Analysis: "Spider-Man: Maximum Venom" Part Two

 

As we look into the second half of the "Maximum Venom" season, so too do we reach the final post of my long running analysis of the 2017 Spider-Man animated series. Does the season and series go out on a high note? Let's not waste time and dive in.

The fourth hour entitled "Spider-Man Unmasked" mainly focuses on Max Modell's hearing with the Horizon High school board over his experiments with the Venom symbiote. Peter and friends help with Max's defense as Curt Connors acts as prosecutor, his main argument being the safety of the students. Things aren't going well for Max, so in a last ditch effort, Peter suits up as Spider-Man to act as a character witness, citing Max's contributions in his efforts to protect the city. While he seems to be winning them over, Connors then calls out Spider-Man for being Peter Parker. With Max's job on the line and honesty being key, Peter unmasks to the school board (and to Gwen and Anya by proxy). This only drives home Connors' claims of Max's recklessness with his students since he knew Peter was Spider-Man. Having heard enough, the school board relieves Max of duty and places Connors in charge of Horizon. Luckily for Peter though, the contents of the hearing will be sealed from the public, keeping his secret safe. However, they decide that Spider-Man is barred from campus.
In the aftermath, a dejected Max closes himself off from his students. Gwen and Anya are obviously pissed with Peter for keeping his secret from them, though honestly, I'm kind of pissed at the writers for not making them smart enough to figure it out themselves. I mean, when three-fourths of your friend group get spider powers, chances are that fourth friend has them too. They eventually make amends with Peter apologizing to them after getting advice from Mary Jane about being honest with friends. Oh, and they do this all while dealing with mutated humanoid rhinos in Swarm's underground monster fighting league, creating combatants from serums developed by the Jackal and where criminals can watch and bet on the results. And I only bring this part up because it's relevant to what happens later.
In a weird way, "Spider-Man Unmasked" has a lot of important developments, but somewhat feels like filler. I guess I would say this is the weakest entry to this season.

A few weeks pass when we get to the fifth hour, "Generations", and Connors has gone full totalitarian as principal of Horizon. Security bots patrol the halls, school uniforms are imminent, and mysterious packages are being delivered to the faculty lounge by drones. When a lab accident takes down one of the delivery drones, Peter, Miles, and Anya realize the contents are vials of Jackal serum. After sneaking off with the drone's hard drive and taking it to Gwen, they're able to find the warehouse the drones are coming from. The Spider-Team split up, with Peter and Gwen heading to the warehouse while Miles and Anya figure out what's going on in the lounge. Thanks to his Venom Blast, Miles and Anya are able to get past the security in place to find a secret lab and a mysterious machine, only to get knocked out by Anya's stepsister Maria.
Spider-Man and Ghost Spider discover the Jackal and his own secret lab, which he soon enough sets to self-destruct. And it's worth noting that it's an underwater lair, and as the trope goes, underwater lairs always get destroyed. Before escaping though, Gwen is able to access Jackal's files and discovers what he's planning and who he's working for. Peter and Gwen head back to the school to save Miles and Anya, confronting Connors, Maria, and Jackal, as well as Swarm. And it's here we learn the true mastermind they've been working under: Norman Osborn (called it).

