The 30 Best Halloween TV Episodes Ranked
For anyone who loves autumn leaves and spooky chills and thrills, there's no better time of year than Halloween. As the weather starts to cool and the nights grow longer, Halloween is a chance to embrace the darkness and have a little fun with the scary side of life. And for TV lovers who can't get enough of All Hallow's Eve, there's even more to look forward to.
Whether you love nothing more than a good, old-fashioned jump scare that has you hiding behind the pillow or you prefer your spooky fun a little more G-rated, there's nothing like a good Halloween episode. From television tributes to classic horror films to thrilling mysteries and decadent costumes, there are far too many spook-tacular episodes in the world to keep track of. Settle in with a hot cup of cider and remote control because we're breaking down the top 30 best Halloween episodes to watch this spooky season.
30. The Office - Costume Contest
There's nothing quite like the torturous fun of a work party to send shivers down spines. And as the world's best boss, there's no way Dunder Mifflin's Michael Scott would pass up an opportunity to engage in mid-level management holiday mayhem, which is why "The Office" offers up some of the best Halloween celebrations in the paper business.
From the harmonious hellscape of the spooky season-celebrating "Here Comes Treble" (Season 9, Episode 5) to the terrifyingly P.C. costume policing of Andy Bernard in "Spooked" (Season 8, Episode 5), "The Office" provides enough Halloween tomfoolery to constitute a decent little marathon with one that stands out as the best in the bunch. "Costume Contest" (Season 7, Episode 6) pits the warehouse crew against the desk jockeys as they vie for the stuff dreams are made of — a coveted Scranton-area coupon book. With costumes like Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, Lady Gaga, and Oscar's "rational consumer," the real winner is the viewer.
29. AHS: Murder House - Halloween Part 1 and 2
Although "American Horror Story" is an anthology series with each season taking place in a different time and or place, all of the intertwined stories are set in the same world and go by the same set of rules that govern both the living and the dead.
One of the most fundamental ghost rules in the "AHS" world is the one that leaves a person's soul trapped on the property where they died, as demonstrated by Ray's failure to leave Camp Redwood by ambulance in "1984" and Violet Harmon's Escher-esque attempts to flee "Murder House" before coming to terms with the reality of her own demise. But fortunately for all of the spirits inhabiting the AHS corner of the Murphyverse, Halloween is the one night a year where they are granted a reprieve, free to roam the earth as the veil between life and death grows thin. In the two-part "Murder House" episode "Halloween," this means unexpected house guests, ghost-infused family drama, and plenty of wicked fun.
28. Quantum Leap - Boogieman
After a science snafu leaves Dr. Sam Beckett (Scott Bakula) ping-ponging through the 20th century, he finds himself inhabiting the bodies of strangers within his lifetime, making changes to their lives while the "Leapees" hang out with Al in the Project Quantum Leap waiting room.
When he leaps into a Gothic horror novelist on Halloween 1964, things start to get even spookier than the existentially terrifying thought of body-hopping with no end in sight alone (Season 3, Episode 5). After leaping into the body of mediocre horror novelist Joshua Rey, Sam finds himself bearing witness to some fairly mysterious deaths.
The episode has everything a good Halloween episode needs — a spooky house, witches, black cats, occultism, and paranoia, for starters — and confirms that the devil is canon in the "Quantum Leap" universe and apparently is not fond of Sam and Al's spacetime shenanigans. The occult theme is so bizarre that fans like Multiversity Comics' Brian Salvatore posited the whole thing was just a dream, which is exactly why it's a perfect addition to any Halloween watch list.
27. Murder, She Wrote - The Witch's Curse
A cautionary tale about the pettiness of small town life, the "Murder, She Wrote" episode "The Witch's Curse" follows the townspeople of Cabot Cove as they generally lose their marbles over a newcomer to their community and find themselves on the verge of repeating history with a good, old-fashioned witch hunt. And it all begins with the most treacherous of settings known as small-town community theater.
