Nearly a week after Halloween the Simpsons Treehouse of Horror XVII has now come and gone and, just like the Halloween sale aisles at Wal-Mart, it looks like we were stuck with was left over.
I laughed, I believe, three times. “I kept down Arby’s, I can keep down you!” “Ahh! The fire is sealing in my juices!” And Krusty’s HD demonstration. Maybe a chuckle for the “War of the Worlds” sound guy, and it was fun seeing the Depression-era Springfieldians.
But wow, was this a dull screamfest that’s gone back to the same haunted well too many times. Huge Homer eating people: done that. The Golem segment was just embarassing and I’m not even Jewish. And the War of the Worlds tribute, aside from the fact that it’s always a pleasure to listen to Maurice LaMarche, was weak and fairly pointless unless the goal was to get the thinly veiled anti-war commentary in there. Hint for Simpsons writers: “You said we’d be welcomed as liberators!” was funny. Everything after that was a political ad, and not even a good one. Avoid picking sides and stick with funny. Like, say, “Citizen Kang” from Treehouse of Horror VII when Bill Clinton and Bob Dole were replaced by aliens. What was different? The jokes were on the election process and not any one party.
Kang: Abortions for all
(Crowd boos)
Kang: Very well, no abortions for anyone.
(Crowd boos)
Kang: Hmm… Abortions for some, miniature American flags for others!
(Crowd cheers and waves miniature flags)
On the plus side, it was announced that the trailer for “The Simpsons Movie” would premiere next Sunday night. And at The Simpsons Web site you can still mix and match your own Treehouse of Horror episode, hopefully with better luck.
So what did you think?
A bit heavy handed with the political commentary but considering the timing, easily understandable, especially when you realize that Groening and many of the people who work on the Simpsons favor the democrats