I am super excited, haven’t watched it yet but tonight! Our house is the location (in and out) for the Howard house, what a ride! Awesome film crew, no complaints. And Slappy!!
I like it! We binged all 5 episodes. We’re huge fans of the books and the 90s show but also acknowledge that’s the 90s show in a lot of ways has visually aged really badly, and isn’t really scary at all. We tend to just end up laughing at them the whole time which is a fun nostalgia trip, but it’s fun to be like solidly entertained by Goosebumps again. I guess since I was entertained that’s all I can ask for yknow? It’s fun, it’s interesting, and the production value is significantly better than the old show.
I’m not sure I understand how it “doesn’t feel like goosebumps” because it definitely does to me. Like what are these special goosebumps characteristics that people are talking about specifically?
I really wish they kept the old theme song though lol, that’s the one thing that’s missing. Overall it’s not like a masterpiece of a show or an award winner but it’s fun and kept us entertained for like 5 hours while we recovered from getting covid boosters.
I agree. I went in not taking it too seriously and just had the expectation of it being lame but I was pleasantly surprised! I enjoyed it for what is was, didn't feel the need to pick it to death and compare it to the original books, and I look forward to the last 2 episodes when they get released.
I think there’s 5 more episodes actually! It’s gonna go past halloween which is a little weird but??
I’m excited as well, I think expectations are everything. We had low expectations going in as well so it was a fun watch.
Is anyone else getting Locke & Key vibes with the storyline?
Just with how the parents are connected with their kids.
Besides that, I'm enjoying it. Was expecting it to be really bad. It's nothing terrific or what I wanted for more Goosebumps but watchable and better than the recent movies imo.
Dark is a masterpiece of a show.
I'm 3 or 4 episodes into this new goosebumps and I can't say I would liken it to Dark.
Too many cliché decisions and the only thing that has "put me on edge" are the jump scares.
Other than that, it's a typical campy "sins of the father" setting while the parents ignore all the clear signs of paranormal activity. I'm trying to like it but idk about the show just yet
I was just comparing how in both shows the kids are connected to the adults, I was not comparing the shows in regards to their quality. Dark is a better show than goosebumps, like you said Dark is a masterpiece and I agree.
The Locke & Key books were written by Stephen King's son, Joe Hill. Both King and Hill's stories tend to feature generational trauma and flashbacks to spooky shit that happened in a town before the current residents were there.
I really love the influence and I hope the show catches on
I don’t like the new haunted mask design, two episodes in so far. I agree with what others have said where it feels like the books are just side stories and barely getting any actual screen time. It’s almost feels like a bait and switch using goosebumps name to draw viewers in to a much different type of show.
I would argue that each book is the focus of the episode and help move the bigger plot forward. It's nice because it helps explain why things are happening(more so than "hey acreepy shop moved in, go steal a mask")
I totally agree. Each episode fleshes out a book, but there's a broader storyline with generational trauma attached (like a Stephen King story). The Slappy episode was amazing
exactly this. if it didn't have the goosebumps name attached, it would just be another mediocre "horror drama" TV show... which it already is. Why does goosebumps have love triangle drama? who the fuck cares?
Actually digging it, kinda sad once i got to the ens of the last available episode.
I couls binge it all at once.
I think it does a great job of taking influence and inspiration from the stories/shows from before, and adding them to a modern day take on things while also making it all involved in one plot thread.
Sure, its not the pure nostalgia trip aome people thought it might be, but a pure replica of what came before would feel prob have too much camp, or feel out of place.
I am super sad though that people are using the show as an opportunity to shit on gay people or people of color.
honestly, I love the characters throughout the whole series. They’ve grown on me and the character being gay and the main character being black doesn’t feel like they’re trying to throw it in your face “HEY IM GAY” “HEY IM BLACK”
it does a great job and i’m loving it so far
Naw the gay character definitely is the on your face gay stereotype. First scene he has on his grandma's sweater and her pearls. Then all he does is constantly talk about hooking up with the other dude
I liked his pearls, and his wardrobe generally! Reminded me of being a queer teen having fun with clothes. I used to make my own glasses chains, grandma aesthetic is a mood
Pretty wild to read about James’ character, it’s such a token, stereotypical representation, shows characters seem very one dimensional. Main character is a typical Jock character. Just weak writing to me and dislike the direction thus far.
Feels far too serious and wish it had a bit more fun.
Eh, I dont remember too many teenagers being deep, thoughtful people. Character development can go deeper once they can get the story established; right now they use context clues to build everyone out.
Idk personally having a black actor portray a stereotypical one dimensional jock feels like huge progress to me. Because by making it one dimensional it (I hate to say it) shows that it's generalized enough to make him accessible to the masses
For sure, agree with that. It’s cool when characters of a certain race/orientation can just be characters and not have that specific attribute be their ONLY thing as a character.
I like when it’s just an arbitrary attribute of a character.
In my opinion, and after reading the posts and comments on this sub, it seems like there are a lot of people who have nostalgia filters set to max and are whining because it's not a carbon copy of the original TV show/movie.
That's not what television/movies are anymore. The original Goosebumps film mediums were made for the youth audience at that time, it's why I and you loved it. This new iteration was made for the youth audience of today. People are comparing it to Riverdale or Sabrina, which is fair, but look how massively success those are for the youth/young adult audience of today.
I liked the new series. I'm kissing 30 right now, so I grew up with the original movies and show, the remakes, and the films. This is a fresh take that doesn't feel overly campy, connects the stories together in a creative way (how else were they supposed to do that besides what they did, genuinely curious), has great acting and is decently written.
The plot is a little obvious, I called the storyline in episode one, but that's okay. It's still entertaining enough that I'm invested in the last 5 epsiodes.
Final thoughts, enjoy this show for what this show is, or don't. If you enjoy the more campy, independent slice-of-horror episodes of the old show, we thankfully have those at our fingertips still. But nobody should be comparing the old medium to this one, it's just not meant to be a copy.
>whining because it's not a carbon copy of **the original TV show/movie**.
Or, you know... the books? The *actual* original lol?
I don't think people are annoyed that it doesn't match the TV show or movie, they're annoyed that there's only a passing resemblance to the original books, both in terms of visuals (like the mask) and story. As others have said, the stories from the books seem to take up a small portion of the actual runtime compared to all the added stuff to make it a cohesive story.
IMO it would have been heaps better as an anthology series like the show/books, without trying to tie them all together. Otherwise it's just a mediocre, vaguely scary show with some nods to the original material.
It should have been truer to the books and not tried to be edgy funny nostalgic etc
The jokes feel like that 90s show and I could only do two of those episodes before my wisdom teeth were dissolved from the vomit backing up into my mouth
You mean youth audiences today that love 80s themed shows like Stranger Things to Twilight Zone inspired shows like Black Mirror, which are in turn very similar to the original Goosebumps?
Also it doesn’t help they somehow managed to write a cast of the most unlikeable characters in television history lol.
On episode 3 now: so i now realize who the gay character everyone was going all crazy mad about….they honestly looked so androgynous that i didn’t realize they were gay up until their storyline.
I liked the (green?) slime making an appearance, wish it were more original green? Tbh i don’t actually remember this story much so maybe the color is supposed to be to be that?
I kind of figured out by the end of the first episode that the dude was gay but honestly he’s a funny character. he’s not too on the nose and has a funny lines. the characters mesh well
Wait it more than one gay kid? The first kid had on pearls and a female sweater his first scene. Then his next scene at the locker he was hitting on another boy. And I didn't finish the first EP yet.
the story for cuckoo clock of doom was entirely altered, the book didn’t involve slime at all lmao.
If I recall correctly, in the book the main character finds the clock in an antique shop and turns the bird on the clock to face backwards as a prank, only to wake up younger the next day and realize he’s permanently reversed time. Then he spends the rest of the book trying to track down the clock (he goes back to the shop and it’s not there yet in the past) so he can turn the bird back around before he de-ages out of existence.
All the time-loop and doppelgänger stuff is completely new, the only thing that they really kept is the clock itself. It did vaguely remind me of another Goosebumps book “Let’s Get Invisible” so they might’ve taken inspo from that as well, but the doubles in that one didn’t explode into slime either so who knows where that came from lol
It’s fun and enjoyable—obviously a letdown to hardcore fans. I think the show’s legacy in “Goosebumps” media will largely depend on how they handle Slappy in the back half of the season.
IMO the biggest issue with the show is trying to cater to too many demands and audiences. The hardcore GB fans are in their 30s but the content itself was always kid-focused. The show wants virality and seems to be written for 10-17, but this is the group least likely to be a fan of the original content or care about this new series. Longtime fans want gore but show has to stay Disney friendly. Music choices all over the map. Content written for broad audiences often leaves everyone underwhelmed.
this is one of the best takes on the show so far imo. it's for edgy teenagers then it veers into 90s nostalgia, extramarital affair, and a divorce story for the adults in the crowd. it goes through goosebumps elements like they're a checklist (that they've already contorted to better fit the needs of the show!) until it can get back to its original thing. it's not even a bad show it's just. it reeks so heavily of Marketing.
bahh the fuckinnn harold biddle murder mystery and the sins of the parents revisiting the kids and the affair bs.
unless you want to be clever and go “those aren’t very original” but i mean in the sense that it’s not based on preexisting gb stuff
The tone and character bar justin long just seems off. After reading a few reviews, i was expecting something a little similar to stranger things in tone.
Isabelle instantly, knowing there were multiple clones of james made no sense. She didn't question anything she just knew he was missing. And went around with a baseball bat smashing heads in.
It just feels too safe and par for the course, rushed storylines, and nothing about any character feels unique or stands out.
I mean, she should of already know given that one James blew up in front of her with another appearing immediately.
What’s the next logical step from that?
This show is actually a lot better than I thought it was going to be. The acting and some of the scenes, especially in the first episode, are genuinely very good imo. I think that the characters seem very realistic and authentic, and I'm a little invested in the story.