Centuries after Cabot Cove burns Rachel Abbott at the stake, swearing her revenge from the pyre, the townspeople plan to commemorate her death with a play. When a beautiful stranger named Mariah Osborne shows up to audition for the lead, the townspeople waste no time declaring that she's a witch. Of course, it doesn't help that she's a stone-cold hottie living in a spooky old house with a bubbling cauldron on the stove. Luckily, when things inevitably start to spin out of control, Jessica Fletcher's mystery sleuthing skills are there to save the day.
26. Malcolm in the Middle - Halloween Approximately
For Malcolm and his brothers, Halloween comes late one year when big bro Francis misses the big day while away at military school, postponing the brothers' plans to engage in the requisite adolescent light Halloween vandalism. To make it up to his siblings, Francis gives an inspired speech, telling them, "As long as you carry the spirit of vandalism and destruction in your hearts, every day is Halloween." Inspired, the brothers build a giant slingshot on the roof that's capable of hurling objects as far as two city blocks, according to the elder Wilkerson.
Working together, they fill water balloons, pantyhose, and anything else they can get their hands on with everything from easy cheese to slime raked from the rain gutter and begin literally raining havoc on their neighborhood. It's all fun and games until Malcolm's friends decide to fight back by building their own catapult, launching the community into a slimy, disgusting facsimile of full-scale medieval siege warfare.
25. Raising Hope - Happy Halloween
"Raising Hope" is one of those hidden gems that's totally worthy of watch list status. Starring Martha Plimpton, Garret Dillahunt, Lucas Neff, Shannon Woodward, and Cloris Leachman and produced by "My Name is Earl" creator Greg Garcia, the series finds young Jimmy Chance unexpectedly becoming a dad after a hookup with a serial killer. Luckily, his good-natured-but-oddball family and friends are happy to be the village it takes to raise little Hope.
After learning that his dad Burt used to scare him as a child in order to get hugs on Halloween, Jimmy leaves his buddies in charge of protecting Hope from her tricky Gramps while he goes to a party on not-quite-a-date with Sabrina — a babysitting decision he soon comes to regret. A romantic surprise, a Halloween party, trick-or-treating with Maw Maw, and Burt's adolescent egging adventures round out this classic Halloween episode.
24. MacGyver - Halloween Knights
Halloween parties can be a ton of fun. But as MacGyver's "Halloween Knights" demonstrates, nobody takes Halloween more seriously than a shadowy group of underground assassins.
After MacGyver's nemesis Murdoc approaches MacGyver (Richard Dean Anderson) claiming to have turned his back on a life of murder-for-hire, pleading with the Phoenix Foundation wiz to help save Murdoc's sister from his former colleagues, what follows is an unlikely buddy adventure. Following a little cat-and-mouse tomfoolery gratuitously involving a cemetery, a jack-o'-lantern, and a trap door, Murdoc spills his guts to his adversary in a wealthy industrialist's creepy underground crypt.
Despite Murdoc's dubious story claiming to retire from the Homicide International Trust or HIT — which he calls a "multi-national murder incorporated" — the enemies join forces to crash a Halloween party where the entertainment is the assassination of Murdoc's sister. It's a perfectly MacGyveresque spooky-themed addition to this classic spy-fi series.
23. Haven - Real Estate
A supernatural story set in Maine, "Haven" is the perfect location for a Halloween adventure like "Real Estate" (Season 3, Episode 6). Because Haven is a town with spooky properties, it stands to reason that there's a reputedly haunted house in the community — the infamous Holloway House. After Chad and Tina's visit to the house leaves Chad missing and Tina shaking in her boots, Audrey, Duke, and Nathan are more than happy to investigate.
As it turns out, this haunted house has a little of everything: secret doors, spooky mirrors, tricky head games, and stacks of corpses. They soon realize they are trapped inside of its walls and the house is pitting them against each other, something that could have deadly consequences. The episode is a perfect companion piece to another tale about a ghost-infested head-trip of a haunted house, "The X-Files" holiday episode "How the Ghosts Stole Christmas," which guest starred Lily Tomlin and Ed Asner.
