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Treehouse of Horror VII

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"Treehouse of Horror VII"
The Simpsons episode
File:Hugo Simpson.png
Episode no.Season 8
Directed byMike B. Anderson[1]
Written byKen Keeler
Dan Greaney
David S. Cohen[1]
Original air datesOctober 27, 1996[2]
Episode features
Couch gagThe Grim Reaper sits on the couch and kills everyone in the Simpson family as they run in. The Reaper then puts his feet up on pile of corpses.[1]
CommentaryMatt Groening
Josh Weinstein
David S. Cohen
Dan Greaney
Ken Keeler
Dan Castellaneta
Mike B. Anderson
Episode chronology
The Simpsons season 8
List of episodes

"Treehouse of Horror VII" is the first episode of The Simpsons' eighth season and originally aired October 27, 1996.[2] In the seventh annual Treehouse of Horror episode, Bart discovers his long-lost twin, Lisa grows a colony of small beings and Kang & Kodos take over the bodies of Bill Clinton and Bob Dole in order to win the 1996 election. It was written by Ken Keeler, Dan Greaney & David S. Cohen and directed by Mike B. Anderson.[1]

Plot summary

The Thing and I

Bart and Lisa begin to hear strange noises and think that there is something in the attic. Homer claims not to know what they are talking about, although he is later seen grabbing a bucket of fish heads and heading into the attic. Bart and Lisa investigate and find out that there really is a monster. Homer and Marge go into the attic and discover that "it" escaped. Marge immediately calls Dr. Hibbert and he explains that Bart had a conjoined twin brother named Hugo. The two were separated at birth, but it was discovered that Hugo was too evil to live in society, so the Simpsons did the "only humane thing to do": Hugo was locked up in the attic and fed a platter of fish-heads once week. The rest of the family leaves to find Hugo, leaving Bart behind, but he soon discovers that Hugo never left the house. Hugo takes Bart up to the attic so that he can reattach himself. However, Dr. Hibbert finds them and knocks out Hugo, commenting that the evil twin is always on the left side. However, Hibbert realizes that Hugo's scar is on the wrong side and that Bart was the evil twin all along. In the end, the Simpson family sits down to a turkey dinner with Hugo, leaving Bart locked up in the attic.

The Genesis Tub

File:Lisa Genesis Tub.png
Lisa in the tub universe.

Lisa performs a science experiment to see if cola will dissolve a tooth and Bart shocks Lisa as part of his project to prove that nerds conduct electricity. The tooth was also shocked and it undergoes an unusual reaction and creates a race of miniature beings. Lisa discovers this the next day and marvels at how the people in her universe evolve at a rapid rate, going through the various ages humans have gone through into modern times and eventually, the future. Bart destroys some of the ecosystem in Lisa's tub universe and the people respond, sending an army of space ships to attack Bart. Bart vows revenge on the small universe and Lisa wonders what to do. Suddenly, she is beamed down into the tub where the citizens explain that they regard her as god and they want her to do something about Bart. However, Bart grabs the tub and submits it in the science fair and Lisa is forced to watch from within as Bart wins first prize. She asks to be returned to her normal size, which the citizens explain is impossible, and she realizes that she's stuck in the tub for the rest of her life. Then, Lisa becomes angry.

Citizen Kang

File:Homer Dole Clinton.png
Kang and Kodos take on the form of Bill Clinton and Bob Dole.

While fishing, Homer is abducted by the aliens Kang and Kodos. When they demand that Homer point them towards Earth's leader, Homer tells them about the then-upcoming election and that the winner could be either Bill Clinton or Bob Dole. Kang and Kodos kidnap both Dole and Clinton, placing them in suspended animation tubes. Kang and Kodos take on their forms to ensure that one of them will become the next leader. The aliens soak Homer in rum and return him to Earth and nobody believes him. Later on, Homer stumbles upon the badly hidden spaceship and tries to save the real Dole and Clinton, however he accidentally ejects them into space. On the day before the election, Homer successfully reveals the candidates real identities. Realizing its too late to get new candidates, the crowd decides to vote for a third part candidate. However, Kang and Kodos convince the crowd that voting for a third would be a waste of a vote. Kang is elected President and forces the citizens of America to build a giant ray gun to aim at another planet.[2][3][4][5]

