Every The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror - Rated and Ranked (Part Six)

So... close... We are so close to the end of this, folks. After more than two weeks of watching The Simpsons every day and a solid week of writing about it just as often, there are just two entries left in my review of every single Treehouse of Horror Special. You can find the links for previous parts down below, and just beyond that, my review of the last Treehouse of Horror episodes apart from two very special episodes.

Every The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror - Rated and Ranked (Part One)

Every The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror - Rated and Ranked (Part Two)

Every The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror - Rated and Ranked (Part Three)

Every The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror - Rated and Ranked (Part Four)

Every The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror - Rated and Ranked (Part Five)

Treehouse of Horror XXXI (Season 32, Episode 4)

Treehouse of Horror XXXI kicks things off with another intro revolving around Homer's attempts to vote in the then-latest presidential election. There is a lot being said, and I'm not going to unpack it all here, but I appreciate the fact that The Simpsons used a Treehouse of Horror bit to offer some genuine, heartfelt political commentary rather than just scathing satire.

The first story on this list, "Toy Gory," is exactly what it sounds like and knows exactly what it is. It doesn't start particularly strong, but "Toy Gory" quickly picks up steam, going from Toy Story to Small Soldiers to something far more terrifying than either in the span of just a few minutes. The ending is about as bleak as it gets, and I absolutely love it.

"Into the Homerverse" offers viewers The Simpsons' take on Sony's Spider-Verse trilogy, which is ultimately less entertaining than it sounds like it could be. There are some fun references here, and a couple of cute callbacks, but not a whole lot to cover in general because "Into the Homerverse" is just so mid-grade all the way through.

"Be Nine, Rewind" closes out Treehouse of Horror XXXI with a parody of Russian Doll that is both a fun Lisa and Nelson adventure and a solid time-loop drama. It's a little weak for a Treehouse of Horror, in my personal opinion, but apart from being a little out of place, "Be Nine, Rewind" doesn't have much of anything working against it.

Treehouse of Horror XXXI starts strong enough to earn a full Kang, it just doesn't finish strong enough to earn more than half of a Kodos.

Treehouse of Horror XXXII (Season 33, Episode 3)

Treehouse of Horror XXXII opens into its first segment, "Barti," a twisted Bambi parody that is possibly even better than the feature length Bambi: The Reckoning. That isn't a knock against Bambi: The Reckoning, either, but rather a testament to just how captivating "Barti" is unto itself. It's quick, it's brutal, and it is one of the most effective openings in Treehouse of Horror history.

Treehouse of Horror XXXII shifts seamlessly from one spoof to another, as "Barti" gives way to "Bong Joon Ho's 'This Side of Parasite." This short is a rough watch at times, albeit in the exact same way that Bong Joon Ho's original Parasite is a rough watch at times. The social commentary doesn't get lost in the satire, nor does the humor get overshadowed by the abject tragedy on display.

"Nightmare on Elm Tree" is up next, giving audiences a battle for the future of Springfield against an army of sentient trees. This people vs. Ents scenario is nothing like what I was expecting, but it is everything that I want from a Treehouse of Horror segment. "Nightmare on Elm Tree" is violent, but not bloody, tense, but not panicked, and fantastical, but never veers into pure fantasy.

Treehouse of Horror XXXII is unique in that it offers five full segments, even if one of them is but a "Poetic Interlude (aka The Telltale Bart)." This may be the shortest segment, yet it is absolutely one of the strongest. Nearly the entire short is animated in the style of Edward Gorey, and it is utterly awe-striking. "Poetic Interlude (aka The Telltale Bart)" is the most memorable Treehouse of Horror short since "The Raven," and that speaks volumes about its success.

Last up for Treehouse of Horror XXXII is "Dead Ringer," a parody of The Ring that circles around to being a send-up of the entirety of TikTok culture. Like past entries in previous Treehouse of Horror episodes, "Dead Ringer" gets better as it goes on right up until it doesn't. Rather than falling flat, however, "Dead Ringer" finds its stride and settles into it, all while unsettling viewers at almost every step along the way.

Treehouse of Horror XXXII is very close to being a perfect episode. It's got a full Kang, and nearly the whole Kodos.

Treehouse of Horror XXXIII (Season 34, Episode 6)

Treehouse of Horror XXXIII gets right into things by opening to "The Pookadook," an immensely powerful retelling of The Babadook that is far, far scarier than the vast majority of Treehouse of Horror stories, as well as a decent number of genuine horror films. The possessed Marge is genuinely menacing, while Maggie's fear in the face of such a monster is palpable.

Following "The Pookadook" is "Death Tome," a Death Note parody that sees The Simpsons shed their usual look in exchange for the full anime treatment. Everything about "Death Tome" is gorgeous, and it is hard to explain just how well every single The Simpsons character looks in their anime form. The story is also intriguing to a degree that even certain episodes of the original Death Note simply cannot match. "Death Tome" is dripping with atmosphere, and it is hard to imagine most viewers won't be itching for more of it.

"Simpsons World" ends Treehouse of Horror XXXIII with a Westworld spoof that, for obvious reasons, tackles the modern television series rather than the original. "Simpsons World" opens with some great callbacks, but it loses steam within just a few minutes of going full Westworld. Homer is great as an accidental murderer, while the rest of the short is too muddled to stand out for long.

