Believe it or not, we are up to thirty-six Treehouse of Horror episodes from the Simpsons and have been going strong since Season Two back in 1990. If you aren’t familiar with the Treehouse of Horror series, it consists of three non-canonical shorts/segments that often spoof or parody a popular spooky story, film, or horror trope. Among the Simpsons community, it is a love it or hate it tradition that typically airs the Sunday before or after Halloween.
As children of the 90’s, the Flyperbole himself (Steve) and I have a profound love for this Fall tradition and thought it might be fun to run through our favorite segments over the years in a “fantasy-style draft” to get your opinion on who can come up with the best list. We’ll each be picking five segments in alternating order. Make sure to let us know your thoughts and if we missed any of your favorites. Steve is now on-the-clock:
Steve: I have to start with “The Shinning” from “Treehouse of Horror V”. It’s a spot-on parody that I reference constantly to this day. No beer and no TV make Homer go something something…
Jason: DON’T MIND IF I DO! Wanna hear something embarrassing? I’ve never actually watched the Kubrick film nor read the Stephen King novel. Everything I know about either is from this segment lol. This would have been my #1 pick, but now I will choose one that has rocketed up over the last 15 years, “Citizen Kang”.
It is a satire that works perfectly with current American politics and features a lot of great gags. No one knows that both candidates are acting strange and of course voting for a third party. Because “go ahead, throw away your vote!”. I often find myself quoting “Don’t blame me, I voted for Kodos”.
Steve: Jason, it is INSANE that you have neither read nor seen The Shining! Get on that, bud! Do both!
“Citizen Kang” is absolutely up there on the episodes I reference all the time. Always twirling, twirling, twirling!
My second pick is going to be one that is near and dear to Flyers fans, and that is “The Devil and Homer Simpson“. There are so many great gags in this one – Devil Flanders, Homer eating all of the Hell punishment donuts, everything with Lionel Hutz (“That’s okay, the box is empty.”), and donut head Homer. Ultimately, Flyers fans will remember this one best for the appearance of the 1976 Philadelphia Flyers on the Jury of the Damned. Yes, they are wearing blue jerseys and don’t really look like any of the guys, but who cares? It’s the Flyers! Fun fact: Dave Schultz would appear years later in the episode “Top Goon”.
Jason: That’s a great one with so many good sight gags and under-the-radar jokes from Bart and Devil Flanders casually acknowledging one another and Homer angry at his past-self “Bastard, he’s always one step ahead!”
Next I’ll go with the classic “Dial Z for Zombies”. “Dad! You killed Zombie Flanders! He was a zombie?” I’m a sucker for zombie…well anything and this scratches that itch. Homer with a shotgun will never not be funny. Especially after he is mowing down George Washington and Shakespeare (who are inexplicably buried in Springfield?) with reckless abandon.
Steve: “Dial Z for Zombies” has so many dark jokes, it rules. This is where it gets interesting. I was between 3 or 4 options here, but ultimately decided on “Clown Without Pity”. The killer Krusty the Clown doll is such a funny visual. Homer getting the pros and cons of the cursed doll in a nod to Gremlin (That’s good! That’s bad…) is an all-time gag. I mean there’s a bottomless pit in this segment, what’s not to love?
Jason: Tons of great gags, I always thought the dirty sack of socks gag was hilarious. Of course, I also too often quote the “the frogurt is also cursed…” exchange quite a bit in many scenarios that don’t even reference frozen yogurt.
Another great bit that has worked its way into my yearly vernacular is contained in “Nightmare on Evergreen Terrace”. Due to a misprint in the calendars, Smarch was born. Which is known for its lousy weather. An obvious ode to Nightmare on Elm Street series where a vengeful Groundskeeper Willie is killing Springfield’s children in their sleep. Martin’s death is particularly funny with the tarp coming off his body and then accidentally being wheeled into the kindergarten class.
Steve: LOUSY SMARCH WEATHER. I think it every March. Willie coming back off the bus at the end of that episode is so funny. We are going to have to do an honorable mention section, because there are too many good ones left that need proper props.
For my fourth pick, I’m going with “The Thing and I”, or as most people probably think about it, Hugo. Bart’s evil twin that lives in the attic is such a great idea. “The Thing and I” gives us some of the best Dr. Hibbert jokes in the entire series, especially the moment when he punches Hugo through the picture frame that he sold him was a mirror. Hugo’s pigeon-rat hybrid gets me in stitches every time. Anyone care for a bucket of tasty fishheads?
