December 5th, 2007.

Hello to whoever is reading this. I don't know if you know who I am, but my name is Betsy Alyson, and I am 31 years old. If there's one thing I should mention, It's the fact that I happen to love the classic cartoons of the 80s and 90s, such as things like Thundercats, Hey Arnold, basically, stuff like that, but in my opinion, the one that really brought back nostalgia for me was a show known as Stickin' Around. The show came out in 1996, but it still felt like it truly resonated with me, simply due to it reminding me of that of the simple times, back before we had complicated technology, back when you could just sit down and watch cartoons on your TV, all ready to go with a bowl of cereal. It had been quite a while since I had watched Stickin' Around, since the show ended about 5 years ago, and while I wished to watch it, Nelvana unfortunately never put it on DVD, and there was no way in hell I was going to buy a VHS, let alone a VHS player, just to watch the show, and even if I could, the VHS tapes are very hard to come by, and likely go for way more money than they're worth.

Thinking about this, I felt frustrated about the lack of a way to find the show, with only VHS tapes being available, but very hard to find, and the show never really aired after the end of the show's runtime. As such, I realized I had no other choice but to illegally find the show online. The internet was still fairly new to me, but I figured I may as well learn how to use it in order to find episodes of the show. I decided that my best bet might be this. I decided my best bet was to check on YouTube, so I decided to search for Stickin' Around videos, before I noticed a video, which appeared to be one of the 22 minute episodes. However, what was strange was that it only contained one episode, though I figured it might've been some kind of special episode, and looking at the title, it seemed like it probably could be a Halloween special. The episode seemed to be titled, "Darker Yet Darker," which seemed... questionable, but it didn't deter me from wanting to watch the video, so I clicked on the video, curious as to what the episode could be about.

The episode opened with the classic theme song, which hit me with nostalgia like a dodgeball being bashed into you in gym class. I began to sing along to the theme, and the song then ended. It proceeded to show the title card, which showed the episode's title, Darker Yet Darker. The episode then began with Bradley getting excited, because it was Halloween, and this was a perfect opportunity for him to get candy with his best friend, Stacy. "Alright, it's time for me to go trick or treating! I'm gonna get a buttload of candy!" Bradley confidently said, dressed up as an astronaut, equipped with a toy laser ray. He then ran downstairs and then out the door, excited to go trick or treating with Stacy. Stacy was standing outside her home, dressed up as a clear homage to Freddy Krueger, known as Neddie Looger. "Oh, hey, Bradley," Stacy said, seeing Bradley arrive, "Are you ready to go trick or treating?"

"Heck yeah, I'm ready to go trick or treating! I bet I can get way more candy than you tonight!" Bradley gloated to Stacy, a smug look on his face. "Oh, really?" Stacy said, raising an eyebrow to him. She seemed to be doubtful of Bradley, believing she could get more than him. "Yep," Bradley said, before speeding off, yelling, "The one to get less candy than the other gets abducted by the aliens from Uranus!" Stacy seemed frustrated, shouting, "Real mature, Bradley! It's obvious I can win this bet!" Stacy then ran after Bradley, determined to get more candy than him. For about 5 minutes, the episode revolved around the duo trying to best each other in getting more candy than each other. Various hijinks ensued, such as Principal Coffin giving some chocolate to Stacy, but giving Bradley a box of raisins, which seemed fairly accurate to his character, as well as Lance and Russell, Bradley's bullies, throwing eggs at Stacy and Bradley as they ran away.

After that ensued, Bradley and Stacy had gathered up an equal amount of candy. The two stared, clearly not giving this up. "Well, Stacy," Bradley said, "Looks like we're evenly matched, you wanna give up now?" Stacy looked angry, before she noticed something in the distance. It appeared to be a medium-sized mall in the distance, with the lights off. Stacy then got a smirk on her face, grabbing Bradley's hand and walking up to the building, much to the confusion of Bradley. "Uh, Stacy... Where are we going?" Bradley asked Stacy in an inquisitive manner. "Well, obviously, one of us has to win the bet somehow, we can't be tied," Stacy said, smug, "So this is where we're going." Bradley and Stacy stood in front of the mall, which was blocked off, with a gate in front of the doors. Stacy smirked at the thought of besting Bradley, who looked almost unsure of if they should really do this. "Uh... Stacy? I mean... I get you want to have a tie-breaker, but this place is closed..." Bradley said, clearly uncomfortable. Stacy, however, simply shrugged this off, grabbing a metal pole that was left on the ground and bashing the gate's lock, causing it to fall off. Stacy then grabbed the doors, prying them open with a smug look. "You were saying?" Stacy asked Bradley, almost in a mocking way.

