It's one of scariest times of the year. With Halloween now only days away, it's time to turn on the TV and find what will tingle your spine and make you have nightmares for nights on end. Among the most iconic of the horror-themed entertainment is The Simpsons' annual Treehouse of Horror anthology series; where pop culture meets violence and surrealism with hilarious results. Over the next six days, join me as I count down all 78 of the current installments from the absolute worst (That's bad), to the absolute best (That's good) of the golden years; with a very unlucky 13 entries at a time. Who will come out on top? Well, there's only one way to find out. Click the button below, if you dare.
52. "The Fright to Creep and Scare Harms"
Episode: XIII
The One About: When Springfield bans guns, zombie cowboys wreak havoc.
The Good: It's definitely one of the more inspired zombie parodies done in the later years. It also has a strange subtext about gun control laws. The Kaiser being called out for not being a cowboy is a funny gag gag. The pian-o and pian-e debate is also fun. Ralph riding a slide made out of guns is a very striking image.
The Bad: The ending is nonsensical, with an additional use of time travel that has Moe going back to get some caveman hookers. For all of the fun ideas in the zombie cowboys, the resolution feels tacked on. It's entertaining, but falls apart in the back half.
51. "G-G-Ghost D-D-Dad"
Episode: XI
The One About: Homer dies and must commit one good deed to get into heaven.
The Good: Homer helps Agnes cross the street, only to accidentally kill her, claiming that she was going to be the next Hitler. "Gloopid glorapope." Despite being a ghost, Nelson is able to beat him up. The redeeming deed is a nod to The Untouchables. The fact that broccoli is considered a vile and dangerous food by everyone throughout the episode.
The Bad: The good deed seems random, considering that he is unable to do anything for his family, which takes away the momentum. While the final twist of Homer going to hell is clever, it does feel like repetitive territory covered by "The Devil and Homer Simpson." Also, the final reveal that John Wayne is in hell makes no sense. Interestingly enough, he makes a later cameo in "How to Get Ahead in Dead-vertising" as someone in heaven.
50. "Heck House"
Episode: XVIII
The One About: Ned introduces the children of Springfield to the seven deadly sins
The Good: It's a very creative take on the seven deadly sins with plenty of inventive animations. "Oh, how I envy the crotchless." Seeing Ned as the devil is a nice return to the classic years. The kids playing pranks to The Ramones' "Blitzkrieg Bop" is fun. Lenny insulting Lisa for "over-feeding" his fish is funny.
The Bad: The short is not bad in theory, but it feels like familiar territory. Ned is the preachy savior, which has become hit and miss as they years have gone on. It feels like a lecture with gore. Add on the familiar Ned chastising the audience at the end makes this feel conradictory. It will make you miss the days when Ned was just the goody-goody neighbor and not a religious zealot. Homer having his head stuck inside Spider-Pig's body is strange and unnecessary.
49. "Freaks, No Geeks"
Episode: XXIV
The One About: Various Springfield characters are now freaks at a circus.
The Good: It's actually a really fun parody of the classic film Freaks. The animation is inventive and gives plenty of supporting characters their time to shine. It's a nice twist on Homer and Marge falling in love.
The Bad: Despite everything prior to the last reveal being great, it's the confusing finale that detracts from its quality. Never should a Freaks parody be concluded with a strange nod to How I Met Your Mother. While it makes sense to show that Homer's betrayal caused him to be tarred and feathered in comical fashion, it's still distracting.
48. "UNnormal Activity"
Episode: XXIII
The One About: When the house becomes haunted, The Simpsons install security cameras.
The Good: It's a decent parody of Paranormal Activity. The flashback as to why the house is haunted makes sense.
The Bad: There's a part of me that wonders if this episode would have worked if it ended much like the movie it lampoons. We never see the demon in the film. Instead, bodies are dragged around. While there's a lot of great gags, the reveal of the demons underwhelms the entire endeavor. When it is revealed that Homer is having sex with them, it only adds more discomfort to a segment that started as one of the strongest parodies that the show had done in years.
47. "The Others"
Episode: XXV
The One About: The Simpsons meet The Simpsons from over 20 years ago.
The Good: It conveys perfectly in one short how the series has grown over its run. Even the voice acting and animation has some jarring differences that add to the humor. The final gag involves an alternative timeline in which The Simpsons are incarnated as various familiar properties, including Pokemon, Archer, South Park, and Minions.
The Bad: The general story is stupid. Most of the living characters commit suicide to be ghosts. Maggie is implied to have been murdered by Willie. None of these motivations make sense other than that Homer and Ghost Marge are in love. While the voice acting is good, the older voices don't sound right and the animation is a little too polished.
46. "There's No Business Like Moe Business"
Episode: XX
The One About: A stage play in which Moe seduces recent widow Marge.