22. Angel - Life of the Party
When you live in a world where supernatural creatures are always hiding in the shadows, Halloween offers the perfect opportunity for everyone to come out and play without turning any heads. And that's exactly what happens in the "Angel" episode "Life of the Party" (Season 5, Episode 5), which centers around friendly demon Lorne's sleep-deprived efforts to throw the best Halloween party ever at Wolfram & Hart. It's an important party to the firm, and according to Angel, "everyone coming to this thing is unrepentant, dyed-in-the-wool evil."
To lure the demonic glitterati, they add A-lister Archduke Sebassis to the guest list. As if that wasn't pressure enough, things take a wild turn when Lorne's advice to others begins to manifest in a literal sense, leading to dance floor shenanigans and romantic hookups as the green guy's subconscious starts to interact with the real world. An adorably Lorne-centric episode, "Life of the Party" is a testament to the fact that it takes more than crudité and a disco ball to throw a great party.
21. Bones - Mummy in the Maze
The "Bones" Halloween episode "Mummy in the Maze" finds the Jeffersonian staff working together on a spooky mystery while adorably dressed in their Halloween costumes. When the local Shoreline Amusement Park's Halloween hay maze "Dungeon of 1,000 Corpses" is party-crashed by a real mummy, Bones and crew are on the job. And the more they look into the mystery of the mummy, the stranger the tale seems to be.
The investigation finds Bones (Emily Deschanel) and Booth (David Boreanaz) facing their fears in the form of snakes and clowns, respectively. Brennan is especially adorable in her Wonder Woman costume, and Booth's geeky Squint costume leads her to comment that "We could be Wonder Woman and Clark Kent after a really, really bad date." Fans consider this one of the best episodes of the series, with IMDb reviewer Everything_happens_eventually commenting, "I think that this is one of the best Halloween episodes in TV."
20. Law & Order: Criminal Intent - Masquerade
"Masquerade" (Season 6, Episode 6) begins with Goren (Vincent D'Onofrio) and Eames (Kathryn Erbe) traveling to Vietnam to retrieve someone suspected of killing a beauty queen's child actress daughter a decade ago on Halloween after problems with the original investigation cause them to reopen the case. A confession from the decedent's friend Jamie, who claims he accidentally suffocated the girl, with his mom making a phony call to cops to cover up the crime, doesn't convince the detectives, despite the poor man's guilt and ensuing drug addiction.
The episode will feel strikingly familiar to anyone who has followed the story of child beauty pageant star JonBenét Ramsey, whose body was found along with a ransom note under mysterious circumstances in her family home around Christmas 1996 (per CNN). A darker Halloween-themed tale of all the many ways adults can fail children, the episode guest stars Liza Minelli, and that alone is worth the price of admission.
19. The Vampire Diaries - Haunted
One of the great things about "The Vampire Diaries" is that any old episode can get you in the mood for spooky season. Set in Mystic Falls, Virginia, the series follows the lives of a couple with a very serious age gap — one of about 144 years. The series, which revolves around a Twilight-esque vampire romance in a world where the supernatural is a simple fact of life, is exactly the kind of hot mess we've all grown to know, love, and crave from the CW.
In a town inhabited by vampires, witches, ghosts, werewolves, and various combinations thereof, it's safe to assume that every day feels just a little like Halloween. But "Haunted" (Season 1, Episode 7) kicks things up a notch by throwing in a Halloween party. Because things are always extra spicy in Mystic Falls, that means someone trying to eat her date, an unexpected death, and just a little bit of drama over a magical witchy amulet.
18. NCIS - Parental Guidance Suggested
"NCIS" is one of those comfortingly formulaic crime procedurals that doesn't demand a lot from viewers and somehow still manage to be rewarding. Starring Mark Harmon as Special Agent Gibbs, the "JAG" spinoff series revolves around the workday exploits of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, which investigates crimes related to the United States Navy and Marines. The best of about a dozen "NCIS" Halloween episodes, "Parental Guidance Suggested" (Season 12, Episode 6) finds the team balance their efforts to solve a possible terrorism-related crime with their Halloween planning.
