Treehouse of Horror XIX
Encyclopedia
"Treehouse of Horror XIX" is the fourth episode of the twentieth season of The Simpsons
. It first aired on the Fox network
in the United States on November 2, 2008. This is the nineteenth Treehouse of Horror episode, and, like the other "Treehouse of Horror" episodes, contains three self-contained segments: in "Untitled Robot Parody", Transformer robots run amok in Springfield; in "How to Get Ahead in Dead-Vertising", Homer is hired by ad agents to kill celebrities so their images can be used for free; and in a Simpsons-style parody of It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
(called "It's The Grand Pumpkin, Milhouse"), Milhouse summons a demon pumpkin who goes berserk when it sees humans carving its brethren into jack-o-lanterns as part of Halloween tradition. It was written by Matt Warburton
and directed by Bob Anderson
.
A total of 12.48 million viewers tuned in to watch during its first airing, more than any other episode since "The Wife Aquatic
". The episode received mixed reviews from critics, who generally regarded "It's the Grand Pumpkin, Milhouse" as the best segment. Shortly after airing, the episode was criticized by the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network
(GLSEN) because a character (Nelson Muntz) casually uses the adjective
"gay" to insult The Grand Pumpkin.
tries to vote for Democratic
Senator Barack Obama
in the 2008 American presidential election
. However, the voting machine is rigged to turn his vote into one for Republican
Senator John McCain
. After six attempts to vote Homer heads out to report the mishap ("This machine is RIGGED!") but the machine sucks him in and kills him, then shoots out his body out of the voting booth. Jasper sticks a "I Voted" patriotic-themed sticker on Homer's forehead.
present. However, the car turns out to be a Transformer
. The robot transforms all of the technology in Springfield
into robots so they can wage war with each other. Just as two machines prepare to face off, Marge
asks why the robots are at war with one another; as it turns out, they cannot even remember. Thanking Marge, the two sides declare that they will work together to conquer the human race, and use the residents of Springfield in a game of fooseball.
to a daycare and encourages her to enjoy a mural featuring Krusty the Clown to make her feel better while she is away from her parents. Krusty arrives to have the images of his face sandblasted from the mural, as his likeness is trademarked and used without his permission. This upsets Maggie and an outraged Homer shoves Krusty in retaliation, sending him flying into a wood chipper where he is shredded. Homer is later approached by businessmen who have heard of his deed and explain that the likenesses of dead celebrities can be put in commercials for free. They manage to convince Homer to start killing celebrities, and he kills several, including George Clooney
, Prince
, and Neil Armstrong
. In Heaven, the dead celebrities are outraged by these exploits as Krusty convinces the dead celebrities to descend and stage an attack upon all those who benefited from their deaths, striking in the midst of one of Homer's parties. Krusty kills Homer by blowing his head off with a shotgun. However, Homer gets revenge by locking the celebrities out of Heaven before they return, his only company being the apparently gay Abraham Lincoln
. The title and some aspects of the plot parody the 1989 black comedy How to Get Ahead in Advertising
, while the opening parodies the drama TV series Mad Men
.
(originally thinking it was bread especially made for pumpkins until Milhouse revealed it is made from them), and vows revenge. He devours Homer as he carves a pumpkin, then marches to the school and eats Nelson
who threatens to stab a yellow pumpkin (it becomes apparent at this point that the Grand Pumpkin is racist towards this type of pumpkin), then eats Groundskeeper Willie
after being offered roasted pumpkin seeds. Realizing that Milhouse can bring things to life by believing in them, Lisa tells him about "Tom Turkey," a symbol of Thanksgiving
. Milhouse starts to believe in Tom Turkey, who comes to life and kills the Grand Pumpkin, freeing everyone he ate. However, when Tom Turkey learns that people eat turkeys on Thanksgiving from Bart
, he vows revenge and starts angrily chasing children around the school, devouring some of them whole as Marge wishes the viewers happy holidays.