The Good: It's a very special segment, in that it's the only one to be portrayed as a stage play, including audience commentary. The songs are pretty good.
The Bad: While it is not a direct parody of "Sweeney Todd," Moe's demonic nature feels a little heavy. This is basically a segment in which Moe attempts to woo Marge. It's not necessarily scary, but wins points on being weird. Even then, it's an episode that feels out of place from everything else on the list. It is Moe being creepy that hurts the episode and makes the "Sweeney Todd" comparisons hard to comprehend. How easily Marge falls for him is also a little much.
45. "Starship Poopers"
Episode: IX
The One About: Maggie is actually an alien.
The Good: Maggie losing her baby legs. A spot-on parody of The Jerry Springer Show. The insemination story is fun.
The Bad: Will audiences nowadays get the appeal of The Jerry Springer Show? The rest of the story is trashy and takes away from the horror aspect. The strange insistence on aliens attacking Ken Star is a very dated reference. Even if it's outside of canon, the idea of Marge procreating with an alien seems highly illogical and her attitudes are inconsistent.
44. "School is Hell"
Episode: XXV
The One About: Bart attends school in hell.
The Good: It's nice to see an episode revolving around Bart being obnoxious in clever ways. The child who is held back is a nice recurring gag. The use of Pat Benatar's "Hell is For Children" is actually well used. Lisa being impressed that it was a cold day in hell when she became popular. The cameo by The Red Devil, who notices how lame he is, was really funny.
The Bad: While it is filled with a lot of great gags, it's the conclusion that ruins it. The whole concept feels thrown together without any real clarity.
43. "The Genesis Tub"
Episode: VII
The One About: Lisa creates miniature life in a container.
The Good: When Bart attacks the container, they send an army to attack him at night in airplanes that fly through his head. "I've created Lutherans." The miniature life forms consider Bart the devil is a smart twist. The ending in which Lisa is stuck as their ruler while Bart gets all of the credit. One of the miniature lifeforms insists on getting Lisa socks in order to please her.
The Bad: While the sibling rivalry angle adds a funny final reveal, it doesn't provide much else. It's a fine segment, but one that lacks any real drive because its characters are predominantly unseen and commented upon. It's only in the final stretch that it all comes together in a nightmarish fashion.
42. "How to Get Ahead in Dead-Vertising"
Episode: XIX
The One About: Homer murders celebrities so that they can endorse products.
The Good: It's a clever premise that comments on a real-life trend that still goes on. Homer killing celebrities, in creative fashion, to The Talking Heads' "Psycho Killer" is fun. John Wayne getting along with a flamboyant Prince is something delightfully unexpected. The randomness of the Rip Taylor cameo is both great and pointless. James Stewart remaining the voice of reason, even in the face of the dead getting their revenge.
The Bad: It's probably one of the most absurd plots that the show has ever done. The title leaves something to be desired. Abraham Lincoln is gay for some reason. John Wayne being in heaven contradicts the plot of "G-G-Ghost D-D-Dad."
41. "Oh, The Places You'll D'Oh"
Episode: XXIV
The One About: Bart and Lisa are watched by a psychopathic Fat in the Hat
The Good: Parodying Dr. Seuss is something that this show probably should've done years ago. The clever rhyme scheme as they find modes of transportation is a lot of fun. The animation is very well done and fits its subject matter.
The Bad: While The Cat in the Hat was always a menacing character, it feels overdone in this episode with Homer's Fat in the Hat. What starts off as a clever tale of mischief slowly turns into a tale more of anarchist rebellion. Clever wordplay abounds, but the segment inevitably collapses when Fat in the Hat is revealed to be a member of Anonymous. It never justifies itself as a Halloween segment. It's an idea that is smart, but not well executed.
40. "A Clockwork Yellow"
Episode: XXV
The One About: Moe commits pranks with his friends.
The Good: It's a solid sequel to "The Shinning" in that it references the remaining Stanley Kubrick movies. The A Clockwork Orange parodies are spot-on, especially Homer's sped-up scene in which he bakes food to classical music. "Not my schmoo!" The innocent interpretation of the old in and out is great. The third act's Eyes Wide Shut parody is delightfully absurd and throws all of the references in at a brisk pace. The attention to people being required to tastefully cover nudists is smart. The revelation that it was secretly filmed by Kubrick himself only adds to the excessive lunacy of it all.
The Bad: Its first half is a little more focused than its latter half. The references likely don't work if you haven't seen the films, making it difficult to fully appreciate it - especially if you haven't seen Eyes Wide Shut. Mr. Burns' being the sexual leader in that party is also a little disturbing.
UP NEXT: Evil hair pieces, talking birds, and Lucy Lawless.
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