"Halloween of Horror" is a first among Halloween-themed The Simpsons in that it takes place in the show's regular continuity (such as it is) as distinguished from the non-canon "Treehouse of Horror" episodes.
While decorating their house as "472 Everscream Terrors" the family finds their old plastic skeletons melted together by the furnace. Homer goes to Apu's Official Halloween Headquarters to buy a replacement. When Apu's seasonal employees offer him a deal they can only afford to give because they're stealing from Apu, Homer cluelessly tells Apu about it and gets them fired. The three swear revenge.
Lisa, for her part, is excited about going to Krusty the Klown's haunted house. When they go she finds the animatronic horrors too real and Homer's chaperoning too lax and suffers from PTSD. With Lisa traumatized, the Simpsons remove all signs of Halloween from their house. Marge tries to make it up to Bart by taking him to an exclusive Halloween party, then trick-or-treating, failing at both. Meanwhile Homer's new enemies show up while he's staying home with Lisa.
Tropes
- It's All About Me: Marge lampshades this while comforting Bart:Marge: Honey, I knew you'd be upset and think only of yourself.
- Malevolent Masked Men: The laid-off seasonal temps break in while wearing masks and are seriously scary at some points.
- Security Blanket: Lisa has "Tailie", a tail that fell off some stuffed animal or other.
- Shout-Out: The "NC-17 Halloween" song most of Springfield's grown-ups sing is In the Style of the big numbers from The Rocky Horror Picture Show.
