Halloween IV (Brooklyn Nine-Nine)

Last updated
"Halloween IV"
Brooklyn Nine-Nine episode
Episode no.Season 4
Episode 5
Directed byClaire Scanlon
Written byPhil Augusta Jackson
Produced by
Featured music"Twilight Zone" by 2 Unlimited
Cinematography byGiovani Lampassi
Editing byJason Gill
Production code405
Original air dateOctober 18, 2016 (2016-10-18)
Running time22 minutes
Guest appearance
  • Winston Story as Bill
Episode chronology
 Previous
"The Night Shift"
Next 
"Monster in the Closet"
Brooklyn Nine-Nine season 4
List of episodes

"Halloween IV" is the fifth episode of the fourth season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine . It is the 73rd overall episode of the series and is written by Phil Augusta Jackson and directed by Claire Scanlon. It aired on Fox in the United States on October 18, 2016.

Contents

The show revolves around the fictitious 99th precinct of the New York Police Department in Brooklyn and the officers and detectives that work in the precinct. In the episode, it's the fourth annual Halloween Heist in the 99th precinct and Jake, Holt and Amy compete for the "Ultimate Detective/Genius" plaque.

The episode was seen by an estimated 2.05 million household viewers and gained a 0.9/3 ratings share among adults aged 18–49, according to Nielsen Media Research. The episode received critical acclaim from critics, who praised the writing, performances and the episode's ability to be unpredictable.

Plot

It's the fourth Halloween heist and Jake (Andy Samberg), Holt (Andre Braugher) and Amy (Melissa Fumero) are competing for the "Ultimate Detective/Genius" plaque. This time, they will work with someone in the precinct. Holt selects Boyle (Joe Lo Truglio), knowing Jake relies on him; Amy selects Rosa (Stephanie Beatriz); and Jake selects Gina (Chelsea Peretti).

Terry (Terry Crews) decides not to participate in the heist, citing paperwork. Feeling suspicious, Jake has Hitchcock (Dirk Blocker) and Scully (Joel McKinnon Miller) follow him. With the help of Gina, Jake locks everyone and manages to steal the plaque, handing it to Gina. However, Gina gets hurt while rollerskating and is sent home but the plaque returns to its original position. Using many pizza delivery people, Amy and Rosa manage to steal the plaque and put it in an air vent.

Holt brings Cheddar to track the plaque and finds it in the vent. Jake manages to get Boyle to tell him the location and retrieves the plaque. However, Holt and Amy show that they have their own plaques as well. The lights suddenly go off to reveal the words "Heists are dumb" on the plaques and, since Terry is the only one who often says "Dumb" in the precinct, they confront Terry, accusing him of being the one with the plaque. Gina reveals herself to be the mastermind of the heist, citing that getting the "Detective" status amended is her goal. She is subsequently named "Ultimate Human/Genius".

Reception

Viewers

In its original American broadcast, "Halloween IV" was seen by an estimated 2.05 million household viewers and gained a 0.9/3 ratings share among adults aged 18–49, according to Nielsen Media Research. [1] This was a slight decrease in viewership from the previous episode, which was watched by 2.13 million viewers with a 0.9/3 in the 18-49 demographics. [2] This means that 0.9 percent of all households with televisions watched the episode, while 3 percent of all households watching television at that time watched television. With these ratings, Brooklyn Nine-Nine was the highest rated show on FOX for the night, beating Scream Queens , New Girl , sixth on its timeslot and twelfth for the night, behind The Real O'Neals , The Flash , NCIS: New Orleans , Fresh Off the Boat , The Middle , Chicago Fire , Bull , American Housewife , NCIS , The Voice , and This Is Us .

