Jill Gordon's script overflows with wonderful moments that build all the
way through, even if it's not really Halloween. From the first shot of
Angela peering through a pumpkin to the fadeout of her teacher saying,
"Let's get into the spirit of things," this is superb television.
The dialogue in ‘Halloween’ is some of the best, fast and clever, never forced. It edges the plot and characters along beautifully, aided by Mark Piznarski's haunting direction.
Many of the lines resurface later, spoken by a different character, with varying effects. "Don't leave things to the last minute" is Patty's admonition to her daughters, which the costume lady repeats verbatim. She's a female Charles Durning with a second sense about people and her own scratchy background music. There's also another Brian-Jordan repeat. When Rayanne asks what Brian is doing at school, he says it's public property. Jordan says the same thing to Rickie later on, not being defensive— just saying it's okay for Rickie to be there. My favourite exchange picks up a theme from the previous episode. Patty says, "Wait. Who are we gonna be?" "When we grow up?" asks Graham seriously.
Sharon has fun in her misunderstood disguise. "I'm not a rat, I'm a cat." Later on, she accepts that she's a big rat. Nobody should hate who they are. Her typical school spirit is showing when she warns, "If people don't wear costumes, they're gonna be discontinued," before trick-or-treating with Danielle. Again, she puts in a good word for Angela after Danielle claims she hates her. "So why'd you wanna be her?" Of course, Danielle doesn't hate her sister any more than Angela hates Patty.
Brian is another character who is uncovered. He lends Rickie his clothes without an admonition not to sweat in them, but when Rickie offers to wash them, Brian has to add that the pants have to be washed separately. Somehow it's hard to picture Brian obsessed with his wash; 'thank you' would have sufficed. Brian is defensive through most of this episode, in fact. He blurts out that it's public property, when really he's looking for Rickie to get his keys, or maybe just crashing the party. Whatever. Then he is defensive about scoping Rayanne's legs, as if she would be upset or something. It's cute when Rayanne shares her fear of the dark and Brian feels there must be an explanation, like when he asks Rickie why he wears makeup in ‘Guns & Gossip.’ Or when Brian thinks he had this big adventure with Rayanne and she told Rickie nothing happened. Of course, Tino proves to be Mr Halloween.
If there's a problem with this episode (for some), it's the fantasy sequence where Angela chats with a ghost. Maybe the writer saw one Twilight Zone episode too many, but it can be rationalised as daydreaming or actual dreaming, if the viewer, like Brian, needs a rational explanation for everything. Then again, maybe it's a miracle. If it's Angela's fantasy, she envisions Nicky as a Jordan type. Most tv shows would just have Jordan be Nicky, but MS-CL is far too cool for that. Though Jordan has uttered the same sentence ("I can't get out of it"), unbeknownst to Angela. Nicky also repeats Angela's line: "At least I'll know I'm alive."
Typically, MS-CL doesn't abide with clichés, so while there is a spooky incident with Angela and Nicky Driscoll, the scariest things are everyday occurrences. As Patty points out, it's "so scary to have to fire someone." In fact, Boyd is scary by himself, with his frequent chiropractic adjustments. And he only appears off-camera. Or seeing Danielle metamorphasise into Angela perfectly. Patty and Graham's reactions are priceless.
As for Graham and Patty, they just need a little spark, as the costume lady knows. Disguises work better than ballroom dancing. Or maybe fables (Rapunzel, Nicky Driscoll) with symbols (a handkerchief, a rose) is what Halloween is all about.
As always, the classroom scenes are realistic. The teacher trying, but not succeeding, making a lame joke no one gets, probably not even her.
There is a short coda to this episode. Determined to save Jordan, as
she failed to do with Nicky, Angela urges him to go to class. He isn't
very responsive, but having someone actually care about what happens to
him has an effect. He shows up, albeit sitting in the very last seat with
an attitude of studied boredom. Still, it reflects growth in their relationship.
MIDPOINT ANNOUNCEMENT - ANGELA