. Rather than taking sides in the election, executive producer Al Jean
says it is "mostly a comment on what many people to believe to be the irregularities in our voting system.[sic]" "Untitled Robot Parody" is modeled on the live action Transformers film, rather than the cartoon
. Al Jean said it was "just really fun to do transformations [and] you can see why they enjoyed doing that film." "How to Get Ahead in Dead-Vertising" featured a parody of the title sequence of Mad Men
. Jean was a fan of the series and pitched the scene.
The final segment is based on the Halloween cartoon It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
. It could not be titled "It's the Great Pumpkin, Milhouse" to exactly match its namesake because of a "big legal issue", according to Al Jean. However, the characters were redesigned to resemble the style of Peanuts
, and they also obtained rights to use Vince Guaraldi
's music. Jean said in 2011 that "For years we had never been able to parody Charlie Brown's Halloween special, which is one of the all-time top three animated shows ever. The Vince Guaraldi music is such a huge part of it, so we got to clear it. It was just a dream come true to satirize it. I thought it was a really funny idea that instead of not ever seeing the Grand Pumpkin, it comes to life, and he's really horrified at the way humans cook pumpkins into pies, and eat pumpkin seeds, which are basically pumpkin fetuses...."
and Homer kills several celebrities, including Prince
, George Clooney
, and Neil Armstrong
, set to the song "Psycho Killer
" by Talking Heads
.
The final segment, "It's the Grand Pumpkin, Milhouse" is a parody of It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
(and was supposed to be named "It's The Great Pumpkin, Milhouse," but due to legal reasons, was renamed) and contains several references to the Peanuts
series. In the segment, Milhouse wears the same clothes and plays the same role as Linus van Pelt
. Lisa is modelled after Sally Brown
and Bart looks like Charlie Brown
; he even says "good grief", echoing Charlie Brown's catchphrase. A redesigned version of Santa's Little Helper
can be seen sleeping on top of his dog house and Homer is seen sleeping on top of his house in a manner similar to Snoopy
. When Marge first speaks, she uses a muted trombone. This is a parody of the "wah wah wah" voice that is used for adults in the various Peanuts specials. Milhouse' prayer to the Grand Pumpkin is similar to the Nicene Creed
. The dance scene during the Halloween party is a parody of the dance scene in A Charlie Brown Christmas
right down to Kang and Kodos in a nonspeaking cameo
as the twins 3 and 4.
and House
. It was the highest rated episode since season 18
's "The Wife Aquatic
".
"Treehouse of Horror XIX" received mixed reviews from critics. Rick Bentley of the Seattle Times described it as a "paint-by-numbers episode". Robert Canning of IGN
gave the episode a 7.9/10, calling it "funny, entertaining and even nostalgic [which] only makes this yearly tradition that much better."
"It's the Grand Pumpkin, Milhouse" was regarded by reviewers as the best segment in the episode. Canning wrote, "this segment may not be all that gory, but it's funny and, quite honestly, it will just make you feel good", and Bentley described it as "a dead-on comedy assault of the Charlie Brown animated Halloween special." Rob Owen of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
concurred, writing that it "succeeds because it offers sly cultural commentary." Show Patrol
wrote "The nostalgia factor makes “Grand Pumpkin” the best of these amusing bits for me, but they all lack that trademark “Simpsons” brand of satirical smartness." Hal Boedecker of the Orlando Sentinel
gave the episode a 4/5 and called the final segment a "witty parody of Charlie Brown's Halloween classic. [...] The best gag, though, is a subtle one. Marge plays a trombone, a loving salute to the way the Peanuts specials portrayed adult voices."
Director Bob Anderson
received an Annie Award
nomination
for "Best Directing in an Animated Television Production" but lost to Avatar: The Last Airbender
.
(GLSEN), which was in the middle of running a campaign to prevent casual use of the adjective
"gay", criticized Nelson Muntz
's line "the Grand Pumpkin is super gay". A spokesperson for the GLSEN said "many people say gay without even realizing what they're saying is bad, we're trying to educate people that this is a term that is hurtful to young people when used in a negative way." The spokesperson added, "Nelson should send an apologetic e-card to Milhouse." Several similar jokes have been made throughout the series without controversy.
