It's that time of year again. The leaves are changing color, every restaurant is selling a pumpkin something or other, kids are wrapping plastic around their faces, and The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror is getting ready to air. Yes, it's Halloween time. Even though Treehouse of Horror hasn't aired before Halloween this millenium, The Simpsons annual Halloween special has become as much a part of the holiday as turkey has for Thanksgiving. So to get in the mood, as we here at TV Squad have spent endless hours compiling the list of the Treehouse of Horror's greatest. Segments. Ever. We hope you enjoy reading about them as much as we did writing about them. On with the show!



5) Clown Without Pity - Treehouse of Horror III - 1992
I'm a pretty reasonable, well adjusted adult, but sharks and dolls coming to life scare the bejeebus out of me. So when I was younger, this segment was one of the ones that actually gave me the willies. Homer forgot to buy Bart a present for his birthday, so at the last second he picks a Krusty doll up at an evil little shop. They quickly realize that there's something not quite right with it when the doll starts chasing them around the house with a knife and hitting on Lisa's Malibu Stacey. He's more like a living caricature of Krusty than a plaything. I love in the end where they discover that there was a switch on his back that was set to "Evil" instead of "Good"

4) Homer³ - Treehouse of Horror VI - 1995
Everyone who's ever wondered what the The Simpsons would look like in 3D gets their wish granted in this segment. I can remember watching this with all of my friends and saying "whoa, that was so cool." The studio that did this episode is now owned by Dreamworks, so they obviously went on to big things. In this segment, Homer gets sucked into the eerie 3rd dimension and Bart follows in after him for a rescue attempt. The end is great when Homer falls into our world and exclaims, "Awww, this is the worst one yet" before finding a erotic cake store and stumbling in.

3) The Devil & Homer Simpson - Treehouse of Horror IV - 1993
A take off of the story The Devil and Daniel Webster, about a man that sells his soul for all of his wildest dreams, Homer falls asleep at work while Lenny and Carl eat all the donuts. Homer awakens and, after finding the empty box, says he'd sell his soul for a donut, a request the Devil is more than happy to oblige. There are so many references and easter eggs in this segment, it's utterly fantastic. First off, the fact that the Devil looks like Flanders is funny enough by itself, but when his introduction is identical to the classic appearence in Disney's Fantasia, it reaches a whole other level of cool. Lionel Hutz, voiced by the late, great Phil Hartman, is Homer's defense attorney in hell. The twist at the end -- that Marge, Homer's wife, is the actual owner of his soul -- will perhaps always remain timely.

2) The Raven - Treehouse of Horror I - 1990
"Quoth the Raven: 'Eat my shorts'". The very first Treehouse of Horror had perhaps one of the most refined Simpsons pop references ever. They re-enacted Edgar Allen Poe's classic gothic poem of madness, The Raven, with Homer as the narrator and Bart playing the titular character. They even got perhaps the most recognizable voice in the world, James Earl Jones, to recite the poem while the action played out onscreen. I know many people that consider this the point that they realized The Simpsons could be both highly hilarious and highly intelligent. Straying from the words of the original only a few times to throw in their own unique brand of humor, Edgar Allen Poe is even listed as a writer for this bit.

Before I get to the number 1 pick, I'd like to quickly name my "honorable mentions". These are great segments too, and just missed my list.  In no order:
Attack of the 50ft Eyesores - Treehouse of Horror VI - 1995
"When billboards attack"
The Thing & I - Treehouse of Horror VII - 1996
Bart's evil twin and the "bucket o' fisheads"
Send in the Clones - Treehouse of Horror XII - 2002
Worth watching for the Peter Griffin sight gag alone.



And finally.....

1) The Shinning -Treehouse of Horror V - 1994
"Don't you mean The Shining?" "Ack! Do you unt to git suuued?" In my opinion, this is the finest Simpsons' parody in its almost two decade history. There's been some brilliant ones throughout its run of normal episodes, but this one is pure gold from start to finish and has a little more leeway, thanks to it being on Treehouse of Horror. If someone says that they're a fan of The Simpsons, simply say to them, "No TV and no beer make Homer ... something something." If they don't immediately correct you with "Go Crazy," they're liars. This segment plays almost like a shot for shot Cliff's Notes® version of The Shining. With Homer playing the role as well as Jack Nicholson, and the scenes as ridiculous, you're in stitches the entire time. Don't believe me? Try watching a little bit of history and not laughing. I dare you.

So there you have it. The five greatest Simpsons Treehouse of Horror shorts, and of course we all know I can't be wrong, so feel free to pipe in below and let us know just how much you agree with me. ;-)