Having met the guy a few times, I can say that this is just his personality. He isn't really emotional or theatrical or altogether expressive. He ain't no Vincent Price. He's VERY subdued and just kind of speaks softly with maybe a tiny smile. The way he talked up here is probably with the same enthusiasm as he'd talk about his kids or something.
I met RL Stine at a book fair when I was in high school, his nonchalant-ness is insane. I asked him to sign some of my most prized hand-me-down Fear Street novels and when he saw them it was the only time he had a spark of interest in his face, it felt good that I may have cracked the shell for a second.
He's awesome! My mom went to a book signing for Slappy World and i remember her putting me on facetime and me screaming "OMG I LOVE YOU R.L.!" And him looking at her phone and smiling! Such a nice guy ☺
I like how in trying to get revenge on her bullies she becomes one and starts to become the very monster whose mask she's wearing. The mask nearly permanently bonding to her face and her human self represented by the sculpture begging to be set free was creepy too.
Ugh, here I go into my "Haunted Mask is awesome" rant again. The Unloved are given a clear origin. The owner of the shop is hideously disfigured, a la phantom of the Opera, but is a gifted scientist, so he created synthetic faces to cover up his deformity. However, they only hid the physical scars, not the emotional. His self loathing twisted the the flesh of the masks, slowly warping each into monsters. You can see the process happening on his current visage. I actually have a recreation of the Haunted Mask on my shelves. It's my favorite of the Stine books and one of my favorite monsters. I always loved the notion of giving yourself to this evil power. Reveling in sin. Becoming a bombastic villain.
Until today, Goosebumps had never screamed "I'm filmed in Canada." But today in that episode are at least 2 actors - those who play Carly Beth and her mom - who were in the Canadian vampire tv show, Forever Knight, around the same time. Kathryn Long was also really good in that show, too.
Oh wow, Forever Knight was still airing at that point? I figured it finished up around the early 90s, but Sci-Fi channel had a tendency to just shuffle their series episodes around. I mean it worked for anthology shows like Twilight Zone, what would anyone miss from Friday the Thirteenth or Forever Knight?
oh its very much a Canadian made show, Ross Hull is in it, hes also in Student Bodies and now a weather man for the weathernet work. Goosebumps was mostly filmed around Toronto
@@fruitpunch-mouth oh dude! yes! its so good! i knew a girl in high school who worked on it, but as a medic off camera lol Robocop was also filmed there, well Robocop3 and the tv show , not sure about Robocop 2, I know the 1st Robocop was filmed in around Dallas i think, or Huston
PushingUpRoses as long as you continue to ask for suggestions, I shall continue to ask for another crossover with you two for “Night of the Living Dummy”!
@@pushinguproses I dreamed of Tony the Tiger. With a spoon in his paw, he walked slowly but vigorously and without hesitation in my direction and I couldn't defend myself. Because I was too busy not to drown in the freezing cold milk ... by the way: A great episode. Both thumbs up.
I was going to mention how Lost in Translation-like it was, in many ways. My favorite episode of GBs tho. Yeah, looking back, I do wish it had a better discussion of the workings of the masks, too. Loved the actors in it, the story was cool... Oh, and your video was amazing too (cutting immense slack on the short-handful of bad puns) cause the other humor was awesome.
damn when you talked about how children’s horror distracted you from real life horrors that struck a chord. I’m a HS senior writing my college essay about the exact same thing & it’s good to know that I’m not alone on this. On another note tho you should cover S1 E5 and 6, Welcome to Camp Nightmare. I have STRONG feelings about the ending to that episode.
I feel there was something missing about how compact the episode was compared to the book. having her only put the mask on once compared to the several times in the novel really loses the power addiction that she feels turning into the bullying force.
@@macaelatice-loma1048 no i mean, Toli said she only put it on once compared to the book, but that is just it, she did not put it on once in the show, she put it on thrice.
@@Gashnaw that explains some things, i guess Roses didn't have time to include that info for the video, so much to cover so i don't blame her, it does make it more palpable. it actually reminds me a bit of peter parker and venom, his connection doesn't start immediately, but happens over each use of the venom costume
I remember watching the premiere of this on Halloween back in 1995. It was a big deal because this was the first time a Goosebumps book had been adapted for TV and I was looking forward to seeing new episodes of it on Fox Kids in the future. I always remember the ending to this episode where RL Stine asks what his parents thought of the premiere and then they show to old people frozen in terror and he's like, "I think they liked it." Had me laughing for days.
Sadly, what you're hearing in the way Sabrina treats her friend when bullying is happening, is the actual mentality in the 80s/90s that adults had about bullying: "Oh well, everybody gets hazed, and if it hurts it's your fault." There was A LOT of victim blame when I was growing up.
