King Of The Hill Creator Mike Judge Reveals What He Thinks Really Made The Show So Good
"King of the Hill" was a vast departure from other animated sitcoms of its era. Unlike "The Simpsons" and especially "Family Guy," "King of the Hill" was far more down-to-earth. There typically weren't zany sequences that could only feasibly be achieved through the medium of animation. Instead, the series drew humor from everyday, relatable circumstances. It was far more realistic, and at the end of the day, the sitcom really could've been a live-action series thanks to its adherence to realism.
That down-home attitude is precisely what's made the show so beloved years after it ended. Viewers can still find things to enjoy about the show because they can apply jokes and lessons from it to their lives. The sitcom has withstood the test of time, which is why it's often the subject of so many revival rumors. This fact hasn't been lost on creator Mike Judge, who spoke with IGN about why he thinks the show was as good as it was.
Mike Judge thinks the show's strength is how it doesn't change
In the modern media landscape, it's natural for pretty much every show to contain serialization. It's tough to find even sitcoms that remain the same from one season to the next. "The Good Place" and "Bojack Horseman" have proven that humor can be derived from having characters undergo existential changes, but "King of the Hill" is really the opposite, as Mike Judge explained.
When asked about how the characters have grown over the course of 200 episodes, Judge described how they initially planned on having characters get older and change, but that was quickly shot down. He went on to say, "I think part of the strength of the show is that we haven't changed that much. I like shows like the old 'Bob Newhart Show,' where you can pretty much see something the first season or the last season in one of those episodes and really everybody stayed pretty consistent. I think that's one of our strengths."
The same principle could certainly apply to "King of the Hill," where characters are fairly consistent whether you're in the first or last season. However, that could very well change if a revival comes to fruition, especially given the fact one of the show's former writers, Brett Forrester, was asked about it and had this to say, "The characters have all aged 15 years. The project is sooooo good." But given what we know about Hank Hill, it wouldn't be surprising if he's still pretty much the same down-home Texan we all know and love.