Recap / Men In Black The Series S 2 E 6 The Jack O Lantern Syndrome

• Alien Arts Are Appreciated: According to Zed, aliens of all types positively love Halloween.
• Arbitrary Skepticism: Zed absolutely refuses to believe in anything supernatural, which he ends up being right about in a couple of cases. Averted by K, who doesn't dismiss the idea of werewolves existing; he just says Frank should call someone operating in that jurisdiction.
• Cassandra Truth: After one Worm gets grabbed, J tries to call in back-up, but Zed ends up thinking it's just a Halloween prank and hangs up on him.
• Curb-Stomp Battle: The Barthok suffers a quick and humiliating defeat at the hands of the worms the moment K uses a device that mimics the effects of his homeworld.
• Didn't Think This Through: Presumably, the Barthok’s planet have special weapons and restraints to keep their prisoners in line in case one of them attempts to fight back. Technology he apparently didn’t bring with him when he arrived on Earth. Probably justified, as he may not have known MIB had the means to replicate the conditions found on his homeworld.
• Hoist by His Own Petard: The Barthok is only interested in abducting little people because the conditions found on his planet turn them into Pint-Sized Powerhouses, making them perfect for slave labor. When K uses a field generator that emulates the conditions on his planet, he is easily taken out by the worms.
• Home Field Advantage: Inverted. The Barthok’s planet causes individuals shorter than him to become physically stronger and faster. When the worms are exposed to the conditions found on his planet, he is quickly defeated by them.
• Hope Spot: J is about to open fire on the Barthok, but it turns out he's only carrying a squirt gun. Beatdown ensues.
• Oh, Crap!: Zed accidentally shoots an alien ambassador in a mecha-styled Jack O’Lantern costume. The ambassador is alright, but his costume is completely destroyed.
• Outside-Context Problem: The MIB are trained to deal with any extraterrestrial threat, but are unprepared to deal with a haunting.
• Pint-Sized Powerhouse: According to K, the conditions on the Barthok’s homeworld turn any short individual into this (from human children to the worms).
• Rage Breaking Point: Zed gets increasingly frustrated with everyone's panicked belief in Jack O'Lantern. By the time he's faced with the supposed creature, he angrily opens fire on it. Big mistake, as it turns out to be an ambassador's costume.
• "Scooby-Doo" Hoax: It’s possible the Barthok chose to land in a pumpkin patch wearing a suit that slightly resembles a jack-o-lantern to avoid suspicion.
• Screw This, I'm Outta Here: After realizing the worms now have the physical advantage over him, the Barthok attempts to crawl way, only to dragged back for more pummeling.
• Shout-Out: K questions why Frank called him about his werewolf concerns since MIB doesn't deal with the supernatural.
  Frank: Who ya gonna call?
• Surrounded by Idiots: Zed feels this way in response to everyone's belief in the Jack O'Lantern monster and other supernatural antics.
• Throw the Dog a Bone: Instead of blasting him in the head as usual for attempting to sell alien disguises to humans (which is illegal), K opts to just give Jeebs a warning, then promising to leave him alone for the rest of the night if he can provide a lead for any suspicious alien activity. After briefly thinking about it, Jeebs agrees to the terms.
• Wrong Genre Savvy: Troy firmly believes that Jack O'Lantern is causing the problems in MIB headquarters, saying he saw stuff like this in all the movies. L instead thinks they're dealing with a more standard poltergeist and says they should hold a seance. It turns out to be, of course, an alien... just a very rare one trying to get back home. Zed is quick to point out how both ended up being wrong.