The 31 Days of Halloween: Day 7

Halloween is the best time of the year. It's a wonderfully indulgent time, where your inner ghoul is given societal license to be put on display. To celebrate it to it's wicked fullest, the Midnight Cheese will be posting every day in October with excellent ways to enjoy the season. Whether it's horror films, video games, books or activities, check back every day for some new Halloween fun.

Are You Afraid of the Dark?

Yeah, I'm totally going there. I don't want to hear any back sass. Strap on your nostalgia helmet and let's declare this meeting of the Midnight Society open.


Are you Afraid of the Dark was a horror anthology TV series that ran for seven seasons in the 90's on Nickelodeon. It followed the 'Midnight Society, a group of kids who met around a fire in the woods and would take turns telling spooky tales about ghosts, monsters, the undead and more. The tales were a take off of the old EC Comics stories, various Tales from the Crypt sources and urban legends, though toned down for a younger audience. It ran in the late evenings on Saturdays as part of Nickelodeon's "SNICK" lineup.

While the series was released on DVD a few years ago, they're well out of print and selling for ridiculous prices online. However, many of the episodes are available in pieces on YouTube. I was watching a few last week and it felt like a kid all over again. This show was woven into my childhood as an integral dose of horror. Yeah it was fun and goofy, but it was usually good for a scare or two. All of the episodes don't hold as well as some stand outs do (it was early 90's kids' television after all). Below are several episodes that really kept their charm and which I recommend you watch while you rock your Halloween nostalgia vibe.

The Tale of the Midnight Madness
(Link to the fist part)
Why you should watch it: This tale takes place in a turn of the 19th century movie theater that is struggling to stay afloat while competing with new multiplex theaters. One of the employees is passionate about keeping it going, for it's historical significance. He's offered a too good to be true solution in the form of a mysteriously compelling vampire movie from recurring series antagonist, the delightfully evil Dr.Vink.

The Tale of the Dead Man's Float
(Link to the first part)
Why you should watch it: I know; It's a stupid title. Hear me out: Two students find an abandoned swimming pool in their high school that was built on top of a graveyard. How this all happens, no clue, but damn is this a fun episode. It appeals to the kid in me that always hoped I would find some mysteriously abandoned part of my school.

The Tale of Water Demons
(Link to the first part)
Why you should watch it: Excellent episode that was likely inspired by John Carpenter's The Fog. Some kids deliver food to an old man, who stole items from a shipwreck and is haunted by it's victims.

The second and third parts of each episodes will be linked to the right in the "related videos" sections. If you want to search for more episodes to watch, just type "AYAOTD" in YouTube's search field.

I now declare this meeting of the Midnight Society, closed.