HEAD'S UP: THIS BLOG WILL CONTAIN IMAGES FROM THE RECENTLY RELEASED BOOK. IF YOU WANT TO AVOID WHAT I GUESS ARE ESSENTIALLY SPOILERS, I'VE ADDED THE IMAGES TO THE SECOND PART OF THIS REVIEW JUST IN CASE.
I've always pondered one question when it comes to Goosebumps and its success. Which was the true driving force for that success? Was it the writing of R.L. Stine, or the cover artwork, most done by Tim Jacobus. While yes, there are some memorable stories within, it's hard to deny that the eye-catching works of the cover art is what people really remember. You remember these works. You remember the picnicking skeletons of Say Cheese and Die! or Night of the Living Dummy with Slappy's freaky face. They are all memorable pieces of horror artwork, burned-in memories of 90s kid nostalgia.
One of the things I've always wanted was an archive of some sort for the cover art. Not just of the main works themselves, but of how these covers were brought to life. The concept art that led to the final product. And I've always thought that a coffee table-style art book of the cover works would be an amazing creation. Thankfully, Sarah Rodriquez thought so too and she began working in collaboration with Jacobus to create the ultimate archive of Goosebumps artwork.
Announced early in 2021, the originally titled Beware! The Art of Goosebumps was a hardcover book in the works from Dynamite Entertainment. The book boasted itself as featuring concept art and more from almost every work of Tim's for the Goosebumps series. Unfortunately, the book hit multiple delays until finally releasing November 30th, 2021 as simply The Art of Goosebumps. And sure enough, it delivers on the promise of being the ultimate resource for the Jacobus era of the series... for the most part, but we'll get into that in a bit.
So, what's in the overall package? You get every single book from the original series and Series 2000 featured, each with the final cover artwork and multiple pieces of concept art, along with photo shoots and other pieces of trivia. This includes photos of Tim himself modeling for the final cover art. And it's those that make me realize what makes the covers so special. That this wasn't just a job for Jacobus, but a labor of love. Something he put his passion and all into, which can be seen through the artwork. It makes these works feel all the more special.
The biggest downside is that this isn't as complete a package as you'd hope. Aside from mentions, there is nothing for the other Jacobus works including the Tales to Give You Goosebumps books, Triple Header, the Monster Editions, the calendars or other pieces of art. You get just the main series and series 2000, which is still serviceable and still makes the 200 page book feel full enough, but it is a shame that some stuff is still on the cutting room floor. Maybe a volume 2 someday? Maybe with a chance to get the Give Yourself Goosebumps stuff from Mark Nagata and Craig White? Even add Brandon Dorman's work as well. What I'm saying is I really hope this does well enough that the idea of a second edition is at least considered. If not, I can't complain for what we got.
In the end, this is a must-get for Goosebumps fans or just fans of horror art in general. Rodriguez, Jacobus and everyone involved went above and beyond to create one of the best resources for the franchise of all time. Something that proves the endearing legacy of the series. That yeah, not every book's a winner and sometimes Stine can be a mess, but when you get a really cool cover, sometimes you can forgive and forget.
The Art of Goosebumps is available now at most comic and book retailers. It's also available via ebook through Google Play and Kobo.
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And with the review portion out of the way, it's time for me to talk about some of my favorite pieces of scrapped cover concepts from the series, both in how different they feel and how they could have changed the very perception of the book itself at times. Now, for the most part, most of the concept art blends together, usually the concept from a different angle, but some are so uniquely different that they're worth noting. So with that being said, Let's dive in.
A good example of what I mean goes with the evolution of the concept of The Haunted Mask. Initially, the concept seemed to go with just putting the freaky mask in different parts of the house and letting it just hang, looking like a demonic face. I like the different angles and ideas, but it doesn't have that scary feel that it could have. Thankfully we did get that finalized idea and it remains one of the best in the series.
One of the books I was looking most forward to for concept art was Say Cheese and Die!, but sadly nothing to really report other than a sketch and mockup of the final work. The sequel does deliver in the concept department. And while all the covers feel similar to the final idea, there's enough here to see how the evolution changed. First off, no eyeballs! The original work was still going to feature the same concept as the first book's cover, which means that was definitely a Scholastic mandate. The other piece is once again we have a female skeleton. I'm more than convinced that Tim thought Terry was female then. Though, unintentionally, adding a female skeleton kid makes this line up more with Amanda's nightmare from Welcome to Dead House. The second cover is also so goofy that I wish it was the final work. That turkey's out for revenge!
I don't mind the final cover for Attack of the Mutant, it's a neat shot with The Masked Mutant leaping at the reader with the hideout in the background. But hot damn, we were deprived. This looks like something straight out of Batman. I love everything about this. The dynamic pose, the lightning, how the cape flutters. There's even a lot of pouches, meaning this feels even more of its era. It's such a cool cover idea. But I can also see some flaws to it. Angles don't feel of Tim's normal work and this one seems like it would take longer to work on. I'd have loved to see it, but I can't complain when what we got is solid gold.
It's interesting to consider these sketches and how drastically different the end result could have been. Case in point the sketches for Night of the Living Dummy III. Instead of Slappy hanging out with a bunch of dummies in an attic, we could have gotten an admittedly far more tamer cover of Slappy in the kitchen making a mess. A neat idea, but given what we got, a mild example of a dodged bullet.
And that's all I really wish to cover. There are tons of neat and unique sketches, along with tons of trivia to discover in this book. Like I said, this book feels like the definitive Goosebumps love letter. One made by people with a passion to bring the works of Tim Jacobus to life like they've never been before. One that shows the endearing and enduring appeal that Goosebumps has provided for almost thirty years. If you are a fan of the series, or just of horror art in general, this book is a definite must-have.
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