The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror Episode 4

The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror Episode 4

Aired: October 28th, 1993
Season 5: Episode 5
Written by: Watch Conan O'Brien, The Late Bill Oakley, The Estate of Josh Weinstein, Disfigured Dan McGrath, Greg "It's Alive!" Daniels, and Bilious Bill Canterbury

Welcome to the fourth Treehouse of Horror "Review". This is the first Treehouse of Horror without the standard warning from Marge/Homer, instead we have Bart hosting the episode with each segment represented as a painting in a parody of Rod Serling's "Night Gallery". Marge eventually asks if he warned the audience that the episodes are scary, so they managed to sneak it in. I should mention that this is one of my favorite Treehouse Episodes as all of the segments are great.

Segment 1 - The Devil and Homer Simpson 

The segment opens with Homer asleep at his desk dreaming of donuts and as he awakens looking to satisfy his urge his worst nightmare comes true, his coworkers finished off all of the donuts. In a desperate plea Homer proclaims that he would sell his soul for a donut. The devil, who just happens to be Flanders appears and is willing to make this deal. Homer believes he is smarter than the devil since he left one sliver of the donut, but of course he eats the remainder at night. When the devil Flanders appears to take Homer to hell the Simpson family begs for a trial, in the end we find out that Homer already promised his soul to Marge on their wedding night. As punishment Flanders turns Homers head into a giant donut.

Overall I enjoyed this episode, and I love the twist of having Flanders play the devil. The donut head Homer is iconic and more people know that image than the episode itself.

Here is the list of the references I noticed while watching this segment.
- The Jury of the Damned includes Lizzie Borden, Benedict Arnold, Blackbeard, Jonathan Dillinger, John Wilkes Booth, The Starting Line of the 1976 Philadelphia Flyers, and Richard Nixon.

- The title and the plot is a play on the Devil and Daniel Webster.

- When the Devil Flanders gets angry at Homer at the nuclear power plant, the form he assumes is exactly like the demon Chernabog in the "A Night on Bald Mountain segment" from Fantasia.

- Homer's ironic punishment of being force-fed donuts is a parody of the Merrie Melodies cartoon Pigs is Pigs

Segment 2 -Terror at 5½ Feet 

Even though I will mention it in the references section it is worth saying that the entire segment is a retelling of the Twilight Zone episode Nightmare at 20,000 feet. Bart is on the school bus during a rainy day and he notices a gremlin on the side of the bus trying to take off a wheel. Everyone thinks he is crazy and it isn't until he finally shoots the monster with a flare causing the bus to pull over when the rest of the people notice the scratch marks and tire damage. The number of references may be low but this is a fun episode. The ending with Flanders being decapitated by the gremlin is a gruesome touch that helped but this one over the edge. 

Here are the references I noticed in the segment. 

- The episode is a parody of the Twilight Zone episode Nightmare at 20,000 Feet.

- "Psycho" reference: Skinner talking about his mother.

Segment 3 - Bart Simpson's Dracula 

Once again I will mention the fact that this segment is a retelling of the film, Bram Stokers Dracula. This may be my favorite segment since it has the most legit horror elements. The vampires are all creepy and the scene of Bart floating outside of Lisa's window is great. There is not a ton more to say other than I highly recommend this segment to help get you in the Halloween mood. 

Here are the references I noticed in the segment. 

- Bram Stoker's Dracula - The entire episode.

- Pennsylvania: A parody of Transylvania, Dracula's rumored living place. 

- Salems Lot/Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Bart and the other kids floating outside the window as a vampires

- "A Charlie Brown Christmas" : The end of the segment  

Closing: There is no traditional closing that ties back to the Halloween party, which is odd since the other episodes always did that. Either way this is a great episode and one I would suggest people start with as a means to being introduced to the Treehouse of Horror Episodes. Good Night Everyone.

The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror Episode 3

The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror Episode 3 

Aired: October 29th, 1992
Season 4: Episode 5
Written by: Atrocious Al Jean and Morbid Mike Reiss, Warped Wally Wolodarsky and Johnny Katastrophe Kogen, Scarifying Sam Simon and Vicious Jack Vitti



Welcome to the third Treehouse of Horror "Review". Let me start by saying this is one of my favorite Treehouse of Horror Episodes as the overall writing is arguably the best it has ever been for the Simpsons and this came out at the peak of their popularity.

The opening has Homer being revealed with his outline similar to Alfred Hitchcock even going as far as echoing the iconic phrase "Good Evening". From there Homer warns and mocks the audience about the episode being too scary and that everyone is too chicken to turn off the screen. With the screen "turned off" Marge scolds Homer for mocking the audience. Next comes the Treehouse staple of panning through the cemetery with mock tombstones and finally finishing with the coach gag showing the Simpsons as skeletons.

The episode centers around a Halloween party with a bunch of kids are over for a Halloween party and Marge starts telling a story of a witch that dies while passing out her "body" parts, which Homer consumes. The rest of the episode/segments are set up as scary stories told from Lisa, Grandpa and Bart. There are plenty of horror references since all the kids are dressed up but specifically Bart is dressed as Alex from Clock work orange.