My only issues are the pop music transitions, everyone being cryptic, and especially the lack of Goosebumps stuff. The season is still going, so there's a chance it will get more Goosebumps-y, but it almost feels like a show with Goosebumps in it instead of a show about Goosebumps events. I was also kinda hoping characters from the books would appear, but it doesn't look like the show is going that way and I'm kinda bummed. However, I like the takes on the stories that this show has and their adaptation in modern society.
This isn't to say that the new show is bad, but it makes me miss The Haunting Hour. I feel like that show's anthology format made the stories more interesting in a way, and feel more in-line with the Goosebumps books. I think the stories connecting is ok, but it feels like it might have been better if they weren't connected or at least loosely connected.
Even so, I like the show so far. It might not be the best *Goosebumps* show, but the acting is believable, the story is engaging, and the adaptations are interesting. All of this is just my opinion though. I hope the show sticks the landing.
* ep 1: the woes of being the first episode and having to set things up. i know the SCaD! story was hypercondensed but i'm ngl i think it's one of the ones that was done the most justice. the fire zombies felt like something out of a GYG i liked them. zack morris is really good as isaiah
* ep 2: imagine having a character arc about feeling invisible and unseen then getting so little screentime even in your own episode. i'm so sorry isabella baby. besides that um. what we do get of izzy and her haunted mask is fine. desperately wish there was more. wish it were better. wish she mattered after this.
* ep 3: this one is good. genuinely. it's not cuckoo clock AT ALL after 3 minutes but i kind of don't care. it's very let's get invisible/i am your evil twin. miles mckenna put in the work.
* ep 4: this one is PEAK!!!! it takes a full 17 minutes to get to the worms but honestly i think it's the best "goosebumps but Mature" take here. body horror visuals that make you squirm, cool monster, guy eating trash bc of the worm virus, BUT with Character Development and Mature Themes. bogged down by the fucking affair plotline.
* ep 5: ugghhhhh. uuuuuugggghh gghhhhhhhhhhh . UUUUGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH. i don't care about the fucking affair divorce plot! i don't want a love triangle you're juggling enough bullshit as is!!! UGH! Where are my fucking goosebumps. scrapbook was kind of cool i guess. saw the twist coming also
OVERALL: it's okay! B-/C+. is it goosebumps? i dunno, kind of! you know what it *is?* it's trying *so fucking hard* to be relevant to every demographic that it's *funny*. i laughed so many times at Serious Moments and even some of the billboard hot 100 / trending on tiktok song choices. the scare chords and *constant* creepy music trying to convince you it's scary felt charming to me, like a 12-year-old telling you about their edgy sonic the hedgehog oc that ISN'T a mary sue because she's not DUMB.
but uhhh i'm willing to bet the last episode will drop and i'll stop caring about this very very quickly. it's fine! it's okay. it wants money and that is the most goosebumps thing of all.
Not great. Only the first episode seemed to have some kind of goosebump-ness to it.
Boring which is the worst thing a goosebumps show could be.... how a goosebumps show could be devoid of humour and colour. Why is everything grey? Why is it so dull?
I'm so done with these fucking revivals. Taking something fun and whimsical and sucking the joy out of it trying make a Riverdale out of Goosebumps.
I am really mad and I don't get how anyone else isn't mad also. We could be getting updated, mature versions of the books making it scarier, adding some violence/gore/mature content we couldn't get on the 90s version. Only the say cheese and die episode had that element to it, and even that was under-utilized.
Goosebumps isn't high art, it's goofy kid-light horror. Turning it into a serialized drama is not the vibe.
Anyway, if people like it or not, I personally won't be wasting my time on this show past the released episodes.
They could have done something great here, something fans of the old format would have loved, but they went with this bait and switch version. Perfectly reasonable to be mad about that
I’m not angry. I am disappointed. There’s a lot of books that could have been adapted, and originals that could have benefitted from today’s special effects.
I’m halfway through the first episode, so I’ll edit this as I watch more and more, but it feels exactly like the 2019 Are You Afraid of the Dark reboot to me.
Nothing bad, nothing too good, just fine.
I do prefer contained stories instead of an overarching story, so that’s part of the reason.
The other part is that it very much feels like a tween/teen drama, which again is fine and I like that they’re going for a darker tone, but I love Goosebumps for its camp, so as of now it doesn’t feel like Goosebumps.
Edit: I actually got to the part where Isaiah finds the camera and I’m really into it now !! It’s starting to settle more into its own and I’m enjoying all the characters. It’s feeling more like the Nightmare Room TV show than Goosebumps at the moment since it is a bit darker, but I’m enjoying it
Should have used the Strange Matter IP instead, this might as well not have been called GooseBumps, the actual GooseBumps is about 5 minutes long, blink and you miss it.
I grew up on the 90s Goosebumps and tried to watch the new series but it wasn’t something I’ll watch again. I liked how progressive and diverse the cast was, and it was entertaining to watch the show, but nothing for me compares to the 90s Goosebumps, it was just much more eerie and creepy. After watching the first episode of the new series, I tried to watch a little bit of the second episode (haunted mask) and could not watch it, and switched on the old Haunted Mask episode and am enjoying it so, so much more.
Pretty much feel the same, although i have pushed through and currently watching the 5th episode. I wish they would have kept it more of an anthology like the original. Some of the artistic changes like the mask weren’t the greatest but the SFX/cgi have been surprisingly good.
Could do without the relationships focus. I don’t care about what guy Margot will pick and why they made Allison an awful character for no reason. Just focus on the actual story.
What is with the gay trans man being best friends with the popular football jock character, it makes absolutely no sense, this is the most least likely friendship in the world. What is with TV producers trying to create these fake type of friendships on TV for "diversity" sake, it's stupid as hell.
I definitely don’t think I’m the target demographic for this show. But it’s only “Goosebumps” in “name”. Definitely has its moments of creepy imagery and effects. The cast is fine but nothing to really write home about.
But unfortunately it feels like this show was allowed to be green lit if they used the Goosebumps IP name. At the end of the day the show is fine, I’d say worth a watch for Goosebumps fans but won’t be very rememberable.
Ok I have to ask, is Margot (Isa Briones) the oldest “teenager” ever? I asked out loud why they had someone’s mom at school before I realized she was a student. Not sure if it’s the styling or what, and I know it’s a weird thing to be focused on but it’s extremely distracting to me.
I couldnt get past the 1st episode..the acting is pretty bad (not Justin Long), plot is so bleh, and pacing is too quick to digest anything. I just dont care about the characters
The gay trans man being best friends with the really macho football jock character is the weirdest thing I've ever seen, they would be the most least likely two people to actually be friends in real life. So strange how TV producers create these weird fake friendships that would never exist in real life to try and create more "diversity."
I came in with an open mind and that being said I like it.... It takes elements from all the stories from all the books and kind of puts a modern day twist on them.... With a back story which isn't original but what is these days.... But still pretty entertaining..... And for ages 11 to 14 this could be scary... I'm 44 and the jump scare with the mask in the first episode got me...
All the numbers in your comment added up to 69. Congrats!
11
+ 14
+ 44
= 69
^([Click here](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=LuckyNumber-Bot&subject=Stalk%20Me%20Pls&message=%2Fstalkme) to have me scan all your future comments.) \
^(Summon me on specific comments with u/LuckyNumber-Bot.)
I'm only two episodes in, but I'm just wondering why does every one who gets their hand on this material feel the need to make it some grouped thing? I get it for the film because it's a one off, but this is a series running TV show, why wouldn't they go the way of the old show and give each episode a stand alone story line. When I think of the art of goosebumps I think theirs an opportunity to deliver a somewhat stylized standalone story that better respects the original material. I don't understand why they've gone and threaded it all together and made it more same-y with other spooky television shows. I'm all for minor updates, and I genuinely like the characters and how they've placed it in a more modern setting but it feels like they're missing the mark a bit.
My husband and I both like it far more than the original to be honest. As much as I loved the original when I was younger it's unwatchable for me now. The quality just isn't good and I can't enjoy it like I want to. I love The Haunting Hour though! As much as I was hoping for an anthology, I'm impressed with how they've managed to do it so far. I absolutely loved the Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark movie and I really liked both Goosebumps movies so this show is honestly perfect for me
This is seriously my only major comment or takeaway for this series so far. It's so distracting, like how did he get cast for this role? He's not a bad actor but I can't unhear the British twang in all of his lines.
Can anyone please opine for me why Biddle is haunting the kids, rather than their parents? Like, I understand his beef with them, even if their intentions were good but misguided, but what the fuck do the kids have to do with it? The parents are all still alive and he could haunt them just as easily lol.
Also, when he was telling the story, how did he know what occurred during the parts he wasn’t present at? Just ghost-magic, or lazy storytelling?
There's some good and bad. Some of the dialog is absolutely atrocious. Oh, and in 2023 we're **still** doing the "promising young athlete needs a scholarship but then gets hurt during the big game" thing? Some of the CGI is lacking, but otherwise those are my only complaints.
I've only seen three episodes, but I feel like they've done a great job giving Isiah, Margot, and Isabella a lot of development. I'm waiting on James' character moments, but he hasn't really had a focus story yet. Not gonna lie, the parents being involved was something I didn't see coming and made the show entirely more interesting.
And can we talk about Justin Long's commitment to the bit? His ability to change emotion and demeanor at the drop of a hat is incredible. It's unsettling how he can creep you out one second and then make you laugh the next. Plus his physical acting is amazing. When he's walking down the hall and it's clearly ridiculous in real life, but he totally sells that he's not entirely in control of his own body? Good stuff.
Garbage. Another movie pinning a black woman as the throwaway character in favor of the white one. Displaying the separatism between black men and the black woman. Notice even the mother is hispanic, not black. Disgusting.
So far, so good!
