Special 4 A Very Venture Halloween

9.2/10. One of those Venture Bros. episodes where pretty much every facet of the show is firing on all cylinders, and then things blend together in a really nice way by the end. Every story here worked, and that's a big plus.

The slightest of them was Doc, Sgt. Hatred, Mr. White, and Billy Quizboy wagering on whether any trick-or-treaters will make it to the front door, but it's still the type of dark yet ridiculous humor that the show does so well. Hatred's commitment to giving the survivors full bars was great, as were White and Billy's costumes.

The meat of the episode came mostly from the titular Ventures Brothers' storylines. Dean meets with Ben the genetic engineer and deals with the existential dread of the realization that he's a clone. It's played with that trademark mix of sincerity and comedy that the show knows how to nail. Getting future oscar winner J.K. Simmons to play Ben helps sell that, and Dean's reaction, including his decision not to tell Hank, is a nice way to both continue building the mythology of the show, while grounding it in character. To the same end, Hank and Dermott trying to play puffed up teenagers on Halloween in all their ineffectual glory had the amusing back-and-forth conversational comedy that's become a trademark.

The best part of the episode, however, was the meeting of the Brotherhood of Brimstone. I've said in these write-ups before that I'm a sucker for Orpheus, but getting all the magic people together, particularly the Alchemist and the newly two-headed Guild elder was a recipe for success. (Everyone's reaction to one of the elders' "Al Jolson" costume was worth the price of admission alone.) The jokes were rapid fire, and in terms of story, I love that it all comes together with Al accidentally raising the dead in the "potter's field" mentioned by Ben, causing Hank and Dermott to get caught amid the horde. Bringing out The Master as Santa Clause is an inspired way to solve the problem too. (You'll never hear me complain about more H. Jon Benjamin.)

And hey, there's even a bit of sentiment to boot. Orpheus's speech about being our best selves on Halloween, what we aspire to be, is oddly poignant and maybe even profound. Sure, a lot of it is the montage, but it's a nice bit of sentiment on a not very sentimental holiday. Overall, it's a great episode that's quite worthy of being in your regular Halloween movie rotation.