Shrek, Donkey, Puss and the rest of the Fairytale creatures spend the night at Duloc, last seen all the way back in the first movie, and tell scary stories. Whoever lasts the night will be crowned King of Halloween.
Tropes featured in this special:
- Albinos Are Freaks: Discussed trope in Donkey's original story. He started the story off with a crazy albino who had a hook for a hand and lived in a mirror. Apparently, if you were to look at him, he might steal your organs.
- All Just a Dream: Happens when Puss gets trapped by Prince Charming during Puss and Donkey's story. Puss says after being trapped it was all just a dream and he woke up, saying he would never actually let something like that happen.
- Badly Battered Babysitter: Shrek's story sees him get hired to babysit Pinocchio. Said story is also a parody of The Exorcist, and Shrek ends up having to put up with a lot of abuse trying to get him to behave.
- The Bus Came Back: Duloc makes its return to the franchise after its absence and non-mentioning after the first film.
- By the Lights of Their Eyes: The lights go out during Puss and Donkey's story leaving only their eyes in view, and Donkey has wound up in the shower when they come back on.
- Continuity Nod: Shrek comes across the Duloc welcome puppets from the first film, but they were revamped for Halloween. In an inversion of the first movie, Shrek enjoyed it but not Donkey, who was terrified.
- Continuity Snarl: This special possibly debunks the events of the Shrek 4D attraction, as Lord Farquaad being a ghost is said to be an urban legend, with Shrek and Donkey making no mention over ever having encountered him again as such, but
the creators say otherwise. - Cutaway Gag: While about to tell his scary story at Duloc, Shrek notices that the three blind mice aren't there, and asks if anyone's seen them. Cut back to his home, where the mice are walking along a turnstile thinking that they're walking to the castle.
- Ghost Town: Duloc has become this since apparently after Farquaad's death, with the former citizens presumably leaving elsewhere and the overall landscape is incredibly decrepit.
- Hypocritical Humor: At the end of Puss and Donkey's story, Donkey scares Puss away by paying Pinocchio to spritz him with a water bottle and Shrek admonishes him for cheating. Come the end of Shrek's story (in which Pinocchio is revealed to have killed a cricket who wanted to be his conscience) and Shrek scares Pinocchio away by pulling out a cricket.Donkey: Uh, now who's cheating?
- Impact Silhouette: Happens after Shrek scares Pinocchio out of the castle with a cricket at the end of Pinocchio's story. He runs right through the door even though the door is ajar and leaves an impression of himself in the door.
- It's Probably Nothing: At the end, when Donkey and Shrek are seemingly the only players left in the castle, a sinister voice is whispering. Donkey thinks it's just the wind, but then the voice says, "Donkey," which makes Donkey feel less sure of his answer. It turns out to be Fiona doing a voice impersonation as part of a prank to scare him away.
- It Was a Dark and Stormy Night: How Donkey starts his story off. He even brings the phrase up right before Puss was about to go first.
- "Pan from the Sky" Beginning: The short begins with the DreamWorks boy on the moon, only he nervously hides behind the moon, and then the camera pans down to a Shrek-like pumpkin with the title carved onto it.
- Possession Levitation: During the segment parodying The Exorcist, Pinocchio (in the role of the possessed) levitates thanks to his marionette strings. Shrek solves this by just cutting the strings.
- The Un-Reveal: When the challenge for the scariest story begins, Donkey starts off with interrupting Puss's story, talking about one that involved a crazy albino in a mirror. Shrek cuts Donkey off before he can get any further into the story, and by the time they get to Duloc and Donkey gets his turn, he starts off with a completely different story involving him and Puss in a creepy hotel. Where he was going with his original story is never revealed.
- Vomit Indiscretion Shot: Pinocchio does this in Shrek's face during his story, as a reference to the film source material of which is being parodied.
- Whole-Plot Reference:
- The "three-story" part of the special is much akin to The Simpsons' Treehouse of Horror series.
- Not only that, but each of the stories the gang tells reference a particular horror movie:
- Gingy's story is based on Bride of Frankenstein but it has Gingy wanting the Muffin Man to make him a mate.
- Puss (and Donkey)'s story is based on Psycho; even the story's name is "Boots Motel", which is a reference to Bates Motel, the film's setting.
- Shrek's story, "The Shreksorcist", a very clear play on The Exorcist.
