Halloween Kills (Tim Waggoner)

Tim Waggoner | October 26, 2021 | 312 pages
Tim Waggoner | October 26, 2021 | 312 pages

After being delayed a year due to COVID-19, Halloween Kills finally dropped on October 15, 2021 (a month ago today). I was so hyped and ready for it. I happened to have the week off work too, so Friday morning at 12 midnight I plopped on the couch and turned on the Peacock to stream the movie. What started out as a massive smile slowly turned into a feeling of meh as I saw obnoxious plot holes and tropes one after another. I don’t think it’s a bad sequel, but it was disappointing. For all the cool scenes they had, the rest of the movie was muddled by terrible character choices and unrealistic behavior. I even forgot about the movie novelization. But when I finally remembered it a couple weeks ago, I bought a copy and ended up finishing it in 2 days. It was an immensely satisfying experience, something I wish I could say about the film.

There I was, Friday midnight grand opening...
There I was, Friday midnight grand opening…

I loved the first 30 or so minutes of the movie. The flashback scenes were amazing! They replicated the look and feel of the 1978 original so well in those scenes. Even the replica mask was spot on! Everything was clicking but it soon went downhill pretty fast. While Halloween 2018 was far from perfect, I like the tone and style they set in that one. Halloween Kills was a mess of a movie. The novelization is based off the script, but author Tim Waggoner filled in some blanks with his own research and imagination. Those added details made a big difference for me in terms of enjoying the product. On a final note, I wish I could have gone to the midnight showing at my local theater. But COVID and my wife is currently pregnant. She also had work the next day so there was zero chance of that happening. Thus, I settled for the couch. It kind of blows my mind when I think about major movies like this and Godzilla vs. Kong streaming from the comfort of your living room. I do miss the communal theater experience, but I don’t miss the annoying teenagers! It’s a tradeoff, I suppose. I was just happy to be able to watch the movie! I only wish that it were better :P

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There were 3 copies at my Barnes and Noble. I wanted the best condition copy, but they all looked like that. It took me a second to realize that this cosmetic imperfection was purposefully done, most likely to evoke a sense of nostalgia from reading horror paperbacks in the ’80s and early ’90s. Those novels had a tendency to get roughed up a bit. An interesting choice by Titan Books, indeed.

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Similar to the original Halloween II (1981, not Rob Zombie’s crappy 2009 movie by the same title), Halloween Kills immediately picks up where the previous movie ended. Of course, Michael escapes the burning fire and is now stalking the dark alleys and windswept streets of…

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Remember Allyson’s asshole boyfriend Cameron from the 2018 movie? It opens with him wandering through the town. I like that his character had a slight bit of a redemption arc in the sequel. Not much, but enough to make you kind of like him a bit, whereas in the previous movie he was just a total dick.

Penance There's your gawd damn penance, sir
Penance? There’s your gawd damn penance, sir

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In the 2018 movie, Officer Frank Hawkins was pretty much killed. They retconned this so that he could play a role in this sequel and the following movie yet to come, Halloween Ends. They even fleshed out Hawkins’ character, giving him a pivotal role on that fateful night where Michael Myers terrorized Haddonfield 40 years ago.

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Oh God, I almost fell over when I first saw this 1978 flashback. They captured the look perfectly! Never before have we seen a flawless replica of the 1978 mask. This scene gave me goosebumps, and totally put me in the Halloween mood!

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Tim Waggoner is a pretty talented writer, as you can see here. Instead of phoning it in and relying on the brand name (which practically sells itself), Waggoner flexed some writing chops. The way he wrote Michael sent some chills up and down my spine. He made Michael creepy again. Just read the caption below!

"And his face was an eerie, spectral white..." ss
And his face was an eerie, spectral white…
A disembodied head floating serenely through the night air…

Absolutely haunting!

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See, stuff like this you just can’t get from a movie. It’s this narration that fills in the gaps… or the cracks, if you will. Waggoner takes you inside the minds and souls of these hapless Haddonfield denizens. I really like the way he described the crooked and twisted tree branches here. Very effective at stirring that autumnal feeling!

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Love the callback here of Lonnie running like hell just like when he did after hearing Dr. Loomis shoo him away from the Myers place. And you gotta love the robotic shark-like mentality with which Waggoner depicts Michael Myers. He is an apex pred[SNIP!  STFU Tommy Doyle -Ed]

This scene in the movie gave me the chills
This scene in the movie gave me the chills

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Everything about that small scene was perfect. It captured Haddonfield on Halloween night to a tee. I loved the way the actor said “The Boogeyman.” And how he quickly turned around and ran away as one of the Halloween themes kicked in. I remember feeling the flesh rise a little and thinking, “AW HELL YEAH, THIS FEELS LIKE HALLOWEEN ALL RIGHT!” That feeling did not last very long…

"DID MICHAEL KILL AGAIN?!"
“DID MICHAEL KILL AGAIN?!?!”

At first I thought this was CGI Loomis. Come to find out one of their very own crew members, Tom Jones Jr., bears a slight resemblance to the late Donald Pleasance. Makeup was added to complete the transformation. Talk about a stroke of luck! The voice needed a little work but as far as body doubles go, it was a major coup.

