These Halloween TV Episodes Are Guaranteed to Get You in the Spooky Spirit
These Halloween TV Episodes Are Guaranteed to Get You in the Spooky Spirit
You've fully decorated your home with seasonal touches and mixed up some delicious Halloween cocktails, and you've made your way through some classic scary movies. But sometimes you want your dose of the spooky season a little more fun-sized—like a mini candy bar—and favorite TV Halloween episode offers just that. Whether you're craving a themed episode of your favorite sitcom, some animated scares, or an inspiring seasonal special, we've got all of the episodes you need to get into the Halloween groove.
1) Brooklyn 99 — "Halloween"
Choosing just one of Brooklyn 99's Halloween episodes is a nearly impossible task, but when it comes down to it, the sitcom's yearly tradition really owes itself to the very first—Season 1's "Halloween." It's not just that the episode itself is inventive and hilarious, it's that the bet to prove who is "The Ultimate Detective/Genius" is so effective it spun off one of the greatest running gags in the show's history.
2) Friends — "The One with the Halloween Party"
The aptly-named "The One with the Halloween Party" arrived in the eighth season of Friends. Featuring Chandler as a pink bunny, Ross as "Spud-nik," Rachel's failures with trick-or-treaters, Phoebe's evil twin Ursula, and an arm-wrestling contest where there really are no winners, this episode serves as a classic reminder of how much we loved the Central Perk gang.
3) It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown
While the rest of the Peanuts gang are busy with costumes and trick-or-treating and Halloween parties, Linus dedicates his night to what he sees as the true spirit of Halloween: waiting for the arrival of the Great Pumpkin in their pumpkin patch. For those who've seen it dozens of times, and those who've never watched, this iconic special is a joy for all. The best part: the special airs every year just before Halloween, so it's the perfect time to gather the family and start a Halloween tradition.
4) Parks and Recreation — "Greg Pikitis"
Parks and Rec had more than one stand-out Halloween episode in its run, but we're especially fond for the season 2 romp, "Greg Pikitis." While Ann tries (with mixed success) to throw a spectacular Halloween party, Leslie and Andy team up with her boyfriend Dave to take down teen ne'er-do-well Greg Pikitis. Every year Pikitis vandalizes the town's mayoral statue, but this year Leslie is determined to catch him in the act. Pkitis, meanwhile, has his own plans to keep Leslie on her toes—there's a reason she refers to him as her arch-nemesis, after all.
5) Modern Family — "Halloween"
We all love Halloween, but when it comes to family—especially the Pritchett-Dunphys—it can be a real horror show. The season 2 episode "Halloween" brings out some of what's best about Modern Family, giving each character a challenge to overcome—being the only person at the office wearing a costume, trying to reclaim ownership of the holiday, English as a second language—and bringing them all to a head in the most hilarious way possible at Claire's over-the-top haunted house.
6) MASH — "Trick or Treatment"
Even wartime can't stop the 4077th from getting in some Halloween fun. The crew attempts to hold a Halloween party in celebration, with all of the doctors dressed up in makeshift costumes, but before the festivities can begin, injured soldiers begin arriving at camp. The episode manages to balance humor with the seriousness of the doctors' everyday lives in the way that only MASH could.
7) Buffy the Vampire Slayer — "Fear Itself"
As you might expect from a show that revolves around monsters and magic, Buffy had several notable Halloween episodes, but season four's "Fear Itself" really takes the cake... er, treat. Aiming for a normal Halloween night, the Scoobies head to a frat house costume party, but the evening takes a frightening turn when two frat brothers accidentally summon a demon who brings everyone's greatest fears to life.
8) Frasier — "Halloween"
It's a classic comedy of errors in this episode from Frasier's fifth season, all revolving around a possible pregnancy. Roz swears Frasier to secrecy when she discovers she may be expecting, but a series of misinterpretations and overheard conversations lead Niles to challenging his brother to a duel for Daphne's honor.
9) The Simpsons — "Treehouse of Horror V"
In the world of TV holiday specials, no TV show has made quite as much of an impact at The Simpsons. While the show has, to date, aired 30 of its Treehouse of Horror episodes, "Treehouse of Horror V" is arguably the best among them. From the show's sixth season, this episodes features some of the show's most iconic Halloween segments including "Time and Punishment" (in which Homer accidentally alters the course of history with a time-traveling toaster), "The Shinning" (the show's spoof on The Shining), and "Nightmare Cafeteria" (in which school officials find an innovative—and filling—way to clear out crowded detention halls).
10) The Office — "Halloween"
The scare factor is real life in the season 2 episode "Halloween." As Michael anxiously tries (and repeatedly fails) to fire someone per Jan's demands, Jim and Pam play a prank on Dwight that could have real implications for their relationship. Though the prospect of losing their jobs is enough to give many at Dunder Mifflin chills, they still manage to make the most of the holiday with some truly creative costumes and no shortage of cat ears.
11) Freaks and Geeks — "Tricks and Treats"
The awkwardness of adolescence was Freaks and Geeks' bread and butter, and it's played to full effect in season one's "Tricks and Treats." While buttoned-up Lindsay decides to go out for a more raucous (and potentially illegal) kind of fun with her new friends, Sam and his pals discover that things don't go so smoothly for high school-aged trick or treaters.
