Review: The Simpsons “Treehouse of Horror XXXIV”

Overview:

The Simpsons returns for their 34th installment of their signature “Treehouse of Horror” Halloween tradition with three supernatural tales of terror. “Wild Barts Can’t Be Token” sees Bart get turned into an NFT and Marge must fearlessly enter the blockchain and fight to make her son once again fungible. “Ei8ht” presents a future where Lisa has become a disaffected serial killer profiler and she must turn to a painful face from her past in order to solve a vicious crime that’s taxing her in the present. Finally, “Loutbreak” argues that poor hygiene can have apocalyptic consequences when Homer becomes patient zero for a viral outbreak that infects all of Springfield.

Our Take:

One of the greatest joys of every October is that local syndicated TV stations would sequentially air every “Treehouse of Horror” Simpsons episode leading up to Halloween. This task has become increasingly untenable with there now being 34 entries in this long-standing tradition. These special seasonal viewing schedules were great microcosms of how much–or how little–The Simpsons changes each season. There’s an impressive pattern across The Simpsons’ “Treehouse of Horror” episodes and the installments that occur during the series’ “golden years” are legitimately some of the show’s best episodes. No one is giving modern “Treehouse of Horror” episodes the same accolades and what used to be a time for the series to creatively flourish is now an occasion to pander and shill. There are plenty of Simpsons Halloween specials that are worse than “Treehouse of Horror XXXIV,” but this comes across as such a lazy, lifeless exercise in obligation. It’s a trick, not a treat.

“Treehouse of Horror XXXIV” moves at such a relentless pace where the episode doesn’t get any time to breathe or even feature a proper introduction to these seasonal theatrics. A creative, tongue-in-cheek prologue used to be something that the “Treehouse of Horror” specials would relish and be an area where the series could really go for broke (and even bring back the ghosts of deceased characters like Maude Flanders or Frank Grimes). Now it’s a foregone conclusion that the episode hastily rushes past so that it has more time for a few extra minutes of non-sequitur outdated comedy. The lack of an introduction may seem like a benign, harmless detail, but it’s emblematic of The Simpsons’ increasingly lazy approach to these Halloween specials. They now feel like a stale obligation rather than genuine labors of love and The Simpsons’ more conventional Halloween episodes have become the place to get passionate genre-bending tales of terror.

There’s a manufactured, artificial quality to this episode that feels more like The Simpsons is checking off an arbitrary checklist than telling a quality story. Take for instance the bare bones setup to Bart’s NFT minting at the start of the first story, “Wild Barts Can’t Be Token.” Bart’s virtual transmission into an NFT prison happens in a matter of seconds without any real explanation, whereas “Treehouse of Horror VI’s” comparable setup in “Homer³” dominates that story’s first act. There’s no flair here, almost as if The Simpsons understands that its audience comes to these Halloween specials as empty escapism that doesn’t need to be held up to the same level of scrutiny as standard episodes. The Simpsons is right on some level, but there’s no reason that these yearly traditions need to feel so phoned in and hollow. 

“Treehouse of Horror XXXIV” can at least bank on the fact that it brings Kelsey Grammer’s Sideshow Bob back in a Mindhunter and Se7en David Fincher-palooza serial killer story with Lisa, but even that feels creatively barren and unworthy of the fan favorite character’s return. “Ei8ht” is a story that’s curiously  set in an alternate timeline where Sideshow Bob does successfully kill Bart at the end of his H.M.S. Pinafore performance from season five’s “Cape Feare.” “Treehouse of Horror XXXIV” turns the clock forward thirty years to look at a very different version of Lisa who’s compounded decades of grief, all of which is ripe for reexamination when she comes back in contact with her brother’s killer, Sideshow Bob. This is an excellent framework for a story that also goes out on a genuinely unsettling ending that doesn’t care at all about consequences because why should it? “Ei8ht” instead indulges in a deeply nihilistic idea where Lisa’s allowed to succumb to darkness and a vicious twist can be exactly that without needing to hand-wipe it away afterward. It’s not a groundbreaking story, but The Simpsons at least deserves some credit for following through on such an incredibly dark idea in this animated comedy.

On this note, Sideshow Bob and Lisa’s entry is really the only horror-centric story of the lot. The Simpsons’ “Treehouse of Horror” specials have progressively moved away from strictly horror stories and now routinely indulge in a broad spattering of sci-fi, fantasy, or superhero stories. The episode becomes a tired meditation on pop culture’s latest and most embarrassing customs rather than a deep dive into horror staples. That being said, it’s quite a disappointment that this new episode tells stories about NFTs, a global pandemic parody, and an homage to a thriller that’s nearly three decades old. Even by modern “Treehouse of Horror” standards, this triptych of terror is a letdown and beneath the series. The Simpsons has also repeatedly explored the “multiple Homer” concept through its “Treehouse of Horror” episodes, which leaves this year’s pandemic-inspired variation on a theme, “Loutbreak,” feeling both unnecessary and overdone. 

It’s hard to not roll one’s eyes when The Simpsons has moved so far past ghouls, goblins, and clever Nightmare on Elm Street and Shining parodies. Now, stories feature Marge heading fearlessly “into the blockchain” with a tenuous Snowpiercer satire, but not before she first receives a pep talk from Kyle Jenner, Rob Gronkowski, and Jimmy Fallon, because what would an NFT story be without some corporate shills? But hey, at least Poochie is back! Sadly, many of this episode’s strongest moments are when “Treehouse of Horror XXXIV” trots out previously beloved characters and storylines, like lifeless corpses, that are now past their expiration dates.

Many of the bigger ideas to come out of “Treehouse of Horror XXXIV” taste like stale candy, but there are still a few highlights purely on a dialogue and joke-writing level. “Please kill, Ralph-House,” for instance, is somehow the episode’s best moment and surprisingly disturbing. I wouldn’t be surprised if this phrase somehow becomes a recurring gag for The Simpsons. Ana Gram’s Spooky Slaughterhouse where “if it’s gotta be cryptic then it’s gotta be Ana Gram’s” is also the best kind of dumb. That being said, these are far from hard-hitting jokes. This “Treehouse of Horror’s” anemic qualities feel even more apparent as this airs alongside Mike Flanagan’s The Fall of the House of Usher. There’s been a lot of sharing of the first “Treehouse of Horror’s” The Raven segment as a result. Such a simple, effective tonal experiment almost feels impossible for a modern Simpsons Halloween special.

“Treehouse of Horror XXXIV” isn’t a return to form that’s suddenly going to make The Simpsons’ Halloween episodes become mandatory viewing. There are still worse ways to celebrate the holiday season and this special is a fascinating, curious anomaly if nothing else. “Ei8ht” is easily the strongest and silliest of the episode’s stories that helps elevate an otherwise weak entry that barely even feels like a Halloween special. At a time when horror has never been more innovative and diverse, it’s frustrating to see The Simpsons take a passive approach to the horror genre.