As the year is coming to a close and the weather inevitably gets colder, foggier, and darker, it’s not uncommon to feel a little more slow. It’s the best time of year for getting cozy, relaxing, and, if you’re like me, indulging in treats of nostalgia.Â
Adventure Time was my all-time favorite show as a kid, and is praised for the relatability of its content no matter what age you may be. Loved by kids and adults around the world, it is a perfect show for autumn and winter.
If you’ve never watched Adventure Time, here’s a good place to start. Ten-minute episodes follow the life of Finn the Human and his best friend Jake the Dog as they fight monsters and learn lessons in the Land of Ooo, a world full of interesting friends and foes. It’s a perfect mesh of being funny and having real profound value, which is why it has stood the test of time and is loved by kids and adults alike.
Its feel-good ambiance and penchant for the unique make for an easy, heart-filling watch, and, so, here are seven cozy Adventure Time episodes for fall and winter.
Rainy Day Daydream
Season 1, Episode 23
In the face of a knife storm—a normal rainy day, except the raindrops are knives—brothers Finn and Jake look for entertainment in their home (a giant treehouse). Jake encourages Finn to use his imagination, proposing a fun game of The Floor is Lava—until suddenly his imagination becomes a bit too real.Â
The episode takes place only in the comfort of their home, and, complemented by the gloomy knife storm and abundant humor, makes for a cozy episode that likely matches the weather outside your own window (you know, minus the knives).
The Creeps
Season 3, Episode 12
After receiving an invite from a mysterious host, Finn and Jake meet up with their friends at a gothic manor in the dead of night during a storm. The invitation proposed a mysterious dinner with masquerade masks and code names, but it soon becomes clear that something more nefarious is at hand.
 Alongside Princess Bubblegum, Lumpy Space Princess, Cinnamon Bun, and BMO, Finn and Jake must find a way out of the mansion before it’s too late – but they can trust even each other?
The overall vibe of this episode feels very November, especially in the face of the spooky manor and rainy, windy weather.
Ghost Princess
Season 3, Episode 24Â
While enjoying a cozy bonfire in the woods, Finn and Jake suddenly encounter a ghost: Ghost Princess! Lamenting her existence on the mortal plane, she explains that her soul cannot move until she figures out how she died.Â
Determined to help their ghostly friend, Finn and Jake embark on a quest to uncover her death and earn her a place in the Fiftieth Dead World, but not before getting mixed up with some other phantom figures.Â
Ghosts, graveyards, and mystery! I think you get why I love watching this episode during the colder months.
Thank You
Season 3, Episode 17
Set in the snowy Ice Kingdom, this episode begins following the peaceful life of a giant snowman as he picks fruit and goes about his solitary domesticity—that is until he’s attacked by a pack of wild fire wolves. He fights them off and continues on with his day, but not without making a new shadiw: a fire wolf pup!
An absolute ten minutes of feel-good winter wholesomeness, watch as the begrudging snowman goes from trying to kick out the clingy fire wolf to cherishing his new friend, ultimately forming a very cute companionship.
Feat.: a silly side plot with Finn, Jake, and the Ice King.
Blank Eyed Girl
Season 7, Episode 19
While enjoying their midnight pizza and listening to the popular spooky conspiracy podcast, “The Graveyard Shift,” Finn and Jake hear stories of the haunting blank eyed girls: small girls with big black eyes looking through windows and being places they shouldn’t.
Dismissive of the conspiracies and insulting the host, they make their way back home; but what will they do when a blank eyed girl shows up on their front steps?
This episode is by far one of my favorites. It’s weird, hilarious, and pretty uncanny.
The STAKES! Miniseries
Season 7, Episodes 6-13
A seven-episode series, the STAKES! miniseries centers around one of the most beloved Adventure Time characters: Marceline the Vampire Queen.Â
Marceline is the daughter of the Demon King and has lived for centuries, dating back to before the apocalypse that turned our Earth into the Land of Ooo. Her axe bass and rebel attitude are iconic, despite also serving as covers for her very soft heart.
The miniseries opens with Marceline asking Princess Bubblegum, a long-time friend, for a big favor: to turn Marceline back into a human. Though this starts out as the plan, vampirism soon becomes a bigger issue than they thought, and Marceline has to decide who she truly wants to be.
Not without our beloved Finn and Jake, STAKES! explores Marceline’s past, what it means to be a human, what it means to be a monster, and is the perfect length for a cozy evening inside.Â
Holly Jolly Secrets
Season 3, Episodes 19 and 20
Holly Jolly Secrets is the name for a two-episode duology that is the ultimate Christmas-time watch.Â
When Finn and Jake discover a treasure trove of Ice King’s old tapes, they cozy up in their treehouse with beloved robot BMO for a tape-binge session. Despite starting off without a hitch, Ice King soon tries to fight his way into their treehouse to stop them from watching his tapes—or maybe just join them.
With the characters donning their Christmas sweaters and cozied up by the fire while it snows outside their windows, Holly Jolly Secrets make for a great winter-time watch as you get into the holiday spirit and surround yourself with loved ones; just like the wacky cast of Adventure Time!
Though Adventure Time may not be as nostalgic for everyone as it is for me, it is without a doubt a lovable, lighthearted, and comforting show. The episodes are short and often funny in a way that make for easy watching, especially in the face of stressful academia or mood-dampening weather.Â
Be it Adventure Time, Steven Universe, or The Amazing World of Gumball, diving into an old cartoon may be all you need to relax during these chilly, gloomy seasons.Â