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
. It first aired on the Fox network
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
in the United States on November 2, 2008. This is the nineteenth Treehouse of Horror episode, and, like the other "Treehouse of Horror" episodes, contains three self-contained segments: in "Untitled Robot Parody", Transformer robots run amok in Springfield; in "How to Get Ahead in Dead-Vertising", Homer is hired by ad agents to kill celebrities so their images can be used for free; and in a Simpsons-style parody of It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown is a 1966 American prime time animated television special based on the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz....
(called "It's The Grand Pumpkin, Milhouse"), Milhouse summons a demon pumpkin who goes berserk when it sees humans carving its brethren into jack-o-lanterns as part of Halloween tradition. It was written by Matt Warburton
Matt Warburton
Matt Warburton is an American television writer currently working on The Simpsons. In reference to Warburton, Current show runner Al Jean once joked that the show now has a writer younger than Bart...
and directed by Bob Anderson
Bob Anderson (director)
Bob Anderson is an animation director on The Simpsons. He also contributed additional sequence direction on The Simpsons Movie....
.
A total of 12.48 million viewers tuned in to watch during its first airing, more than any other episode since "The Wife Aquatic
The Wife Aquatic
The Wife Aquatic is the tenth episode of The Simpsons eighteenth season, which originally aired January 7, 2007. 13.9 million viewers watched this episode, making it the highest rated of seasons 17–20.-Plot:...
". The episode received mixed reviews from critics, who generally regarded "It's the Grand Pumpkin, Milhouse" as the best segment. Shortly after airing, the episode was criticized by the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network
Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network
The Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network is an organization in the United States that seeks to end discrimination, harassment, and bullying based on sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression in K-12 schools. GLSEN is headquartered in New York City and the District of Columbia...
(GLSEN) because a character (Nelson Muntz) casually uses the adjective
Adjective
In grammar, an adjective is a 'describing' word; the main syntactic role of which is to qualify a noun or noun phrase, giving more information about the object signified....
"gay" to insult The Grand Pumpkin.
Plot
In the opening scene, HomerHomer Simpson
Homer Jay Simpson is a fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons and the patriarch of the eponymous family. He is voiced by Dan Castellaneta and first appeared on television, along with the rest of his family, in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
tries to vote for Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
Senator Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
in the 2008 American presidential election
United States presidential election, 2008
The United States presidential election of 2008 was the 56th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on November 4, 2008. Democrat Barack Obama, then the junior United States Senator from Illinois, defeated Republican John McCain, the senior U.S. Senator from Arizona. Obama received 365...
. However, the voting machine is rigged to turn his vote into one for Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
Senator John McCain
John McCain
John Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
. After six attempts to vote Homer heads out to report the mishap ("This machine is RIGGED!") but the machine sucks him in and kills him, then shoots out his body out of the voting booth. Jasper sticks a "I Voted" patriotic-themed sticker on Homer's forehead.
Untitled Robot Parody
Bart buys Lisa a Malibu Stacy convertible as a ChristmasChristmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
present. However, the car turns out to be a Transformer
Transformers (toy line)
The is a line of toys produced by the American toy company Hasbro. The Transformers toyline was created from toy molds mostly produced by Japanese company Takara in the toylines Diaclone and Microman. Other toy molds from other companies such as Bandai were used as well...
. The robot transforms all of the technology in Springfield
Springfield (The Simpsons)
Springfield is the fictional town in which the American animated sitcom The Simpsons is set. A mid-sized town in an undetermined state of the United States, Springfield acts as a complete universe in which characters can explore the issues faced by modern society. The geography of the town and its...
into robots so they can wage war with each other. Just as two machines prepare to face off, Marge
Marge Simpson
Marjorie "Marge" Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons and part of the eponymous family. She is voiced by actress Julie Kavner and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
asks why the robots are at war with one another; as it turns out, they cannot even remember. Thanking Marge, the two sides declare that they will work together to conquer the human race, and use the residents of Springfield in a game of fooseball.
