Filmday Fridays: Treehouse of Horror XXII-XXVIII, The Simpsons Spooktacular

After a brief hiatus where I traveled a ton and presented at conferences, I am excited to welcome you back to Simpsons Spooktacular! We are now well into November, but I am determined to finish the individual ranking groups and also publish lists with all the best and worst ranked together. This detour has taught me a lot about what I like and dislike in a Treehouse of Horror. I love a segment that is creepy, funny, and makes the most of a concept whether they are doing an original idea or a parody. Segments I dislike do not pay full attention to the material they are working with or are violent with little else in the way of either deep insight or humor. While this group of episodes contains some of the worst segments out of all of them (Spoiler Alert: The worst segment on this list is also my least favorite segment of all time). That said, there are still a lot of great and creative segments in this batch as well, so let's start ranking!

Top 7 Best Segments

7. "Oh the Places You'll D'oh" ("Treehouse of Horror XXIV")

This segment is such a fun tribute to Dr. Seuss! And while some segments barely make any changes to the settings and art style, the characters and art style are so much in the spirit of Seuss. There are also jokes that you will only understand if you have read the books, like the tiny dead helpers that live under Homer's hat. I also love that the segment includes a consistent rhyme scheme. This is essential for it to feel like Seuss, but so few Seuss movies stick to it for the whole run of the film other than the old Grinch special. There isn't much plot beyond the violence, but this segment is great at setting the mood for a darker Seuss film!

6. "Bart & Homer's Excellent Adventure" ("Treehouse of Horror XXIII")

One of the best things about this episode is the way that it uses the Season 2 episode "The Way We Was" as the starting point for a Back to the Future plot. We know how the story works and so we also know how Bart's presence there can ruin the outcome. I love the joke when Bart looks at the picture and remarks that he is either rich or allowed to stand in front of a rich guy's house. I also like seeing what life looks like for Bart when Marge marries Artie Ziff instead. The ending is a bit rushed and weak to me though. I think the idea of Homers throughout history is fun, but it does not really make sense because they don't do the Back to the Future move of saying that they are Homer's ancestors (And the Homer Pope suggests that this isn't the case). It is a bit rushed and doesn't fully explain why Marge falls for all of them. It is a fun adventure even if it has a weaker ending.

5. "The Others" ("Treehouse of Horror XXV")

This segment has such a great concept that it makes for a fun watch even if the execution is a bit weaker than I would have liked. I love the idea of the modern Simpsons being haunted by the Tracy Ullman and early-season Simpsons. In a sense, this is true, because many fans feel that modern Simpsons cannot escape the shadow of the former Simpsons' glory. They even have some great initial creepiness with the frosty chocolate milkshakes showing up in the house. I also like the idea of the original Marge being more attracted to the modern Homer than the grouchier, image-conscious Homer from the first season. Where this segment loses the thread is in its characterization. They do not really do much to develop the personality of the original Marge or the debate about whether Bart or Homer is the protagonist of the show. It also completely wasted both versions of Lisa. If there had been a little more reflection on how the show has changed over time, this would have been a much stronger segment. 

4. "The Greatest Story Ever Holed" ("Treehouse of Horror XXIII")

The black hole in this segment is a very simple threat, but it provides so much space for storytelling and jokes! I love the fact that Lisa warns the family about the dangers of allowing things to be sucked into the hole, and yet every member of the family uses the hole. Marge pours bacon grease in it and Homer even starts a waste removal service. What I think is particularly creative about this segment is that once the town is sucked into the hole, they discover a race of aliens who have built an entire society around the trash that people have thrown into the hole. It is such a fun view of this alien culture, that I wish they had more time to show us more about how it works.

3. "BFF R.I.P" ("Treehouse of Horror XXVII")

This segment offers such a fun mystery at the beginning as we see Lisa's friends die under mysterious circumstances. I like the concept of this episode with Lisa losing her friends, but since so many episodes establish that Janey, Sherri, and Terri are rarely, if ever, Lisa's friends, I wish they had used characters that were more established as her friends, like all the one-episode friends she has made like Alison or Juliette. While it would be pricey to bring back the voice actors, they could have imitated the voice or killed them off before they spoke. If you accept that these characters truly are Lisa's friends, there is some great setup and mystery here. I also love that Lisa's imaginary friend is named Rachel because the show establishes that Lisa has an imaginary friend named Rachel in an earlier episode who got into Brandeis. There is some great set-up here and the conflict with Rachel is also fun to watch.

2. "Coralisa" ("Treehouse of Horror XXVIII")

One of the things that I love most about this episode is a joke they have at the very end of the segment where Bart draws a picture of his family and Homer tells the rest of the household that they will be getting a visit from both a counselor and an exterminator. I also think the Coraline-like animation is impressive as something that is both beautiful and a bit unsettling. It is also a nice twist to have Lisa choose to get the button eyes and stay with the Other Family. I wish that they had established why the other family members decided to stay, and the ending seems a bit rushed, but it has a lot of fun elements from the Coraline movie.

1. "School is Hell" ("Treehouse of Horror XXV")

This segment is so much fun! I love the fact that they are transported to hell by reading a rune translation aloud through an app. There is also some great worldbuilding in this segment! I like the way they discuss older forms of sin that are not as prevalent in the modern-day. It makes so much sense that Bart would be good at coming up with ironic, Dante-esque punishments for people. It is also nice to see a new character playing Bart's teacher in this segment because they give her a new personality that plays nicely off of Bart. I also like the cold day in hell where Lisa is popular. It is fun to see an alternate education system in this segment and envision what a hellish school would look like! Every time I watch this segment, I am excited to find something new.