THIS. If there’s any part of my ‘90s childhood I don’t miss, this is definitely it-such frequent mistreatment, negligence, ignorance, and/or abuse of children by peers and adults alike was unfortunately considered de rigueur during this time, and for decades beforehand (“free-range” parenting, and all that). This went triple if you were any kind of minority or had any kind of disability (as I did). It’s only really been in the last decade so that people of that and other generations have openly begun to question and speak out about it, which I’m very much grateful for. Even so, there’s a reason many sociologists of the period called us “The T.V. Generation” and “The Cynical Society” in the ‘90s. :P
@@michaelwills1926 you may have survived but I don’t know if your peers did. But I hope we can continue to make strides to ensure the people to get left behind
I think if the show had made more episodes like Haunted Mask or Stay Out Of the Basement, there would be more effective scares. The show is still entertaining to watch but some episodes miss the mark as an adaptation
Stay Out of the Basement was one of the darkest things I had seen when I was younger. I’m pretty sure the fact that the one plant had a human face disturbed the crap out of me.
Yeah there were a lot of goofy episodes, but man there were some dark ones as well. Others I can think of were Bride of the Living Dummy (that one gave me serious nightmares), The Werewolf of Fever Swamp, and Welcome To Dead House
@@desertfox738 oh yeah, those were some pretty great choices. However, I have to give the dead house books props over the episode because their skin melts off from sunlight.
As someone who's always struggled with loving himself as a kid, and even now as an adult, The Haunted Mask always held a special place in my heart. Not only do I agree that this is without a doubt the best episode of the entire series, but the message of learning to love and accept yourself is very relatable and important to learn at any age. It's one of those episodes that really matures over time. Also if you're doing recs, can I recommend you do Werewolf of Fever Swamp? That was my second favorite and in my opinion one of the scariest episodes of the series
When I think of Goosebumps, this is the episode that first comes to mind. Very memorable. Still a part of how I associate Goosebumps as cheesy, but a good impactful episode.
They also did a sequel, Haunted Mask II, for the show and it was released on home media but I could never find it and it never aired on TV. I doubt it's any good, but I was always mad I was never able to see it when I was younger
The mask turning the boy withered and old was pretty disturbing especially the part where he couldn't breath right. It was spooky, not as iconic as this one but I liked that Carly Beth got to show up with her being more accepting of herself and being braver as a character. (I mean how could you not after facing the crap she faced in this movie?)
MDB!! Dude why do I feel like you guys would do really great at doing videos together 😂😌 and I love your content so please know that I appreciate your content and the ability to deal with the stress that must come with it! Thank you Mah-Dry-Bread
This story is based on a Buddhist or Shinto folktale or more a parable about a woman who dawns a mask to scare someone and later the mask gets stuck to her face. Love your videos! I’m a recovered addict and I found your videos about your own recovery really inspiring. Thank you!!!
The main reason why I love the Haunted Mask: -I can relate to it. I was outside of myself thanks to a bunch of drugs I was taking due to cancer. They caused a very rare reaction that caused me to be come disconnected from life, tired 24/7, and extremely paranoid. Although it wasn’t my fault, I became disgusted with my myself after I was able to get off of all of those medications. Carly Beth went through something very similar, when she lost herself due to supernatural means. But it’s very close to home, even for an adult.
The Haunted Mask II's ending had the main character matching up the masks to their appropriate costumes and then once they're matched up, they dance out of the novelty shop into the darkness
Great video! I'd been hoping you would cover this one. I used to watch this every Halloween. I definitely think it's one of the best episodes. If you're looking for another good one to talk about, I remember enjoying "Scarecrow Walks at Midnight". Another bad one that would be cool to hear you talk about is the one with mud monsters called "You Can't Scare Me". I don't know if you watched it when you were younger or anything, but I'd really love for you to cover some episodes of So Weird too - seems like it'd be right up your alley. I rewatched the first couple episodes the other day and was impressed by how dark it could be, and the unexpected directions the story would take.
I love this episode(s). It could easily be a 90 minute movie and I'd watch it every Halloween. It has depth, nuance, character development, deeper meaning, a message, and actually scary concepts
This was always my favorite book from the series.. and wow. Self harm metaphors and alienating yourself from those around you... no wonder i latched onto this one.
I'd love to see you do a video on the episode Welcome To Dead House. That was another one of the better Goosebumps episodes. The acting is pretty good (I really liked the guy who played the father) and it has a cool, creepy atmosphere.
This episode just weirded me out as a kid. As an adult, I love the subtle body horror. Will you be talking about its sequel? I'd love it if you would talk about one of my favourite episodes, Calling All Creeps.
