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Best Simpsons Treehouse of Horror Tales

Homer and his family take absurdity to new levels in the Treehouse of Horror Tales.

By Tom MisuracaPublished 7 years ago 4 min read
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What makes the Simpsons Treehouse of Horrors Tales so scary is that this stuff can come out of the mind of Matthew "Matt" Groening. He is a comedic genius, artist and probably really rich. I decided to take a look back at some of the past Simpsons’ Halloween offerings that still have me laughing to this day.

Frinkenstein

Worth it alone just to hear Jerry Lewis play Professor Frink’s father, who’s been long dead by this time (shark bite, naturally), but kept frozen in Frink’s laboratory. Frink winning the Nobel Prize is the motivation to bring his daddy back to life. Once reanimated, Frink Sr. collects body parts from Springfield’s residents in a disgustingly hilarious rampage.

Send in the Clones

If you love Homer, you’ll get lots of him in this segment. Homer purchases a “cursed” hammock that ends up creating carbon copies of him. Each reproduction gets dumber (and funnier), as well as more evil (one cuts of Ned Flanders’ head with a chainsaw). And it’s a blast seeing the various Homer clones collected, among them are the original Tracy Ullman version and Peter Griffin.

King Homer

It was the part Homer was born to play: a great big ape! The animators captured the flavor of the original 1933 film. And it has one of Smithers best double entendres: “Women and sea men don’t mix.” If only they had been able to recreate this magic for the Homerzilla segment on this year’s show.

Fly vs Fly

Homer picks up a used teleporter at Professor Frink’s yard sale. Bart tries to mix his DNA with a fly to become a superhero. Instead we get a fly with Bart’s head, and Bart with a fly’s head. Comedy of Kafka proportions ensues!

The Bart Zone

The Simpsons “borrow” many story lines from The Twilight Zone, but this is one of their best. Bart parodies Billy Mumy’s character from It’s a Good Life. The town of Springfield must cater to Bart’s every whim or he’ll use his spooky powers to do something terrible to them. Though more funny than scary, the image of Homer as a Jack-in-the-Box is nightmare worthy.

Time and Punishment

While attempting to fix the toaster, Homer instead creates a time machine. He travels back to the time of the dinosaurs and squishes a mosquito. This sets off a Butterfly Effect on his future and he ends up in realities that grow more outrageous: Ned Flanders as supreme ruler of the world, Bart and Lisa as Giants, Maggie as an axe murderer. Homer does stumble into a world where he has money, smart kids and dead sisters-in-law, but opts to leave when it appears donuts do not exist. Sadly he leaves right as it rains… donuts. (How do I get into that world!?) This one has everything, including a cameo from Dr. Peabody and Sherman.

Clown Without Pity

Clowns are terrifying: Pennywise, Jigsaw, Bozo. Dolls coming to life are terrifying: Chucky, Talking Tina, that creepy thing from Trilogy of Terror. So a clown doll coming to life is… freaking hilarious!

Nightmare on Evergreen Terrace

Nightmare on Elm Street is the perfect movie for The Simpsons to parody. As an animated show, their imaginations went wild with the dream sequences. And Groundskeeper Willie is the perfect Freddy Kruger type. And the mob mentality of Springfield fits perfectly into covering up the (accidental) killing of a mad man. It’s a Smarch you’ll never forget!

The Shinning

The Simpsons’ creators have always been a fan of both Stephen King and Stanley Kubrick, so it’s a no-brainer that their parody of The Shining would be perfection. So much good stuff: the animation style, Homer’s insanity, Groundskeeper Willie getting the axe (kicking off a running gag for the next two segments). And to this day, anything I’m kept from too long gets the response as television does when Homer finally gets his hands on one: “Television! Mother. Teacher. Secret lover...”

Attack of the 50 Foot Eyesores

For me, it doesn’t get any better than this. A great story: big kitchy advertisements come to life and terrorize Springfield. So great quotes: “He came to life. Good for him.” “Help me lord!” “You kids should have jackets on.” “OK… if it’ll end horror.” All this and Paul Anka, too

The Simpsons' annual Treehouse of Horror has become as much a part of Halloween as tricks or treats and bobbing for apples. This collection includes the first ever Halloween-themed Simpsons episode, including the Twilight Zone parody, "Hungry Are the Damned". The collection also features such modern classics as "The Devil and Homer Simpson", where Homer trades his soul to the devil for a donut; "Citizen Kang", where aliens kill both candidates for President in order to take over America; and "Life's a Glitch and then you Die", a terrifying look at the year 21st century--almost as frightening, in fact, as things have actually been. Each spine-tingling spectacular is "funny ha ha", not to mention "funny uh-oh," and taken together they're eighteen of the scariest, most hilarious Simpsons segments of all time. So get your fright on, download these goodies, and make every day Halloween with the Simpsons!

If it's Halloween, it must be time for the Simpsons' annual horrible holiday humorfest. In this collection, thrill to the voices of Fran Drescher, Jennifer Garner and Jerry Lewis and stories featuring a monkey's paw that is more than it appears, a toaster that goes back in time, killer dolphins, the Golem of Prague, and the War of the Worlds. This is truly a collection too scary to be missed.

Welcome to The Collected Treehouse of Horror III, featuring the Simpsons Annual Treehouse of Horrors III, VI, IX, XII, XV, and XVIII. A lot of Roman numerals, and what do they add up to besides LXIII? Silly scares, hilarious haunts and ghoulish gags that defy this copywriter's alliterative powers. Don't delay, download today!

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About the Creator

Tom Misuraca

Multi-award winning writer with over 80 published short stories, 2 novels, and 3 plays, over 100 one-act plays and 7 full-length plays.

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