The Simpsons' Treehouse of Horror, titled Bart Simpson's Treehouse of Horror for its first 13 issues, is a horror comic that was published annually by Bongo Comics around Halloween, running for 23 issues from 1995 to 2017. It is titled after The Simpsons' annual Halloween specials, Treehouse of Horror. It is considerably Darker and Edgier than the animated specials.
Contains examples of:
- Affectionate Parody: Most Treehouse of Horror stories are retold versions of horror movies, including Cat People, Invasion of the Body Snatchers and The Exorcist.
- Animesque: "Murder He Wrote" from issue #14 is drawn in a manga-esque style, due to it being a parody of Death Note.
- Ascended Meme: "Boo-tleg," A story in Bart Simpson’s Treehouse of Horror #15, features a bootleg Black Bart who had plans to sell shirts of himself at a flea market.
- Asshole Victim: Unpleasant and cruel people getting killed is a frequent occurrence in the Treehouse of Horror comics.
- Sideshow Blob's first victims include Dr. Nick, and the bullies, just after the latter had attacked Bart on Halloween Night.
- The Homer-plant eats Mr. Burns.
- Bloodier and Gorier: The Treehouse of Horror issues are darker and more disturbing than the animated episodes, even when they act as parodies of existing movies and film franchises.
- Cloning Gambit: One story revolves around Burns using a cloning machine that creates perfect imperfect duplicates of whatever it's aimed at to create the perfect worker, by using it on Homer. It creates Superman.
- Clown Species: In one story, a scheme by Kang and Kodos to convert humans into Rigellians through mutagenic fast food is thwarted when feeding them Krusty Burger turns them into dimwitted and weak-willed humans. Unfortunately, any security assured by this is shot by the final page revealing that Krusty Burger is part of a plot by aliens resembling Krusty the Clown to pacify humans to be eaten.
- Compact Infiltrator: In "Sideshow Blob," Bob very quickly figures out that his new Blob Monster body is a lot more mobile than it looks when he accidentally oozes through the barred gates of the prison during his escape. Consequently, Bob is frequently able to sneak up on Bart and Lisa via similar methods, even managing to infiltrate the Kwik-E-Mart and begin absorbing Apu's legs without being noticed.
- Demonic Possession: In "The Exor-sister", Lisa is possessed by Madonna...even though Madonna is still alive.
- A Good, Old-Fashioned Paint Watching: A Treehouse of Horror segment has an Itchy and Scratchy cartoon that has them doing this, due to the Pod People.Itchy: The paint is drying.
Scratchy: (Beat) Yes.
[The End]
Homer: (to Bart and Lisa) How can you two watch this show? - Horror Hunger: Issue #17's story "Marge of the Dead" features Marge getting an organ transplant from a cadaver, with the transplant giving her an insatiable craving for human brains.
- Literally Falling Through the Cracks: In "Sideshow Blob," Bob's transformation into a homicidal Blob Monster finally backfires on him when Bart puts the Kwik-E-Mart's squishee machine into reverse while he's right next to it. Because Bob is essentially the same consistency as a squishee, the machine vacuums him up through its nozzle - and because there's too much of him to be contained inside, the machine promptly explodes, splattering Bob all over the store. Unfortunately, this trope also works in Bob's favour when the police lose track of a piece of him during the cleanup, resulting in it falling down a sewerage grate and eventually being funneled into a nice warm place where Bob can regenerate into another blob monster: Mt Splashmore...
- Nothing Is Scarier: In Treehouse of Horror #17, the last story in the issue, "Harvest of Fear," utilizes this and Gory Discretion Shot by having the final page be drawn to look as though it was cut out. However, on the remaining sliver of page left, one can barely make out Bart getting his face ripped off.
- Opening Shout-Out: A one-page comic in issue 15, "Cloud 13," depicts the show's intro sequence as a recurring nightmare experienced by the whole family.Lisa: Doc, I keep having the same nightmare. Everyone in my family keeps trying to get to this couch...Bart: And every night I'm punished. I wake up covered in chalk dust.Homer: I'm being poisoned by a radioactive dowel, and then my son tries to behead me.
- Parody Assistance: One issue tells the story of Homer becoming a terrible blob creature made out of Squishee drink, in a very obvious Swamp Thing homage ("Squish Thing"). So who did they get to write and draw said story? Len Wein and Bernie Wrightson, the duo who created Swamp Thing to begin with!
- Plot-Triggering Book: In the issue 14 story "Murder, He Wrote", Bart finds a notebook similar to the one in Death Note, which the comic parodies, as it operates by the same rules.
- Schmuck Bait: "Harvest of Fear" in Treehouse of Horror #17 ends with Bart learning the author of the comic that's been driving him nuts removed the last page from every edition because he knew it'd drive kids crazy and lead them to him to find out what happened. The author transforms into a monster and, as can just about be made out on the last page, he rips Bart apart.
- Stylistic Suck: The "Boo-tleg" story from Treehouse of Horror #15 is about people dying from the poisonous bootleg candy Apu has stocked at the Kwik-E-Mart. To cover up the deaths and to avoid losing money Apu just has the dead individuals replaced with shoddily made bootleg clones.
