The Simpsons has a lot of longstanding traditions and recurring elements that are now just a core part of the show’s fabric. Things like the opening sequence, with its chalkboard and couch gags, Bart’s prank phone calls to Moe, and a myriad of catchphrases have not only embedded themselves into the series, but to viewers’ hearts and our collective cultural consciousness. Some were there from the beginning, others developed along the way, but they’re all part of the show’s makeup and what have helped it remain so beloved after decades on the air.
Among all of these is a key tradition that didn’t actually start until The Simpsons Season 2: the annual Treehouse of Horror episode. The show’s first season didn’t begin airing until December, so missed out on celebrating Halloween. But when the series shifted to a more typical fall slot, which it has kept ever since, it launched its own seasonal tradition with “Treehouse of Horror,” which aired on October 25th, 1990. Given an introduction by Marge, the first iteration was heavily inspired by EC Comics and framed as scary stories told by Lisa and Bart in their treehouse. It featured the three-segment format that remains to this day, including: “Bad Dream House,” “Hungry be the Damned,” and “The Raven.”
Treehouse of Horror Is Important For The Simpsons (But What’s The Best One?)
Courtesy of 20th Television Animation
The Treehouse of Horror episodes are one of The Simpsons‘ best traditions, because they allow the series to play around so much with its form. It allows the writers to expand into different genres, like Sci-Fi and horror, and to break all the rules of the show proper since the episodes aren’t canon. There’s an increased level of violence, characters can (and frequently do) die, the animation style can be experimented with more, and the short story format gives some brilliant bursts of creativity that might not sustain a full episode.
It’s also impressive just how fully-formed Treehouse of Horror arrived in 1990. The general format was perfected pretty much straight away, and “The Raven” in particular still remains one of the very best segments: it’s an all-timer parody and genuinely a brilliant re-telling of Edgar Allan Poe’s poem. Other things came and went over time: the actual treehouse setting didn’t last long, and nor did the warnings at the beginning of each episode. Other elements, such as the crew’s names being changed into horror-themed puns, were added later on.
The show certainly built on that foundation, and several of the Treehouse of Horror episodes and segments are among the show’s most iconic installments, moments, and parodies. The first stands among them for sure, but if picking the very best, I’d be tempted to go with either “Treehouse of Horror IV” – which features “The Devil and Homer Simpson,” “Terror at 5+1⁄2 Feet,” and Bart Simpson’s Dracula,” which might be the strongest start-to-finish trio of the whole bunch – or “Treehouse of Horror V,” which features “Time and Punishment,” “The Nightmare Cafeteria,” and what is, for me, still the best individual segment, “The Shinning.” Whichever your favorite, though, there’s no denying this is one of The Simpsons‘ greatest traditions, and it all started on this day.
The Simpsons‘ Treehouse of Horror episodes are all available to stream on Disney+.
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