Critical reviews

"Halloween IV" received critical acclaim from critics. LaToya Ferguson of The A.V. Club gave the episode an "A" grade and wrote, "'Halloween IV' is so overwhelmingly funny — in a way where every character has something to do, which Brooklyn Nine-Nine can sometimes have trouble with — that it takes hold of all the audience's (and characters') sensibilities for the 20-plus minutes of action." [3]

Dan Snierson of Entertainment Weekly wrote, "After three episodes of the witness-protection program in Florida and one episode of night duty, Brooklyn Nine-Nine returned to its comfort zone with something familiar and unpredictable: the annual, zany, twist-upon-reversal-upon-fake-out Halloween heist episode." [4] Allie Pape from Vulture gave the show a 4 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "Sadly, it looks like all the extra budget that went into the Florida episodes and last week's car-studded New Girl crossover has finally dried up, because 'Halloween IV' is strictly limited to the walls of the precinct, a small canvas for what's supposed to be an elaborate series of tricks." [5]

Alan Sepinwall of HitFix wrote, "Still, 'Halloween IV' had its comic moments: the guys' increasingly loud announcements after Amy tried to do a quiet one for Scully's sake, Holt's weird pronunciation of 'kaboodle,' Jake's growing unease around the creepy Boyle body double, to name a few. And even if a part of me is annoyed that the game is now open to all the characters, hearing Gina give her big victory speech with a pronounced lisp due to her missing front teeth was fun." [6] Andy Crump of Paste gave the episode a 8.8 and wrote, "It's one thing to be obvious. It's another thing to be boring. If there's a single word that we can use to describe Brooklyn Nine-Nine's fourth season, it's 'predictable,' and anybody who keeps up with Paste's weekly recaps probably saw this one coming from a mile away. Let's get more specific than that, though, because the same applies precisely to Brooklyn Nine-Nine's annual Halloween antics, too: Every year since the show's first season, the precinct's ongoing contest to crown the ultimate detective/genius telegraphs its outcome more and more, sapping the thrill of good old fashioned guesswork from both the contest and the episodes staged around it." [7]

See also

Related Research Articles

"Halloween II" is the fourth episode of the second season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine. It is the 26th overall episode of the series and is written by consulting producer Prentice Penny and directed by Eric Appel. It aired on Fox in the United States on October 19, 2014.

"The Funeral" is the second episode of the third season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine. It is the 47th overall episode of the series and is written by Luke Del Tredici and directed by Claire Scanlon. It aired on Fox in the United States on October 4, 2015.

"Halloween III" is the fifth episode of the third season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine. It is the 50th overall episode of the series and is written by David Phillips and directed by Michael McDonald. It aired on Fox in the United States on October 25, 2015.

"The Swedes" is the ninth episode of the third season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine. It is the 54th overall episode of the series and is written by Matt Murray and directed by Eric Appel. It aired on Fox in the United States on December 6, 2015.

"Yippie Kayak" is the tenth episode of the third season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine. It is the 55th overall episode of the series and is written by Lakshmi Sundaram and directed by Rebecca Asher. It aired on Fox in the United States on December 13, 2015.

"Hostage Situation" is the eleventh episode of the third season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine. It is the 56th overall episode of the series and is written by Phil Augusta Jackson and directed by Max Winkler. It aired on Fox in the United States on January 5, 2016.

"House Mouses" is the sixteenth episode of the third season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine. It is the 61st overall episode of the series and is written by Andrew Guest and directed by Claire Scanlon. It aired on Fox in the United States on February 16, 2016.

"Terry Kitties" is the nineteenth episode of the third season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine. It is the 64th overall episode of the series and is written by Phil Augusta Jackson & Tricia McAlpin and directed by Michael McDonald. It aired on Fox in the United States on March 15, 2016.

"Bureau" is the twenty-second episode of the third season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine. It is the 67th overall episode of the series and is written by David Phillips & Alison Agosti and directed by Ryan Case. It aired on Fox in the United States on April 12, 2016.

"Greg and Larry" is the twenty-third episode and season finale of the third season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine. It is the 68th overall episode of the series and is written by Andrew Guest & Phil Augusta Jackson and directed by Dan Goor. It aired on Fox in the United States on April 19, 2016.

