"A 'Tween Halloween" is the eleventh episode of the second season of Pepper Ann, and also the series' Halloween episode. It aired on Halloween Day of 1998.
Synopsis[]
Pepper Ann becomes ashamed of trick-or-treating as a preteen after Milo tells her that she's too old for it.
Plot[]
As Halloween is coming up, Pepper Ann and Milo prepare themselves for the big day to go out and collect candy. They go to a vintage costume store where Pepper Ann settles on being a portable hair salon patron and Milo as a dried up papaya. The two of them encounter a trio of fourth-graders who are baffled as they think that the two of them, who are twelve, are too old to be trick-or-treating. While Milo does not seem to care, the statement gets to Pepper Ann who now begins to doubt her favorite holiday. While Milo chooses to wear his costume for the rest of the week, Pepper Ann consults Nicky who tells her that any age is too old for Halloween due to the candy and that she will not be going.
Pepper Ann runs a survey among her peers, asking if they will go trick-or-treating this year and practically gets a unanimous "no". She consults her reflection who tells her that she should just go out regardless of what anyone else thinks as Milo is going. Pepper Ann fantasizes about proudly telling her peers her plan to trick-or-treat, but chickens out in real life. Lydia and Moose tell her she should not worry, but Pepper Ann thinks otherwise and and gives her mobile salon chair to Moose before going to tell Milo at the arcade that he will look ridiculous going out in his costume. They get into an argument with Milo feeling embarrassed.
On Halloween night, Pepper Ann solemnly gives candy to trick-or-treaters before getting visited by a conservatively dressed Milo who has decided to give up on his passions and "grow up". Seeing how miserable her friend has become, Pepper Ann changes her mind and convinces him to put his costume back on so that they can both go trick-or-treating. After collecting a bunch of candy, Pepper Ann proudly declares how she and Milo are the only two kids in school to retain their love of Halloween and hope that others will follow their example. As she says this, it is revealed that contrary to what her classmates told her, they all went trick-or-treating themselves, including Nicky who wanted candy.
Cast[]
- Kathleen Wilhoite as Pepper Ann Pearson
- Jeff Bennett as Dieter Liederhosen, Craig Bean
- Danny Cooksey as Milo Kamalani
- Clea Lewis as Nicky Little
- Pamela Adlon as Moose Pearson
- April Winchell as Lydia Pearson
- Kath Soucie as Cissy Rooney
- Jenna von Oÿ as Trinket St. Blair
- Cree Summer as Tessa and Vanessa James
- Adam Wylie as Crash
Desk Gag[]
"Look, a French Poodle!"
-Poodle speaks in French, with subtitles at the bottom of the screen reading "Pepper Ann is a most amusing show."
Trivia[]
- This episode implies that the series takes place in Rhode Island. In "Carmello", it is implied to take place in Florida.
- The episode takes place on the October 29, 30 and 31 and marks each day with the birthdays of Bela Lugosi, Charles Atlas and John Keats on 1884, 1894 and 1795, respectively. However, the dates for both Lugosi and Atlas are incorrect. Lugosi was born October 20, 1882 and Atlas was born October 30, 1892.
- This is the second time Halloween is depicted in the series, the first time was in "Thanksgiving Dad".
- In the beginning of that episode, Pepper Ann tells her father that she is too old to go Trick-or-Treating, but that Lydia is making her take Moose. In this episode, however, she wrestles with the idea that she may in fact be too old to go out. Being that Pepper Ann is twelve for both episodes and the entire series, this seems to be a major continuity error.