Top 7 Worst Segments

7. "Un-normal Activity" ("Treehouse of Horror XXIII")

My biggest problems with this segment are the filming style and the ending. The found-footage style that they use makes sense as a tribute to all the found footage horror movies in general and paranormal activity in particular. That said, I have never been a fan of this style of filmmaking. It feels like I’m watching someone’s bad YouTube videos and even shaky cam is enough to give me a dislike for the film. Since this is a matter of personal tastes, it might have a bigger impact on other people than it did for me. I like the flashback where Marge saves her sisters from a demon and makes a deal on their behalf, but the ending solution where Homer has to sleep with two demons is both tasteless and unnecessary.

6. "The Exor-Sis" ("Treehouse of Horror XXVIII")

This segment has great source material that they are working with, but I don’t think they take full advantage of it. Firstly, they could have had Ned Flanders or even Lovejoy as the priest, but they instead waste Flanders’ role in the segment by killing him off too quickly. Making Flanders and Lovejoy into the priests would have given them more to do. I like the fact that Homer buys Maggie a demon for no discernible reason, and they have Maggie say some pretty edgy things in the segment, just like Reagan does in the original. But her revelation that Hibbert is having an affair falls flat because they never establish this in the show. It would have been better for her to reveal vices that we know about or funnier to reveal minor sins that the characters feel ashamed of (like eating grapes at the grocery store or something like that). This is a lesser version of an evil Maggie episode.

5. "In the Na'Vi" ("Treehouse of Horror XXII")

Part of my dislike for this segment is that I find Avatar extremely overrated for an average-to-forgettable film. I can’t believe that the guy who made an amazing film like Titanic is devoting the next decade of his life to making sequels to a slightly better version of Disney’s Pocahontas. That said, the segment does a good job adapting the story and using aliens that we are familiar with. I also like that ending battle where the characters in mech suits climb into even bigger mech suits. The outlet joke is also funny. But there is a lot of focus on Bart sleeping with that alien and they never really establish if he actually loves her. I also don’t love that they are grabbing the hilarium because they expect pregnant Kamala to be crabby. I think it would have been less disturbing if they had Homer and Marge as the leads because the film shorthand would have worked better in that case.

4. "Wanted: Dead, Then Alive" ("Treehouse of Horror XXVI")

I remember hearing the promotions for this segment when it was first coming out. They advertised it as the episode Sideshow Bob finally gets Bart and while that sounded interesting in concept, like Tom finally killing Jerry, it was very disturbing in execution. Most Sideshow Bob episodes present Bart as an intellectual equal to Bob, which makes it fun to see them spar and also easier to see Bart’s life being threatened. This episode instead really hammers in the fact that Sideshow Bob is killing and torturing a child and that makes the whole episode icky. Bob keeps Bart’s body around his house for days which is both gross and disturbing, then he kills Bart in a variety of grisly ways, which is not fun and is fairly grotesque. Bob has a brief existential crisis after killing Bart, and it would have been interesting to dig into that like they do in Megamind, but it then just turns into a tasteless montage of murder. If they had filmed it more introspectively or more like a Roadrunner cartoon, it would have worked, but this segment is just disturbing, and not in a good way.

3. "A Clockwork Yellow" ("Treehouse of Horror XXV")

This segment fell flat for me in part because I have never seen A Clockwork Orange and I have no interest in doing so. Sometimes a parody segment can do the parody in a way that is still funny for those who haven’t seen it, but this segment is highly dependent on both watching and enjoying the original film. I’m not a fan of Moe’s accent and all the special slang he uses, both of which come from the original book and movie. I also don’t understand the purpose of the fastcam while Homer is eating and the nuisance crimes that Homer and the others commit are just annoying. This segment was violent, unfunny, and has little to offer if you haven’t seen the Kubrick film.

2. "The Diving Bell and Butterball" ("Treehouse of Horror XXII")

While there are some segments that I may dislike due to personal distaste or lack of interest, this is one of the few segments that get me to think “this is stupid” while I am watching. It almost seems like one of the writers asked his 9-year-old son to design the script for this one because most of the jokes start and end with the idea that "farts are funny." I cannot remember any other kinds of jokes for this segment. Homer gaining Spiderman's abilities while still being paralyzed is a minorly amusing twist, but I really don't like seeing him fart out webs. Overall, there is very little entertainment value to this segment because it depends on finding farts amusing.

1. "Dial D for Diddly" ("Treehouse of Horror XXII")

I personally believe that this is the worst segment out of all of them. There are segments that are boring or that have no plot beyond violence, but this one is morally bankrupt, ruins Ned Flanders as a character, and defames my faith. The term "Flanderization" is based on Ned Flanders and is all about how he became a character who was solely defined by his faith. But the later seasons go a step further than this and depict Flanders as a man who is only interested in the judgment, good works, and Old Testament elements of Christianity. I will need to test this as my Simpsons Season-By-Season watch-through continues, but I think that this segment may have been the start to this judgmental Ned Flanders. It also makes him horribly naïve to believe that Homer is the voice of God and insulting to think that Flanders would blindly believe that God is telling him to kill people. I am fine with jokes about Christianity, I think "Homer the Heretic" is a funny episode and I am fine with jokes that expose the hypocrisy that can come into the church at times. But this segment makes Christians look like blindly obedient robots and also jokes that God is serving Satan. I can take a joke, but this segment takes things way too far.

Filmday Fridays: Treehouse of Horror XV-XXI, The Simpsons Spooktacular

Time for our next set of Treehouse of Horror segments! These segments had both higher highs and lower lows than the segments I discussed last week. Some of this could be because they are newer and many of the episodes in seasons 9-15 were Treehouse of Horror episodes that I have seen more and liked a bit less, but I think these slightly newer seasons also had some rich material to work with and had started to find a balance for a good horror parody. The downside is that I am much less fond of the bad segments in this list. The bad segments from this set shared a similar issue of featuring a significant amount of violence without really engaging with the story it is endeavoring to parody. I am excited to talk about some of these segments, so let's get started! 