So how did Norman survive the finale of season one? Just barely, as he suffered burns across his body and lost an arm and leg. Since then, he's been watching from the shadows planning his vengeance on Spider-Man. He employs Connors, who has had occasional flare-ups from the Lizard formula in his body, promising to fully cure him in exchange for his help. To this end, he sets in the motion the events that would lead to Max's firing and placing Connors in charge of the school, giving Osborn the scientific resources he needs coupled with the money being made through Swarm's underground monster league to reach his final goal. Siphoning off DNA from the symbiote seed and combining it with Jackal's mutation serum, he's transformed into the Dark Goblin (no doubt somewhat inspired by the Carnage based Red Goblin identity Norman took in the comics briefly). Connors, experiencing another Lizard flare-up, begs Osborn for the cure he promised him. Osborn just laughs, saying he never planned to cure Connors. An angry Connors then fully transforms into the Lizard and attacks Osborn, but runs off after being clearly outmatched by the Dark Goblin's strength (and that's the last we see of him).
Wanting Spider-Man all to himself, Norman uses his minions to split up the rest of the Spider-Team:
* Anya takes on her step-sister Maria, who uses a Tarantula based exo-suit. Anya notices Maria forgetting personal details of their relationship, soon enough taking Maria down and revealing that it's the Chameleon in disguise.
* For those who don't remember, this version of the Jackal is Gwen's uncle Raymond. While Jackal and Norman had been enemies back in season one, Jackal decided to work for Norman with his own goal of getting close to his niece so that he can transform Gwen into a Jackal creature like himself. Thankfully, Gwen is saved in time by Miles.
* As for Miles, he takes on Swarm. Through Swarm's exposition about working with Osborn so he can protect his neighborhood and son from the dangers that the Spiders bring, Miles realizes Swarm is his father, Jefferson Davis, unmasking in front of him. An ashamed Jefferson soon flees after realizing what he's done. Honestly, this is the weakest of the "family feud" theme they were going with these fights. Gwen and Raymond's deal had been established in season one and Anya's conflict was based on deception. Making Swarm Miles' dad comes across as a last minute decision. While it seems they didn't want to bring in Miles' uncle Aaron as Prowler since they already established the Hobie Brown Prowler in season two, I don't think they fully thought through the Swarm idea. Jefferson appeared in a single episode back in season one, and his motivation to protect his neighborhood is really lacking because of that; it probably would have helped if there were more Miles focused episodes prior to this. And aside from a couple mentions in the finale, there's unfortunately no resolution to this plotline.

As Peter and Norman fight, Harry enters the fray as Hobgoblin, having been called ahead of time before Peter and Gwen got back to the school. Norman tries the whole Darth Vader "join me" schpeel with Harry, but the son isn't buying what the father is selling. With Peter and Harry getting the upper hand and none of his minions responding, a desperate Norman uses symbiote tendrils to grab more vials of Jackal serum to absorb, mutating further (taller, stronger, more eyes, horns, and spider legs sticking out of his back). The rest of the Spider-Team return to the scene and through a hard fought and very entertaining battle, they're able to get Norman back into the machine to reverse the transformation, turning him from the Dark Goblin back to his human form (though on the plus side, he has both his arms and legs again).
Since Norman's confession was recorded by a security bot, Peter brings it to the school board, showing that Max's experiments were safe and contained had it not been for Osborn and Connors. While I feel this ignores some of the legitimate points Connors did have about safety, we need the happy ending, so Max is reestablished as the principal of Horizon High.
Despite some problems, I'd go so far as to say "Generations" was the best entry of this season with good fights and the payoff of Norman Osborn's return as well as resolution to his and Jackal's storylines.

We now come to the season finale of "Maximum Venom"..."Maximum Venom" (hmm, maybe they were running out of steam by the end).
This hour begins with Spider-Man teaming up with the Avengers and playing a vital role in defeating MODOK. Afterward, Tony offers Peter membership to the Avengers once he's done with school, though he has to think about it since it would involve giving up his personal life.
Later on, Peter, Gwen, and Anya go in search for the Lizard, only to find a resurrected Venom. But before they can find out how he's alive, he disappears. While this is a problem to be dealt with, the Spider-Team doesn't want this to spoil the school dance Horizon is having for Max's return as principal, where Peter brings Mary Jane as his date. It's been building up slowly since her debut in the series, but the chemistry between the two is adorable. They both clearly like each other, and Mary Jane's more outgoing nature plays off well with Peter's awkwardness.
As the dance gets going, Max unveils his latest invention for the occasion: a transdimensional gateway that can not only open up a portal anywhere on Earth, but to far off worlds. When something begins approaching the portal on the alien world, Peter calls for Max to close it. It's then revealed that Venom is in control of Max (which was actually hinted at prior in this episode).
As it turns out, a small sliver of the Venom symbiote survived when Peter destroyed the beacon it sent out at the beginning of the season, hiding itself in the symbiote seed. The sliver then slipped into Max, biding its time and growing inside, eventually being able to use Max as a puppet. After getting all the other students clear, the Spider-Team suits up to deal with not only Venom, but his symbiote sisters then come through the portal: Scream, Scorn, and Mania. Their goal this time isn't conquest of Earth, but annihilation.

