The Simpsons have been transformed into anime characters for their upcoming parody of the hugely popular anime series Death Note. And it looks surprisingly good. Released courtesy of Twitter user Out of Context Simpsons Treehouse of Horror, the clip shows an anime version of Lisa Simpson stumbling across the “Death Tome,” a book that allows her to kill anyone she wants simply by writing their name in the book. Doing so will cause them to “meet their death…and be dead.” Check out the astonishingly impressive footage below.
Alongside this first footage from Death Tome, several images have also been unveiled from this slice of Treehouse of Horror and show off our first look at several other Simpsons favorites in anime-style, including Homer, Marge, and Disco Stu.
Released back in 2006 and based on the manga series of the same title written by Tsugumi Ohba and illustrated by Takeshi Obata, Death Note follows Light Yagami, a teen genius who discovers a mysterious notebook, the Death Note, which gives him the ability to kill anyone whose name he chooses to write in its pages. Use of the Death Note introduces Light to the world of the shinigami, a species of supernatural monsters, and specifically Ryuk, who will evidently make an appearance in The Simpsons and engage in conversations about death, morals, and everything in between with Lisa.
And presumably, there will also be some jokes somewhere in between all the death.
The Death Note Tale Will be a Part of The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror XXXIII
The Simpsons’ Treehouse of Horror episodes have become a staple of the long, long, long-running series. This Death Note parody will be one part of the upcoming Treehouse of Horror XXXIII, with the other segments set to include a parody of the 2014 psychological horror outing The Babadook centered on Marge and titled The Pookadook. The third and final part of the Treehouse of Horror episode will be focused on Homer as he leads us through a parody based on Westworld titled Simpsonsworld.
Clearly, thanks to such a major change to the animation style and what appears to be a pitch-perfect recreation of the Death Note anime series, Death Tome will be by far the segment of The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror XXXIII that fans are most excited to see.
Before you start scratching your head and wondering how The Simpsons have so masterfully recreated the anime style of Death Note, there is a perfectly good reason why Death Tome looks so good. The animation involved in this segment from Treehouse of Horror XXXIII has been created by the Korean studio DR Movie, who are best known for their work on the likes of The Animatrix, Justice League, and even the original Death Note anime series itself. There, now the world makes sense again.
The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror XXXIII is scheduled to air on FOX stations on Sunday, October 30th, at 8 PM EST, and is the 6th episode of Season 34. The episode will be available to stream on Hulu from October 31.