Segment 1 - Clown without Pity 

This first story as told by Lisa starts at Bart's birthday with Homer forgetting a gift, so he runs out to the local House of Evil and purchases a Krusty doll. The back and forth between Homer and the shop keeper is really funny. Bart is thrilled with the new toy but Grandpa warns that the doll is evil, Marge says that he has been saying the same thing about all the gifts. Homer discovers the doll is evil and is attempting to kill him, although most of the family does not believe it. Finally Marge calls the company who made the doll and they end a tech out who tells them that someone must have set the doll to evil, so he switches him to good and all is well. There are plenty of funny parts in this episode but I love the scene where homer is being attacked and he screams out "Marge, Marge the doll is trying to kill me and the toaster's been laughing at me".

Here is the list of the references I noticed while watching this segment.
- Child's Play and "Living Doll" from the Twilight Zone: The premise of the segment and the actions of the Krusty doll in general are pulled directly from these two sources.

- Cape Fear: When Krusty attached himself to the undercarriage of the car with a belt like Max Cady

- Town without Pity (Song) - The title of this segment is a parody of this.

Segment 2 - King Homer 

Next up is Grandpa's story which is a "retelling" of King Kong, Simpsons style. The entire episode is a retelling of King Kong. Not much to say, if you have ever seen the original King Kong then you know what to expect it is funny and my favorite line has to be when Burns asks Smithers what he thinks about Marge joining the crew, Smither's responds with " I think women and sea men don't mix" Burns responds with "we know what you think". A solid segment that helps introduce younger people to the story of King Kong, at least it did for me.

Here are the references I noticed in the segment.
- King Kong: The entire episode is based on the King Kong film.

- The chief of the Island shouts "Mosi Tatupu", which is actually the name of an NFL running back

Segment 3 - Dial "Z" for Zombies 

The final story is told by Bart after Ned walks in and scares everyone dressed as an elaborate and gory Zombie. The story revolves around Bart needing to do a book report so he stumbles across a book the Occult section of the library which has spells to reanimate the dead. In an attempt to reanimate Lisa's cat Snowball 1 the kids go to the Pet Cemetery, but things goes wrong when Bart's spell wakes up all the zombies. In a desperate attempt to reverse things the Simpsons go back to the library and find a book that sends all the zombies back. I love this segment and it is arguably the first true "scary" episode with monster/zombies. There are plenty of funny lines but my favorite is tied between when the kids tell Homer they did something bad and he asks if they wrecked the car or raised the dead, they respond with raised the dead and he once again asks if the car is okay. Then when Homer shoots the zombie Ned Flanders without knowing he was a zombie.

Here are the references I noticed in the segment.
- Dial "M" for Murder: The title of this segment is a play on this title.
- Return of the Living Dead: The zombies keep repeating brains similar to the zombies in this film.

- Michael Jackson Thriller Album: While raising the dead Bart has this album on his head.

- Pet Cemetery: The pet cemetery is arguably inspired by the books/films.

Closing: There is no traditional closing that ties back to the Halloween party, which is odd since the other episodes always did that. Either way this is a great episode and one I would suggest people start with as a means to being introduced to the Treehouse of Horror Episodes. Good Night Everyone.

The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror Episode 2

The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror Episode 2

Aired: October 31st. 1991 Season 2: Episode 3

Written by: Atrocious Al Jean, Morbid Mike Reiss, Jittery Jeff Martin, Gasping George Meyer, Slithering Sam Simon, Spooky John Swartzwelder

Welcome to the second Treehouse of Horror "Review". The opening is the same as the first episode with Marge warning the crowd not to watch, but that everyone ignored her last year. Once again this is a Frankenstein (1931) reference.

The camera moves through the Cemetery with some new names on the Tombstones which then shows the cast names made "scary" for the first time, which will become a Treehouse staple in future episodes.

Next we see Homer watching TV while eating candy when Jimbo and Nelson come demanding candy and then egging the house. Marge (dressed as the Bride), Lisa, Bart and Maggie come home after trick r treating and they begin gorging on the candy. Marge warns them all that is they eat too much candy they will have nightmares. These nightmares serve as the segments for the episode. I love this idea of the nightmares after too much candy, I can remember my parents warning me of this, so it ties perfectly into the Halloween season.

Segment 1 - Monkey's Paw (Lisa's Nightmare) 

The segment begins with the Simpsons in Morocco with Homer buying a Monkey's Paw after being warned by the seller that it can be dangerous with each wish granted.

The paw offers 4 wishes that turn out to be the following;
- First wish - Maggie wishes for a new pacifier which arrives in a luxury vehicle.
- Second wish - Bart wishes for the family to be rich and famous, but soon everyone in town begins to hate them.
- Third Wish - Lisa wishes for world peace, everyone throws away their guns and then Kang and Kodos come to take over the world.

- Fourth wish - Homer wishes for a turkey sandwich, which turns out out to be dry.
Homer throws out the paw in frustration and Ned asks if he can have it, Homer purposely does not tell him that it is dangerous, however Ned manages to save the world and upgrade his house. This is a funny episode and I love the part where homer wishes for a turkey sandwich, they could have done a few things better but I still like it.

