Top 5 Best "Goosebumps" Heel Turns

Who doesn't love the Goosebumps books and TV series? I certainly did and still do. I remember as a kid seeing a whole bunch of kids with a Goosebumps book in their possession and having to have them, and no sooner did I buy some of the books that a Goosebumps TV show began airing as part of the Fox Kids lineup--naturally, I watched. I've been a diehard R.L. Stine fan ever since; Goosebumps, Fear Street, The Nightmare Room, The Haunting Hour, you name it. He's basically a family-friendly version of Stephen King.

One of the things I loved about Goosebumps was the surprise twists and reveals, and it usually came in the form of a so-called protagonist being revealed as either a villain or the villain. We wrestling fans refer to such swerves as "heel turns," though that trope has been used plenty outside of the world of wrestling. The Goosebumps books and episodes have seen plenty of heel turns from many of its notable characters, but there are five that truly stand out the most to this longtime fan. They are as follows:

5. Uncle Colin & Aunt Marta

Goosebumps' 60th book, Werewolf Skin, centered on Alex Blackwell visiting his uncle and aunt, Colin and Marta Blackwell, in Wolf Creek, though it was after Alex's arrival that he began hearing stories of werewolves roaming the woods at night. The subject is never brought up by Colin and Marta, who lock Alex in his room late at night, though Alex does witness a pair of werewolves exiting a house that was believed to be owned by the Marlings, who were Colin and Marta's neighbors.

Colin and Marta even told Alex (following his terrifying encounter with the werewolves in his room) that the Marlings were werewolves; however, after Alex spotted the werewolves enter the house and remove their skins, he is stunned to see that the werewolves were his own aunt and uncle. With the help of his friend, Hannah Stoneman (more on her later), Alex took the skins and buried them just as Colin and Marta were attempting to regain them, but once the full moon rose, the skins were destroyed, freeing Colin and Marta from the curse.

Thoughts: This was a good swerve because of the fact that the villains were close to the protagonist. "Werewolf Skin" aired as a two-part episode during the third season of the show, with Colin and Marta's heel turns taking place during Part 2. However, I have to say this, it does bug me that we never received a true backstory as to how they became cursed to put on the pelts in the first place, but despite this, we see enough to know that Colin and Marta are portrayed as cursed victims rather than as evil monsters who relished in killing.

4. Carly Beth Caldwell

The Haunted Mask was Goosebumps' 11th book, but its TV adaptation actually kicked off the Goosebumps television series. Carly Beth Caldwell is one of the most notable protagonists because of the episode, as she is a shy and timid young girl who is often the victim of cruel pranks by her so-called friends, Chuck and Steve. With Halloween closing in, Carly Beth decides that she wants to come out of her timid shell, and that included turning down her mother's handmade duck costume.

Carly Beth purchases a scary, green monster mask from a novelty store; despite the shopkeeper's warning that none of the masks are for sale. She puts it on and truly embraces her scary look, using her appearance to scare Chuck and Steve for revenge. However, it doesn't end there, as we see Carly Beth become insanely maniacal, resorting to intentionally scaring young trick-or-treaters and even her best friend, Sabrina Duncan; all while speaking in an evil and raspy voice and carrying a plastic mold of her head (which was made by her mother) and pretending like it was her decapitated head.

When Carly Beth tries to remove the mask, she can't do so, and worse yet, it appears that the mask is fused to her face, with the skin growing. A return to the shop has Carly Beth learning that the mask was actually a living face created by the shopkeeper, one of many, in fact, though they became hideous monsters looking for a human host. The only way Carly Beth could be free of the mask's control was a symbol of love, and it turned out to be that same mold of her face that allowed Carly Beth to remove the mask and return to her normal self.

Thoughts: There are a number of reasons why a face turns heel: greed, jealousy, opportunity, you name it. In the case of Carly Beth, it was insecurity. Carly Beth was introduced as a young girl whose timid demeanor caused her to have a low opinion of herself, which is why she quickly embraced her heel persona while wearing the mask--taking pleasure in scaring everyone, even young children. It was only when it nearly seemed to be too late for her that she realized what a strong person she really was, and she fought back against the evil that nearly consumed her.

3. Hannah Stoneman

Alex's aunt and uncle weren't the only wolves in sheep's clothing in Werewolf Skin. His friend, Hannah Stoneman, knew quite a bit about werewolves in her own right, leading to her helping Alex end Colin and Marta's curse in the climax. Though Hannah ran off afterwards, Alex was successful in saving his aunt and uncle, but the end of the story revealed that there was a third werewolf: none other than Hannah herself.

