- "Captivating Chaos!"
Produced 2003, aired in U.S. on 5/14/04
Production order: 8 (1-8)
While cleaning the lab, Danny accidentally knocks his dad's anniversary gift for his mom through the Ghost Portal. Terrified that this will push his parents (who just had such a big fight that Maddie left to stay with her sister in Arkansas) even closer to splitting up, Danny goes into the Ghost Zone to retrieve it. He quickly runs into Walker, warden of a ghost jail, who's always eager to lock someone up for breaking one of his myriad rules. If Danny can't figure out a way to escape, or Tucker and Sam can't find him, he'll be spending the next 1,000 years locked up with all the ghosts he's sent back to the Ghost Zone.
This episode provides examples of:
- Continuity Nod: Every ghost Danny had encountered up to this point except for Poindexter and Vlad make an appearance in this episode.
- Cool Ship: The Specter Speeder, which Danny and co. will borrow in the future whenever Sam and Tucker need to accompany him in the Ghost Zone.
- Enemy Mine: Danny and his ghostly enemies join forces to break out of Walker's jail.Skulker: The enemy of my enemy is my friend. For now...
- Foreshadowing: While the episode makes it seem like Jack and Maddie are going to have a divorce because he forgot their anniversary, there's also bits of evidence to suggest that's not what's happening.
- Maddie reminds Jack about "the divorce" when she says she's going to her sister's. She also said they discussed it. While it sounds like they're talking about them getting a divorce, the choice of words suggest it's something unrelated.
- When speaking with Alicia, Maddie isn't accepting of the idea of living alone, or leaving Jack. If they were indeed getting a divorce, she would be more open to the idea.
- Upon hearing a group of hillbillies mention "the divorce", Jack realizes that Alicia had gotten to Maddie and word was spreading. Since Jack and Maddie do not live anywhere near Alicia, it wouldn't make much sense for a group of locals unfamiliar with them to know about or even care about them getting a divorce.
- Forgotten Anniversary: The plot gets kicked off by Jack forgetting that it's his and Maddie's wedding anniversary, apparently for the 18th year in a row.
- Innocuously Important Episode: It seems like just another Villain of the Week episode, but Walker will seek revenge. That scheme will lead to the public finally accepting that ghosts do exist, as well as tank Danny's public image (at least until shortly into Season 2).
- Judge, Jury, and Executioner: Walker is the Ghost Zone's self-appointed judge, executioner, jury, executioner, jailer, and (if necessary) executioner.Walker: I like that part of the job.
- Mundane Utility: Danny uses his Ghost Ray to clean up the lab. It works well...until he accidentally knocks Jack's gift into the Ghost Zone.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Upon seeing that Jack actually realized his mistake in forgetting his and Maddie's anniversary and intended to make up for it, something he'd never done before, Jazz went into a deep Heroic BSoD.
- Potty Emergency: While at Maddie's sister's cabin, Jack ends up having to go. Unfortunately, his sister-in-law doesn't have a bathroom or outhouse, he's not allowed to use the rhubarb, and the nearby general store doesn't have a restroom either.
- Shout-Out: Butch Hartman seems to have a thing for thick, glowing, annoying books of supernatural rules making life needlessly difficult for his heroes.
- Skewed Priorities: Danny is worried that their parents might be getting a divorce due to Jack's negligence at his and Maddie's anniversary. However, Jack informs them that he's following Maddie to Arkansas to apologize, and instead of being worried about their mother's mentioning of the word "divorce" like Danny, or even relieved that Jack's doing something this time, Jazz is more concerned about being wrong about their father's actions and the possibility of being wrong about other things.
- The Unreveal: We never find out what Jack's present for Maddie was, as the Box Ghost jumps out as soon as she unwraps it, and she and Jack eagerly give chase.
