Movies and TV shows that we watch during our childhood can have a huge impact on our adult life. Some scenes or characters, who may not appear to be too scary to grown-ups, may be terrifying to a child, and leave a lasting impression on the child that lingers long into adulthood.
A particular source of this childhood trauma is the show Goosebumps. Based on a popular book series by author R.L. Stine, Goosebumps helped terrorize thousands, if not millions of children, for several years. See if your childhood nightmare fuel made our list of scariest episodes.
Updated October 26th, 2020 by Zach Gass: “Viewer beware, you’re in for a scare…” these were the words that began every episode of the Goosebumps TV series. While most of the episodes of the creepy kids’ show were more spooky than straight-up scary, it did have its fair share of frights that freaked legions of young fans out more than the books that inspired them. Sure, the show had episodes that featured several stereotypical monsters-of-the-week like vampires, werewolves, zombies, and the rest. But even some of those outings brought a big bag of heebie-jeebies with them. Which ones kept the most kids up at night?
Don’t Wake Mummy
Mummies might not be the scariest monster on everybody’s radar but consider the following. What happens when horror decides to change locations? Sure, running away from a maniac and abandoned summer camp is scary, but what if it’s in your own home? The episode “Don’t Wake Mummy” has the answer as a boy’s father brings home an undead mummy from an archeological expedition.
It’s one thing when the monster is in the wilderness or its own territory, but it’s even more frightening when it’s right in the house. Plus, the anxiety is raised when nobody in the house believes him, and soon it becomes a battle of man vs. mummy.
One Day at Horrorland Part 1
The first part of this two-part special earns the slot simply because both episodes together go from frightening horror to goofy horror-comedy in minutes flat. While the second half of “Horrorland” becomes a zany monster gameshow, the first half will certainly give viewers the creeps.
There’s something purely unsettling about seeing random amusement park rides in the middle of a forest, the show’s budget aside. Not to mention there’s a decapitated talking head and a scene where the parents literally drink monster blood.
Scarecrow Walks at Midnight
Why is it whenever there’s a scarecrow in any horror/sci-fi feature they are always built to be the most terrifying things possible? Comments aside, these things are more than a little bit unnerving for a kids’ show. Not only that, but they’re essentially magically animated creatures playing by their own rules.
These guys are more than just scarecrows brought to life as seen in other horror stories, they can take a beating too. They’re resistant and resilient, and definitely stronger than they look. It even takes a giant corn-thresher to finally put them down.
Attack of the Jack O Lanterns
The part of the story concerning the jack-o-lantern monsters is scary in itself, but what makes this episode worthy of the list is its ending. When a town is struck with a series of disappearances, trick-or-treating isn’t exactly the safest activity for kids.
Through some rather creative writing, it seems like the pumpkin-headed fiends are behind it all, but not all the trick-or-treaters are as innocent as they appear. Suddenly, things go from silly to sinister in a matter of seconds. Let’s just say things aren’t all pumpkins and candy on this side of the galaxy.
Bride of the Living Dummy
Slappy the Dummy is quite possibly R.L. Stine’s most insidious creation, and the wicked wooden weirdo makes more than a few appearances in the series. This episode of the spooky series asks the question, what happens when the demented dummy finds love in the form of a girl’s wide-eyed doll? Nothing good, that’s for sure.
Things can only go downhill from there as Slappy is aided in his soul-collecting quest by a toy that is surprisingly more terrifying than he is. The title alone is going to be hard to beat, but there are definitely bigger monsters on the menu.
Werewolf Of Fever Swamp
“Werewolf of Fever Swamp” follows two young kids, Grady and Emily, as they are forced by their parents to move to the swamps of Florida. Soon after they arrive at their new home, the kids start to hear terrifying howls in the middle of the night and see spooky shadows and creepy characters in the area. Due to the howls, the children begin to suspect that a werewolf is stalking the swamp.
