Well, I finished my review on Season 3 of Nickelodeon's "Are You Afraid Of The Dark?" and you know what that means, it means another list of my favorite episodes from the previous season I reviewed last year. Instead of having a Top 8 List, it's going to be a Top 7 List of my favorite episodes. The reason for that is I had trouble picking one for number 8. I was going to put either "The Tale Of The Final Wish","The Tale Of The Thirteenth Floor" or "The Tale Of The Hatching". While all being very creative episodes they still had some huge flaws in them and don't really hold up as the ones on my list. Oh and keep in mind THERE WILL BE SPOILERS!"Submitted for the approval of the Midnight Society" here are...
MY TOP 7 FAVORITE "ARE YOU AFRAID OF THE DARK?" EPISODES FROM SEASON 2
MY TOP 7 FAVORITE "AYAOTD" EPISODES FROM SEASON 2
(FOR SHORT)
NUMBER 7
THE TALE OF THE DARK DRAGON
First of all,I really enjoy the characters in this episodes. I like Keith and find pity in him for his accident and how much he's willing to become popular instead of being a weak loser. Mariah well not only do I like her character but come on I find her hot both ways and to be honest I felt more pity for her than I did for Keith. The alter egos for each character when they drink the potion are so great and well acted that they are defiantly the complete opposite to their character. Of course the real character I love the most in this episode is Sardo. He's always funny,always over the top and is one of the many reasons why I enjoy this episode. Every time I see him, I giggle and smile, he has to be one of the best characters in the show! However I do question if Sardo's appearance (even in other episodes) is before "The Tale Of The Super Specs" or even taking place in a different world since in the end of "The Tale Of The Super Specs" he gets trapped in another world with the kids.
The make up effects are brilliant and horrifying. It looks so realistic and scary. I love the twist on "Jekyll and Hyde"and the original "Nutty Professor". I even enjoy the little Easter Eggs you can find in this episode such as The Super Specs and a novel to "Jekyll And Hyde". The climatic scene when a monster looking Mariah is dying in the arms of Keith is very tear jerking for a kids show. As for The Dark Dragon message it's there,“Before bringing out the best, one might fight the dark dragon from within”.Which means he must come to terms with himself to not only to defeat the Dark Dragon but to prevent him from becoming the Dark Dragon. It's still a tad bit confusing for a young audience and maybe I should have given it a 4/5 instead of 5/5 but come on, it's when we had some poor and mediocre episodes like "The Tale Of Locker 22" and "The Tale Of The Dream Machine", it at least brought the season back on track.
Overall I enjoy it very much and I find more new things to appreciate about the episode, could the message be more clearer, yes, but it's still there and still a great episode.
NUMBER 6
THE TALE OF THE MAGICIAN'S ASSISTANT
There's really a lot of great things to talk about in this episode. The characters, the villain, the story and a few new changes to the shows formula. Alright let's start with the characters. I'm convinced that our main character Todd and Shandu are one of the best characters on the show. Todd is not some bland typical cardboard cut out character, alright he does carry most characteristics that most of our main characters have but the difference is they really show it and really put the character to the test. He learns from his mistakes with magic and shows it in the episodes finale. He doesn't steal the wand for his own personal gain, he uses it to help Shandu and his job struggling Mother. This character has some really good characteristics and development. Shandu is different from most supporting characters. He's not some over the top looney "Nut bag" that's trying to teach a lesson, he's actually taken very seriously and tragically. In fact, I can't think of a moment where he goes over the top, the only thing I see him do that's a bit weird is wearing a fake mustache when he performs. The relationship between these two characters share incredible chemistry and it doesn't feel forced or corny, it feels natural.
Now the villain Nazrak, ok he's over the top (Like most villains on the show) but still comes across as something scary and creative. I love that when we first see the villain, he's in the form of a beautiful woman that tells Todd to keep using the wand. When we find out that she's really a villain it comes as a complete shock of disbelief. Nazrak gets a scary entrance, when Todd saves Shandu from a fire, Shandu waves his arm over his face and turns into Nazrak's true form. During this climax, Nazrak catches you off guard,we find out he's in disguised as Todd's Mother when the real Mother leaves a note that she left which leads to another scary reveal of Nazrak,the kid can't call for help, a trapped soul of Shandu tries to help the boy, Nazrak plans to kill Todd's Mother and Todd must remember everything Shandu has taught him. That's a great climax. In a surprising plot twist we find out that the villain is really Shandu and that this was a test for the boy. That's a great surprise and twist to the plot, it's almost like how Willy Wonka tested Charlie. Shandu also makes a great exit after handing Todd the wand.
