***Spoilers Ahead***
HalloVeen
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| photo: NBC/Universal |
While most comedies on broadcast television use their Halloween episodes to focus on parties, trick-or-treating, and other festivities, Brooklyn Nine-Nine takes those elements off the table in favor of the annual heist. Because of this, each installment is fresh and exciting while simultaneously standing out from the rest of the sitcoms in our current television landscape. So, I went into this episode with high expectations. Ultimately, I can't say I was disappointed. 'HalloVeen' takes all the components that made the past four episodes amazing and ties them together with breakneck pacing. Additionally, it adds a twist that makes it even more memorable.
Just like past installments, Brooklyn Nine-Nine detaches itself from reality and goes into full comedy mode. Everything from Holt popping up at Jake & Amy's apartment in the middle of the night to Boyle handcuffing Jake and betraying him screams of ridiculousness. But, that's precisely why these episodes are so entertaining. They showcase how each respective character acts under a highly competitive situation. And, unlike the past four installments, there's no way to keep track of where the story is going. There are rapid-fire twists and turns at every corner and each new realization is funnier than the one before it. One of my favorite aspects of the episode involves the reintroduction of Bill the Boyle look-alike. His goofy demeanor fits right into the '9-9' universe and it's rather amusing that Jake must've kept in touch with him this whole time. 'HalloVeen' continues to be a slightly different but mainly similar episode until the Peralta proposal.
By throwing the curveball of introducing a serious element into an otherwise eccentric episode, the writers take a bit of the Halloween fun away. But, that's not to say that the proposal wasn't handled well. Ultimately, it felt like a nice way to cap off a potential final Halloween episode. Jake has always been a childish individual, so it makes perfect sense to end five years of silly competition in a way that captures the growth he has gone through throughout the series. Peralta has come a long way from the person who "jokingly proposed" to Santiago on other occasions (including the third Halloween episode). Nevertheless, I'm still a bit disappointed that there wasn't a conventional winner.
'HalloVeen' is a worthy fifth follow-up and fits well alongside the other Halloween episodes. While it is packed to the brim with comedy, it also knows when to have heart and how to effortlessly tackle something that many sitcoms struggle with. Finally, while I do hope that we get 'Halloween 6', I still feel like this episode would be the perfect send-off for the series of heists.
Stray Thoughts
- I cracked up when Holt said that he should have fired Terry long ago.
- Hitchcock & Scully need to win at some point.
- Poor Terry. The guy has so many tracking chips inside him.
- B99 should have more flashbacks.
Grade: A
What did you think of 'HalloVeen'? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.
