“This sandwich tastes so young and impudent. Seymour, what’s with the good grub?” – Mrs. Krabappel “Well, perhaps I ought to let you folks in on a secret. Do you remember me telling Jimbo Jones that I’d make something of him one day?” – Principal Skinner “Are you saying you killed Jimbo, processed his carcass, and served him for lunch? . . . Ha!” – Mrs. Krabappel This year’s Halloween special had three segments: one about a hellish version of Springfield Elementary, one about a Kubrick movie, and one about the Simpson family co-existing with different versions of itself. Twenty years ago, the Halloween special also had three segments, one a Kubrick movie parody, one about Homer traveling between different versions of his family, and one about a hellish version of Springfield Elementary. Except for the order, they match up perfectly. Since The Simpsons always takes precedence over Zombie Simpsons, we’re going to follow the order from “Treehouse of Horror V”. “The Shinning” vs. “A Clockwork Yellow” Like most big name directors, Stanley Kubrick made some great movies and some crappy movies. From a parody and satire point of view, however, what made his films great was the sheer number of iconic and memorable characters, images, and lines. Whether it’s the Monolith, Jack Nicholson hacking his way through a door, or Malcolm McDowell and his gang strutting down the street in suspenders, bowler hats, and cod pieces, Kubrick movies are full of moments that stick in the audience’s mind, which makes them perfect for comedy. The Simpsons exploited that all the time. There’s Homer at the “Dawn of Man” in Lisa’s Pony; there’s Bart reaching for the cupcakes in “Duffless”, there’s Frink with the Strangelove glasses in “Homer Defined”. “Sideshow Bob’s Last Gleaming” not only features R. Lee Ermey from Full Metal Jacket, but even has a complete war room from Dr. Strangelove. None of those defined an entire episode, they were just quick little things put in there for fans who cared to notice them. “The Shinning”, the first segment from “Treehouse of Horror V”, was different in that it retold an entire movie. All the major plot points and characters from the 144 minute film are condensed into just seven minutes of screentime. All by itself that’s damned impressive, but what turns it into a Simpsons masterpiece is the way that each thing they reproduce is recognizable as the original yet still creative and funny in its own way. The blood spilling out of the elevator isn’t a moment of gore soaked terror, it’s a ho-hum hotel regularity, no more interesting than fresh towels or the luggage carts in lobby. It just usually gets off at the second floor. The hedge maze, the ghostly bartender, Homer getting locked in the fridge, the typewriter being a window into madness, even Bart’s titular “shinning” and Willie’s failed rescue attempt, these are all recognizable to anyone who has seen the film and each is given its little twist. But, and this is crucial, no one…
Tag: Treehouse of horror XXV
Behind Us Forever: Treehouse of Horror XXV
“Stupid party, wish we was trick or treatin’.” – Bart Simpson The annual Halloween episode tends to be pretty bland in the hands of Zombie Simpsons, and this year was no different. The first story was about Bart going to school in Hell, where he does better than he used to do at Springfield Elementary. The second is a bunch of meandering references to Stanley Kubrick movies that ends with Kubrick himself staring right at the camera for some reason. The third one involved the old Tracey Ullman versions of the characters being ghosts. – Give them this, if they’re going to sneak in Kang and Kodos for no reason, at least this opening didn’t take too long. – Oof, this thing about “penal”, “penile” and “penis” was probably funnier when it was doodled on an actual fourth grader’s notebook. – Hey, now Lisa’s here. – The Hell chalkboard punishment “Eternal Torment Is The Only Just Punishment for the Unbaptized” is pretty good . . . and they didn’t even read it off to us! Happy Halloween! – But it didn’t last long. Lisa just explained to us that snow is cold. – Then Bart told us how he’s feeling about his teacher. – The “Burns Hellport” wasn’t terrible. – Guh, even in Halloween episodes though, we’re reminded of how cushy and comfortable the writers have gotten. Homer just went on a rant about private schools sending parents twenty e-mails a day. I bet they also hate it when your worthless butler washes your sock garters but they’re still covered with schmutz. – And now Hell-Chalmers is expositing pointlessly. – The montage didn’t even take too long. – So, this thing with Bart torturing Homer was supposed to be some kind of ending? Even here they need exposition: Bart: That’s my Dad, I can’t hurt him. Homer: No, boy, I want you to do it. Bart: What, why? Homer: Bart, you went to Hell and came back a winner, like Jesus. Tedious crap like this is why even when they do manage some decent jokes, these segments will always be bland and unmemorable. “Hell School” is a decent enough little concept, but they can’t give it a coherent plot or not spend time explaining the jokes even in just seven minutes of runtime. – For a show that got a little pious over Family Guy‘s rape joke, this “In-out” thing sure goes on a long time. – Moe’s cutesy narrator language is already grating: “Everything was all fish and chippie until Dum collected himself a twiggy-wick” – The montage in the first segment didn’t take too long. This one . . . not so much. Homer just bounces around his room for a while. – And we’re back to explaining things. Homer’s going to marry Marge, then Moe asks a rhetorical question/joke setup, then Marge explains things. – I get that this segment is just a scattershot of Kubrick references, but it kinda undercuts the joke of Moe being forced…
Sunday Preview: Treehouse of Horror XXV
On the annual spooktacular Halloween special, Bart and Lisa are transported to a demon-filled alternate universe after Bart reads a set of Aramaic symbols he finds on the underside of his desk; Moe’s “Clockwork Orange”-style gang is disrupted when Dum (Homer) falls for a girl (Marge) who wants him to give up the thug life; and, in an homage to “The Others,” the Simpsons are visited by their former Tracey Ullman-era versions of themselves Happy almost-Halloween everyone, it’s time for the annual installment of THOH. This is the 25th such episode, which I guess could be celebrated as some sort of milestone, if one wished to do so. I’m not going to, but I am a bit of a jerk.