Hello and welcome to SpoilerTV’s Weekly Round Table! Joining us this week is Anjali (AS), Val (VL), Elena (ET), Cristina (CA), JuliaK (KK), Joshua (JO), KimR (KR), Meredith (MH), Lucas (LO), and Mariasol (SO). You just have to sit back enjoy the read and join the discussion in the comment section down below.
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Halloween is almost upon us! Are there any Halloween-themed episodes you’re looking forward to? What’s your favourite Halloween episode to date?
AS: As of right now, the only show that I’m aware of that’s doing a Halloween episode this season is 9-1-1 (ABC) – of the shows I personally watch—it’s going to be 8×05, titled “Masks” that will have aired by the time the article gets posted! I am looking forward to seeing how it plays out! Over the years, they’ve done episodes like “Full Moon (Creepy AF)” and “Haunted” and “Monsters” from the first three seasons, and if there’s one thing I know, it’s that the emergencies and calls are going to be very interesting for sure! And of course at the heart of everything else happening on Halloween, it’s the stories about our characters which also has the most emotional impact!
My overall all time favorite episode that’s Halloween centric is a little hard to choose, because there’ve been so many different tv shows that I’ve watched over the years which have all been memorable for all sorts of reasons! Stranger Things (Netflix) having done it back in season 2, episode 2, “Trick or Treat, Freak” when the boys dressed up as the Ghostbusters or Supernatural (CW) in season 4, episode 7, “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Sam Winchester” where Sam and Dean faced off against Samhain or even WandaVision (Disney+) season 1, episode 6 “All-New Halloween Spooktacular” which had its own take on spooky, but was an absolute delight to see all of the characters dressed in their comic-book accurate costumes! But, it would also be remiss of me not to go way way wayyyy back to Buffy the Vampire Slayer (WB) and Angel (WB) with their respective episodes, “Halloween” and “Life of the Party” because there’s something so memorable about how the episodes were that make them timeless and fun to reminisce about even two decades later!
VL: I can’t wait to see 9-1-1’s (ABC) Halloween episode (which will have already aired by the time this article is out). A few of the cast members spoke so highly of it and judging from the promo, we’re going to be in for a wild ride. They did a really great job at showing everything and nothing at the same time. It’s strange that I’m this excited for it though because the Halloween episodes are probably my least favorite of most of the shows I watch. The only one I can recall that I liked is the Halloween episode of That’s So Raven (Disney/Disney+) called “Don’t Have a Cow”. Raven and Chelsea were a mess that entire episode and I couldn’t stop laughing. Even watching it now I still laugh.
ET: Around this time of year I always find myself rewatching the Halloween episodes of Modern Family (ABC) and Community (NBC). And, every year during the month of October I rewatch episodes of Sabrina the Teenage Witch (ABC) because the show overall has that nostalgic Halloween vibe, you know? My favourite Halloween episode has to be the Parks and Recreation (NBC) one titled ‘Meet and Greet’ where April and Andy decide to throw a Halloween party, even getting Ron Swanson to attend. So many iconic moments in one episode. I tend to go for the more lighthearted Halloween episodes, if you couldn’t already tell.
CA: I have two favorite Halloween-themed episodes, and it’s tough to pick between them. The first is from Abbott Elementary (ABC), “Candy Zombies,” where the students riot after one kid steals a bag of candy from the library. I laughed so hard watching the chaos as the kids ran wild through the school, terrifying their teachers, who desperately tried to rein them in. As a teacher myself, it hit close to home. Anyone who teaches around Halloween knows these are the hardest days of the year. Kids are bouncing off the walls, high on sugar, and teachers can’t relax for even a second. This episode was both hilarious and incredibly relatable for me, and I love how real the show feels. My other favorite takes me back to Friends (NBC) with “The One with the Halloween Party.” From Ross dressed as Spudnik (or “Doody” as Chandler teases) to the arm-wrestling competition, it’s packed with laugh-out-loud moments.
KK: Don’t come for me, but I’m just not into Halloween. Like at all. Halloween episodes are usually my least favorite in any TV show. Now, Christmas episodes? I’ll take every single one, please and thank you!
JO: This week’s episode of Agatha All Along (Disney+) from the sneak peak Marvel released looks like it will be a fun Halloween-themed episode. There don’t seem to be as much Halloween themed tv series episodes these days like they used to be in the past.
My favorite Halloween episode of the top of my head is the “All Halliwell’s Eve “season 3 episode of the 90’s Charmed tv series (The WB). The episode is a fun hour of television that focuses on the core of what made the show so successful, family. I wish Charmed had more holiday themed episodes.
