Even though Goosebumps is known for being campy and cheesy, and the show does feel dated in terms of its vibe, clothing, and hairstyles when watched today, there are some things that today’s horror filmmakers can learn from these episodes.
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Each episode of Goosebumps is a smart, self-contained story, just like the R.L. Stine TV show Just Beyond. Even though the show has a high cheese factor, thanks to its time period, horror filmmakers can be inspired by how well each tale of terror is told. Take the season 1 episode “The Girl Who Cried Monster” which has a perfect formula. The episode opens with Lucy (Deborah Scorsone) scaring her younger brother by pretending that there’s a monster hiding in their garden. When she starts becoming suspicious of the creepy librarian Mr. Mortman (Eugene Lipinski), she hides in the stacks and sees him transform into a disgusting monster who eats bugs.
When Lucy’s parents invite him over for dinner, the episode’s plot twist reveals that Lucy’s mom and dad are monsters, too, and they eat him in order to keep their secret safe. When Lucy’s friend shows up, she’s afraid that her parents will hurt him too, but her dad holds up a cherry pie and offers dessert. This story is told perfectly, with no gaps in plot or confusing moments, and that’s something that is also true of the best and most critically acclaimed horror movies.
It’s great that there will be a new Disney+ Goosebumps show and it will be fascinating to see which characters and scary stories end up part of it. The characters in each Goosebumps episode are also something to be celebrated. They’re regular kids who feel just like the viewer, and they are shocked to learn about the terrifying thing happening in their lives. The episodes follow the typical structure of The Hero’s Journey as the child characters resist the ghost/creature/horrors before them and then accept what’s going on. It’s easy to relate to the kids as they are both scared and determined to do what needs to be done to stop the ghost or monster or whatever is haunting them.
There are two other things that horror filmmakers can learn from Goosebumps: its use of jump scares and twist endings. Horror movies with jump scares can go one of two ways: they can be genuinely frightening or they can be boring as audiences are tired of this trope. Most Goosebumps episodes follow the same format as there is a fake jump scare within the first few minutes. Sometimes a kid is scaring a sibling, like previously mentioned, or the main character thinks that they see something that isn’t really there. While these jump scares can be cheesy, horror filmmakers can learn to not rely on jump scares so often, as it’s better when this trope is used sparingly to really make it count.
Fans feel nostalgic for ’90s kids horror shows like Goosebumps because they have fun corny tones. Each episode of Goosebumps also has a twist ending. In this case, unlike the jump scares, the twist ending always works perfectly. In “Night of the Living Dummy II,” a dummy kills evil Slappy, which shocks the family who have been living with him. At the conclusion of the season 2 episode “Haunted Mask II,” it seems impossible to truly destroy the mask. It’s always fun to see a huge surprise at the end of a horror movie, as a neat and tidy ending works for romantic dramas and comedies, but a killer (no pun intended) ending is always best for horror films.
Every episode of Goosebumps is a super entertaining journey. A young actress is turned into a cat by an evil feline named Rip in “Cry of the Cat.” A kid is sent to a creepy boarding school in “The Perfect School.” Siblings learn that scarecrows have been brought to life in “Scarecrow Walks at Midnight.” It’s easy to become drawn into these scary stories, even if with some hindsight and distance they aren’t quite as terrifying as they seem to little kids. The story structure of each Goosebumps episode can definitely be a great, inspiring blueprint for horror movies today.
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