Top 7 Best Segments

7.  "Don't Have a Cow, Mankind" ("Treehouse of Horror XX")

The previous Zombie segment from Treehouse of Horror III didn't make it into my best or worst list. While I thought it was serviceable, it also didn't do as much as it could have with the Zombie concept. This segment builds on apocalyptic movies and Zombie films like 28 Days Later that give it so much more to work with! I like the joke that the Zombie-ism comes from eating at tainted Krusty Burger because it builds on the joke that these burgers are usually filled with questionable meat. I also think the segment does a good job putting characters into positions that are consistent with both the genre and their larger characterization. It makes sense that Ralph would become a muncher early on and that he would try biting himself. It also makes sense that Apu would survive since he is well-armed and also a vegetarian. I don't like the joke about communion that they have in this segment, but otherwise, this is a fun segment.

6. "War and Pieces" ("Treehouse of Horror XXI")

While this segment is not a direct parody of Jumanji, it plays with a similar concept and does it in a fun and exciting way. I love the fact that the game is clearly evil, but Bart and Millhouse casually start playing it. It is also funny that there is an exciting demon figure and a thimble. I also think the segment offers a fun, short glimpse of all the different games that people play together, including how confusing Yahtzee can be your first time playing. The short scenes of Clue, Mouse Hunt, Shoots & Ladders, and so many others offers enough time to get a good joke in and not so long that you get tired of the game. I think Millhouse suddenly giving up came out of nowhere and seemed like it was just there to create drama and possibly parody Titanic, but my sister made a good point that this sudden desire to quit games is one other element of group gameplay. Sometimes you play games with people who aren't good sports or just want to stop playing when it gets too hard. Overall, this was a fun concept that was very well-executed.

5. "The Ned Zone" ("Treehouse of Horror XV")

This segment had a great concept and it was so fun to see Flanders as the focal character. Like many other shows and movies about precognition, I like the fact that Flanders doesn't have a complete picture of how things are going to happen, just a brief glimpse of what the future will look like for each person he touches. It is funny that he accidentally causes Melman to be eaten by alligators and I also find it funny that Flanders is hit on the head with a bowling ball that Homer keeps throwing up on the roof. I also like that Flanders tries to avoid killing Homer by moving away, only to for him to wind up killing Homer and Homer accidentally blowing up the town. It fits with the fascinating idea that we meet our fate in the steps that we take to avoid it. 

4. "Four Beheadings and a Funeral" ("Treehouse of Horror XV")

What I love about this segment is that it brings together the Jack the Ripper murders and Sherlock Holmes. It is so funny when the prostitute at the beginning of the segment asks for a snug, only to exclaim "That's not a snug!" when he stabs her. I like that they slot the Simpsons and other characters into so many interesting roles in this segment. Lisa is a great Sherlock Holmes and I think it is funny that Bart is easily impressed by doorknobs (It's odd that they aren't consistent with this portrayal throughout the segment though). They have a fun mystery here and I like that they have Homer as the red herring. I think the segment drags a little when they go to Comic Book Guy's shop, but it still has some good jokes later in the segment. I think it is funny when they encounter a stabbed Selma and Bart assumes that she has been dead for days only for her to reanimate and tell him that it's only been 17 minutes. Overall, it is a fun segment and anything with a Victorian aesthetic is a winner in my book!

3. "Heck House" ("Treehouse of Horror XVIII")

As Treehouse of Horror went on and began to include violent segments or sci-fi concepts, there were several segments that lacked that spooky Halloween aesthetic. If you want a segment that feels just like Halloween, this is the segment for you! I like the way that their trick-or-treating turns into pure trickery and that even Lisa's efforts to be nice by feeding Lenny's goldfish are still considered tricks. The Heck house is also a fun look at Christian traditions like Fall Family Festivals and similar church Halloween activities. While I think it is a bit of a problem that Flanders prays that he can scare the kids into loving God, but I love the gruesome imagery they use to depict the Seven Deadly Sins. This episode is the reason that I remember them! I also think they have a creative visualization of Hell that both differs from other visions of Hell in this show and offers some good scares. 

2. "Dial 'M' for Murder or Press '#' to Return to Main Menu" ("Treehouse of Horror XX")

This segment is amazing and is right up there with "The Raven" or "The Shinning." I love the way that this segment works with both the storytelling and the imagery of Hitchcock. It also has so much great tension and suspense! Even if you haven't seen Strangers on a Train, the concept of Bart and Lisa trading crimes against Miss Hoover and Edna is such an exciting concept. It's a concept that crime shows have used occasionally as well because it is interesting and makes for a good puzzle. It is funny to see how Bart defines pranks differently from what Lisa expects, seeing Ding-dong ditch as "throwing that ding-dong in a ditch" or TP as "torture and pulverize." There is also so much suspense in the moment when Lisa is holding up the paper slicer so that it doesn't slice her like a bagel. The suspense, tension, and twists in this segment make it so much fun to watch!

1. "Master and Cadaver" ("Treehouse of Horror XXI")

While the Hitchcock segment is amazing, I think this segment is just a little more suspenseful and masterful in its execution. I have never seen the thriller that they are basing this segment on, but this segment really makes me want to watch it! I love that you can never really tell whether the castaway is telling the truth or is a suspicious murderer. It was a great decision for them to create a new character instead of casting one of the existing Springfield characters as Roger. If they had cast Skinner or Apu as Roger, you would be inclined to trust him while casting Snake or Sideshow Bob would make you suspicious. The new character creates a blank slate that helps you to be in just as much suspense as Homer and Marge are. They have some signs that look suspicious while also offering some great explanations later. When they actually encounter the Albatross Ship and find out what happened, it is so great at tying things together. Even Homer's homicidal killing makes sense because he is trying to cover up their initial attempted murder. It also helps that this segment has a creepy ghostship vibe and some great nautical trends as well!

