|
Candy Eats People (Summerween)
| |
|
| |
|
Released
|
October 27, 2022
|
|
Running time
|
21:30
|
|
Link
|
|
|
Previous
|
|
|
Next
|
|
|
Video
|
 |
Doug: In Gravity Falls, candy eats you! See, even I wouldn't remember that routine. I don't care. I remember...
Doug (vo): Gravity Falls’ “Summerween”, which premiered in 2012.
Doug: This is one of my all-time favorite shows and one of my all-time favorite episodes. I can't wait to talk about it. Let's take a look.
(Grunkle Stan and the twins Mabel and Mason "Dipper" Pines have arrived at a superstore. Stan has parked in a handicapped spot.)
Grunkle Stan (voice of Alex Hirsch): Here we are. The Summerween Superstore.
Doug (vo): The setup to this is very, very clear.
Doug: Gravity Falls just wanted to do a Halloween episode, but it's supposed to all take place over one summer, so they just made up Summerween. And what I like about is that it is the exact same as Halloween, but there's one key difference that just immediately gives it an identity. And that's...
Doug (vo): ...the Jack-o-Melon. That visual is brilliant.
Doug: And everything else is exactly the same to Halloween; it just happens to have a watermelon instead of a pumpkin for their decoration.
Doug (vo): And it's such a tiny little detail, but everyone now...
Doug: ...if you see a watermelon with a Jack-o-Lantern face on it, they associate it with Summerween.
Dipper and Mabel (voices of Jason Ritter and Kristen Schaal, respectively): TO THE COSTUME AISLE!
Doug (vo): So, heads up...
Doug: ...literally, in this case. When you see any kind of...
(We are shown a closeup of twelve masks on three rows of shelves on the far left.)
Doug (vo): ...strange but also kind of normal-looking faces in the background – in this case, the masks there...
Doug: ...they're usually people who work on the production. I – I haven't looked this up. I'll do it after, but I'm just assuming that's what it is, because those faces are way too normal yet way too specific to just be background noise.
(An excerpt from the article's trivia on the Gravity Falls wiki shows that the masks actually are the faces of the crew who work on the show. A "Ta-da!" sound effect plays, along with the text "I WAS RIGHT!")
Grunkle Stan: Stan Pines, Master of Fright! (He turns and faces a baby.) Boo. (The baby cries while Stan just laughs.)
Doug: Something the creator – Alex Hirsch – talked about with this...is that he said a good chunk of the excitement and the joy of Halloween is the anticipation. I never thought about that but he really is right.
Doug (vo): Going to Halloween stores, getting the candy, planning a haunted house...
Doug: I mean, some people literally make a living at this now. You know, like making haunted houses and Halloween masks and stuff. So they love that anticipation so much they literally dedicate the whole year to it.
Doug (vo): But what I do like is while there are people that just get so excited for this, you also have people...
Doug: ...who clearly hate this time of year. And they're usually people working at the Halloween store...
Doug (vo): ...because they have so much shit to put up with...
Doug: ...like our main characters here.
Store Worker (voice of Grey DeLisle): (speaking on walkie talkie) Have the police come and eject the Pines family from the store.
Grunkle Stan: NOT TODAY! (He throws a smoke bomb.)
Store Worker: MY EYES!
(Grunkle Stan, Soos, and the twins run out of the store. It's not shown in the review, but it's revealed that Grunkle Stan has not actually paid for the Summerween merchandise. Instead, he has left a piece of poorly drawn false money called a "Stan Buck" while he drives off in his car.)
Doug (vo): (laughs) No way is that...
Doug: ...a hilarious escape! I just love – they know who the Pines are. They're just all familiar with this family and the terrible things that they do.
Doug (vo): So many phenomenal color schemes in this. I mean, not just this episode...
Doug: ...just the whole show in general. But – I mean, just look at the inside of this Summerween store.
Doug (vo): I mean, you just look at the purple tint on the windows.
Doug: Now, who puts purple tint on windows in anything? But they do it here, and it just looks so beautiful.
Doug (vo): And I love the way they play with both warm and cool colors.
Doug: I feel like when you think of this show, you think of it being at night...
(Part of the show's opening sequence is shown.)
Doug (vo): ...you think of – you know – the stars and nighttime and cooler colors, but you also think of, like...
Doug: ...a fireplace...