Venom is sent through the portal to retrieve the "world killer" as Spider-Man gives chase. Said "world killer" is basically a giant symbiote dragon, which Venom flies back to Earth (destroying Horizon as it comes through the portal) with Spidey hanging on. The symbiote sisters, after taking down the rest of the Spider-Team, retrieve the symbiote seed and give it to the dragon, powering it up to fire destructive laser beams across the city. On top of the dragon, Spidey and Venom continue to fight, with Peter trying to reach Max inside. Despite Max's negative feelings over all his failures fueling the symbiote, Peter is able to give a pep talk that raises Max's spirits enough to take control. Peter and Max, using the symbiote's strength for his own, rip the seed from the dragon. Max then crushes the seed, releasing a large amount of energy from it that not only eradicates the dragon, but also destroys the other symbiotes, freeing Max and the unnamed aliens from their hold. The symbiote threat is finally over.
In the aftermath, Max decides that instead of simply rebuilding and reopening Horizon, that they need to build something new to carry on the goal of creating a better world. To this end, Peter declines Tony's Avengers invitation but asks him to invest in a new tech start-up with his friends: Worldwide Engineering Brigade (W.E.B. (get it?)).
As for Peter and MJ, they meet up the following morning and share a dance that got interrupted when things started to get crazy. They agree on a "first date redo" as Peter returns a kiss on the cheek which MJ gave him before the evacuation.
This story works mostly well as both a season and series finale. The main threat of the season, Venom, gives one last effort to defeat Spider-Man with the world hanging in the balance this time. And considering a big part of this show was Peter attending Horizon High, him looking toward the future after school is a good send-off. I'm almost disappointed there won't be a season four since it would be interesting to see how Peter and the gang run WEB and how it would play into their Spider activities.

So now that it's over, what do I think of the 2017 Spider-Man animated series as a whole? It's satisfactory. 'Spectacular' and the '94 series are still certainly the best, thought I would give this series the bronze. It wasn't everything I hoped it would be, but I was invested nonetheless. There have been quite a number of Spidey cartoons since the '67 series, and I would think that each of them played a part in creating new Spider-Man fans through the decades. This series took quite a few liberties and made some creative spins on the mythos and it wasn't perfect, but you can say that each series that's come and gone has had its high marks and short comings. What I think it comes down to though is respect to the source material and if it captures the core aspects of the character. The struggle of Peter Parker and Spider-Man is trying to find the balance between a normal and superhero life. The 2017 series succeeds in that regard, and that makes it a winner in my book.
As for the future of Spider-Man in animation, I think it may be good to give the character a break for awhile. Let the creative juices build up and come back swinging with something new and hopefully something great.

TV Review: Helstrom - Flash in the Pan

Obviously 2020 has been sparse when it comes to the Marvel Cinematic Universe (and seriously, the sooner we get our crap together, the sooner we'll get Black Widow). We've had the final season of Agents of SHIELD last summer and we'll hopefully get WandaVision by the end of the year, but then there's the strange case of Helstrom. The Hulu series focuses on Daimon and Ana Helstrom, paternal half-demon brother and sister with supernatural abilities. This is another Marvel property I know little about and the only character I've had experience with is Daimon from appearances he's made in Avengers comics. Based on this series, I still don't think I know much about these characters.

