‘Goosebumps’ (Season 1) Review: A Satisfying Adaptation that Pays Homage to the Novels
It’s impossible not to read R. L. Stine’s series of horror novels, Goosebumps, growing up as a kid. You might have read these horror novels before bed and gotten spooked because it’s that good! It’s one of the biggest franchises in the world, and for good reason. Stine’s books have surpassed multiple generations of horror fans. For many, the novels are an introduction to frightening situations, ghost stories, supernatural cases, and occults terrorising the lives of preteens and young adults.
Throughout the years, Goosebumps was adapted into a television series, a movie, and now a Disney+ and Hulu series of the same name. It follows a group of high school teenagers investigating the death of Harold Biddle (Ben Cockell), who died in a fire three decades ago. It switches back and forth to two different timelines and unearths dark secrets about their parents’ past lives.
The series is set in the quiet (and fictional) harbour town of Port Lawrence, where the only tragedy that occurred was the tragic death of Harold. At school, there is a social hierarchy to maintain. Isaiah (Zack Morris), whose parents are hoping that he wins a scholarship so that they won’t have to be financially burdened by his education; his best friend, James (Miles McKenna), who might be one of the few queer people in town; Margot (Isa Briones), Isaiah’s childhood crush and neighbour with a peanut allergy; Lucas (Will Price), the town’s daredevil and mourning the death of his father; the social outcast and tech nerd, Isabella (Ana Yi Puig). Isaiah throws a party at Harold’s haunted and abandoned home, now owned by a new English teacher played by Justin Long. The five of them begin to be spooked by items: a mask, a camera and a jar of worms. After the party, the English teacher is possessed by Harold’s soul. They begin the quest for vengeance.
The first few episodes of Goosebumps explore the characters’ connections, including the teenagers and their parents with Harold. It explains their dynamics and personalities to understand who they are in the story. The parents could be considered the main characters because they take up most of the screen time and have dark secrets from the past that haunt them and their children. The audience figures out these connections, but it feels rushed and quite confusing when one group of people keep dominating the screen with vague warnings. The mysterious objects and Harold’s death tie into their parents’ past. The story slowly unravels these elements through flashbacks and connects to the bigger plot of the series.
However, once these story plots and character dynamics are established, the series loses momentum. The moment the series shifts to the parent’s perspective and the flashbacks. Even if the series shows the past and the secrets, there’s still a disconnect between those two elements. The parents, under a collective agreement, decide not to tell their children about the past. But every time Isaiah and his friends ask their parents about it, they are dismissed. This happens quite a few times. This element becomes repetitive and goes nowhere until the last few episodes, and things get sillier again.
Goosebumps provides plenty of entertaining moments, even though it gets incredibly goofy. The series has cliffhangers and many familiar horror characters from the books, which will entertain many viewers.
Strike Funds: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1weorhmG1H7cszY3rGHCpNYsgleegkuOSH7rD47JzSAQ/edit
Solidarity with striking film and television workers: https://freelancesolidarity.org/wga-sag-strike-solidarity/
Here are some reading materials to learn about the genocide and ethnic cleansing in Palestine:
Decolonise Palestine: https://decolonizepalestine.com/
Verso Books: https://www.versobooks.com/en-gb/blogs/news/solidarity-with-palestine-free-resources-and-further-reading
Haymarket Books: https://www.haymarketbooks.org/books/subjects/33-palestine
The Free Palestine Library: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1FZudPOQZAnYH1iQXNBkqF57GR0lcQMro
More Palestine reading materials: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/14Ln_qYhc7sIs9Ukz5usqAELuKOQ6yUe9
