Goosebumps Season 1 Episode 10 Recap

Welcome To Horrorland – The episode opens during an 1879 skirmish with Lieutenant Rupert (Chris Geere) ordering a retreat. As the opposition hones in on them, Rupert is surprised from behind by a British Soldier (Dave Beamish), who shoots him in the stomach. Just when the soldier is about to finish him off, an incoming mortar intervenes and blows Rupert into a concealed cave. Trying to nurse his wound, he discovers a trail of gunpowder that he ignites with a lighter. Doing so reveals an entire wall covered in incantations. He recites one that heals him. Later in 1885 New York, Rupert visits a puppet maker by the name of Franz Mahar (Paul Rust) where he introduces himself as Kanduu. Franz recognizes the name and refers to him as “The Magician.” Kanduu animates a nearby puppet to show Franz that his skills are real. Kanduu mentions the failure of Franz’s carnival and offers to bring it to prominence if he’ll make something for him. A year later, Franz regrets making the deal when he witnesses Kanduu turn an entire audience of people into life-size puppets. Franz returns to his tent to put the finishing touches on Slappy (Chris Geere), which he later gifts to Kanduu. Kanduu recognizes it as the puppet he animated when they first met. Franz begins reciting a spell and although Kanduu stabs him, he finishes and transfers Kanduu’s soul into Slappy.

In Seattle, Margot Stokes (Isa Briones) is still reeling from her fight with Lucas Parker (Will Price). James’s (Miles McKenna) suggestions of an early brunch and mimosas don’t improve her mood, especially since Margot claims her mother, Sarah (Lexa Doig), is already on the way with bagels. Margot becomes even more upset when she discovers that Lucas has been in contact with Isabella Chen Lopez (Ana Yi Puig), despite not responding to her texts. Arriving at Harbor Stop in Port Lawrence, Lucas ignores another of Margot’s calls before going inside. He finds the café completely abandoned, except for his deceased father, who explains his absence as being with the Witness Protection Program. Once Nora Parker (Rachael Harris) joins them and confirms the story, she’s revealed to be a puppet and Lucas’s father is Kanduu in disguise. Lucas is transformed into a puppet after accepting his offer for a motorcycle ride.

The teens have returned to Port Lawrence and after dropping Margot off, James encourages Isaiah to share his feelings with Margot. Although Isaiah initially chides him for suggesting he move in days after her fight with Lucas, he takes his advice. Catching her in the driveway and after stumbling over his words, he finally admits to having feelings for her for a long time. He asks her to give dating him some serious thought and let him know how she feels. She agrees to give it some thought. As soon as Isaiah walks through the front door of his house, he’s asked to join his father, Ben Howard (Leonard Roberts) in the kitchen. He’s introduced to a Washington University scout (K Scott Malcolm), who offers him a full-ride football scholarship. Isaiah reluctantly agrees but appears to sense something is amiss as he gets ready to sign. On his way home, James encounters Sam (Aiden Howard) who makes a grand gesture of inviting him to the prom. Margot is right in the middle of celebrating the unexpected reuniting of her father Colin (Rob Huebel) and mother when Isaiah races in. He tells her it’s not real and after taking a second look, she sees that her dad is a puppet and Kanduu is disguised as her mother. They flee outside where James and Isabella just happen to be speeding by. Amidst the hysteria, James reveals that Isabella saved him from Sam after realizing her mother’s, Victoria (Francoise Yip), odd behavior. Margot immediately thinks of Lucas and they race to the Harbor Stop. The café is abandoned but they soon spot Lucas racing by on his dirt bike. Taking pursuit, he leads them to the high school where he blocks the road and is revealed to be a puppet. He points at the vehicle and they are taken hostage by their parents. They are then led to a colossal tower surrounded by tents.

They join Nathan Bratt (Justin Long) in one of the tents, who attempts to explain how Slappy/Kanduu has turned the entire town into puppets by offering to fulfill their fantasies. When Kanduu shows up, he uses a spell to transport them back to the day he thought he was shot. After taking them to the cave, he explains the spells on the walls and how they are written in the local language and can do everything from causing storms to raising monsters. He claims he’s devoted his existence to those spells since discovering them. The ritual of the spire is his next conquest, which is a mixture of the worst spells. As he transports them back to the modern town, he attempts to justify his actions by claiming that humans are far worse and more destructive than any other thing on earth. As he leaves, he orders Fifi to kill them, but Bratt intervenes and kills Fifi. He apologizes to the kids and claims he had no idea Kanduu was going to take things this far. He also admits that his family has a history of making deals with Kanduu, dating back to the late 1800s with Franz. Although Bratt doesn’t know how Franz documented finding a way to stop Kanduu in his manuscript. When James jokingly mentions bringing him back to life, the others agree.

Minutes later, Franz and the kids surprise Kanduu just as he is about to ignite the spire. Kanduu is stunned by the appearance of his old friend, but it is the kids who are left speechless when Franz takes the torch and pledges his undying loyalty to Kanduu. Franz takes the torch and ignites the spire. As Kanduu watches with a huge smile on his face, he’s transformed into a puppet but only remains that way for seconds. As the kids search through the manuscripts for another spell, he emerges from the puppet state and cites a trapping spell that raises tendrils of smoke to hold the kids in place. It is Isaiah who realizes the manuscript can physically repel the tendrils. He uses it to free himself and then Margot before going after Kanduu. Margot finds a reversal spell that she uses while Isaiah grapples with Kanduu. The reversal spell transforms Kanduu back into a young soldier but before being dragged underground; he manages to use his service pistol to shoot Isaiah. Nora begins leading the survivors to safety as they transform back into humans.

Later that evening in the ER waiting room, Colin tries to comfort Nora as she blames herself for Isaiah. The mood turns more depressing when the ER doctor (Olesia Shewchuk) shows up and tells Ben and Laura Howard (Lucia Walters) that the best than can do is try to make Isaiah more comfortable as he passes. Margot goes in to sit with him and admits that she’s always wanted to be with him but has been scared. When the monitors start to flat line, she pulls out the book of spells and begins to recite. As she recants the spell, a sobbing Bratt makes his way to the bathroom. The episode ends with him looking in the mirror and seeing Kanduu grinning back at him.

 

Goosebumps Review

Despite the two huge loose ends, I can’t help but admit the finale felt a bit rushed and lackluster. For that, I’d rate it a 4.9 out of 10. I enjoyed learning about the origins of Slappy and Kanduu, but the spire scene and resolution felt a bit rushed to me. I supposed this is why it ended on two huge cliffhangers. All that said, I must admit that leaving the episode open-ended makes for some potentially interesting season 2 content. That is if the series gets renewed. I’d love to see what effects a healing spell has on Isaiah, how his relationship with Margot proceeds, and what happens with the Bratt/Kanduu dilemma.

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