School Library Journal Review
Gr 3-6-Adapting various tales from the "Goosebumps" series as short comics, this collection compiles three stories from previous Graphix anthologies (from 2006 and 2007) about an amusement park, swamp werewolves, and ghostly ancestors and adds one new adaptation, the first appearance of Slappy, the evil ventriloquist dummy. Each segment has the hallmarks of the individual artist as he balances comedy and horror, childishness and seriousness: Tolagson's deep shadows and brisk pace keep readers guessing at what is actually perilous, and Hernandez's pen and ink scratches help bridge the gap between mundane and dangerous. The more cartoony styles of Naifeh and Roman may reduce the fear factor, but Naifeh's sense of mood remains top-notch. Because each segment is compressed from a full "Goosebumps" book, there are diverting details and narrative cul-de-sacs to make each story twisty and unpredictable to new readers and even to those familiar with horror tropes. The final twist in each story may not be too surprising, but the path to get there is well paced and finely tuned. VERDICT The visuals add detail and vividity to these stories but somehow also make them more distant and less universal, leaving them an interesting counterpart to readers' imaginations.-Benjamin Russell, Belmont High School, NH © Copyright 2015. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Horn Book Review
Four Goosebumps stories from the 1990s are resurrected as graphic novels in this collection. Slappy, a ventriloquist's maniacal dummy, stars in the final story illustrated by Roman and acts as emcee throughout: "I get to see you tremble with dread." Each story is illustrated in full color by a different artist with mixed results. Overall, though, fans of the original horror series should enjoy this treatment. (c) Copyright 2016. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Four tales sure to give goose bumpstold graphically. Each of the four tales collected here, inspired by early Goosebumps chapter books from the 1990s, is interpreted by a different comics artist. In panels that harken back to classic horror comics, Jamie Tolagson's "A Shocker on Shock Street" relates the tale of two friends who get to test a horror ride based on their favorite movie franchise. Gabriel Hernandez's shadowy, modern-looking retelling of "The Werewolf of Fever Swamp" finds new-kid-in-the-swamp Grady and his dog dodging a werewolf; and Ted Naifeh's Little Orphan Annie-meets-manga-style "Ghost Beach" tells of siblings sent to live with distant relatives near a haunted cave. Each of these re-collected tales culled from previous Graphix publications gets ghoulish full-color treatment for the first time (final art not seen). The sole tale original to this collection, Dave Roman's "Night of the Living Dummy," is the most visually cartoonish of the lot. Competitive twins Kris and Lindy fight over Slappy, a ventriloquist's dummy they find in a dumpster. To settle the argument, their mother just buys another dummywith spooky results. Roman also contributes short, cajoling introductions to each title starring Slappy, la the Crypt Keeper of old. Given the upcoming movie and the continued interest in the brand, this slick, well-done package will excite a lot of interest. Nothing new and nothing too scary, all frights in good fun. (Graphic horror. 9-13) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