Now, the book and the TV version have different versions of Hannah's heel turn. On TV, Alex looks over his photos and suddenly sees Hannah in her werewolf skin, and afterwards, Hannah appeared and told Alex that she "doesn't bite." The book, however, is much darker; Alex and Hannah enter the empty cabin (portrayed as the home of the non-existent Marlings), where a third werewolf skin is hanging. Alex later turned around to suddenly see Hannah wearing the skin, which she revealed was her own, right before she attacked Alex.

Thoughts: I could have listed Hannah with Colin and Marta together, but the reason why I didn't and the reason why I put Hannah higher on the list was because of the difference in demeanor. Colin and Marta were (for all intents and purposes) victims of a terrible curse; the same cannot be said for Hannah. As the book's version clearly unveiled, Hannah was a very vicious villainess; not only being nonchalant during her heel turn, but also resorting to attacking Alex, leaving readers with the possibility that she may have killed him!

2. Libby Zacks

One of the first Goosebumps books I bought was its 25th book, Attack of the Mutant, which centered on comic book superfan Skipper Matthews, whose comic of choice was The Masked Mutant, a shapeshifting comic book supervillain. On Skipper's way to his orthodontist's appointment, he meets a young girl named Libby Zacks, who he quickly befriends until realizing that he missed his stop. The pair ended up inside a building that resembled the Masked Mutant's headquarters, which seems hard to believe, until Skipper suddenly found himself inside the latest Masked Mutant issue.

Skipper returns to the lair and rescues noted superhero, the Galloping Gazelle, before facing the Mutant himself. Afterwards, Skipper runs into Libby and tells her about the Masked Mutant, who has suddenly disappeared. Skipper mentioned the Mutant's shapeshifting abilities, but in a shocking response, Libby turned heel by revealing that she was actually the Masked Mutant, and that "Libby" never existed, before shifting into the Mutant, who is defeated when Skipper tricks him into shifting into a pool of acid, as he can't change back if he becomes a liquid.

Thoughts: This is why I will never figure out how anyone can prefer a book version over a TV or film version of a story. In literature, you have to imagine the scene on your own, and while I'm all for thought and imagination, I prefer seeing it on TV, so I can see that character's demeanor. "Attack of the Mutant" was another two part episode, this time from the show's second season, with Libby's heel turn taking place during the climax of Part 2. I really loved how Libby went from friendly to malicious all at the drop of a hat, with the added bonus of an evil cackle as part of Libby's heel persona.

1. Will Blake

One of the most hallowed books in the series has to be The Werewolf of Fever Swamp, the 14th of the series. The story centered on Grady Tucker, who--along with his parents and sister--moved to the titular Fever Swamp, where he meets and befriends Will Blake and adopts a pet dog named Wolf (Vandal in the TV version). Grady had heard stories about a werewolf roaming Fever Swamp and killing animals, and while Wolf is suspected (for some reason), Grady pointed his suspicion towards the eccentric Swamp Hermit.

Of course, Will is revealed as the werewolf, but the book and TV version approach this reveal differently. In the book, Grady encountered Will while searching for Wolf, but is suddenly attacked by the werewolf, who Grady recognized as Will due to his facial features. The TV version portrayed Will's heel turn much differently, as after the werewolf lunged at the Swamp Hermit and killed him, Grady runs off, but an eclipse caused the werewolf to reveal its partial human form, which turned out to be Will. Afterwards, Will urged Grady to run off, though Grady insisted on trying to help Will, who was beginning to transform again as the eclipse faded. Once the full moon resurfaced, Will's heel persona did as well, as he went after Grady in his werewolf form, only for Wolf to appear and fight off Will, who ended up sinking into the bog.

Thoughts: Without question, Will Blake had the best heel turn in the Goosebumps series, the perfect definition of a Wolf in Sheep's Clothing. The TV version (another two-parter that ended the show's first season) does portray Will more sympathetically, as after his reveal, he tries to get Grady away from him to prevent hurting him, though despite this, Will was quite a monstrous antagonist. I did learn about a revived Goosebumps TV series, and if they redo The Werewolf of Fever Swamp, I have two suggestions: either gender-flip Will (and Grady as well), or give Will a villainous mother (or mother-figure) who is revealed as an evil female werewolf using her son to maintain her control of Fever Swamp. Just a thought.

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