The story begins when a Navy Seal's wife is killed, with her body discovered by their young daughter Rachel. As they investigate the case, the team explores a few different suspects including a cannibalistic serial killer, played by Bronson Pinchot. With a few twists and turns, a surprise killer, and plenty of festive Halloween energy, "Parental Guidance" is a satisfying seasonal treat.
17. The Twilight Zone - The Howling Man
Originally airing just a few days after Halloween in 1960, "The Howling Man" is as close to a Gothic horror as "The Twilight Zone" gets. Set in Europe just after the first world war, the episode follows the journey of a traveler who ends up seeking refuge from a storm in a creepy old castle filled with monks and creepy wolf sounds. Despite the monks' initial refusal, the traveler ends up wandering the castle's halls, where he encounters a man claiming the monks beat and jailed him. When he threatens to go to the police, Brother Jerome counters with the monks' own startling claim: the jailed individual is the Devil, fresh off his World War I bender.
The signature "Twilight Zone" twist comes with a significant time jump and an ominous warning. Brother Jerome is played by Carradine family patriarch John Carradine, whose famous children include David, Keith, and Robert Carradine.
16. Freaks and Geeks - Tricks and Treats
Anyone who came of age during the 1980s will appreciate this little slice of nostalgia about the challenges of fitting in and growing up. Halloween can be a tough time for middle and high-schoolers at that awkward in-between stage when they're not quite adults but getting too old to trick-or-treat by many adults' standards.
That's exactly where 1980s freshman Sam (John Francis Daley) finds himself on this episode of "Freaks and Geeks" when he convinces his pals to get dressed up and hit the old candy circuit with him. But instead of being grateful that these kids are enjoying a wholesome tradition, instead of egging houses like big sister Lindsay (Linda Cardellini) or slingshotting sludge from their roofs like Malcolm and bros, the neighbors don't seem to appreciate the teenagers' efforts to score snacks alongside the little trick-or-treaters. Worse still, the group ends up getting harassed by a group of bullies — the ultimate Gen-X rite of passage.
15. Charmed - All Halliwell's Eve
The original series about the Charmed Ones, "Charmed" finds the Halliwell sisters coming into their powers as witches and learning to use them. And the more they hone their abilities, the more frequently they tend to encounter various sketchy creatures like ghouls, vampires, banshees, and all sorts of other magical beings. The fact that they live in a gorgeous little Victorian manor only adds to the witchy vibes.
The sisters get into the Halloween spirit in "All Halliwell's Eve" (Season 3, Episode 4), which finds Prue, Piper, and Phoebe transported to 17th century colonial Virginia after they are assailed by Grimlocks — not a great place for witches. There, they find shelter among a coven of witches, one of whom is their ancestor. The episode has plenty of great witchy Halloween moments, but the best among them is the sight of Phoebe flying her broom against the full moon, witch hat and all.
14. Modern Family - Halloween
"Modern Family" offered up a handful of Halloween adventures during its run after establishing that the holiday is a favorite of Claire Dunphy (played by Julie Bowen). "It's the Great Pumpkin, Phil Dunphy" deals with the Dunphys trying to celebrate Halloween as their kids grow out of their usual traditions. "Good Grief" finds the festively dressed fam coming to terms with an unfortunately-timed death. There's "Halloween 3: Awesomeland," where Phil gets stuck with Halloween preparations and "'Halloween 4: The Revenge Of Rod Skyhook," which features Luke's first experience throwing a Halloween party.
But the most memorable of all the "Modern Family" Halloween episodes is the appropriately titled "Halloween" (Season 2, Episode 6). The plot centers around the Dunphy family transforming their home into a ghoulishly delightful haunted house at Claire's behest and marks the beginning of a tradition that will last throughout the show's run. As IMDb reviewer studioAT put it, the episode is "a simple story, played out in ridiculous fashion, and then manages also to cram in a lovely heartfelt moment at the end."
