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20. Treehouse of Horror 23
For all the talk about The Simpsons' switch to a more sterile HD look, this is one of the most gorgeous Treehouse of Horrors to date. "The Greatest Story Ever Holed" involves some really great animation and – for once – a recent parody (in this case, Paranormal Activity) doesn't descend into a shoulder-shrug of a knock-off. Bart's foray back into 1974 is pretty bog-standard in the grand scheme of things and, yet, it still amounts to one of the more fun Halloween episodes of the past decade.
19. Treehouse of Horror 11
Treehouse of Horror 11 makes such a solid start that you'd be forgiven for expecting it to be much higher on this list. Unfortunately, the fantastic first act of "G-g-g-host D-d-d-ad" is quickly supplanted by a lazy fairytale parody that offers nothing in the way of particularly amusing material. Adding on to that, "Night of the Dolphin" just meanders along and is all too predictable. It's still not bad, per se, but there are plenty of Treehouse of Horror episodes you should watch before this one.
18. Treehouse of Horror 20
This episode kicks off with a critique on the modernisation of Halloween costumes. It's fitting, then, that this episode spotlights a triumvirate of traditional tales: Hitchcock – an influence the show loves to mine – musicals and, *sigh* zombies again. If you thought that well ran dry a decade prior then, boy, have I got news for you. For a big anniversary, this episode feels fairly standard – but Moe's deliberately terrible song and dance numbers bring the pizazz and cap off a nice episode.
17. Treehouse of Horror 24
Guillermo del Toro's couch gag and the Dr. Seuss tribute are overflowing with such joyous creativity that it's a real kick in the teeth that the rest of the episode doesn't live up to the ridiculously high benchmark set in the opening 10 minutes. Dead and Shoulders's concept has been done far better in the show's cousin Futurama and, ironically, isn't given room to breathe because of the clipped runtime. The circus segment is a series of one-shot jokes and visual gags that don't quite knit together the threadbare plot it comes with. Still, this is a real animation tour-de-force, and well worth a watch.
16. Treehouse of Horror 13
Number 13: Unlucky for some, but the thirteenth Treehouse of Horror shows that the format still dazzles well beyond the 'classic' era. "Send in the Clones" in an inspired story and – as we inch closer to the number one spot – the trend of entertaining characters carrying stories rather than vice-versa becomes readily apparent. The imagery of the Island of Dr Hibbert is also very strong, but the second story not only glamorises gun violence, it also steals a premise from eleven years earlier. Two out of three ain't bad, though.
15. Treehouse of Horror 25
Fittingly for such a big milestone, the 25th Treehouse of Horror works as a fine-tuned microcosm for the changing face of the Simpsons' Halloween anthology. Parodies, again, are the name of the game and "A Clockwork Yellow" is one of their better efforts. Bart going to Hell, surprisingly, took this long – and it doesn't disappoint, with gruesome gags aplenty. "The Others" is also a neat, knowing nod for classic fans, which is nice. A terrific effort all round.
14. Treehouse of Horror 31
Whisper it, but The Simpsons has improved at a steady pace in recent years. Treehouse of Horror 31 is indicative of that upwards trend with a delightfully devilish CGI take on Toy Story which is about as bloody as the show has ever been. Into the Spider-Verse parody “Into the Homer-Verse” is the most skippable of the three shorts, but still entertains in places with its warped take on various Homers. Russian Doll, meanwhile, is in the firing line for the final act’s “Be Nine, Rewind” as Lisa (and Nelson) get caught in a time loop littered with brutal deaths and a wonderfully meta exchange with Comic Book Guy focused on one of the most overused tropes in sci-fi.
13. Treehouse of Horror 8
Following on from such a brilliant run of Treehouse of Horror episodes in the mid-to-late '90s, the eighth instalment feels like a slight letdown, but it's not without its moments. Homer – at his most obtuse – carries "The Homega Man" and its paper-thin premise. He also gets the best moments in "Fly vs. Fly" and "Easy Bake Coven", but the former lacks Jeff Goldblum and the latter feels like, for better or worse, a more restrained Halloween effort after previous years shambled onto the scene. A good effort, if not a great one in places, from The Simpsons' Golden Age.
12. Treehouse of Horror 3
Probably the most disappointing of the early Treehouse of Horrors, though an average season four Simpsons episode is still better than most shows ever produced. "King Homer" may be beautifully animated, but it rarely strays from full-on homage. "Clown Without Pity" is an instant improvement, featuring one of the show's most unsettling images in a knife-wielding Krusty the Clown doll. The cursed frogurt scene has now lived on in meme folklore (that's good). The final segment, "Dial Z for Zombies" bring you guessed it, zombies into the Treehouse of Horror fore. Except the shambling undead will be covered in far funnier and fateful Treehouse of Horrors further down the line.
11. Treehouse of Horror 12
Season 13 really marked the point where the show reached such a downturn that it was seen as the end of many fans' love affair with the longest-running animated show in history. Treehouse of Horror 12, though, is a strong start to the season. Gypsies curses, Pierce Brosnan playing a knockoff HAL, and a half-baked Harry Potter knock-off (saved by the serpentine Smithers) all come together to form an episode that is a bit all over the place thematically, but still proved the writers weren't (and, frankly, still aren't) as creatively bankrupt as many would have you believe.
Continue to Page 3 for more of the best Treehouse of Horror episodes
