"The Cruel Giggling Ghoul" is the twenty-third episode of the third season of Teen Titans Go!, and the one-hundred-twenty-seventh overall episode of the series.
The Titans go to the Wacka Doodles Amusement Park to watch LeBron James but no one is there. The Titans find out what's going on.
Plot
The Titans are late for LeBron James' dribbling exhibition because of Beast Boy and Cyborg asking for food every 5 minutes. Robin asks Starfire to locate an exit sign and Starfire looks out and gets her head stuck in the exit sign which makes the Titans laugh. When they arrive, no one is there so Cyborg thought they hurried too much. And LeBron James came out and discovered that no one came. The manager came and told them about a two headed ghoul who invaded the park....TBC
LeBron James is also the first NBA all-star and sports celebrity to appear in the series.
This episode reveals that Raven wears contacts.
When LeBron appears in this episode, there's another NBA player named Shaquelle 'O Neal, who has also guest starred in the Uncle Grandpa episode "Perfect Kid".
LeBron guest stars in this Teen Titans Go! episode because he once mentioned at a press interview that he enjoys watching the show, which caught the attention of the voice actors of the Titans and the producers of the show.
This isn't the first time the Teen Titans have spoofed the characters from Scooby-Doo, which they also did so in the New Teen Titans short "Turn Back the Clock" where they each paroided the same Mystery Inc. characters they do here.
This episode aired with a We Bare Bears episode called "Charlie Ball" on NBA All Star Jam instead of the usual New Thursdays.
Scott Menville is no stranger to the Scooby-Doo franchise. He was the voice of Red Herring and the Boogey Biker in A Pup Named Scooby Doo and Shaggy in Shaggy & Scooby-Doo Get a Clue.
This is the second time that Batman's real name (Bruce Wayne) is displayed. The first time was in "Real Boy Adventures".
This is Commissioner Gordon's first appearance in Season 3.
Raven is seen unhooded for the thirty-third time. This is also the first time that she is unhooded for the entire episode.
This episode shows Raven wearing glasses for the fifth time. The other times were in "In and Out", "Super Robin" (as an old lady), "More of the Same" (as an old lady), and "Two Parter" (as an old lady in Part 2).
Beast Boy makes Raven blush for the fourth time. The other times were in "Waffles", "Man Person", and "Cool School".
The sound when Raven blushes from Beast Boy's comment is the same exact sound from when she blushed in "Man Person".
The Wacka Doodles Amusement Park reappears in this episode. Its previous appearances were in "Girl's Night Out" and "Cool School".
This is the fourth time that Beast Boy's liking for burritos and Cyborg's liking for burgers are mentioned. The first times were "Burger vs. Burrito", "Baby Hands", and "Black Friday".
Batman and James Gordon's laughs and theme are heard for the fourth time in this episode. The first times were in "Girl's Night Out", "Sidekick", and "Slumber Party".
Beast Boy's disguise as Beast Babe is shown again. The first time was in "You're Fired".
This is the second time that the laugh track can be heard. The first time was in "Dog Hand".
Robin learns how to drive after passing his driver's test in "Driver's Ed".
When Beast Boy sees the ghoul behind Cyborg, one of the things Cyborg guesses is Gregory, which is, of course, Beast Boy's voice actor Greg Cipes's real name.
References
The entire episode is a parody of the Scooby-Doo franchise.
All the Titans parody a member of Mystery Inc., with Robin as Fred Jones, Starfire as Modern Daphne Blake, Raven as Velma Dinkely, Cyborg as Shaggy Rogers, and Beast Boy as Scooby-Doo.
All the "Safety-Hazard Starfire" jokes are based on "Scooby-Doo"'s "Danger-Prone Daphne" jokes.
The two-headed ghoul is based on "The Creeper" from the Scooby-Doo franchise.
Raven dropping her glasses references Velma's running gag.
Cyborg, playing as Shaggy, constantly says "Like", which is the latter's catchphrase.
Starfire plays the role of Daphne, because Robin is her love intrest, similar to Fred and Daphne's relationship.
When The Two-Headed Ghoul chases Cyborg and Beast Boy, the music playing is a homage of every Scoody-Doo music chase scene.
The Titans play the role of the Scooby-Doo characters again. The first time this happened was in the New Teen Titans short "Turn Back the Clock".
Whenever a mask is taken off the culprit, the sound effects that play during the sequence come from a 1995 Hanna Barbera closing logo, most notably featured after every short in "The What A Cartoon Show".
The hero depicted on the Snack Shack is based on Steel, specifically the 1997 film version portrayed by Shaquille O'Neal.
When Beast Boy and Cyborg are being chased by the ghoul, the song that plays is a parody of Pat Benatar's "Hit Me With Your Best Shot."
Whenever the Ghoul laughs during the chase scene at the end of the episode, the voice line that can be heard is the laugh of the pink-haired character "Joker" from the 1999 video game "Custom Robo".
Errors
When Beast Boy turns into a dog in the beginning of the episode, his eyes have pupils, but later on, his eyes are pupil-less.
This happens again towards the end.
Oddly enough, Beast Boy's Beast Babe wig is blonde in this episode, instead of being green like it was in "You're Fired".
After Raven drops her glasses in front of the bumper car area, she goes into the bumper cart ride area, but when she returns, the glasses are gone.
Robin has worked with Batman for years, so Bruce Wayne's secret identity should be no shock to him.
Especially since Batman shows Robin in The Lego Batman Movie.
On the Cartoon Network App, this episode is switched with " Secret Garden".
Running Gags
The two-headed ghoul scaring the Titans.
The ghoul chasing Beast Boy and Cyborg.
Robin, Cyborg, Raven, and Beast Boy laughing at Starfire and calling her a "safety hazard".
LeBron saying "I'm a go dribble over there" then runs off and dribbles away saying "dribble, dribble, dribble", prompting canned laughter to play.
The Titans acting like Mystery Inc.
Beast Boy turning into a bulldog.
Beast Boy and Cyborg getting burgers and burritos.
Gallery
The image gallery for The Cruel Giggling Ghoul may be viewed here.