Doug (vo): ...and you think of Fall, and...yeah, or – or Summer!
Doug: I mean, it takes place during Summer, but you always think of, like, kind of that Halloween atmosphere of Fall.
Doug (vo): So, I really like the way this show even though it's supposed to take place at a certain time – Summer...
Doug: ...it still incorporates so many things we associate with Halloween and scary things and, specifically, Halloween scary things in childhood.
Doug (vo): I feel like all these colors and these designs are very much reminiscent of things that...
Doug: ...people in my youth definitely grew up with and associated with spooky stuff.
Mabel: We're kind of the kings of trick-or-treating. (Mabel shows a memory book full of photos of Dipper and herself in different costumes, such as a pair of kittens, matching salt and pepper shakers, and of course, zombies.) Twins in costumes, the people eat it up.
Doug (vo): If you've ever seen...
Doug: ...this hilarious video that Alex Hirsch released showing all the back and forths he had with Disney about things they wanted to censor...
(An article featuring a link to said video pops up.)
Doug: ...you might be shocked...
(The camera zones in on the photo of the twins dressed as zombies. Dipper looks as if he's eating his sister's intestines.)
Doug (vo): ...they got away with that picture.
(Soos turns out the lights and holds a flashlight up to his face as he prepares to tell the twins about...)
Soos (voice of Alex Hirsch): The Summerween Trickster! (Dramatic music plays.)
Doug (vo): This is a show...
Doug: ...clearly swimming in detail – with the backgrounds and the foregrounds and a bunch of in-jokes and little puzzles and riddles that you're supposed to solve in between each episode.
Doug (vo): That all helps it create not only its own environment in its own world...
Doug: ...but also its own lore. And I think they wanted to create something reminiscent of, like, a classic Halloween monster here...
Doug (vo): ...also connected to Halloween. And the way they do it...
Doug: ...I think is so ingenious and so funny, and also pretty creepy and disturbing when you really think about it. So this – this episode really is kind of a complete package. Whenever I want to introduce someone to Gravity Falls, I either show them this episode or...
(A shot from the episode "Fight Fighters" pops up, showing Dipper alongside Rumble McSkirmish.)
Doug (vo): ...the "Fight Fighters" one.
Doug: One of those is always gonna make an instant fan.
Dipper: I've never even heard of these brands. (Dipper examines several pieces of candy from the bowl.) Sand Pop? Gummy Chairs? Mr. Adequate-Bar?
Doug: Now the "loser candy" he just listed there is all great, but my favorites are the ones he didn't list...
(Doug reads the name of each brand of less popular candy from the bowl.)
Doug (vo): ...Count Discount, Homework: The Candy, and Gelatin Product.
(It's not shown in the review, but Dipper tosses the less popular candy out the window into a garbage can. What we are shown, however, is that Robbie Valentino and Wendy Corduroy have answered the door. Wendy has left her jacket again.)
Robbie (voice of T.J. Miller): You going trick-or-treating or something?
Wendy (voice of Linda Cardellini): Shut up, Robbie. Of course he's not going trick-or-treating.
Dipper: No! Uh, yeah.
(Dipper hides the scrapbook behind his back.)
Doug (vo): So I'd be lying if I said...
Doug: ...when I saw this setup I wasn't let down a touch, because I have seen this scenario so many times when it comes to Halloween episodes.
(Robbie hands Dipper a flyer. Wendy's friend Tambry is apparently having a Summerween party at 9:00 tonight.)
Doug (vo): Someone feels like they're too old or they see it as something that's very baby-ish. But...
Doug: ...I feel like in this episode, they really justify it very well in tying him (Dipper) with the monster and the connection to his sister, because...
(Mabel is shown dressed as a jar of strawberry jelly. Also here are her friends Candy Chiu, dressed as a taffy, and Grenda Grendinator, dressed as a witch.)
Doug (vo): ...Mabel wants to do it for too long, and he (Dipper) wants to stop it too quickly.
Doug: I like those kind of opposites there, and I like that they do bond over it. Their different points of view do help them get closer.
Doug (vo): Something everybody can relate with. I mean, all almost all grown-ups give up trick-or-treating at some point.
Doug: Not me. (A video clip of Doug dressed up appears next to him.) I'm Walker White every year.
(Dipper waves to Wendy and Robbie in their van.)
Dipper: Maybe I'll see you at the party.
