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-> '''Portrayed By:''' Zachary Carlin ([[Series/{{Goosebumps}} TV]]); Lucky Mangione ([[Film/Goosebumps2015 Film]])
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-> '''Portrayed By:''' Zachary Carlin ([[Series/{{Goosebumps}} ([[Series/Goosebumps1995 TV]]); Lucky Mangione ([[Film/Goosebumps2015 Film]])
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-> '''Portrayed By:''' Maia Filar ([[Series/{{Goosebumps}} TV]])
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-> '''Portrayed By:''' Maia Filar ([[Series/{{Goosebumps}} ([[Series/Goosebumps1995 TV]])
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-> '''Portrayed By:''' Hamille Rustia ([[Series/{{Goosebumps}} TV]])
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-> '''Portrayed By:''' Hamille Rustia ([[Series/{{Goosebumps}} ([[Series/Goosebumps1995 TV]])
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-> '''Portrayed By:''' Matthew Lemche, Tonya Johnson, and Travis Kutt (David, Brenda, and Wart) ([[Series/{{Goosebumps}} TV]]); Ashton Lee Wolden (Wart) and Katie Lumpkin (Brenda) ([[Film/Goosebumps2015 Film]])
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-> '''Portrayed By:''' Matthew Lemche, Tonya Johnson, and Travis Kutt (David, Brenda, and Wart) ([[Series/{{Goosebumps}} ([[Series/Goosebumps1995 TV]]); Ashton Lee Wolden (Wart) and Katie Lumpkin (Brenda) ([[Film/Goosebumps2015 Film]])
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* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: By changing the recipient of the "Calling all creeps" phone number, she paves the path to Ricky [[spoiler: forgoing all sense of humanity and turning everyone in his school, including her, to mindless Creeps who see him as his leader.]]
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Foils specifically have to be seen together to highlight each other's traits. Otherwise, all fictional characters ever invented can be foils to each other.
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* Foil: To Carly Beth Caldwell from ''Literature/TheHauntedMask''. Both are ButtMonkey protagonists who get bullied at school but learn to stand up for themselves as their stories progress and have supportive {{NiceGirl}}s as their friends but there's an important difference. Carly Beth didn't want the mask to turn her evil while Ricky [[spoiler:pulled a FaceHeelTurn to get revenge on his tormentors]]. Carly Beth scared Chuck and Steve to get revenge of them for scaring her while all the students' bullying [[spoiler:caused Ricky to snap and decide to let them perish and joining the Creeps]].
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* Foil: To Carly Beth Caldwell from ''Literature/TheHauntedMask''. Both are ButtMonkey protagonists who get bullied at school but learn to stand up for themselves as their stories progress and have supportive {{NiceGirl}}s as their friends but there's an important difference. Carly Beth didn't want the mask to turn her evil while Ricky [[spoiler:pulled a FaceHeelTurn to get revenge on his tormentors]]. Carly Beth scared Chuck and Steve to get revenge of them for scaring her while all the students' bullying [[spoiler:caused Ricky to snap and decide to let them perish and joining the Creeps]].
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* GeekPhsysiques: He describes himself as being very skinny, making him represent the skinny geek.
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* GeekPhsysiques: GeekPhysiques: He describes himself as being very skinny, making him represent the skinny geek.
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* GeekPhsysiques: He describes himself as being very skinny, making him represent the skinny geek.
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* OddFriendship: With Iris. He's a [[GeekPsysiques skinny]] and awkward nerd with NoSocialSkills while she's a beautiful NiceGirl.
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* OddFriendship: With Iris. He's a [[GeekPsysiques [[GeekPhysiques skinny]] and awkward nerd with NoSocialSkills while she's a beautiful NiceGirl.
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* OddFriendship: With Iris. He's a skinny and awkward nerd with NoSocialSkills while she's a beautiful NiceGirl.
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* OddFriendship: With Iris. He's a skinny [[GeekPsysiques skinny]] and awkward nerd with NoSocialSkills while she's a beautiful NiceGirl.
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* OddFriendship: With Iris. He's a skinny and awkward nerd with NoSocialSkills while she's a beautiful NiceGirl.
