Treehouse of Horror XXI (review)

The Simpsons' annual Halloween episode just aired, dishing out another trio of satiric segments.  Here's a quick review:

The first segment, "War and Pieces," was by far the weakest of the three.  The premise--that a mysterious board game called "Satan's Path" causes all other board games to come to life and terrorize the residents of Springfield--was not terribly inspiring.  I thought the action of this segment was too chaotic, the references to classic games almost too rapid-fire to even appreciate.  Perhaps the highlight here was the parody of the game "Mouse Trap" (as usual Grandpa Simpson makes the most of his limited screen time).

"Master and Cadaver," the middle segment, offered a clever spoof of the Nicole Kidman movie Dead Calm--not to mention some hilariously risque humor.  The sight of Marge in a skimpy bikini obviously turns Homer on, but the suggestive boing heard below his waist turns out to be just his cell phone going off inside his bathing suit.  Later, Homer's broken sunglasses make it seem that Marge is the recipient of a double nipple-tweak, when actually a pair of radio knobs are being turned.  For me, though, the best part of the segment was when Homer laments (following Marge's death) the choice of a high-seas second honeymoon: "She just wanted to ride bikes in New England," he cries to the heavens, "but those seats hurt my ass!"

The final segment, "Tweenlight," received the most advanced billing, but ultimately seemed to fall short as a parody of the Twilight books and movies (Milhouse's jealousy-fueled transformation into a werepoodle was pretty funny, though).  Highlights of this segment included a pseudo-cameo by "The Count" from Sesame Street, and the demise of the vampiric predators after they feast on Homer's cholesterol-saturated blood.

One seemingly needs the DVR function referenced by Professor Frink in the episode's intro in order to catch all the name gags in the closing credits, but a ghoulish riff on a recent movie title did stand out: "Eat Prey Kill."

Overall, I thought the episode was a bit disappointing (a definite step down from the prior year's edition, with its brilliant re-staging of Sweeney Todd inside Moe's Tavern).  Sad to say, but at twenty-one, the Treehouse of Horror has started to show its age.