The episode itself aside from having solid characters, story and scary moments it also has a few other great things. They're little but still something to talk about. Did you know the kid who played Todd previously played Dougie in one of my favorite episodes "The Tale Of The Twisted Claw". Instead of starting the story with the magic dust, Gary does a magic trick with a stick by making it look like he's making the title appear with a real wand. Oh and remember that lame episode "The Sorcerer's Apprentice"? I feel like that this episode should have gotten the title.
NUMBER 5
THE TALE OF OLD MAN CORCORAN
Our two main characters are really good. I like that they come from a tough Neighborhood and that they have to be tougher than ever were while they play in a haunted cemetery. They both share a good brother chemistry, they're really fun and they have major guts. Once again as I pointed out on my review on this episode, I like that the older is just as tough as Kiki's previous character Danny from "The Tale Of The Captured Souls" and I like how the little brother goes from being a wimp to a brave soul who steals the ghosts Harmonica. The kids they play hide and seek with are really fun as well and like I said before, they really do resemble "The Midnight Society".
What really makes the episode really great, scary and thrilling is the set up and atmosphere. All of the scary and thrilling scenes happen in the dark, the cinematography, set design and music brings a very foreboding feel and look. I even admire the twisted idea of playing Hide And Seek in a cemetery, that's like the darkest and twisted place to ever play such a hiding and finding game. Of course the ghost himself Old Corcoran is really scary. When we first meet him, we hear a chilling Harmonica solo, hear him chopping wood with the axe he used to cut off a persons hand, when the kids look he's gone and as they leave we see a hand picking up the Harmonica. Just when you think it's over, the girl Cissy (Who kind of reminds me of Kiki) scares them and just when you could relax, we quickly see Old Man Corcoran standing right in front of the boys looking like a dead zombie while holding his axe. That's a great introduction to our ghost. Other moments that I find really thrilling is when they're hiding as Old Man Corcoran walks near them and the scene when Jack sneaks into Corcoran's shack to steal his Harmonica. For me, the moment that caught me off guard is when you think they're holding a flashlight but when they reveal that they're not holding it, Old Man Corcoran is holding it and holds the flashlight over his face with a deadly look and tells them to give him back his Harmonica.
Yes it has good characters, yes it has a good set up and atmosphere and yes it has a great scary looking Ghost but the best part that tops it all off, is the ending.As our two main characters try to hide from Corcoran, Cissy kicks them out of an open grave she's hiding in and as they leave the open grave Jack tells her that they're should be a name on it and Cissy responds in a soft voice "Look a little closer next time". The leader of the group Marshall tells them to hide in the open grave he's hiding in, as the kids are about to jump in, Old Man Corcoran stops them and takes back his Harmonica. He asks them why they're in the cemetery and when the kids tell him what they're doing and who they're playing with, Corcoran tells them the kids they're playing with are dead and that he buried them himself. As the kids see the tombstone of the leader Marshall,Corcoran says "You looked like you've seen a ghost". So it appears Corcoran is alive and the kids they're playing with are dead and if the kids jumped into the open grave with Marshall, they'll be considered dead and buried with the group. That's got to be one of the best plot twists I ever seen. When I first saw this plot twist, I was in shock! The episode is dark,thrilling and has one of the best endings in the entire show!
NUMBER 4
THE TALE OF THE FROZEN GHOST
When I was a kid, I rented a video of the show at my local Library and it was called "Ghostly Tales" that featured two episodes on my list. I remember taking it either upstate or going to the Poconos in Pennsylvania and my family and my Mother's first born sister's family watched it along with "Mickey And The Beanstalk" and the first episode on the tape was this one and we were watching it in a nice cabin at night. This is one of the episodes that I still remember and that still held up as the years went by when the show was off the air (Along with "The Tale Of Laughing In The Dark","The Tale Of The Dark Music" and so on). why is it so memorable, let's get on with it.
