Spooky is a Neopets fanmade webcomic by ghostkomorichu/ChaosKomori.
The comic focuses on the daily lives of four Neopets who live in the Haunted Woods:
- Komo, a Korbat who scares easily
- Claw, a ghost Draik whose hobbies include scaring Komo
- Echo, a ghost Uni who's the responsible one by default
- Tombstones, a Mynci who works as a Grim Reaper despite being somewhat lacking in the smarts department
Whether they're running errands, watching the yearly Altador Cup, or hosting yet another disastrous Halloween party, life is certainly never dull fer these four.
A partial archive of the comic can be found on ChaosKomori's DeviantArt page
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Contains examples of:
- Art Evolution: Early comics have sketchier lineart and the character designs are chibi-esque. As time goes on, the lineart becomes more refined and the characters get lankier.
- Brick Joke: At the beginning of the 2014 Halloween arc, Echo tells Claw to not bother the witches he's having over for tea because he's concerned they'll turn the Draik into a Scamander. At the end of the arc, Claw criticizes the Halloween decorations the witches put up for them and is turned into a Meowclops as retribution.
- Circling Birdies: A ring of yellow stars orbits Count Von Roo after he fails to pounce on Claw and hits his head on a rock.
- Death Is a Loser: While Tombstones is one of many Neopets working as a Grim Reaper, he's shown to be highly inept at anything unrelated to reaping. He's also the member of the main cast who's most likely to be subject to slapstick and general misfortune.
- Disproportionate Retribution: Tombstones reaps the soul of a Blue Kacheek just because they made fun of him for looking silly while carrying a bag of groceries. The fact he also needed one to get five-in-a-row for soul-reap bingo may have also been a motivator.
- The Ditz: Tombstones often creates problems for himself, whether it be by not thinking ahead, using his scythe as a universal tool, or just not comprehending how to tackle a situation.
- Early-Installment Weirdness:
- Echo is drawn with visible limbs in the very first comic. He also gets defensive about and is reluctant to deal with "girly stuff", while later comics portray him as openly being In Touch with His Feminine Side.
- Komo is much less timid early on. He's also the comic's primary Butt-Monkey, being on the receiving end of random misfortunes that in later strips would more likely happen to Tombstones.
- Tombstones isn't present in the first few comics, as he doesn't start freeloading with the other three until the end of the first Halloween arc.
- Early on, the cast's Petpets include a Candy Vampire, a Mutant Slorg, and a Baby Fireball. Claw's Ghost Magtile shows up in the first comic to specifically focus on the Petpets, but Echo's Carmariller is nowhere to be seen for a while.
- Failed a Spot Check: Count Von Roo attempts to feed upon Komo and Claw, addressing them as "mortals", yet fails to notice that Claw the Ghost Draik is floating and glowing. When the Count swoops down, he passes harmlessly through Claw and hits his head on a rock. Claw and Komo comment that "you'd think a vampire would know better."
- Had the Silly Thing in Reverse: One comic has Tombstones put on a pair of steampunk wings backwards. Despite claiming to have followed the instructions, he doesn't notice until he powers them up and they start smacking him in the face.
- Halloween Episode: Multi-part comics happen every October, usually focused on the four participating in festive activities.
- Ignoring by Singing: Tombstones covers his ears and starts going "la la la laaaah!" when Komo attempts to tell him that using an expensive Paint Brush on himself isn't remotely the same thing as Tombstones making him a ghost for free.
- Instantly Proven Wrong: While grocery shopping in Sakhmet, Komo asks if he can ride on Echo's back during the return trip. Echo says that Unis would never let anyone ride them, only for Prince Jazan to ride by on a Uni.
- In Touch with His Feminine Side: Echo the Uni is the family's cook and acts as a parental figure, in contrast to the timid Komo and the actively malicious Claw and Tombstones.
- Invisible Anatomy: Echo doesn't have limbs, in addition to the horn and wings associated with Unis. This isn't just a stylistic choice: he lacks these features in-universe and has been mistaken for a hippocamp-like Peophin because of it. When he picks objects up, his Ghostly Glow extends to surround whatever he's holding.
- Irony: Echo tells Tombstones they're using Lightmites instead of open flames to light their jack-o-lanterns because the Petpetpets are safer. When Tombstones puts one in his gourd, the Lightmite promptly flies out, knocks over a candle, and sets him on fire. As the Mynci runs around screaming in the background, Echo decides to use glowsticks instead.
- Lame Pun Reaction: After Echo tells Claw and Tombstones that Komo no longer needs the magic cookie they went to a lot of effort to get, Komo tells them "that's the way the cookie crumbles". They respond by shoving the cookie in his mouth before leaving.
- Magic Misfire: Tombstones attempts to speed up getting Halloween decorations up by using magic to make them fly. However, he gives the incantation as "Wingordio Gorgonzola" and turns the skulls on the string lights into cheese.
- Man on Fire: During one Halloween arc, Tombstones gets set on fire because a passing Lightmite knocks a candle over and it lands on his robe.
- Oh, Crap!: Komo asks Tombstones why he lives in the Haunted Woods if his job is to reap the souls of the living, questioning who's even there to reap. Tombstones' response is to turn to the still-alive Komo and smirk, prompting the Korbat to let out a weak "...oh."
- Shout-Out: Tombstones attempts to use the Levitation Charm to expedite setting up Halloween decorations, but messes up the incantation and turns the string lights into cheese instead.
- This Explains So Much: Tombstones says one of the requirements of being a reaper is having "above-average intelligence"; when Claw questions how the not very bright Tombstones got the job, the Mynci says he won it in a sweepstakes. Claw comments that this fact explains a lot about him as Komo tells Tombstones his robe is on fire because of some candles he sliced in half earlier.
- Unfortunate Item Swap: When Tombstones is tasked with sending invitations to the family Halloween party, he mixes up the guest list with his reaper list and reaps the party guests. He's still told to go back and give them their invitations anyway.
- The Worst Seat in the House: One year, the family gets Altador Cup tickets with seats in the highest row of the nosebleed section. As Komo comments that the seats seem to be a little high, a passing satellite hits Tombstones in the head.
