I have to give Fox credit for one thing. For the second year in a row, The Simpsons Halloween episode will be airing before Halloween. That's a big deal when they've aired the weekend before Thanksgiving before more than once. In fact, all four Fox animated shows currently on the air--The Simpson, Bob's Burgers, Family Guy, and American Dad--are airing their 2013 Halloween episodes tonight. That's a major improvement for American Dad that used their Halloween episode (the amazing Cee-Lo Green composed Little Shop of Horrors parody with a hot tub) as their season premiere last year.
This is a great way to kick off the most festive time of the year. Since I'm so dedicated to amazing horror content, I'll be reviewing the Halloween episodes. All four of the shows pull out all the stops for Halloween. Who will come out on top? The smart money is on American Dad but Bob's Burgers does really wry holiday episodes. Family Guy is totally hit or miss and The Simpsons are only as good as their worst sketch of the night.
First up is The Simpsons. This is "Treehouse of Horror XXIV," which means only one season did not have a Halloween episode. Guillermo del Toro is tasked with the opening sequence and it's amazing. My favorite parts are the Pan's Labyrinth references. The sheer volume of horror references is stunning. It flows in a very logical way and ends beautifully on his most critically acclaimed dark fantasy/horror work. If nothing is this good the rest of the night, I will be satisfied.
The first sketch is a Halloween-themed Dr. Seuss parody. The Simpsons children are stuck home on Halloween night too sick to trick or treat (the mumps, specifically). Homer appears as The Fat in the Hat to medicate the children and take them on a Halloween adventure. The visual style is spot on and the whole thing is commentary on the various commercialized Dr. Seuss properties. It's a clever concept with a few dark, shocking images. The Fat in the Hat punishes the Grinch-like characters in town, then creates mayhem wherever he goes. The message is lost and becomes pastiche far too quickly.
"Dead and Shoulders" starts with Bart and Milhouse flying a box kite next to an airfield, causing Bart's decapitation by the Channel 9 News helicopter. The only solution is grafting Bart's head to Lisa's body where Lisa has full motor control. After a humiliating series of stunts and conflicts, Bart discovers he gains control of Lisa's body when she falls asleep. It's a one-note gag with no real payoff until the final scene.
The third sketch is circus/sideshow themed. Monty Burns is the ringmaster promoting everything from Marge as a trapeze artist to Nelson as the Human Donkey. It's a parody of Tod Browning's Freaks without an understanding of what makes the film work. Marge is seduced by Homer the Strong Man who hates the sideshow performers, but Marge actually fights against his prejudice. That...totally misses the point. Casting the strongman as the only villain in Freaks, a serpent tricking Eve into evil, pulls all of the horror out of scenario. It really doesn't work when the freak she marries is Moe, playing the ghastly character of Moe. A sight gag replacing an actual condition creates the level of exploitation Browning worked hard to avoid in his film. It is, again, pastiche over story. This ends the latest Treehouse of Horror on a down note. A shift back to short story adaptations could turn things around from the this lackluster glut of half-baked movie parodies.
Bob's Burgers takes a more traditional Halloween special approach. The kids are going to be a Chinese dragon in a scheme to grab more candy. They stop by their brand new clubhouse in the alley only to be blocked in by a big truck. An annoying girl who wants to be Louise's best friend is their only hope for escape, but Louise causes her to go psycho by finally rejecting her advances.
I'm totally hit or miss with Bob's Burgers. It's not really my style of humor but I can get into the occasional episode, like the field trip to the museum or the science fair. This year's Halloween episode really hit me right. It's a clever bottle episode with the kids and a wacky comedy of errors with the adults. The addition of the active antagonist in the annoying girl Milly is very welcome. It's a mix of sitcom and horror tropes that really works for a comedic Halloween special.
Family Guy has an odd premise for its Halloween episode this year. Basically, Peter grows a second miniature head. There are some odd gags about shopping at a mall (and a cute sight gag of Stewie in a ridiculous canary yellow three piece suit for Church) before Dr. Hartman reveals Peter's fully developed vestigial twin that's always been right under his neck.
The problem with the episode is that, once you get past the twin aspect, it's just a remake of the new dog episode. The family, except for Peter, prefers the company of Chip and it drives Peter to do whatever he can to get rid of him. The family will not back up his plans. It's derivative in the worst way possible. The Family Guy team is also falling prey to the decade long Simpsons' problem of starting an episode with a cool concept then switching to a brand new plot after the first commercial break. The Simpsons broke that pattern four or five seasons ago and has significantly improved in quality; Family Guy is far too referential a series to sacrifice eight minutes of running time each week to a dead end storyline.
American Dad finally gets its haunting episode. Specifically, Francine's unfulfilled sexual desires are manifested in poltergeist activity. It's not the most original horror concept, but it's rarely attempted in a half hour time slot. Bonus points for calling Roger's medium character Ruby Zeldistein in honor of the late, great Zelda Rubinstein.
American Dad's greatest strength at this point is genre parody. Their Halloween episodes work so well because the series is very sci-fi/horror/action/thriller fluid. A haunted house episode is right in their wheelhouse. This one is smart, funny, and even has a few genuine scares. The only downside is how overplayed the foreshadowing is for the reveal of the haunting. They address it directly in the second segment, but it's not subtle enough to create real tension. Otherwise, it's solid.
Ranking them, Bob's Burgers comes out on top for being funny and actually about Halloween. American Dad is a close second for a solid haunted house story and some clever spins on a stale genre. The Simpsons at least attempted to do something new with their parodies. Family Guy drops to the bottom for repeating an episode almost beat for beat and not even committing to the one story in a single story episode.
This post was part of 31 Days of Horror at Sketchy Details. Click through for more great horror content.