ITS MORPHIN TIME!
“IT’S MORPHIN TIME!”
His reaction from above
Donald would have been proud

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Of course we find out in the movie that Hawkins accidentally shot his own partner in the throat while aiming for Michael. So they totally retconned the original ending where Loomis shot Michael 6 7 times before he fell off the balcony. This was the first moment to make me raise an eyebrow…

It did give us this totally badass shot, though
It did give us this totally badass shot, though
Nice description by Waggoner
Nice description by Waggoner
We then meet our legacy characters in the bar
We then meet our legacy characters in the bar

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Smoking Lady = Nurse Marion Chambers, played by Nancy Stephens.
Champagne Man = Lonnie Elam, played by Robert Longstreet.

And of course, the two kids Laurie Strode babysat way back 40 years ago during the original 1978 Boogeyman attacks, Lindsey Wallace (played by Kyle Richards) and Tommy Doyle (played by Anthony Michael Hall).

Yes, the "nerd" from Breakfast Club!
Yes, the “nerd” from Breakfast Club!
Not the original kid actor all grown up
Not so nerdy anymore

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I really enjoyed how the novelization breathes more light on the characters. Even the minor characters, like the doctor and nurse couple, are given a smidge more acknowledgment and background detail.

Love this little scene
Love this little scene
The novelization knocked it out of the park
The novelization knocked it out of the park
It also nailed this scene down to a tee
It also nailed this scene down to a tee

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Tommy takes a moment to center himself
Tommy takes a moment to center himself

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"Forty years ago..." [Get ready to hear this a lot -Ed]
“Forty years ago…” [Get ready to hear this a lot -Ed]
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I know many fans didn’t like this scene because the movie yet again dumps even more exposition at our feet that we already know and have heard during the first 10 minutes of the movie. But I actually liked it a lot. And although I’m not a fan of how Tommy Doyle was portrayed in this film (I really wish Paul Rudd could have reprised the Tommy role since he played Tommy in 1995’s Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers), I did relish the way in which he described the babysitter murders from that fateful Halloween night 40 years ago. My favorite line being “They had sightings of a ghostly figure creeping through the town.” Ooh!

Along the way, Waggoner threw in some easter eggs!
Along the way Waggoner threw in some easter eggs!
Thorn was featured in Halloween IV, V and VI
Thorn was featured in Halloween IV, V and VI
Meet Big John and Little John
Meet Big John and Little John

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A gay couple who moved into the Myers home, Big John and Little John are about to have the Halloween of a lifetime…

Another lovely nod to fans of the franchise!
Another lovely nod to fans of the franchise!
And the classic reply by Loomis from Halloween II
And the classic reply by Loomis from Halloween II
Another fan service moment
Another fan service moment
Those iconic masks from Halloween III
Those iconic masks from Halloween III
Nothing screams Halloween more than those masks
Nothing screams Halloween more than those masks
And yes, those things were killer!
And yes, those things were killer!
Halloween III is spooky and underrated
Halloween III is spooky and underrated
Michael proves whose mask is best, though
Michael proves whose mask is best, though
And thats where that damn line originates from
And that’s where that damn line originates from

If you took a shot for every time you hear “EVIL DIES TONIGHT!” while watching Halloween Kills, the movie title will prove apt. They really overdid it with that one.

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In the movie if you don’t blink you may catch a bench advertising Big John and Little John as realtors. It’s kind of neat how the real Michael Myers house is currently a real estate office and that the couple who lives in the Myers house are realtors themselves. Good one there, guys.

The Myers house today
The Myers house today
Obligatory "That's me!" shot
Obligatory “That’s me!” shot
Its the shot I used for my cameos in gaming books
It’s the pic I use for my gaming book cameos :)

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Like I said earlier, I dig how this book digs deeper into the character whether major or minor. The movie never once hints that Lonnie Elam wrote a book about the Boogeyman and his experiences surrounding Haddonfield’s most notorious mad man. Here we also see that Laurie has dreams of becoming a teacher, which she actually was in Halloween: H20. I love when these connections are made. Fan service? Maybe so, but all the merrier.

Iconic reunion
Iconic reunion
My recreation in high school art class circa 1998 Hey, I always wanted Michael to have orange hair :P
My recreation in high school art class circa 1998
I always wanted Michael to have orange hair :P
Sheriff Barker gets a moment to pontificate
Sheriff Barker gets a moment to pontificate

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Great internal monologue!
Great internal monologue!
The Boogeymans coming for ya...
The Boogeyman’s coming for ya…

CLOSING THOUGHTS

Myers2021

Even though Halloween Kills was a bit disappointing to me, I was excited to read the novelization to see where they might have filled in the gaps. I’m happy to say that Tim Waggoner did a tremendous job. It’s funny how much I enjoyed the novel (I blew through it over the course of 2 days and it had a one more chapter sort of feel to it) in comparison to how disappointing I found the film to be. Maybe it was those little background details that helped me to connect better with the characters and the story. Oh and the ending in the book is the original ending that they should have shown in theaters. I get why the director chose to go in a different direction, but the book ends in a fist pump sort of way that makes you say “Alright, bring on the next one now, please!” Unfortunately, we’ll have to wait about 11 more months until then. Hopefully they’ll get it right in the final film of the trilogy. Regardless of what happens, I look forward to both the movie and the novelization. Counting on Halloween Ends to feature less tropes and less dumb character choices. One can only hope. In the meantime, check out this book if you get a chance. I think it does Halloween fans proud.

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