Hey everyone, PushingUpRoses here and today we have pumpkins. So many pumpkins. EVIL pumpkins.
We’re looking at an episode of R.L. Stine’s The Haunting Hour because I got tired of watching
Goosebumps. The Goosebumps series is probably Stine’s most recognized work, but I’ve
always been curious about other things he’s written over the years. He’s very prolific,
to the point of being infuriating because how can someone WRITE THAT MUCH WHEN I CAN’T
EVEN FINISH A SINGLE SHORT STORY. Did I mention I majored in fiction writing? Yeah. … Sorry,
minor tangent.
I found The Haunting Hour and was immediately intrigued - it was more modern, running from
2010 through 2014, and was based on the Haunting Hour Movie, and the 2 anthologies The Haunting
Hour and Nightmare hour. Only a couple stories were actually taken from those anthologies,
the rest are all originals conceptualized by Stine and written by different people.
The episode I am covering is called Pumpkinhead from Season 2; I chose it because the timing
is appropriate, and because it had a scary description. I looked through the others and...who
wrote these? You ever stop and read the descriptions on streaming services? Can a HANDSOME boy
overcome his fear of the water and convince people there’s a shark in the pool? Hanna's
friends make her call forth the urban legend "Scary Mary" by looking in the mirror and
chanting her name. Who knew she might actually show up? Who KNEW!! My favorite is simply
“three kids decide the ghost hunter show they watch is lame.” Can’t get any more
direct than that.
Even though we’re in 2011, we still get a corny intro. It’s a step up from Goosebumps
but it’s still… this. Don’t be deceived by it though; there’s nothing corny about
this series. ...Why is it called The Haunting Hour if it’s 23 minutes long? (STING) Yeah,
I know, it’s just a phrase meaning it’s the time of haunting. I was attempting a joke.
Micky Dolenz (The Monkees): A little joke about that big.”
We start out with foreshadowing! Just, right away! Usually that happens later but props
for the bold choice. A kid went missing while walking on route 12, got it. Cut to a mom
and her bickering children. Mom: “A little help putting the groceries away, Scott.”
Scott: “Dave’s home.” “Why did I have kids.” Mom has to work late on Halloween
and her daughter Allie will babysit them. She has plans later and can only take them
trick-or-treating until 6, which pleases neither of the boys because they want to go when it’s
dark out. Dave: “It’s supposed to be scary.” But mom doesn’t want them out after dark
anyway due to the kid who went missing last year. Scott loses his MIND over this because
he’s fourteen, he should be able to stay up with his friends, and promptly throws a
tantrum. Scott: “Way to ruin Halloween mom.” I’ve never seen someone so depressed about
not being able to trick-or-treat at 14 years old. You’re too old for that, kid, go play
Halo or something. Dave, the youngest of the three, tries to paint a pumpkin but it’s
a little too small. Scott insists he needs a REAL pumpkin. Real pumpkins have curves.
Scott: “You know where you could get one?” ...the grocery store? “Out at Palmer’s
Farm.” Despite it being closed to the public, whiny Scott convinces everyone they should
go down to Palmer’s Farm and steal some pumpkins. He’s so upset about not getting
to trick-or-treat that he just outright wants to steal someone’s produce. “Halloween
is supposed to be a wild night where anything can happen.” No, Scott, no my dear boy.
Halloween is not when anything can happen, it’s when the Santa Ana winds blow. Jack
Black: “Legend has it, when the Santa Anas blow all bets are off, anything can happen.
Yeah, I like The Holiday. It’s a good movie.
Geez, these kids are terrible! They are no better than the sassy Goose from Untitled
Goose Game, and yes I did steal all those pumpkins but I had a better reason for doing
so. I was tossing them in the canal.
Allie: “This place is creepy.” Dave: “This place is AWESOME.” I have to wonder how
exactly this kid was raised that caused him to be THIS excited about pumpkins. Scott:
“He’s going to have a heart attack.” Dave: “THEY’RE PERFECT FOR CARVING.”
Scott: “Dude’s gonna have a heart attack.” Also, this doesn’t look creepy OR awesome
to me. It...looks like a pumpkin patch. But what’s this? It’s on route 12. Oh my gourd.
While poking around the pumpkins, Scott sees an old shack that he just can’t resist breaking
into, much to Allie’s annoyance. “Scott.” Beam me up. “SCOTT.” I SAID BEAM ME UP.
Allie: “Don’t.” Dave: “What, are you chicken? Bawk bawk.” Damn, that line gets
me every time.
They find a way inside and discover what I can only describe as nightmare fuel. Lifesize
figures with pumpkin heads, it looks like one performing dentistry or an autopsy on
another, and it’s creepy. They find another one who appears to be carving its own head,
and this is a lot of NOT OKAY.
Allie: “I wanna go. Like, now.” I gotta put this on instagram STAT. This is DEFINITELY
gonna go viral.
Despite being creeped out by the weird pumpkin people shack, they still decide to steal a
pumpkin. They also find these weird round shapes covered in burlap sacks, hmmmm. They
hear a noise coming from the Farmer’s House and attempt to make a run for it. HAHAHAHAHA.
The Farmer squeezes Scott’s head like a melon, tells him he isn’t ripe yet, then
promptly kicks them out. He then addresses his… uh… crops. Farmer: “Don’t worry
my little babies, no one’s ever gonna harm you.” My lovely bowling balls. Even with
a warning from Farmer Palmer, Scott STILL wants to steal a damn pumpkin, so they do
and split while somebody watches them from the bushes.