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* AdaptationalDyeJob: She has red hair in the book but is a brunette in the episode. Justified considering that she's been given a RaceLift.
* GiveGeeksAChance: A rare platonic example. She's a beautiful NiceGirl who becomes the friend of nerdy and unpopular Ricky Beamer.
* GiveGeeksAChance: A rare platonic example. She's a beautiful NiceGirl who becomes the friend of nerdy and unpopular Ricky Beamer.
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* GiveGeeksAChance: A rare platonic example. Beautiful NiceGirl Iris becomes his friend.
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* DorkInASweater: He's a nerdy ButtMonkey who gets bullied a lot and in the TV series, he wears a sweater vest.
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* NerdGlasses: Wears this to show how dorky and unpopular he is.
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* OnlyFriend: Is the only one to be willing to hang out with and be friendly with him. [[spoiler: By the end of the story, this isn’t enough to prevent Ricky from joining the Creeps' side.]]
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* OnlyFriend: Is the only one to be at school willing to hang out with and be friendly with him. Ricky. [[spoiler: By the end of the story, this isn’t enough to prevent Ricky him from joining the Creeps' side.]]
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This is more of a story trope than a character trope.
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* ScaryShinyGlasses: [[spoiler: In the tv episode, as he watches the other students at the bake sale eating the cookies that will transform him into his slaves, he looks on the scene with his glasses reflecting the students as they start chewing, about to change. This shows that he really has turned morality-wise at this point.]]
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-> '''Portrayed By:''' Zachary Carlin ([[Series/{{Goosebumps}} TV]]); Lucky Mangione ([[Film/{{Goosebumps}} Film]])
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-> '''Portrayed By:''' Zachary Carlin ([[Series/{{Goosebumps}} TV]]); Lucky Mangione ([[Film/{{Goosebumps}} ([[Film/Goosebumps2015 Film]])
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-> '''Portrayed By:''' Matthew Lemche, Tonya Johnson, and Travis Kutt (David, Brenda, and Wart) ([[Series/{{Goosebumps}} TV]]); Ashton Lee Wolden (Wart) and Katie Lumpkin (Brenda) ([[Film/{{Goosebumps}} Film]])
to:
-> '''Portrayed By:''' Matthew Lemche, Tonya Johnson, and Travis Kutt (David, Brenda, and Wart) ([[Series/{{Goosebumps}} TV]]); Ashton Lee Wolden (Wart) and Katie Lumpkin (Brenda) ([[Film/{{Goosebumps}} ([[Film/Goosebumps2015 Film]])
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An Expy has to be confirmed intentional - it says right so in the description. "Seems kind of like" is just speculation.
Deleted line(s) 53 (click to see context) :
* {{Expy}}: She seems kind of like a watered-down [[Literature/{{Carrie}} Chris Hargensen.]] She's a very cruel AlphaBitch who gets everyone at school to bully Ricky, mainly just because [[FeelingOppressedByTheirExistence he's weird and uncool and that annoys her.]] At the end when he's trying to warn the school not to eat the cookies, she [[KickTheDog humiliates him in front of everyone and gets them to shout insults at him,]]which [[spoiler: causes him to finally lose it and join the Creeps.]]
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* {{Expy}}: She seems kind of like a watered-down [[Literature/{{Carrie}} Chris Hargensen.]] She's a very cruel AlphaBitch who gets everyone at school to bully Ricky, mainly just because [[FeelingOppressedByTheirExistence he's weird and uncool and that annoys her.]] At the end when he's trying to warn the school not to eat the cookies, she [[KickTheDog humiliates him in front of everyone and gets them to shout insults at him.]] Which [[spoiler: causes him to finally lose it and join the Creeps.]]
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* {{Expy}}: She seems kind of like a watered-down [[Literature/{{Carrie}} Chris Hargensen.]] She's a very cruel AlphaBitch who gets everyone at school to bully Ricky, mainly just because [[FeelingOppressedByTheirExistence he's weird and uncool and that annoys her.]] At the end when he's trying to warn the school not to eat the cookies, she [[KickTheDog humiliates him in front of everyone and gets them to shout insults at him.]] Which him,]]which [[spoiler: causes him to finally lose it and join the Creeps.]]
