205: Haunted Castle (prod 205)

 Original airdate: October 24, 2006

Story by Magnus Scheving

Written by Noah Zachary, Mani Svavarrson, Magnus Scheving

Directed by Magnus Scheving

Executive producers - Magnus Scheving, Ragnheidur Melsted, Raymond P. Le Gue, Mark Read, Brown Johnson, Kay Wilson Stallings

Starring Magnus Scheving, Stefan Karl Steffanson, Julianna Rose Mauriello

Puppeteers - Gudmondor Thor Karason, Jodi Eichelberger, David Matthew Feldman, Julie Westwood, Sarah Burgess

I never liked this episode as I hate Halloween and this was Halloween themed. My country and religion’s hatred for Halloween aside, how is ‘Haunted Castle’?

Sportacus is riding his airship when he suddenly pulls the lever to stop. He flips out of the skutla, does a backwards cartwheel and a backflip, landing on the button that pushes out the table. He flips over and gets an apple. He suddenly hears a noise and wonders what it is. After checking his sports cupboard and bed, he gets out the airship to find out what it is. It turns out to be an owl. What does he do? The normal thing to do.

He talks to the owl and acts like it’s a human. He asks his name and it just hoots. He compliments him, calling it a 'cool’ name and says he’s Sportacus. Twas a lovely day in LazyTown - Milford is painting a fence and Bessie is hanging up laundry. Trixie.. scares Milford and he ruins the fence.

Robbie is doing the most ridiculous thing he can. He hates the noiseyness of the kids, right? So how does he resolve the fact his sleeps are getting distracted by loud kids? He sleeps outside with even louder kids. On an uncomfy bench. In a park. It’s no surprise when he gets woken up by Ziggy being pushed in a wagon by Stephanie. He turns his brain on and leaves.

Trixie goes to scare Stephanie and Ziggy, much to the annoyance of Steph. Trixie wants to go on the wagon and wants to be pushed towards Bessie’s laundry. Stephanie is reluctant until she puts on her helmet. She gets a big push from Stephanie, and she goes too fast and she’s about to crash into Bessie’s sheets. Stephanie says she’s about to crash into Bessie’s sheets. She crashes into Bessie’s sheets. Bessie falls down, ruins her hair and yells for Milford who is reading the news of his OWN TOWN.

The top headline is literally 'The mayor is planning to paint the house blue’. He’s reading news about himself. XD. Trixie says they were just having fun, Bessie is saying they ruined the sheets, and Stephanie is attempting to straighten them out. XD. So Milford tells them to push the wagon AWAY from the sheets and to not possibly piss off Bessie.. anyways, Ziggy gets in, it’s his turn, Milford pushes him a bit too hard .. and beepity-bip. He’s in trouble! The wagon goes up the slide Stingy’s trying to go down, then it goes back down and CRASHES INTO BESSIE’S LAUNDRY!! Almost. Sportacus grabs hold of the wagon.. and his flying ice-cream.

You can tell from his face in the screenshot he wants to gobble that ice-cream up. He gives it back to Ziggy after Bessie finishes being a complaining.. moron. Stingy comes to add possibly nothing to the conversation and asks what was going on as if any sane person would miss THAT. But Stingy’s never established as sane in any of the episodes. Neither are any of the other characters. Anyways, he starts describing what happened while waving around his hand holding the ice-cream cone. Ya see where this is goin? The cream FLIES off the cone and lands.. on Bessie’s sheets.

She is like, SUPER SUPER SUPER SUPER SUPER ANGRY. She tells the kids they MUST follow the rules which they nod their heads in agreement too. But they have nowhere else to go. So Stephanie says they should BUILD THEIR OWN PLAYGROUND, as the land in LazyPark isn’t being used yet. So they all go to the park. The kids all yell 'LazyPark, here we come!’ Waking Robbie up, in shock as that is his favourite place of the town. Yeah, sure, screw your home that has all your clothes, food, and chairs and blankets and gadgets.

So he goes over to his periscope and looks outside. He yells that Lazy Park has always been lazy and should stay lazy. He also adds LAZYLAZYLAZYLAZYLAZY AAAAAARRRGGGH!!! Anyways, the kids are building the playground when Milford comes over to tell them about the famous Leaning Castle of LazyTown. If it’s so famous why did it take 40 episodes to get an episode about it?

He advises the kids not to go in the tower - and Trixie, the lair, says that they won’t. He also adds a new rule - they cannot go over the wall that leads to the castle. And another new rule - Ziggy’s the smolest so never leave him alone. They all follow the rules and Robbie turns his periscope around of anger and talks to himself. The periscope is turned to Bessie who has a sheet on top of her head. He looks at what’s happening, and unfazed, he says 'A ghost’.

Then he realizes, yells out 'A GHOST’ and LAUNCHES HIMSELF OVER THE RAILING ON PURPOSE. MANI SVAVARRSON PROBABLY WROTE THAT PART AND HE PROBABLY SHOULD HAVE WRITTEN EVERY EPISODE OF THAT SHOW BECAUSE HE IS HILARIOUS. He climbs back up, talking to the 4 year old audi- I mean, himself, telling himself he wasn’t scared. He reluctantly looks in the periscope only to Bessie getting the sheet off her head, then tells himself only kids believe in ghosts. ANND HEEERREE COOMEESSS A BREEELEEEYAAANNT IDDEEAAA.