I'll just get right down to the main problem with this series: it lacks the Marvel flair. Let's put it this way: Ant-Man put a comic spin on a heist movie as Captain America did with political thrillers, just for a couple examples. Other the Marvel TV series like Runaways, the Netflix shows, or even Inhumans to varying degrees brought the comic book feel to their product. Even Fant4stic, with Josh Trank's misguided attempt to create the anti-thesis to Avengers, still felt like a comic book movie. With Helstrom, it's like all the Marvel had been sucked out of it, leaving behind another run of the mill supernatural show with barebones of the comics that inspired it.

Helstrom had already started production when Marvel's TV division had been moved under Kevin Feige and the main Marvel Studios umbrella, making it the last show to be released before said change. So I'm not sure if the series we got was what was intended to be seen or if the oversight had removed larger Marvel universe connections. Honestly, I felt something was wrong when the first trailer came out and there was no mention of Marvel at all. The whole situation comes across as a contractual obligation to be made more than anything. The end teases a second season, though I very much doubt it happens (which kind of wastes Mitch Pileggi's cameo).

As for the show itself, it's not that bad; it's certainly better than Inhumans. There's decent acting for the most part and its mature nature is a nice return to the tone of Netflix shows we haven't seen from Marvel since the last season of Jessica Jones. The first half of the season is a little tough to get through, almost like I was forcing myself to watch. It gets a lot more enjoyable in the second half though with better character moments, some visual effects unique for a Marvel show, and more interesting plot lines, one of which is very disturbing.

When it comes to our main characters, Daimon and Ana lead interesting parallel lives when it comes to their supporting casts and how they use their powers.

Sydney Lemmon is the breakout star of the show as Ana. Lemmon brilliantly brings the character's complex nature to life. She puts on a strong appearance with the fancy clothes, haircut and make-up, only dropping all of that when she's alone; it's what makes the moment where she breaks down in front of her assistant Chris one of the highlights of the season and her character arc to open up to others.

Conversely, Tom Austen as Daimon is the blandest lead to come from a Marvel property, lacking the spark other protagonists have been able to bring to their roles. As Helstrom is like any other supernatural show, Daimon comes across as any other occult expert with a tortured past. The only time I really felt something from his performance is when he lets his mean side out in episode 8.

Another character worth mentioning is Elizabeth Marvel as Victoria, Daimon and Ana's mother. She's possessed by a demon for the most part of the season, and that part produces some pretty generic evil when it comes to that kind of performance. But when she's back in control of her body, she really shines as the mediator between her children and bringing about a sense of hope to the situation at hand.

Helstrom is worth watching for the MCU completionist or horror fan, but it's otherwise skippable.

Movie Review: "Batman: Death in the Family" - Pick Your Poison

 

In 1988, DC Comics left the fate of Jason Todd to the readers. As the second Robin was proving unpopular, DC presented the chance to do away with the character in "A Death in the Family", a storyline published in the main Batman book. After being mercilessly beaten by the Joker and left for dead in a warehouse wired to explode, fans would vote on Jason's survival by calling one of two 900 numbers choosing life or death. While the tally was close, fans decided it was time for Jason to rest. In 2005 though, Jason was revealed to have been resurrected through very convoluted means and had become the new Red Hood, a lethal vigilante. Some say bringing him back cheapens his death, but I feel it actually adds more to the tragedy of the character and Batman's failure to set the troubled youth on the right path. Now in 2020, DC gives us the opportunity to decide Jason's fate again.
"Batman: Death in the Family" is an interactive short film where viewers would decide the path of Jason Todd. It uses the 2010 animated film "Batman: Under the Red Hood" as a reference point with the same animation style, bringing back some of the voice cast, and fleshing out more layers to the story. With the emotional core of its story and a stellar voice cast, "Under the Red Hood" is regarded as one of the best animated Batman films right up there with "Mask of the Phantasm" and "Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker." Returning to that film and adding a few new spins to it got me really excited. It's an ambitious experiment, but unfortunately one that doesn't reach its full potential.

