Halloween 2K25 – Brandon’s Watchlist Part III
Supernatural, It’s a Great Pumpkin Sam Winchester
I loved Supernatural, especially the first five seasons. I’ve seen the first season probably four or five times, and finally started a rewatch about a year ago. I’m not one to binge quickly on a rewatch, instead I slowly go through a show whenever the feeling hits. As of this writing, I’m only about 3/4th the way through the first season.
To watch this Halloween episode, I had to jump ahead to season four, and wow… this episode was fantastic. I forgot just how good this show gets, and while this episode embraces the Halloween spirit, it’s not a monster of the week episode. In fact, it introduces a major character and deals with some huge storylines. Of course, you don’t have to be a fan of the series to enjoy this as a standalone episode, but this is one I need to revisit more often.
The Dukes of Hazzard, The Hazzardville Horror
I really wanted to think outside the box where I can find some Halloween/spooky themed episodes, and having recently purchased The Dukes of Hazzard digitally, I was intrigued by an episode that aired right before Halloween 1980, The Hazzardville Horror. This is not an Halloween episode, but it deals with a potential haunted house and leans into that spooky season feel, which I appreciate.
Overall, this is a pretty average episode of The Dukes, where Boss Hogg’s silver gets stolen and of course, he blames The Dukes. One of the real robbers is played by Andrew Robinson, who I previously saw in Hellraiser a few days earlier, and who also portrays my favorite Star Trek character, Garak. So, I’m always happy to see him on my screen.
This was a fun watch, but not something I’d add to any Halloween watch list in the future.
M*A*SH, Trick or Treatment
This episode has two guest stars: George Wendt and Andrew Dice Clay, which already makes it worth watching, but this is actually a fantastic episode of M*A*S*H. It’s crazy that it took them until the final season to finally do a Halloween themed episode, but it works so well. You have costumes, decorations, spooky stories, and then some serious M*A*S*H drama.
Martin, The Night He Came Home
I LOVED Martin as a kid. This is a sitcom I’m hoping to go back and watch eventually, but I thought it might be interesting to see what a Halloween episode of Martin might look like. This episode took place during the first season and is pretty basic set up: Martin claims he’s not scared of anything, but then on Halloween night some spooky things begin to happen.
It’s a fun watch, but not a great episode, but I’m never mad about watching Tisha Campbell.
Married with Children, Take My Wife Please
This Halloween episode of Married with Children, doesn’t lean into the Halloween storyline as much as I would like, but is full of laughs. Peg, Bud, and Kelly are convinced by Marcy to pose as The Village People for a meeting of women who killed their husbands violently, while Al meets Death who offers him a deal, if someone in his family says they need him before midnight, he won’t die tonight.
The Drew Carey Show, The Devil You Say
In the very small list of popular 90s sitcoms I haven’t watched, The Drew Carrey show is right at the top. After years of being unavailable on DVD and streaming, earlier this year the music issues were sorted out and finally The Drew Carrey Show is available for folks to enjoy.
I decided to check out a Halloween episode, and this is actually the first episode of The Drew Carrey show I’ve ever seen. I loved it. It was funny, goofy, and did a great job with the Halloween backdrop despite not being all about Halloween.
Magnum PI, The Woman on the Beach
This episode of Magnum PI aired a week before Halloween in 1981 and involves a possible ghost. It’s interesting (and a spoiler) but the show implies that ghosts are real, which I was not expecting! This is your typical murder mystery that Magnum gets dragged into and it fun watching it unfold, and then you get hit with a touch of action at the end. Nothing special, but a good episode, and I appreciate the effort to create something for the spooky season.
Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein
This film has been on my watchlist for at least a decade. I’ve heard so much hype for how great it is, and while I enjoyed the film, it did not meet those lofty expectations. It’s always fun to see the old Universal Monsters, and Abbott and Costello are great for some slapstick gags, so this is an enjoyable watch, but it’s a one-time watch for me.
