Twenty Years of 'Treehouse of Horror'

A rather momentous event occurred tonight. The 20th installment of The Simpsons annual Halloween special, affectionately known as the Treehouse of Horror (a term which stems from the very first Halloween episode where Bart and Lisa tell scary stories in their treehouse). For me, Treehouse episodes are as much a part of Halloween as jack o' lanterns and chocolate chip pumpkin cookies.

You want to know the most momentous thing about this year's edition? This episode actually aired BEFORE HALLOWEEN! WOW! So many episodes make it to air the first Sunday in November, a fact that was lampooned in the 14th year when resident aliens Kang and Kodos pointed out that no one airs a Halloween episode in November, and that they already had their Christmas decorations up (don't get me started on people who put Christmas decorations up too early; it drives me crazy!)

Treehouse episodes are always hit and miss. Some episodes are better than others. Some segments are better than others. I'm not a huge fan of the very first episode but I loved their take on Poe's "The Raven". That was actually my first exposure to that poem, and it's since become one of my favorites. Other episodes have referenced Twilight Zone episodes, horror and suspense movies, classic Halloween specials or events, political elections, and much more. Some of the episodes I'm particularly fond of include Volume III, which has some of my most often quoted exchanges of dialogue (Homer buying a cursed doll, Smithers on women and seamen, Bart and Lisa raising the dead). Also, volumes IV (Bart Simpson's Dracula), V (The Shinning), XV (Lisa as Sherlock Holmes) and XVII (Dr. Phil intervenes when Homer becomes the Blob and Springfied reacts to Orson Welles' War of the Worlds).

Tonight's episode was enjoyable, if not overly memorable. An opening segment of Turner Classic Movie monsters at the Simpson's Halloween party was fun. The first story, a take on Dial M for Murder, had some great Hitchcock references. The second story was a nice poke at zombie movies. The last story was a Broadway musical in the same vein as Sweeney Todd. Again, a lot of fun, but not too much that stood out for me.

Regardless I am always happy to see a new Simpson's Halloween special, and if they can air it before November all the better. What do you think readers? Do you have any favorite episodes, or is Treehouse even on your radar for Halloween? And keep your eyes peeled for more posts on the spookiest time of the year.