The Stinal Countdown: Goosebumps Series 2000 #17: The Werewolf in the Living Room

So, after one of the more bizarre Goosebumps books of all time, I guess Stine needed to return to one of his most driven-into-the-ground staples. You've heard of the elephant in the room? Well move over, because here comes The Werewolf In The Living Room.

COVER STORY

I love this cover. Pure Tim with effort in action here. I love how mangled the werewolf looks, not just in the ripped clothing, but the bubbling, bloody red flesh. Not to mention the drool, the fangs, those feet that some fetishist probably got off on. He's definitely the most monstrous werewolf we've seen on these covers so far. And yet the thought of this guy just chillin' on the couch watching television is kind of hilarious. Will the story give us the same? Let's find out.

STORY

Our protagonist is a young boy named Aaron Freidus, who- Wait a second...

*checks the Jekyll and Heidi review*

Oh you have got to be kidding me, Jovial Bob. You seriously recycled a kid name you used THREE BOOKS AGO??? I mean, I get recycling the first name. Sooner or later you're gonna need another Billy or Joe, but the whole name? Was there someone named Aaron Freidus that you knew and that name stuck with you for so long you felt it necessary to add his name twice in Goosebumps? Was this like a contest winner name that got double dipped? And yes, the kid in this book is different in appearance. He's even a redhead because again, this is Goosebumps, and Stine loves him some gingers, but that doesn't get you off the hook this time, Stine! Also, once again I have to state that the other Aaron Freidus is from Jekyll and Heidi, a book where the monster was a beastly alter ego. Not fully a werewolf, but the fact remains. Caught'cha bare assed, Bob! Or maybe he forgot about Jekyll and Heidi and this was pure coincidence? I dunno.

Anyway, Aaron Freidus is a kid who is really interested in werewolves. For Aaron, this werewolf interest is kinda normal for him. His mom passed away, so he's been living with his dad, who is a werewolf hunter. He's also the town sheriff so no one's going to mock him over it, just mock Aaron over it instead. Despite his best efforts though, Aaron's dad hasn't had any luck actually finding any werewolves in their town, so instead, like any rational parent would, Mr. Freidus took his son to the small European country of Bratvia, where stories of werewolves are far more prevalent. 

Aaron has learned a few things about werewolves, thanks to his father. Like, for example, some werewolves wear wolf skins to turn into werewolves (I see what you did there, Stine. Just sayin', I'm not wrong about that connected universe), or drinking water from a werewolf's paw print, or that if you call their name, they'll turn back to normal. Or by knocking on their forehead three times. In the middle of their hunt, Aaron begins to notice his father changing into a werewolf. Aaron wakes up as it was just a dream, only for something outside to tear at his tent. This obviously freaks Aaron out, so he goes to his father's tent, only to see that Mr. Freidus is nowhere to be seen. This concerns Aaron more as Mr. Freidus and the townspeople of Bratvia state that it's not safe to go out alone on this night due to the full moon and most assuredly, the werewolves. Hearing footsteps in the woods, Aaron thinks it's his dad and runs off, only to actually run into a werewolf that attacks him.

Not long after, Aaron wakes up to see his father. He brought Aaron back to the campsite after the werewolf attack, but despite, you know, his son nearly dying, he's more than amped to go back out the next night to try and capture the werewolf. Aaron goes back to sleep, only to wake up and see the werewolf once more. He calls for his dad, who shows up just as the werewolf escapes. Excited, Mr. Freidus chases after the werewolf, with no real regard for his son's well being. Aaron gets up to find his dad, but finds a werewolf tooth instead. When he does find his dad, he mentions the tooth, which confuses Mr. Freidus as to why the werewolf would leave it there, but regardless. He makes it into a pendant for Aaron to wear. 

The next day, Mr. Freidus is once again excited about catching the werewolf. They hunt in the day, despite ultimately realizing that werewolves wouldn't be werewolves in the day. Aaron notices the angry blackbirds nearby, when once again his dad vanishes. Aaron ends up lost, now worried that the only one who'll find him will be a werewolf. He does find an old shack in the woods owned by an old woman. Stine doesn't use the G word, but part of me suspects that's the character he was intending. She tells him the story of the werewolf, about a strange large man with long hair and black eyes who showed up one day and went into the forest. One night, on a full moon, the village heard howling and a trail of animal corpses in the forest that led to the stranger, who had turned into a werewolf. The woman tells Aaron that anyone who dares tries to find the werewolf never returns alive. She then grabs Aaron's hand to read his lifeline, when the werewolf tooth pendant falls out from under his shirt. She panics, saying he has the mark of the werewolf and throws him out.

Aaron's problems continue when he gets chased by wild dogs. He thinks if the tooth scared the woman, so after some searching for where it went, he grabs it, and sure enough the dogs seem to run off. He finally finds his dad who is in the middle of a nice game of bondage with a short pudgy man with a cold. And werewolves don't have colds. Huh, I didn't take Aaron as one of the Bailey School kids. But despite this, Mr. Freidus is sure that this man (named Ben Grantley) must be the werewolf and... well... just straight up kidnaps the man, taking him back home with them. Between this one and The Mummy Walks, we're entering a whole new level of WHAT THE HELL, STINE?