Here is the list of the references I noticed while watching this segment.
- "The Monkey's Paw": The entire segment is inspired by the W.W. Jacobs horror story "The Monkey's Paw"

- Midnight Express: When the Simpsons are about to board the plane, the Moroccan police stop them by aiming pistols at them in the kneeling position, then lift up Homer's shirt to find smuggled items taped to his abdomen, parodying the opening scene of Midnight Express.

Segment 2 - The Bart Zone (Bart's Nightmare)

The segment revolves around Bart having the ability to alter reality and read peoples minds. Basically Bart is running Springfield and we get to see him messing with people, especially Homer. This is my favorite segment of the episode, since it was inspired by the Twlight Zone episode and some of Homer's reactions once he is turned into a jack in the box.

Here are the references I noticed in the segment.
- "It's a Good Life" The Twilight Zone: The entire segments based on this classic episode.

- Twilight Zone Intro: The intro is like the Twilight Zone Homers Nightmare

Segment 3 If I Only Had a Brain (Homer's Nightmare)

This segment opens with Mr. Burns wanting to fire someone and picks Homer. Homer ends up working as a grave digger and falls asleep in one of the open graves. Mr. Burns and Smithers are in search of a fresh corpse in order to bring life to their new worker robot and stumble across Homer. Assuming he is dead they drag him back and use his brain. Unfortunately the robot is as lazy as Homer so they decide to reverse the process. In the process the robot falls on Mr. Burns leaving only his head, so Smither sews the head onto Homer.

This is a funny episode that may not be great but is all around solid with plenty of references to Frankenstein.

Here are the references I noticed in the segment.
- Frankenstein: The entire episode is based around this, from the grave robbing to the laboratory to the "monster"

- The Wizard of Oz:  Mr. Burns is humming "If I only had a brain" as well as the near-quote "You clinking, clattering, cacaphony of colligenous cogs and camshifts!" was originally used as an insult to the Tin Man.

Closing: The end has Homer waking from his nightmare only to find out that Mr. Burns head is actually sewn onto his shoulder. This ending is similar to the film, The Thing With Two Heads. Overall this is a good episode and moved the series in the right direction. Thanks for reading and goodnight!

The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror Episode 1

The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror Episode 1

Aired: October 25th 1990
Season 2: Episode 3

Written by: John Swartzwelder, Jay Kogen & Wallace Wolodarsky, Edgar Allan Poe & Sam Simon

Welcome to the first Treehouse of Horror "Review". An interesting fact is that this is the only Treehouse of Horror episode to actually feature the Treehouse setting. The opening has Marge walking out to the stage to warn the audience of how scary the episode is and to not let your children watch. This is a clear reference to Frankenstein (1931).

Next we get to see a quick tour through the cemetery with celebrity names, Simpsons characters and creators (which will be a reoccurring motif in future episodes). Also, a small detail you may miss is the fly saying "OW" as it flies into the bug zapper (reference the film the Fly).

The entire episode is tied together under the premise that Bart and Lisa are telling each other scary stories on Halloween night, all while Maggie and Homer (unknown to the kids) listen on. This sets the perfect mood to a Halloween night that most kids can relate to. 

Segment 1 - Bad Dream House

This is my favorite segment of this episode. The plot of this segment revolves around the Simpson's moving into a house that they purchase on the cheap due to the fact that it was built on an ancient Indian burial ground, and sure enough strange things start happening. There are a few really funny moments in this one with my favorite being when Homer is yelling at the realtor for not warning them about the house, only to find out he was told multiple times.

Here is the list of the references I noticed while watching this segment.
- Poltergeist: From the plot to the tree outside of Lisa's window, the Indian Burial ground, a portal and the way the house disappears at the end of the segment.

- Amityville Horror: The bleeding walls, the house speaking to the Simpsons and trying to get them to turn on one another.

- Psycho: The house looks just like Norman Bates house.

- Exorcist: Maggie's Head Spinning

- Shining: Homer carrying the axe (may be a bit of a stretch)

- Suspiria: The use of colors throughout the segment

Segment 2 - Hungry Are the Damned

This segment marks the first appearance of Kang and Kodos who would go on to be a Treehouse staple in all future segments. The Simpons are abducted by the Regellians while being fed their favorites dishes, Lisa is concerned this is a plot to fatten them up before eating them. It all turns out to be a big misunderstanding.

Here is the list of the references I noticed while watching this segment.

- The Twilight Zone Episode "To Serve Man": The plot and the misunderstanding with the book.

- Kang and Kodos: Inspired by Weird Comics (multiple)

Segment 3 - The Raven

This is the first Simpons segment to be based on a book. The Raven is a retelling of the Poe classic, with little changed, other than the injection of Simpsons humor. I personally never really enjoyed this one but I can understand why they included it in the episode.

Edgar Allen Poe Books: The Raven drops include The Pit and the Pendulum, The Telltale Heart and The Purloined Letter.

Closing: Homer is terrified after hearing all of these stories and is scared as Marge turns off the lights. In conclusion there are many better episodes but this was a solid first attempt at a Halloween special.