How to Get Ahead in Dead-vertising
Homer takes MaggieMaggie Simpson
Margaret "Maggie" Simpson is a fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons. She first appeared on television in the Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Maggie was created and designed by cartoonist Matt Groening while he was waiting in the lobby of James...
to a daycare and encourages her to enjoy a mural featuring Krusty the Clown to make her feel better while she is away from her parents. Krusty arrives to have the images of his face sandblasted from the mural, as his likeness is trademarked and used without his permission. This upsets Maggie and an outraged Homer shoves Krusty in retaliation, sending him flying into a wood chipper where he is shredded. Homer is later approached by businessmen who have heard of his deed and explain that the likenesses of dead celebrities can be put in commercials for free. They manage to convince Homer to start killing celebrities, and he kills several, including George Clooney
George Clooney
George Timothy Clooney is an American actor, film director, producer, and screenwriter. For his work as an actor, he has received two Golden Globe Awards and an Academy Award...
, Prince
Prince (musician)
Prince Rogers Nelson , often known simply as Prince, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label; writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of...
, and Neil Armstrong
Neil Armstrong
Neil Alden Armstrong is an American former astronaut, test pilot, aerospace engineer, university professor, United States Naval Aviator, and the first person to set foot upon the Moon....
. In Heaven, the dead celebrities are outraged by these exploits as Krusty convinces the dead celebrities to descend and stage an attack upon all those who benefited from their deaths, striking in the midst of one of Homer's parties. Krusty kills Homer by blowing his head off with a shotgun. However, Homer gets revenge by locking the celebrities out of Heaven before they return, his only company being the apparently gay Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
. The title and some aspects of the plot parody the 1989 black comedy How to Get Ahead in Advertising
How to Get Ahead in Advertising
How to Get Ahead in Advertising is a 1989 British film written and directed by Bruce Robinson and starring Richard E. Grant and Rachel Ward. The title is a pun and can be literally taken as "How to Get a Head in Advertising".-Plot:...
, while the opening parodies the drama TV series Mad Men
Mad Men
Mad Men is an American dramatic television series created and produced by Matthew Weiner. The series premiered on Sunday evenings on the American cable network AMC and are produced by Lionsgate Television. It premiered on July 19, 2007, and completed its fourth season on October 17, 2010. Each...
.
It's the Grand Pumpkin, Milhouse
Milhouse waits in a (pumpkin) patch for the Grand Pumpkin on Halloween (which Bart made up) and Lisa decides to stay with him. After Lisa sees everyone at school having a Halloween party, she grows tired of waiting and leaves in frustration. Milhouse starts to cry and his tears and childlike belief bring the Grand Pumpkin to life. However, the Pumpkin is appalled to find that his kindred pumpkins are being carved up on Halloween and made into pumpkin breadPumpkin bread
Pumpkin bread is a type of moist quick bread made with pumpkins. The pumpkin can be cooked and softened before being used or simply baked with the bread...
(originally thinking it was bread especially made for pumpkins until Milhouse revealed it is made from them), and vows revenge. He devours Homer as he carves a pumpkin, then marches to the school and eats Nelson
Nelson Muntz
Nelson Mandela Muntz is a fictional character and bully from the animated TV series The Simpsons. He is voiced by Nancy Cartwright. Nelson was introduced in Season 1's "Bart the General" as a bully but later turned into a friend of Bart Simpson, who is best identified by his signature laugh .-Role...
who threatens to stab a yellow pumpkin (it becomes apparent at this point that the Grand Pumpkin is racist towards this type of pumpkin), then eats Groundskeeper Willie
Groundskeeper Willie
William McDougal, usually referred to as Groundskeeper Willie, is a recurring character on The Simpsons, voiced by Dan Castellaneta. He is head groundskeeper at Springfield Elementary School. Willie is a Scottish immigrant, almost feral in nature and immensely proud of his homeland...
after being offered roasted pumpkin seeds. Realizing that Milhouse can bring things to life by believing in them, Lisa tells him about "Tom Turkey," a symbol of Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving (United States)
Thanksgiving, or Thanksgiving Day, is a holiday celebrated in the United States on the fourth Thursday in November. It has officially been an annual tradition since 1863, when, during the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national day of thanksgiving to be celebrated on Thursday,...
