Halloween cartoon cliches?

T

trill dill

New member
I know I haven't posted a poll-type thread in awhile, but guess it's taken time to come up with a topic that isn't along the lines of "What's your top 6.022 x 10^23 favorite Simpsons quotes?" or "The Top Googolplex best cartoon characters ever!" and run afoul of the "no list threads" rule recently instated...so...

What cliches are usually seen in Halloween episodes / specials of cartoons?


To start:

- It's always a full moon on Halloween night. Which of course isn't always guaranteed, but I guess otherwise they can't have stories involving werewolves showing up...

- There's always a house that gives out something lame (usually healthy food or vaguely-healthier-than-candy snacks) that the kids will *always* gag over. Guess this happens in reality too, but kids seem a bit more tolerant in real life than in cartoons...

- Jokes about lame costumes will often be seen.

- A haunted house will often be seen showing up in the series just for the Halloween episode. Since of course the kids don't feel compelled to go into the haunted house on, say, March 22nd or anything...

- The weather's always warm enough to go out trick-or-treating on October 31st without needing jackets. I know the cartoon makers live in California, but around *here* (the midwestern US, i.e. *not* California), it's already highs in the 50s/lower 60s at this time of year...

Any others?

-B.
 
In the case of the Simpson, they have the Treehouse of Horror ep in November for past years due to the MLB Playoffs. In one of them, Kang and Kodos even made reference to it and that they were already putting up their Christmas decorations, which is the same thing department stores do. They have one day, and then have crap in for the next one coming up, such as Halloween and Christmas right now.
 
I don't think Halloween have that many cliches as Chrismas specials. A Hallowen special has some unpredictability to it, especially the Simpsons. But Chrismas specials always have the sobby happy endin.g
 
The kids will always attempt to scare each other, only to find out at the end that some real ghost was in on it or have some supernatural thing appear in order to give it a "twist" ending.
 
There will always be some kids TPing and/or egging the house of at least one member of the school staff. How they manage to find those houses isn't explained.
 
Everything I can think of has pretty much already been said, but:

Halloween is one of the few instances where animators will acknowledge a season other than CONSTANT spring/summer weather. You'll see falling leaves, etc.
 
Something horrible or spooky is happening in the neighborhood, people are scared, they go investigate, when there wasn't really anything horrible after all!

Then at the end of the episode, leave some form of twist that all is still not what it seems.
 
- You see a group of kids wearing costumes walking down the street. When they pull their costumes off, the last kid in the row will either be a real ghost under the white sheet, or their face will be an exact match of the ugly mask they're wearing.
 
Whenever actual otherworldly creatures (i.e., witches, demons, space aliens, etc.) decide to invade a town on Halloween, they will inevitably be mistaken by one or more of the locals to just be kids in costumes. Very elaborate costumes.
 
There's always some dingus who has never heard of Trick of Treating before, and needs the concept explained to them. They're always the one with the lamest costume.
 
Some or lots of the kids will eat too many sweets and have to go to the dentist the next day or later. All those kids will just happen to have their appointment on the same day.
 
There's the candy stealing bully that's pretty common. Costume competition... the house that got better decorations than the other...
 
Heh; Fairly Oddparents' Christmas special has both of these last two cliches (candy-stealing bully *and* a trip to the dentist the next day)...

>>Halloween is one of the few instances where animators will acknowledge a season other than CONSTANT spring/summer weather. You'll see falling leaves, etc.

Like I noted before, probably either to save money on animation and/or the result of an entertainment industry based in southern California. :-p (The Simpsons episodes about the Super Bowl showing leaves on trees, everyone in summer clothes, etc. comes glaringly to mind as one example of this...)

-B.
Notes with irony that *he* has a dental appointment for November 1st...
 
That's how we always wished it was on Halloween. :p

I live here in the Northeast and I have to say that nothing kills the awesomeness of your Halloween costume more than wearing a winter coat over it. I don't remember Dracula ever wearing a winter coat. I don't remember Superman wearing one either. So, dressing up as Dracula or Superman with a winter coat on over your costume was always a letdown.

Luckily, this year looks like it'll be warm enough for the kids to go out without the heavy jacket. :D Otherwise, at least the idea exists in cartoons when it can't in real life.
 
Or Lisa and Ralph walking to the Simpson's home without coats on Valentine's day. FEBRUARY 14th!

Back when I was a child it could actually be snowing on October 31st.

BTW nice Hacker avatar Brainy. I miss Cyberchase.
 
Yeah, I still watch Cyberchase on Sunday morning, along with Wordgirl, probably the best PBS show on right now, or ever. That's right, I said ever.
 
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