13. Supernatural - It's the Great Pumpkin, Sam Winchester
For hunters Sam and Dean Winchester, dealing with spooky ghosts, ghouls, and vampires is just another day at the office. Even so, some of the show's best episodes are holiday-themed, like the Valentine's Day episodes "Love Hurts" and "My Bloody Valentine" or the festive Christmas gore of "A Very Supernatural Christmas." And if your Halloween dream is an image of Sam and Dean carving pumpkins, "Last Holiday" is what you're looking for.
In the same festive spirit, "It's the Great Pumpkin, Sam Winchester" (Season 4, Episode 7) finds the Winchester boys chasing down a Halloween mystery of the supernatural variety. The episode begins a day before Halloween, when the boys link a strange death to powerful witches after finding a hex bag containing gold thread and an ancient coin in the decedent's home. The case eventually leads the Wayward brothers to the Celtic demon Samhain, who returns every six centuries for a Halloween bloodbath.
12. Castle - Vampire Weekend
"Castle" is a light-hearted cozy mystery show about a mystery novelist named Richard Castle (Nathan Fillion) who teams up with homicide detective Kate Beckett (Stana Katic) to solve NYC murders. With its Benedick-and-Beatrice romance and plenty of quirky crimes to solve, the series amassed something of a following during its run. As Halloween seems to be the titular Castle's favorite holiday, "Castle" served up a handful of spooky episodes during the show's run. "Demons" (Season 4, Episode 6) revolves around a ghost hunter's murder ad a spooky haunted mansion, and "Clear and Present Danger" (Season 7, Episode 3) finds the duo chasing down a potentially paranormal perp.
But by far, the very best of Richard Castle's spooky moments comes in "Vampire Weekend," which finds the pair investigating the murder of a vampire-fanged victim found in a graveyard with a stake through his heart. For many fans, the highlight of the episode is Castle's "space cowboy" costume – a clear reference to actor Fillion's previous work on the Joss Whedon fan favorite space western "Firefly."
11. Monk - Mr. Monk Goes Home Again
A series about a brilliant investigator with debilitating obsessive-compulsive disorder, "Monk" is already one of the most adorable and objectively wholesome mysteries on TV before sprinkling in a handful of Halloween tricks and treats. Monk is afraid of everything, and when you're afraid of everything like Mr. Monk, Halloween has to be a treacherous experience.
"Mr. Monk Goes Home Again" finds Adrian Monk (Tony Shalhoub) investigating a crime while navigating some family issues. The story takes place on Halloween with Monk returning with his brother Ambrose (John Turturro) to his childhood home in anticipation of a visit from his father. When a Frankenstein-masked thief begins snatching the Halloween candy Ambrose handed out to the neighborhood kids, Monk finds himself involved in a secondary investigation. A controversial pigeon autopsy and a clove cigarette clue are just two of the quirky details that follow the Monk brothers through this oddball Halloween tale.
10. Parks and Recreation - Halloween Surprise
Set in fictional Pawnee, Indiana, "Parks and Recreation" is a work mockumentary and political satire about employment under the community's Parks department. The series managed a few Halloween episodes while it was on the air. "Meet 'n' Greet" (Season 4, Episode 5) finds Andy and April throwing a Halloween party at their place without telling their roommate, and "Greg Pikitis" (Season 2, Episode 7) pits Leslie Knope against her teenage arch-nemesis, a Halloween vandal named Greg Pikitis. "Halloween Surprise" (Season 5, Episode 5) is the best in the "Parks and Rec" Halloween collection.
The episode finds Andy (Chris Pratt) and Ron (Nick Offerman) trick-or-treating together with Diane's kids while the Parks department screens "Death Canoe 4: Murder at Blood Lake." To the delight of "Parks and Rec" fans, the episode ends with a romantic proposal. The emotional ending caused one IMDb user to remark how "the proposal was so deserved that it finally happened and Amy showed her best acting in that moment."
9. Bewitched - A Safe and Sane Halloween
The classic TV-era sitcom about a modern-day witch named Samantha and her family life in the suburbs, "Bewitched" is an iconic supernatural fantasy comedy from the 1960s that still holds up today.