12) Community — "Epidemiology"
Community always excelled at clever riffs on pop culture, and that holds particularly true in the season 2 Halloween episode "Epidemiology." The Greendale gang find themselves in the plot of a zombie movie when the Army surplus food the Dean purchased for the community college Halloween party turns out to be contaminated with a zombifying virus.
13) Bob's Burgers — "Full Bars"
No one can resist the call of premium candy, least of all the Belcher kids, as the trio travel to the nearby "rich neighborhood" of King's Island for their trick-or-treating in the season 3 episode "Full Bars." The full-sized chocolate bars may not be worth it, though, as Tina, Louise, and Gene quickly find themselves being pursued by rowdy teenagers. Meanwhile, Bob gets wrangled into going to Teddy's Halloween party, where an evening of fun soon turns into a murder mystery.
14) Stranger Things — "Trick or Treat, Freak"
Stranger Things is, in and of itself, a fairly spooky show, but there's a special sort of charm to the second episode of season 2, "Trick or Treat, Freak." Not only does the episode capture Will's struggle with his lingering connection to the Upside Down, it also touches on that poignant period between childhood and adulthood when you still want to trick-or-treat but aren't sure it's cool anymore. It's a moment of reality in a deeply supernatural show that makes everything that comes after hit closer to home.
15) How I Met Your Mother — "Slutty Pumpkin"
There's something special about a missed connection—the what could have been and the never was that give the moment a sense of gravity. People are willing to go a long way to get back to the path untraveled, but few are quite as dedicated as Ted in the season one episode, "Slutty Pumpkin." After meeting a girl in a pumpkin costume at the building's rooftop Halloween party years before, Ted continues donning the same costume every year (a "hanging chad" costume that hasn't aged well) and retuning to the party in the hopes of meeting up with her again.
16) Pretty Little Liars — "The First Secret"
The endless, twisting mysteries of Pretty Little Liars are enough to draw in even the most teen drama-averse, and this season 2 episode offers up clues in spades. Set as a flashback to before the show's first season, the episode shows what life and the Liars were like before the villainous "A" showed up. It also poses tantalizing hints of things yet to come—because what's more Halloween than a murder mystery?
17) Glee — "The Rocky Horror Glee Show"
With a show about glee club, a Rocky Horror Picture Show riff was almost inevitable, and we are all the better for it. Featuring selections from the cult classic musical guaranteed to get stuck in your head, in this season 2 episode the glee club tries to put on an adaptation of the film as a school play, but it's not just the teens who are getting in on this act.
18) New Girl — "Halloween"
In the season 2 episode "Halloween," the gang has to face the scariest thing of all: commitment. While Jess tries to decide if she has real feelings for her casual fling, Nick accidentally winds up in a serious relationship with an old college flame. And as Winston sees that his relationship may be ending, Schmidt is forced to accept that Cece isn't single anymore. It all comes to a head in the most New Girl way possible—at Jess's haunted house.
19) Boy Meets World — "And Then There Was Shawn"
Okay, "And Then There Was Shawn" isn't technically a Halloween episode (it originally aired in February) but the slasher film theme is right on point and takes full advantage of the scary movie renaissance that was happening during the show's fifth season. The episode plays out inside Shawn's head as he deals with the breakup of his two best friends, playing with all of the genre tropes and casting each member of the group as an archetype: the virgin, the final girl, the scream queen, the movie buff. It also features a brilliant cameo by I Know What You Did Last Summer's Jennifer Love Hewitt.
20) 30 Rock — "Stone Mountain"
This is one of the all-time classic 30 Rock episodes—and not only because it inspired a generation to call Pepto Bismol "Peppy Bismilk." (To quote Liz Lemon, "Why is everything just a little different here?!") While the cast and crew prepare to celebrate Halloween back home, Liz and Jack take a trip to Kenneth's hometown, thanks to Jack's notion that they should find a new cast member in "real America." To absolutely no one's surprise, things do not go as planned.
21) Sabrina the Teenage Witch — "A River of Candy Corn Runs Through It"
Sabrina the Teenage Witch is pretty Halloween-y year-round, but the show always pulled out all the stops for its spooky specials. In this episode—definitely a fan-favorite—Sabrina finds herself hosting her non-magical friends for an All Hallows' Eve party, but has some trouble keeping her house's witchy side hidden.And as a Halloween bonus, 10,000 Maniacs perform! (It's easy to forget, but Sabrina had it all.)
22) BoJack Horseman — "Mr. Peanutbutter's Boos"
This episode of BoJack Horseman uses Mr. Peanutbutter's annual Halloween party as a plot device. It flashes through four of its incarnations, starting with a 1993 bash and ending with a 2018 celebration. This is BoJack, so although there's plenty of Halloween fun—the 90s costumes, in particular, are a delight—it also comes with a dollop of melodrama, as Mr. Peanutbutter's mistakes and regrets are laid bare.
23) Los Espookys — "El Laboratorio Alienigena (The Alien Lab)"
The Los Espookys crew stage Halloween-style scenarios for a living, so just about every episode will get you in the spooky spirit—even if they're not celebrating the holiday, per se. The show's trademark mixture of absurdity, memorable one-liners (in both English and Spanish), and homemade horror is also ever-present; but in "El Laboratorio Alienigena," the costumes are particularly Halloween-friendly.
All the shows to add to your October watchlist.