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* {{Expy}}: She seems kind of like a watered-down [[Literature/{{Carrie}} Chris Hargensen.]] She's a very cruel AlphaBitch who gets everyone at school to bully Ricky, mainly just because [[FeelingOppressedByTheirExistence he's weird and uncool and that annoys her.]] At the end when he's trying to warn the school not to eat the cookies, she [[KickTheDog humiliates him in front of everyone and gets them to shout insults at him.]] Which [[spoiler: causes him to finally lose it and join the Creeps.]]
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* MadnessMantra: In the book [[spoiler: once he loses it and decides to join the Creeps, he encourages people to eat the cookies with the Identity Seeds in them and keeps shouting "Free Cookies, Free Cookies everyone!"]]
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* BlindObedience: They are relentlessly loyal to the Creep code, to the point where all it takes is someone ''claiming'' to be one of their leaders to make them submissive and obedient.
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* EqualOpportunityEvil: It generally does not matter who is assimilated into their ranks. In the episode, one of the most prominent Creeps is the black female Brenda.
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* PurpleIsPowerful: In the book, their color scheme is purple, and they're ferocious, domineering creatures out to take over humanity.
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* TrueCompanions: A villainous version, all of them are quite close friends and don't treat their own kind the way they treat humans.
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* LoveInterestTraitor: Subverted. Initially she appears to be on the side of the Creeps, even pretending to be their commander's second-in-command, but she's really just a genuinely nice girl who only wants to help out. Amazingly, she manages to fool the Creeps, who don't ask her to change to prove it.
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* LoveInterestTraitor: Subverted. [[spoiler: Initially she appears to be on the side of the Creeps, even pretending to be their commander's second-in-command, but she's really just a genuinely nice girl who only wants to help out. Amazingly, she manages to fool the Creeps, who don't ask her to change to prove it.it]].
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* OnlyFriend: Is the only one to be willing to hang out with and be friendly with him. [[spoiler: By the end of the story, this isn’t enough to prevent Ricky from joining the Creeps’ side.]]
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* OnlyFriend: Is the only one to be willing to hang out with and be friendly with him. [[spoiler: By the end of the story, this isn’t enough to prevent Ricky from joining the Creeps’ Creeps' side.]]
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* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: In the book, she inexplicably disappears during the last act and isn't present when Ricky tries to prevent the students from eating the spiked cookies that turn them into Creeps. In the TV adaptation, she begs Ricky not to go through with the Creeps' plan after he finally snaps; it's not indicated if she also gets turned.
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* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: [[spoiler: In the book, she inexplicably disappears during the last act and isn't present when Ricky tries to prevent the students from eating the spiked cookies that turn them into Creeps. In the TV adaptation, she begs Ricky not to go through with the Creeps' plan after he finally snaps; it's not indicated if she also gets turned.
turned]].
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A Bad Boss is someone who outright abuses and/or kills his employees, not just any boss who treats their employees suboptimally.
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* BadBoss: When Ricky is working for her at the school newspaper she's really mean to him and gives him a bunch of lame assignments, such as writing about ''dirt patches'', which she has no intention of publishing.
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* MeanBoss: When Ricky is working for her at the school newspaper she's really mean to him and gives him a bunch of lame assignments, such as writing about ''dirt patches'', which she has no intention of publishing.
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* BadBoss: When Ricky is working for her at the school newspaper she's really mean to him and gives him a bunch of lame assignments, such as writing about ''dirt clods'', which she has no intention of publishing.
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* BadBoss: When Ricky is working for her at the school newspaper she's really mean to him and gives him a bunch of lame assignments, such as writing about ''dirt clods'', patches'', which she has no intention of publishing.
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* BadBoss: When Ricky is working for her at the school newspaper she's really mean to him and gives him a bunch of lame assignments, such as writing about ''dirt clods'', which she has no intention of publishing.
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* AdaptationalHeroism: In the book, aside from [[spoiler: turning into a creep on his own to get back at everyone]], he does a few unsavory things early on, which leads to the Creeps being attracted to him to begin with. In VideoGame/GoosebumpsHorrorTown, this isn't the case. He's a nicer kid who has a few people that like him, and [[spoiler: he becomes a creep because Marty pulls a prank on him, as Ricky did an article denouncing bullies]].