The episode finds the family preparing for a very special Halloween that will include little Tabitha's first chance to get dressed up and go trick-or-treating. The night before Halloween, Samantha's bedtime story for her daughter gets the little witch so stoked for Halloween she manifests a goblin, gremlin, and jack-o'-lantern from the storybook into real life — and they're genuine nightmare fuel. With it being Spooky Costume Day, no one questions the three little friends Tabitha has in tow as they set off on their trick-or-treating. Because they're magical creatures from what Decider's Brett White calls "a 2-D netherworld," mayhem immediately ensues, and things get super weird before mama Samantha gets wise and sorts everything out.
8. Dead Like Me - Haunted
Starring Mandy Patinkin and Ellen Muth, "Dead Like Me" is a story about some of Halloween's biggest stars: grim reapers. After George (Muth) is killed by a falling toilet seat from the space station Mir, she finds herself working as a reaper for the souls of those who die from accidents and as a result of murder. "Haunted" is the series finale for this short-lived dramedy and deals with the reapers collecting souls on Halloween. And unfortunately for all, the community is plagued with a serial killer who only comes out once a year — which means, of course, more work for the busy reapers.
To make things even more complicated, there's a reaper legend that states the reapers are recognizable to living mortals on Halloween night, which means the team has to take extra precautions to keep their identities a secret. More than just a Halloween story, "Haunted" is a satisfying ending to a sweet series.
7. WandaVision - All-New Halloween Spooktacular
The first Marvel-produced TV series set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), "WandaVision" is a critically acclaimed superhero story that finds Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) and Vision (Paul Bettany) living in a New Jersey suburb and experiencing various sitcom and TV tropes. B**** Media called the show "an ode to television history, a superhero origin story, and the launch pad for an even bigger cinematic universe," observing that the series is ultimately "about grief."
It's in this spirit of paying homage to memorable TV tropes that "WandaVision" revisits a class television trope — the holiday special — in "All-New Halloween Spooktacular!" (Episode 6). Set somewhere between the late 1990s and early aughts, the episode finds Wanda and Pietro at odds over what to do for Halloween, with Wanda hoping to take the boys trick-or-treating and Pietro planning to participate in the neighborhood watch.
With costumes that pay tribute to the characters' comic book counterparts and a brilliant Claymation in-story commercial straight out of the 1990s, the episode is a nostalgic treat for anyone who grew up watching Thursday night sitcoms during that era.
6. Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Halloween
Joss Whedon's supernatural teen drama "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" has no shortage of demons, ghouls, and various creeps. "Halloween" is just one of a few spooky night episodes in the Buffyverse. "Fear Itself" (Season 4, Episode 4) finds Buffy and company headed to a Halloween frat party where the haunted house decorations include a summoning portal that summons a demon who feeds on fear. In "All the Way" (Season 6, Episode 6), Buffy deals with her little sister hanging out with vampires.
Season 2's "Halloween" (Episode 6) stands out as the best of the show's All Hallow's Eve entertainment. Sunnydale's Principal Snyder reels Xander, Buffy, and Willow into trick-or-treating with a bunch of younger kids. But because Buffy is a vampire slayer and Sunnydale is a Hellmouth, things invariably go awry with a local costume shop owner transforming everybody into the real-world version of their costumes — a soldier, a ghost, an 18th-century debutante, kid demons, and even a pirate.
5. Frasier - Halloween
Along with "Room Full of Heroes" (Season 9, Episode 6) and "Tales from the Crypt" (Season 10, Episode 5), "Halloween" is a fun "Frasier" episode with a Halloween theme, one that's especially fun for literature geeks. Niles (David Hyde Pierce) is in charge of hosting a Library Association Halloween party. To make things extra spicy, it's a literature-themed costume party where guests are invited to come as their favorite character from a book.