Wendy: Don't forget!
(The van drives off. Dipper can't help but wonder how to break the news to Mabel that he doesn't wish to go trick-or-treating, so he tries to fake illness.)
Doug (vo): Now, this episode doesn't take place...
Doug: ...as much in the woods. But I will say when they shoot in the woods, that's some of my favorite stuff...
Doug (vo): ...because the shadows are so black and unusually...
Doug: With backgrounds in animated shows, they want to make them a little lighter and a little out of focus or in lighter brushes so – again – the foreground can really stand out. But because there's so much shadow work in Gravity Falls the shadows...
Doug (vo): ...mixed with kind of the softer colors and kind of the fog and stuff like that...
Doug: ...there's just all sorts of different textures going on and different types of lighting going on.
Doug (vo): And you definitely get them in suburban areas as well, but the woods is where that really, really stands out.
(Dipper answers the door. He finds himself greeted by the Summerween Trickster himself.)
Trickster (voice of Jeff Bennett): Trick or treat.
Doug: So here's the introduction to the Summerween Trickster. And I always thought he was a combination of...
(We are shown stills of the following animated characters...)
Doug (vo): ...No-Face from Spirited Away and Candlejack from Freakazoid.
Doug: Now I was half right. He was definitely an influence from No-Face from Spirited Away, but he was...
(We are shown an image of...)
Doug (vo): ...the Scarecrow from Batman. That was apparently the other tie-in.
Doug: However, the voice...
(An image of Johnny Bravo and his voice actor, Jeff Bennett, appears in the upper left corner of the screen.)
Doug (vo): ...is the same guy who voiced Candlejack from Freakazoid.
Doug: So I'm pretty damn close.
Trickster: Collect 500 pieces of candy, and bring it to me before the last Jack-o-Melon goes out.
Doug: Like, honestly a lot of great monsters, you can see where the inspirations are coming from, but you can combine them in a way that it feels like something new and looks like something new. And certainly the story behind this thing really is something new.
Doug (vo): Goes after kids that lose the Summerween spirit – which, again...
Doug: ...that's kind of familiar with not just Halloween stuff, but any kind of holiday stuff – losing the Christmas spirit as well – you've heard that a lot. But again, the payoff on this...justifies everything, and it explains everything. It's just – I – I mean, if you're watching it, you already know it, but God damn! It's just – I still don't want to ruin it. It's so goddamn good.
Dipper: You're a little old for this, man.
(The Trickster angrily points with his finger.)
Trickster: You have insulted me!
Doug (vo): Wonderful shot there.
Doug: And the shadows are so good that you can watch it on a darker TV, or maybe have your settings down...
(The brightness on the shot of the Trickster pointing changes from dark to light.)
Doug (vo): ...a little darker. But you can also turn up the lighting in it – the exposure – and it still looks great.
Doug: And that is really tricky to do – to have a shot that looks good both on a darker screen and a lighter screen – because everybody adjusts their screens and monitors differently. So, I mean – that is – that's something to really appreciate there.
(A trick-or-treater dressed as a pirate shows up at the Mystery Shack.)
Gorney (voice of Grey DeLisle): My name is Gorney.
(The Trickster grabs Gorney by the head and swallows him whole.)
Gorney: Remember meeee!
Grenda (voice of Carl Furuolo): Gorney!
Doug: So apparently, this character came along. Just one of the writers or the storyboard artists – something like that – just wanted a character named Gorney.
Doug (vo): And Alex Hirsch just liked the name "Gorney". So he's like...
Doug: "We have to show this thing is really scary. It's intimidating. We have to raise the stakes here and make him like super, super scary. So we're just gonna have him eat a kid, and that kid might as well be Gorney." (laughs) So, yeah. That's Gorney's big appearance.
Doug (vo): I think this is the point, too. Whenever I show this to someone who hasn't seen the show and they see that moment and they go...
Doug: "Oh, shit! Like, this actually is pretty dark!"
Doug (vo): And even though he (Gorney) technically does come back at the end...
Doug: ...the way he comes back is also very dark. So, again, it balances out.
Trickster: You must trick-or-treat...or DIE.
(The Trickster leaps up, crawls across the roof of the Mystery Shack, and is gone.)
Doug (vo): And that was apparently the saying...
