TV Wrestling Episodes Perfect for Halloween

Halloween is almost here, which means more Halloween related, wrestling pop culture content. And while the wrestling horror movie sub-genre is still a work in progress, you can still get your Halloween/wrestling fix by watching these 10 wrestling episodes from TV shows that deal with the supernatural. And the best part is, most of these shows are either streaming on Netflix or Hulu.

10. Pup Named Scooby Doo – “Wrestle Maniacs”
We’re starting things off on the softer side of Halloween. Because, like my girlfriend says, “not everything dealing with Halloween has to be scary.” And there’s nothing less scarier than the puppy version of Scooby Doo. Here, the pint-sized Mystery Inc. is up against The Hooded Heifer, a cow-themed wrestler who definitely should’ve been called The Mad Cow. Spoiler Alert. The Hooded Heifer is actually Herbert Blaum, a pro wrestler who decides to haunt the Coolsville Wrestling Federation so he can buy it at a cheaper rate before Carol Colossal does. Blaum apparently hates any kind of female involvement in pro wrestling.

9. Sabrina, The Teenage Witch – “Salem’s Daughter”
(Full review here)
Sabrina was always more about kooky spells, than say, kidnapping newborns and turning a Puritan family against one another with the help of a goat named Black Phillip, who is most definitely the devil. Instead, we get a black cat/deadbeat father named Salem, who somehow drags Sabrina into being the maid of honor at his estranged daughter’s wedding. As part of her duties she has to wrestle the father of the groom, who is played by none other than the Ass Man himself, Billy Gunn. Honestly, you probably won’t find a better Billy Gunn singles match.

8. What’s New Scooby Doo? – “Wrestle Maniacs”
This similarly-titled episode of Scooby Doo tries to answer the question, what do you get when you cross The Phantom of the Opera with pro wrestling? Even though WCW did a pretty good job answering it with Rick Rude’s debut at Halloween Havoc ’91. If you only watch one Scooby Doo wrestling-related TV episode, make it this one because a) the phantom wrestler in question is a deformed Toxic Avenger in trunks and not a damn masked cow, and b) there’s an insane gimmick match at the end that makes anything any Japanese wrestling promotion ever conceived pale in comparison.

7. The Munsters – “Herman the Great”
(Full review here)
In this episode of The Munsters, Herman dons a mask and wrestles guys that he could easily rip apart and maim in seconds. Instead, he actually does the job for almost every opponent he faces, until he goes up against a shooter who roofies him. One of the many countless things that would’ve made this better, is if Grandpa Munster played Paul Heyman to Herman’s Brock Lesnar. They would’ve made a killing, financially speaking.

6. X-Files – “Fight Club”
(Full review here)
In this X-Files episode you’ll find Agents Mulder and Scully encounter one of the more peculiar and frightening things, two Kathy Griffins. This somehow ties into stereotypical, down-on-his-luck, one last shot at stardom, pro wrestler, Bert “The Titanic” Zupanic, who also happens to have an evil twin. This all culminates in a wrestling match between Bert and Rob Van Dam disguised in a Zorro gimmick, in a role even less hardcore than his appearance on City Guys.

5. Charmed – “Wrestling with Demons”
(Full review here)
If you ever wanted to see demon versions of Booker T. and Scott Steiner take on Wiccan sisters Shannen Doherty and Alyssa Milano, then definitely check out the literally titled “Wrestling with Demons” episode of Charmed. The bad part is that the demon versions of Booker T. and Scott Steiner look like their regular human counterparts. You’d think WCW or the WB would’ve at least hooked them up with those devil horns that Rey Mysterio was unfortunately wearing during his raver phase. There is a rambling Big Poppa Pump promo, so that’s a plus. And you get to see Steiner and Booker T. doing their best to sell falling down a portal to hell.

4. Supernatural – “Beyond the Mat”
(Full review here)
Before The Miz cut that Talking Smack promo that changed everybody’s mind on The Miz, he was practicing for that by chewing scenery in this episode of Supernatural. The Miz plays a hungry, up and coming rookie, who feels like he’s being underutilized. You know, just another wrestler. Enter Duke, a demon who offers The Miz’ character a successful wrestling career if he sells his soul to the devil. The Miz refuses because honestly, what’s the point when you’ve already headlined a WrestleMania?

3. Angel – “The Cautionary Tale of Numero Cinco”
(Full review here)
In this wrestling-related episode of Angel you get lucha libre, Day of the Dead references, Aztec mythology, and zombies. It’s like they specifically made this episode with me in mind. Also featured are old school lucha libre, mini luchadores, a fraternal quintet of luchadores not named Los Villanos, new school lucha libre, and an old retired luchador mail clerk. You’ll forget that David Boreanaz is even a part of the show.

2. The Strain – “The Silver Angel”
(Full review here)
In between the viral outbreak of vampirism that makes up the premise of The Strain, there’s an episode where Guillermo Del Toro paid homage to the old El Santo vs. films. The mini-movie within a show serves as a backstory for the character of Angel a.k.a. The Silver Angel, a.k.a. El Angel de Plata, who is introduced in this particular episode. From the cheesy effects to the terrible acting, but the very on point lucha libre, Angel contra los Vampiros Malditos is everything you remember loving about the old El Santo vs. films. That is, if you’re an older Mexican wrestling fan, or a fan of sub-genres within an already niche film genre.

1. Tales from the Darkside – “Basher Malone”
Unless you own the $45 DVD box set of the Tales from the Darkside series, the only way to watch this video online is to pay $4.99/month for the Shudder streaming service or, at the very least, try the 7-day free trial. It is the Halloween season, after all. The “Basher Malone” episode comes in at number one not because it’s the scariest, it’s really just the same plot as the Charmed “Wrestling with Demons” episode, but because it’s the most 80’s episode of them all. And cheesy “horror” from the 80’s is the best kind of horror. Whether it’s supposed to be tongue-in-cheek, or not. Hulk Hogan lite, Basher Malone, complete with his own set of commandments, which include doing your homework and listening to your mom, takes on Trog from the Hell Fire and Brimstone League (where Kane learned to wrestle). Trog even has his own evil version of Miss Elizabeth, who melts like the Wicked Witch of the East when she’s doused with milk via Basher’s mother/manager. Trust me, it’s worth entering your credit card info for the 7-day trial.