Top 7 Worst Segments 

7. "B.I. Bartificial Intelligence" ("Treehouse of Horror XVI")

This segment has a lot of strengths at the beginning. I think the way they put Bart into a coma makes sense, and the segment has good pacing as it shows the family adopt David and living with just him for a while, then it shows Bart come back and the two boys fighting to win Marge's love. I also like the funny twist it has when it sounds like Homer is abandoning the robot but he is actually ditching Bart in the woods. My issue with this segment is that it begins to drag once Homer abandons Bart and it never really picks back up again. They don't really give you enough time to like the robots that Bart meets. They use new characters for this, but I think it would be more interesting and they would have a better shorthand to care about the characters if they had used Springfield residents instead. Bart's return and his upgrades really aren't scary, funny, or particularly interesting, and I wish that the episode had kept up with the energy it had started with at first.

6. "You Gotta Know When to Golem" ("Treehouse of Horror XVII")

There are parts of this segment that I find a bit uncomfortable. On the positive side, this was my first exposure to the golem. I took a Jewish American literature class in graduate school a few years ago and I was able to read a couple of stories that played with the golem as a figure. Golems have some features in common with Frankenstein's monster in their form and origins. They also have an interesting story as figures that start as defenders of the Jewish people but eventually get carried away (At least in the stories that I read). In this segment, the flashback describing the origins of the golem is really good and consistent with the other stories that I have read. I also think their depiction of the golem after they give him the ability to speak is pretty fun and he has a nice dynamic with the family. My issue with this segment is once again with the ending. The female golem that they make is stereotypical and obnoxious in her depiction. While it could be that I am not fond of Fran Drescher's voice acting, I think it could have worked if they had made her nicer and a bit less callous. She is only in the last minute or two of the segment, but it always puts a bad taste in my mouth. Also, the golem's violence works for most of the episode, but eventually just becomes violence for the sake of violence. There was so much potential with this concept and the golem as a mythological figure, but they really waste this potential.

5. "Mr. & Mrs. Simpson" ("Treehouse of Horror XVIII")

I liked Mr. & Mrs. Smith as a movie. It had a fun concept and it was interesting to see the husband and wife's surprise as they both discover that they are spies and discover that they are supposed to assassinate each other at the exact same time. My issue with this segment is that it barely does anything with the source material other than wearing the skin of the concept. Homer and Marge are never told that they have to kill each other. Marge just foils Homer's assassination attempt on the political leader and they both decimate their home as they try to kill one another. I remember that there was a similar scene in the movie as well, but there was more to the story than that. This episode just uses the premise as an empty excuse for violence.

4. "E.T., Go Home" ("Treehouse of Horror XVIII")

While the last segment on this bad list wasted a concept that I enjoyed, this one is working with a concept that I don't like nearly as much. Steven Spielberg has been at the helm of some great films, but I watched E.T. and I found it a bit boring if I'm being honest. The Simpson version of this concept, with Kodos being an obviously evil alien that tries to pretend he is good, is pretty interesting. The problem is that I don't like what they do with Bart in this segment. In order for Bart to go along with Kodos, they make him extremely naïve and shocked every time Kodos kills someone. I think it would have worked better if they chosen a different character like Lisa, Millhouse, or Marge for this role because it is way too out-of-character for Bart. Also, the scene at the end when they plan to vivisect Kodos before Homer smothers him is a scene that I find extremely uncomfortable. 

3. "Untitled Robot Parody" ("Treehouse of Horror XIX")

This segment is yet another example of the show wasting a solid concept. It barely does anything with either the Transformers movies that had been coming out at the time or the old Transformers TV show. It has transforming creatures in it, but doesn't use any of the plot. I find it amusing when Homer says "The toaster has never lied to me before," but other than this, the segment is short on both jokes and story. It is almost an excuse for violence, but even the violence isn't particularly interesting. 

2. "Married to the Blob" ("Treehouse of Horror XVII")

I think that this segment tried to experiment with some gross-out humor that was popular at the time, but I don't see the humor in being disgusted by gross things. Homer spends far too much time in this segment trying to swallow a sentient glob of fluorescent green goo. The color and consistency of the goo looks a lot like snot and it is disturbing to look at. The episode doesn't get much better after that. Homer eating Bart or the pets isn't funny and I don't like the ending with Homer eating the homeless either. The worst part of the segment is Dr. Phil's appearance near the end because it is both unfunny and manages to be condescending at the same time. The one bright spot is that the 50-ft Lenny who everyone ignores because they are all paying attention to Homer instead.

1. "Survival of the Fattest" ("Treehouse of Horror XVI")

This segment is extremely irritating to watch. The premise is pretty much an excuse for violence and gore with very little in the way of a story. It is also mean-spirited at points. Why does Burns kill Apu and the rabbit he reincarnates himself into? There is also a part when Homer flings several of his friends into the air and Burns shoots each of them as they fly past him. The ongoing brutality makes the segment uninteresting because it never really delves into why Mr. Burns wants to hunt human beings. At least The Island of Dr. Hibbert offers some reflection on why he likes to experiment with putting human brains in animal bodies. My larger issue with this segment is their attempt to turn it into a sporting event with those sports announcers. They offer commentary throughout the episode and their comments heighten the mean-spirited nature of the kills while merging it with sports which I do not really enjoy at all. The announcers offer obnoxious commentary and it is disturbing when they watch Homer and Marge together at the end of the segment as well. 

