The Simpsonshave outsourced the couch gag for this years 26th annual Treehouse of Horror episode to Ren and Stimpy creator, John Kricfalusi, who delivered a delightfully grotesque and eerie segment.
Kricfalusi previously drewa couch gag for the show in 2011, and while his renderings of the beloved yellow family are as surreal as ever, this time he was given space to tell a fittingly creepy Halloween tale. The prolonged gag opens with Bart, Lisa and Maggie strolling through a graveyard while trick-or-treating and awakening a vile beast sleeping beneath the grave of Homers deceased buddy, Frank Grimes(or Grimey, as he liked to be called).
Their journey is accompanied by a big band-style track sung/narrated by adeep bass vocalist and a chipper childrens choir. It wouldnt sound out of place in a classic kids cartoon fromthe Fifties orSixties, were it not for lyrics like,Hes hungry for your vitals, he likes you moist and ripe, and should he find you spiced with sin thenyoure his favorite type!
Kricfalusi does not shy away from animating just that: The monster peels Bart apart like a banana then pops him in his mouth, but the boys soul fights his way outand the kids dashhome.There, on the couch, Homer dismisses the idea of ghosts, only to have his own spirit plucked out of his body and then eaten by the monster.
The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror XXVI airs this Sunday, October 25th at 8 p.m. ET on Fox. The episodewill feature a highly-anticipated segment in which Sideshow Bob will finally kill Bart.