Based on Go Eat Worms!, book #21 of the original Goosebumps series.
Todd Barstow is obsessed with worms. But when his experimentation on them goes too far, the worms seek revenge.
The episode provides examples of:
- Adapted Out: Patrick MacKay, Mr. Barstow, and plenty of teachers at school are all absent in the episode. In fact, the Science Expo that was mentioned frequently is not shown at all.
- Adaptational Alternate Ending: The book version has Todd take up butterfly collecting, only to get attacked by a giant butterfly. In the episode, Todd goes fishing, only to get pulled underwater by vengeful fish. They spare him when he promises not to fish anymore, but make him swim back. It is also possible that this fish was a gigantic one in a similar case with the giant worm. Either this, or worse still, considering how the scenario visually plays out, he was turned into a fish himself.
- Creepy Cave: Todd stumbles upon a cave while out in the dark to collect worms. This cave turns out to be covered with worms that slither all over him, including a giant one.
- Death by Adaptation: Todd's fate is left ambiguous but
the writer Rick Drew confirmed that Todd dies in the end. - Lighter and Softer: Todd's Troubling Unchildlike Behavior is heavily toned down; although he plays a couple of pranks on his sister, he's nowhere near the borderline sociopath in the book, and in fact comes off more sympathetically since it's shown that he's bullied in school for his obsession about worms.
- Race Lift: Danny, who is described as red-haired in the book, is black in the TV adaptation.