Filmday Fridays: Treehouse of Horror VIII-XIV, The Simpsons Spooktacular

Now we are on to the next batch of Treehouse of Horror segments! These segments all fall after the end of what others consider the Golden Age of The Simpsons. While I don't think the Simpsons got suddenly worse after Season 8, I do see some weaker Treehouse of Horror segments in this batch of episodes as well as some really solid ones. These episodes fall into an interesting place because it was much easier to find my picks for the worst segments, but there are also memorable segments that I like. My working theory for seasons after Season 8 is that the division between a great episode and a terrible one became much more obvious. Many of my worst picks here fall lower than my worst segments for last week, while the best segments don't quite reach to the heights of segments like "The Raven" or "The Shinning," but are still pretty good. Let's start ranking! 

Top 7 Best Segments

7. "Scary Tales Can Come True" ("Treehouse of Horror XI")

This segment has some fun jokes about the Grimm's fairytales. I also really like the fact that Bart is basting himself in the Witch's house or that he thinks that she seems nice when she is cackling. There is also the part when it seems like the Witch is making up a fake boyfriend named George Cauldron only for the characters to actually meet him at the end of the segment. It is also funny to see Bart try the first two bowls of porridge in the Three Bear's house and assume that the solution is to mix the two of them together. I think the concept of Lisa using the fairytale book to help them navigate these stories is a cool concept, but I wish they had included a few more examples. 

6. "Stop the World, I Want to Goof Off" ("Treehouse of Horror XIV")

The main concept in this episode of time being frozen is an interesting idea that I will admit is much better and more emotionally executed in the Futurama finale. That said, I think this segment has some fun with the idea as well. I like the fact that it takes them so many years to fix the stopwatch. I also enjoy all the pranks that they play on Homer. I think these pranks are the funniest part and a unique element that differs from other uses of frozen time. The one thing that bothers me is that their worldbuilding could use some work in this segment. If the stopwatch had a few extra buttons, then the part at the very end of the episode makes sense, but since they only have one button, it doesn't make sense that it would freeze time in some cases and tamper with the nature of reality in other moments.

5. "G-G-Ghost D-D-Dad" ("Treehouse of Horror XI")

This segment has such a fun opening few minutes! I love seeing Homer come so close to death in so many ways. It is also hilarious that Lenny compliments him on the snake that is biting his arm. After he survives so many potential deaths, it is funny that broccoli is ultimately what gets him. It is funny that even Doctor Hibbert considers broccoli a deadly killer. I also like seeing Homer try and struggle to find a good deed and even compete with the boy scouts to rescue a woman that he accidentally kills. The fact that St. Peter isn't looking when Homer finds a good deed is also pretty funny. 

4. "House of Whacks" ("Treehouse of Horror XII")

I love the concept for this one! It is fun to see the small, but comprehensive changes to the Simpson home after they integrate the futuristic technology. There are segments like "Wiz Kids" that are not as creative in their recreation of setting or their changes to existing locations to make them fit with the theme of the episode. Pierce Brosnan's voice is so charming and it makes sense to me that he would be attracted to Marge. I also think it is absurd, but also funny that Homer says that if he died, Marge would be available to both men or machines. It is cool to see that Homer survives and also funny that he is missing the back of his head and starts to attack the water softener. Overall, I think I am drawn to the concept and creepiness more than the jokes, but the concept is enough to keep me invested in the story the whole time! 

3. "I Know What You Diddily-Iddily-Did" ("Treehouse of Horror X")

This segment is such a fun tribute to slasher movies! I think it is fun to see the Simpson family coming back from another adventure where their entire mission was to get back their sugar crisp cereal. The segment gets a tad weak when Homer tries to fake Flanders' death in a way that Maude can see and will not arouse suspicion, but the energy picks right back up when the family is smiling at the funeral to avoid making people suspicious. There is also a fun scene when the Simpson family wonders who saw them and see a variety of Springfield citizens acting suspiciously as well as Homer pointing in a funny way. I love the ending when Homer tells each family member to hide out in a location that has or would make the perfect setting for a slasher, like an abandoned camp, a spooky roller disco, or a lake where the sexy teenagers were killed one hundred years ago that night. The only thing that I think is a little weak about the segment is that it was a bit of a cheat for Ned to be alive because he became a werewolf right before he got hit by the car. It would have been funnier if he had been immortal all along or if they brought back the fact that he was the devil from "Treehouse of Horror IV." I think this segment has some great laughs and also some great suspense. 

2. "Fly vs. Fly" ("Treehouse of Horror VIII") 

This segment almost seems like two different segments, but both of them are a ton of fun! I like all the ways that Homer uses the teleportation machine including putting it next to the fridge, accidentally punching Lisa in the face when he punches into the void, or trying to go to the bathroom through the portal so that he wouldn't have to go upstairs when he clearly had to go upstairs to put the teleportation machine there as well. I think the part that actually gets into Bart mixing with a fly is also really fun. I like that Bart enjoys the two-headed cat and dog mix but responds in disgust to the two-butted copy that comes out next and says that that one will belong to Lisa. The parts with tiny fly Bart are funny, but not quite as engaging as the parts with the actual fly that has Bart's body. It is hilarious that the family cannot tell that the fly isn't actually Bart even though it eats sugar and doesn't speak anymore. I love seeing Homer try to reach around Bart's shoulder and grab some of his shoulder and the fly with Bart's body growls at him. The ending isn't particularly memorable, but I have so much fun the rest of the time that it isn't an issue for me.

