Who Won the 2011 TV Halloween Costume Contest?
Halloween comes but once a year, but on television, it lasts a whole week! So before everybody moves on to thinking about the holidays, it's our responsiblity to judge this year's TV Halloween costume contest. Sometimes our favorite characters' costumes pay homage to pop-culture figures, sometimes they recall familiar classics, and sometimes they actually surprise us with their creativity and cleverness. We've collected the best costumes TV had to offer this All Hallow's Eve and made up a bunch of awards for the ones we liked best.
How I Met Your Mother
In "The Slutty Pumpkin Returns," the Slutty Pumpkin returned. And because Ted (Josh Radnor) went as a Hanging Chad and Katie Holmes was the titular gourd in a callback to an earlier episode, they are disqualified. Yes, that was an easy way to say their costumes were dumb... again (especially Ted's). But Robin (Cobie Smulders) as a Vancouver Canuck and Barney (Neil Patrick Harris) as Apollo Creed from Rocky were apropos as homages to their home countries. Barney gets an extra thumbs up for being anti-Canadian, not that we have any problems with our too-kind neighbors to the North. And it's always nice when pretty TV starlets follow Heidi Klum's lead and skip the [insert anything] outfit.
AWARD: MOST PATRIOTIC, Robin and Barney
God bless America! And Canada, feel free to take whatever blessings He's got left over.
Last Man Standing
I guess the best thing we can say about Mike Baxter's (Tim Allen) costume is that it suits his red-state character. I'm all about peace, man, so I don't know if that's an Airborne Ranger or a French guy trying to hide in the bushes. As for Mike's boss Ed (Hector Elizondo), it's been a while since we've seen a classic, non-Twilight-era vampire, and who came blame him for looking where he is?
90210
A few of the teens of 90210 decided to focus on food and phallic symbols, half of which is appropriate and half of which is ironic for a show full of hormonally bloated girls with eating disorders. We're not quite sure what's going on with Lady Pirate and Generic Princess, but we're all over the banana and hot dog because they're refreshingly unsexy and it's almost lunchtime.
AWARD: MOST SHOCKINGLY UNSEXY, the hot dog and the banana
Parks and Recreation
Andy (Chris Pratt) got all the details right as MMA fighter Chuck Lidell, but how meta-ween would it have been if he went as A's first baseman Scott Hatteberg!? You know, the guy he played in Moneyball? Anyone? April (Aubrey Plaza) deserves praise for her creative and
almost racially insensitive Sumo Wrestler Who Lost a Lot of Weight, but we can't say the same for Chris (Rob Lowe) as Sherlock Holmes. Snooze alert!
Mike and Molly
We have to hand out zero points for originality here. Mike (Billy Gardell) and Molly (Melissa McCarthy) and dressed up as Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein, but they could have dressed up as Frankfurterstein and Bride of Frankfurterstein. You know, those same costumes but with buns and splatters of ketchup and mustard, to fit the overweight shtick AND be geekily punny. Someone get me a job as costume
consultant!
The Today Show
Where do we start? Isn't this America? The Royal Wedding? Seriously? I thought we were done with this charade! Roker, move out of the way and let Mr. Potato Head through!
Pretty Little Liars
You probably thought these high school girls' costumes were pretty tame, but understand this: This episode flashed back to 2008, when they were
like 12. So take your pervy thoughts elsewhere! Only Emily (Shay Mitchell) as Pocahontas (or possibly Sitting Bull) who'd had her sleeves scalped got in a powwow with her dad when he saw her leave the teepee in that revealing costume. Spencer (Troian Bellisario) as Queen Elizabeth looked great, technically. But good luck luring the quarterback of the football team underneath the bleachers in that getup. Hanna (Ashley Benson) picked the second-best version of Britney Spears; we would have chosen plump, shaved-head Shoplifter Britney. And Aria (Lucy Hale) got out her inner goth, whatever she was. A fairly ho-hum effort.