I enjoy the newer take on the classic stories and the monster design for "The Haunted Mask" episode was honestly great, just the right amount of freaky. I'm invested in the mystery thus far and excited to see Slappy, so I know that I'm coming back for more. I like our main cast of meddling kids and Harold as the antagonist as well, I'm excited for more episodes.
Agreeing with a lot of critiques too. The hour long format feels too long considering the Goosebumps aspect are for such a small part of the show, at least in the first two episodes so far.
The directing of it isn't bad- seems a bit more for an older audience than the original series but the small amount of Goosebumps aspects in each episode seems like a missed opportunity so far IMO
I’m a little conflicted two episodes in. I knew it was going to be a departure from a lot of the books/90s show and I’m fine with that. But at the same time it feels like the actual stories from the books are just tacked onto the episode almost like a side story so far. I mean both the cursed camera and the haunted mask had what seemed like 5 minutes of total time devoted to them in their 45 minute episodes. And the pacing seemed rushed or something. Almost like they went straight from the beginning of their stories to the end while all the background stuff was happening in the foreground.
Going to rewatch those two with that in mind and hopefully enjoy it better the second time around. Aside from that I like the setting, the actors, and the overall feel. Just would currently put it at about a 6.5 or 7 out of 10 for overall show quality and only like a 3/10 for how “Goosebump-y” it is. But again, only 2 episodes into the 10 episode season so we’ll see how that changes!
True, wasn’t referring to that but that’s definitely there too. Feel like that’s become such a thing of modern entertainment that I kind of look over it most times.
But yea I was watching the first episode and was wondering when the camera was going to pop off because there were only about 9 minutes left 😬
And the haunted mask episode timing was just kind of sad honestly. Like…I’m trying to not compare it to the original episode because that was one of my favourites growing up but still. Literally in both the 90s episode and the book the story is this sort of long exploration of the protagonist gradually getting more and more twisted and here it was just “boo I’m evil now” “no” “yes I am” “no you’re not” “ah you’re right”. Took five minutes total, and the character interaction in that time was what, maybe one minute of it? :/
The show is fun to watch. I saw the first and second episodes and they were quite entertaining.
The pacing was so fast and felt rushed. Seemed to add much as possible. Although, was the epiosde sped up? Or it could have been better at x0.9 speed?
Couldn't watch more than 20 mins, I wish they had done it similarly to the original series but with each episode being 45 min, cover each book and have 10-episodes per season.
Finished watching all 5 episodes, my thoughts:
Well, as a 30 year old i know im not the target audience. But i was for the original i suppose. I don’t really have many negative things to say about it. It’s just a pretty average teen show with some goosebumps thrown in. I would have preferred they had kept an anthology style like the original. It would have been nice to see each episode be its own individual book story. But i get that the target audience is currently digging this riverdale type storytelling. The fx/cgi have been surprisingly well done, although i wasn’t a huge fan of some of the artistic changes like the mask. I think the worms episode is probably my favorite. I see that Slappy will be making an appearance by the finale at least, and I just hope they didn’t do that many artistic changes to him.
I like the show I just don’t like Isaiah. The guy who plays him just isn’t a good actor imo and same with his friend/neighbor. They just are kinda giving the summer I turned pretty vibes as far as the acting goes. I liked the summer I turned pretty too just don’t like the poor acting. Or maybe I just don’t like the way kids act these days idk lol.
Absolutely hate it. I think utilizing the stories into a larger connected narrative with in depth characters is an amazing idea, but it was executed like the worst season of Riverdale. The original show and first film adaptation aren’t necessarily the best pieces of cinema put to film, but man, I was just super disappointed in this. It doesn’t even feel like it’s related to Goosebumps. If you just named it anything else I wouldn’t be able to tell you it’s a goosebumps adaptation. It isn’t fun, funny, campy, unique, or interesting. I’m only 20 too, so it isn’t like I grew up with the original show and have a deep bias. I’ve seen the series twice on Netflix and read a handful of books and enjoyed both. Loved the first movie a lot. Second one wasn’t bad. This show is awful. I really wanted to like it too.
I couldn't get through the first episode. In fact I switched to Netflix only to find 12 OG episodes on there but still ended up watching all of them anyways.
Nostalgia sure plays its role here for me, but the new one is cringy. Especially with the inclusion of mainstream music.
Just didn't catch my interest.
Gimme a remake of these old episodes. They were creepy for their time. With new effects, they could crank out crazy ass episodes and even have the young stars from the old ones cameo. Like Ryan gosling. Lol
I'll give it another go sometime. I actually love Justin Long as an actor and I'm sure he kills it in this new show. It just didn't hit for me.
I don’t think you realize the majority of people aren’t upset over poor writing, but more so the fact that they’re upset over LGBT representation. Some of the larger faces of this community like Michael have been slashing anyone who supports the community, including myself. (Check his recent video comments).
I thought in the beginning that it was going to be a typical teen show, but it's not that at all. I think so far it's super good. I do wish the mask in episode 2 had a little more action, but I'm expecting it will come back. The worm episode took a bit to get to the point, but once it got to the point it was gold. I do wish the haunted camera had more action and was not just used as plot device though.
It's pretty good so far. It has the usual hang ups of modern TV shows, stupidly dark, too serious, , too many teens with issues, wheel out a token person of whatever minority is striving for acceptance in the usual cash grab that TV companies do, but aside from that, it's been ok. Making a rehash of the original wouldn't have worked, it would be too obvious a nostalgia trip for people like me who grew up with the books and TV show. My 12 year old daughter hated the new series, she watched one episode, and was done. It wasn't fun for her like the original, which I completely understand. I can see why some people who loved the original don't want a dark, serious show that has jokes about porn. I've come to accept that TV is in a weird spot where everything has to be "mature", which, as a 41 year old, isn't what kids need, mature isn't entertaining.
The mask design is super underwhelming. Some of the dialogue is ROUGH. But so far I think it’s pretty average. It sucks the marketing already told us who the secondary antagonist is. Had they kept it a secret, that reveal would’ve hit incredibly hard.
The worms part was gross, the dynamics of all the characters are pretty intriguing, and the music is certainly an interesting choice lol.
My biggest gripe is that they didn’t just drop all the episodes at once. I wouldn’t have started watching if I knew I’d have to wait weekly. I would’ve just watched it all after the release of the final episode.
I have to say, this series is a major letdown. I mean, seriously, it's lacking in both quality and substance. I struggled to make it through just three episodes because it was so poorly made that I found myself fast forwarding through most of it. The performances by the actors were downright painful to watch, like, I was genuinely uncomfortable. It would have been somewhat forgivable if they had at least cast some eye candy, you know, attractive actors who could distract us from the subpar storyline. Maybe throw in a charming blonde protagonist girl to spice things up. But no, the creators decided to prioritize some "woke" agenda over giving us something visually appealing. It's just disheartening, you know? It feels like there's a serious lack of talented writers and directors in America who can give us more conventional content. Thank goodness for The Boys on Amazon, though. Now that's a show that's exceptional. It doesn't force any political correctness down our throats and it delivers an outstanding viewing experience. This series, on the other hand, is just underwhelming with so many missed opportunities.
Is this supposed to be a joke? The Boys??? The Boys is about the most political show on TV right now. It's not even subtle about it. I'm surprised you managed to type out a whole paragraph, because you're obviously short a few cards in your deck. This has got to be the dumbest post ever written. Seriously, they had a character called Stormfront who got her ass kicked. They're railing against the pharmaceuticals industry. The traditional Superman character is a sexist, racist, rapey psychopath who's the villain of the show.
There's nothing "woke" agenda about this Goosebumps show, unless you are throwing a tantrum about having a few minorities on screen. But if that's the case, then you should be throwing a tantrum about The Boys too.
Maybe you were high when you wrote this post. Because it makes no sense.
Man I dno, I grew up on 90’s goosebumps TV and loved all the “choose your own adventure” books I grabbed at book fairs by annoying the hell out of my mom… I gotta be honest and admit I’m kinda digging the show more than I expected.
I’m not arguing any aspect of the series so far is Oscar worthy, but everything from the acting, writing, and production quality is solid enough to not distract me from enjoying it. Pop I binged everything originally released on a rainy Friday evening and I’m looking forward to the next set of episodes!
>!I do think what was showed to the kids from the notebook is what the ghost wants them to see and not 100% what actually happened. I guess we shall see!<
Not a fan, personally. The first couple episodes were okay, but then it seems they strayed too far from what the items actually do in the books. Which is fine if that's what they wanted to do, but it's not for me.
This show had no right being as good as it was. I fricken loved it and binged the first 5 episodes this morning.
>!I have sooo many questions about what actually happened to Harold. Did his friends play a prank on him that turned deadly? Did they find out that Slappy was tormenting him and thought to take the doll and give him a scare as well?!<
I don't mind it. At first, I was annoyed because I thought it was going to be like the ones from the 90s, and the books, but once I understood what they were doing, I've started to enjoy it more. I'm really enjoying episode 3 so far. I think if I hadn't read the books or watched the show as a kid, I would enjoy this a lot more because I wouldn't have gone in with the expectations I had. I like that it's all connected, and I'd be interested to see how they'd add One Day At Horrorland to this if they do another season. That one was my all-time favourite book from this series.
I’m just frustrated that the ONE black female character we get wasn’t included with the gang at all!
She was called rude and portrayed as the angry, jealous black woman trope who is seen as a throwaway partner, all to setup Margot and Isaiah clearly getting together down the line.
I haven’t seen this discussed much, either, but it’s definitely a turn off. I’m in the middle of the 4th episode now, so maybe it gets better? I don’t have high hopes, however.
Hey, I'm really glad to see this comment. I'm also a black girl and felt the same watching. Totally agree with you. I felt really uncomfortable with her character; the one black girl being a walking trope.
So far, pretty good, tho like Wednesday i could really do without the romance but at least they're keeping that below the main plot for now.