Also, a hockey reference as Homer tells Bart to stay home and tape the hockey game. It’s all about priorities, Homer.
Jason: “The Thing and I” is an ultimate Dr. Hibbert showcase. The mirror bit has stuck with me for years.
For my next pick I’ll go with “If Only I Had A Brain” which brings us a funny Frankenstein tale of Mr. Burns puts Homer’s brain into a robot creature (trying to build the perfect worker, of course). Things don’t go as planned because if you are using Homer’s brain for anything, it will go poorly. One of my favorite gags is Burns asking for an ice cream scoop after sawing through Homer’s skull (which falls off the operating table like an empty half coconut) and yelling at Smithers after his apprehension, “This isn’t rocket science, it’s brain surgery!” Wailing on Homer’s “corpse” in a bag with a shovel screaming “Bad Corpse! Bad Corpse! You’re scaring Smithers!” and commenting on Homer’s “corpse’s” stench even though he is still alive.
Steve: The visual of Burns’ head stitched onto Homer’s body is one that sticks with you, man.
This is an impossible pick. There are at least 7 segments I could have picked here. I’m ultimately going with “Nightmare Cafeteria”, an amazing send-up of Soylent Green that has the teaching staff at Springfield Elementary actually killing and eating the students. It’s a hell of a commentary on the American school system where the students being served is actually an improvement to the quality of food being dished out in an underfunded public school. Skinner saying “I’ve got a GUT FEELING Uter’s around here somewhere,” as they’re eating bratwurst made out of Springfield’s resident foreign exchange student is sooo darkly funny. Milhouse falls into a giant blender at the end! Yeah, I think it has to be “Nightmare Cafeteria”.
Jason: Wendell nervously dropping his pencil was very funny to me as a kid, and still is. Excellent episode.
Last up for me is “Bart Simpson’s Dracula” which is an obvious spoof on Francis Ford Coppola’s Bram Stoker’s Dracula. The Simpsons are invited to Mr. Burn’s mansion in “PENNSYLVANIA” with “clean necks of course”. I remember laughing raucously at Homer mistakenly trying to drive a stake in Burns to kill him and going for the crotch first. Tons of great gags in this one as the Simpsons and Springfield citizenry being completely oblivious to what Mr. Burns in, including his purchase of a blood bank!
Who do you think won the “Treehouse of Horror Draft?
| Steve | Jason |
| The Shinning | Citizen Kang |
| The Devil and Homer Simpson | Dial Z for Zombies |
| Clown Without Pity | Nightmare on Evergreen Terrace |
| The Thing and I | If Only I Had A Brain |
| Nightmare Cafeteria | Bart Simpson’s Dracula |
There are so many great Treehouse of Horror episodes, that we just wanted to give some honorable mentions.
Time and Punishment
Oh I wish I wish I hadn’t killed that fish… (SJ)
“This is indeed a disturbing universe” as Willie is killed yet again. “This one is gonna cost me.” is another quote I think about a lot. (JP)
Terror at 5 ½ feet
Otto purposely running Hans Moleman off the road lol (JP)
King Homer
The first time I actually watched King Kong, I had felt like I had already seen it because of this segment. (SJ)
The Genesis Tub
“Why am I so fat?” lives rent-free in my head (SJ)
Mini-Frink unable to fathom a ray that would enlarge a being (even though he created one that shrunk Lisa). (JP)
Fly vs. Fly
Fly Bart is so gross and so funny. He just eats from a bag of sugar! (SJ)
I love how they just kind of accept him like him being a human fly has no real affect on the family. (JP)
House of Whacks
A defeated Pierce Brosnan-voiced HAL being stuck with Patti and Selma gives me the giggles as Selma slides the self-destruct button down her shirt. (JP)
Homer 3
This is mostly nostalgia and being blown away by the tech, but still has a bunch of laughs. Wiggum blindly firing in the vortex and Homer not caring about his transformation because he found an exotic cake shop. (JP)
Easy-Bake Coven
Caramel cod always makes me chuckle. (SJ)
Nearly picked this one. Loved the jokes of the witches wishing they had discovered trick or treating first before they had eaten all those children, and also when Homer egging a house who didn’t answer the door but then realizing it was his own because he wasn’t home. (JP)