Treehouse of Horror XXXIII is more than deserving of a full Kodos, but it's only picking up half of a Kang for its effort.

Treehouse of Horror XXXIV (Season 35, Episode 5)

Treehouse of Horror XXXIV eschews a title segment for diving straight into its opening story instead, this time "Wild Barts Can't Be Token." What looks like it might be a spoof of numerous different films that would make plenty of sense until it reveals itself as a spoof of Snowpiercer instead. Sure, the setting of Snowpiercer fits the "NFTs are stupid" and "blockchains are dumb" narrative, but it feels so shoehorned into place that "Wild Barts Can't Be Token" becomes a mess of intersecting plotlines well before ever approaching its finale.

"Ei8ht" is the Seven parody that doesn't realize how deep of a cut it could have been before transitioning into a spoof of The Silence of the Lambs. Once again, Sideshow Bob catches up with Bart, this time resulting in Lisa being inspired to become one of the greatest minds in her field. When Lisa is called in to tackle the case of a brazen new serial killer thirty years later, the hunt for the truth threatens to consume her. There are some good twists here, lots of gore, and a more than satisfying ending that is happy to acknowledge just how ridiculous it is.

The final segment from Treehouse of Horror XXXIV, "Lout Break," is only marginally better than "Wild Barts Can't Be Token" and nowhere near as good as "Ei8ht." Over the course of "Lout Break," Homer's ineptitude leads to the creation and propagation of a viral outbreak that transforms those infected into versions of Homer for themselves. The short is ludicrous, though not in the best of ways. "Lout Break" doesn't really excel anywhere, even if it is good for a few laughs here and there.

I'd like to score Treehouse of Horror XXXIV higher than a single Kang or Kodos, but I can't bring myself to do that, so I guess just pick one and run with it.

Treehouse of Horror XXXV (Season 36, Episode 5)

I absolutely adore the opening sequence to Treehouse of Horror XXXV by Jorge Gutierrez. The mix of Jarabe Tapatío, lucha libre, and Día de los Muertos imagery is stunning, and brings The Simpsons to life in a way that I doubt most fans could have ever imagined for themselves.

The opening segment, "The Information Rage," feels like it is going to be a cool Lisa story at first, and it kind of is. More so, it's an extremely heavy-handed bit of "both sides" political commentary wrapped in a thin veneer of Pacific Rim parody. "The Information Rage" is a drag. It also drags for just far too long, overstaying its welcome by what is likely only a couple of minutes, but for what feels like a minor eternity.

"Fall of the House of Monty" is a brilliantly animated short that evokes "The Fall of the House of Usher" without shedding The Simpsons' specific absurdist charm. "The Fall of the House of Monty" also leans into 2018's Winchester which, for whatever reason, works so much better in The Simpsons than it did on the silver screen. Where "The Information Rage" was too much, I wish there were more of "Fall of the House of Monty" to go around.

"Denim" is last up in Treehouse of Horror XXXV, and as much as I understand why this ended up being a satirical take on Venom, it could have been, and should have been, a riff on Slaxx instead. The animation here is super fun, and the setup is fine for a Treehouse of Horror special, but "Denim" doesn't hold up for very long. There is a lot going on here, and not much of it matters. It might be passable, but I would be surprised if "Denim" was anyone's favorite short from this episode.

Treehouse of Horror XXXV makes a lot of minor missteps that snowball into larger issues. Half a Kang, two-thirds of a Kodos, and a little extra from one of the two for trying so damn hard.

Treehouse of Horror XXXVI (Season 37, Episode 3)

The most recent Treehouse of Horror premiered just weeks ago, and is quite possibly the best of the decade. Treehouse of Horror XXXVI opens with a jarring, funny, and poignant political cartoon-inspired short "America the Beautiful," which features my favorite in-series appearance of The Simpsons creator Matt Groening to date.

From there, audiences are whisked away to "The Last Days of Crisco," a mash-up of Jaws and The Blob that is impossibly charming. Putting Bart and Homer into the shoes of a pair of business-minded Southern gentlemen is uproariously funny, while the sci-fi violence on display is more than a little beguiling.

I have mixed feelings about Late Night with the Devil due to some issues revolving around its production, but I have zero qualms with "Clown Night with the Devil." Seeing Krusty take on a serious role is something that The Simpsons doesn't afford fans nearly enough, and "Clown Night with the Devil" is proof positive of that. Just be warned of how dark "Clown Night with the Devil" gets before it is finished.

The latest and last entry from the expansive Treehouse of Horror catalog is "Plastic World," which combines concepts from Waterworld and Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga into a whole new kind of nightmare. "Plastic World" takes the tried-and-true Simpsons tradition of playing with 3D animation in Treehouse of Horror episodes to a whole new level by making the alternative animation style the crux of the segment's underlying horror. "Plastic World" is about as dark of a Treehouse of Horror story as fans could ask for, which makes the relatively lighthearted ending that much more appreciated.

Treehouse of Horror XXXVI really is phenomenal. If it were literally perfect I would award it a full Kang and Kodos. Instead, I'm just going to say that one of them forgot their keys on the way to judging this episode.

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Don't forget to come back tomorrow for the full ranking of every single Treehouse of Horror episode in The Simpsons' history, as well as my review of the two Treehouse of Horror specials not yet covered. And stay spooky.