1. "Reaper Madness" ("Treehouse of Horror XIV")

Some of these other segments moved around a bit in my ranking, but this one was always solidly at the top of this batch. The concept for this segment may not officially be based on any particular story, but the idea of Homer killing and then becoming Death reminds me of Piers Anthony's book On a Pale Horse. I have a lot of great memories of listening to that book and so I am sure that my positive associations are impacted by that connection to some extent, but I also believe that it is a really interesting concept. The Benny Hill chase at the beginning is funny and I think the segment offers a nice balance of a world without Death, Homer becoming death and doing his job well, and Homer abusing his position. I wonder if the reason why Homer has to reap Marge at the end is because he has abused his position. There are some fun ideas, a great concept, and so many great laughs here! 

Top 7 Worst Segments

7. "The Island of Dr. Hibbert" ("Treehouse of Horror XIII")

This segment has some interesting ideas and I do like to see the final animal forms of the characters, but some of their animal forms seem a bit random rather than the best choice for each of the characters. I like seeing Frink as the turkey, and I think there are some interesting existential questions that the segment teases about whether a human or an animal form is better. The issue is they do not really delve into these existential implications and instead, the segment just says that it gives characters a chance to be hedonistic. My other issue with this segment is that the jokes don't land and there are some parts that are just uncomfortable. It isn't funny that Homer can't tell his wife has been turned into a cat. I also find it very cringy when Flanders is turned into a cow and Homer needs to milk him. It makes no sense that Flanders would be a female cow and the visuals are disturbing rather than funny.

6. "Easy-Bake Coven" ("Treehouse of Horror VIII")

I think it is interesting to see a segment where Marge is a witch, but this segment falls flat for me. She starts off seeming like a normal villager before she is accused and we learn that she is a witch. It would have been funnier if she had obviously been a witch and it took a while for the townspeople to accuse her. They also do not establish that the witches actually enjoy eating children beyond the rumor that Maude describes. It is a fun imagining of how Halloween first started, but it is not funny and also a bit disjointed.

5. "Night of the Dolphin" ("Treehouse of Horror XI")

I love the scene that is a direct homage to The Birds with the dolphins standing everywhere staring at the townspeople. I also enjoy the part at the beginning when Lisa frees the dolphin and it parallels Free Willy. But I think the concept of dolphins having lived on the land in the past is a bit nonsensical and lacks the worldbuilding to make it believable. There is also this joke where Moe keeps tuning out and then asking what is going on and I find that it bit repetitive and irritating. The visual of the Simpsons living in the sea at the end is neat, but not enough to salvage very weak execution.

4. "The Fright to Creep and Scare Harms" ("Treehouse of Horror XIII")

This segment has parts that I enjoy. I like the fact that Kaiser Wilhelm tries to pass himself off as a cowboy and I also enjoy the distinction the cowboy ghosts place between "piano" and "pianey." What I dislike is that the segment is really trying to say something about guns, but unlike episodes like "The Cartridge Family," it is not clear what the segment is actually trying to say. Lisa's case for banning guns would seem to advocate gun control, but the ghosts rising up due to the city being unarmed would suggest that gun control is not effective. Also, the Homer that returns from the distant future to describe the harm caused by guns would veer back toward gun control once again. It is hard to figure out what this episode is trying to say and they also are not good at satirizing the different sides.

3. "Desperately Xeeking Xena" ("Treehouse of Horror X")

This segment was a superhero parody that came too early and I think it is tragic that the combination of this segment and another one parodying Spiderman makes it less likely that the show will parody the MCU. The humor for this segment depends on a familiarity with Xena, who I barely know and have no interest in knowing. It also pulls a lot of humor from the cheesy format of the old Batman show and movies, but I don't think that humor really works here either. I also think that it is fun to see superpowers that either really fit the character's personality, like Dash's superspeed, or powers that directly contrast with the characters and cause them to grow, like the Hulk who is so different from Bruce Banner. The issue with the superpowers that they use here is that stretchiness works perfectly for Bart's personality, while Lisa's superstrength does not fit her personal traits at all and they do not develop the way this strength conflicts with her personality either.

2. "Life's a Glitch, Then You Die" ("Treehouse of Horror X")

I think there are some ways that this segment offers a fun time capsule for the anxiety surrounding Y2K at the time. But while the destruction of technology is interesting, I think King of the Hill has a much better Y2K episode that covers much of the same material in a more meaningful way. The first part of the segment has some exciting ideas and good jokes about the extent of technology and the destruction it would pose if it went crazy, but I think the ending is a bit mean-spirited. It is sad that Lisa easily picks her mother over her father when it comes to the survival rocket. It also seems like such a waste to put all the bad celebrities on a rocket headed toward the sun. Couldn't they have used that rocket to save more people? The joke that all of the celebrities on the other rocket are irritating falls flat for me because I have not seen any movies featuring these actors. 

1. "Starship Poopers" ("Treehouse of Horror IX") 

This segment also has some parts that I enjoy at the beginning, but it really goes downhill fast! I like seeing Maggie lose her baby legs and develop traits similar to Kang. I also like the juxtaposition between Marge's narration of how Kang impregnated her and what actually took place. She says she was given no warning and that they used powerful mind persuasion techniques, but both of these are exaggerated. My issue, and the problem that makes this segment almost unwatchable, is when the family tries to resolve their situation on the Jerry Springer show. It is not funny to see Kang on the talk show or to see him disintegrate Springer and his audience. I think there are also jokes specific to talk shows and I never have seen those shows and I also never would want to. Homer's anger makes sense, but they don't do much to develop how or if his feelings have changed after hearing Marge recount what happened. I also don't think it is even slightly funny when they start swearing at each other and the show bleeps out every single word. I don't like strong language, but I also think that much bleeping is just irritating and not particularly funny.  