First off it's the characters, as over the top as most of them are, I still enjoy them. Let's start with our main characters. First we have the rich kid Charles and even though he's annoying he's actually funny. I love how spoiled he is, I love how he makes up excuses constantly, I love how he tries not to get dirty even though all of his attempts fail and his reaction to the ghost are just silly. I just love how he runs around the house after seeing the ghost for the first time. Then we have Melissa Joan Hart (One of my childhood crushes) as the kid's babysitter(Which I'll admit is kind of weird that they hired one, considering that the kids going to be watched by not one but two aunts) instead of being over the top as Charles is, or heck even being as funny and over the top as her characters Clarissa and Sabrina The Teenage Witch, she's acts serious while still being enjoyable and sneaking in a little humor. As a matter of fact, I like that she gets into the whole ghost thing instead of being scared like Charles. The bond between them is really funny because Charles is rich and spoiled and she is free spirited and how the two get into fights and argue is really funny. Hey sometimes I'm convinced that Daphne wants to kill him or heck doesn't care if the ghosts gets him or not, favorite example is when she picks up an axe making you think she's going to use it on Charles. As for the supporting characters like the Aunts, I love that one is serious and one is over the top, they have to be one of the best Aunts ever. I even like the guy who drives them there, who only shows up for a few minutes.
So the characters are fun but what about the ghost? Well the backstory is very creative, it involves a bandit who hid his gold in a pipe and a kid saw him while he was looking for cookies. The kid hid from the bandit and froze to death and as for the bandit, there was a train crash as he was taken to jail and everyone died but no one found the bandits body. Very violent and very well written. Just like the Lonely Ghost we see events of it's presence, such as the window opening by itself, hearing it's voice, seeing through it's eyes on the camera and getting the feeling that you're not alone. After Charles having a nightmare about the bandit, Charles wakes up, the window opens and the ghost kid is standing outside repeating "I'm Cold". That scene is just as scary as when we first meet The Lonely Ghost. When we see the ghost again, we see footsteps in the mud walking towards Charles and when Charles turns around there's the ghost. As Charles runs away from him, he keeps appearing everywhere he goes, talk about unexpected. The ending on how they help the ghost is very heartwarming and cute. They find the ghost's coat that's been torn off by the bandit(As seen in Charles Nightmare) and the ghost turns into himself when he was alive and vanishes happy. As for the kids, they received a key that was in the kids coat and the key unlocks the latch to the stove pipe where gold coins are pouring out and Daphne tells them that their money issues are over. The episode not only has a good story, but it knows how to balance being fun for kids while being scary at the same time. This is also sadly Kristen's last story.
NUMBER 3
THE TALE OF THE SHINY RED BICYCLE
As a kid I didn't really watch this episode, but I did remember the concept of it.It was the second half of the video I rented of the show as a kid and my tolerance as a kid from sitting through it just stops. I felt like one episode was good enough. I also remember my brother being completely scared of the ghost. The only part that really held up to me as a kid was when the kid died, that really stood out to me that they killed one of our characters in the opening and still does. So why does this top an episode I actually remember from beginning to end as a kid that still holds up? Now that I watch this episode now, oh my god not only did I miss out on a great episode but I also got almost as scared as my Brother by the ghost at the age of 19 and usually I don't scare easily.
This episode made a few big changes to the shows traditional formula. Our main character is not a loser, someone that wants something or gets in the middle of something from an item he finds or even wants to solve something. He actually is a cool a guy, who cares about his friend and little Brother. What makes him different from most characters from these 2 Seasons are he lives with guilt from not saving his best friend and feels responsible for it. I can't think of any characters from any of these 2 Seasons that show a huge piece of guilt that our character is going through. Another difference to the shows formula is his little brother is not a little annoying brat like most siblings are on the show, ok so was the little Brother in "The Tale Of Old Man Corcoran" but this was before that episode. The two actually have a great bond together and I find it really sweet. Before I go to the huge change in the formula, there's one more change I should point out. The Teachers and staff in the school, in fact even the students are not those over the top mean stereotypes that you see in most episodes, they actually act like the way that High School students and teachers are supposed to act. The Teacher for example goes from being mean to actually being nice to our main character. Tell me when have you seen that in any of the previous episodes?