Bradley turned around, walking nervously while mumbling, "Stacy, I don't think we should be doing this, if we get seen, we could get in severe trouble! I mean, the place is closed down, let's just go home and put this behind us..." Stacy raised an eyebrow, smug, replying with, "Oh, come on, Bradley. Don't tell me you dressed up like an astronaut, someone who braved the cold depths of space, just to turn around and give up just because he was... scared." This caused Bradley to freeze with a shocked look, which quickly turned into an expression of disdain and anger, turning around and walking into the mall. "I'm not scared, Stacy, now move aside..." Bradley snarled, entering the mall's dark, empty interior. As he and Stacy walked inside, they looked around, determined to get some candy. However, they noticed a flashlight, quickly hiding, a man walking by with said flashlight. He was on duty, determined to make sure nobody snuck in on his watch, unaware that Stacy and Bradley had gotten in.

The duo walked through the mall, imagining a super spy section, complete with spy outfits to match. "Secret Agent Bradley makes his way through the corridors to retrieve the plans before his rival, Super Spy Stacy, can get them first." Bradley mumbled, staying hidden. "Super Spy Stacy enters the fray, searching for the plans of the golden candy, determined to take out her nemesis, Secret Agent Bradley." Stacy said, sneaking past the benches. The duo would sneak, trying to find candy, noticing a candy store, rushing to it. Before they could enter, they heard a loud, "HEY," which ended the imagination sequence abruptly. They noticed the security guard from earlier, who had spotted them, causing them to panic and run, causing a chase to ensue. "STACY, WE HAVE TO GO, I DON'T WANNA GO TO JAIL!" Bradley yelled in fear, Stacy grabbing his arm. After about a minute of the chase, Bradley and Stacy hid inside of a clothing store, which the guard suspiciously checked around, before leaving, mumbling something inaudible under his breath, though from what I heard, he said, "When I find those kids..."

After the man was gone, Stacy and Bradley came out of a clothing pile they were hiding in. "That was close. From now on, Bradley, you should listen to my rules, and we won't get caught!" Stacy said proudly, with Bradley scowling. "Real nice, Stacy, now this guard is hunting us!" Bradley looked around, then thought about something. He was going to scare Stacy. "Or maybe... he's not a guard... but a spirit." Bradley said. Stacy dropped her smile, seeming confused. "Oh? What are you talking about?" Stacy asked in a baffled manner, to which Bradley smugly got closer. "Oh, you haven't heard the tale... of the Lost Lantern? Well, let me tell you all about it..." Bradley said, with a chuckle. It then went into an imagination segment, with Bradley taking the role of a camper. The year was 1903, the neighborhood not even built yet, with a lot of free ground and forests. We saw three campers, which, in the segment, were played by Bradley, Dill, and Stanley, who had begun to pitch a tent. "The year 1903... that was the day that 3 happy friends decided to go for a lovely camping trip... in this very spot... this used to be a forest, but they cut the wood down years later... but what is so... special about this year?" Bradley asked, confident. "Well... This was the year that tragedy struck the humble campers... when one of them decided to gather firewood for their campfire..." Bradley said in an ominous way. As he said this, the tallest camper, played by Stanley, got up and grabbed his lantern, talking to the other 2, played by Bradley and Dill. "Hang on, my dear friends, I'm going out to gather firewood to light the night and warm us up!" The camper said, walking into the forest with his lantern. "Of course," Bradley said, "They had no idea that there was a man in the woods... a bad man... a man... who loved to hurt..." As the camper walked, we saw someone in the distance, appearing to be wearing a mask similar to that of Leatherface, which was... a little startling to how they got that past the radar. Then again, the 90s let a lot of things slide, though I noticed the person resembled Lance, except he wore the aforementioned mask, a raggedy jacket, and mud covered boots.

As the camper got to a tree, he took an axe out, beginning to chop away at a tree for firewood, the man slowly approaching the camper from behind. As the camper continued, the man grabbed his shoulder, causing him to turn around, seeing the man. "Oh, hello there! Are you lost?" The camper said, hand out for the man to shake. However, the man simply continues to approach the camper, causing a sense of worry in the camper. "Uh... C-Can I h-hel-" The camper stuttered, before the man viciously bashed his fist into the camper's face, catching them off guard and knocking the axe out of their hand. The camper panicked, trying to fight back, even managing to tear off the mask of the man, but the man began to aggressively slam his fists against the camper, before finally ceasing, approaching the axe dropped earlier, and picking it up slowly. The camper slowly opened his eyes, unable to stand properly, trying to run, but stumbling in the process, before seeing the man slowly standing over him with an axe, his face obscured by the shadows of the night. "After the man attacked the camper... they say that... the man made a finishing blow to the unfortunate camper..." The camper let out a terrified scream before man swung the axe down at the man... but it cut away before any gore could be shown... meanwhile, the other 2 campers heard the scream of the camper, looking back. "Holy mackerel!" The camper resembling Dill yelled out. "I think that was our friend, Jones! He must be in grave danger!" The camper, resembling Bradley, began to notice that the fire was going out, but he knew that their friend needed rescuing. "Let's go get him!" The other camper said, rushing with his friend to locate the now missing Jones. As they walked into the dark forest, they began to feel a sense of fear, before they ended up stumbling into something. "The two had found Jones, alright..." Bradley said. "But they didn't find him alive..."