So, yeah. Aaron and his father return home by boat, keeping Mr. Grantley chained up as to not escape. I could make a real on-point political statement about this, given that Mr. Freidus is a police sheriff, but that would be too easy even for me. Mr. Freidus is full bore ready to exploit this man as his werewolf catch, while Aaron is starting to feel strange. He goes on deck, only to nearly be killed by a sudden storm. Mr. Grantley manages to save him in time, escaping his shackles. Mr. Freidus is pissed, still thinking Grantley is a werewolf, but suddenly the sick Aaron notices that his arm is beginning to sprout black fur. He tries to tell his dad about this, but Mr. Freidus doesn't listen to him because... well, "Because Goosebumps parents" doesn't even begin to describe this guy! 

We cut to the second part of this story as Aaron tells us that the title does not lie. He has a werewolf in his living room. His friend Ashlee really wants to see him, so after a lot of begging, Aaron gives in. She's underwhelmed, as you'd expect, though also smart enough to realize that locking a man up against his will is kind of screwed up. As Ashlee leaves, satellite guys setting up for Mr. Freidus' big unveiling also believe the obvious. But we also learn that Ben Grantley is actually a fur trapper, so suddenly I don't feel so bad. Well, that was a whiplash. Grantley tells Aaron that while he knows of the mark of the werewolf, he himself isn't one. Aaron finally gives in and lets Ben go. 

Dad's pissed, because now he thinks there's a werewolf on the loose. He sends officers to hunt Grantley, despite them saying that maybe he's going off the deep end. However, while in his room, Aaron begins to grow more fur. He realizes that he's the werewolf and leaps out his window and runs into the night. He wakes up back at home as news of a family being attacked the previous night can be heard. Aaron at first thinks it must have been Grantley, but then notices his clothes are covered in blood. He suspects that the werewolf must have passed the mark down to him when he got the tooth. He goes to tell his dad, but he's already gone to hunt Grantley. He talks to Ashlee on the phone, but doesn't tell her he's the werewolf. This becomes sickening to hold when he learns that he may have eaten Ashlee's dog the prior night. Nauseous, Aaron returns to his room and barricades himself inside, hoping he won't break free. Spoiler alert: He breaks free.

He ends up at his school and almost attacks some kids. The cops and Mr. Freidus arrive, ready to shoot him. Aaron manages to get on top of the school, hoping that will help him. Didn't count on the police having a helicopter though. The cops aim their guns, ready to fire. Suddenly Mr. Freidus tells them to stop, realizing the werewolf is Aaron due to the wolf tooth pendant. Despite everyone else ready to kill Aaron, he still manages to get enough time to change back. The other officers want to take Aaron away, but Mr. Freidus promises that he'll make sure Aaron doesn't hurt anyone. The only request is the officers can't tell anyone that Aaron is the werewolf. Suddenly Mr. Freidus has changed his outlook on life and promises to devote more time to his son. That's broken when they learn of another werewolf attack. Looks like Mr. Grantley was a werewolf too I guess. At this point, who isn't?

Mr. Freidus is ready to shoot to kill, arming himself with silver bullets. He puts Aaron in the cage and makes his leave. Not wanting his father to kill Grantley, Aaron manages to get Ashlee to help him escape. After he gets out, he returns to werewolf form and confronts the other werewolf. Mr. Freidus and the officers arrive. They don't manage to kill the werewolves, but capture them in time. Mr. Freidus promises to take both Aaron and Grantley to scientists to find a way to cure them.

TWIST ENDING

Aaron, with no other option, bites his father. Aaron tells us that indeed, he had a werewolf in the living room. He was a werewolf in the living room. Now three werewolves that were in his living room are roaming in the forest around town, and Aaron knows that that number is going to grow very soon.

CONCLUSION

Something I feel is prevalent with Series 2000 is a more action-heavy focus than what we got with really anything else Goosebumps related. Stuff like the insanity that was Attack of the Graveyard Ghouls, to going full action story with The Mummy Walks, to now this book. It does feel like something fresh from the series instead of the more blase and formulaic stuff we saw in the latter end of the original 62. And The Werewolf in the Living Room is no exception. The first half throws you almost right into the action and doesn't let up. The second half has to rush everything as a result, but very few chapters feel the need to add fake-outs to pad. And that's pretty impressive. 

As for the rest of the book, Aaron's a decent protagonist, while his father serves as one of the more screwed up parents in the series. A man with no real regard for the safety of others, and, honestly, becomes a danger to his community out of the sheer stupidity of capturing a werewolf and bringing it with him. The book makes a good enough point to make Grantley's situation awful, but the addition of him being a fur trapper makes it so you don't feel too sympathetic. There's some decent gore in this, and some really dark moments like Aaron seeing the blood on his clothes. The twist is kinda limp, but given how things escalated, you really couldn't have had an ending that would have worked any other way, so I'll give Stine a pass there. I also would have had Ashlee be more of a character, but I can't say not having the boy/girl dynamic felt that bad this time. 

In the end, this is a book I came in to with really no idea what to think of it, and I leave surprisingly satisfied. I think I'm finally getting what works for me with Goosebumps. Either simpler slice-of-life, or just going completely off the walls. And this is a book I'd easily wolf down. The Werewolf in the Living Room gets a B+.