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%% * GettingCrapPastThe Radar: Due to overwhelming and persistent misuse, GCPTR is on-page examples only until 01 June 2021. If you are reading this in the future, please check the trope page to make sure your example fits the current definition.
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* RevengeBeforeReason: He's so eager to get revenge on Tasha that he forgets that as the head of the newspaper, she probably checks over her work and would've noticed his message. Her edit results in the Creeps mistaking him for their Commander.
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* RevengeBeforeReason: He's so eager to get revenge on Tasha that he forgets that as the head of the newspaper, she probably checks over her work and would've noticed his message. Her edit results in the Creeps mistaking him for their Commander. Even before that, during the car wash, he uses the hoses on David's car, not thinking that this will upset them. It does and an ensusing chase is how Ricky wrecks the camera, getting him kicked off the paper.
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* LooseLips: When the Creeps inform Ricky that no one has transformed into Creeps at lunch, Ricky blurts our that this was because he put them in the Mac n’ Cheese, which nobody eats. He even notes to himself that he should not have said that. He quickly covers this up by lying and saying that he only found out afterwards from a student.
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* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: His revenge plot against Tasha is more or less the same idea as writing "For a good time, call..." on the bathroom wall.
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!! Ricky Beamer
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rickygbumps.png]]
-> '''Portrayed By:''' Zachary Carlin ([[Series/{{Goosebumps}} TV]]); Lucky Mangione ([[Film/{{Goosebumps}} Film]])
--> ''"On Friday and Saturday I ran home a disgrace, a loser, a creep. Tonight I ran home a winner. A champion! A genius!"''
The nerdy protagonist of ''Calling All Creeps!'' who mistakenly ends up as the leader of a group of reptilian aliens who want to TakeOverTheWorld.
----
* AdaptationDyeJob: He mentions in the book that he has curly black hair, dark brown eyes, and freckles. The actor that portrayed him in the TV episode has straight brown hair, blue eyes, and no freckles.
* AllOfTheOtherReindeer: He's actually surprised when nobody at school picks on him at lunch the day after he writes that message in the newspaper.
* AndThenJohnWasAZombie: [[spoiler:After spending half the book trying to save his classmates from being turned into creeps, he decides that if you can't beat them, join them]].
* BecomingTheMask: [[spoiler:He pretends to go along with the Creeps’ thinking that he’s their commander in order to ensure that they don’t attack him if they find out that he’s a fraud. However, when he does a FaceHeelTurn, he genuinely views them as his new friends, and passes out the cookies with the transformation seeds to the students. He even discreetly eats one himself, to prove to the Creeps that he’s one of them.]]
* BeingGoodSucks: He tries his hardest to save the school from the Creeps, only for them to blow him off or continue to pick on him. [[spoiler:Eventually, he decides they aren't worth it.]]
* BigBadSlippage: Ricky inadvertently lands himself as the leader of a squadron of monsters out for world domination. He tries all he can to stop them from the inside, but it's not helped by his ungrateful peers. Then he learns just how easy it is to turn the other cheek, and embraces his new power.
* BullyMagnet: He gets bullied all the time. By the end of the story, ''nobody'' [[note]]apart from Iris, though this is in the TV adaptation; in the book, she inexplicably disappears during the last act [[/note]] is surprised when [[spoiler:he snaps and joins the Creeps]].
* ButtMonkey: He's constantly picked on by his classmates and by [[AlphaBitch Tasha]], the head of the school newspaper. [[spoiler:Let's just say his FaceHeelTurn at the end isn't entirely out of nowhere.]]
* CantGetAwayWithNuthin: When fired by Tasha, he decides to get revenge by putting an insulting ad about her in the school newspaper, which included her name and phone number. But Tasha spots it, and decides to turn the tables on him by putting HIS name and address on the ad instead.
* CassandraTruth: When he attempts to inform his parents, teacher and classmates of the Creeps' plan, they either make fun of or ignore him.
* DidntThinkThisThrough: He didn't consider the very plausible possibility that Tasha likely edits the newspaper and would notice he put her phone number there.
