The Simpsons Season 36s Treehouse Of Horror Mocks One Of Its Oldest Jokes

1 week ago 7

While The Simpsons loves silly sight gags, even the series itself mocked this style of comedy in season 36’s Treehouse of Horror Halloween special. The Simpsons isn’t above making fun of its own formula. The show has been on the air for over three decades and, thanks to this longevity, the animated family sitcom has inevitably developed a few reliable gags that The Simpsons frequently revisits. For example, many of The Simpsons’ 38 Treehouse of Horror Halloween specials have laughed about their own tendency to kill off the show’s main characters, since their non-canon status makes this a possibility.

A young Grampa Simpson sits beside a child Homer who is handcuffed to a radiator in The Simpsons season 36 episode 4

The Simpsons Season 36 Finally Explains A Decades-Old Homer Mystery

The Simpsons season 36 episode 4 finally offers an answer to one mystery that has surrounded Homer since the iconic series began over 35 years ago.

Similarly, The Simpsons season 36 acknowledged a major plot hole when episode 4, “Shoddy Heat,” underlined the inconsistency of Homer’s age. A season 4 episode revealed that Homer was born in 1956, but season 33’s premiere depicted him as a high school student in 2000. “Shoddy Heat” laughs off this inconsistency instead of explaining the discrepancy, proving that the show has a sense of humor about its own narrative shortcomings. Similarly, season 36, episode 5, “Treehouse of Horror XXXV,” took aim at another classic running gag in the Edgar Allan Poe parody “Fall of the House of Monty.”

The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror XXXV Admitted Its Sight Gags Are Tough To Read

Carl Complained About The Epitaphs Of Lenny’s Ancestors

In “Fall of the House of Monty,” Mr. Burns played the role of a greedy industrialist in the 1800s who abused the workers at his corn syrup plant. Laborers like Lenny, Carl, Moe, and Homer spent the day working tirelessly in the corn syrup factory and the night working on building Burns’ lavish mansion. The Simpsons’ Edgar Allan Poe spoof soon turned dark when the workers were killed, but this fate didn’t come as a major surprise. Early on, Lenny had already pointed out that two generations of his family perished while working on the needlessly elaborate home.

Since The Simpsons features funny signs at least once in almost every episode, this affectionate mockery of the show’s reliance on this comedy style was a funny self-referential gag.

When Lenny pointed to two statues immortalizing his predecessors, Carl noted “That’s an awful lot to read” as the camera panned to their lengthy, detailed epitaphs. It was a self-aware joke that pointed out that the written sight gags in The Simpsons are often too plentiful for viewers to read them all on first viewing, and would be absurdly impractical in reality. Since The Simpsons features funny signs at least once in almost every episode, this affectionate mockery of the show’s reliance on this comedy style was a funny self-referential gag. However, this was not the first time the show pointed this out.

The Simpsons Mocked Its Reliance On Written Sight Gags Before

Season 34 Featured A Similar Moment of Self-Awareness

Three images of Krusty, the Springfield sign, and Mr. Burns in The Simpsons.

Before The Simpsons season 36’s Treehouse of Horror Halloween special, season 33, episode 13, “Boyz N the Highlands,” featured a similarly self-parodic moment. Homer mentioned an array of board games, the camera panned toward them, and he asked if viewers had a chance to read their titles before the scene moved on. This sly joke, like Carl’s comment about the ridiculous statues, was a fun reminder that the show’s characters are aware of how zany and unrealistic their reality is. Characters on The Simpsons sometimes seemingly know they are on a TV show, and they are not averse to criticizing it.

New episodes of The Simpsons air at 8 pm on Sundays on Fox.