There are two kinds of television episodes.
The ones you watch once.
And the ones you suddenly remember every October.
You know the feeling.
The pumpkins appear.
The nights get darker.
Someone starts talking about Halloween costumes.
And somewhere in your brain a television episode you haven't watched in years suddenly wakes up.
Maybe it's Michael Scott showing up to work with a second head attached to his shoulder.
Maybe it's Monica and Chandler throwing a Halloween party.
Maybe it's Claire Dunphy transforming her house into something that would probably violate several neighborhood regulations.
Or maybe you hear the words:
Treehouse of Horror.
Halloween episodes occupy a strange little corner of television history.
The characters we know suddenly get costumes.
Sitcoms become horror movies.
Normal houses become haunted.
Continuity occasionally gets thrown out the window.
And writers get permission to become wonderfully ridiculous for 22 minutes.
Some shows did Halloween once.
Others turned it into a tradition.
So grab some candy, turn down the lights and prepare for a little television nostalgia.
Here are some of the most memorable Halloween episodes worth putting on your October watchlist.
The Simpsons — “Treehouse of Horror”
Season 2, Episode 3
We can't really discuss Halloween television without starting here.
In 1990, The Simpsons aired its first “Treehouse of Horror” episode.
Instead of telling one normal story, the episode used separate horror-themed segments that allowed the writers to play with monsters, aliens, haunted houses and classic horror stories.
And then they did it again.
And again.
“Treehouse of Horror” eventually became one of The Simpsons' most recognizable traditions.
Because these episodes aren't necessarily bound by normal continuity, almost anything can happen.
Characters can die.
Monsters can appear.
The world can end.
And everything can be perfectly normal again afterward.
That's the beauty of it.
If you're building a Halloween television marathon, you could honestly spend an entire evening watching nothing but Treehouse of Horror episodes.
Also Watch: “Treehouse of Horror V”
Season 6, Episode 6
If you're choosing one later installment, this is a great place to go.
It includes the famous parody “The Shinning,” inspired by The Shining, along with increasingly chaotic horror stories.
It captures exactly what makes the series work:
familiar characters,
recognizable horror references,
and absolutely no concern for keeping anybody alive.
Modern Family — “Halloween”
Season 2, Episode 6
Claire Dunphy doesn't merely enjoy Halloween.
Claire treats Halloween like an Olympic event.
In the show's first dedicated Halloween episode, she transforms the Dunphy home into an elaborate haunted house and attempts to assign everyone in the family a specific role.
Naturally, nothing goes according to plan.
That's what makes the episode work so well.
The Halloween setup doesn't replace the family dynamics that make Modern Family funny.
It exaggerates them.
Claire becomes even more controlling.
Phil remains Phil.
The kids have their own problems.
And everyone somehow gets dragged into Claire's Halloween obsession.
It worked so well that Halloween returned repeatedly throughout the series.
Make It a Modern Family Halloween Marathon
Follow it with:
“Open House of Horrors”
“Halloween 3: AwesomeLand”
“Halloween 4: The Revenge of Rod Skyhook”
and
“The Last Halloween.”
By that point, you may start viewing Claire Dunphy as the unofficial patron saint of suburban Halloween.
Brooklyn Nine-Nine — “Halloween”
Season 1, Episode 6
What begins as a bet becomes one of the show's defining traditions.
Jake Peralta challenges Captain Holt, claiming he can steal Holt's Medal of Valor before midnight.
Simple enough.
Except we're talking about Jake Peralta and Raymond Holt.
Neither man is particularly good at letting things go.
The result became the Halloween Heist, a recurring competition involving increasingly elaborate tricks, alliances, betrayals and schemes.
Eventually the entire Nine-Nine gets involved.
And every year the question becomes:
Who is the ultimate human/genius?
Don't Stop at the First Heist
Brooklyn Nine-Nine kept revisiting the idea.
“Halloween II” brings the competition back.
Then “Halloween III.”
Then “Halloween IV.”
And eventually:
“HalloVeen.”
Season 5, Episode 4
Without spoiling one of the episode's biggest moments, let's just say this installment manages to turn the increasingly ridiculous heist into something surprisingly sweet.
If you've never watched the Halloween Heists in sequence, October is the perfect excuse.
The Office — “Halloween”
Season 2, Episode 5
Halloween at Dunder Mifflin should be fun.
Unfortunately, Michael Scott has been told he needs to fire someone.
And naturally, he's procrastinated until October 31.
So while everyone else walks around the office in costumes, Michael spends the episode trying to decide whose livelihood he's about to ruin.
Festive!
The contrast is exactly what makes the episode memorable.
There's Jim's simple costume.
Dwight being very Dwight.
Michael's bizarre two-headed costume.
And underneath all the Halloween silliness is one of the earliest episodes showing how uncomfortable Michael becomes when he's forced to actually behave like a manager.
The Office — “Costume Contest”
Season 7, Episode 6
If you want something lighter, move ahead several seasons.
The Scranton branch holds a costume contest with a coupon book worth thousands of dollars as the prize.
Suddenly everyone cares very deeply about Halloween.