Now the ghost of the kids best friend Ricky. He tops the Lonely Ghost,The Prom Queen and The Frozen Ghost by a long shot. Why is he so different? Well first off, he died because Mike couldn't save him and instead of thinking he's a trapped soul like the previous ghosts, he's probably back from the dead to haunt Mike as revenge for not saving him. I'll never forget his freaky appearances in school, outside of his house ,seeing the Bike appear and disappear and we're almost lead to believe at one point that Mike can show his Dad the ghost. The crazy thing about the ghost is, not only is he scaring our main character but people (except his brother) are lead to believe that he's gone mentally crazy. When has a kid on the show ever been in that position before? In the end of the episode which is a huge reason why Ricky is different from the previous Ghosts is he actually came back from the grave to help Mike instead of Mike helping him. He helps Mike by telling him that his little Brother will suffer the same fate that Ricky did if Mike doesn't save him, which leads to an incredible and suspenseful climax that makes up for Mike not being able to save Ricky. That's a great twist and new look to our ghost formula. The episode sets new grounds for the show and did something completely different compared to the other classic Ghost episodes. It decided to try something new then rehash the same formula and that's why it tops "The Tale Of The Frozen Ghost".
NUMBER 2
THE TALE OF THE WHISPERING WALLS
I remember watching this episode as a kid and even though my memory of it didn't hold up to well when I was a kid, there was a lot of crap your pants moments that frighten me as a kid that I still remember and watching this episode again makes me feel like a child again. There's a bunch to talk about so let's get started. First off, as much as I find our characters likable and having good development, they're not the reason why the episode holds up. It's really the story, our villain and the scary moments that hold it up.
This has to be one of the scariest episodes to ever be put on the show. Almost everything about it is scary epically the villain,the atmosphere and the set up. It has to be one of the best wrong turn stories I ever seen since "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" and the best part is our main characters came back from an amusement park and are talking about their experience on the Haunted House attraction called "Laughing In The Dark" and how much Zeebo the clown scared them on the ride. The episode is just a very unsettling episode and the majority of it takes place in a dark mansion where you don't know what's going to happen, what's behind every corner and what surprises await. The set design, darkness,cinematography,the noises and music really give it some good horrifying atmosphere. It's probably one of the best Haunted House stories as well.
Our villain Master Raymond is very unsettling, every time he appears you get nervous and don't know if he'll take your soul or let you live and be on your merry way. In fact he kind of looks like a skeleton as well. What really makes him scary, what really freaks me out are his surprise appearances. There's a scene when the kids find their Babysitter singing and rocking a covered up baby to sleep and after a few seconds when you're relieved, the kid see his ring and Master Raymond reveals himself and throws a deadly snake at them that was under the sheet the whole time, that's a terrifying way to turn a suttle moment into something scary. Another scene that startles me is when the kids find a room full of Ice Cream and Cake and the kids almost buy into it until they accidentally drop the Ice Cream, the Ice Cream melts like acid and we see a ghostly image of Master Raymond laughing. Again, we see something suttle go into something scary and watching these again feel unsettling to start with. A moment that stuck out with me the most when I was a child is the revolving wall with a statue face that leads to another room. At first it's the babysitters face which looks very creepy as she begs for help, then when we see it again it's Master Raymond. The idea is scary and the special effects for it is scary too.
Then we have the ghosts who are trapped souls that were taken by Master Raymond. Instead of looking like poor souls, they're actually over the top, having fun and don't seem to care what's going on. When we first meet them, we see them in a abandon Tavern having a party and even though we don't know their ghosts yet, they still come off as unsettling as Master Raymond. Oh and during the party in the Tavern scene, we hear the the shows theme song on an old jukebox.We find out their ghosts, when the kids come back the minute they leave, the place is all abandon with no sign of life anywhere.When the kids enter the mansion we hear voices and whispers and as the kids pass empty picture frames, the ghosts appear in the pictures one by one looking at the kids as they walk by. By the way the special effects are really really good in this episode. In the ending our heroes escape but we see another person being stuck by the mansion and chances are, he will indeed suffer the fate as all the other people did who made the wrong turn to Master Raymond's mansion as well.