As the film begins, we get more insight into the tensions between Bruce and Jason before the events that lead to his death, even delving a little more into Jason's backstory from the comics with his father having been killed by Two-Face. There also seems to be retconned connections to the "Killing Joke" animated film, with Barbara's character design and images from that film being reused along with Jason's implications that Joker did take things further than just cripple her. What's nice about both these additions is that it helps build the father-son relationship and that Jason's drive to go after Joker is deeper than his own forthcoming pain.

There are three different paths to take after Joker leaves Jason in the warehouse: Batman saves Robin, Robin cheats death, and Robin dies. As I was going through this, I decided to go from best possible option to the worst. In that regard, I first chose for Batman to save Robin and it turned out to be not as positive as you'd think. Jason does survive, but Bruce takes the full brunt of the explosion and succumbs to his injuries. To me, this was a sign that the decisions you make would still have some twists and make for some interesting plot turns.
The "Batman saves Robin" option is without a doubt the best one to take, offering more variety of choices to make as it delves into Jason's inner conflict. The trauma of his experience weighs heavy on him as he struggles between wanting to honor Bruce's dying words and giving in to his baser instincts to put criminals down. What's also nice is that the different paths borrow from more Batman stories than the two this film is based on. This includes many elements of Grant Morrison's run, the "Going Sane" storyline, and in what seems to be a major coincidence, the currently running "Three Jokers" miniseries. Even Tim Drake gets some overdue love in this film.

The next option I took was "Robin cheats death." Jason is still caught in the explosion, but survives, though he is gravely injured and laid up for 72 days. In that time, Jason has come to blame Bruce and the whole Batfamily for what happened to him, eventually running away and going on his own murderous crusade against crime. His appearance resembles that of the villain Hush, paying homage to when he was the potential identity of the character. Unfortunately, this choice and the story that comes from it is an absolute waste. There's no real resolution or confrontation between Bruce and Jason, and the way it does end just leaves you wanting.

Then there's the final option of Robin dying that gave us the full-length film to begin with. As such, all we get is a twenty minute recap of the film as Bruce is telling the story to Clark Kent, AKA Superman. There are only a couple positives I can give this. One, Bruce's narration allows us to delve deeper into his mindset as he was progressing through the story. The other is that they got Nolan North to voice Clark again, which is nice as both he and Bruce Greenwood voice Superman and Batman, respectively, on the "Young Justice" animated series. Plus, the dialogue between the two is classic World's Finest.

Speaking of voice acting, as stated before, it's pretty top notch from returning cast members as well as the new additions. Bruce Greenwood's Batman and John DiMaggio's Joker are still worthy successors to Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill. Gary Cole is added on providing double duty as Commissioner Gordon and Two-Face, fitting both characters extremely well. Vincent Martella, who had voiced a teenage Jason in the original film, has a much bigger part here since there's no five year time jump for two of the options to bring Jensen Ackles back. While Ackles is missed, Martella does a great job in expressing Jason's wide range of emotions on the journey(s) the character is taken on.

On a last note, "Death in the Family" is rated R and includes a lot more gory violence and it honestly feels unnecessary. "Under the Red Hood" was rated PG-13 and while it got violent and featured much bloodshed, it still felt tastefully done compared to the new film, which could come off as trying too hard.

As a whole, "Batman: Death in the Family" brings the fun of choice but can only deliver barely half of what it could truly offer. If they were going to return to "Under the Red Hood", maybe they could have released a new extended edition similar to what they did with the 2009 animated Wonder Woman film. While you may be better off just watching the original film, "Death in he Family" is still worth at least one go through to experience it both delves more into the lore and diverges from the already classic film.