Costumes change.
Strategies emerge.
And workplace dignity disappears.
Exactly as it should.
Friends — “The One With the Halloween Party”
Season 8, Episode 6
Friends surprisingly didn't make Halloween episodes a major annual tradition.
But when the gang finally had a proper Halloween party, they committed.
Monica becomes Catwoman.
Phoebe becomes Supergirl.
Chandler arrives as a pink bunny.
Ross?
Ross dresses as Spud-nik.
A potato.
With an antenna.
Because Sputnik.
It gets worse when people think he's something else entirely.
The episode also gives us Ross and Chandler attempting to prove which one of them is stronger.
It's exactly the kind of pointless competition longtime friends would take far too seriously.
Parks and Recreation — “Greg Pikitis”
Season 2, Episode 7
Leslie Knope has enemies.
And one of her most dangerous is apparently a teenager.
Every Halloween, Greg Pikitis vandalizes Pawnee.
Leslie is convinced he'll strike again.
So she becomes completely obsessed with catching him.
Meanwhile, Ann throws a Halloween party that isn't exactly thriving until Tom gets involved.
The episode works because Leslie approaches catching a teenage vandal with the seriousness of a detective pursuing an international criminal mastermind.
Pikitis!
If you know, you know.
Community — “Epidemiology”
Season 2, Episode 6
Some Halloween episodes put characters in costumes.
Community basically makes a zombie movie.
At Greendale's Halloween party, students begin behaving very strangely after eating suspicious food.
Things escalate.
Quickly.
Soon the episode transforms into an outbreak story complete with barricades, panic and zombies, while still somehow remaining unmistakably Community.
And because this is Community, the soundtrack makes everything even stranger.
It's one of those episodes you could show someone with very little context and they'd still understand why the series developed such a devoted following.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer — “Halloween”
Season 2, Episode 6
Most people dress up as something they're not on Halloween.
Sunnydale decides to take that concept literally.
After costumes from a particular shop become enchanted, people begin transforming into whatever they dressed as.
Buffy suddenly becomes an eighteenth-century noblewoman.
Xander becomes a soldier.
Willow becomes a ghost.
For a show already filled with vampires, demons and supernatural chaos, Halloween gives the writers permission to temporarily rearrange the characters themselves.
The episode is funny, supernatural and genuinely important to several character dynamics.
Exactly what a Buffy Halloween episode should be.
Also Watch: “Fear, Itself”
Season 4, Episode 4
A Halloween party at a fraternity house turns into a literal house of horrors.
And eventually introduces us to one of television's most... intimidating demons.
You'll understand when you see him.
Freaks and Geeks — “Tricks and Treats”
Season 1, Episode 3
Not every great Halloween episode needs supernatural chaos.
Sometimes Halloween is scary because you're growing up.
Sam wants to go trick-or-treating even though he's reaching the age where doing so suddenly feels childish.
Lindsay, meanwhile, is drifting toward a different group of friends and a different version of herself.
The result captures something painfully familiar:
the moment when a childhood tradition you loved suddenly doesn't feel quite the same anymore.
That's what makes “Tricks and Treats” special.
Halloween isn't just the setting.
It's part of the story about adolescence.
Sabrina the Teenage Witch — “A Halloween Story”
Season 1, Episode 5
Of course Sabrina gets a Halloween episode.
She's literally a witch.
In “A Halloween Story,” Sabrina faces the very relatable teenage problem of needing to attend two events at once.
Except unlike most teenagers, she has magic.
So naturally she creates a solution involving a clone.
Naturally the solution creates more problems.
The episode aired during the show's first season and established exactly why Sabrina the Teenage Witch feels so at home in October.
Witches.
Magic.
Talking cat.
1990s fashion.
You really don't need much more.
Boy Meets World — “And Then There Was Shawn”
Season 5, Episode 17
Technically, here's an interesting wrinkle:
“And Then There Was Shawn” didn't originally air around Halloween.
But culturally?
Come on.
It's practically required Halloween viewing.
Cory, Shawn, Topanga and several classmates find themselves trapped at school during detention.
Then strange things start happening.
A mysterious killer appears.
People begin disappearing.
The episode gleefully parodies 1990s slasher movies, particularly the Scream era.
There's suspense.
Comedy.
Horror references.
And Jennifer Love Hewitt appears as Jennifer Love Fefferman.
It's one of those episodes that became bigger than its original place in the season.
Halloween claimed it.
How I Met Your Mother — “Slutty Pumpkin”
Season 1, Episode 6
Ted Mosby once met a woman at a Halloween party.
She wore a pumpkin costume.
With strategically placed holes.
Ted didn't get her number.
Naturally, because Ted is Ted, he returns to the same Halloween party every year hoping she'll appear again.
The episode perfectly captures early How I Met Your Mother.
Romantic.
Ridiculous.
A little sad.
And built around Ted's unwavering belief that some random encounter must surely be destiny.
The Slutty Pumpkin eventually becomes part of the show's mythology.
New Girl — “Halloween”
Season 2, Episode 6
Jess is working at a haunted house.
Nick doesn't like haunted houses.