Just wanted to say Thank You for subtitling episodes, as a person who is not a navite speaker, I usually watch all my video content (youtube, netflix etc.) with english subtitles and it makes a great difference in viewing experience. Also 1:38
Great video! I remember reading the book as a kid and thought it was really good. If I could make a suggestion for the next Goosebumps review, I'd really be interested in hearing your thoughts on the sequel to this one. That episode really stayed in my mind. I thought it was a really good follow up to this story, so it would be fun to see you cover it. Keep up the great reviews :)
Not going to lie these goosebumps episodes where you couldn't take the mask of scared me crazy. Thank you covering them. Also would love you to cover the welcome to the dead house two parter episodes. they were my fav goosebumps episodes.
Excellent analysis as always! I have distinct memories of renting this VHS from blockbuster as a kid & having nightmares for WEEKS. Fantastic to see it in a new light.
There was an episode that scared me, and to this day still does but I haven't really heard anyone talk about it. A boy and girl both take their pictures with the camera from "Say Cheese and Die". When they look at the photo, they notice the girl is rail thin and the boy is overweight. As the episode goes on, the bodies of the two change to match the photos with the girl eating everything she can while feeling her last bit of energy drain away and the boy becoming so large that even breathing becomes a chore. That left a very vivid and disturbing image in my mind to this day.
I never realized this before, but the mask is kind of like the Symbiote that attached itself to Eddie Brock to become Venom. Feeding on Eddie, and leading him into doing bad stuff.
This was a great breakdown. I have such a fondness for this episode (or two parter) because my parents bought me the VHS when I was 4, shortly before we got cable. I had to have watched it nearly a hundred times. And years later, it truly holds up as one of the best stories from the series to translate to TV. Love your vids.
I don't have a specific comment about Goosebumps, as I never watched it as a kid (we didn't have cable, and it may have even been on after I'd gotten a little older) but I discovered your channel about a year ago and I just adore your quirky sense of humor (the first episode I watched, you made a Klingon joke and I was hooked). You're such a blessing, and every video is such a fun break in my day. Thanks for doing these.
God I swear you are one of the few people that I laugh out loud to...it’s like you say something hilarious when I’m not expecting it and it gets me every time. Thank you for that 👍🏻
Came across your channel in the last couple days and every video so far is like a slapping punch of nostalgic childhood right to my FACE. Goosebumps, Murder She Wrote and Are You Afraid of the Dark is that Triple OG stuff.
When the school is laughing at Carly Beth after eating the worm, I honestly believe it was all in her head and the only ones laughing were Chuck and Steve. She was so freaked out at that point that that's all she saw was the everyone laughing at her
I've recently found your channel and have slowly been working my way thru your goosebumps videos. They're wonderfully edited and your points on each episode are very interesting. Thanks for putting this together! Loved that show, growing up.
I'd be curious to hear your thoughts on "Calling all Creeps". The ending has stuck with me ever since I saw it, as it feels oddly subversive for a kids show.
I have an issue as I grew older. But I think seeing Ricky turn into a creep destroys the ambiguous megalomaniac ending the book made it out to be. Like I envisioned Ricky stays human but rules over the Creeps as he is accepted regardless of eating the seeds. Then again, I envisioned him accepting his fate that while the Creeps are here, they will treat him just as horrible as the humans, if not terribly. But the ending we got solidifies Ricky is the King Creep and "Things are gonna be different from now on."
Creepy and disturbing as hell. I always love your exposition of TV episodes of all genres. It's insightful, well thought out, and just funny enough to make me chortle! Thanks for all the entertainment and intelligent discourse!
As someone who missed out on the children's horror renaissance I'm enjoying your look into that world very much. I also wanted to say you've gotten me watching Murder she Wrote, as someone with a lot of anxiety I find it strangely cozy and distracting. Please take care, Justin.
You have someone deliver coffee to you every morning!? You have the greatest life ever. I got here from your Jessica Fletcher videos which are awesome. I have seen all 250 something episodes of Murder She Wrote. Keep up the good work and thank you for the enjoyment your videos give me.
I always love your content but I really love this episode and I even remember when it premiered. It was my favorite episode then and even now. Thanks for the perfect breakdown. I always look forward to your uploads. Thanks again awesome lady
I'm pretty sure the reason this is the best episode of the show is because it was the first episode, a two-parter with (probably) a higher budget than other episodes, and meant to be THE entry point into both the show and the franchise (for those who hadn't read the books). It came out days before Halloween so it was meant to pull in everyone with Halloween on the brain, not just Goosebumps fans. They probably put a lot more care and effort into this adaption rather than others.