. Milhouse starts to believe in Tom Turkey, who comes to life and kills the Grand Pumpkin, freeing everyone he ate. However, when Tom Turkey learns that people eat turkeys on Thanksgiving from Bart
Bart Simpson
Bartholomew JoJo "Bart" Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons and part of the Simpson family. He is voiced by actress Nancy Cartwright and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
, he vows revenge and starts angrily chasing children around the school, devouring some of them whole as Marge wishes the viewers happy holidays.
Production
The opening segment of the episode, which was leaked onto the internet weeks before the episode aired, features Homer voting for Barack ObamaBarack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
. Rather than taking sides in the election, executive producer Al Jean
Al Jean
Al Jean is an award-winning American screenwriter and producer, best known for his work on The Simpsons. He was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan and graduated from Harvard University in 1981. Jean began his writing career in the 1980s with fellow Harvard alum Mike Reiss...
says it is "mostly a comment on what many people to believe to be the irregularities in our voting system.[sic]" "Untitled Robot Parody" is modeled on the live action Transformers film, rather than the cartoon
The Transformers (TV series)
The Transformers is an animated television series depicting a war among giant robots who could transform into vehicles, other objects and animal-like forms. Written and recorded in America, the series was animated in Japan and South Korea...
. Al Jean said it was "just really fun to do transformations [and] you can see why they enjoyed doing that film." "How to Get Ahead in Dead-Vertising" featured a parody of the title sequence of Mad Men
Mad Men
Mad Men is an American dramatic television series created and produced by Matthew Weiner. The series premiered on Sunday evenings on the American cable network AMC and are produced by Lionsgate Television. It premiered on July 19, 2007, and completed its fourth season on October 17, 2010. Each...
. Jean was a fan of the series and pitched the scene.
The final segment is based on the Halloween cartoon It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown is a 1966 American prime time animated television special based on the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz....
. It could not be titled "It's the Great Pumpkin, Milhouse" to exactly match its namesake because of a "big legal issue", according to Al Jean. However, the characters were redesigned to resemble the style of Peanuts
Peanuts
Peanuts is a syndicated daily and Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz, which ran from October 2, 1950, to February 13, 2000, continuing in reruns afterward...
, and they also obtained rights to use Vince Guaraldi
Vince Guaraldi
Vincent Anthony "Vince" Guaraldi was an Italian American jazz musician and pianist noted for his innovative compositions and arrangements and for composing music for animated adaptations of the Peanuts comic strip...
's music. Jean said in 2011 that "For years we had never been able to parody Charlie Brown's Halloween special, which is one of the all-time top three animated shows ever. The Vince Guaraldi music is such a huge part of it, so we got to clear it. It was just a dream come true to satirize it. I thought it was a really funny idea that instead of not ever seeing the Grand Pumpkin, it comes to life, and he's really horrified at the way humans cook pumpkins into pies, and eat pumpkin seeds, which are basically pumpkin fetuses...."
Cultural references
The first segment of the episode is a parody of Transformers. The second segment features a parody of the opening of Mad MenMad Men
Mad Men is an American dramatic television series created and produced by Matthew Weiner. The series premiered on Sunday evenings on the American cable network AMC and are produced by Lionsgate Television. It premiered on July 19, 2007, and completed its fourth season on October 17, 2010. Each...
and Homer kills several celebrities, including Prince
Prince (musician)
Prince Rogers Nelson , often known simply as Prince, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label; writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of...
, George Clooney
George Clooney
George Timothy Clooney is an American actor, film director, producer, and screenwriter. For his work as an actor, he has received two Golden Globe Awards and an Academy Award...
, and Neil Armstrong
Neil Armstrong
Neil Alden Armstrong is an American former astronaut, test pilot, aerospace engineer, university professor, United States Naval Aviator, and the first person to set foot upon the Moon....
, set to the song "Psycho Killer
Psycho Killer
"Psycho Killer" is a song by American New Wave band Talking Heads from their 1977 album Talking Heads: 77, written by David Byrne, Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth. The band's "signature debut hit" features lyrics which seem to represent the thoughts of a serial killer. Allmusic calls it a...