The two campers got closer to what the item was, they saw the lantern Jones had grabbed earlier, before laying their eyes on the horrific sight, which was not shown, but it was described in a pretty mortifying fashion by Bradley. "They say that Jones was barely recognizable when they found him... His face was split down the middle... his hands were cut off... some even say his whole arm was sliced off... and saying it was horrifying... would be an understatement..." Bradley said in a chilling manner. "All they found that wasn't damaged... was his lantern and axe..." When the campers saw the sight, which wasn't shown, likely due to it being too gruesome to show... though the description probably shows it was for the best... "As soon as they found Jones's body, his friends panicked, immediately leaving the place behind... the murderer was never found... and likely never will be... but while the friends moved on... Jones never did... they say... that on October 31st... he rises... hunting down the man who ended his life... desperate to get vengeance... and make sure the man suffers as he has... and you will know... when you see that light..." Bradley said, transitioning back to the real world. Stacy's eyes widened, and she looked terrified, quivering like a leaf, shaken up by the story Bradley had told. "Oh, who's scared now? It's just a story." Bradley smugly said, though he admittedly felt a little nervous about the story himself.

"S-Scared?! I-I was n-not sc-scared, for your big fat information!" Stacy said, trying to not look afraid of the story. "I-I was just... c-cold is all..." Stacy said, blatantly lying to Bradley's face. "Heh, whatever, Stacy. If you're soooo brave, why don't we go darker, yet darker into the mall? Unless you're scared." Bradley said, chuckling, throwing Stacy's words back at her. "I'm not afraid, and I'll show you, now come on!" Stacy angrily said, grabbing Bradley. As she walked, she heard loud stomping behind her, screaming and jumping back, only for it to be shown that Bradley was stomping just to scare her. "U-UGH! Th-That's not funny, B-Bradley!" Stacy said, her heart pounding in her chest, before the two continued walking. The two came across the candy store again, grabbing some candy, seeing that the guard wasn't there. "A-Alright, now let's-" Stacy heard stomping again, looking mad. "BRADLEY, I TOLD YOU TO KNOCK IT OFF!" She angrily yelled at Bradley, who seemed confused. "Stacy, I'm not doing that..." Bradley replied. "Oh, come on, Bradley, it's obvious that you're-" Stacy turned around, seeing that Bradley was not moving his legs, yet the stomping was coming closer. Stacy froze up for a minute, before she panicked, grabbing Bradley and running away into a nearby electronics store, hiding as the stomping got closer, seeming to be the man. "I-I- B-Bradley... I-It's J-Jones... h-he's g-gonna ki-kill us, h-he's real..." Stacy said, a terrified tone in her voice. "We're not gonna die, Stacy... Listen to me... I'll go get some food for us at the food court... If I don't return... look for me... OK?" Bradley said, a look of determination on his face. "B-Bradley... pl-please be safe..." Stacy said, sweating. "Hey, can't promise that... but I think I can try... and hey... Stacy...? If I die... I'm sorry I dared you to go deeper into this mall... and for everything else, I guess." Bradley said. "I-It's ok, Br-Bradley..." Stacy said, nervous. Bradley smirked, rushing out. "This looks like a job for... ASTRO BRADLEY!" Bradley rushed out, determined to go get some food. After a few minutes of silence, Stacy slept quietly, scared out of her mind, before she heard Bradley screaming. "AAAAAGGHHH!!! NO, NO! NO, LET GO OF ME! I DON'T WANNA DIE!" Bradley screamed off-screen, Stacy's eyes widening as she awoke with utter horror. "B-BRADLEY?!" Stacy shrieked, hearing Bradley's cries of fear. Stacy decided it was time to gear up, arming herself with a headlight, strapping it to her head, as well as running to a toy store and grabbing a baseball bat. Stacy began to slowly approach the food court, where Bradley said he was going.