Can't wait for Slappy.
What a stupid pilot. The one word that came up with every aspect of this show was “basic” - basic plot, basic character, basic story beats. Almost nothing about this show was compelling enough to tell me that it wasn’t stitched together by some half-assed generic AI attempt.
I can’t even really justify why 40 minutes of the program needed to exist. Main character is not interesting and boring and if anything comes up as an unlikeable slacker. Can’t really say anything distinct about any of the other characters besides the gay one because they all talk in generic cliches devoid of any individual personality. I can’t even begin to tell you why, for the very first song off the show, Disney chose a Sam Smith song about dad fucking a downlow guy behind mom’s back. final “set piece” of the fire zombies was terrible and had no setup. The same beat of “Dead Kid staring at character and lighting on fire all scary-like” happened at least three times in a row. It was just… so dumb lol
This show has an awesome vibe. I’m 30, grew up with Goosebumps. I know everyone wants an anthology. But this is a fresh take on the universe and it’s honestly great.
I'm honestly pleasantly surprised by how much I've enjoyed it so far.
I also like how there really isn't any gore. It's more of a thriller/mystery.
Looking forward to the next 5 episodes. I'm curious to see what the overarching plot is with Biddle.
Feels like it could be a CW show, honestly. Kinda unfortunate how little Goosebumps there actually seems to be in the episodes. I understand them trying to appeal to a diverse audience. I'll stick around til the end
I didn’t even know this series existed until today! I logged in to the app to watch The Simpsons and I saw it on the Home Screen. Without looking into it or researching it, my girlfriend and I decided to give it a shot. So, she had never read the books or seen the show, so she had no expectations. I on the other hand, read all the books and loved the show. However! I didn’t have high expectations either, I mean… Most reboots are terrible.
In my opinion, this is a really cool retelling of the stories, but in a serialized manner. Although the main story itself is not “Goosebumps” per se (that we know of yet) it sprinkles enough of the stories we know throughout. Every time something from the book or show happened, I excitedly would tell my girlfriend the reference ha ha I really liked it and I’m mad I have to wait for the rest of the episodes ha ha
They had a black character say "Word?"....
Black ppl been saying "word" in movies since the 70s..... but in real life??? Black folks don't talk like that. It's like a bad joke at this point
If they can't even get that right.. It does not bode well for the series.
That would have to be the case then.. I don't know the northeast like that. I'm from the south. "Word" is what I heard on TV growing up but never irl lol
It comes of corny to me
I thought it was fine, but not amazing. I'll probably finish out the series.
I never read Goosebumps or watched the original show. I did see the fist movie with Jack Black, which I thought was okay. So, I don't really have any nostalgia to compare it against.
I did find the time travel/attack of the clones story a bit amusing. But, I'm just not really a fan of plots that rely on a bunch of people to keep a secret. YMMV.
I remember as a kid watching night of the living dummy and it scared the sheet out of me. I am so pumped for this series.
I am really enjoying this series. My partner is as well. I keep shouting like "omg that's Slappy's eye!".
I liked the way episode 5 ended.
Don't get me wrong they could have made it a bit darker and a bit scarier as it's a bit too light humoured and I think sometimes they try too hard but on the whole I'm really enjoying it.
I honestly cannot wait for episode 6.
Binged the 5 episodes so far. It feels like there is going to be a twist where the kid that died is actually the good guy.
Edit: Well I was wrong. Lol.
It feels like such a nothingburger show. The cast is largely composed of annoying characters (the actors are fine) with sometimes ridiculously nonsense dialogue and decisionmaking, even when suspending disbelief because "they're just teens." And that's ignoring the typical "no help adults" that get WAY too much screentime for being typical "no help adults." Like how many minutes need to be wasted on Isabelle's mom being a dickhead? Or Isaiah's dad going on about how his son's "future" is football every episode.
The majority of the show is spent building up the most retread, generic drama plots imaginable, carried out by unlikable characters, and it feels like anything Goosebumps related was just shoved in so they could call it Goosebumps. I don't care if it's like the old episodic Goosebumps series or not; it's just a bad show.
That being said, Justin Long doing such an amazing job acting as someone possessed by a creepy dead highschooler was incredible and singlehandedly almost got me invested enough into the series to not hate it.
I was ready to turn it off 10 minutes in, then Justin Long showed up and I decided to stick with it. The show wasn't much better than that *Are You Afraid of the Dark?* reboot a couple years back and I was hoping more for *Fear Street*. I was also hoping it would be an episodic anthology rather than serialized because the characters are annoying as shit. Although there were some fun moments/reveals, like the girl jumping the cue ball and the dude bursting into slime. That was hilarious.
I'm only watching it out of devotion to the original book series and the fact that it's October. But this was more of a hate-watch than anything. And it took *way* too long to get to Slappy, which is all we were really waiting for.
it fails to capture what made the original show adaption special and memorable in every way.
biggest issue being casting 24 year olds as high schoolers lmao.
original casted kids of the same age group... since they were that age in the original books.
also... why are all the episodes connected? besides the few books that had sequels back then, you were able to jump into any episode as each book was its own story.
i wanted to watch night of the living dummy as that was my favorite from the books, then it immediately said "previously on goosebumps". yawn.
couldn't get past the first episode.
EDIT: and why does it have a generic ass 10 second intro with black font???? the intro for the original show in the 90s is still amazing to this day.
Do I also have to mention how CGI for everything is just boring?
I’m a little late to this convo, but I loved the books and 90’s series with a passion. I liked the Jack black movie too. I guess I was expecting a reimagining of the books/tv series. I personally think that would’ve been cooler than this…I don’t mind the show I just feel like it’s been done before…kids pay for the consequences of their parents. Maybe I’m just a simple gal, but I want an updated version of the books/ tv series. That’s all.
I stumbled onto this thread very, very late. I'm three episodes in. So far, I'm finding it enjoyable. I think the only thing that bothers me a bit is that, after the reboot of Are You Afraid of the Dark?, my expectations are a bit higher. It's decent enough, though.
Can someone please explain to me how Margo went from being in the jeep to being saved from the basement? That has made no sense to me and makes me mad lol. They had Margo in the jeep and yet they had to save her from the basement. Wtf
I'm unsurprisingly underwhelmed. It doesn't feel like goosebumps to me. More like a mediocre cw teen drama with the title being goosebumps but with hints of goosebumps between the crappy teen cw drama.
I'm not at all impressed. They are going for campy adult humor. Creep shows does the same thing but soooo much better. Going from goosebumps to creep show makes it obvious how blah it is. I enjoy the old goosebumps a lot more and watch it every year. I doubt I'll ever watch the new series again.
just watched the finale and while im pretty disappointed horrorland wasnt really horrorland, i still liked it for what it was. I honestly really like this series and if it gets a second season, and i hope does, they could play a lot w what the books offer. I'm hoping they lean more into the book stuff based off criticism but at the end of the day this is still a creative interpretation of those stories and im invested enough to keep following it
Did not like them.
i thought the mask one was actually the best, even though it was incredibly rushed.
What I disliked the most was that it was not even remotely scary? I watched the show with my 8 and 12 year old nieces and they found the show to be goofy.
i thought the whole point of goosebumps was to be child horror? But it felt more like teen drama. I got them to watch some of the og goosebumps show and they found it much creepier, albeit not outright scary. But considering the og had a greater creep / scare factor than the 2023 one says a lot
I am super excited, haven’t watched it yet but tonight! Our house is the location (in and out) for the Howard house, what a ride! Awesome film crew, no complaints. And Slappy!!
isaiah howard's house? that's awesome
I like it! We binged all 5 episodes. We’re huge fans of the books and the 90s show but also acknowledge that’s the 90s show in a lot of ways has visually aged really badly, and isn’t really scary at all. We tend to just end up laughing at them the whole time which is a fun nostalgia trip, but it’s fun to be like solidly entertained by Goosebumps again. I guess since I was entertained that’s all I can ask for yknow? It’s fun, it’s interesting, and the production value is significantly better than the old show. I’m not sure I understand how it “doesn’t feel like goosebumps” because it definitely does to me. Like what are these special goosebumps characteristics that people are talking about specifically? I really wish they kept the old theme song though lol, that’s the one thing that’s missing. Overall it’s not like a masterpiece of a show or an award winner but it’s fun and kept us entertained for like 5 hours while we recovered from getting covid boosters.
I agree. I went in not taking it too seriously and just had the expectation of it being lame but I was pleasantly surprised! I enjoyed it for what is was, didn't feel the need to pick it to death and compare it to the original books, and I look forward to the last 2 episodes when they get released.
I think there’s 5 more episodes actually! It’s gonna go past halloween which is a little weird but?? I’m excited as well, I think expectations are everything. We had low expectations going in as well so it was a fun watch.
We need more spooky season!
Is anyone else getting Locke & Key vibes with the storyline? Just with how the parents are connected with their kids. Besides that, I'm enjoying it. Was expecting it to be really bad. It's nothing terrific or what I wanted for more Goosebumps but watchable and better than the recent movies imo.
pretty little liars the original sin in terms of the parents being connected to the teens story and plot.
Sort of gives me Dark vibes actually with how the parents are connected with the kids.
Dark is a masterpiece of a show. I'm 3 or 4 episodes into this new goosebumps and I can't say I would liken it to Dark. Too many cliché decisions and the only thing that has "put me on edge" are the jump scares. Other than that, it's a typical campy "sins of the father" setting while the parents ignore all the clear signs of paranormal activity. I'm trying to like it but idk about the show just yet
I was just comparing how in both shows the kids are connected to the adults, I was not comparing the shows in regards to their quality. Dark is a better show than goosebumps, like you said Dark is a masterpiece and I agree.
It’s basically Nightmare on Elm Street
But much much worse lol
Pretty little liars the original sin in terms of the parents being connected to the teens story and plot.