Celebrating 30 Years of Treehouse of Horror: Ten of the Best Segments

A staple of Halloween for three decades, the "Treehouse of Horror" anthology episodes are a highlight of every season of The Simpsons. The annual Halloween specials allow the show creators to go really out there, parodying movies and shows that wouldn't work for a normal Simpsons episode as well as featuring more graphic and violent imagery to be present. In any case, there's still some goofy, gory fun.
I've been wanting to do a post like this for a very long time, but held off to get through last year's "Treehouse of Horror XXX" and wait for the subsequent Halloween to be approaching. This won't be a traditional top ten list though. For one thing, I feel an overall list would obviously favor more of the early years. What I want to do is give a fair shot to the whole thirty year history of the specials, selecting what I feel to be the best segments within a three year period (I-III, IV-VI, etc.) that exemplify the funny and scary nature they're known for.
So without further ado, here are what I feel to be ten of the best Simpsons "Treehouse of Horror" segments of all time.

HOMER'S NIGHTMARE

Treehouse of Horror II (1991)

PREMISE: Mr. Burns attempts to use Homer's brain to power a giant robotic laborer.
WHY IT MAKES THE LIST: I don't think I realized before putting this list together just how much this segment really began pushing how graphic these episodes could get. The previous segments up to this point were relatively tame, and then "Homer's Nightmare" comes up and features body mutilation. Burns is downright insane in his quest to replace human workers with robotic ones, stubborn to listen to reason from Smithers and even imagining nothing but his scared assistant's brain floating above his head ripe for plunder. The moments where Burns beats a bagged up Homer with a shovel to shut him up and then later wearing Homer's removed brain on his head like a Davey Crocket hat are both horrifying and hilarious.
But the freakiest part about this segment, especially when I was a kid, was the ending where they showed Burns' head sewn on to Homer's body followed by a "Next time..." bumper acknowledging the change. As a kid, I had no concept of canon so there was a part of me waiting for this next episode to air. To go along with this, there was one brilliant detail I noticed this time around I missed before. See, Treehouse of Horror II had a framing device of Lisa, Bart, and Homer having nightmares from eating too much candy. While Lisa and Bart's dreams had a dissolve effect at the beginning of theirs, Homer's did not, foreshadowing that his nightmare was anything but. 

THE SHINNING

Treehouse of Horror V (1994)

PREMISE: The Simpsons are hired as caretakers at Mr. Burns' mansion.
WHY IT MAKES THE LIST: To many, self included, this is the best Treehouse of Horror segment of all time. A parody of "The Shining", the Simpsons bring many comedic twists to the classic film's scariest moments, including Homer going crazy in just one day compared to how long it took Jack. Though honestly, I think Homer writing all over the walls can be seen as more disturbing than writing the same thing over and over on a typewriter. There are so many laughs to be had from start to finish, featuring one of Homer's best freak-out moments and I'm not afraid to admit I've memorized Homer's lines word for word from when he starts smashing through doors with an axe. Without question, "The Shinning" is the gold standard when it comes to the Simpsons at Halloween.

CITIZEN KANG

Treehouse of Horror VII (1996)

PREMISE: Kang and Kodos impersonate Bill Clinton and Bob Dole in order to win the 1996 presidential election.
WHY IT MAKES THE LIST: As a kid, I didn't really appreciate this one that much. Growing up and understanding politics more, "Citizen Kang" is a real treasure. What really helps this segment is its timelessness and the attitudes toward politics. Replace Clinton and Dole with other presidential nominees through the years and you wouldn't have to change much (although 2016 and this year's election would be an unwinnable challenge). Political jokes aside, it is also funny watching Kang and Kodos impersonating their nominees with no change to their voices and nobody believing Homer about their true identities. On top of all that, this segment brought us the "twirling towards freedom" and "I voted for Kodos" lines that would go on to become minor memes.

