GOOSEBUMPS TV SERIES (1995)

We complete our trifecta of 90s horror fantasy fare review with GOOSEBUMPS, the tv series. It’s not hard to compare this one to our other two shows looked at, Eerie Indiana and Are You Afraid of the Dark (see here and here). Out of the three, I would say this one would be placed in the middle if judging by the sheer horror factor. If you were a fan of the books, you’ll definitely love seeing your favorites adapted to real life and they did a great job with the costuming/villains. Slappy, Bigfoot, Horrorland, the Scarecrow; they’ll all present. Are you Afraid of the Dark gets a nudge to the top of the list above Goosebumps simply because Goosebumps doesn’t quite have the adult feel that AYAOTD does. The books were never meant to be too serious anyway so it’s a compliment for the sheer adaptation factor. But too often we get too many conflicts resolved too easily and some villains we get are a tad too goofy. Not to say this still isn’t a very entertaining series; it definitely is and it’s a product of its times that we had young-ish horror to look forward to on the small screen. The intro alone with the theme music is enough to let you know you’re in for a….scare…as the voiceover likes to say. Entertaining episodes no doubt; just hard not to compare to the slightly more terror-ish aforementioned SNICK counterpart. Still worth a watch to revisit.

SLASH SCENE: Show intro

SLASH SCORE: 4/5