Happy Endings
It's not surprising that the best Halloween episode of the holiday also featured the best costumes. Penny and Max's mother-and-baby was fantastic, and we cannot award enough bonus points for the interactive baby arms. Max's potential bed buddy was also a standout as "ZZ Top Gun," a bearded guy in a flight suit. Alex made a fantastic Marilyn Monroe (meow!), and Dave's Austin Powers outfit was a spectacular failure for being both outdated and pre-comeback, which Alex didn't let him forget.
AWARD: THE "PUN"ISHER!, ZZ Top Gun guy
Your grandfather thinks bad puns and wordplay are hilarious, and we do too. "ZZ Top Gun" wins this award for going a few extra feet with
creativity.
AWARD: BEST IN SHOW, Max and Penny
Not only did Max and Penny's mom-and-baby costume look great, but it also served a real purpose in the show's storyline, when both characters wanted to separate well before it was time to bob for apples. But we could watch Max manipulate those baby arms all day... even on Christmas! The best costume of the week by a long shot.
Psych
The episode may have been titled "This Episode Sucks," but the costumes certainly did not. Shawn (James Roday) and Gus (Dule Hill) gave spins on the classic vampire outfit going as Tom Cruise from Interview with the Vampire and Blacula, respectively. However, it might have been just a tad funnier if those costumes were reversed.
AWARD: BEST TAKE ON AN OVERUSED FAVORITE, Shawn and Gus
Dressing as a vampire while still being original is nearly impossible, but the two Psych stars did it with retro class.
The Secret Circle
Cassie (Britt Robertson) was a bee... with a gun! A killer bee! Get it? Hey, she can set dudes on fire, but apparently she's still learning to conjure up award-winning Halloween costumes. Faye (Phoebe Tonkin) looked satisfactory as Little Red Riding Hood, but all it takes to be that character is a trip to a magician's store or your gay uncle's closet.
Suburgatory
First of all, I thought Dallas's husband showing up in a Jay Mohr costume was amazing. He nailed it! But other than that, I expected a
tiny bit more from the costume closet for my favorite new sitcom's first Halloween episode. George (Jeremy Sisto) as an executioner was one of the laziest costumes on the networks. But when you think about it, wasn't it a great "cool dad" costume? Just don't think about it again, because then you'll change your mind and think it's lame. Tessa (Jane Levy) put together a great show-approrpiate getup by going as one of the prissy pants high-school chicks she despises. It was a good "in your face" costume, until she found out she was dressed like a dead girl. Still, I always love it when a costume propels the story forward in a Halloween episode. Ultimately, Malik (Maestro Harrell) won the best costume of the show as D.M.C. from Run D.M.C. In fact, he was the best-costumed D.M.C. since Dead Mike in CB4!
AWARD: BEST '80s THROWBACK, Malik
What can I say? I love kids from The Wire Season 4. Where's Dookie?
The Middle
There were a few other costumes in this episode, including some candy-stealing superheroes and Brick as the Ghost of Ernest Hemingway, but Sue (Eden Sher) as a die was perfect in so many ways. Sue is a school outcast who has zero understanding of social norms, and a die is about as clueless as you can get. Not only did its bulky frame mean she was always moments away from onlookers playing craps when she stumbled (which the episode put to good use), but it was one of those costumes that dorks like me secretly wish they had thought of first.
AWARD: BEST CHARACTER-APPROPRIATE COSTUME, Sue
There's always pressure on TV writers to come up with really extravagant costumes for their casts, but The Middle's
scribes wisely held back and made a costume that was not only a great
sight gag, but also exactly what Sue would have thought of on her own.