Doug: ...that just inspired the whole episode. They were like, "We want to do a Halloween episode." Or "What do we want to do?" Or "Now what's the idea?" And someone just said, "Trick-or-treat or die." And that's where this whole idea came from, showing even just a little saying can just suddenly inspire so much creativity.
Doug (vo): Okay. So they (Grenda, Candy, and the twins) have to get 500 pieces of candy to get to the Trickster before the last Jack-o-Melon goes out...
Doug: ...and he'll let them live.
(Soos has shown up. Dipper tells him about how the Trickster is making them go trick-or-treating, and and they'll be eaten if the don't meet the goal.)
Dipper: There's no way!
(Mabel claps her hands while standing on to pf a bale of hay.)
Mabel: Listen up, people.
Doug (vo): I love that Mabel's already on this haystack...
Doug: ...ready to make a speech. She's literally been waiting for this all her life. She has a mission to get as much candy as possible. It doesn't even have to be a Halloween holiday. This is just her mission in general.
(Grunkle Stan answers the door for a bunch of trick-or-treaters. He is dressed like a vampire.)
Grunkle Stan: What can I do for you – Oh no! No! Augahhh! (His face melts off of his skull. Three of the trick-or-treaters run away.)
Doug (vo): I love this gag because it works on two levels!
Doug: One is, how the hell did he do this trick where his face just melts off in front of them and shows a skull? And then two, somehow, the trick just involves...
Doug (vo): ...this little paper mask skull!
Doug: (laughs) You never find out how it goes down!
(Two of the trick-or-treaters are still there.)
Kid: Can we have candy now?
Grunkle Stan: What's the matter with you kids? That was the scariest thing you've ever seen, right?
Doug (vo): So they said this idea of Stan...
Doug: ...trying to scare these two kids who just won't be scared by anything – it wasn't inspired by anything in particular. I always think of Ed Wood...
(We are shown the scene from Ed Wood where Bela Lugosi, portrayed by Martin Landau, makes an attempt to scare off a trick-or-treater.)
Doug (vo): ...when Bela Lugosi tries to scare the kids and one just won't be scared – you know – when he's trick-or-treating.
Doug: I don't know. That's... It may be subconsciously or maybe they never saw the movie Ed Wood, but I don't know. That's the vibe I get.
(Soos and the kids show up at the house of Lazy Susan. She is dressed as a big ball of yarn.)
Lazy Susan (voice of Jennifer Coolidge): Is everybody in costume? Chimney sweep, elephant man, squeegee, ant farm!
Doug: Apparently, those costume names were improvised. And if you know anything about...
(We are shown a still from the 2003 film A Mighty Wind, which features Jennifer Coolidge and Larry Miller as Amber Cole and Wally Fenton.)
Doug (vo): ...the actress doing that voice, Jennifer Coolidge...
Doug: ...you know she's pretty damn good at that.
Dipper: We're kinda in a hurry.
(Lazy Susan gives everyone except Dipper one piece of candy.)
Candy: Circus peanut? This is loser candy.
Doug: Again, very clever to show that if they're not dressed up like the twins, not only are they not getting the amount of candy that they're required, but they're getting the loser candy. They're bringing it back into there, and it happens very naturally, but not enough where you feel like it's gonna give away the twist at the end. Again, this is such good writing.
(Dipper is now dressed as a jar of peanut butter.)
Dipper: Do you really think this will make a difference?
(A biker answers the door.)
Doug (vo): Apparently, this guy is called Bats...
Doug: ...because he obviously has "BATS" tattooed across his arm. It was originally "STAB", but the studio said that was too violent. So they...
(The camera zones in on the biker's tattoo.)
Doug (vo): ...just spelled it backwards and made it "BATS".
Doug: But, again...
(The photo of Dipper and Mabel as zombies is shown once more.)
Doug (vo): ...the zombie thing was okay.
Doug: I don't know, Disney. You let the show get made; it's one of the greats. I'm not gonna complain too much, but I – I don't know, Disney!
Dipper and Mabel: TWINS!
(The biker sheds a single tear and dumps the entire bowl of candy in their bag.)
Doug: I also get the feeling the bottle looked...
(The camera zones in on a bottle sitting next to the trash can on the biker's front porch.)
Doug (vo): ...a little bit too much like alcohol, so they wrote "MILK" on it.
Doug: I can't confirm that, but you get that vibe, too, don't you?
