Editing Treehouse of Horror VII

{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}}

{{Good article}}
{{Infobox Simpsons episode
| image          = 
| caption        = 
| season         = 8
| episode        = 1
| director       = [[Mike B. Anderson]]
| writer         = '''The Thing and I:'''<br/>[[Ken Keeler]]<br />'''The Genesis Tub:'''<br/>[[Dan Greaney]]<br />'''Citizen Kang:'''<br/>[[David X. Cohen]]
| production     = 4F02
| airdate        = {{Start date|1996|10|27}}
| guests         = *[[Phil Hartman]] as [[Bill Clinton]]
| couch_gag      = The [[Grim Reaper]] is on the couch. The family runs in, but keel over and die one by one. The Reaper then puts his feet up on the corpses of the Simpson family.<ref name="bbc">[https://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/simpsons/episodeguide/season8/page1.shtml Treehouse of Horror VII]. ''BBC.co.uk''. Retrieved on March 28, 2007.</ref>
| commentary     = [[Matt Groening]]<BR />Josh Weinstein<BR />David X. Cohen<BR />Dan Greaney<BR />Ken Keeler<BR />[[Dan Castellaneta]]<BR />Mike B. Anderson
| prev           = [[Summer of 4 Ft. 2]]
| next           = [[You Only Move Twice]]
}}
"'''Treehouse of Horror VII'''" is the first episode of the [[The Simpsons season 8|eighth season]] of the American animated television series ''[[The Simpsons]]''. It originally aired on the [[Fox Broadcasting Company|Fox network]] in the United States on October 27, 1996. In the seventh annual ''[[Treehouse of Horror]]'' episode, [[Bart Simpson|Bart]] discovers his long-lost twin Hugo, [[Lisa Simpson|Lisa]] grows a colony of small beings, and [[Kang and Kodos]] impersonate [[Bill Clinton]] and [[Bob Dole]] in order to win the [[1996 United States presidential election|1996 presidential election]]. It was written by [[Ken Keeler]], [[Dan Greaney]], and [[David X. Cohen]], and directed by [[Mike B. Anderson]].<ref name="bbc"/> [[Phil Hartman]] provided the voice of Bill Clinton.<ref name="bbc"/> This is the first ''Treehouse of Horror'' episode to be a season premiere.

==Plot==
===Opening===
In the kitchen, [[Homer Simpson]] lights a [[jack-o'-lantern]] but ends up lighting his arm on fire. He runs off screaming while the title, "The Simpsons Halloween Special VII" is shown on screen.

==="The Thing and I"===
[[Bart Simpson|Bart]] and [[Lisa Simpson|Lisa]] hear strange noises coming from the attic. They investigate and discover that there is a monster. Homer and [[Marge Simpson|Marge]] realize that the creature has escaped, prompting Marge to call [[Dr. Hibbert]]. He explains that Bart has an [[evil twin]] named Hugo. The two were originally [[conjoined]] but were separated at birth.

Hugo was deemed too evil to live in society, so they chained him in the attic, where they feed him fish-heads. Bart stays behind as the others leave to search for Hugo, but Bart realizes that Hugo never left the house. Hugo takes Bart to the attic and ties him up, so that he can reattach himself, but Hibbert returns and knocks out Hugo. He then realizes that Hugo's scar is on the wrong side, therefore Bart is technically the evil twin. To make amends for their error, Hibbert and the Simpson family sit down to a turkey dinner with Hugo, leaving Bart locked in the attic with only Hugo's fish-heads to eat.

==="The Genesis Tub"===
In preparation for the school science fair, Lisa performs an experiment in a [[petri dish]] to see if [[cola]] will dissolve her baby tooth. Bart gives Lisa a static electric shock, claiming it is part of his project to prove that "[[nerd]]s conduct electricity". The electric charge is then passed on to the tooth when Lisa tries to touch it, causing it to undergo an unusual reaction which creates a race of miniature beings. Lisa discovers this when inspecting the contents of the tub with a microscope, noting that their rate of evolution is accelerated. Bart destroys some of the [[ecosystem]] in Lisa's tub universe with his finger, and the tub people retaliate by sending a squadron of spaceships to attack him. The inhabitants of the tub then shrink Lisa to their size with a miniaturization ray and beam her down into the tub, where they explain that they regard her as God, and Bart as the Devil.