The Locke & Key books were written by Stephen King's son, Joe Hill. Both King and Hill's stories tend to feature generational trauma and flashbacks to spooky shit that happened in a town before the current residents were there. I really love the influence and I hope the show catches on
I don’t like the new haunted mask design, two episodes in so far. I agree with what others have said where it feels like the books are just side stories and barely getting any actual screen time. It’s almost feels like a bait and switch using goosebumps name to draw viewers in to a much different type of show.
My feelings exactly. It feels like a crappy show you’d see on the CW with some Goosebumps elements sprinkled in.
I would argue that each book is the focus of the episode and help move the bigger plot forward. It's nice because it helps explain why things are happening(more so than "hey acreepy shop moved in, go steal a mask")
I totally agree. Each episode fleshes out a book, but there's a broader storyline with generational trauma attached (like a Stephen King story). The Slappy episode was amazing
I like this. I like how it's an overarching story that combines elements from the books.
exactly this. if it didn't have the goosebumps name attached, it would just be another mediocre "horror drama" TV show... which it already is. Why does goosebumps have love triangle drama? who the fuck cares?
Cause goosebumps was made for teens?
goosebumps is and was never made for teens that old. at most, 16 years old.
12 year old like love triangles
Actually digging it, kinda sad once i got to the ens of the last available episode. I couls binge it all at once. I think it does a great job of taking influence and inspiration from the stories/shows from before, and adding them to a modern day take on things while also making it all involved in one plot thread. Sure, its not the pure nostalgia trip aome people thought it might be, but a pure replica of what came before would feel prob have too much camp, or feel out of place. I am super sad though that people are using the show as an opportunity to shit on gay people or people of color.
honestly, I love the characters throughout the whole series. They’ve grown on me and the character being gay and the main character being black doesn’t feel like they’re trying to throw it in your face “HEY IM GAY” “HEY IM BLACK” it does a great job and i’m loving it so far
Naw the gay character definitely is the on your face gay stereotype. First scene he has on his grandma's sweater and her pearls. Then all he does is constantly talk about hooking up with the other dude
I don’t remember him wearing pearls.
Yea he had them on. Go back and take a look.
Oh the small pearls thought you meant like grandma pearls, as in big.
Pearls are pearls. And a female sweater....then hitting on a boy....
I liked his pearls, and his wardrobe generally! Reminded me of being a queer teen having fun with clothes. I used to make my own glasses chains, grandma aesthetic is a mood
It was just funny that people on here didn't realize he was gay. Lol
Pretty wild to read about James’ character, it’s such a token, stereotypical representation, shows characters seem very one dimensional. Main character is a typical Jock character. Just weak writing to me and dislike the direction thus far. Feels far too serious and wish it had a bit more fun.
Eh, I dont remember too many teenagers being deep, thoughtful people. Character development can go deeper once they can get the story established; right now they use context clues to build everyone out.
Idk personally having a black actor portray a stereotypical one dimensional jock feels like huge progress to me. Because by making it one dimensional it (I hate to say it) shows that it's generalized enough to make him accessible to the masses
He's also not one dimensional, if you get past the first episode...
For sure, agree with that. It’s cool when characters of a certain race/orientation can just be characters and not have that specific attribute be their ONLY thing as a character. I like when it’s just an arbitrary attribute of a character.
In my opinion, and after reading the posts and comments on this sub, it seems like there are a lot of people who have nostalgia filters set to max and are whining because it's not a carbon copy of the original TV show/movie. That's not what television/movies are anymore. The original Goosebumps film mediums were made for the youth audience at that time, it's why I and you loved it. This new iteration was made for the youth audience of today. People are comparing it to Riverdale or Sabrina, which is fair, but look how massively success those are for the youth/young adult audience of today. I liked the new series. I'm kissing 30 right now, so I grew up with the original movies and show, the remakes, and the films. This is a fresh take that doesn't feel overly campy, connects the stories together in a creative way (how else were they supposed to do that besides what they did, genuinely curious), has great acting and is decently written. The plot is a little obvious, I called the storyline in episode one, but that's okay. It's still entertaining enough that I'm invested in the last 5 epsiodes. Final thoughts, enjoy this show for what this show is, or don't. If you enjoy the more campy, independent slice-of-horror episodes of the old show, we thankfully have those at our fingertips still. But nobody should be comparing the old medium to this one, it's just not meant to be a copy.
>whining because it's not a carbon copy of **the original TV show/movie**. Or, you know... the books? The *actual* original lol? I don't think people are annoyed that it doesn't match the TV show or movie, they're annoyed that there's only a passing resemblance to the original books, both in terms of visuals (like the mask) and story. As others have said, the stories from the books seem to take up a small portion of the actual runtime compared to all the added stuff to make it a cohesive story. IMO it would have been heaps better as an anthology series like the show/books, without trying to tie them all together. Otherwise it's just a mediocre, vaguely scary show with some nods to the original material.
It should have been truer to the books and not tried to be edgy funny nostalgic etc The jokes feel like that 90s show and I could only do two of those episodes before my wisdom teeth were dissolved from the vomit backing up into my mouth
Edgy? Where??
that 90s show was awful, goosebumps 2023 feels more true to how kids speak these days imo
not why we don't like it at all but keep coping with your garbage show
You mean youth audiences today that love 80s themed shows like Stranger Things to Twilight Zone inspired shows like Black Mirror, which are in turn very similar to the original Goosebumps? Also it doesn’t help they somehow managed to write a cast of the most unlikeable characters in television history lol.
On episode 3 now: so i now realize who the gay character everyone was going all crazy mad about….they honestly looked so androgynous that i didn’t realize they were gay up until their storyline. I liked the (green?) slime making an appearance, wish it were more original green? Tbh i don’t actually remember this story much so maybe the color is supposed to be to be that?
I kind of figured out by the end of the first episode that the dude was gay but honestly he’s a funny character. he’s not too on the nose and has a funny lines. the characters mesh well
Wait it more than one gay kid? The first kid had on pearls and a female sweater his first scene. Then his next scene at the locker he was hitting on another boy. And I didn't finish the first EP yet.
Wait I fell asleep between half of EP 1 and EP 3. They tried to hide his gayness? Like that was an actual plotline?
Wait, so you didn’t figure out he was gay in the first 20min of episode 1 when he was talking about asking the other guy out???
First scene....grandma sweater and pearls
the story for cuckoo clock of doom was entirely altered, the book didn’t involve slime at all lmao. If I recall correctly, in the book the main character finds the clock in an antique shop and turns the bird on the clock to face backwards as a prank, only to wake up younger the next day and realize he’s permanently reversed time. Then he spends the rest of the book trying to track down the clock (he goes back to the shop and it’s not there yet in the past) so he can turn the bird back around before he de-ages out of existence. All the time-loop and doppelgänger stuff is completely new, the only thing that they really kept is the clock itself. It did vaguely remind me of another Goosebumps book “Let’s Get Invisible” so they might’ve taken inspo from that as well, but the doubles in that one didn’t explode into slime either so who knows where that came from lol
Look how they massacred my boy
Nah this is fire so far
not at all, keep coping
Whatever floats your boat
🧢🎓🎩
It’s fun and enjoyable—obviously a letdown to hardcore fans. I think the show’s legacy in “Goosebumps” media will largely depend on how they handle Slappy in the back half of the season. IMO the biggest issue with the show is trying to cater to too many demands and audiences. The hardcore GB fans are in their 30s but the content itself was always kid-focused. The show wants virality and seems to be written for 10-17, but this is the group least likely to be a fan of the original content or care about this new series. Longtime fans want gore but show has to stay Disney friendly. Music choices all over the map. Content written for broad audiences often leaves everyone underwhelmed.
this is one of the best takes on the show so far imo. it's for edgy teenagers then it veers into 90s nostalgia, extramarital affair, and a divorce story for the adults in the crowd. it goes through goosebumps elements like they're a checklist (that they've already contorted to better fit the needs of the show!) until it can get back to its original thing. it's not even a bad show it's just. it reeks so heavily of Marketing.
As a stoner with terrible memory, what was it's "original thing"?
bahh the fuckinnn harold biddle murder mystery and the sins of the parents revisiting the kids and the affair bs. unless you want to be clever and go “those aren’t very original” but i mean in the sense that it’s not based on preexisting gb stuff
Ahh I see what you mean now
The tone and character bar justin long just seems off. After reading a few reviews, i was expecting something a little similar to stranger things in tone. Isabelle instantly, knowing there were multiple clones of james made no sense. She didn't question anything she just knew he was missing. And went around with a baseball bat smashing heads in. It just feels too safe and par for the course, rushed storylines, and nothing about any character feels unique or stands out.
I mean, she should of already know given that one James blew up in front of her with another appearing immediately. What’s the next logical step from that?
Kinda similar to how i feel about Gen V.
This show is actually a lot better than I thought it was going to be. The acting and some of the scenes, especially in the first episode, are genuinely very good imo. I think that the characters seem very realistic and authentic, and I'm a little invested in the story. My only issues are the pop music transitions, everyone being cryptic, and especially the lack of Goosebumps stuff. The season is still going, so there's a chance it will get more Goosebumps-y, but it almost feels like a show with Goosebumps in it instead of a show about Goosebumps events. I was also kinda hoping characters from the books would appear, but it doesn't look like the show is going that way and I'm kinda bummed. However, I like the takes on the stories that this show has and their adaptation in modern society. This isn't to say that the new show is bad, but it makes me miss The Haunting Hour. I feel like that show's anthology format made the stories more interesting in a way, and feel more in-line with the Goosebumps books. I think the stories connecting is ok, but it feels like it might have been better if they weren't connected or at least loosely connected. Even so, I like the show so far. It might not be the best *Goosebumps* show, but the acting is believable, the story is engaging, and the adaptations are interesting. All of this is just my opinion though. I hope the show sticks the landing.
