Topic: Are You Afraid of the Dark? marathon!!

[addicted2comics(:P)]

Are You Afraid of the Dark?
Here I'm taking a crack at my Halloween marathon! And what better way to do that than with 91 different stories that scared you to death when you were a kid?? Get it? Death? Scary stories? Anyone? ....... *crickets chirp* ........ anyways, this is actually one of my favorite shows, and I really hope you enjoy looking at this this with me. Enjoy!!

Episode Guide

Season 1
- The Tale of the Phantom Cab
- The Tale of Laughing in the Dark
- The Tale of the Lonely Ghost
- The Tale of the Twisted Claw
- The Tale of the Hungry Hounds
- The Tale of the Super Specs
- The Tale of the Captured Souls
- The Tale of the Nightly Neighbors
- The Tale of the Sorceror's Apprentice
- The Tale of Jake and the Leprechaun
- The Tale of the Dark Music
- The Tale of the Prom Queen
- The Tale of the Pinball Wizard

Season 2
- The Tale of the Final Wish
- The Tale of the Midnight Madness
- The Tale of Locker 22
- The Tale of the 13th Floor
- The Tale of the Dream Machine
- The Tale of the Dark Dragon
- The Tale of the Frozen Ghost
- The Tale of the Whispering Walls
- The Tale of the Full Moon
- The Tale of the Shiny Red Bicycle
- The Tale of the Magician's Assistant
- The Tale of the Hatching
- The Tale of Old Man Corcoran

Season 3
- The Tale of the Midnight Ride
- The Tale of Apartment 212
- The Tale of Watcher's Woods
- The Tale of the Phone Police
- The Tale of the Dollmaker
- The Tale of the Bookish Babysitter
- The Tale of the Carved Stone
- The Tale of the Guardian's Curse
- The Tale of the Curious Camera
- The Tale of the Dream Girl
- The Tale of the Quicksilver
- The Tale of the Crimson Clown
- The Tale of the Dangerous Soup

Season 4
- The Tale of Cutter's Treasure (1)
- The Tale of Cutter's Treasure (2)
- The Tale of the Renegade Virus
- The Tale of the Quiet Librarian
- The Tale of the Water Demons
- The Tale of the Long Ago Locket
- The Tale of the Silent Servant
- The Tale of the Room for Rent
- The Tale of the Ghastly Grinner
- The Tale of the Fire Ghost
- The Tale of the Unfinished Painting
- The Tale of the Closet Keepers
- The Tale of the Train Magic

Season 5
- The Tale of Dead Man's Float
- The Tale of the Jagged Sign
- The Tale of Station 109.1
- The Tale of the Mystical Mirror
- The Tale of the Chameleons
- The Tale of Prisoner's Past
- The Tale of C7
- The Tale of Manaha
- The Tale of the Unexpected Visitor
- The Tale of the Vacant Lot
- The Tale of a Door Unlocked
- The Tale of the Night Shift
- The Tale of Badge

Season 6
- The Tale of the Forever Game
- The Tale of the Zombie Dice
- The Tale of Jake the Snake
- The Tale of the Virtual Pets
- The Tale of the Misfortune Cookie
- The Tale of the Gruesome Gourmets
- The Tale of the Hunted
- The Tale of Vampire Town
- The Tale of the Wisdom Glass
- The Tale of the Walking Shadow
- The Tale of Oblivion
- The Tale of the Secret Admirer
- The Tale of Bigfoot Ridge

Season 7
- The Tale of the Silver Sight (1)
- The Tale of the Silver Sight (2)
- The Tale of the Silver Sight (3)
- The Tale of the Lunar Locusts
- The Tale of the Stone Maiden
- The Tale of Highway 13
- The Tale of the Reanimator
- The Tale of the Time Trap
- The Tale of the Photo Finish
- The Tale of the Last Dance
- The Tale of the Laser Maze
- The Tale of Many Faces
- The Tale of the Night Nurse

[addicted2comics(:P)]

Unfortuntely, I'm also going away for the weekend, so I'll watch the shows over there and update when I can get to a place with a computer, home!

Until then I think my dad will be teasing me about the episodes with clowns and be impatiently waiting for me to get to the one with Nosferatu and watch it with him, so ya'll be entertained either way!

Good luck on you guys Halloween marathons, and Happy October!!