A dark and frightening episode that gets scarier and scarier every time I watch it.
AND MY NUMBER 1 FAVORITE "ARE YOU AFRAID OF THE DARK?" EPISODES FROM SEASON 2 IS...
THE TALE OF THE MIDNIGHT MADNESS
Yes, as a film critic with a big love for films, some of you probably already knew that this was going to be my Number 1 Favorite episode from Season 2. Why do I love it so much, well, let's take a look. First off, I love Frank's introduction to the story. He says "I'm not going back, because if you sit in that movie theater, so long, you start to forget that the real world ever exists.The only thing that seems real is the horror movie up on the screen.That's what my story's about.You know when you get really scared,you always tell yourself it's just a movie. But sometimes the movie seems so real,that it's hard to tell the difference of what's make believe and what's really there." That without a doubt describes why I love films and TV shows and how I view them and talking about the film being a horror movie makes it a geek bonus for me since I really love Horror films of any kind. What a great way to open the story.
The characters are wonderful. I love that the main character Pete is into films and is not a stereotypical over the top nerd. He's what film nerds really are, just ordinary people with a great love for film. The fact that he enters a movie and kills Nosferatu at the end is probably every film nerd or film buff's fantasy(Well, it's one of mine) to actually be in a film and be the hero. Just like many nerds, he's also socially awkward and that's what most of us nerds are like. His love interest, well. I'll be honest, while finding her a bit shallow, she's still likable and I enjoy how their relationship grows. As for their boss, I really get a big laugh out of him of how much of an asshole he is, as well as being fun.
The appearance of Dr.Vink is awesome. At first I was a bit upset that he was going to be in this episode due to that disappointing Pilot episode "The Tale Of The Phantom Cab". However, as I watched him in the episode he came off funny, while also being weird and mysterious at the same time. I even liked that he got to say some of his best quotes from the Pilot. Speaking of the pilot, while still being a disappointing but ok start to the series, I actually now enjoy watching him in that episode for some reason. Dr.Vink, while being enjoyable, he still creeps me out in this episode and the mixture of both sides to the character is great. I feel like this should have been the first episode he appeared in because it really gives his character a better look than when he was just some over the top inspiration for Hagrid with a bit of a rejected Riddler in him who has fake looking body parts in his fairytale looking cottage. The best part is, instead of him losing at the end, he actually wins, by taking over the theater, and plans to show more of his films "that are far better than this one(His version of Nosferatu)" and then he laughs like a mad man. That's a great scary ending and boy do I wish I knew what he had in store.
Finally, there's the appearance of Nosferatu himself. Well, when we watch the film, we see him stop the main character Hawker (Instead of Hutter) from taking his coffin into the sunlight and Nosferatu succeeds in sucking his blood. Already he's scary. Then when we see him again on screen, he looks towards the audience and slowly creeps out of a black and white movie to the real world in color. The transitions of how the hero and the villain go in and out of the film is a really great special effect. When we see him enter the real world he goes around the theater, searching for his victims and succeeds in sucking the blood out of the bosse's neck and let me tell you, seeing those bite marks looks kind of gory for a kids show. Not only that, but it looks similar to the scene when Hutter finds out his neck has been bitten. In fact, the scenes when he creeps around the theater looks similar to scenes from the original classic. The best part is he never talks; he's not an over the top horror monster; and the Make-Up is not only amazing, but also looks similar to Max Schrek's Make-Up design. He also uses his telekinesis powers like he does in the film. All this shows that the writers payed attention and watched the original classic. Having the climax in the film, while it is all shot in glorious black and white is outstanding. Some people complain that he doesn't show up too much, however, I think this is a great amount of time for his appearance because in the original film he didn't show up to much either, but still left an impression on us and that's what this episode did while also paying great tribute to a great horror classic.
This episode really makes me proud to be a film nerd and sometimes when I watch it, I feel like watching the actual film when it's over and I hope this episode inspires young viewers to see it.
Those are my Top 7 "Are You Afraid Of The Dark" episodes from Season 2. Tune in for Horror Month to read my review on Season 3.
"I declare this meeting of The Midnight Society closed."
No comments:
Post a Comment