KR: There aren’t any specific upcoming Halloween themed episodes that I’m looking forward to because I’m interested in watching them all if possible. However, my favorite Halloween episode to date is from the TV Series Martin (FOX), Season 1: Episode 10-“The Night He Came Home.” Martin, Gina, Tommy, Cole, and Pam performed a séance at Martin’s apartment, with Martin’s coworker Shawn’s help, because Martin expressed that he wasn’t afraid of anything, so they pulled a prank on him where Tommy was possessed and other strange things were happening in the apartment proving that Martin does, in fact, get scared. Whenever I catch the rerun episode, or see clips of it, I still laugh hysterically like I’ve never seen it before.
MH: Brooklyn 99 (NBC) is the king of Halloween shows. For eight seasons, they utilized Halloween to really highlight the cast’s chemistry. Everyone got their moment to shine in their attempt to win the title of Ultimate Human-Genius. Even Holt and Kevin’s precious corgi, Cheddar, got in on the action. Freaks and Geeks (NBC) also had an amazing Halloween episode, “Tricks and Treats,” which really captured that moment of wanting to hold on to your childhood for as long as possible.
LO: I love Halloween-themed episodes! As someone who enjoys horror a lot, it’s always exciting—sometimes our favorite characters wear silly costumes, and sometimes there are references to horror classics, but usually, the fun and chilling storylines are assured. Some episodes stand out to me: “Chapter One: October Country”, the first episode of Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (Netflix) sets up a remarkable Halloween eclipse as a way to start the show, and Evil (Paramount+) has the incredible “October 31”, which features an exorcism and a creepy masked child. But my favorite Halloween-themed thing ever is probably Over the Garden Wall (Cartoon Network), which is very short, very spooky, and very sweet—perfect for Halloween. Anyway, this year I’m looking forward to 9-1-1 (ABC) newest Halloween-themed episode, Masks—it’s been a long time since they did one of these, so I’m expecting to have some fun watching this.
SO: To talk about my favorite Halloween-themed episodes, I definitely have to choose The Simpsons’ “Treehouse of Horror” (Fox), which only a couple of years ago I dedicated myself to watch all the ones that had been released up to that moment and I have to say that I still prefer the first years’, since I have watched them several times and I could do it again and again.
Another episode with this theme that I particularly remember is “All Halliwell’s Eve” from Charmed (The WB), in which the sisters travel to the 17th century to protect some witches and end up helping their ancestor, the one who started their lineage, be born. I like this episode because in a way we can learn a little more about the origin of this holiday.
Are you a fan of the horror genre? What are some of your favourite horror movies? Horror shows? Or even, horror episode within a normal show?
AS: I am definitely not a fan of the horror genre—anything that even falls under the realm of “scary” with nothing that would be considered horror but still might have a jump-scare or two is still a complete no-no for me! I’m the kind of person who will hide under the blanket while attempting to see something in broad daylight even! I have seen Supernatural (CW) of course in all of its 15 seasons, but I guess if one has to think about it, then maybe Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992) would fall under a horror movie which is one of my favorites, or even the Hotel Transylvania movies! That’s probably as far as I’ve gotten, horror but in animated form!
VL: I’m a huge fan of the horror genre, however, I have not seen a lot of the classic horror films from back in the day. I’ve never seen The Shining (1980) or Poltergeist (1982). I know, I know, shame on me but I should get some credit for seeing both Carrie films (the 1976 version is untouchable). Despite not seeing a few classics, I’m still considering myself a huge horror fan. It (2017) is one of my favorites—I love Pennywise (I’m not supposed to but I feel like he’s deeply misunderstood). The Birds (1963) is an oldie but goodie – I watched it in a film class I took and it became one of my favorites instantly. I’m not sure how to explain it but if you ever check it out, I’d love to chat about it. I recently saw The Crow (2024) and I thought it was amazing. This is going to be a controversial statement but I think it’s better than the original. I’d say this makes my top 20 list of favorite horror movies. I don’t watch horror shows—there’s no particular reason for that because I genuinely love the genre but I haven’t seen anything that caught my eye. If you’re reading this and have an amazing recommendation then I’d be open to it.
ET: I’ve watched and been a long-time fan of Criminal Minds (CBS) so I think it’s safe to say I’m okay with horror episodes. Each episode is particularly horrific in its own way but one knows that any episode involving porcelain dolls is bound to be creepy, which is exactly the atmosphere that the episode ‘The Uncanny Valley’ provides. Women drugged and paralyzed by an unsub to become real-life mannequins. Yeah, maybe don’t watch this one in the dark.
Horror movies though? I’ll sit those out.