The Office
The Office brings it each and every year, and this year was sort-of no exception. I say "sort-of" because none of them really stood
out. Let's roll our eyes at Jim, who, as usual, was too cool to really dress up (Chris Bosh? Boooooooo!). Phyllis (Phyllis Smith) went as a... what was she, anyway? Ellie (Erin Hannon) was Wendy of the burger empire. Creed (Creed) was probably Osama Bin Laden (good, but not as good as his Joker). Andy (Ed Helms) was a construction worker (or "laborer," as Robert California noted). Dwight (Rainn Wilson) was Kerrigan from Starcraft, minus the weapons. Pam (Jenna Fischer) was a kangaroo. Kelly (Mindy Kaling), Gabe (Zach Woods), and Toby (Paul Lieberstein) were a skeleton crew. And Meredith (Kate Flannery) as Kate Middleton. At least they all dressed up, right?
The Talk
I so want to hate on this just because it's The Talk, but I can't because A) I'm contractually obligated to be nice because my boss's wife is on the show, and B) it's actually not that bad! It wasn't original, but it was a group effort. I have to hand it to them (and by them I mean the producers who coordinated this whole thing and the poor assistants who made the actual costumes and dealt with Sharon Osbourne), because the costumes look pretty great and they had the Wizard of Oz backdrop, too. There. Now my paycheck is secure for another week.
AWARD: BEST GROUP COSTUME, the ladies of The Talk
Reluctantly... handing... award... to... The Talk.
The Wendy Williams Show
I didn't actually see this episode because I still have a shred of self-respect, but Wendy Williams invited Mike "The Situation" Whatever
on to do some sort of take on Pan Am. The Tenerife airport disaster of 1977 got more laughs than this.
Community
I'm not going to lie to you: This season's Halloween episode of Community wasn't my favorite. But Troy (Donald Glover) and Abed (Danny Pudi) gave us a gem as the lead characters from Inspector Spacetime, a show-within-a-show gag. High-five to myself for not being weak and including Annie's cleavage extravaganza since it wasn't really a Halloween costume. What strong willpower I have!
AWARD: BEST IN-SHOW JOKE COSTUME, Troy and Abed
Community specializes in callbacks, and this only means we're that much closer to seeing a full episode of Inspector Spacetime in this season's DVD extras.
Jerry Springer
Jerry Springer as Lady Gaga on The Rachel Ray Show? Huh?
AWARD: BEST WTF COSTUME, Jerry Springer
Who do YOU think had the best costume this year? What awards would YOU give out?
source
How I Met Your Mother
In "The Slutty Pumpkin Returns," the Slutty Pumpkin returned. And because Ted (Josh Radnor) went as a Hanging Chad and Katie Holmes was the titular gourd in a callback to an earlier episode, they are disqualified. Yes, that was an easy way to say their costumes were dumb... again (especially Ted's). But Robin (Cobie Smulders) as a Vancouver Canuck and Barney (Neil Patrick Harris) as Apollo Creed from Rocky were apropos as homages to their home countries. Barney gets an extra thumbs up for being anti-Canadian, not that we have any problems with our too-kind neighbors to the North. And it's always nice when pretty TV starlets follow Heidi Klum's lead and skip the [insert anything] outfit.
AWARD: MOST PATRIOTIC, Robin and Barney
God bless America! And Canada, feel free to take whatever blessings He's got left over.
Last Man Standing
I guess the best thing we can say about Mike Baxter's (Tim Allen) costume is that it suits his red-state character. I'm all about peace, man, so I don't know if that's an Airborne Ranger or a French guy trying to hide in the bushes. As for Mike's boss Ed (Hector Elizondo), it's been a while since we've seen a classic, non-Twilight-era vampire, and who came blame him for looking where he is?
90210
A few of the teens of 90210 decided to focus on food and phallic symbols, half of which is appropriate and half of which is ironic for a show full of hormonally bloated girls with eating disorders. We're not quite sure what's going on with Lady Pirate and Generic Princess, but we're all over the banana and hot dog because they're refreshingly unsexy and it's almost lunchtime.
