A Case of the Bumps: Knock on Wood

Slappy. The ultimate Goosebumps character. The face of the franchise at this point. You've heard of Goosebumps, you've heard of Slappy. You have a vague recollection of Goosebumps, you remember Slappy. More so than even Curly, this naughty knot head has had the longest tenure in the history of the franchise. Not just in separate series, but eventually his very own that's still going as of this article, with the fifteenth book in the Living Dummy saga on its way in 2022. So, in... celebration(?) of the enduring antagonist, let's talk about the good, the bad and the Slappy in this edition of A Case of the Bumps. 

May 1993. The seventh Goosebumps book is released. That being Night of the Living Dummy. Featuring Slappy's freakish visage on the front cover, it would go on to be considered one of the best covers of Tim Jacobus' Goosebumps run. Simple yet frighteningly striking. Slappy staring at the reader with eerie green eyes. A cover that frightened a lot of kids, me included. No doubt about it. A star was born. Though, not so much in that first book. While Slappy featured in the story, the villain was actually Mr. Wood, the dummy belonging to Kris Powell in an attempt to one-up her sister Lindy. After uttering the six magic words "Karru Marri Odonna Loma Molonu Karrano", Mr. Wood came to life and caused mayhem. Much of which would be the formula for the dummy books to follow. Mr. Wood was bested, but Slappy ended up also being alive, happy that the "other guy" was gone.

Two years later, Slappy returned in Night of the Living Dummy II, now as full antagonist, this time owned by Amy Kramer. Similar to Mr. Wood, Slappy would do similar mischief. Be it spouting insults, ruining things and getting Amy blamed for it. Of course, no answer as to how Slappy ended up away from the Powells, but I have my theory that I'll save for later. Slappy gets defeated by Dennis, the original dummy that belonged to Amy. Ten months later, Night of the Living Dummy III. Similar formula, only more dummies that ultimately helping Trina and Dan O'Dell. 

Then, in Series 2000, there was an attempt at building some continuity for Slappy. In Bride of the Living Dummy, we get the only recurring character in the dummy books aside from Slappy in Jimmy O'James who would appear in this and the book that followed. This would also begin the origin of Slappy being created by an evil toymaker who used the coffin wood of a dead sorcerer to create the dummy. This would be expanded in I Am Slappy's Evil Twin as we learn of Franz Mahar, the creator of not just Slappy, but every other evil dummy in the series, to which there have been a few. Mr. Wood, Wally, Snappy and Goldie are all related to Slappy and all created by Mahar. Mahar worked with a magician named Kanduu. But when things got too crazy, Mahar moved to a small village in America where he would be blamed for the bad luck the village suddenly gained. His work was destroyed, all but for some of his dummies. 

In Slappy's Nightmare, the book goes for a unique take on Slappy. Instead of having him be the antagonist, he was the main character of the story, now tasked with doing good deeds or else he'll be put to sleep permanently. Coincidentally, Goosebumps took a long rest not long after Slappy's Nightmare. When the series was revived in 2008 with Goosebumps HorrorLand, Slappy was of course the first character to bring back with Revenge of the Living Dummy and later Slappy New Year!, while also being a side character in the first HorrorLand arc. Things got a bit quiet for Slappy, not appearing in Hall of Horrors, but was briefly brought back for the Most Wanted Series in Son of Slappy.

And then 2015 happened. In 2015, after years of development hell, the first Goosebumps movie hit theaters. The Jack Black led film featured a wide array of Goosebumps villains and monsters, with Slappy being the main antagonist. The film was a big success and with Slappy now more widely known, there was more demand then ever for him. Thus, in 2017, Goosebumps SlappyWorld began, as well as the second Goosebumps film, Haunted Halloween. SlappyWorld would be a mixture of more Slappy stories and new Goosebumps tales. Each book would feature Slappy as narrator, giving jabs and asides every few chapters. As of this blog, Slappy has appeared in five of the thirteen books currently released with his next appearance slated for 2022 with Slappy in Dreamland. 

As for Slappy as a character, his strengths and weaknesses can often vary from story to story. In most cases, he's pretty easy to overpower despite his threats of nondescript slavery. He tells each kid he tortures that they will be his slave. While little is explained as to what that entails, the likeliest belief is that they will have to do whatever Slappy wants lest he makes their life worse. Or in the case of Jackson Stander in Son of Slappy, he will be hypnotized to do Slappy's bidding. So, Slappy knows hypnosis in some cases. In others he has telekinesis, or has super strength. Or has other powers in some books to come that... I have no idea how he got any of that. It can be a mixed bag depending on the situation and depending on the Slappy.

What do I mean by depending on the Slappy? Well I have a theory and that theory is that there isn't one sole Slappy, but multiple. As each story shows, Slappy arrives into a character's life in a different manner. Be him in the attic of someone's grandfather's house or buried in a suitcase in the junkyard. And in some cases we don't even know what became of the kids he dealt with in the previous story. And, considering some of the dummies like Wally and Snappy look similar to him, and the continuity that Franz Mahar created multiple dummies, it stands to reason that most are the same as Slappy. Same make, same way to wake up, same evil deeds. I mean, Mahar was a toymaker, you don't think he'd mass produce a bunch of Slappy dolls to unsuspecting victims who would dare read the magic card in his breast pocket? 

So with the theory out of the way, I guess I can focus on my own thoughts on Slappy and the dummy saga as it is. I'm not the biggest fan of the saga. Not in a wholly negative way as I really enjoy a few. But I usually don't feel super hyped reading another book in the saga because for the most part it will hit on a similar pattern. Slappy is brought home, causes mischief, kid gets blamed, kid has to battle Slappy at the end. Granted, a lot of SlappyWorld has at least felt fresh in their takes with some fun variations, but it still feels the same for the majority. Even his overall character doesn't feel that unique, lacking the personality and character that you'd expect, though SlappyWorld did give him the narration that helps a slight bit. And the TV show and movie helped as well in at least creating the image of Slappy we all know and tolerate. 

Thankfully, the quality of the books doesn't ever frustrate me like the Monster Blood books. And, as most people know, my interest are in the stories with more unique concepts and ones that catch me off guard. And with books like Slappy's Nightmare, I've had cases where the premise feels so uniquely different that I can't help but find it great. It's just a shame though when I get to a book and in the end feel nothing. Not angry, not wowed, just in a state of neutrality. And it kinda stinks to read any of these books and feel like there's nothing to really talk about.  

In conclusion, Slappy is an interesting character. One that feels fleshed out in many ways, yet still feels like he's lacking in something that makes he excited to cover his latest tale. Not the worst character, but one that, for the mascot, just leaves less of an impact than you'd think. But, if you took him out of Goosebumps, erased those books, you'd still feel like the series is missing something. That a big piece of its legacy isn't there. So, much like movie Stine and Slappy, there is that symbiotic bond in which one can't work without the other. So, I guess that's more than a fair reason for so many sequels. Although if we get to Slappy Visits Relatives in Annapolis, Maryland, maybe it's time to call it a day.