The kids are convinced that Grady’s dog that is the wolf-like monster, but this would be too simple for a Goosebumps story. This episode is truly one of the most unnerving in the series, and certainly terrified us as kids.
Night Of The Living Dummy III
“Night of the Living Dummy III” marks another appearance in the Goosebumps TV series for the terrifying Slappy the Dummy. The story follows Trina, a young girl whose father used to have his own ventriloquist act. However, after he stopped performing, he stored his old dummies in his attic.
One day, when examining the dummies, Trina and her brother find that one of the dummies’ hands is unusually warm. After this bizarre discovery, the siblings start hearing creepy noises from the attic.
Welcome To Dead House
“Welcome to Dead House” is the first two-part story to appear on this list, and it certainly deserves its entry here. The story follows Josh and Amanda Benson who unwillingly must move away from Dark Falls with their parents. However, their new town and house are extremely strange, with the siblings finding the townsfolk particularly odd.
Their parents, however, ignore the protestations of the children, leaving the kids to solve the terrifying mystery surrounding the town on their own.
Say Cheese And Die
“Say Cheese and Die” follows a group of friends (one of whom is played by a young Ryan Gosling) as they discover a strange yet intriguing camera in a spooky house. The group soon discovers that after someone’s photo is taken with the device, the subject of the photo is pictured in some horrific accident that eventually comes true.
Upon learning the horrific function of the camera, Greg (Gosling) must try and return the camera to its original owner, but will Greg be able to do so before more unfortunate accidents occur?
Haunted Mask II
“The Haunted Mask II” is a Goosebumps classic that terrified and disturbed countless children, almost certainly giving several viewers a phobia of Halloween masks. The episode follows a boy named Steve as he discovers a creepy mask store and, being determined to have the scariest costume on the block, must have the perfect mask.
However, as seasoned viewers will know, the mask becomes very difficult to remove, leaving Steve in a horrifying situation.
The Girl Who Cried Monster
This episode follows a young girl named Lucy who has a reputation for telling fictional yet terrifying stories about monsters. However, when she learns that her teacher is a monster, her parents refuse to believe her due to her reputation for telling tall tales.
Things take a turn for the worse, however, when Lucy’s parents invite the teacher to dinner and the story gets even weirder and far more terrifying.
Welcome To Camp Nightmare
“Welcome to Camp Nightmare” tells the story of Billy as he ventures on what would become a terrifying and nightmare-fueled summer camp. Billy finds the food dreadful, the staff strange and disconcerting, and there is even talk of a terrifying beast named Sabre.
In addition to the strange staff and terrifying atmosphere, there are mysteries that must be uncovered, particularly that of the ‘Forbidden Bunk.’
Stay Out Of The Basement
This story follows Margaret, a girl who grows increasingly worried about the length of time her father is spending in their basement. She begins to wonder just what he could be doing down there that is taking up all of his time. Whenever Margaret asks him about it, he says he is testing some plants.
While this all seems fairly harmless, though a little eccentric, Margaret begins to notice that her father is acting stranger and stranger the more time he spends in the basement.
Night Of The Living Dummy II
This is one of the most iconic episodes of Goosebumps. The story follows a young girl named Amy whose father has recently gifted her a new ventriloquist doll because her old doll was starting to fall apart. However, Amy unknowingly speaks an incantation that breathes life into Slappy the Dummy.
Unlike Woody and Buzz, Slappy is not a benevolent toy, and almost immediately begins to inflict trouble upon the family, framing Amy for several acts of vandalism in the house.
The Haunted Mask
While Slappy may be the scariest and most notorious villain in Goosebumps’ history, the most terrifying story is arguably “The Haunted Mask.” While the sequel has already featured on this list, the original is far scarier and has an element of mystery that is not present in the sequel.
The episode follows Carly Beth, a girl who is considered to be incredibly easy to scare by her friends. However, Carly Beth does not enjoy her reputation and is hell-bent on changing it. In order to do so, she gets a scary mask from an odd little store. While the mask is indeed frightening, it may also be alive.