CA: I’m a huge horror movie fan, and October is hands down my favorite month. I binge-watch as many classics as I can on AMC’s FearFest. There’s just something special about the old-school horror films—they knew how to scare you and keep you hooked. The newer ones can’t hold a candle to the originals. My all-time favorites are Friday the 13th, Poltergeist, The Shining, and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
KK: No surprise after my last answer, but horror has never been my thing. In fact, I avoided it like the plague until the end of last year. But when Mary McDonnell joined Mike Flanagan’s The Fall of the House of Usher, I had to give it a shot—and I don’t regret it one bit! Great show, captivating storylines—horror like that I’d definitely watch again!
JO: I’m not the biggest horror movie fan but I’ve always enjoyed the Scream franchise movies as great commentaries on the horror movie genre.
When it comes to tv series however I’ve typically always enjoyed horror tv series that are a mishmash of multiple genres. From (MGM+) is a pretty good example of a fantasy horror mystery box ensemble tv series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer (The WB) is a fantasy comedy horror teen drama, Stranger Things (Netflix) is a fantasy teen coming of age horror tv series and Raised by Wolves (HBO Max) was science fiction action horror. Horror can be a very flexible genre.
KR: I am a huge fan of the horror genre, it’s one of my top favorite genres. Some of my favorite horror movies are the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, IT, Sleepaway Camp, and Friday the 13th franchise. My favorite Horror shows are From, American Horror Story, American Horror Stories, Grotesquerie, and Stranger Things.
MH: With Halloween comes the line-up of horror movies. I hate gore, but growing up, A Nightmare on Elm Street and Poltergeist really did a number on me. Now, I’ll settle in for a re-watch of Practical Magic.
LO: I think I always loved horror—it just took me a while to recognize it. I mean, I never liked jumpscares, and I’ve been usually scared of stories about demons and possessions. Not a fan of gore. Not exactly a fan of grim, depressing stuff. So whenever someone asked me if I enjoyed horror, the answer was no. After a while, I realized that I was giving them the wrong answer—a huge part of the movies and TV series I’ve watched is horror, even if they don’t necessarily include jumpscares and gore—even if there is some comedy in them! So yeah, I’m a fan of movies like Scream (the first one is very dear to me, but I appreciate the new ones a lot for introducing me to Melissa Barrera), Ready or Not, Coraline, Pan’s Labyrinth, Nope, The Substance, and the Fear Street are some of the movies I enjoy; when it comes to TV, Hannibal (NBC), Interview with the Vampire (AMC), Evil (Paramount+), and anything Mike Flanagan, but especially Midnight Mass (Netflix) and The Haunting of Hill House (Netflix), are very special to me as well.
SO: Ok, this is where I confess that horror is one of my all time favorite genres in all its presentations (books, movies, series and so on), so it would be very difficult for me to list all my favorite movies because I think it would take me too much time and space, but if I have to name a few I would say Gin gwai (the original The Eye from Hong Kong, 2002), which in my opinion has one of the best scenes in horror movies (and the one that has scared me the most), The Ring (2002), The Shining (1980), Psycho (1960), The Sixth Sense (1999) and many more, including several from Asia and others produced in my country (Mexico).
Regarding TV shows, when trying to do a recount I’ve realized that, as strange as it may seem being such a fan of the genre, I haven’t really seen many or at least not complete, not because I don’t like them, but because my watchlist is very long, but of those I have seen there are several that I remember that left a good impression on me as Midnight Mass (Netflix), Evil (Paramount+), Scream (MTV), Archive 81 (Netflix) and Them (Prime Video), that even when I haven’t finished the first season yet, I’ve really liked it and it has shocked me a lot. But without a doubt I can’t fail to mention Are You Afraid of the Dark? (Nickelodeon) and Goosebumps (Fox Kids), whose original versions were among the first I saw in my teenage years and I think they were a good start into the genre.
In the past week, what notable TV moment has happened? Any new releases to recommend? A scene that blew you away? Anything you’re looking forward to next week?
AS: I’m still far behind on my weekly tv watching, having just gotten back from a trip, but the one thing that I am looking forward to is seeing the new season of The Devil’s Hour (Prime Video) which just released on Oct 18th, and after the cliffhanger ending that was season 1, I am very much intrigued to see how the story continues. And of course, getting to see Peter Capaldi in his captivating role as Gideon Shepherd is going to be one of the highlights for me this week!