Filmday Fridays: Treehouse of Horror I-VII, The Simpsons Spooktacular

Welcome to October! Now that we are decidedly into the fun, fall, spooky season of Halloween, I wanted to do something special. You may have noticed that the Simpsons Treehouse of Horror segments have not been present on any of my lists so far. The reason for this is that I wanted to do something special with them during October and review the best and worst Treehouse of Horror Segments! I think the tricky thing about reviewing these episodes is that they are all titled with roman numerals that make it difficult to tell which episodes are which. These episodes are also divided into segments and some of these segments are much stronger than others. The best segments bring together a combination of humor, horror or creepiness, and a creative theme. The worst are perhaps forgettable or don't do as much as they could with the topic. I have decided for each week to review a week's worth of episodes, watching one Treehouse of Horror on each day, and then write a ranking for the episodes from that week. While this could be somewhat uneven if there are several strong seasons in a row in one string of seven Treehouse of Horror episodes and several weak episodes in a row for another week, I think the best segments should rise to the top regardless of which batch of episodes I watch them with. Also, at the end of October/beginning of November, I will do a ranking of the top 10 best and worst Treehouse of Horror segments from the entire show at this point. I am glad that the show has these yearly non-canon episodes because it gives a lot of space for experimentation and trying out new ideas. Experimentation can be a mixed bag because it brings the brilliant and the bad or bizarre, but I think it leads to a fascinating experience either way. I am so excited to do this ranking and to think about all those fun and creepy Treehouse of Horror segments! To start with the first 7 Treehouse of Horror specials, I will say that it includes some of my favorite segments in the entire show! The good segments are hilarious and creepy, and even the bad segments have good elements or are just a bit bland. Let's start ranking!

Top 7 Best Segments

7. "The Devil and Homer Simpson" ("Treehouse of Horror IV")

This segment is both funny and it works with a creative idea! It is fun to see Flanders as the Devil and see a clever interpretation of hell. It is cool to see Homer punished with eating doughnuts when he is in hell, only to find that he actually really enjoys it. I love Homer's obvious lie as he says he didn't eat the doughnut when it is obvious that he did. The trial is also a lot of fun. I am generally not a fan of courtroom episodes of the crime shows that I watch, but this segment makes the case a lot of fun. The jury that Devil Flanders puts together is also quite a funny and colorful group and I like that they argue that Marge legally owns Homer's soul. 

6. Clown Without Pity ("Treehouse of Horror III")

The main reason I added this segment to the list was that it had so many funny jokes in it. I love Homer's discussion with the store owner when he keeps saying "That's good" and "That's bad." I like the part when the doll tries to harpoon Homer and he runs screaming through the house or the fact that Grandpa calls the doll evil but only because he calls all of Bart's birthday gifts evil or the fact that the Krusty doll has an evil switch that he was set to at some point. The end is a bit anticlimactic and I think that it would have worked better to just end it when they set the doll back to good, but it is such a fun segment to watch and makes me laugh so much that I like revisiting it.

5. "Terror at 5½ Feet" ("Treehouse of Horror IV")

This segment is a masterclass in suspense and also includes some great elements of humor as well. I like the colorful stories that Groundskeeper Willie and Skinner give for why they are on the bus. I also think the segment is good at capturing both Bart's growing anxiety and the ways he tries to alert others on the bus. There is also the random humor of Homer grabbing free stuff from the marina because it was "just sitting in some guy's boat." The gremlin is doing more destruction than the one in the original Twilight Zone episode why raises the stakes on Bart's fear. I also think Flanders' reaction to the monster when he says it is cute as it tries to claw his eyes out is also quite amusing.

4. "Time and Punishment" ("Treehouse of Horror V")

I love the creativity that they have in this segment. It is funny to see Homer accidentally invent a time machine when he is just trying to fix a toaster. It is also so randomly funny that Homer's advice on the consequence of time travel came from his father on his wedding day. I would have liked to see how Homer's actions in the past directly impacted the timeline, something like in The Butterfly Effect, but I understand that the segment did not have the time to do this. Instead, what they do is show a variety of creative alternate worlds that are all so much fun. I love the world being run by Flanders and the way that his Re-Neducation center has everyone dress like him and Maude. It is also so funny that it is only when Homer smashes everything that he gets the absolute perfect world where he is rich and it rains doughnuts. This is such a fun time travel adventure!

3. "Nightmare Cafeteria" ("Treehouse of Horror V")

This one definitely has a morbid humor since so many of its jokes revolve around cannibalism, but I am pretty accustomed to laughing about cannibalism after reading Melville's books. I think Jimbo's description of Lunchlady Doris spilling meat tenderizer on him is funny, as is the fact that there is an entire book about The Joy of Cooking Millhouse. I think they have some great creative imagery with the caged children and the free-range children and the larger system that they have in place to eat the children. My absolute favorite part, and the reason why this segment is so high on my list is that there is a part where Bart and Lisa ask Marge for help with the cannibalism issue and Marge tells them that they are old enough now to handle the issue and she will not fight their battles for them. It is so absurd that it makes me laugh every time! 

2. "The Raven" ("Treehouse of Horror I")

I absolutely love this segment! It is so closely tied with my first choice and while I think that one is a better parody and really funny, this one has had a bigger impact on me personally and has some chilling moments in it as well. This poem is read perfectly by James Earl Jones and it was the discovery that the rhyming, melodic words of this segment were based on a real poem by Edgar Allan Poe that inspired me to try and memorize this poem and also to love literature as much as I do. It does a great job setting a spooky mood, particularly in the final moments of the segment. But while it shares the confined creepiness of Poe's poem, it also introduces a bunch of humor as well. The funny thing about this is that Poe would not have been a fan because he thought that each poem should have a unified impact. The humor works so well in the segment though! I love Bart's complaint about the empty hallway or his desire to say something other than just "Nevermore." Homer is not the way that I would have envisioned the speaker for this poem, but that is a small issue with a segment that is so beautiful and so funny! 