HOUSE OF WHACKS

Treehouse of Horror XII (2001)

PREMISE: The Simpson family buys a new house, who falls in love with Marge and attempts to kill Homer.
WHY IT MAKES THE LIST: What I really like about this one is the build-up from fun to scary. We go from the Simpsons enjoying the high tech upgrades to their house to the AI system with Pierce Brosnan's personality falling in love with Marge and attempting to kill Homer and take the family for himself. The guest voice of Brosnan himself really helps with the tone changes the segment goes through as we hear him go from charming servant to obsessive creep. There's a moment I love where he tries to laugh off the situation: "Homer, you're alive!...Which is good." In the end, our villain gets his just desserts when he's passed off to suffer under new owners Patty and Selma.
The near death of Homer is also a good fake out with the blood splattering on the walls. When we do see he survived, it was not unscathed as a large enough chunk of the back of his head is missing where his brain is exposed, the first time we see it a bit unsettling. Though I do enjoy how it isn't just a one-off joke since they call back to it moments later when Lisa points out Homer is attacking the water softener with an axe rather than the house CPU, to which Homer replies "Well, I am missing the back of my head! I think you could cut me some slack?"
"House of Whacks" may be an underrated and overlooked segment in the grand scheme of the Halloween specials, though I think it's one that deserves more recognition.

THE NED ZONE

Treehouse of Horror XV (2004)

PREMISE: Ned Flanders' head injury gives him the power to predict others' deaths.
WHY IT MAKES THE LIST: When you take one of the most wholesome characters on the show like Ned Flanders and burden him with the ability to see visions of people's deaths, it makes for some interesting TV. Admittedly, what's really scary about this segment is just how stupidly incompetent Homer is made out to be. Not only does he cause Ned's injury that gets the ball rolling for the story, but both he and Ned are in varying degrees responsible for the ensuing deaths.
On the funny side of things though, the final moments of the segment are hilarious as the viewer can share in Ned's feelings of frustration and nervousness as he attempts to keep Homer from causing a nuclear meltdown.
I will be frank in saying that the segment doesn't quite live up to its' potential and may have worked better as a "Final Destination" type parody, but the concept and comedy we are given still help "The Ned Zone" stand out.

SURVIVAL OF THE FATTEST

Treehouse of Horror XVI (2005)

PREMISE: Homer and various other male characters find themselves on a reality show where Mr. Burns hunts humans for sport.
WHY IT MAKES THE LIST: As we get into the show's more mediocre seasons, I may tend to select segments that would probably fit in well with the classics. That being said, I'm kind of surprised that it took them sixteen years to do a parody of the "The Most Dangerous Game."
This segment just works on many levels. The idea itself of yet another psychotic version of Mr. Burns hunting various characters and how they're so callously killed is perfect for the Halloween special. The pacing is done well, not feeling too rushed with the humorous moments hitting the mark in quick succession.
Though the part of the segment that is both funny and kind of scary is how they legitimize Burns' manhunt as normal. Not only does Burns' lawyer draw up a document that would protect him in court (followed by being shot by Burns himself), but then you have it broadcast on TV like a sporting event with Terry Bradshaw providing commentary.
At a time when the show was getting stale, "Survival of the Fattest" was a reminder of the greatness that the Simpsons can still bring, Halloween or not.

IT'S THE GRAND PUMPKIN, MILHOUSE

Treehouse of Horror XIX (2008)