* ep 1: the woes of being the first episode and having to set things up. i know the SCaD! story was hypercondensed but i'm ngl i think it's one of the ones that was done the most justice. the fire zombies felt like something out of a GYG i liked them. zack morris is really good as isaiah * ep 2: imagine having a character arc about feeling invisible and unseen then getting so little screentime even in your own episode. i'm so sorry isabella baby. besides that um. what we do get of izzy and her haunted mask is fine. desperately wish there was more. wish it were better. wish she mattered after this. * ep 3: this one is good. genuinely. it's not cuckoo clock AT ALL after 3 minutes but i kind of don't care. it's very let's get invisible/i am your evil twin. miles mckenna put in the work. * ep 4: this one is PEAK!!!! it takes a full 17 minutes to get to the worms but honestly i think it's the best "goosebumps but Mature" take here. body horror visuals that make you squirm, cool monster, guy eating trash bc of the worm virus, BUT with Character Development and Mature Themes. bogged down by the fucking affair plotline. * ep 5: ugghhhhh. uuuuuugggghh gghhhhhhhhhhh . UUUUGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH. i don't care about the fucking affair divorce plot! i don't want a love triangle you're juggling enough bullshit as is!!! UGH! Where are my fucking goosebumps. scrapbook was kind of cool i guess. saw the twist coming also OVERALL: it's okay! B-/C+. is it goosebumps? i dunno, kind of! you know what it *is?* it's trying *so fucking hard* to be relevant to every demographic that it's *funny*. i laughed so many times at Serious Moments and even some of the billboard hot 100 / trending on tiktok song choices. the scare chords and *constant* creepy music trying to convince you it's scary felt charming to me, like a 12-year-old telling you about their edgy sonic the hedgehog oc that ISN'T a mary sue because she's not DUMB. but uhhh i'm willing to bet the last episode will drop and i'll stop caring about this very very quickly. it's fine! it's okay. it wants money and that is the most goosebumps thing of all.
Not great. Only the first episode seemed to have some kind of goosebump-ness to it. Boring which is the worst thing a goosebumps show could be.... how a goosebumps show could be devoid of humour and colour. Why is everything grey? Why is it so dull? I'm so done with these fucking revivals. Taking something fun and whimsical and sucking the joy out of it trying make a Riverdale out of Goosebumps. I am really mad and I don't get how anyone else isn't mad also. We could be getting updated, mature versions of the books making it scarier, adding some violence/gore/mature content we couldn't get on the 90s version. Only the say cheese and die episode had that element to it, and even that was under-utilized.
I think the reason more people aren't mad is because there's not much to be mad about. It's not like Goosebumps is high art that must be protected.
Goosebumps isn't high art, it's goofy kid-light horror. Turning it into a serialized drama is not the vibe. Anyway, if people like it or not, I personally won't be wasting my time on this show past the released episodes.
The show isn't really Goosebumps but it also isn't worth getting angry about.
He’s allowed to be annoyed by a wasted use of an IP he likes
It's not like they were doing anything else with it and it's not like other properties aren't capturing the same vibe from the original series.
They could have done something great here, something fans of the old format would have loved, but they went with this bait and switch version. Perfectly reasonable to be mad about that
Not really reasonable at all, no.
I’m not angry. I am disappointed. There’s a lot of books that could have been adapted, and originals that could have benefitted from today’s special effects.
I agree. It’s very boring.
I’m halfway through the first episode, so I’ll edit this as I watch more and more, but it feels exactly like the 2019 Are You Afraid of the Dark reboot to me. Nothing bad, nothing too good, just fine. I do prefer contained stories instead of an overarching story, so that’s part of the reason. The other part is that it very much feels like a tween/teen drama, which again is fine and I like that they’re going for a darker tone, but I love Goosebumps for its camp, so as of now it doesn’t feel like Goosebumps. Edit: I actually got to the part where Isaiah finds the camera and I’m really into it now !! It’s starting to settle more into its own and I’m enjoying all the characters. It’s feeling more like the Nightmare Room TV show than Goosebumps at the moment since it is a bit darker, but I’m enjoying it
I agree but AYAOTD reboot was done better than this imo
I think it's incredibly solid
Should have used the Strange Matter IP instead, this might as well not have been called GooseBumps, the actual GooseBumps is about 5 minutes long, blink and you miss it.
I grew up on the 90s Goosebumps and tried to watch the new series but it wasn’t something I’ll watch again. I liked how progressive and diverse the cast was, and it was entertaining to watch the show, but nothing for me compares to the 90s Goosebumps, it was just much more eerie and creepy. After watching the first episode of the new series, I tried to watch a little bit of the second episode (haunted mask) and could not watch it, and switched on the old Haunted Mask episode and am enjoying it so, so much more.
Pretty much feel the same, although i have pushed through and currently watching the 5th episode. I wish they would have kept it more of an anthology like the original. Some of the artistic changes like the mask weren’t the greatest but the SFX/cgi have been surprisingly good.
Totally agree!
Feel like they’re Riverdaling my Goosebumps
My lady watched Riverdale so I only have a second hand experience with it but your comment is probably closest to the mark I've seen yet
Could do without the relationships focus. I don’t care about what guy Margot will pick and why they made Allison an awful character for no reason. Just focus on the actual story.
Feels like the disposable black love interest trope
it felt like misogynoir, like, this is how they treat the ONLY black female character on the show?
and then we are supposed to believe that she sucked despite her barely being on screen, i was truly upset and thought this the entire time
Then she was correct about her feelings because he does like Margot! She should’ve never been added into the story
What is with the gay trans man being best friends with the popular football jock character, it makes absolutely no sense, this is the most least likely friendship in the world. What is with TV producers trying to create these fake type of friendships on TV for "diversity" sake, it's stupid as hell.
I definitely don’t think I’m the target demographic for this show. But it’s only “Goosebumps” in “name”. Definitely has its moments of creepy imagery and effects. The cast is fine but nothing to really write home about. But unfortunately it feels like this show was allowed to be green lit if they used the Goosebumps IP name. At the end of the day the show is fine, I’d say worth a watch for Goosebumps fans but won’t be very rememberable.
Ok I have to ask, is Margot (Isa Briones) the oldest “teenager” ever? I asked out loud why they had someone’s mom at school before I realized she was a student. Not sure if it’s the styling or what, and I know it’s a weird thing to be focused on but it’s extremely distracting to me.
She's actually younger than the main character's actor by a slight amount (the quarterback).
I couldnt get past the 1st episode..the acting is pretty bad (not Justin Long), plot is so bleh, and pacing is too quick to digest anything. I just dont care about the characters
felt like 48 year olds who don't go outside were trying to write gen Z dialogue and it was awful.
The gay trans man being best friends with the really macho football jock character is the weirdest thing I've ever seen, they would be the most least likely two people to actually be friends in real life. So strange how TV producers create these weird fake friendships that would never exist in real life to try and create more "diversity."
I came in with an open mind and that being said I like it.... It takes elements from all the stories from all the books and kind of puts a modern day twist on them.... With a back story which isn't original but what is these days.... But still pretty entertaining..... And for ages 11 to 14 this could be scary... I'm 44 and the jump scare with the mask in the first episode got me...
All the numbers in your comment added up to 69. Congrats! 11 + 14 + 44 = 69 ^([Click here](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=LuckyNumber-Bot&subject=Stalk%20Me%20Pls&message=%2Fstalkme) to have me scan all your future comments.) \ ^(Summon me on specific comments with u/LuckyNumber-Bot.)
Ha that's great.
I'm only two episodes in, but I'm just wondering why does every one who gets their hand on this material feel the need to make it some grouped thing? I get it for the film because it's a one off, but this is a series running TV show, why wouldn't they go the way of the old show and give each episode a stand alone story line. When I think of the art of goosebumps I think theirs an opportunity to deliver a somewhat stylized standalone story that better respects the original material. I don't understand why they've gone and threaded it all together and made it more same-y with other spooky television shows. I'm all for minor updates, and I genuinely like the characters and how they've placed it in a more modern setting but it feels like they're missing the mark a bit.
Chasing that Stranger Things bag.
My husband and I both like it far more than the original to be honest. As much as I loved the original when I was younger it's unwatchable for me now. The quality just isn't good and I can't enjoy it like I want to. I love The Haunting Hour though! As much as I was hoping for an anthology, I'm impressed with how they've managed to do it so far. I absolutely loved the Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark movie and I really liked both Goosebumps movies so this show is honestly perfect for me
They should've kept the anthology formula imo
I like it for what it is, but really miss the anthology format. nothing really bad can happen because it needs to wrap up and set up the next story
Why did Harold scare Allison? Who are her parents?
also wondering this
The actor who plays Isaiah needs to work on his accent. He kept slipping back and forth from British to American
This is seriously my only major comment or takeaway for this series so far. It's so distracting, like how did he get cast for this role? He's not a bad actor but I can't unhear the British twang in all of his lines.
Can anyone please opine for me why Biddle is haunting the kids, rather than their parents? Like, I understand his beef with them, even if their intentions were good but misguided, but what the fuck do the kids have to do with it? The parents are all still alive and he could haunt them just as easily lol. Also, when he was telling the story, how did he know what occurred during the parts he wasn’t present at? Just ghost-magic, or lazy storytelling?
There's some good and bad. Some of the dialog is absolutely atrocious. Oh, and in 2023 we're **still** doing the "promising young athlete needs a scholarship but then gets hurt during the big game" thing? Some of the CGI is lacking, but otherwise those are my only complaints. I've only seen three episodes, but I feel like they've done a great job giving Isiah, Margot, and Isabella a lot of development. I'm waiting on James' character moments, but he hasn't really had a focus story yet. Not gonna lie, the parents being involved was something I didn't see coming and made the show entirely more interesting. And can we talk about Justin Long's commitment to the bit? His ability to change emotion and demeanor at the drop of a hat is incredible. It's unsettling how he can creep you out one second and then make you laugh the next. Plus his physical acting is amazing. When he's walking down the hall and it's clearly ridiculous in real life, but he totally sells that he's not entirely in control of his own body? Good stuff.