Wendy: You're coming, right?
Dipper: Definitely, definitely.
Mabel: You're going to a party?
Doug (vo): So you get the big confrontation here.
Doug: She (Mabel) finds out that he (Dipper) was gonna ditch her and go to this party and that he doesn't want to trick-or-treat anymore. And I've heard over and over that Mabel gets a lot of backlash...
(Mabel confronts her brother about faking illness to avoid trick-or-treating so he could attend Tambry's party. It's not shown in the review, but the wheelbarrow that the group is using to carry the candy has fallen into the gorge of a nearby creek. Much of the candy has started to float downstream.)
Doug (vo): ...being too pushy, being too annoying, that if too many things have to be moved around her and stuff like that.
Doug: I would agree if she wasn't funny. She is such a funny character, and she is so likable and has such...
Doug (vo): ...passionate enjoyment for life that she could literally kill half the characters. And I'd be on board.
Doug: If you make the character likable, I think you can really get away with a lot. So even though I don't disagree with what a lot of people have said, she still may be my favorite character in the show.
(Grunkle Stan is still trying to scare the two trick-or-treaters from before. Previously, he tried using a roll of hotdogs to look like intestines. This time, he has Mabel's pet pig Waddles burst out of his shirt.)
Doug (vo): Yeah, Stan's pretty great.
Doug: Second favorite.
(A Jack-o-Melon is seen blown out in the wind. Suspensful music plays.)
Doug (vo): Yeah, I guess I don't want to undersell the backgrounds...
Doug: ...in the suburbia area either. They're still phenomenal. They're still wonderful.
(Dipper points toward the junkyard at the end of a road. The group finds out that Old Man McGucket's Jack-o-Melon is the only one that is still lit.)
Doug (vo): And again, so clever in finding different ways to incorporate different lighting here.
Doug: I mean, look at that little Jack-o-Melon there. It just has one little candle. But because this is a cartoon...
(The group rushes up to McGucket. They plea to him not to blow out his Jack-o-Melon. It's not shown in the review, but Grenda intervenes and manages to stop McGucket.)
Doug (vo): ...you can exaggerate everything, and it's very stylized. You can make that candle just make everything red...
Doug: ...and just cast this incredibly super-huge...
(Dipper, Mabel, Grenda, and Candy all breathe a sigh of relief – but as they do, the Jack-o-Melon goes out.)
Doug (vo): ...shadowy outline around everything. So, again...
Doug: ...that's the advantage of animation in a show like this.
(The Trickster is seen steeping out of the shadows and into the light from an overhead street lamp.)
Doug (vo): Oh, my God. How can you not get chills...
Doug: ...looking at that? Not only is it great – it's something we see in a lot of horror films – like someone's stepping into a spotlight and everything – but I love that the spotlight is flickering...
Doug (vo): ...I love the contrast of the yellow against the blue there, I love when he steps into the light, his warm colors.
Doug: So good! So good! The show's amazing! Why haven't I talked about this show earlier on this program? I had so many opportunities!
(Dipper throws a piece of candy at the Trickster, but the Trickster absorbs it into his form.)
Doug (vo): Again, another clue!
Doug: You think the idea is that – oh – if you touch him, you might get sucked into him. But because it's loser candy, you know why that did get absorbed into him. Just – again, they're little tiny details, but they really, really pay off at – well, the big payoff at the end.
(It's not shown in the review, but the kids are captured by the Trickster. At that moment, Soos shows up in his truck and drives into the Trickster, breaking the monster apart. Mabel is angry at her brother since he didn't want to go trick-or-treating with her, and Dipper unsuccessfully tries to apologize to his sister after everyone gets in the truck. However, the Trickster reassembles himself, and he comes after the truck, which ends up crashing into the Summerween store. Soos and the kids decide to hide there.)
Dipper: I felt like I was getting a little too old to go trick-or-treating.
Mabel: I guess I didn't realize it was already our last one.
Doug (vo): And again, even though this idea...
Doug: ...has been done, you relate to it a lot because you do have these two characters (Dipper and Mabel) – they are twins, they've grown up together, they're the same age. And I think the idea of not wanting to trick-or-treat and to keep trick-or-treating, you can relate to both!
Doug (vo): You understand both sides of this. So, I think it's something where you don't...
Doug: ...necessarily need a bad guy in this scenario. I mean – okay, the Trickster...