You can probably see where this is going.
Meanwhile, the rest of the loft's romantic lives are becoming increasingly complicated.
What makes the episode fun isn't necessarily anything supernatural.
It's watching these characters bring all their emotional confusion into an environment specifically designed to make people scream.
Sometimes that's enough.
Bob's Burgers — “Full Bars”
Season 3, Episode 2
The Belcher children have a mission.
Better candy.
Tina, Gene and Louise decide to leave their usual neighborhood and go trick-or-treating in the wealthier Kingshead Island.
And they discover the holy grail of Halloween:
full-size candy bars.
Hence:
Full Bars.
Of course, things become considerably more complicated.
Meanwhile, Bob and Linda attend Teddy's Halloween party.
Bob's Burgers would go on to produce several Halloween episodes, but “Full Bars” helped establish the tradition.
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
Okay.
Technically, this isn't an episode of a regular TV sitcom.
It's a television special.
But leaving it off would feel wrong.
First broadcast in 1966, It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown became one of the enduring pieces of Halloween television.
Linus waits in the pumpkin patch for the Great Pumpkin.
Charlie Brown goes trick-or-treating.
Everyone receives candy.
Charlie Brown receives:
“I got a rock.”
Decades later, people still watch it.
That's not nostalgia anymore.
That's tradition.
Build Your Own Halloween TV Marathon
The beauty of Halloween television is that you can build completely different nights depending on your mood.
For comedy:
Modern Family → The Office → Parks and Recreation → Brooklyn Nine-Nine
For '90s and early-2000s nostalgia:
Sabrina the Teenage Witch → Boy Meets World → Friends
For something genuinely spooky:
Buffy the Vampire Slayer → Community → The Simpsons: Treehouse of Horror
For coming-of-age nostalgia:
Freaks and Geeks → Boy Meets World → Sabrina
For an entire recurring tradition:
Pick several Treehouse of Horror episodes or watch the Brooklyn Nine-Nine Halloween Heists in order.
Then add:
popcorn,
Halloween candy,
something warm to drink,
a blanket,
and absolutely no plans for the rest of the evening.
That's an October night sorted.
Make It a Full Spooky-Season Night
The television episodes are only half the fun.
Turn your marathon into an actual Halloween night.
Dim the lights.
Light a fall-scented candle.
Put out bowls of Halloween candy.
Make caramel popcorn.
Order pizza.
Wear pajamas.
And put your phone somewhere you won't spend half the episode scrolling through TikTok.
If you want your home to feel even more like fall before you press play, our Vintage-Inspired Fall Decor Ideas and A Roundup of Our Favorite Fall-Scented Candles are good places to continue your October mood.
Because sometimes you don't need an elaborate Halloween party.
You just need a couch and television characters making significantly worse decisions than you are.
Frequently Asked Questions
What TV show is famous for Halloween episodes?
The Simpsons is particularly famous for its annual “Treehouse of Horror” anthology episodes. Other shows that developed recurring Halloween traditions include Modern Family, Brooklyn Nine-Nine and Bob's Burgers.
What is the first Simpsons Treehouse of Horror episode?
The original “Treehouse of Horror” is Season 2, Episode 3 of The Simpsons.
Which Modern Family episode is the first Halloween episode?
The first dedicated Modern Family Halloween episode is simply titled “Halloween,” Season 2, Episode 6. Claire's enthusiasm for the holiday became a recurring part of the series.
Which Brooklyn Nine-Nine episode starts the Halloween Heist?
The tradition begins with “Halloween,” Season 1, Episode 6, when Jake challenges Captain Holt to a bet.
Which Friends episode is the Halloween episode?
The main Friends Halloween episode is “The One With the Halloween Party,” Season 8, Episode 6.
Is “And Then There Was Shawn” actually a Halloween episode?
Not technically. The Boy Meets World episode aired in February 1998 rather than during Halloween season. However, its slasher-movie premise and horror-comedy style have made it popular as Halloween viewing.
What's a good Halloween TV marathon?
For easy comedy, try Modern Family, The Office, Parks and Recreation and Brooklyn Nine-Nine. For something more supernatural, try Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Community and several Treehouse of Horror episodes.
The Pyteline Take
Halloween episodes are little television time capsules.
The costumes date them.
The hairstyles definitely date them.
Sometimes the jokes date them too.
But that's part of why they're so much fun to revisit.
Put on an old episode of Sabrina and suddenly you're back in the '90s.
Watch The Office and you're wandering around Dunder Mifflin again.
Start a Brooklyn Nine-Nine Halloween Heist and you're immediately trying to figure out which character is secretly manipulating everyone.
And The Simpsons?
At this point, “Treehouse of Horror” practically has its own place on the Halloween calendar.
That's the wonderful thing about seasonal television.
You don't necessarily watch because you've forgotten what happens.
You watch because you remember.
You remember the costume.
The joke.
The ridiculous plot.
The couch you first watched it from.
Maybe even the people you watched it with.
Then October comes around again.
The lights go down.
The candy comes out.
And somehow you're watching the same Halloween episode one more time.
Exactly as you should.
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