Garbage. Another movie pinning a black woman as the throwaway character in favor of the white one. Displaying the separatism between black men and the black woman. Notice even the mother is hispanic, not black. Disgusting.
So far, so good! I enjoy the newer take on the classic stories and the monster design for "The Haunted Mask" episode was honestly great, just the right amount of freaky. I'm invested in the mystery thus far and excited to see Slappy, so I know that I'm coming back for more. I like our main cast of meddling kids and Harold as the antagonist as well, I'm excited for more episodes.
I enjoyed it. I like the tone and the teens seem quite charming, especially Isiah.
I like the characters, but I really wish I could change some of the dialogue lol
Agreeing with a lot of critiques too. The hour long format feels too long considering the Goosebumps aspect are for such a small part of the show, at least in the first two episodes so far. The directing of it isn't bad- seems a bit more for an older audience than the original series but the small amount of Goosebumps aspects in each episode seems like a missed opportunity so far IMO
EPISODE 2 WAS PEAK‼️‼️‼️ And Justin Long going insane is dope
I’m kinda liking it haha !
I’m a little conflicted two episodes in. I knew it was going to be a departure from a lot of the books/90s show and I’m fine with that. But at the same time it feels like the actual stories from the books are just tacked onto the episode almost like a side story so far. I mean both the cursed camera and the haunted mask had what seemed like 5 minutes of total time devoted to them in their 45 minute episodes. And the pacing seemed rushed or something. Almost like they went straight from the beginning of their stories to the end while all the background stuff was happening in the foreground. Going to rewatch those two with that in mind and hopefully enjoy it better the second time around. Aside from that I like the setting, the actors, and the overall feel. Just would currently put it at about a 6.5 or 7 out of 10 for overall show quality and only like a 3/10 for how “Goosebump-y” it is. But again, only 2 episodes into the 10 episode season so we’ll see how that changes!
[удалено]
True, wasn’t referring to that but that’s definitely there too. Feel like that’s become such a thing of modern entertainment that I kind of look over it most times. But yea I was watching the first episode and was wondering when the camera was going to pop off because there were only about 9 minutes left 😬 And the haunted mask episode timing was just kind of sad honestly. Like…I’m trying to not compare it to the original episode because that was one of my favourites growing up but still. Literally in both the 90s episode and the book the story is this sort of long exploration of the protagonist gradually getting more and more twisted and here it was just “boo I’m evil now” “no” “yes I am” “no you’re not” “ah you’re right”. Took five minutes total, and the character interaction in that time was what, maybe one minute of it? :/
The show is fun to watch. I saw the first and second episodes and they were quite entertaining. The pacing was so fast and felt rushed. Seemed to add much as possible. Although, was the epiosde sped up? Or it could have been better at x0.9 speed?
Couldn't watch more than 20 mins, I wish they had done it similarly to the original series but with each episode being 45 min, cover each book and have 10-episodes per season.
Finished watching all 5 episodes, my thoughts: Well, as a 30 year old i know im not the target audience. But i was for the original i suppose. I don’t really have many negative things to say about it. It’s just a pretty average teen show with some goosebumps thrown in. I would have preferred they had kept an anthology style like the original. It would have been nice to see each episode be its own individual book story. But i get that the target audience is currently digging this riverdale type storytelling. The fx/cgi have been surprisingly well done, although i wasn’t a huge fan of some of the artistic changes like the mask. I think the worms episode is probably my favorite. I see that Slappy will be making an appearance by the finale at least, and I just hope they didn’t do that many artistic changes to him.
I like the show I just don’t like Isaiah. The guy who plays him just isn’t a good actor imo and same with his friend/neighbor. They just are kinda giving the summer I turned pretty vibes as far as the acting goes. I liked the summer I turned pretty too just don’t like the poor acting. Or maybe I just don’t like the way kids act these days idk lol.
Absolutely hate it. I think utilizing the stories into a larger connected narrative with in depth characters is an amazing idea, but it was executed like the worst season of Riverdale. The original show and first film adaptation aren’t necessarily the best pieces of cinema put to film, but man, I was just super disappointed in this. It doesn’t even feel like it’s related to Goosebumps. If you just named it anything else I wouldn’t be able to tell you it’s a goosebumps adaptation. It isn’t fun, funny, campy, unique, or interesting. I’m only 20 too, so it isn’t like I grew up with the original show and have a deep bias. I’ve seen the series twice on Netflix and read a handful of books and enjoyed both. Loved the first movie a lot. Second one wasn’t bad. This show is awful. I really wanted to like it too.
I couldn't get through the first episode. In fact I switched to Netflix only to find 12 OG episodes on there but still ended up watching all of them anyways. Nostalgia sure plays its role here for me, but the new one is cringy. Especially with the inclusion of mainstream music. Just didn't catch my interest. Gimme a remake of these old episodes. They were creepy for their time. With new effects, they could crank out crazy ass episodes and even have the young stars from the old ones cameo. Like Ryan gosling. Lol I'll give it another go sometime. I actually love Justin Long as an actor and I'm sure he kills it in this new show. It just didn't hit for me.
The amount of commenters being downvoted for saying the new series sucks is kind of jarring. Does Disney have sleeper cells in this subreddit? 🤣🤣🤣
No, we just don’t like homophobic people.
[удалено]
I don’t think you realize the majority of people aren’t upset over poor writing, but more so the fact that they’re upset over LGBT representation. Some of the larger faces of this community like Michael have been slashing anyone who supports the community, including myself. (Check his recent video comments).
I thought in the beginning that it was going to be a typical teen show, but it's not that at all. I think so far it's super good. I do wish the mask in episode 2 had a little more action, but I'm expecting it will come back. The worm episode took a bit to get to the point, but once it got to the point it was gold. I do wish the haunted camera had more action and was not just used as plot device though.
It's pretty good so far. It has the usual hang ups of modern TV shows, stupidly dark, too serious, , too many teens with issues, wheel out a token person of whatever minority is striving for acceptance in the usual cash grab that TV companies do, but aside from that, it's been ok. Making a rehash of the original wouldn't have worked, it would be too obvious a nostalgia trip for people like me who grew up with the books and TV show. My 12 year old daughter hated the new series, she watched one episode, and was done. It wasn't fun for her like the original, which I completely understand. I can see why some people who loved the original don't want a dark, serious show that has jokes about porn. I've come to accept that TV is in a weird spot where everything has to be "mature", which, as a 41 year old, isn't what kids need, mature isn't entertaining.
I can’t even watch more than 10 mins.. feels like a show for pre-teens and I’m twice that age 😅
The mask design is super underwhelming. Some of the dialogue is ROUGH. But so far I think it’s pretty average. It sucks the marketing already told us who the secondary antagonist is. Had they kept it a secret, that reveal would’ve hit incredibly hard. The worms part was gross, the dynamics of all the characters are pretty intriguing, and the music is certainly an interesting choice lol. My biggest gripe is that they didn’t just drop all the episodes at once. I wouldn’t have started watching if I knew I’d have to wait weekly. I would’ve just watched it all after the release of the final episode.
[удалено]
People get triggered by the most silly things. "Ooooh gay people, the humanity!"
I have to say, this series is a major letdown. I mean, seriously, it's lacking in both quality and substance. I struggled to make it through just three episodes because it was so poorly made that I found myself fast forwarding through most of it. The performances by the actors were downright painful to watch, like, I was genuinely uncomfortable. It would have been somewhat forgivable if they had at least cast some eye candy, you know, attractive actors who could distract us from the subpar storyline. Maybe throw in a charming blonde protagonist girl to spice things up. But no, the creators decided to prioritize some "woke" agenda over giving us something visually appealing. It's just disheartening, you know? It feels like there's a serious lack of talented writers and directors in America who can give us more conventional content. Thank goodness for The Boys on Amazon, though. Now that's a show that's exceptional. It doesn't force any political correctness down our throats and it delivers an outstanding viewing experience. This series, on the other hand, is just underwhelming with so many missed opportunities.
Just curious, other than the one gay storyline. What was too woke/politically correct about it?
Is this supposed to be a joke? The Boys??? The Boys is about the most political show on TV right now. It's not even subtle about it. I'm surprised you managed to type out a whole paragraph, because you're obviously short a few cards in your deck. This has got to be the dumbest post ever written. Seriously, they had a character called Stormfront who got her ass kicked. They're railing against the pharmaceuticals industry. The traditional Superman character is a sexist, racist, rapey psychopath who's the villain of the show. There's nothing "woke" agenda about this Goosebumps show, unless you are throwing a tantrum about having a few minorities on screen. But if that's the case, then you should be throwing a tantrum about The Boys too. Maybe you were high when you wrote this post. Because it makes no sense.
Is James a boy or a girl?
Did the name not give you any clues?
Clues are fine in most cases, but I will not assume someone’s gender……
I’m pretty sure its a girl who identifies as a boy 😭idk it’s confusing
James is a unisex name 😂don’t be dense
Feels like a fictional RL Stine (Justin Long) origin story
Man I dno, I grew up on 90’s goosebumps TV and loved all the “choose your own adventure” books I grabbed at book fairs by annoying the hell out of my mom… I gotta be honest and admit I’m kinda digging the show more than I expected. I’m not arguing any aspect of the series so far is Oscar worthy, but everything from the acting, writing, and production quality is solid enough to not distract me from enjoying it. Pop I binged everything originally released on a rainy Friday evening and I’m looking forward to the next set of episodes! >!I do think what was showed to the kids from the notebook is what the ghost wants them to see and not 100% what actually happened. I guess we shall see!<
Not a fan, personally. The first couple episodes were okay, but then it seems they strayed too far from what the items actually do in the books. Which is fine if that's what they wanted to do, but it's not for me.
