Things take an Orson Welles turn when Arnold and Gerald's radio prank about aliens causes a frenzy. On a spooky October night, Arnold and Gerald are watching "Z-Files," only for the episode to end on a cliffhanger. Oskar chides them for watching a silly show, yet he, Mr. Hyunh, and Ernie are all excited for "UFO Tonight," featuring Douglas Cain, who fully controls and supports the show in his search for alien life. Grandpa shuts off the TV to talk about the coming Halloween party at the apartment, and to Arnold's displeasure, the old man doesn't let him join in, saying Halloween's not for kids. He tells them to go to bed because Halloween is a time for people to scare the daylights out of each other, and Ernie's displeasure at not being chosen to play Frankenstein causes him to fight with Mr. Hyunh. As Arnold and Gerald leave, the latter decides that they won't go with their usual Halloween plan; they'll use aliens to scare the adults. Over at the Pataki house, Helga is annoyed when her dad ignores her to watch UFO Tonight with his friends as they play cards. The others are surprised to learn Bob believes in aliens, claiming to have had an encounter years before. He was transporting goods one night when a light came down on his truck, and the next thing he knew, he was in a parking lot. He declares that they'll find an alien someday and it'll look just like the one they see on UFO Tonight. The next day, Helga shows a picture of the aliens to the other kids, having decided that's how they'll scare everyone. Arnold declines to join in, though he invites them to a party he and Gerald are planning at his place, hoping this alien force will scare the other boarders. Helga prepares her costume that night and tries to scare Bob, but he is disinterested even after seeing her outfit, so she leaves. Over at Arnold's place, Grandpa scares off a bunch of kids using a bowl of worms and cockroaches, then heads inside to the busy party. Arnold and Gerald, on the roof, have connected some tech to the party's jukebox radio, and seeing the alien kids, they decide to move forward. Gerald speaks into the record player, pulling an Orson Welles by interrupting the music with news of an alien sighting while Arnold provides sound effects. Elsewhere, Douglas Cain has a guy, Mr. Smitty, out listening for signs of alien activity, as Halloween is the perfect time for aliens to invade disguised as humans, refusing to let him leave until his shift is over. He tunes into Gerald's announcement just as the boy claims the aliens are heading to Vine Street, where Arnold lives, and Smitty happens to be driving. Smitty's lights sweep over the disguised kids, and he excitedly calls Cain, who urges him to get it on tape. Grandpa reassures everyone that aliens don't exist, moments before the kids come to the door, shocking him. Ernie scares the kids by chasing them with a hammer, and they run out while Smitty films them, only to be knocked over, which ruins the feed to the annoyed Cain. Cain takes over another TV station to get word out of the situation, reaching everyone in town with even Gerald's continuing audio. They talk about lights on the ship and contact Stinky at the water tower to turn on their "mother ship," and when he does, it short circuits the power to the rest of town. A panic ensues as Arnold and Gerald, cut off from Stinky, wonder if their performance managed to scare anyone. The boys head down to Grandpa, who is packing to leave and doesn't believe that they were pulling a prank, pointing out the water tower. They finally manage to convince him, revealing they used his transmitter to prank everyone, and while impressed, he tells them about Cain getting it on the news. Noticing the other kids running from an angry mob, Grandpa gets the two and drives off to help them, also seeing Grandma leaving in special gear. With mobs forming as the panic spreads, it's up to them to get the truth out and save the kids, who are stuck in their costumes. I had honestly forgotten about thsi particular special, but the minute I was reminded, I knew I needed to take another look.
Hey Arnold was incredibly popular over on Nickelodeon back in the day, and with good reason. Along with a fun, entertaining cast, the show was one of many that successfully weaved in humor for adults as well as kids. With guest starts for some episodes, including Jim Belushi, Caty Moriarty, and Randy Travis, even normal episodes could be a treat. Here, we get the talents of legendary voice actor Maurice LaMarche, known for his incredible Orson Welles impression that he used for his popular role of Brain from Pinky and the Brain. He's the perfect person to bring in for this kind of episode, as Orson Welles was famously part of a panic caused by a reading of War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells. For any who don't know the story, Orson Welles, while with "Mercury Theater," read the story on October 30, 1938, according to an article about the resulting panic. The extent of the panic is often exaggerated, but there were listeners who turned in after the reading had begun who believed it to be real. In fact, the group eventually had to remind viewers that it was a story, as a fuss was beginning that was sometimes later claimed to be mass hysteria. That is exactly what happen is here, so having LaMarche perform as Cain, who makes the situation worse, was a perfect choice and a good referential jokes for older viewers. At first viewers would likely believe Arnold and Gerald intend to join the other kids for their prank on the adults who are pushing them to the side. By having them pulling two different simultaneous pranks, however, we get the setup for their unintended mass panic. With good spooky visuals, a great referential plot, and the typical wackiness of the Hey Arnold series, this episode is another fun family way to get into Halloween.
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