She says she can protect them from Bart if they return her to normal size, but they lack the necessary technology. Suddenly, Bart takes the tub to the science fair to the tub people's horror and submits the tiny universe as his own project, and now Lisa is forced to watch from within as Bart wins first prize. Now stuck in the tub for the rest of her life, Lisa starts to order around the tub people.

==="Citizen Kang"===
While out fishing, Homer is abducted by Kang and Kodos. They demand that Homer take them to Earth's leader, but Homer informs them of the [[1996 United States presidential election]] and says the winner could be either [[Bill Clinton]] or [[Bob Dole]]. Kang and Kodos kidnap both Dole and Clinton and place them in [[suspended animation]], assuming their forms through "bio-duplication" to ensure that one of them will become the next leader. Before returning Homer to Earth, the aliens soak him in [[rum]], so nobody will believe him.

Most voters seem to be oblivious to the strange behaviors of Kang and Kodos in disguise, much to Homer's vexation. On the day before the election, Homer stumbles upon the badly hidden spaceship, hijacks it and releases Dole and Clinton from suspended animation. Both candidates agree they should put aside their differences and join forces to defeat the aliens and bring about a new age of bipartisanship, but Homer accidentally ejects them into space. Homer crashes the spaceship into the Capitol and unmasks the aliens, revealing the candidates' true identities to the public. However, despite being exposed, Kang and Kodos declare to the people that the [[two-party system]] means they still have to choose one of them, mocking a bystander's suggestion of voting for a [[third-party candidate]] instead. Kang is subsequently elected [[President of the United States]], ruling as a monarchical tyrant and enslaving the American population in order to build a giant death ray. Marge complains about the work, but Homer remarks, "Don't blame me, I voted for Kodos!"

==Production==
Like the previous two ''[[Treehouse of Horror]]'' episodes, "Treehouse of Horror VII" does not feature any [[Interstitial television show|wraparound segments]].<ref name="Weinstein">{{cite video | people=Weinstein, Josh|date=2006|title=The Simpsons season 8 DVD commentary for the episode "Treehouse of Horror VII"| medium=DVD|publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref> "The Thing and I" was written by [[Ken Keeler]],<ref name="Keeler">{{cite video | people=Keeler, Ken|date=2006|title=The Simpsons season 8 DVD commentary for the episode "Treehouse of Horror VII"| medium=DVD|publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref> "The Genesis Tub" was written by [[Dan Greaney]],<ref name="Greaney">{{cite video | people=Greaney, Dan|date=2006|title=The Simpsons season 8 DVD commentary for the episode "Treehouse of Horror VII"| medium=DVD|publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref> and "Citizen Kang" was written by [[David X. Cohen]].<ref name="Cohen">{{cite video | people=Cohen, David X.|date=2006|title=The Simpsons season 8 DVD commentary for the episode "Treehouse of Horror VII"| medium=DVD|publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref> Despite the similarities, "The Thing and I" was not based on the plot of the 1982 film ''[[Basket Case (film)|Basket Case]]''.<ref name="Keeler"/> "The Genesis Tub" was originally [[Pitch (filmmaking)|pitched]] by Cohen,<ref name="Cohen"/> and it was later referenced in the ''[[South Park]]'' episode "[[Simpsons Already Did It]]", when they pointed out that ''[[The Simpsons]]'' had gotten the idea from the 1962 ''[[The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series)|Twilight Zone]]'' episode called "[[The Little People (The Twilight Zone)|The Little People]]".<ref name="Anderson">{{cite video | people=Anderson, Mike B.|date=2006|title=The Simpsons season 8 DVD commentary for the episode "Treehouse of Horror VII"| medium=DVD|publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref> The sequence where tiny spaceships attack Bart in "The Genesis Tub" marks one of the first uses of computers in ''The Simpsons'' animation. The computer was used to build models for reference and the animators later retraced it.<ref name="Anderson"/> The 1996 Presidential election occurred a few days after the airing of this episode.<ref name="Cohen"/> According to Cohen, the "Citizen Kang" short violated every rule of ''The Simpsons'' as it locked the episode in one time and named specific candidates.<ref name="Weinstein"/>

==Cultural references==
Homer sings "[[Fish Heads (song)|Fish Heads]]", a 1978 [[novelty song]] by [[Barnes & Barnes]]. In "The Genesis Tub", the glowing rings that "debigulate" Lisa were inspired by ''[[Metropolis (1927 film)|Metropolis]]''.  Homer crashing the flying saucer into the Capitol dome in the "Citizen Kang" segment is a reference to ''[[Earth vs. the Flying Saucers]]''.