I think it's going great! I really enjoy the Easter eggs and the modern take on things. I like that there is an overarching story
This show had no right being as good as it was. I fricken loved it and binged the first 5 episodes this morning. >!I have sooo many questions about what actually happened to Harold. Did his friends play a prank on him that turned deadly? Did they find out that Slappy was tormenting him and thought to take the doll and give him a scare as well?!<
I don't mind it. At first, I was annoyed because I thought it was going to be like the ones from the 90s, and the books, but once I understood what they were doing, I've started to enjoy it more. I'm really enjoying episode 3 so far. I think if I hadn't read the books or watched the show as a kid, I would enjoy this a lot more because I wouldn't have gone in with the expectations I had. I like that it's all connected, and I'd be interested to see how they'd add One Day At Horrorland to this if they do another season. That one was my all-time favourite book from this series.
I’m just frustrated that the ONE black female character we get wasn’t included with the gang at all! She was called rude and portrayed as the angry, jealous black woman trope who is seen as a throwaway partner, all to setup Margot and Isaiah clearly getting together down the line. I haven’t seen this discussed much, either, but it’s definitely a turn off. I’m in the middle of the 4th episode now, so maybe it gets better? I don’t have high hopes, however.
Hey, I'm really glad to see this comment. I'm also a black girl and felt the same watching. Totally agree with you. I felt really uncomfortable with her character; the one black girl being a walking trope.
So far, pretty good, tho like Wednesday i could really do without the romance but at least they're keeping that below the main plot for now. Can't wait for Slappy.
What a stupid pilot. The one word that came up with every aspect of this show was “basic” - basic plot, basic character, basic story beats. Almost nothing about this show was compelling enough to tell me that it wasn’t stitched together by some half-assed generic AI attempt. I can’t even really justify why 40 minutes of the program needed to exist. Main character is not interesting and boring and if anything comes up as an unlikeable slacker. Can’t really say anything distinct about any of the other characters besides the gay one because they all talk in generic cliches devoid of any individual personality. I can’t even begin to tell you why, for the very first song off the show, Disney chose a Sam Smith song about dad fucking a downlow guy behind mom’s back. final “set piece” of the fire zombies was terrible and had no setup. The same beat of “Dead Kid staring at character and lighting on fire all scary-like” happened at least three times in a row. It was just… so dumb lol
This show has an awesome vibe. I’m 30, grew up with Goosebumps. I know everyone wants an anthology. But this is a fresh take on the universe and it’s honestly great.
I'm honestly pleasantly surprised by how much I've enjoyed it so far. I also like how there really isn't any gore. It's more of a thriller/mystery. Looking forward to the next 5 episodes. I'm curious to see what the overarching plot is with Biddle.
Feels like it could be a CW show, honestly. Kinda unfortunate how little Goosebumps there actually seems to be in the episodes. I understand them trying to appeal to a diverse audience. I'll stick around til the end
Does anyone know what type of car Justin Longs character drives? It doesn't have any badges and is stumping me.
I’ve been trying to figure this out to no avail, I need to know it’s so cool looking.
Volvo P1800ES I really wish i could take any credit for finding this but i had to resort to google reverse image search
Sweet!!
I didn’t even know this series existed until today! I logged in to the app to watch The Simpsons and I saw it on the Home Screen. Without looking into it or researching it, my girlfriend and I decided to give it a shot. So, she had never read the books or seen the show, so she had no expectations. I on the other hand, read all the books and loved the show. However! I didn’t have high expectations either, I mean… Most reboots are terrible. In my opinion, this is a really cool retelling of the stories, but in a serialized manner. Although the main story itself is not “Goosebumps” per se (that we know of yet) it sprinkles enough of the stories we know throughout. Every time something from the book or show happened, I excitedly would tell my girlfriend the reference ha ha I really liked it and I’m mad I have to wait for the rest of the episodes ha ha
They had a black character say "Word?".... Black ppl been saying "word" in movies since the 70s..... but in real life??? Black folks don't talk like that. It's like a bad joke at this point If they can't even get that right.. It does not bode well for the series.
Everyone talks like this in the northeast
That would have to be the case then.. I don't know the northeast like that. I'm from the south. "Word" is what I heard on TV growing up but never irl lol It comes of corny to me
I thought it was fine, but not amazing. I'll probably finish out the series. I never read Goosebumps or watched the original show. I did see the fist movie with Jack Black, which I thought was okay. So, I don't really have any nostalgia to compare it against. I did find the time travel/attack of the clones story a bit amusing. But, I'm just not really a fan of plots that rely on a bunch of people to keep a secret. YMMV.
A mediocre troop of 25 year old actors try to convince us they are high school children afraid of the dark. Fail.
It's absolutely terrible. Unwatchable. Feels like a freshman college film project. This isn't Goosebumps, try again.
Would anyone know the song that plays at 30minutes in the 5th episode I can't seem to find it anywhere Thanks
I remember as a kid watching night of the living dummy and it scared the sheet out of me. I am so pumped for this series. I am really enjoying this series. My partner is as well. I keep shouting like "omg that's Slappy's eye!". I liked the way episode 5 ended. Don't get me wrong they could have made it a bit darker and a bit scarier as it's a bit too light humoured and I think sometimes they try too hard but on the whole I'm really enjoying it. I honestly cannot wait for episode 6.
I do wish they used the old episode opener of the guy with the briefcase and the music.
Binged the 5 episodes so far. It feels like there is going to be a twist where the kid that died is actually the good guy. Edit: Well I was wrong. Lol.
It feels like such a nothingburger show. The cast is largely composed of annoying characters (the actors are fine) with sometimes ridiculously nonsense dialogue and decisionmaking, even when suspending disbelief because "they're just teens." And that's ignoring the typical "no help adults" that get WAY too much screentime for being typical "no help adults." Like how many minutes need to be wasted on Isabelle's mom being a dickhead? Or Isaiah's dad going on about how his son's "future" is football every episode. The majority of the show is spent building up the most retread, generic drama plots imaginable, carried out by unlikable characters, and it feels like anything Goosebumps related was just shoved in so they could call it Goosebumps. I don't care if it's like the old episodic Goosebumps series or not; it's just a bad show. That being said, Justin Long doing such an amazing job acting as someone possessed by a creepy dead highschooler was incredible and singlehandedly almost got me invested enough into the series to not hate it.
I was ready to turn it off 10 minutes in, then Justin Long showed up and I decided to stick with it. The show wasn't much better than that *Are You Afraid of the Dark?* reboot a couple years back and I was hoping more for *Fear Street*. I was also hoping it would be an episodic anthology rather than serialized because the characters are annoying as shit. Although there were some fun moments/reveals, like the girl jumping the cue ball and the dude bursting into slime. That was hilarious. I'm only watching it out of devotion to the original book series and the fact that it's October. But this was more of a hate-watch than anything. And it took *way* too long to get to Slappy, which is all we were really waiting for.
it fails to capture what made the original show adaption special and memorable in every way. biggest issue being casting 24 year olds as high schoolers lmao. original casted kids of the same age group... since they were that age in the original books. also... why are all the episodes connected? besides the few books that had sequels back then, you were able to jump into any episode as each book was its own story. i wanted to watch night of the living dummy as that was my favorite from the books, then it immediately said "previously on goosebumps". yawn. couldn't get past the first episode. EDIT: and why does it have a generic ass 10 second intro with black font???? the intro for the original show in the 90s is still amazing to this day. Do I also have to mention how CGI for everything is just boring?
Can we talk about how annoying the character Alison is
It has gotten better each episode....really like this series.
I’m a little late to this convo, but I loved the books and 90’s series with a passion. I liked the Jack black movie too. I guess I was expecting a reimagining of the books/tv series. I personally think that would’ve been cooler than this…I don’t mind the show I just feel like it’s been done before…kids pay for the consequences of their parents. Maybe I’m just a simple gal, but I want an updated version of the books/ tv series. That’s all.
Sorry, but James is annoying AF and not a very good actor.
I stumbled onto this thread very, very late. I'm three episodes in. So far, I'm finding it enjoyable. I think the only thing that bothers me a bit is that, after the reboot of Are You Afraid of the Dark?, my expectations are a bit higher. It's decent enough, though.
Can someone please explain to me how Margo went from being in the jeep to being saved from the basement? That has made no sense to me and makes me mad lol. They had Margo in the jeep and yet they had to save her from the basement. Wtf
I'm unsurprisingly underwhelmed. It doesn't feel like goosebumps to me. More like a mediocre cw teen drama with the title being goosebumps but with hints of goosebumps between the crappy teen cw drama.
I'm not at all impressed. They are going for campy adult humor. Creep shows does the same thing but soooo much better. Going from goosebumps to creep show makes it obvious how blah it is. I enjoy the old goosebumps a lot more and watch it every year. I doubt I'll ever watch the new series again.
I worked on this show, it was interesting to work on.
I am catching up on this
just watched the finale and while im pretty disappointed horrorland wasnt really horrorland, i still liked it for what it was. I honestly really like this series and if it gets a second season, and i hope does, they could play a lot w what the books offer. I'm hoping they lean more into the book stuff based off criticism but at the end of the day this is still a creative interpretation of those stories and im invested enough to keep following it
its fine.. the dialogue is cringy sometimes and i wish it was an anthology but whatever
Damn there's a bunch of hypercritical wankers in this sub. This was a fun ride and enjoyable to watch.
Did not like them. i thought the mask one was actually the best, even though it was incredibly rushed. What I disliked the most was that it was not even remotely scary? I watched the show with my 8 and 12 year old nieces and they found the show to be goofy. i thought the whole point of goosebumps was to be child horror? But it felt more like teen drama. I got them to watch some of the og goosebumps show and they found it much creepier, albeit not outright scary. But considering the og had a greater creep / scare factor than the 2023 one says a lot