"The Night Shift" is the fourth episode of the fourth season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine. It is the 72nd overall episode of the series and is written by Matt Murray and directed by Tristram Shapeero. It aired on Fox in the United States on October 11, 2016.

"Monster in the Closet" is the sixth episode of the fourth season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine. It is the 74th overall episode of the series and is written by Andrew Guest and directed by Nisha Ganatra. It aired on Fox in the United States on November 15, 2016.

"Skyfire Cycle" is the eighth episode of the fourth season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine. It is the 76th overall episode of the series and is written by David Phillips and directed by Michael McDonald. It aired on Fox in the United States on November 29, 2016.

"The Fugitive" is the eleventh and twelfth episodes of the fourth season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine. It is the 79th and 80th overall episodes of the series. "Part 1" is written by Carol Kolb and directed by Rebecca Asher while "Part 2" is written by Justin Noble & Jessica Polonsky and directed by Ryan Case. It aired on Fox in the United States on January 1, 2017.

"The Audit" is the thirteenth episode of the fourth season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine and the 81st overall episode of the series. The episode was written by Carly Hallam Tosh and directed by Beth McCarthy-Miller. It aired on Fox in the United States on April 11, 2017.

"The Last Ride" is the fifteenth episode of the fourth season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine and the 83rd overall episode of the series. The episode was written by David Phillips and directed by Linda Mendoza. It aired on Fox in the United States on April 25, 2017.

"Cop-Con" is the seventeenth episode of the fourth season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine and the 85th overall episode of the series. The episode was written by Andy Gosche and directed by Giovani Lampassi. It aired on Fox in the United States on May 9, 2017, back-to-back with the next episode "Chasing Amy".

"Chasing Amy" is the eighteenth episode of the fourth season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine and the 86th overall episode of the series. The episode was written by Matt Lawton and directed by Luke Del Tredici. It aired on Fox in the United States on May 9, 2017, back-to-back with the previous episode "Cop-Con".

"Your Honor" is the nineteenth episode of the fourth season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine and the 87th overall episode of the series. The episode was written by David Phillips & Carly Hallam Tosh and directed by Michael McDonald. It aired on Fox in the United States on May 16, 2017, back-to-back with the next episode "The Slaughterhouse".

"HalloVeen" is the 4th episode of the fifth season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and the 94th overall episode of the series. The episode was written by series co-creator Dan Goor and directed by Jamie Babbit. It aired on Fox in the United States on October 17, 2017.

References

  1. Porter, Rick (October 19, 2016). "'American Housewife' and 'The Voice' adjust up, 'Chicago Fire,' 'SHIELD' and 'Real O'Neals' down: Tuesday final ratings". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on October 20, 2016. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  2. Porter, Rick (October 12, 2016). "'The Voice,' 'NCIS,' 'Flash' and ABC comedies adjust up, 'No Tomorrow' adjusts down: Tuesday final ratings". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on October 13, 2016. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  3. Ferguson, LaToya (October 18, 2016). "Brooklyn Nine-Nine finally names 'The Ultimate Detective/Genius'". The A.V. Club . Archived from the original on December 14, 2018. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  4. Snierson, Dan (October 19, 2016). "Brooklyn Nine-Nine recap: Season 4, episode 5". Entertainment Weekly . Archived from the original on December 14, 2018. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  5. Pape, Allie (October 18, 2016). "Brooklyn Nine-Nine Recap: Heist Heist Baby". Vulture . Archived from the original on December 14, 2018. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  6. Sepinwall, Alan (October 18, 2016). "Review: 'Brooklyn Nine-Nine' stages a more complicated 'Halloween IV' caper". HitFix . Archived from the original on December 14, 2018. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  7. Crump, Andy (October 19, 2016). "Brooklyn Nine-Nine Review: 'Halloween IV'". Paste . Archived from the original on December 14, 2018. Retrieved December 10, 2018.