AWARD: MOST SHOCKINGLY UNSEXY, the hot dog and the banana
Parks and Recreation
Andy (Chris Pratt) got all the details right as MMA fighter Chuck Lidell, but how meta-ween would it have been if he went as A's first baseman Scott Hatteberg!? You know, the guy he played in Moneyball? Anyone? April (Aubrey Plaza) deserves praise for her creative and
almost racially insensitive Sumo Wrestler Who Lost a Lot of Weight, but we can't say the same for Chris (Rob Lowe) as Sherlock Holmes. Snooze alert!
Mike and Molly
We have to hand out zero points for originality here. Mike (Billy Gardell) and Molly (Melissa McCarthy) and dressed up as Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein, but they could have dressed up as Frankfurterstein and Bride of Frankfurterstein. You know, those same costumes but with buns and splatters of ketchup and mustard, to fit the overweight shtick AND be geekily punny. Someone get me a job as costume
consultant!
The Today Show
Where do we start? Isn't this America? The Royal Wedding? Seriously? I thought we were done with this charade! Roker, move out of the way and let Mr. Potato Head through!
Pretty Little Liars
You probably thought these high school girls' costumes were pretty tame, but understand this: This episode flashed back to 2008, when they were
like 12. So take your pervy thoughts elsewhere! Only Emily (Shay Mitchell) as Pocahontas (or possibly Sitting Bull) who'd had her sleeves scalped got in a powwow with her dad when he saw her leave the teepee in that revealing costume. Spencer (Troian Bellisario) as Queen Elizabeth looked great, technically. But good luck luring the quarterback of the football team underneath the bleachers in that getup. Hanna (Ashley Benson) picked the second-best version of Britney Spears; we would have chosen plump, shaved-head Shoplifter Britney. And Aria (Lucy Hale) got out her inner goth, whatever she was. A fairly ho-hum effort.
Happy Endings
It's not surprising that the best Halloween episode of the holiday also featured the best costumes. Penny and Max's mother-and-baby was fantastic, and we cannot award enough bonus points for the interactive baby arms. Max's potential bed buddy was also a standout as "ZZ Top Gun," a bearded guy in a flight suit. Alex made a fantastic Marilyn Monroe (meow!), and Dave's Austin Powers outfit was a spectacular failure for being both outdated and pre-comeback, which Alex didn't let him forget.
AWARD: THE "PUN"ISHER!, ZZ Top Gun guy
Your grandfather thinks bad puns and wordplay are hilarious, and we do too. "ZZ Top Gun" wins this award for going a few extra feet with
creativity.
AWARD: BEST IN SHOW, Max and Penny
Not only did Max and Penny's mom-and-baby costume look great, but it also served a real purpose in the show's storyline, when both characters wanted to separate well before it was time to bob for apples. But we could watch Max manipulate those baby arms all day... even on Christmas! The best costume of the week by a long shot.
Psych
The episode may have been titled "This Episode Sucks," but the costumes certainly did not. Shawn (James Roday) and Gus (Dule Hill) gave spins on the classic vampire outfit going as Tom Cruise from Interview with the Vampire and Blacula, respectively. However, it might have been just a tad funnier if those costumes were reversed.
AWARD: BEST TAKE ON AN OVERUSED FAVORITE, Shawn and Gus
Dressing as a vampire while still being original is nearly impossible, but the two Psych stars did it with retro class.
The Secret Circle
Cassie (Britt Robertson) was a bee... with a gun! A killer bee! Get it? Hey, she can set dudes on fire, but apparently she's still learning to conjure up award-winning Halloween costumes. Faye (Phoebe Tonkin) looked satisfactory as Little Red Riding Hood, but all it takes to be that character is a trip to a magician's store or your gay uncle's closet.