Highlights include Daphne and Frasier's costumes as the Wife of Bath and Geoffrey Chaucer from "The Canterbury Tales," Martin's Sherlock Holmes costume, and Niles as Cyrano de Bergerac. With some drunken confusion, mixed messages, and a possible pregnancy in the mix, the episode has an air of Shakespearean comedy to it. Reviewers on IMDb raved about the quality of the writing and comedic timing on this episode, while almost unanimously complaining about the appearance from Kelsey Grammer's then-wife Camille.
4. Pretty Little Liars - This is a Dark Ride
"Pretty LIttle Liars" is one of those shows that had a pretty fervent fandom while it was on the air, and people are still talking about the series years after its final episode aired. The teen mystery drama revolves around a high school clique whose leader disappears. The creepy tale starts to unfold when a shadowy figure going by the initials "A.D." begins threatening to expose the remaining members of the group for their misdeeds and secrets.
For a series that dabbles in the thriller and slasher genres, a Halloween-themed episode is a perfect venue for the dark and soapy storytelling. "This is a Dark Ride" finds the Liars getting ready for their Rosewood Halloween Ghost Train plans. The Halloween costumes in this episode are perfect, and a performance from Adam Lambert adds to the fun. But it's the spooky set design that truly takes the prize in this episode.
3. Psych - Tuesday the 17th
"Psych" has so many great spooky and Halloween-themed episodes that it's hard to pick just one favorite. The series follows the Scooby-Dooesque crime-solving adventures of fake psychic detective Shawn Spencer (James Roday Rodriguez) and his best friend Burton "Gus" Guster (Dulé Hill) as they partner with the Santa Barbara Police Department. Some of the best spooky episodes include the sorority hazing horror story "Scary Sherry: Bianca's Toast" (Season 1, Episode 15), the "Nightmare on Elm Street" parody "A Nightmare on State Street" (Season 8, Episode 9), the psychological horror tribute "Heeeeere's Lassie," (Season 6, Episode 11), and the vampire-themed "This Episode Sucks" with Corey Feldman (Season 6, Episode 3).
In the same spirit of homage, "Tuesday the 17th" (Season 3, Episode 15) is a tribute to summer camp slashers that finds Shawn and Gus returning to their old stomping grounds only to find things seem to have taken a bloody turn. And the episode finally gives Gus a chance to pull one over on Shawn for a change.
2. Community - Epidemiology
"Community" is easily one of the funniest TV shows ever to air, and "Epidemiology" (Season 2, Episode 6) is a perfect example of the show's quirky, side-splitting humor. When Dean Craig Pelton (Jim Rash) throws a campus Halloween party with bad "taco meat" from an army surplus store, they begin to turn into the Greendale Community College equivalent of zombies, transferring their illness through bites. Things get so completely out of control that U.S. Army Special Operations show up and quarantine the campus, leaving the Spanish study group trapped and on the run from the taco meat zombies.
The episode is an homage to zombie genre stories and was directed by Anthony Hemingway, who worked on "True Blood" and "Battlestar Galactica." The soundtrack for the episode is made up entirely of ABBA music, and there's really nothing quite like watching a zombie tale set to "Fernando" and "Mamma Mia!" In his Paste Magazine review, Sean Gandert raved about the episode, calling it "almost transcendent in the way one joke flows to the next so naturally despite the insanity of its plot."
1. Brooklyn Nine-Nine - HalloVeen
The police officers of the critically-acclaimed cop comedy "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" are constantly getting up to precinct hijinks. And one of their favorite traditions is the precinct's annual Halloween Heist — which means, of course, a Halloween episode for every season of the show. The goal of the contest is to steal something from the Captain — for example, a watch, a medal, or a crown — with the winner earning the coveted title of Ultimate Detective/Genius.
The heist begins with Jake Peralta (Andy Samberg), but eventually, it expands to include his colleagues over the years. "HalloVeen" (Season 5, Episode 4) opens up the heist to the entire precinct, with the item in question a cummerbund. Many fans consider this their favorite episode of the entire series, with one IMDb reviewer raving, "I broke my face I was smiling so much." A surprise at the end of the episode leaves the 99 with more than just a new champion to celebrate.