Boo! Halloween TV Poll Special
Is there any doubt that Halloween is the greatest holiday of the year? It combines the greed of Christmas with the gluttony of Thanksgiving in one paganistic package, celebrating terror, evil and death. Yet TV doesn't go nearly as hog-wild on this most theatrical of holidays. I've already given a shout-out to It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, and have yet to watch my TiVoed Hallow's-Eve episode of Reaper (if this show can't knock this holiday out of the park, who can?). But what are your favorite scary-TV staples?
I'll start off by nominating the Halloween episodes of Roseanne, not just because the Conner's grisly H-Day costumes were funny, but because they got at essential themes of the show. The family fought, but they were united in their oddball rebelliousness. Roseanne was about a lot of things, but it was largely about the experience of being, in a Midwestern town, just a little weird: an artsy high-school student, a peculiar kid, a wife and mother with a less-than-homespun worldview. Halloween is great because it gives you permission to weird out and act out--a kind of permission Roseanne was never one to pass up.
Your nominees? Favorite Treehouse of Horror installments? Or your favorite local-TV horror-movie host? Freak us out. Or just watch this:
Better plan all week! Better plan all month! Better plan all year!
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1
Simpsons or Roseanne have to win this contest, James - you hit it right on the head.
As for local horror show hosts, I'm going to go with Dr. Paul Bearer (get it?) from down in the Tampa-area....just looked like a scuzzy guy in real life, aside from the "character" he played introducing monster movies and edited slasher flicks on Saturday/Sunday afternoons.
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2
I've always enjoyed Home Improvement's Halloween Specials. How about ER as well?
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3
Paul Bearer? Wasn't he The Undertaker's sidekick/manager?
The Halloween episodes on the second and fourth seasons of Buffy were pretty great. "The Slutty Pumpkin" from How I Met Your Mother's first season also had its moments - that Top Gun gag in particular.
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4
Years ago, Oklahoma City had Count Gregor (vampire) on late Saturday nights introducing movies. To this day, I still remember watching The Navy vs The Night Monsters on his program back in the late 60's or early 70's.
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5
I love the "Halloween" episode from the second season of "The Office"!
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6
I say The Buffy episode Halloween that is a third of the way through it's second season, is amazing for subverting it's own subversion of the genre. The night that all things underworld take off ends up being a problem because of magic a human enacts, which opens the door to very unexpected backstory for one of the main characters, and the slayer becomes a weak helpless girl. Really one of the episodes that showed what the series could achieve.
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7
Simpsons and Buffy do Halloween best. No question.
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8
I think you are so right about the Rosanne thing. Great observation!!! When ever I catch a Halloween episode of Rosanne I stop channel surfing.
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9
the halloween episode of Freaks and Geeks is incredible.
- poniewozik Loved the season. Mrs Tuned In wd have put u on the main list RT @boredtodeath Thank u for incl us in Time's Top 10. We'll take hon mention. - 6 hours ago
- poniewozik @carr2n Virgin is the best, LAX-JFK - 7 hours ago
- poniewozik Did NPR interview abt multiscreen multitasking. After, automatically reached for iPhone in pocket. Like don draper wd have for cigarettes. - 8 hours ago
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