Goosebumps season 2 on Disney+ is being called Goosebumps: The Vanishing it premieres on January 10, 2025. The season will be completely different with a new cast (sorry Justin Long) and a new location. The cast will be led by David Schwimmer. The story for Goosebumps: The Vanishing is inspired by six R.L. Stine Goosebumps books. The books are Monster Blood, Welcome to Camp Nightmare, The Girl Next Door, The Girl Who Cried Monster, Stay Out of the Basement, and The Haunted Car. Five of the books are part of Goosebumps the Original Series. One book, The Haunted Car, is from Goosebumps series 2000. I have read and reviewed all the books except The Haunted Car. I hear it is the highlight book of the Goosebumps series 2000. I will break down the plots of the books. I will explain how I think the books will work in the plot of Goosebumps: The Vanishing.
Plot Summary: Margret and Casey are two siblings. They are dealing with a new life situation. Their dad lost his job at a science laboratory. Their dad has become distant and stressed and made a makeshift lab in the home’s basement. They’re not supposed to disturb their dad when he’s working and are banned from the basement. Margret’s friend Diane, who’s a little bit rebellious, dares them to go to the basement. When their dad has to bring their mother to the airport to deal with a sick aunt. They reluctantly go. The basement is like nothing they’ve seen before. It’s hot, humid, and muggy with plants covering every inch but the stairs. The plants are like nothing you’ve ever seen before. They seem to reach out for the kids and moan. They can’t investigate further because their dad comes home. Margret and Diane scramble up the stairs. Casey is stuck because a plant wraps around him. It’s not threatening, but it still traps him. Diane leaves out the back. Margret quickly rescues her brother but gets busted on the stairs by their dad. He is very upset. His hat flies off and reveals that instead of hair, he’s growing leaves. He says it’s a side effect of something they won’t understand. He puts an additional lock on the basement door. He tells them to stay out. Like typical kids, they do not. What will happen when they do not stay out of the basement?
How will the book play into the series? Stay Out of the Basement is one of the scariest Goosebumps books. David Schwimmer’s character in the new book is a botanist. I think this plot will play out similarly to the book with the dad being replaced by the plant clone. I think the botanist will discover Monster Blood. It will turn him into a plant clone. He will work to synthesize more.
Plot Summary: It’s Summertime and Hannah is bored. She spends all day watching her 2 twin brothers. She also writes letters to her friend at camp. Her summer turns adventurous when she meets Danny the neighbor boy. She’s pretty convinced he’s a ghost. Danny says he’s lived here for a while. Hannah rode her bike through the back yard the other day. There was no family. Now she has to prove it to him. Danny if he’s a ghost or not is hanging out with a group of kids that haunt their local mailman. Hannah tries to stop them but, she seems to be haunted herself by a shadow creature.
How will the book play into the series? The Girl Next Door is the saddest Goosebumps story. The Goosebumps movie that starred Jack Black used The Girl Next Door as the center of the movie. It was also used for the final twist. I see this plot taking the entire series to reveal the final plot twist. The Vanishing story revolves around a set of twins.
Plot Summary: Evan and his dog Trigger are being sent to his great aunt Kathryn for an undetermined amount of time. His parents are looking for a place to live in Florida. This search comes after a recent sudden job transfer from his father. Evan has never met Great Aunt Kathryn. He knows she is deaf. She never learned to read lips or sign language. He’s met by a surprised Kathryn holding a bloody knife, that was only cutting meat for dinner. Kathryn talks without filter. She decides that the house pet Trigger must live outside. This is because of her pet cat Sara Beth. Kathryn talks to Sara Beth like a person rather than a cat. Evan ends up meeting a local girl named Andrea who goes by Andy. They instantly connect over all things stupid. Andy shows him the town and a vintage toy store. The store has old toys, and some are covered in thick amounts of dust. Evan ends up finding Monster Blood. With a cool name like that, it has to be cool, right? The Monster Blood is neon green and glows in the dark. It is sticky and also bouncy. They play with it the whole day. The fun stops when Trigger eats a good portion and starts growing unexpectedly. The Monster Blood that remains starts expanding. It seems to never stop growing, despite Evan and Andy’s attempts to stop it. Can they stop the Monster Blood from growing before it consumes them?
How will the book play into the series? Monster Blood in the book makes people or things grow big. I think we will get a dream of this happening. I think Monster Blood will be created by David Schwimmer’s botanist character and have a crazy new powers.
The Haunted Car:
Plot Summary: (From Goodreads) Mitchell’s parents are delighted with their recent purchase of a sleek sportscar, yet when the car’s ghost makes an appearance, the family realizes that they had gotten much more than they bargained for.
How will the book play into the series? I have a feeling a regular car will become haunted. Yes, you guessed it, by Monster Blood.
The Plot: Billy is going on his first Overnight camping trip for the summer at Camp Nightmoon. Billy makes fast friends on the bus with his bunkmates in Cabin 4 Jay, Colin, and Mike. The trip starts badly as there are snakes found in Mike’s bunk and bite him right at the start. Mike’s hand starts swelling and is told there is no nurse. Larry the older cabin leader is relaxed and says cold water and a bandage are all it takes. Mike goes off to treat his wound and is not heard from again as all his stuck is removed. Mike is the first of many campers to disappear that no one but Billy seems to remember. Billy freaks out when he finds out the phone is fake and the letters he’s been told to write are undelivered. Billy is in Camp Nightmare, not Nightmoon.
How will the book play into the series? This book is about kids Vanishing away at camp. I feel like this book could be a flashback. I don’t know how they will connect it to the larger story.
The Plot: Lucy is 12 and obsessed with monsters. She tortures her little 6-year-old brother Randy with tales. She also torments her friend Aaron, trying to get them to believe there is a monster anywhere and everywhere. Lucy is enrolled in a summer reading program at her local library that is close enough that she can skate. The program requires her to read classic books and the librarian Mr. Mortman, a bald beady-eyed man, has to quiz her over the material. Lucy bluffs her way through Huck Finn. She is excited to check out Frankenstein. Lucy is so excited that she forgets her skates. She has to go back to the library. She worries about the door being locked, but it’s not. As she retrieves her skates she sees Mr. Mortman change into an insect-like Monster, with big bug eyes, antennas, and sharp teeth. She runs out of there without being seen she can’t believe her eyes, and nobody else will believe her as well. She needs proof, but it might kill her to get it.
How will the book play into the series? I feel this could be about a neighbor of the David Schwimmer character. This neighbor keeps telling everyone he’s a monster, but no one believes him. Or I think they could have a rival monster that eventually meets David Schwimmer’s character. The Girl Who Cried Monster has an infamous final twist. Two monsters meet. I think it would be cool if they added that element.
I enjoyed the first season of Goosebumps and how they included elements from books Say Cheese and Die!, Night of the Living Dummy, The Haunted Mask, One Day at Horrorland, Go Eat Worms!, and The Cuckoo Clock of Doom.
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