockman, Comic Book Guy, etc. And I greatly miss Lionel Hutz and Troy McClure.

How did you become one of the Simpsons Archive's maintainers? How did everything start?

Around February 1998, Trissa McGettigan, the moderator of the Simpsons-L mailing list contacted me and asked if I wanted to co-moderate the list with her, and I gladly accepted the invitation. I had earlier e-mailed Gary Goldberg offering my help, since as you know, at that time most of the documents at the Archive were not maintained and something had to be done. Now that I was a part of SNPP as a Simpsons-L moderator, it was a natural move to join the maintenance of the documents too. At the same time, Brian Petersen began creating a new design for the Archive and the re-construction process got started. I first volunteered for the cast list, and also took the forthcoming miscellaneous section and the news page under my wing. An important change in my job description happened later that year, in August, when we assigned all unmaintained documents to a bunch of new maintainers. I began working as the "document administator", i.e. as a middle man in uploading files, and in screening and adding new documents to the Archive.

How does it feel to be involved in such a big project as the Archive is today?

It felt great when I joined, and it still does. Before joining the staff, I had visited The Simpsons Archive regularly for 2-3 years, loved that site, and looked up to Dave Hall and the rest of the team as some kind of half gods. :-) I still remember when I first saw my name on the main page and how cool that felt. Anyway, now that I have spend some time each day working with the everyday maintenance for the past months, it naturally doesn't feel as glamorous as it used to be, nor do I any longer think that the maintainers are any more godlike than the other dedicated hardcore Simpsons fans out there. But, I am still very enthusiastic about working on the site and really like doing all those weird, nerdy things we do. The encouraging feedback we get from the visitors is one factor that helps us keep up our interest.

There are many others as well who are behind the Simpsons Archive. Are you regularly in touch with the others at the Archive?

Yes, very much. I mostly discuss with our webmaster, Brian Petersen, about general maintenance things on a daily basis, but also a lot with most of the other maintainers. Although some of us have fancy titles, there really are no bosses at the Archive. When someone has an idea about adding something new, or improving something that exists, it is usually discussed among most of the maintainers, we share ideas, criticize, etc. Maintaining the site is a collective effort of about 30 people around the world, which means that online communication and interaction is vital. And it's really enjoyable too!

You are person behind pages like the FAQs, Guides & Lists Page. Is it a hard job to maintain pages and also to create new documents from time to time?

It is a lot of work, I admit that much, but I don't think it's really hard when you like what you do. I have quite a lot of spare time and I don't have other time-consuming hobbies, so dedicating a couple of hours each week for this is not too much for me at all. I don't personally maintain that many of the 'regular' lists and guides, nor do I create new lists etc. that often. Most of the everyday work I do these days is uploading updated documents and adding new submitted documents from existing and new maintainers to the Archive. Moderating Simpsons-L is something that Trissa and I have to do every day, so I still consider that one of my main tasks too. The other things I do don't need my daily attention.

Where do you get ideas for new documents?

As I said before, I personally rarely come up with an idea for a new document. Usually some maintainer gets an idea, compiles a list and sends it to me for uploading when it's finished. Or, if it's someone who's not in our staff, he/she sends it to me for evaluation. If it's good and original, it usually gets added. Sometimes we get document ideas from the visitors, too.

What are you currently working on?

My personal summer project is translating the LISA into Finnish, and maybe compiling a new list or two if we get lots of rainy days. We've also been talking with Ondre Lombard about moving the L.I.S.A. (FAQ) locally to the Archive, but the time will tell whether that will happen or not. We'll see. There is a large project or two being prepared behind the scenes too, but I don't want to reveal anything specific about them just yet. There are no dramatic changes in sight for The Simpsons Archive, though, so no need to be alarmed.

You have recently been interviewed by many magazines here in Finland. What are your feelings about it?

Heh, of course it feels good to be recognized as a major Simpsons fan by the national media too, but on the other hand it can make you wonder if you've become too much a freak without yourself noticing it. Seriously speaking, Finland is a small country and even if the show has lots of fans, there aren't that many truly obsessed fans. And although we live in a country with more Internet accounts per capita than anywhere else, only some of us hardcore fans have an opportunity to express our degree of fandom on the Internet, and thus be noticed by the media too.