[Kathy]

I'll be looking forward to your reviews on this series. I have never heard of it before. Enjoy your weekend Brit!

[addicted2comics(:P)]

1) The Tale of the Phantom Cab
Two brothers, Denny and Buzz Crocker, get lost in the woods, and come across a mysterious cab driver, Flynn, and a very unusual man, a reclusive backwoods scientist by the name of Dr. Vink, who won't let any of his victims go unless they solve a riddle: “What is lighter than air, can be seen by the naked eye, and if you put it into a barrel, it will make the barrel lighter?”

My Thoughts:

One of the more memorable episodes. It definitely kicks off the series with a bang! I still can't help but jump every time I see Flynn's head do a 180!!

It's spook, it's weird, and it has one of the more famous characters - Dr.Vink.
Sweet!

My Rating:
Out of 5

[addicted2dvd]

The rating graphics came out better then I thought they would! 

[addicted2comics(:P)]

2) The Tale of Laughing in the Dark
An arrogant boy called Josh decides to prove to his friend Weegee and sister Kathy that a fun house isn't haunted by stealing the nose of the clown dummy who is supposed to haunt the place. He learns that the story isn't fiction when Zeebo, a petty criminal who, during the 1920’s, stole some charity money from the circus and was burned alive in the funhouse where he hid from the authorities before he accidentally started a fire with his cigars,pays him a little visit as he comes to collect his nose.

My Thoughts:

Ok, no one say a word! Yes, this episode is about a ghost clown, and yes, I came this close to screaming. Its.....its scary, but thats coming from me.

I have to say, I still enjoyed it. Just seeing a bully getting whats coming to him.

My Rating:
Out of 5

[addicted2comics(:P)]

3) The Tale of the Lonely Ghost
A girl, Amanda Cameron, goes to stay with her Aunt Dottie and desperately wants to be friends with her snotty cousin, Beth, and her group of friends agrees to spend the night in the haunted house next door, which is rumored to be haunted by the spirit of a preteen girl, to become part of the group. Beth’s nanny tries to warn Amanda to stay away from that place.

My Thoughts:

My favorite episode by far. A brat gets put in her place, a ghost gets some help, and it just has an overall creepy feel!

As you can see by the picture above, they did a really good job with the make-up, especially for a kid series. The writers even dug deeper into the characters of the kids who tell the stories because of a little romance going on.

My Rating:
Out of 5

[addicted2comics(:P)]

4) The Tale of the Twisted Claw
In a twist of "The Monkey's Paw," two boys, Dougie Freeman and Kevin, scare an old lady who lives in a creepy house, Miss Clove, to death the night before Halloween just as the next night they trick or treat at her house and she gives them a special treat, a hand granting them three wishes apiece, but they soon find out that the wishes come true, but at a terrifying price.

My Thoughts:

Your usual wishes-gone-wrong story. It was enjoyable for a few scary twists and nicely set at Halloween.

My Rating
Out of 5

[addicted2comics(:P)]

5) The Tale of the Hungry Hounds
Two girls, Amy Pease and Pam, go to an attic where Pam tries on an old horse-riding jacket that belonged to a dead aunt, Dora Pease, which is possessed by her spirit, who must feed her starving dogs in order to rest in peace.

My Thoughts:

Another memorable episode. I love the country setting and the use of the Ouija board. The show seems to neglect that using it is said to open portals between earth and the dead, also making things 10X worse if you destroy it, but I wouldn't expect it to.

Possesion, always a cool thing. The thing with riding horses was cool too, but I was left with one question. What happened to the stable keeper's ghost? He was never seen again after he spooks Dora and Amy.

My Rating
Out of 5

[addicted2comics(:P)]

6) The Tale of the Super Specs
Weeds, a prankster, buys his friend Marybeth a pair of super spec glasses from Sardo’s magic shop as part of an April's Fool Day where once she places on the glasses, strange figures covered in black living among humans appear and can't be explained.

My Thoughts:

Ok, let me get this straight -  evil x-ray glasses? Well, this is also the debut of another famous character - Sardo. Him and Dr.Vink really are a pair! I just wish I was a writer working on this, I have a few running jokes that would have been funnier than "That's Sar-Do, no mister, accent on the 'Do'!"

