Retro Review: Treehouse of Horror V

Original Airdate
October 30th, 1994

Or the One Where
"The Shinning" - No TV and no beer make Homer something something.
"Time and Punishment" -  Homer mucks up time via a time machine toaster.
"Nightmare Cafeteria" - Facing a lack of funds and overcrowded detention halls, Principal Skinner begins cooking the troublemakers and serving them for lunch.

The Setup
Marge addresses the audience warning them about the nature of the episode, saying it is so scary that Congress won't allow it to be broadcast, before Bart and Homer take over the feed to broadcast the episode. 

Notable Notes
This is the first Halloween episode to lack a framing sequence before and after each segment (ie telling scary stories in Bart's treehouse or nightmares triggered by too much candy), though it still contains the "worried Marge warns away the audience" intro, the last such episode to do so.

A framing sequence was devised for this episode, but it was ultimately cut to allow each segment more time. While probably a wise choice in the long run, I do miss the framing sequences, as they gave each episode an air of Halloween even if the individual stories weren't always that Halloween-y.

Retro Review: Treehouse of Horror IV

Original Airdate
October 28th, 1993

Or the One Where
"The Devil and Homer Simpson" (Homer sells his soul for a donut), "Terror at 5 1/2 Feet" (Bart is menaced by a gremlin on the school bus) and "Bart Simpson's Dracula" (Bart is turned into a vampire by Mr. Burns).

The Setup
In a parody of Night Gallery, Bart introduces a series of paintings which inspire horrific stories.

Notables Notes
This is the last episode of the show Conan O'Brien worked on for the show (he primarily worked on the framing sequence). It is also the last Treehouse episode to feature a framing sequence uniting the three segments (a framing sequence was written for the next Treehouse episode, but was cut to give the actual segments more time; the tradition was never revived after that).

Retro Review: Treehouse of Horror III

Or the One Where
"Clown Without Pity" (Homer is stalked by a killer Talking Krusty doll), "King Homer" (King Kong re-imagined with Homer in the title role), and "Dial Z for Zombie" (Bart accidentally raises the dead").

The Setup
Marge hosts a Halloween party for all the kids in lieu of trick-or-treating, with Lisa, Grandpa and Bart each telling a scary story at the party.

Retro Review: Treehouse of Horror II

Or the One Where: Lisa's nightmare (a wish-granting Monkey's Paw leads to alien domination), Bart's nightmare (Bart is an omnipotent being who grows to love his father) and Homer's nightmare (his brain is transplanted into a worker robot by Mr. Burns).

The Setup: Following trick-or-treating, Lisa, Bart and Homer all gorge on candy, which gives them all nightmares.

Teebore's Ten Favorite Treehouse of Horror Stories

With Halloween just around the corner and twenty Simpsons Halloween specials in the bag (giving us sixty stories total!), let's take a look at my ten favorite Treehouse of Horror stories of all time.