“The Simpsons” is a fairly tame show, at least by adult animated sitcom standards. But every Halloween, it ramps things up a notch. Suddenly, the characters are having their skin turned inside out, or they’re being killed and eaten by their cannibalistic teachers. The “Treehouse of Horror” specials are the show’s annual chance to really stick it to that meddling FCC. Sure, some of the imagery may be traumatizing to the children watching, but what else is Halloween for?

For series creator Matt Groening, there was a moment in the eighth “Treehouse of Horror” special (in season 9) that actually scared him. Groening admitted in the DVD behind-the-scenes commentary that the episode’s opening scene, in which a Fox censor was repeatedly stabbed to death, left him “actually frightened.”

Mike Scully, who was the “Simpsons” showrunner at the time, spoke in that same DVD commentary about how difficult it was to get the scene approved. The actual Fox censors were fine with the fictional Fox censor being killed; they just thought the violence was a little too visceral. Scully explained how the censors thought the scene was “a little bloody, or violent,” and how, “There was a lot of talk about the size of the sword. I think there (were) a lot of arguments about if it was a small knife. What’s funnier [versus] what’s more horrifying. And [also] about the sounds and the amount of blood.”

The episode’s director Mark Kirkland elaborated further, saying, “I remember, initially, it was a dagger. But the censors did protest that it was too gruesome.” The dagger was then lengthened into more of a sword, with the logic apparently being that the longer the weapon, the less violent the scene came across. I can sort of understand the logic behind this one: killing with a knife requires the attacker to get up close and personal, whereas a sword gives them distance. 

When Disney bought “The Simpsons” in 2019, a lot of fans worried the show would get too safe and PG, but it turns out the opposite has happened. When it comes to Halloween at least, “The Simpson” has gotten a lot more comfortable with gore. Take, for instance, the recent “Se7en”-inspired “Treehouse of Horror” segment, where we get to see multiple beloved “Simpsons” characters get murdered in absolutely brutal, R-rated fashion. I had no idea Disney still had this sort of thing in them. 

But even before Disney bought the rights to the show, “The Simpsons” has grown increasingly violent. For me, the most disturbing moment is still its Goldilocks homage in season 12, in which a character is trapped in a house and mauled to death by the three bears. We don’t actually see her death — just a lot of screaming and blood leaking under the door — but that only makes it more horrifying. 

I suppose it helps that by this point “Family Guy” was also airing on Fox and likely taking up most of the censors’ time and energy. With its rival show making jokes about their baby character eating horse sperm, it’s hard for “The Simpsons” to truly shock anyone anymore. A Fox censor getting stabbed to death may have made Groening uncomfortable back in 1997, but considering we’re eight years past that “Treehouse” sketch where Homer eats himself alive, the scene now feels remarkably tame.