The Goosebumps book/TV series were a big part of my childhood. I enjoyed both; I can still remember getting up every Saturday morning to watch the show. Goosebumps was definitely one of the better shows of the 90's.
Unfortunately there were many flaws with the series.
First of all, the acting. Words cannot describe how terrible the acting really is. To say that it was appalling is only putting it mildly. I have worked on films made by university students, and even they have better acting. Apart from Ryan Gosling (who hasn't really improved at all as an actor) and the one who ended up playing Annikan Skywalker (who is actually a pretty good actor) the other actors and actresses have either sunk without trace or are acting in mediocre TV shows. God knows why and how they are still being hired.
Second, the inaccuracy of the episodes. Many of the episodes were unfaithful to the books in certain ways. Some of these adaptations actually worked (a good example of this would be "Be Careful What You Wish For", and I actually didn't mind the Haunted Mask 1 and 2- those floating masks scared the hell out of me). Another episode I enjoyed was "The Scarecrow Walks at Midnight", as well as "The Werewolf of Fever Swamp" and "Phantom of the Auditorium".However, many of the adaptations were so bad that it was almost excruciating. They just didn't work at all. "The Ghost Next Door" was such an example. However, in certain ways, the episode is set up better than the book. Please don't get me started on "The Headless Ghost"... That was awful. Even the main characters are changed, in terms of looks. For example, in "The Ghost Next Door" (the book version), the main character has blonde hair. But in the TV version, she is a brunette.
Third, the effects. They were just awful, and the monsters looked like they were made out of play dough. I know that this doesn't count as an "effect", but the Canadian accents were almost as irritating as the acting.
Lastly, the fact that a lot of the better books were never made into episodes. "Ghost Camp", a personal favourite of mine, was never made into an episode, despite the fact that it could have been extremely easy to make. "Legend of the lost legend" and "The Haunted School" could have worked as well.
Despite all of these flaws, the series was entertaining, (semi) scared me- I can still remember the intro with the infamous dog, and I can remember the evil potato monster at the end of "It Came From Beneath the Sink!". It was definitely one of my favourite childhood shows and deserves recognition as one of the best shows of the 90's. 6 out of 10 from me!
Unfortunately there were many flaws with the series.
First of all, the acting. Words cannot describe how terrible the acting really is. To say that it was appalling is only putting it mildly. I have worked on films made by university students, and even they have better acting. Apart from Ryan Gosling (who hasn't really improved at all as an actor) and the one who ended up playing Annikan Skywalker (who is actually a pretty good actor) the other actors and actresses have either sunk without trace or are acting in mediocre TV shows. God knows why and how they are still being hired.
Second, the inaccuracy of the episodes. Many of the episodes were unfaithful to the books in certain ways. Some of these adaptations actually worked (a good example of this would be "Be Careful What You Wish For", and I actually didn't mind the Haunted Mask 1 and 2- those floating masks scared the hell out of me). Another episode I enjoyed was "The Scarecrow Walks at Midnight", as well as "The Werewolf of Fever Swamp" and "Phantom of the Auditorium".However, many of the adaptations were so bad that it was almost excruciating. They just didn't work at all. "The Ghost Next Door" was such an example. However, in certain ways, the episode is set up better than the book. Please don't get me started on "The Headless Ghost"... That was awful. Even the main characters are changed, in terms of looks. For example, in "The Ghost Next Door" (the book version), the main character has blonde hair. But in the TV version, she is a brunette.
Third, the effects. They were just awful, and the monsters looked like they were made out of play dough. I know that this doesn't count as an "effect", but the Canadian accents were almost as irritating as the acting.
Lastly, the fact that a lot of the better books were never made into episodes. "Ghost Camp", a personal favourite of mine, was never made into an episode, despite the fact that it could have been extremely easy to make. "Legend of the lost legend" and "The Haunted School" could have worked as well.
Despite all of these flaws, the series was entertaining, (semi) scared me- I can still remember the intro with the infamous dog, and I can remember the evil potato monster at the end of "It Came From Beneath the Sink!". It was definitely one of my favourite childhood shows and deserves recognition as one of the best shows of the 90's. 6 out of 10 from me!