" by Talking Heads
Talking Heads
Talking Heads were an American New Wave and avant-garde band formed in 1975 in New York City and active until 1991. The band comprised David Byrne, Chris Frantz, Tina Weymouth and Jerry Harrison...
.
The final segment, "It's the Grand Pumpkin, Milhouse" is a parody of It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown is a 1966 American prime time animated television special based on the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz....
(and was supposed to be named "It's The Great Pumpkin, Milhouse," but due to legal reasons, was renamed) and contains several references to the Peanuts
Peanuts
Peanuts is a syndicated daily and Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz, which ran from October 2, 1950, to February 13, 2000, continuing in reruns afterward...
series. In the segment, Milhouse wears the same clothes and plays the same role as Linus van Pelt
Linus van Pelt
Linus van Pelt is a character in Charles M. Schulz's comic strip Peanuts. The best friend of Charlie Brown, Linus is also the younger brother of Lucy van Pelt and older brother of Rerun van Pelt. He first appeared on September 19, 1952; however, he was not mentioned by name until three days later....
. Lisa is modelled after Sally Brown
Sally Brown
Sally Brown is the younger sister of Charlie Brown in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles Schulz. She was first mentioned in early 1959 and throughout a long series of strips before her first appearance in August 1959.-Appearance:...
and Bart looks like Charlie Brown
Charlie Brown
Charles "Charlie" Brown is the protagonist in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz.Charlie Brown and his creator have a common connection in that they are both the sons of barbers, but whereas Schulz's work is described as the "most shining example of the American success story", Charlie...
; he even says "good grief", echoing Charlie Brown's catchphrase. A redesigned version of Santa's Little Helper
Santa's Little Helper
Santa's Little Helper is a recurring character in the American animated television series The Simpsons. He is the pet greyhound of the Simpson family. The dog was introduced in the first episode of the show, the 1989 Christmas special "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire", in which his owner abandons...
can be seen sleeping on top of his dog house and Homer is seen sleeping on top of his house in a manner similar to Snoopy
Snoopy
Snoopy is an fictional character in the long-running comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz. He is Charlie Brown's pet beagle. Snoopy began his life in the strip as a fairly conventional dog, but eventually evolved into perhaps the strip's most dynamic character—and among the most recognizable...
. When Marge first speaks, she uses a muted trombone. This is a parody of the "wah wah wah" voice that is used for adults in the various Peanuts specials. Milhouse' prayer to the Grand Pumpkin is similar to the Nicene Creed
Nicene Creed
The Nicene Creed is the creed or profession of faith that is most widely used in Christian liturgy. It is called Nicene because, in its original form, it was adopted in the city of Nicaea by the first ecumenical council, which met there in the year 325.The Nicene Creed has been normative to the...
. The dance scene during the Halloween party is a parody of the dance scene in A Charlie Brown Christmas
A Charlie Brown Christmas
A Charlie Brown Christmas is the first prime-time animated TV special based upon the comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz. It was produced and directed by former Warner Bros. and UPA animator Bill Melendez, who also supplied the voice for the character of Snoopy...
right down to Kang and Kodos in a nonspeaking cameo
Cameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
as the twins 3 and 4.
Reception
In its initial airing, the episode was viewed in 12.48 million homes and achieved a 4.9 Nielsen rating. It was the highest rated episode of the night in the 18–49 demographic, the sixteenth highest rated show of the week, and the fourth highest rated on Fox after two airings of the World SeriesWorld Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball, played between the American League and National League champions since 1903. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff and awarded the Commissioner's Trophy...
and House
House (TV series)
House is an American television medical drama that debuted on the Fox network on November 16, 2004. The show's central character is Dr. Gregory House , an unconventional and misanthropic medical genius who heads a team of diagnosticians at the fictional Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital in...
. It was the highest rated episode since season 18
The Simpsons (season 18)
The Simpsons 18th season aired from September 10, 2006 to May 20, 2007. The season contained seven hold-over episodes from the season 17 production line. Al Jean served as the Showrunner, a position he has held since the thirteenth season....