Doug (vo): ...is the bad guy, but I mean – like, between the two of them...
Doug: ...nobody's really in the wrong. It's something where they just kind of talk it out and figure it out...
Doug (vo): ...and it's done in a very short amount of time! You get all of that across...
Doug: ...with a lot of this buildup in the story, but then – just this...short but sweet conversation where you just – again – just connect to it so quickly.
(Soos and the kids decide to hide from the Trickster by dressing up in costumes. The kids try to use stealth to reach the exit, when Dipper suddenly turns around.)
Dipper: Soos!
(Soos is about to touch one of the cackling skulls in the candy bowls. He suddenly turns toward everybody.)
Dipper: Stop!
Doug (vo): See, this is the moment...
Doug: ...where I almost hate a character too much. I want to strangle Soos at this moment! But then they have that amazing joke...
Doug (vo): ...where he tries it. It doesn't work, and then he gets batteries – he actually puts the batteries in – and then...
Doug: ...pushes it. That is so goddamn funny! It just immediately makes me forget that I was angry at this character.
Doug (vo): And even the batteries have a little bat on them...
Doug: ...in a Halloween store! Come on! They – they've done their homework way too well in this!
Doug (vo): They've clearly been eating their Homework: The Candy!
(The Trickster, in arachnid form, swallows Soos whole. Dipper, Mabel, Candy and Grenda start attacking the monster with a bunch of toy weapons.)
Doug: Kind of like a little bit of a hint here at Zelda...
(The camera zones in on Dipper's shield.)
Doug (vo): ...but also Bill Cipher with the Triforce – that also has an eye on it.
Doug: Kind of a nice little crossover of references there.
Trickster: Don't you recognize me? (The monster pulls off his mask.) Look closely. (It turns out the monster is made of the less popular candy.)
Mabel: Loser candy!
Doug: So this, in my opinion, is the most ingenious part. Because not only is that a phenomenal payoff that is so funny – it is so connected to Halloween – everybody has gotten loser candy before. But I adore – adore the fact that there's no reason for all this loser candy to suddenly be alive!
(In a flashback, we are shown the less popular candy getting dumped into the junkyard. The Trickster is spawned from all the discarded pieces of candy and vows revenge on those who cast him aside.)
Doug (vo): Lightning doesn't strike it, it doesn't have mutagen fall on it, or anything like that. Like, it's just alive...
Doug: ...and that's all you need. That is just classic folklore. There's something you're familiar with, and it's just alive...
Doug (vo): ...and just doesn't waste any time with stuff you don't need. You don't need a reason why this thing is alive outside the fact that everybody hates it, and I just think that is such good storytelling.
(Soos suddenly bursts out of the monster's chest.)
Doug: There's your second Alien reference in this. I don't think that was intentional; it was just a coincidence. Um... I don't remember Soos seeing Stan...
(The scene where Waddles bursts out of Grunkle Stan's shirt is shown again.)
Doug (vo): ...hatch the pig (Waddles) out of his belly and being like, "Oh, maybe I'll use that later."
Doug: And I think it's just a coincidence.
Trickster: You actually think I taste good?
Soos: Uh, sure!
(The Trickster starts shedding candy corn tears.)
Doug (vo): And it even adds an element...
Doug: ...of tragedy to it, like any great monster story. So a part of you does kind of feel bad for this thing, but at the same time you're just laughing so hard because you do recognize all these elements from so many famous monsters.
Doug (vo): And what a perfect ending. The answer is obviously just to eat him (the Trickster) to death!
Doug: He's literally candy! It's Soos that would do it! He (Soos) wouldn't care what he's eating.
(Soos is snacking on a lump of candy shaped like a heart.)
Doug (vo): And he's (Soos) also eating his (the Trickster's) heart! Have you noticed that? That thing is, like, in the shape of a heart!
Doug: And then you have the return...
(Gorney suddenly pops up from the Trickster's remains.)
Gorney: I've been traumatized!
Doug: I'm not on social media much, but that...must have been a meme at some point. If not, give it two more years.
(Meanwhile, back at the Mystery Shack, Grunkle Stan has failed to scare two trick-or-treaters away. The kids sneak inside the place.)
Doug (vo): So this is the payoff with the kids not being scared by Stan...
Doug: ...and him feeling really bummed out about it, and it's okay.
