With Halloween comes tooth decay, awkward sexy costumes, and a new installment in The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror. A pop-culture tradition resting alongside "The Great Pumpkin" and screening every "Halloween" movie, the annual horror-themed anthology special recently issued its 27th installment (also doubling as "The Simpsons'" 600th episode overall). What still makes the special so anticipated after all of these years is how it allows the series not to follow canon, going off to lampoon films and horror tropes that the framework of the traditional episode cannot offer. In the age of "Every. Simpsons. Ever." on FXX, there is no better time to binge watch as many animated frights one can handle. If watching over 80 segments of "Simpsanity" seems too daunting, here are five examples for you to digest.
1. "The Raven"
Chances are this is the only "Simpsons" episode you'll watch in a high school English class. Although it does not quite live up to the same insanity and humor as other segments, it does provide a lot of ingenuity and tonal shifts to extract entertainment. It is essentially James Earl Jones narrating Edger Allen Poe's infamous poem, acted out by Homer and Bart. The character roles are perfectly cast, and the conclusion takes a whole new spin on the poem's pessimistic message. Simply put, you won't read "never more" again without hearing Nancy Cartwright's voice.
2. "Nightmare Cafeteria"
Taking full advantage of exaggerating its characters, "Nightmare Cafeteria" sees the faculty of Springfield Elementary turning students into lunch meat to feed the school and their own growing hunger for human flesh. It's the type of fun twisted kids' horror story that feels straight out of a "Goosebumps" novel, and it's insanely quotable, "I'm going to enjoy devouring you, Bart Simpson. Yes... I believe I'll start as you've so often suggested by eating your shorts..."
3. "Citizen Kang"
I think we can all agree, in 2016 no horror show is more frightening than this year's presidential election. Although it does date itself with it's running mates (except for maybe the Clinton connection) "Citizen Kang" delivers a hysterical, but depressing message about the political system that still feels relevant today. Long before South Park came up with the perfect allegory for every election, The Simpsons claimed that every candidate was just an inhuman beast under the skin. But you have to vote for one of them.
4. "Dial 'M' for Murder or Press '#' to Return to Main Menu"
Before horror movies were about exorcisms and things going bump in the night, Hitchcock made films about psychological paranoia and the evil lurking in the underbelly of pedestrian society. The Simpsons pay homage to this in a visually striking segment that plays off the plot of "Strangers on a Train"; I'll knock somebody for you off if you knock somebody for me off. It's a story where the moments of tribute work to enhance the quality rather then overbear it. Any Hitchcock fan would be doing a great disservice for not checking it out.
5. "Halloween of Horror"
This one is a bit of a cheat, in the series' 27th season, alongside the traditional "Treehouse of Horror," there was a canonical episode with a Halloween-themed story. After Lisa becomes terrified by the exposure of Halloween horror, Homer attempts to comfort her through the holiday only for the household to be invaded by murderous home intruders. It's a fun, well-paced, and emotional episode that harkens back to the series' golden days. Add in a "Rocky Horror" tribute that is much more entertaining than the lame TV remake, and you have an episode that deserves a watch from any die-hard "Simpsons" fan.
Happy Halloween and remember, "This is indeed a disturbing universe."