Production

Normally, the writers would come up with some sort of wrap around for Treehouse of Horror episodes, but because they had been cut the previous year, the writers didn't bother this year.[6] "The Thing and I" was written by Ken Keeler,[7] "The Genesis Tub" was written by Dan Greaney[8] and "Citizen Kang" was written by David X. Cohen.[9] Despite the similarities, "The Thing and I" was not based on the plot of Basket Case.[7] The Genesis Tub was originally pitched by David Cohen[9] and it was later referenced in the South Park episode Simpsons Already Did It, when they pointed out that The Simpsons had earlier gotten the idea from the 1962 Twilight Zone episode called "The Little People."[10]

The 1996 Presidential election occurred a few days after the airing of this episode.[9] According to Cohen, the Citizen Kang short violated every rule of The Simpsons as it locked the episode in one time and named specific candidates.[6] Although, according to Josh Weinstein, "the message is timeless."[6] There is a rock band named I Voted for Kodos, which Weinstein says is based on this episode.[6]

The sequence where tiny spaceships attack Bart marks one of the first uses of computers in Simpsons animation. The computer was used to build models for reference and the animators later retraced it.[10] In the opening couch gag, that boat still keeps getting loose from the wall.

Cultural references

Homer sings Fish Heads, a song by Barnes & Barnes.[11] The title "Citizen Kang" is a reference to Orson Welles' Citizen Kane. Homer crashing the flying saucer into capital dome is a nod to Earth vs. the Flying Saucers.[9]

Reception

In 2006, IGN.com voted "Citizen Kang" as the seventh best segment of the Treehouse of Horror episodes.[12] It currently holds a rating of "Great" with a score of 8.9/10 at TV.com[13] and a score of 7.5/10 at the Internet Movie Database[14] In a 2000 Entertainment Weekly article, Matt Groening ranked it as his seventh favorite in the history of the show.[15]

"We've reached the limits of what rectal probing can teach us" is one of Matt Groening's favorite lines.[16] Kang/Bob Dole's line "Abortions for some, miniature American flags for others!" was named one of the best lines in the history of the show by the A.V. Club.[17]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Treehouse of Horror VII BBC.co.uk. Retrieved on March 28, 2007
  2. ^ a b c "Treehouse of Horror VII" The Simpsons.com. Retrieved on March 28, 2007
  3. ^ Martyn, Warren (2000). I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide. Virgin Books. ISBN 0-7535-0495-2. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ Episode Capsule at The Simpsons Archive
  5. ^ Richmond, Ray (1997). The Simpsons: A Complete Guide to our Favorite Family. Harper Collins Publishers. pp. p. 173. ISBN 0-00063-8898-1. {{cite book}}: |pages= has extra text (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  6. ^ a b c d Weinstein, Josh (2006). The Simpsons season 8 DVD commentary for the episode "Treehouse of Horror VII" (DVD). 20th Century Fox. {{cite AV media}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  7. ^ a b Keeler, Ken (2006). The Simpsons season 8 DVD commentary for the episode "Treehouse of Horror VII" (DVD). 20th Century Fox. {{cite AV media}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  8. ^ Greaney, Dan (2006). The Simpsons season 8 DVD commentary for the episode "Treehouse of Horror VII" (DVD). 20th Century Fox. {{cite AV media}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  9. ^ a b c d Cohen, David X. (2006). The Simpsons season 8 DVD commentary for the episode "Treehouse of Horror VII" (DVD). 20th Century Fox. {{cite AV media}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  10. ^ a b Anderson, Mike B. (2006). The Simpsons season 8 DVD commentary for the episode "Treehouse of Horror VII" (DVD). 20th Century Fox. {{cite AV media}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  11. ^ Castellaneta, Dan (2006). The Simpsons season 8 DVD commentary for the episode "Treehouse of Horror VII" (DVD). 20th Century Fox. {{cite AV media}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  12. ^ Goldman, Eric; Iverson, Dan; Zoromski, Brian (2006-10-30). "Top 10 Segments from The Simpsons' Treehouse of Horror". IGN. Retrieved 2007-03-30.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  13. ^ "Treehouse Of Horror VII". TV.com. Retrieved 2007-03-30.
  14. ^ "Treehouse of Horror VI". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2007-03-30.
  15. ^ "Springfield of Dreams". Entertainment Weekly. 2000-01-14. Retrieved 2007-03-30.
  16. ^ Groening, Matt (2006). The Simpsons season 8 DVD commentary for the episode "Treehouse of Horror VII" (DVD). 20th Century Fox. {{cite AV media}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  17. ^ Bahn, Christopher (2006-04-26). "Beyond "D'oh!": Simpsons Quotes For Everyday Use". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 2006-07-03. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
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