(Grunkle Stan is wearing a bathrobe and a shower cap. He lets the bathrobe drop to the ground, and the trick-or-treaters are suddenly freaked out.)
Doug (vo): They pretty much see him (Grunkle Stan) naked, and that's what scares them. I mean, it's definitely...
Doug: ...classic kids' show stuff, but apparently, the workaround was – uh – Disney censors did come down on this and say, "Hey, hey, hey! You can't let 'em see a grown man naked! That's no good!"
(The trick-or-treaters flee from the Mystery Shack, leaving their bags of candy behind in the process.)
Doug (vo): So they have him (Grunkle Stan) wear shorts when he's outside. But in my opinion, when he went outside...
Doug: ...to check on 'em, that's when he put the shorts on. So as far as I'm concerned, they saw a naked guy, and it scared the shit out of 'em. The joke still works, in my opinion.
(Soos and the kids have returned to the Mystery Shack. Wendy is sitting at the table, carving a Jack-o-Melon.)
Wendy: I didn't see you at the party. Where were you?
Dipper: I was trick-or-treating. With my sister.
(Soos and the kids have returned to the Mystery Shack. Wendy is sitting at the table, carving a Jack-o-Melon.)
Doug (vo): So that's a sweet ending.
Doug: And I also like the fact that he's (Dipper) not saying it to kind of the person who would be the villain in this – Wendy's kind of boyfriend (Robbie) – and is – you know – he's saying it to Wendy – a person that he really, really likes. So I kind of like that he (Dipper) shows, "No, my sister (Mabel) is more important right now in this." But then it also has a pretty good punch line with what happens at the party.
Wendy: Robbie ate a lollipop stick-first and had to go home sick.
(Dipper tries to keep himself from snickering.)
Doug: Yeah. So even a guy that is "kind of" the bad guy in this – he gets his comeuppance, too.
Mabel: Didn't even get to eat any candy!
(Grunkle Stan holds up the two bags of candy left behind by the pair of trick-or-treaters.)
Grunkle Stan: How's that for candy?
Doug (vo): And again...
Doug: ...how's that for tying everything together? Good God, this is a well-written episode! Just everything fits into its right spot perfectly! It's so fucking good!
(Everyone is shown eating candy while they watch TV.)
Doug (vo): And I guess censors also had an issue...
Doug: ...with this last line where he (Grunkle Stan) says...
Grunkle Stan: It's a day when the whole family can get together at one place and celebrate what really matters: PURE EVIL!
Doug: But Hirsch's argument was this is the one time a year where kids can say that. And they can celebrate being troublemakers – doing things that are wrong and having fun with it and kind of getting away with it – within reason.
Doug (vo): So I feel like it excuses it.
Doug: And again, we end on another great line.
Soos: I ate a man alive tonight.
Doug: (sputters) So good! So good! Nothing more to add. Just – boom – end there, and you're done.
(The show's end credits roll. Mabel, Grenda and Candy are taking pictures of Waddles dressed in a business suit. One of the memed pictures shows the words "Oink oink, you're fired.")
Doug (vo): Okay, you got this little thing with the pig (Waddles) taking pictures. Cute.
Doug: (raises finger) As far as I'm concerned, it ends there! It ends on "I ate a man alive tonight!" So...man, it's so good. This show was so phenomenal.
Doug (vo): I just love how creative – how artistically pleasing it is. I love the great writing. I love the wonderful characters...
Doug: They're all so memorable. The jokes are so great at hitting both at kids and adults. All the references are so good...
Doug (vo): ...but it's also so good at creating its own world – its own environment – its own lore...
Doug: I can't praise this show enough. You've heard me praise it a lot in the past. I just – man, what the hell else can you say? It's Gravity Falls! It's one of the best animated shows ever made, and watching it – God – ten years later now, it still holds up phenomenally. So with that said, what are your thoughts on, it man?
Doug (vo): God, I almost have to ask: did you grow up with this episode? 'Cause it is ten years old...
Doug: ...the more I think about it! Uh... But, uh... Did you see it when you were older? Did you grow up with it? If you grew up with it, did it scare you at all?
Doug (vo): Did the Trickster actually kind of creep you out at all, or did you think it was pretty funny?
Doug: Did you think the payoff was really, really great? What's your favorite moments in this? I just adore this episode. I adore this show. I can't say enough great things about it.