PREMISE: Milhouse summons a demon pumpkin who goes berserk when it sees humans carving its brethren into jack-o-lanterns as part of Halloween tradition.
WHY IT MAKES THE LIST: What really helps this one stand out to me is how it completely goes off the rails. As a parody of "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" (with the background and character wardrobe paying homage to this), it initially follows the source beat for beat with Milhouse filling Linus' role of the only one believing in the obscure Halloween figure. Things take a turn though when the Grand Pumpkin actually appears thanks to Milhouse's childlike belief. While the Grand Pumpkin has a delightful demeanor at first, that quickly vanishes when he discovers pumpkin atrocities committed by humans, such as being cooked into food and carved into jack-o-lanterns (we'll just ignore his own head is one), vowing revenge.
A similar parody had been done on Robot Chicken a few years prior to this (which was also good in its own right), but the Simpsons is able to play up the comedy more with the Grand Pumpkin's villainous turn being so unexpected and him having more of a personality. The ending matches the craziness with Lisa using Milhouse's childlike belief to create a Thanksgiving figure, Tom Turkey, to save them. The cycle begins again though when Tom finds out what happens to turkeys.
Whether you see it as paying tribute to or butchering a holiday classic, there's no denying that the Simpsons have left their trademark Halloween stamp on the Peanuts special.

OH, THE PLACES YOU'LL D'OH!

Treehouse of Horror XXIV (2013)

PREMISE: In this twisted parody of Dr. Seuss' children's books, Homer abducts Bart, Lisa, and Maggie and rides around Springfield wreaking havoc as "The Fat in the Hat".
WHY IT MAKES THE LIST: I guess I have a thing when it comes to the Simpsons adapting children's stories. Compared to "It's the Grand Pumpkin, Milhouse", "Oh, the Place You'll D'oh!" cranks the homage levels up with Springfield and the Simpsons' grand cast completely Seuss-ified. And it wouldn't be Dr. Seuss if there weren't constant rhyming, which is the cherry on top in this treat of a segment. Homer as the "Fat in the Hat" is quite entertaining in his psychotic role, bringing a level of hilarious chaos you'd expect from the Joker. The funniest thing though is despite the segment's violent nature, it still probably has more respect for Seuss than a certain Mike Myers movie.

B.F.F. R.I.P.

Treehouse of Horror XXVII (2016)

PREMISE: Lisa's imaginary friend kills her real friends.
WHY IT MAKES THE LIST: Much like "Survival of the Fattest", this is another instance where a segment can come off as a classic during a time of mediocrity (in this case, particularly when it comes to pacing). The idea of an old imaginary friend seeking revenge for being discarded is actually pretty original though. There's true elements of horror in this segment with the deaths shown, first coming off as supposed accidents and then the imaginary friend Rachel reveals herself by straight-up asphyxiating  Milhouse. Rachel is also voiced by Sarah Silverman, who brings the right kind of crazy you'd expect from both character and actress.
From what I can tell, not a lot of people talk about this one, possibly because it's part of what I found to be a pretty lackluster year for the Treehouse of Horror series. In any case, I still say "BFF RIP" is worth a look if you're curious.

MMM...HOMER

Treehouse of Horror XXVIII (2017)

PREMISE: Homer cannibalizes himself after he runs out of food while Marge and the kids are away from home.
WHY IT MAKES THE LIST: We round out the list with what I consider to be the most disturbing Halloween segment in Simpsons history. What else needs to be said? Homer eats himself.
After accidentally cutting off and grilling his finger, Homer tries it and finds he's the taste that can't be beat and begins using piece by piece of himself in various dishes. I'm just going to assume Homer's arteries are so clogged that it keeps him from bleeding out from the process. Marge soon enough finds out (seen in the picture), and her reaction is priceless. Homer is then met by famous chef Mario Batali, who uses the rest of Homer as ingredients across various restaurants. As Homer gifted his body of flavor for the enjoyment of others, he looks down from heaven while eating his angels wings, indicating the cycle continues.

And those are ten of what I consider to be some of the best the Simpsons have brought us from the Treehouse of Horror series. I have to say that watching these back to back has been a lot of fun, and there were so many close choices that I may return with a sequel list. This also allowed me to witness the Simpsons' evolution on an annual basis. The specials and series as a whole has had its ups and downs, but while some have fallen off, I'll keep watching the Simpsons until one of us reaches the end of the line; and I'm half expecting the series to outlive us all.