"Br-Bradley...? A-Are you... h-here...?" Stacy fearfully approached the food court, before slipping over something squishy, landing in it. "A-AGH!" Stacy yelped, getting up. Stacy slowly began to dust herself off, before her eyes went wide with horror, looking at her hands covered in something, which felt like meat, and she stared at the ground. There was meat scattered everywhere, a dark red sauce on it, and it appeared that the area had now caught on fire, like Bradley was trying to cook something, before getting ambushed. The fire began to spread, Stacy paralyzed with horror as she stared at the meat. "...B...Bradley...?" Stacy said in fear, dropping to her knees, shaking in terror, before seeing the guard, barricading herself inside a room, the door lighting on fire as the fire spread. "YOU!" The man yelled, holding an axe of some kind, a flashlight shining at Stacy. Stacy's eyes began to shake as she coughed in pain, the smoke spreading. The man ran up to the door, slamming the axe against the door, causing Stacy to scream in utter fear as he broke open the door opening it. "COME WITH ME..." The man said, grabbing Stacy and carrying her, all while she screamed and pleaded. The man looked around, grabbing a fire extinguisher and putting out the fire before anything more could happen, all while Stacy continued to panic. "Hey, Hey... Settle down, young lady..." The man sternly said, taking her to an area, where she saw Bradley, who seemed a bit more calm, noticing Stacy. Stacy froze up for a minute, before she began to cry, covering her eyes. "Uh... Stacy? What's-" Bradley asked, before Stacy ran up to him and embraced him. "W-Whoa, Stacy, what's going on?!"

Stacy began to sniffle and weep in fear, wiping her eyes. "I-I'm so-sorry, Br-Bradley... I-I dared you t-to go into th-the mall because I-I w-wanted this stupid tiebreaker a-and wanted to sc-scare you..." Stacy hugged Bradley tightly, as the man seemed baffled. "Well, that's great and all, but why did you come into the mall? It's closed, you should be in bed!" The man said. Bradley replied with, "W-Well... W-We came in h-here for candy to b-break a tie f-for who would get the most candy, and we told a scary story, and we thought you were the ghost of Jones and wanted to kill us... "Kill you?" The man asked, before chuckling. "No, of course not! I was just trying to catch you so I could escort you out, that's all! I can give you a ride home, if you'd like!"

"Th-That would h-help a lot..." Stacy said, still crying and sniffling. The scene then showed the man taking Bradley and Stacy to their homes, as they prepared for tomorrow. "Hey, Stacy? Sorry this got outta hand... We let competition go to our heads. But at least we didn't meet the aliens from Uranus!" Bradley said, with a snicker. Stacy, rather than being annoyed, actually giggled a bit, and, in a much more nice tone, responded with, "Re-Real mature, B-Bradley..." "Well, we're here! This must be your home! Get some rest, kid!" The man said, waving to Bradley, who was leaving to his house. "I will! Hey, Stacy! I'll see you tomorrow!" Bradley said eagerly. "See you tomorrow, Bradley!" Stacy said happily as the man took her home, to find her parents worried sick. "St-Stacy! Where have you b-been?!" Stella, her mother, asked. Stacy thought about it for a bit, before saying, "Just got a little lost, that's all! I'm gonna go to bed!" Stacy walked upstairs, smiling while her mother and father went inside. Stacy laid in her bed, sighing and saying, "Well, guess the ghost of Jones isn't real after all..." As she slept, the man drove, smiling as he chuckled to himself, his car becoming a ghostly carriage driven by horses, as the man revealed his identity to be the ghost of Jones, galloping away into the night. "Well, he might just be..." The man eagerly said, galloping away, before saying the final line of the episode, "Happy Halloween, everyone! Don't go Darker Yet Darker!"

After the episode wrapped up, I actually seemed... Surprised by all of that. I never remembered this episode airing, and I checked the video's description. According to the writing, the episode was finished and voice acted, but was considered too dark to air, so they scrapped it. However, one of the creators on the show, Robin Steele, allegedly seemed to have given the full episode to the uploader via a USB, according to the description. I honestly didn't think the episode was too bad, and personally, it actually felt like a good Halloween Special. However, I knew that this could become lost media if I did not save it, so I decided to check out the uploader's profile, which contained a P.O box address. I decided to mail a letter asking for the USB of the video, as well as my address, hoping that I would get a response, even if it took some time.

August 7th, 2024. [UPDATE]

Wow... it's been a while since I checked this out... So, here's an update on what I've been up to. I have been celebrating the 19th birthday of my daughter, Penny, and I am now 50. I have recently received a letter from the uploader, which I honestly didn't expect, considering that was about 19 years ago. I opened the letter, and I found the USB inside. I put it into my computer, and lo and behold, it was indeed the episode, but I decided that it might be best to keep it safe, so I put it in a box. It is my hope that one day, my daughter will be able to find more media as I have in my heyday. This is Betsy Alyson, signing off.