This episode is all about seeing another dimension within our own. Definitely, one of the weirder ones. It doesn't make much sense to me, I mean, seeing something and opening portals are two different things. Moving on, why do girls in horror shows scream so much? Its people dressed in black, she sees. Not creatures, not ghosts. People in black. The viewpoint, the show. Pretty good, but just plain weird!

My Rating
Out of 5

[addicted2comics(:P)]

7) The Tale of the Captured Souls
A family, Danny, Doug, and Sally Sellman, moves to a lakeside resort headed by a young man, Peter Kirlan III, who hates getting his picture taken and uses the mirrors in the resort house to steal the family members' souls and stay young forever, causing the family to feel weaker every day.

My Thoughts:

It was pretty good. The whole "Mirrors/cameras steal your soul" thing really isn't a new concept. Its like it was in the intro, native tribes often believed in that stuff. It was cool howe in make-up they should the parents aging gradually at an accelerated rate. Still, I like my shows to be scary, and this is another one that is more weird than scary, but I can expect that in most shows.

I especially like how they portrayed Danni, using logic to see what adults can.

"Its just faulty wiring."

"In a mirror??"

 

My Rating
Out of 5

[addicted2comics(:P)]

8 ) The Tale of the Nightly Neighbors
Emma and Dayday Toll suspect that their new neighbors, Mr. and Mrs. Braun and their son Lex, may be vampires when people in town start to get sick. The Brauns are originally from Eastern Europe, wear black, collect blood, and only are active at night.

My Thoughts:

This was the first vampire episode of the set, and my father won't let it go!! Don't worry! I'm saving Nosferatu for you!!

Anyways, this really stood out from the others because

(click to show/hide)

the vampires win in the end. Most of these end up the same. Really weird, sometimes a little gross/scary, but everyone goes home happy. Well, aside from a few exceptions, this being one of them. Its refreshing to see this change.

I remember when I saw this for the first time. I had the "happy" ending shoved down my throat so many times, I didn't see how the vampires won and watched it again to make sure!!

Yes, vampires are a favorite. No show can screw it up!! (Aside from Twilight, and if they have, don't show me!!!)

My Rating
Out of 5

[addicted2comics(:P)]

9) The Tale of the Sorceror's Apprentice
Dean Berkham, a high school outcast, awakens an ancient secret hidden in the school about an evil wizard named Goth after a lesson with Dr. Oliver. After his friend, Alix, discovers what's going on and is the only one that knows, and it's up to her alone to not only save Dean, but stop him from releasing the evil sorcerer.

My Thoughts:

Well, this was better than I remembered it! The culture behind the magic is pretty dead on if you're into myths. For example, any of you know Disney's Hercules? The screwed that up so much, especially his origin! No such problem here. All the mythology, the coming of Goth, the spices used, everything - even the science - just clicked. Realism, as nutty as it may sound, is pretty important in fiction in my eyes.

The moral of the show is a test of friendship, as most stories like this go. I have to say - well done.

My Rating
Out of 5

[addicted2comics(:P)]

10) The Tale of Jake and the Leprechaun
Jake Joysen is excited to be part of a play by genius writer Erin, a show called “Will o’ The Wisp,” a story about a boy changed into a leprechaun by a benevolent sprite. Soon Jake notices some unusual changes, and Sean O’Shaney, a seller of herbs, informs him that Erin may be a banshee who is transforming Jake into a changeling.

My Thoughts:

Ok, I have to get my dad to watch this, I don't think I'm spoiling much here, but there is a scene where Jake has to swallow spiders. Sound yummy, dad? Ok, enough poking fun at arachnophobia, time to get back to the review.

Another good one. Being half Irish, I really enjoyed the past leprechauned-up movies I've seen, that simply adding to it. Here you mix in pixies (not faries!) and banshees too. A spell in the playcreates twists in the boy's life, and again the story styling is dead on.

It is here I'd like to point out the difference between pixies and fairies. If pixies were always fair, then you would call them fairies. Ergo - they're EVIL! Always good to have cultural callbacks!

My Rating
Out of 5

[addicted2comics(:P)]

I'm sorry to draw away from the marathon, but I just want to do this one thing.

Many of you may know that I'm a writer-in-training. I recently wrote a Halloween piece, and since this is probably the most active thread of mine for the purpose of Halloween, it'll be up in a minute.

Tell me what you think! Enjoy!