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For 10 seasons and counting on ABC, The Goldbergs has served up all the walkmans and slap bracelets and leg warmers that made the 80s iconic. And since the beginning, the show has also always dipped its Halloween episodes in nostalgic 80s bliss full of blow molds and couples costumes and several familiar faces.
With a new Halloween episode (almost) every season, it's time to look back at all the terrifyingly rad 80s representation each year, ranked from least to most nostalgic.
"Bevy's Big Murder Mystery Party" (Season 8)
While Season 8 is the only season not to air a Halloween episode, it did have a pretty close second with "Bevy's Big Murder Mystery Party," centered around The Goldbergs hosting a murder mystery party for all their friends.
This episode is not only the last Halloween-y, but the least nostalgic, the biggest trip down memory land the episode takes is Adam and Beverly seeing Clue at the movie theater and letting it inspire their own murder mystery.
"DKNY" (Season 10)
While the Season 10 episode "DKNY" takes place on Halloween night, none of the stories primarily focus on the spooky holiday. Adam visits Dave Kim at NYU, while Geoff battles Beverly for alone time with his new daughter.
Aside from the opening sequence of flashbacks from Halloweens past, the only remnants of nostalgia in this episode are the costumes worn by Adam and Mr. Glascott; Adam as one of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Mr. Glascott as Prince.
"Family Takes Care Of Beverly" (Season 2)
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Of all the Halloween-themed episodes, Season 2 episode "Family Takes Care of Beverly" focuses the least on the spooky holiday. When Pops' Halloween party ends in a fire, he's thrown out of his apartment and forced to move in with his family.
The episode did start out by showing Adam in his Transformers costume and Beverly scooping up his candy to get x-rayed at the hospital, but the most nostalgic moment happened when they mention Life cereal boy Little Mikey and the urban legend of a deadly combination of Pop Rocks and soda being what led to his death hoax.
"The Hunt For The Great Albino Pumpkin" (Season 9)
Season 9 was a tough season all around, being the first season with Pops after his portrayer George Segal's unexpected death in early 2021. The show felt a noticeable loss without its loveable grandfather, and it was especially prominent at Halloween, which was his and Adam's favorite holiday.
While the episode follows Adam on a not-so-fun Halloween night with his other grandfather, it also showed Adam, Brea and a friend dressed up as Rocky, Adrienne and Mickey from the Rocky franchise, while 80s horror icon Elvira guest-starred as herself for Barry to pitch his rap to.
"Jackie Likes Star Trek" (Season 5)
The 80s nostalgia in Season 5 came mainly from the Halloween costumes worn by the younger characters. The episode primarily focuses on Adam and Jackie, who fight over whether Star Wars or Star Trek is the better franchise, and whether they should dress up as Han Solo and Lei or Spock and Uhura.
Erica and Geoff are later seen dressed as Marty McFly and Lorraine from Back to the Future, while the rest of the JTP dress up as Biff's posse, costumes that were chosen to commemorate the show's 100th episode, which was directed by Lea Thompson.
"A 100% True Ghost Story" (Season 7)
Season 7 episode "A 100% True Ghost Story" follows The Goldbergs on Halloween night when a ghost arrives at their home and haunts Beverly's new paintings. Aside from throwing on his famous Ghostbusters costume to try and catch the ghost, Adam's Halloween costumes also consist of Weird Al and Beetlejuice throughout the episode.
Meanwhile at college, after Barry becomes obsessed with Rocky Horror Picture Show, he decided to throw a Rocky Horror-themed Halloween party at Erica's dorm, ending in Barry, Erica and the JTP dressed up as Frank-N-Furter, Riff Raff, and several other notable characters who all join in for a round of The Time Warp.
"Who Are You Going To Telephone?" (Season 1)
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Season 1 overflowed with 80s nostalgic, and the Halloween episode "Who Are You Going To Telephone?" was no exception. Costumes play a key role in the episode, Adam dressed up as a Rubick's Cube while Barry paints himself green to resemble The Hulk.
But the episode gets the most nostalgic and Halloween-y at the end when Adam and Pops whack on their Ghostbusters costumes to go trick-or-treating as the film's theme plays in the background.
"Mister Knifey-Hands" (Season 6)
Season 6 episode "Mister Knifey-Hands" follows its theme of using costumes to provide a good chunk of nostalgia as Geoff lists off several possible corny couples costumes he and Erica could dress as, including Hall and Oats, Beetlejuice, John Candy and Falcon Crest.
But the episode also heavily focuses on Adam's first viewing of A Nightmare on Elm Street, and somehow, the pile of VHS tapes he rents isn't the most horrifying part. During a nightmare, Robert Englund reprises his iconic role of Freddy Krueger to help Beverly see the error of her ways.
"Stefan King" (Season 4)
Stephen King was the literal king of horror in the 80s, so it's only right The Goldbergs centered an entire Halloween episode around the writer's scary films. In "Stefan King," not only does Adam dress up as the original 1990 Pennywise from It, but he's forced to write a horror novel to his mother's liking, much like Misery.
While Adam's story revolves around Stephen King, Erica and Barry's Halloween night is centered around Little Shop of Horrors, with Barry dressed up as Audrey II while Erica and Geoff dress as Audrey and Seymour and sing "Suddenly, Seymour" together.
"Couples Costume" (Season 3)
Season 3's Halloween episode titled "Couples Costume" is not only the most nostalgic, but the best of The Goldbergs' Halloween episodes. Adam is seen dressed up as several 80s characters like Indiana Jones, a Ghostbuster, ET and Alien, while trick-or-treaters in plastic masks arrive dressed as Kermit the Frog, Strawberry Shortcake and Spider-Man.
Among all the window cutouts and blow molds seen throughout the episode, Beverly becomes her own worst nightmare while trying to prove a point to Adam, during which she shoves a razor blade in a candy bar, gets their aluminum siding egged when she steals kids' candy to get the dangerous bar back, then forces the children into her home on Halloween night like a kidnapper.