1. "The Shinning" ("Treehouse of Horror V")

This segment is such a perfect parody! I think Homer fits scarily well into the role of Jack Torrance and they manage to squish so many jokes into this setting. I like that Burns responds casually to the blood in the hallway as he comments that it usually gets off at the second floor. The funniest moments come when Marge comes to confront Homer at his typewriter. I like that it says "Feelin' Fine" on the typewriter and has "No TV and No Beer Make Homer Go Crazy" written all over the walls. It is hilarious when Marge says "Go crazy?" and Homer responds with "Don't mind if I do!" I also laugh at the moment when Homer makes a scary and ugly face that scares himself when he looks in the mirror. This segment is even funnier once you have seen The Shining and it manages to fit so many great jokes into such a brief amount of time. Whenever I think of an amazing Treehouse of Horror segment, I think of this one! 

Top 7 Worst Segments

7. "If I Only Had a Brain" ("Treehouse of Horror II")

I think this segment would have been so much stronger if it had had not focused on Homer. It had to because this was supposed to be Homer's nightmare, but I think most of these elements are the funny interactions between Burns and Smithers. I love the part when Smithers hears rustling in the bag and becomes anxious then Burns smacks the bag and says "Bad corpse! You're scaring Smithers!" I also like all the work they do to put the brain inside the robot as well as the fact that the robot takes names even though he wouldn't even be tired. Whenever it switches back to Homer's perspective, it gets much less interesting and lacks all the great laughs that you get from other parts of the segment.

6. "Homer" ("Treehouse of Horror VI")

This segment is a huge accomplishment for animation, and I think the 3d graphics still look quite impressive when you consider other 3d animated projects from the era. There are a few jokes here that are funny such as Lovejoy telling Homer to go into the light and Homer being zapped by the light bulbs. I also think it is so randomly funny that Marge brings in Flanders to help because he has a ladder when this doesn't help at all with the zone that Homer walked into. Ultimately, the problem with this episode is that it is so focused on experimenting with the animation that it forgot to do anything else interesting with the story. 

5. "The Bart Zone" ("Treehouse of Horror II")

In this segment, we see a bit of wish fulfillment for Bart as he has the power to make people bend to his every wish. The problem is that we see so much of Bart's imagination in the early seasons that there isn't really anything unique about Bart's power here. I like the part when he is driving the school bus at terrifying speeds and Otto gleefully says that they are going to die. I think this segment loses steam once Bart turns Homer into a Jack-in-the-box. Homer bonding with Bart is a bit anticlimactic and I think it is sad that being close with his father is something that Bart finds terrifying.

4. "Hungry are the Damned" ("Treehouse of Horror I")

This segment is the first introduction to Kang and Kodos. It isn't terrible, but it has a bit of a problem with the twist it tries to do at the end. The twist is that the aliens are actually nice and don't want to eat the Simpsons, but it seems a bit inconsistent with the suspicious way that they are acting earlier in the segment. The aliens praise the family when they eat and even weigh them and cheer when they are heavier. This behavior doesn't match their expressed desire to give the family food and take them to a paradise. It ends with a bit of a Twilight Zone moral that the family, and especially Lisa, missed this opportunity due to their distrust. I get that this is subversive, but I think it is a bit critical of Lisa for investigating suspicious things. I still suspect that the aliens were actually trying to eat them. 

3. "Bart Simpson's Dracula" ("Treehouse of Horror IV")

There are some elements of this segment that I really like! I enjoy the police assuming that the obvious signs of a vampire are actually a mummy. I also think there are some fun things that happen once they get to Burns' castle. The fact that it is in Pennsylvania instead of Transylvania makes me laugh every time. There is also the funny moment when Marge worries that Bart's vampirism will lead to him smoking. I enjoy the "Super Fun Happy Slide" that Bart takes even when it dooms him and Homer is also tempted to use it as well. My issue with the segment is the twist that Marge is the head vampire. They don't have any indications that this will be the solution, probably so that it will be more surprising, and because of that, it comes out of nowhere. Why wouldn't Marge turn Lisa into a vampire if everyone else in the family was a vampire? The episode also ends abruptly with the family singing Christmas carols which is a bit of a weak ending. 

2. "King Homer" ("Treehouse of Horror III")

This segment is a good spoof of King Kong and I do like some of the early portions of it, but I think that the segment loses steam once they leave the island. On the island, they have the great joke about both Ape Island and Candy Apple Island containing apes. There is also the funny part when Burns accidentally gasses himself with a gas bomb intended for Homer. I think once they get to New York, Homer's freak-out is not all that entertaining and it doesn't really develop how he falls in love with Marge. I also understand the humor that can come with underreacting to situations, but I don't like how easily they laugh off Homer eating Marge's father. 

1. "Attack of the 50-Foot Eyesores" ("Treehouse of Horror VI")

I find elements of this segment a bit irritating. Homer's frustration with false advertising makes sense, but him stealing the metal doughnut is a bit strange because he can't even eat it. I also don't like that he gives the doughnut back like Marge suggests and it doesn't even change anything. There is a creative idea that advertising cannot work if people don't pay attention to it, but the way these ad mascots die immediately is a bit inconsistent with their origin when no one was looking at them. The song about not looking is catchy, but not one that I really enjoy. This segment also isn't that funny to me. The only part that really made me laugh was Bart being the devil and angel on the shoulders of the devil mascot to get him to destroy the school.