VL: Rescue:HI-Surf (FOX) is one of my favorite new shows – last week’s episode was a tough one. There was this moment in the episode, well, two moments actually, that blew me away. The first being the scene where [SPOILER ALERT] Rocky gets taken by a huge wave and is lost not once but twice. When Hina grabs him the first time, it all seemed good until they were hit with another wave. He slips right out of her arms and falls back into the water but they’re unable to recover him the second time. Now, I’m not sure what Hina was thinking but she went into the water desperately trying to find him and almost didn’t make it. It was a reckless move on Hina’s part and I didn’t realize until after I knew she was alright that I was holding my breath, that scene was so intense. Then there was this moment at the end of the episode where Hina walks into the condo she’s sharing with Kainalu, visibly upset, and when Kainalu asks her what’s wrong she doesn’t say a word she just falls into his arms and starts crying. Now, I know that doesn’t seem like much but these two have been taking jabs at one another for weeks now and this was such a nice moment between them. I hope it continues (and possibly builds into something more). You know which show continues to amaze me? High Potential (ABC). It’s predictable for the most part but something about the chemistry between Morgan and Adam (Karadec) that makes my heart smile. If Castle and Wild Cards had a baby, this show would be it. Please, if you haven’t already, check this one out.
ET: I’ve found myself going back to a lot of ‘90s and early ‘00s shows so I haven’t caught up to many shows that have aired this week/month as yet! I am looking forward to this week’s episode of Fire Country (CBS), though. Tracker (CBS) has been back for two weeks and I somehow haven’t managed to watch any episodes but that will be corrected this weekend for sure.
CA: One standout moment from this past week was Jensen Ackles returning as Colter’s brother, Russell Shaw, on Tracker (CBS). The episode had a supernatural twist, which made it the perfect opportunity for some Easter eggs for Supernatural (CW) fans. Justin Hartley and Ackles have amazing on-screen chemistry, and it’s always a treat when Russell steps in to help with a case. Next week, I’m really excited for all the Halloween-themed episodes that will hit our screens. I’m also looking forward to the next episode of Shrinking (AppleTV+). The last episode ended with Alice confronting the drunk driver who killed her mother, and I’m eager to see how that storyline unfolds. Shrinking is such a gem—hilarious, heartwarming, and Harrison Ford is absolutely brilliant in it. If you’re looking for a feel-good comedy, I can’t recommend it enough.
KK: I highly recommend Billy Crystal and Judith Light’s new psychological thriller Before on Apple TV+ which premieres on Friday 25th. I had the opportunity to watch the first episode at a screening last week, and I was hooked from the very first second on. The show follows a child psychologist (Crystal) grieving the recent loss of his wife (Light). When he takes on a young boy (Jacobi Jupe) with a very mysterious condition as a patient—and his deceased wife begins speaking to him—the once-rational scientist may have to question everything he thought he knew. The entire cast delivers outstanding performances, working together like a well-oiled machine. Don’t miss this one!
JO: Whilst The Penguin (HBO) continues to impress me week to week, this week I’d love to spotlight Poppa’s House (CBS) starring Damon Wayans and his son Damon Wayans Jr. It’s a fun light hearted comedy series that reminds me of Black American led Sitcoms from the 90s and 2000s. Damon Sr and Essence Atkins chemistry stood out the most to me, all their scenes together were pretty good in the pilot. I hope their part of the show gets more focus as the season progresses.
I’m looking forward to the season finale of Agatha All Along (Disney+) next week. Matlock (CBS) and High Potential (ABC) both continue to be really great procedurals carried by excellent performances by both Kathy Bates and Kaitlin Olson. Matlock has already been thankfully renewed for a second season.
KR: I am particularly looking forward to watching Teacup on Peacock. Of course, to no surprise, it’s a horror series, so I must check it out, and am very excited to begin watching it to see what transpires, and the who, what, why and how, of this very mysterious, suspenseful horror show.
MH: This week, Shrinking (HBO) continues to break my heart. At the end of this week’s episode, we see that Alice might be as self-destructive as her father, Jimmy. Agatha All Along (Disney+) played with time gaps, and any episode that focuses on the great Patty LuPone is a good one. Bonus points for the comments about how witches are portrayed in popular culture.
SO: Continuing with the Halloween theme, not long ago I watched a Korean miniseries on Netflix called Goedam, 8 short horror films that despite not all of them are the best, most are very scary. And while we’re on the topic of Asian horror, I’d also like to recommend another series, in this case Japanese and animated, that although I haven’t watched it recently and I haven’t seen the whole thing either, I think it’s one of the best in the genre. It’s called Yamishibai: Japanese Ghost Stories (Crunchyroll) which presents in very short episodes (less than 5 minutes each), as its name says, ghost stories based on myths and urban legends from Japan.
As for something I’m hoping to get a chance to watch soon, it’s Grotesquerie (FX) that just premiered a couple of days ago via streaming in my country, which from the little I’ve read about it, has caught my attention.
That wraps up another round table! Feel free to drop your thoughts in the comments below. See you next week!
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