Guillermo Del Toro’s Simpsons Halloween Intro References Pacific Rim, World War Z, And Every Horror Movie Ever
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Halloween is hands down my favorite holiday. I’m a sucker for a good costume, and people generally have a lot more fun when they don’t look or act like themselves. I also eagerly await the end of October because of the consistently awesome Simpsons Halloween special. This year’s Halloween send-up may be the most anticipated ever, as “Treehouse of Horror XXIV” (what is this, the Superbowl?) was developed (at least in part) by none other than Guillermo del Toro, who also directed this freakin’ amazing opening sequence. Hells yeah!
Hitchcock would be jealous. Oh, right, he’s in the opening. Damn, I love The Birds. Who knew they could be so creepy? At least, before we knew about avian flu.
This opening sequence is jam packed with references. Del Toro gives a few nods in the mirror, referencing Pan’s Labyrinth, one of my favorite movies of all time and what I’ll likely always consider del Toro’s best work. Those scenes are among the best, especially when Smithers wipes down Mr. Burns’s eye-hands. Hand-eyes? He also gives us scarabs from Cronos, which is another pretty amazing (and trippy) del Toro film. I know I missed some of these references and cameos — if you see more, post in the comments.
There’s a quick Pacific Rim reference in the background, there’s World War Z, The Shining, Alien (and aliens),
Phantom of the Opera, Frankenstein, a mummy, Dracula, werewolf, and the rest of the core monster gang, Cthulhu, Hellboy, Blade, Futurama‘s Hypnotoad, The Day the Earth Stood Still, and good ol’ Alice and her mushrooms (I wonder how many del Toro’s taken…). Oh, and there’s Ray Bradbury illustrating a man. As if I didn’t already love this sequence enough.
I haven’t seen anything more than the trailer, but I hear from the internets that the episodes will include a rhyming children’s tale with Homer as the monster, Bart’s beheading, and a traveling circus run by Mr. Burns. You’re obviously going to watch, but just in case you need a little more enticing, Bart’s decapitated head fuses with Lisa’s body. Wow, that’ll go well. You know the first thing Bart will do is stuff his face with burgers and steak and all the stuff the virtuous vegetarian Lisa (with the help of Paul McCartney) has sworn off since she was eight. Oh wait, she’s still eight. Regardless, it’s been a long time. Also, Marge and Homer are both in Mr. Burns’s circus. Unfortunately, Homer is not King Kong.
The special airs this Sunday (October 6) at 8:00 pm. I never thought I’d say this, but I’m glad the government shutdown won’t furlough Fox.
