5 darkest episodes of WAY?

[moonscar]

I think the original series has some really spooky episodes...

#5 The Backstage Rage
This is probably most people's #1 and I can definitely see why. There's an uncanny atmosphere to this one with all the lifelike puppets. The Strand Theatre itself has a particularly creepy vibe and this just seems like a quiet, eerie episode with the gang being one move behind the villain every step of the way.

#4 Hassle in the Castle
Okay so the Vasquez Phantom is just a guy in a sheet but it's all the cool magic act stuff that really elevates this episode. This castle is probably my favourite in Scooby history and a special shout out has to go to this episodes musical score - It sounds so ominous when they're entering the castle and looking around.

#3 A Night of Fright is No Delight
A haunted isolated Mansion, Giggling Green Ghosts and the Cousins appearing to be dead in coffins all make this episode one of the greatest and spookiest of all time! There's a real mystery at play here and the notion of homicide really drives home the stakes. I also find it so effective how the Ghosts are slowly teased throughout the episode as Shadows before finally fully revealing themselves, in the catacombs.

#2 Haunted House Hang-Up
S2 of WAY is considerably lighter and groovier than S1, which is why this episode sticks out so much as being the darkest of the lot. The southern mansion is such an great Scooby location and a Generations old Headless Ghost roaming the property just boosts this whole episode, tenfold. I love how the gang are given time to explore then mansion and all its creepy goings on before bumping into Stillwall, himself.

#1 What the Hex Going On?
This is definitely one of the funniest episodes of the original series and yet also, in my eyes, that absolute creepiest! This is a quintessential spooky Scooby caper with some of the most iconic imagery. Kingstons threat of aging people to death is really dark for a kids show and I feel the writers had to gloss "Stuarts" skeleton being discovered because of how genuinely grim that imagery is. There's just an all-round sinister vibe with this episode that crushes the comedy factor and it gets my vote as the darkest of the original series.

[Doo]

5. Jeepers, It's the Creeper - although it's not my favorite Where Are You episode, I feel there is a case to be made for how dark this episode is with the Creeper lurking around every corner. He's arguably one of the most physically threatening villains in Where Are You.

4. Haunted House Hang Up - I really like the creepy vibe of mansion here, and that one scene with Velma, Shaggy and Scooby running into the spectre in a pitch black room is genuinely spooky stuff.

3. Bedlam in the Big Top - I've always felt the circus had a sinister vibe to it, and the fact that the gang investigates this abandoned circus in complete darkness creates a really spooky atmosphere.

2. A Night of Fright Is No Delight - the fact that this mansion is on an island gives the episode a very creepy vibe, not to mention the fact that the gang is wandering around this mansion in the dead of night. Like Moonscar said, I also like the slow reveal of the phantoms.

1. The Backstage Rage - one of the creepiest episodes of the franchise between the dark, brooding atmosphere, the creepy puppets, and of course, the Puppet Master himself.

[matt]

This is a fun list

5. Foul Play in Funland- I'll throw a curveball with my last pick as I didn't really have any doubt in my mind that my top 4 would make it, but I've finally started to see what a lot of people see in this one when they call it one of the best in the franchise. And it really comes down to that super spooky atmosphere. It is very ominous and unsettling. I get it with this one now

4. A Night of Fright is No Delight- Homicide is certainly one way to up the stakes. While it obviously didn't actually happen, intending to make the gang, not to mention the audience, believe it did provided for a very dark and frightening atmosphere

3. What the Hex Going On- Take my reasoning for A Night of Fright is No Delight, and add an element of the supernatural to it, and you get why I believe this one is so insanely dark and creepy. He not only led the gang to believe that the skeleton was Uncle Stuart, but that he used his powers to age him to death

2. Bedlam in the Bigtop- This one is very, very sinister. Clowns and circuses are already creepy, and this is probably slightly creepier than Ghouliest Show on Earth for me in terms of circus episodes. While there was absolute more sinister going on in that one, this one is a closed circus in the middle of the night, and a villain that can hypnotize the gang into doing whatever he chooses. It's very, very creepy and dark

1. The Backstage Rage- This wasn't even close for me. I feel like the reasons are obvious, but the scene where they find out that the one person who they think is real, the door man, is also a puppet is just the cherry on top of an episode filled with dark and creepy scenes like Scooby spotting the Puppetmaster in the costume room and the counterfeiting room where the Puppetmaster starts cackling

[sdf]

I cant think of 5 dark episodes so here is my top 4:

4. A Night of Fright is No Delight: The supposed murder of the cousins was a pretty dark plotline.

3. What the Hex Going On?: Cause of the aging curse

2. Bedlam in the Big Top: The clown is one of the most evil villains of the early scooby era

1. The Backstage Rage: Creepy atmosphere, creepy and mysterious villain and creepy lifeless puppets everywhere. For me the darkest episode of the series.