| Uncle Howee | |
|---|---|
| Season 3, Episode 26 | |
| |
| Air date | December 21, 2013 |
| Written by | Rick Drew |
| Directed by | Ken Friss |
| Episode Guide | |
| Previous "Toy Train" |
Next "I'm Not Martin" |
"Uncle Howee" is the twenty-sixth episode and the finale of season 3 of R.L. Stine's The Haunting Hour: The Series.
Summary[]
Jared is stuck babysitting his younger sister, Cynthia, who's been watching The Uncle Howee Show, a kids' show hosted by a loud, energetic man, featuring a puppet rabbit named Loomis, nonstop -- and learns a hard lesson in caring for his sibling when Uncle Howee and Loomis begin talking to Cynthia and plotting their escape from the television.
Plot[]
Jared is on the phone with his friend, Owen, while babysitting his sister, Cynthia, who would rather watch The Uncle Howee Show (a children's show hosted by a zany, gaudily attired fellow and his sidekick, a rabbit puppet named Loomis) than pay attention to Jared. Jared turns off the television, upsetting Cynthia, after complaining how annoying the show is. Cynthia turns the TV back on, and discovers that Uncle Howee and Loomis can speak to her personally, begging her not to leave them and calling her their friend.
Jared (still on the phone with Owen) plans to ditch Cynthia to go to the movies, but doesn't have any money, so he decides to use the $20 his mother left for pizza while feeding Cynthia some frozen fish sticks. Just as Cynthia begins to dig in to her miserable meal, The Uncle Howee Show comes back on and does a lesson about eating right, using Jared's plan of pocketing the pizza money as an example. Jared brushes this off and tries to get Cynthia to bed, but Cynthia parks herself in front of the TV, waiting for The Uncle Howee Show to come back on. Jared dismisses Cynthia's claims that The Uncle Howee Show comes on whenever she wants it to, Jared then picks Cynthia up and hoists her up over his shoulder and carries her upstairs, as Cynthia anxiously continues staring at the TV while still being carried by her brother. As they both get upstairs, the TV turns on, and Uncle Howee is shown to have switched it on from the other side with his own remote control. He and Loomis stare through the TV screen, wondering where Cynthia is.
Jared waits for Cynthia outside the bathroom. Cynthia comes out and tells Jared that she's been talking to Uncle Howee and Loomis in the bathroom mirror. Jared ignores her and sends her to bed. Before going to sleep, Cynthia warns Jared that "Uncle Howee is going to get you." Jared dismisses the threat and heads out...just as the TV show comes on, blaring The Uncle Howee Show. In the middle of Uncle Howee's theme song, he and Loomis the rabbit speak to Jared through the TV and beg him to stay and play with him, instead of going to the movies. Uncle Howee then pushes his piano off-screen. Jared turns the TV off, then back on again and sees the The Uncle Howee Show set is empty. Jared panics and unplugs the TV. His phone rings and he answers it, believing it to be his friend Owen calling, and he says he is on his way, but it is Uncle Howee's voice on the other line instead, he drops his phone on the floor, in fear, but picks it back up and sees Uncle Howee no longer on the line. Behind him, he hears the piano rolling by and hears cartoonish giggling, as well as Cynthia giggling in the house. Jared follows it to the kitchen, where he finds a big, rubber carrot. Loomis then yells at Jared to put down the carrot. Jared returns to the living room to find Uncle Howee and Loomis the rabbit in the living room, in-person -- and no sign of Cynthia.
After Loomis and Uncle Howee insult Jared for being a bully, Jared threatens to call the cops on them, but ends up getting Uncle Howee (doing an Irish accent) on the other line. Uncle Howee then ropes Jared into a game called "Find Your Sister, Before Mom Gets Home and Grounds You For the Rest of Your Life." The object of the game is for Jared to find Cynthia in less than a minute (with the time being kept by Mr. Clock, another character from The Uncle Howee Show). If Jared can find Cynthia, he gets to keep her. If not, then she disappears forever and Jared will be left to explain to his mom what happened to her. Jared follows Cynthia's voice trying to search for her all over the house, but ends up falling for Uncle Howee's obstacles (finding Uncle Howee under the covers in Cynthia's room, tripping over Loomis' carrot at the top of the stairs and falling down them as Uncle Howee and Loomis laugh at him).
Jared loses the game and is insulted by Loomis and Uncle Howee once again. Jared then screams at Uncle Howee for being a hack actor who somehow broke into his house and hacked his phone, then tries to attack the puppeteer for Loomis the rabbit, only to learn that he doesn't have a puppeteer. Jared then surrenders and asks Uncle Howee what he wants from him. The answer: to be his friend, just like it says in his theme song ("Howee doin', howee doin'/It's The Uncle Howee Show/Let's just hope it never ends/Do you wanna be my friend..."). Jared reluctantly accepts Uncle Howee's offer to be his friend and Uncle Howee shakes on it (as in, "He shakes his entire body as the room begins to squash and stretch.")
Hours later, Cynthia is sitting in front of the TV, watching The Uncle Howee Show. Her mother comes home from work at the hospital and asks Cynthia where Jared is. Cynthia doesn't answer as she watches the latest episode of The Uncle Howee Show, where Uncle Howee and Loomis welcome a new friend: Jared, now a life-sized, wooden marionette. As Cynthia giggles and cheers for the new character, her mother watches in horror as she recognizes the marionette as her son.
Cast[]
- Tom Kenny as Uncle Howee and Loomis the Rabbit's Voice actor
- Jena Skodje as Cynthia
- Liam James as Jared
- Michelle Brezinski as Mom
- Jeny Cassady as Loomis the Rabbit (puppeteer work only; Tom Kenny provides the voice of Loomis)
- Axel Green as Mr. Clock
Trivia[]
- Writer Rick Drew previously wrote episodes of Goosebumps
- According to Rick Drew, the budget limitations prevented them from doing any exterior shots but he felt they weren't needed anyway as the whole point is that this taking place all inside the house in real time.
- Director Ken Friss won a Leo Award for this episode, and Editor Charles Robichaud won a Canadian Cinema Editors award for it. It also won a Leo Award for Best Sound and Jena Skodje won a Young Artist Award for her performance as Cynthia.
Image Gallery[]
Video(s)[]
The Haunting Hour Uncle Howee Full Episode-0