Top 6 Beetlejuice Episodes to Set the Halloween Mood

Ever since I was little, I’ve harbored a strange and unusual fascination for Beetlejuice. This later transformed into an avid obsession with Tim Burton’s catalog as a teenager. However, before that, I recall devouring the Beetlejuice animated series when it aired its reruns on Nickelodeon.

Now, you might be asking yourself, “There’s a Beetlejuice cartoon?!” Executive produced by Burton (with music by Danny Elfman), the show ran from 1989 to 1991, amassing an impressive 94 episodes over that short period. Initially, it aired on FOX and ABC. After watching the reruns when I was a bit older, Nick inexplicably pulled the series from its lineup.

For years after that, I couldn’t find Beetlejuice anywhere. I didn’t know anyone who watched it and wondered if I hallucinated the whole thing (I had a vivid imagination at five years old).

Thankfully, Tubi swooped in and saved the day. The streamer now has the entire show on its platform to watch for free. Additionally, the series will be available on DVD for the first time ever. To celebrate the Beetlejuice cartoon’s resurgence and the discovery of this little-known early ’90s gem by more fans, here are six episodes to watch this Halloween season.

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“Laugh of the Party” Season 1 Episode 5

It doesn’t take too long into the show’s inaugural season to get its first Halloween-themed episode. In “Laugh of the Party,” our titular Ghost with the Most assists Lydia Deetz in throwing the biggest Halloween bash to rival her archnemesis, Claire, the mean girl at school.

Naturally, Beetlejuice thrives during Spooky Season. He’s all about the tricks (not so much the treats, though). When he introduces “Party People in a Can,” Lydia’s party ascends to new levels of chaos as Neitherworld monsters run amok in Peaceful Pines.

Rewatching this series as an adult has been a fun experience – there are so many jokes and puns that went right over my head as a kid. Beetlejuice is a delightful amalgam of clever wordplay and dad jokes. This episode is no exception.

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“Worm Welcome” Season 1 Episode 6

Just look at these episode titles; they’re a writer’s dream. I bet working on this series was a blast and a half.

Anyway, in “Worm Welcome,” the spotlight shines brightly on the Sandworms, Beetlejuice’s worst nightmares. A newly hatched Sandworm inadvertently makes its way to the Outerworld and becomes a target of two hunters. Lydia tries to persuade Beetlejuice, who becomes a hero in the Neitherworld for triumphing over the Sandworms, to help her save the baby Sandworm from said hunters.

I also love this episode because we reunite with a few familiar faces from the 1988 live-action film, including Miss Argentina and Harry the Hunter (the dude with the shrunken head in the Neitherworld Waiting Room).

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“Scare and Scare Alike / Spooky Boo-tique” Season 2 Episode 2

Beetlejuice somehow manages to get even more Beetlejuicier (I need to trademark this) in “Scare and Scare Alike / Spooky Boo-tique.” Lydia opens a goth-themed clothing store (not Hot Topic), so our eponymous ghostly trickster decides to help his buddy increase her sales. To do this, he resorts to subliminal advertising, but we later learn he’s actually brainwashing the masses.

Brainwashing definitely feels like a Beetle move and aligns with his behavior in the original film. I selected this particular episode for this list because what’s more Halloween than a goth “boo-tique?”

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“Bewitched, Bothered, and Beetlejuiced” Season 2 Episode 5

Season 2’s requisite Halloween episode, “Bewitched, Bothered, and Beetlejuiced,” sees witches of the Neitherworld kidnap Lydia’s cat, Percy. Lydia and BJ masquerade as witches at the Neitherworld’s Witches’ Ball to save her poor kitty. Family-friendly comedic hijinks ensue.

I love that we saw Lydia transform her room into a castle again – the last time this happened was in the series pilot, “Critter Sitters.” Additionally, this is the only episode in which we hear Lydia’s cat speak. Not to mention, witches are synonymous with Spooky Season.

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“Ghost to Ghost” Season 3 Episode 4

“Ghost to Ghost” includes a séance and an homage to horror legend Boris Karloff – it’s the epitome of Halloween. In it, Delia, Lydia’s artsy, somewhat hoity-toity stepmom (although significantly more tolerable in the animated series), resurrects Lydia’s favorite actor, Boris Todeoff, from the dead via a séance. Beetlejuice is green with envy, especially when Lydia would rather spend more time with Boris than him. However, things take a turn for the evil when Boris tries to boot Lydia and her family out of their home.

I love the cheeky nods to popular films in this episode with the show’s signature creepy twist. For example, Boris Todeoff’s last film, The Thing That Ate New Jersey on Rye, is a nod to 1982’s The Thing.

We also reach peak dad joke territory with BJ’s “You bat I am!” response to the reveal that he hangs upside down to self-soothe.

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“Poe Pourri” Season 4 Episode 13

Which gothic writer/poet truly embodies Spooky Season? If you answered “Edgar Allan Poe,” you’d be correct. In “Poe Pourri,” the iconic figure visits BJ’s Roadhouse while searching for his beloved Lenore. Beetlejuice instantly becomes annoyed by Poe’s incessant lamentations, but he tries to practice tolerance because the latter is a paying customer. Money talks, y’all.

This episode features references to Poe’s works, notably his most famous piece, “The Raven,” as BJ experiences nightmares loosely based on said works. All in all, it’s a fun, perfectly Halloween-esque episode.

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What’s your favorite Beetlejuice episode from your Tubi marathon? Join the conversation with other pop culture fans over at Sideshow Social Network or in side.show/geekgroup, and don’t forget to Let Your Geek Sideshow!

Do you have a taste for terror? Are you ready to party like a vampire and wake up screaming? Run while you can … Spooktacular has come home!

Kiss your nerves goodbye during Sideshow’s Spooktacular 2024, a celebration with ghastly giveaways, deathly deals, eerie exclusive perks, and more. Join us from October 21 – October 31 by visiting side.show/spooktacular and don’t forget — sleep is for the weak!