Awww, what a lovely, respectful tombstone! It’s even written in fancy cursive script,
how nice; It looks like one of those signs you get at a craft store. You know the back
of that thing says “Live Laugh Love” or “Hocus Pocus, I need coffee to focus.”
...hm.
Allie: “Oh man, this blows.” No one liked my Insta pic! Even though Scott got his lousy
pumpkins, he’s still not satisfied and wants to go back to the farm. While he’s whining,
Dave carves open his pumpkin and finds it filled with maggots. Scott opens his up, hoping
to freak out his siblings again, but only finds a single tooth. Whoa, they really WERE
doing dentistry! Scott: “It’s a tooth! Allie: “It’s
just… a weird pumpkin seed, right?” Oh yeah, I had my pumpkin seeds removed last
year, they were really impacted.
They make a very lazy attempt to get rid of the pumpkins, then get ready to go to their
school’s trick-or-treating session. Scott: “What are you supposed to be?” Dave: “I’m
Zombie Justin Bieber.” (Bieber, singing) “What do you mean?” After Scott shames
his sister for her costume choice “does mom know you’re wearing that?” he starts
whining, once again, about wanting to do something more exciting on Halloween. Scott: “Man
I should be with my friends, pranking like a bad boy.” Wow Scott, you are just the
worst. After an uneventful time at school, Scott makes another attempt to convince Allie
to go back to Palmer’s farm. Her and Dave are happy to make some popcorn and watch some
scary movies, but Scott will NOT let it go. Scott: “Maybe I’ll go up there myself.”
Like a BAD boy. Allie demands he stay in the house so he sulks in the kitchen. He’s in
the exact same spot after Allie takes a shower - seriously how long have you been standing
there?? Fortunately for Scott, he gets his wish. He doesn’t even have to go down to
the farm himself, as he is kidnapped by pumpkin people. Aw man, now the popcorn’s gonna
burn and smell up the whole damn kitchen. Allie thinks he just went back to Palmer’s
Farm on purpose to disobey her, so she hops in the car with Dave to go find him. Allie:
“Scott? I know you’re in here.” Oh he’s in there all right. He’s way AHEAD of you.
Multiple Pumpkinheads follow her around the farm as she looks for her brother. Geezus
christ how many fog machines does Farmer Palmer have?? Meanwhile, Dave is just kind of biding
his time, waiting in the car just outside the fence, sporting the worst Misfits makeup
I’ve ever seen. Eventually, Allie finds herself in that weird horror shack they discovered
earlier. Allie: “Scott?”
She finds a pumpkinhead figure in Scott’s clothes and initially believes he’s pranking
her, but… nope. Something is off. Something is way off. And that something is his head.
As she’s making a run for it, she trips over one of those sacks on the ground. She
lifts it up to reveal… A HEAD, HOLY SHIT THAT IS NOT OKAY. She is caught by Palmer
and his army of pumpkinheads, who are all kids who previously trespassed on the farm.
It’s genuinely disturbing. Palmer: “Still not ripe, but gettin’ there.” The Pumpkinheads,
or Pumpkids as I began to call them, surround her, and it’s clear her death, like Scott’s,
is imminent. The last scene shows a Pumpkid approaching Dave in the car, and it cuts to
credits.
That was surprisingly dark - as I was watching this episode, I kept thinking, “Wow, we're
getting close to the end and Scott hasn’t been saved yet, I wonder when that’s going
to happen?” not realizing that it wouldn’t. No wonder the episode had THREE warnings on
it; it plays before the episode and every time it came back from a commercial break.
Even then, at least 7? No way, if I had watched a show like this at that age I would have
nightmares for WEEKS on end. Conclusions like the one in Pumpkinhead are common in The Haunting
Hour; instead of the more ambiguous endings you see in Goosebumps, these episodes treat
death as permanent. Just as a quick example, in An Old Story, the ending could have gone
either way. One of the main characters de-ages, and the end shows his friend trying to feed
him a magical cookie that will undo it. He could have eaten it, he could have not, but
either way there IS a happy ending on offer. The stories in The Haunting Hour serve more
as morality or cautionary tales, and remind me more of Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark.
I think a kid should be at LEAST 7 years, but after watching several episodes from this
series, I would say even that’s too young. Some of these episodes scared ME and I’m
34, so proceed with caution if you have youngins around. I jabbed at this episode for the sake
of humor, but trust me; it was unsettling. That being said, I really liked the episodes
I watched. They have a morbid quality without being gory that appeals to me, and I think
the storytelling is well done. If you like scary shows with a campier style, I’d say
sticking to Goosebumps or even trying out Eerie, Indiana is a good bet. But if you are
more of a Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark type of person, then I highly recommend The
Haunting Hour. If you have an episode from this series you are DYING to see me cover,
please leave a suggestion in the comments. I do consider them. And until next time, stay
spooky and have a terrifying Halloween. Dave: “I love Halloween.”
Hey everyone, thanks for watching my video on The Haunting Hour! If you are curious about
other horror themed things I’ve covered, I will most definitely link you to some BUT
FIRST! Patreon! Yes, Patreon, where you, the viewer, can donate small amounts of money
to me, the creator, so that I can keep this show going and also buy empanadas. When you
eat as many empanadas as I do, it adds up, trust me.
If you want to watch more of my stuff before agreeing to give me a bunch of dough, I understand.
On the left we have a video about the Goosebumps FMV game featuring Jeff Goldblum, and on the
right we have a video I did about an episode of Are You Afraid of the Dark. Those seem
appropriate to promote here. As always, see you in the next one!