Everyone knows “The Simpsons” hasn’t been good in at least 20 years. Despite the years of poor writing, soulless animation, and the oversaturation of the brand, however, the funny yellow family has endured as an American cultural icon. This is because the golden age of the show, in the 90s, is simply some of the funniest and most charming television to date. It’s appalling how many great jokes can be fit in such a short time span, all without ever sacrificing the integrity of the characters.
But now it’s Halloween season, and that means it’s time to get spooky. Every season of “The Simpsons” features a Halloween special, “Treehouse of Horror.” These episodes feature some of the best moments in classic Simpsons, so this list will rarely have anything bad to say. Keep in mind that each episode features three to four short stories. I will be touching on my favorites in detail, with just short comments on the other ones in each episode. With that out of the way, let’s get into it.
Treehouse of Horror I: The first of the series begins with Bart, Lisa, and Maggie telling stories in the titular treehouse. The highlight of the episode is the retelling of Edgar Allen Poe’s poem “The Raven,” featuring Homer as the main character and Bart as the titular raven. It is narrated by James Earl Jones (the voice of Darth Vader), and manages to be a genuinely good rendition of the poem, with visual elements matching it very well. Homer continues to be the same goofball, but it doesn’t detract from the seriousness of the narrative. Dan Castellaneta makes the Middle English used in the poem come out of Homer’s voice quite naturally. Bart as the raven has become iconic, and in many ways the symbol of “Treehouse of Horror.” I’d give this vignette a 9/10, with the overall episode being a 7/10, as the other stories are good but less interesting.
Treehouse of Horror II: The second of the series unfortunately might be the weakest. I don’t have much to say about it. The highlight of the episode is the second story, “The Bart Zone,” the series’ second Twilight Zone spoof. In it Bart has crazy superpowers, and makes the whole world revolve around him. The most memorable moment is Bart turning Homer into a Jack-in-the-Box, which is another iconic shot that has been popularized outside of the show. This vignette, and the episode overall, is a 5/10, giving it the reward for the lowest rated episode.
Treehouse of Horror III: This episode starts out with a good one, “Clown Without Pity,” where Bart gets an evil Krusty doll that tortures Homer. It has great Krusty moments with him trying to rizz up a barbie doll, as well as him chasing Homer around with a knife. This episode is unfortunately held back by the second vignette, “King Homer.” This one just doesn’t have any substance beyond Homer as King Kong. The episode is saved by the final story, “Dial Z for Zombies,” with great scenes with zombie Principal Skinner and zombies refusing to eat Homer due to his lack of brains. This episode could’ve gotten a good grade, but King Homer drags it down to a 5.5/10. I promise the next one is good.
Treehouse of Horror IV: This one features three of the most iconic ToH segments. “Homer and the Devil” is too good, where Homer sells his soul to The Devil (who is Flanders) for a donut. The highlight of this episode might be my favorite segment ever, “Bart Simpson’s Dracula,” with Mr. Burns featured as Dracula. He has one of the best lines in the show: “Fresh victims for my ever-growing army of the undead.” Something I quote every day. There’s a Three Stooges reference for the 20 people alive who care, and Grandpa steals the show toward the end. I also adore the art and animation in this one; it just has such a beautiful 90s color and vibe. This vignette is a 10/10, with the overall episode being a 9.5/10.
Treehouse of Horror V: At this point, it’s iconic episode after the other. This episode features the de facto greatest ToH story “The Shinning,” a spoof on Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shining.” Being trapped in the mountains is a worse fate than death for Homer, and we all know “no TV and no beer make Homer something, something.” Castellaneta just goes off the rails, making some truly strange blabbering noises as well as that iconic Homer scream. Groundskeeper Willie also shines in this segment, although he gets an axe in the back for his troubles, a gag they call back to again later on in the episode. The last segment, “Nightmare Cafeteria,” is also pretty funny, with the school staff cooking students into the lunch food a la “Soylent Green.” The best joke here is the cookbook Skinner reads, “The Joy of Cooking Milhouse.” Poor Milhouse. This episode gets a 8.5/10 because “Time and Punishment” is just okay.
Treehouse of Horror VI: This episode is not as good, but still manages to be unique and consistently funny as most Simpsons episodes are. My favorite is the “Nightmare on Elm Street” spoof, “Nightmare on Evergreen Terrace.” It stars Willie as Freddy Krueger, and contains some of the show’s best gags, like the misprinted “Smarch” calendars and “Do not touch – Willie (good advice!)” When Ralph is killed in his dream, Nelson lets out the only “Ha Ha” in “Treehouse of Horror,” and it’s hilarious. The episode ends with the segment “Homer^3” where Homer enters the 3D digital space. It’s a good gag, but the most memorable part is at the end, where Homer enters real life, and is initially uncomfortable until he finds a store selling erotic cakes. Great stuff, 7.5/10 overall.
Treehouse of Horror VII: Last but not least (for the golden age, that is). We’re ending with a banger, with all three segments being legendary. The first, “The Thing and I,” is only okay in my opinion, but has reached iconic status. The scene with Dr. Hibbert punching Bart’s twin through the mirror frame is so, so funny. “The Genesis Tub” is a little short, but finally features Lisa as the main, and best, character. Bart is an actual monster in this one, nearly destroying Lisa’s tiny Sea Monkey-esque civilization. The last vignette is a solid 10/10. Featuring the space aliens Kang and Kodos, “Citizen Kang” sees 1996 presidential electors Bob Dole and Bill Clinton being impersonated by the aliens. Phil Hartman’s Slick Willie (Clinton’s nickname) impression will forever be funny. It’s also a decent political commentary, and I personally love 50s era alien sci-fi schlock, as well as goofy conspiracies about our world leaders being from another planet. Homer straight up kills Dole and Clinton toward the end, pretty much dooming the human race, as they are enslaved by the aliens. This season was the last we saw of good Simpsons writing, so we’re lucky that “Treehouse of Horror” ended with a bang.
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