==Reception==
In its original broadcast, "Treehouse of Horror VII" finished 31st in ratings for the week of October 21–27, 1996, with a [[Nielsen ratings|Nielsen rating]] of 10.5, equivalent to approximately 10.2&nbsp;million viewing households. It was the third highest-rated show on the Fox network that week, following ''[[Millennium (TV series)|Millennium]]'' and ''[[The X-Files]]''.<ref>{{cite news |title=World series makes Fox a champ|work=Sun-Sentinel|agency=Associated Press|page=4E|date=October 31, 1996}}</ref>

In 2017, ''[[IGN]]'' called "Citizen Kang" the best segment of the entire anthology, and placed the episode itself as number one in its ranking of all "Treehouse of Horror" episodes.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2017/10/21/the-simpsons-ranking-every-treehouse-of-horror-episode?page=2 | title=The Simpsons: Ranking Every 'Treehouse of Horror' Episode | date=October 21, 2017| access-date=March 16, 2017|author=Morgan, Chris | website=[[IGN]]}}</ref> ''[[The A.V. Club]]'' named Kang/Bob Dole's line, "Abortions for some, miniature American flags for others!", one of the best lines in the history of the show.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.avclub.com/beyond-d-oh-18-simpsons-quotes-for-everyday-use-1798210070 |title=Beyond "D'oh!": Simpsons Quotes For Everyday Use |author=Bahn, Christopher |author2=Donna Bowman |author3=Josh Modell |author4=Noel Murray |author5=Nathan Rabin |author6=Tasha Robinson |author7=Kyle Ryan |author8=Scott Tobias |access-date=January 21, 2022 |date=April 26, 2006 |newspaper=[[The A.V. Club]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060705040827/http://www.avclub.com/content/node/47756 |archive-date=July 5, 2006 }}</ref>

The [[ska punk]] band named [[I Voted for Kodos]] takes its name from Homer's line, "Don't blame me, I voted for Kodos", at the end of "Citizen Kang".<ref name="Weinstein"/> In a 2000 ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'' article, [[Matt Groening]] ranked this episode as his seventh favorite in the history of the show.<ref>{{cite magazine|url= https://ew.com/article/2000/01/14/springfield-dreams/|title=Springfield of Dreams|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|date=January 14, 2000|access-date=January 21, 2022|first=Dan|last=Snierson}}</ref>

[[Kamala Harris]] quoted a line from "Citizen Kang" ("We must move forward, not backward; upward, not forward; and always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom") for a [[University of Chicago]] student scavenger hunt in 2013.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.avclub.com/kamala-harris-twitter-video-from-u-of-chicago-scav-2013|title=UPDATED: Kamala Harris made that Simpsons clip for a 2013 college scavenger hunt|website=avclub.com|first=William|last=Hughes|date=July 27, 2024}}</ref> A filmed clip of this moment was shown at the ''Simpsons'' panel during the 2024 [[San Diego Comic-Con]], at a time when Harris was both the sitting vice president and the presumed Democratic presidential nominee.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2024/07/kamala-harris-surprise-comic-con-appearance-the-simpsons-panel-1236024691/|title=Kamala Harris Makes Surprise Comic-Con Video Appearance During ‘The Simpsons’ Panel|website=Deadline.com|first=Glen|last=Garner|date=July 27, 2024}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|33em}}

==External links==
{{wikiquote|The_Simpsons/Season_8#Treehouse_of_Horror_VII|"Treehouse of Horror VII"}}
{{Portal|The Simpsons}}
*{{snpp capsule|4F02}}
*{{IMDb episode|0779678}}

{{Treehouse of Horror}}
{{The Simpsons episodes|8}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Treehouse Of Horror 07}}
[[Category:1996 American television episodes]]
[[Category:Television episodes about alien invasion]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of Bill Clinton]]
[[Category:Television episodes about curses]]
[[Category:Fiction about size change]]
[[Category:Television episodes about elections]]
[[Category:The Simpsons season 8 episodes]]
[[Category:Television episodes written by David X. Cohen]]
[[Category:Television episodes written by Ken Keeler]]
[[Category:Treehouse of Horror]]
[[Category:Halloween television episodes]]
[[Category:Television episodes written by Dan Greaney]]
[[Category:Television episodes directed by Mike B. Anderson]]