's "The Wife Aquatic
The Wife Aquatic
The Wife Aquatic is the tenth episode of The Simpsons eighteenth season, which originally aired January 7, 2007. 13.9 million viewers watched this episode, making it the highest rated of seasons 17–20.-Plot:...
".
"Treehouse of Horror XIX" received mixed reviews from critics. Rick Bentley of the Seattle Times described it as a "paint-by-numbers episode". Robert Canning of IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
gave the episode a 7.9/10, calling it "funny, entertaining and even nostalgic [which] only makes this yearly tradition that much better."
"It's the Grand Pumpkin, Milhouse" was regarded by reviewers as the best segment in the episode. Canning wrote, "this segment may not be all that gory, but it's funny and, quite honestly, it will just make you feel good", and Bentley described it as "a dead-on comedy assault of the Charlie Brown animated Halloween special." Rob Owen of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, also known simply as the "PG," is the largest daily newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.-Early history:...
concurred, writing that it "succeeds because it offers sly cultural commentary." Show Patrol
RedEye
The RedEye is a daily publication put out by the Chicago Tribune geared toward 18 to 34-year-olds. RedEye was created due in part to the loss of readership among young people of the Chicago Tribune and other major newspapers...
wrote "The nostalgia factor makes “Grand Pumpkin” the best of these amusing bits for me, but they all lack that trademark “Simpsons” brand of satirical smartness." Hal Boedecker of the Orlando Sentinel
Orlando Sentinel
The Orlando Sentinel is the primary newspaper of the Orlando, Florida region. It was founded in 1876. The Sentinel is owned by Tribune Company and is overseen by the Chicago Tribune. As of 2005, the Sentinel’s president and publisher was Kathleen Waltz; she announced her resignation in February 2008...
gave the episode a 4/5 and called the final segment a "witty parody of Charlie Brown's Halloween classic. [...] The best gag, though, is a subtle one. Marge plays a trombone, a loving salute to the way the Peanuts specials portrayed adult voices."
Director Bob Anderson
Bob Anderson (director)
Bob Anderson is an animation director on The Simpsons. He also contributed additional sequence direction on The Simpsons Movie....
received an Annie Award
Annie Award
The Annie Awards have been presented by the Los Angeles, California branch of the International Animated Film Association, ASIFA-Hollywood since 1972...
nomination
36th Annie Awards
The 36th Annual Annie Awards, honoring the best in animation for 2008, were held on January 30, 2009 at Royce Hall in Los Angeles, California. Below is a list of announced nominees...
for "Best Directing in an Animated Television Production" but lost to Avatar: The Last Airbender
Avatar: The Last Airbender
Avatar: The Last Airbender is an American animated television series that aired for three seasons on Nickelodeon from 2005 to 2008. The series was created and produced by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, who served as executive producers along with Aaron Ehasz...
.
Controversy
The Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education NetworkGay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network
The Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network is an organization in the United States that seeks to end discrimination, harassment, and bullying based on sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression in K-12 schools. GLSEN is headquartered in New York City and the District of Columbia...
(GLSEN), which was in the middle of running a campaign to prevent casual use of the adjective
Adjective
In grammar, an adjective is a 'describing' word; the main syntactic role of which is to qualify a noun or noun phrase, giving more information about the object signified....
"gay", criticized Nelson Muntz
Nelson Muntz
Nelson Mandela Muntz is a fictional character and bully from the animated TV series The Simpsons. He is voiced by Nancy Cartwright. Nelson was introduced in Season 1's "Bart the General" as a bully but later turned into a friend of Bart Simpson, who is best identified by his signature laugh .-Role...
's line "the Grand Pumpkin is super gay". A spokesperson for the GLSEN said "many people say gay without even realizing what they're saying is bad, we're trying to educate people that this is a term that is hurtful to young people when used in a negative way." The spokesperson added, "Nelson should send an apologetic e-card to Milhouse." Several similar jokes have been made throughout the series without controversy.