Suburgatory
First of all, I thought Dallas's husband showing up in a Jay Mohr costume was amazing. He nailed it! But other than that, I expected a
tiny bit more from the costume closet for my favorite new sitcom's first Halloween episode. George (Jeremy Sisto) as an executioner was one of the laziest costumes on the networks. But when you think about it, wasn't it a great "cool dad" costume? Just don't think about it again, because then you'll change your mind and think it's lame. Tessa (Jane Levy) put together a great show-approrpiate getup by going as one of the prissy pants high-school chicks she despises. It was a good "in your face" costume, until she found out she was dressed like a dead girl. Still, I always love it when a costume propels the story forward in a Halloween episode. Ultimately, Malik (Maestro Harrell) won the best costume of the show as D.M.C. from Run D.M.C. In fact, he was the best-costumed D.M.C. since Dead Mike in CB4!
AWARD: BEST '80s THROWBACK, Malik
What can I say? I love kids from The Wire Season 4. Where's Dookie?
The Middle
There were a few other costumes in this episode, including some candy-stealing superheroes and Brick as the Ghost of Ernest Hemingway, but Sue (Eden Sher) as a die was perfect in so many ways. Sue is a school outcast who has zero understanding of social norms, and a die is about as clueless as you can get. Not only did its bulky frame mean she was always moments away from onlookers playing craps when she stumbled (which the episode put to good use), but it was one of those costumes that dorks like me secretly wish they had thought of first.
AWARD: BEST CHARACTER-APPROPRIATE COSTUME, Sue
There's always pressure on TV writers to come up with really extravagant costumes for their casts, but The Middle's
scribes wisely held back and made a costume that was not only a great
sight gag, but also exactly what Sue would have thought of on her own.
The Office
The Office brings it each and every year, and this year was sort-of no exception. I say "sort-of" because none of them really stood
out. Let's roll our eyes at Jim, who, as usual, was too cool to really dress up (Chris Bosh? Boooooooo!). Phyllis (Phyllis Smith) went as a... what was she, anyway? Ellie (Erin Hannon) was Wendy of the burger empire. Creed (Creed) was probably Osama Bin Laden (good, but not as good as his Joker). Andy (Ed Helms) was a construction worker (or "laborer," as Robert California noted). Dwight (Rainn Wilson) was Kerrigan from Starcraft, minus the weapons. Pam (Jenna Fischer) was a kangaroo. Kelly (Mindy Kaling), Gabe (Zach Woods), and Toby (Paul Lieberstein) were a skeleton crew. And Meredith (Kate Flannery) as Kate Middleton. At least they all dressed up, right?
The Talk
I so want to hate on this just because it's The Talk, but I can't because A) I'm contractually obligated to be nice because my boss's wife is on the show, and B) it's actually not that bad! It wasn't original, but it was a group effort. I have to hand it to them (and by them I mean the producers who coordinated this whole thing and the poor assistants who made the actual costumes and dealt with Sharon Osbourne), because the costumes look pretty great and they had the Wizard of Oz backdrop, too. There. Now my paycheck is secure for another week.
AWARD: BEST GROUP COSTUME, the ladies of The Talk
Reluctantly... handing... award... to... The Talk.
The Wendy Williams Show
I didn't actually see this episode because I still have a shred of self-respect, but Wendy Williams invited Mike "The Situation" Whatever
on to do some sort of take on Pan Am. The Tenerife airport disaster of 1977 got more laughs than this.
Community
I'm not going to lie to you: This season's Halloween episode of Community wasn't my favorite. But Troy (Donald Glover) and Abed (Danny Pudi) gave us a gem as the lead characters from Inspector Spacetime, a show-within-a-show gag. High-five to myself for not being weak and including Annie's cleavage extravaganza since it wasn't really a Halloween costume. What strong willpower I have!
AWARD: BEST IN-SHOW JOKE COSTUME, Troy and Abed
Community specializes in callbacks, and this only means we're that much closer to seeing a full episode of Inspector Spacetime in this season's DVD extras.
Jerry Springer
Jerry Springer as Lady Gaga on The Rachel Ray Show? Huh?
AWARD: BEST WTF COSTUME, Jerry Springer
Who do YOU think had the best costume this year? What awards would YOU give out?
source