Are you surprised about the interest?

Well, to be honest, not really. The TV people in the media seem to like The Simpsons and that's why you'll find stories about it quite often. I guess they think that a brief interview with an enthusiastic fan is more interesting to the readers than an interview with some network scheduling person (which probably is true, I might add). When they want to find a fan, Internet is a natural choice for a searching device, and that's where they'll find me.

Do you have any other 'web projects' related to the Simpsons?

Not really. I used to have the poll page as you mentioned, but that's been shut down for more than a year now. I do run the Finnish Simpsons mailing list outside SNPP, and I also have some non-Simpsons-related pages in Finnish.

Do you have time to visit fan websites?

I used to surf around various Simpsons sites a lot, but nowadays I have a couple of sites I visit daily, and only every now and then I surf around in search of new sites, and check out some of my old favorites. I daily visit your site, Evergreen Terrace and The Simpsons Channel, i.e. basically those sites which have a constantly updated news page. In general, I really don't care about multimedia and all that stuff, and I tend to visit sites which have lots of content and not just a trendy design with neat graphics. Unfortunately, many of the new sites I come across are just like that, and don't really offer me much. I don't watch the Simpsons merely because it looks good, either. I want something more out of the show, and it's the same with the Simpsons sites. The Simpsons Sourcebook, for instance, has lots of multimedia for those interested in it, but it also offers lots of material for someone like me in its "interactive" and "information" sections. I also like interacting with other Simpsons fans, so in addition to participating in the discussion on Simpsons-L, I also lurk daily on the Simpsons newsgroups, and post a message every now and then too.

The Simpsons is now the longest-running animation series. When did you first time saw The Simpsons? What was your reaction to it?

The network that started airing The Simpsons in Finland was very young at that time, and their broadcasts didn't reach my home town in the early stage. So I got to see The Simpsons some time around the third season. I liked it from the very beginning, but I didn't begin to tape the show before the fourth season. Later I managed to get copies of those early episodes too, which wasn't easy in a country where we practically have no re-runs at all, and all episodes are usually aired only once.

Do you have a favorite season or/and episode which is above the others?

I'd say my favorite episode is season 3-4. In other words, every single episode from that period is a classic to me. It's really hard to pick out the best of the best, but my faves include "Last Exit to Springfield", "Homer the Heretic", "THOH 2", "Cape Feare" and Itchy & Scratchy episodes. There are some highlights in the later seasons too, like "Homer: Bad Man" and "Homer's Phobia". And yes, I do like "Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show" too.

How do you see the future of The Simpsons?

Unfortunately, not too good. Seasons 9 and 10 have been disappointing to most of us "old-timers", and I have no reason to believe that season 11 will be any better, if the writers won't give up their current obsession with Homer the idiot. The quality in general has been decreasing ever since season 5 and the 1Fxx episodes. Before season 5, practically every episode was great, but since then there has been fewer and fewer highlights on each season.

Fox is not likely to give up The Simpsons easily after the next season, so there will probably be season 12 too, but I very strongly believe there won't be a 13th one. And after the series is over, they will most likely do a movie, of which I have mixed feelings about.

What do you think about Matt's other animated cartoon, Futurama?

I've only watched the pilot so far, but it looked very promising to me. It reminded me of the first season of The Simpsons, when they didn't try to squeeze in 10 jokes a minute, but it still was entertaining. The show hasn't yet premiered where I live, but I'm looking forward to it.

Are there days when you're not thinking about The Simpsons at all, or is The Simpsons in your life everyday?

Whenever I'm home and near my computer, the Simpsons are there too. Only when I'm out of town, visiting friends or parents, I have a Simpsons-free day.

Is there any career - other than the Simpsons Archive - you'd like to pursue?

I graduated a year ago and have now worked my first year as teacher, a "Mr. Krabappel" if you like. Since it's not likely I'll ever get to produce The Simpsons in Hollywood, I guess my career will be a teaching career. The kids are aware of my hobby too, by the way. When the term ended, among the gifts I got from them was a cool Simpsons tie and a t-shirt.

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