Scare the kids away by pretending to be a ghost. Tata. Meanwhile, at the playground, the kids name some supplies they bought and Pixel keeps on repeating them, but adds a 'Check’ to the end. Really annoying - check. It goes on for only two items because Ziggy said he brought a lollipop. Stephanie says you don’t need a lollipop to build a playground - you need legal permission and an adult guardian (but she doesn’t say those..). Ziggy says it doesn’t hurt to be careful. He has a point (a funny one). They then sing 'Playing on the Playground’

At the end of the song, it’s gotten dark. Ziggy says they should home, remembering what Milford said.. joking, he doesn’t care about what Milford said. He just scared of the ghost - which Trixie points out, and he starts yelling and asking 'What ghost??’ Everyone laughs except Stephanie, who tells Ziggy it was a joke. I see why she’s the favourite of many. SPORTACUS 4 DA WIN THO. Anyways, Trixie says she’s gonna go in the castle to see if there are really ghosts which everyone thinks is a bad idea.

Stingy and Pixel go to the castle with her. This is what Healthy Harold meant by peer pressure. Ziggy and Stephanie stay behind, and Stephanie says if they aren’t back in five minutes they’re going to the castle. So Robbie is left alone with the sheets - the perfect time to execute his plan. Meanwhile, Pixel, Trixie and Stingy have arrived at the castle, and Pixel admits it’s a bit scary. So, after a few seconds, Stingy squeals and Pixel asks if he saw a ghost. And YOU WILL ACTUALLY PAUSE THE EPISODE AND POP UP IN YOUR CHAIR OF ANNOYANCE OF WHAT HE FOUND. Well, that’s what I did.

It was a coin. A single. Coin. Gosh. Anyways, Robbie has finished painting ghost eyes on the sheet (but aren’t ghosts invisible..?) and the kids have been away for long. Stephanie asks Ziggy if she can go check what’s going on, and he says he can stay put for a minute.. well, half a minute. Then Stephanie comforts him by telling him she’ll be quick - but screw that, he doesn’t care. He only wants the lollipop (he licks it to calm down). Robbie has finished cutting up the sheets and his entire body is covered with ghost/sheet. Stephanie’s arrived at the castle and calls for the kids by just yelling 'Guys?’. She goes in the castle, and Trixie pops up, yelling boo. Stephanie jumps back, locking them in.

So when Stephanie tries to open the door, they realize they’re locked, no-one can hear them banging the door, and Stingy’s teeth start trembling. LOL!! Trixie says they should go to the top of the tower and yell for help, and Stingy says he’s not doing that, but Trixie asks him if he wants to be alone. (It’d have been funnier if she called him a chicken again.) So he goes up first. Meanwhile, Robbie decides to go sneak up on Ziggy, but he trips over a wagon. Ziggy turns around and assumes it’s Trixie. Then for some reason Robbie falls down. (??) Stephanie yells out his name, he sees Trixie, he looks at Robbie, and he yells.

Despite the fact he can’t.. ya know.. see.. he chases Ziggy around, and after a while Ziggy has tripped and a box is on top of his head but he continues running, and he runs out the door. The crystal beeps and Sportacus flies into town, and grabs two of Bessie’s pegs. Meanwhile, Ziggy has tripped over a rock, and fallen over and he can’t get out the box.

And like it should’ve down years ago, the Leaning Tower of LazyTown leans just a BIT too much. (The timing of this show is ridiculous) Luckily, Sportacus flips over to the tower and kicks it back in place!

Then he gets Ziggy out the box, and the tower leans again - but this time, he uses HIS HANDS to keep it in place! THEN HE KICKS OPEN THE DOOR!! Probably one of the best rescues ever. Anyways, when they’ve all gotten out the tower, they realize the ghost is getting away. Sportacus says he doesn’t think it’s a real ghost, then he flips onto a wall and pulls out the pegs. He pegs Robbie straight to Bessie’s hanging line and crawls out the costume - which is now revealed. (it hits hard this time because Bessie yells out 'ROBBIE ROTTEN’) After he runs to the lair, Milford runs over to them to check if they’re OK.

Trixie says it was her fault this all happened - and she’s right - it’s her no good doing stinky manure rule-breaking scooting red loving but got no lovers little self’s fault. But everyone else says it’s not her fault because they ALL broke the rules. YEAH, YOU DID, because of her!! DUHH?? But this is Nickelodeon. Anyways, they say that the most important thing is the lesson was learnt, but Stingy says it was that he found that coin, then they laugh (I’d throw him back in the castle and make it lean again goddammit) and perform Bing Bang.

In the lair, Robbie is sulking when he hears Hoot Hoot from earlier in the episode making noise. He goes to check what it is. Then he sees it on top of the shaft and RUNS BACK to the Leaning Tower. IT’S AN OWL, NOT AN ANGRY MOM WITH A SLIPPER. In relief that he got away from the owl (which apparently is more scary than an angry mom with a slipper), he wipes off his sweat, and leans on the tower and makes it lean even more then it did at the beginning of the episode.

Then he goes back to the lair.

6/10 - Took me forever to watch, cool rescue, songs and plot.