Random Waves of Insight

Which one is the greatest? I'd say the one that takes itself the most seriously. And for me, that's Treehouse of Horror VI (1995). The three segments featured were entitled, "Attack of the 50 Feet Eyesores," "Nightmare on Evergreen Terrace," and "Homer 3D."

I think most of the other Halloween episodes poke fun at themselves. I always look forward to watching a "scary" Simpsons, just because all bets are off. And the other night, to my delight and surprise, the 6th special was on. I only caught the last two portions, but they seemed to be more hard core than usual. I think it's because they so explicitly rewrote the laws of what you're going to see on a Simpsons, and even on a Halloween Simpsons.

The dream sequence where Bart and Lisa nearly die was, I think, scarier than the times when characters really do die, because it kept you wondering, "Are they gonna make it? Are they going to be all right??" And then, BAM! They're back at home, awake, and safe.

Some of the scariest things can only happen in the midst of pure chaos. Do you remember when you were a child? Your parents (hopefully) took pretty good care of you. But then, every so often, you'd have a nightmare in which they were totally different. In the nightmare, your caregivers act bizarre, irrational, and totally uncaring. At that point, there's nothing left to hold on to. You've hit the 9th circle of Hell. The scariest part is no longer being sure of what's going to happen. And that's exactly what an episode like the T of H VI does. It shakes things up.

But besides being scary, it's also entertaining! I loved the 3D realm Homer and Bart stumbled into. And at the end of the episode, Homer crossed over to a higher dimension, never to return to his beloved family. That too is way out there as far as T.V. shows are considered, since most often things will revert back to normal at the end. But not on Halloween! It's like, "Homer is gone, and he's never coming back. He's stranded somewhere out there...all alone in a world of flesh-colored weirdoes."

I love it!

If you enjoyed this post, please think about becoming a subscriber to my RSS feed.