* EmbarrassingNickname: "Sicky Ricky" and "Ricky Rat".
* FaceHeelTurn: [[spoiler:When he learns that his classmates will be his slaves once they've turned into Creeps, he decides that if you can't beat 'em, join 'em]].
* FreudianExcuse: [[spoiler:For his FaceHeelTurn. The relentless bullying he faced from his classmates led to him deciding to let them perish and joining the Creeps]].
%% * GettingCrapPastThe Radar: Due to overwhelming and persistent misuse, GCPTR is on-page examples only until 01 June 2021. If you are reading this in the future, please check the trope page to make sure your example fits the current definition.
* TheGlassesGottaGo: [[spoiler: In the episode, when he bites into a cookie containing a seed that will transform him into a Creep, he takes off his glasses because he assumes that his Creep form will not hold them on his snout. In the 2015 movie, this appears to be the case.]]
* IdiotBall: The first night he gets the calls from the Creeps, he simply just keeps hanging up the phone over and over again. When he FINALLY gets the idea to unplug the telephone, it’s two in the morning. This leaves him with no sleep and his parents, who also didn’t get any sleep, furious with him.
* LooseLips: When the Creeps inform Ricky that no one has transformed into Creeps at lunch, Ricky blurts our that this was because he put them in the Mac n’ Cheese, which nobody eats. He even notes to himself that he should not have said that. He quickly covers this up by lying and saying that he only found out afterwards from a student.
* MistakenForBadass: After his revenge plot goes wrong, the Creeps assume he is their leader.
* NoSympathy: Doesn't get a bit of sympathy from ''anybody'' except Iris. Is it any wonder that he eventually snaps?
* PickedLast: This is the main reason why he chooses to attend the newspaper club. All students at his school have to join at least one club or they will have to attend summer school, and since Ricky is argued over by the sports captains on who should pick him, Ricky decides that the newspaper club will be the next best thing instead of a sports club.
* RevengeBeforeReason: He's so eager to get revenge on Tasha that he forgets that as the head of the newspaper, she probably checks over her work and would've noticed his message. Her edit results in the Creeps mistaking him for their Commander.
* ScaryShinyGlasses: [[spoiler: In the tv episode, as he watches the other students at the bake sale eating the cookies that will transform him into his slaves, he looks on the scene with his glasses reflecting the students as they start chewing, about to change. This shows that he really has turned morality-wise at this point.]]
* ThenLetMeBeEvil: [[spoiler:He tries hard to not be the cruel Commander that the other Creeps expect him to be. However, when he snaps due to bullying from the students whom he is trying to save, he caves in and has them transformed and enslaved]].
* TokenGoodTeammate: He finds himself as this after being coerced into the Creeps. [[spoiler:Unfortunately, this goes right out the window when he finds EvilFeelsGood.]]
* WhosLaughingNow: [[spoiler:When he does his FaceHeelTurn]].
* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: [[spoiler: He certainly made everyone who picked on him regret it]].
!! Tasha [=McClain=]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tashagbumps.png]]
-> '''Portrayed By:''' Maia Filar ([[Series/{{Goosebumps}} TV]])
--> ''"That was your last chance. You didn't deserve it. You're just a creep. Why do you think all the kids call you Ricky Rat? Because that's what you are--a little rodent!"''
The head of the school newspaper, and the bane of Ricky's existence.
----
* AdaptationDyeJob: A redhead in the book, her hair is black in the TV adaptation.
* AlphaBitch: She hates all sixth-graders, and treats Ricky like a bug she wants to squash. She gives him bad stories that she doesn't publish anyway, calls him names, and threatens to have her rich father sue him when his camera gets wrecked, even though it wasn't Ricky's fault.
* AssholeVictim: [[spoiler: She's the first one Ricky gives a cookie to, and it's impossible to feel bad for what's about to happen to her]].
* TheBully: She viciously belittles and humiliates Ricky at every turn, even telling him to his face that no one at all likes him. When he's trying to warn everyone not to eat the cookies, she leads the entire school to hurl abuse at him.
* FieryRedhead: She has red hair, and when Ricky accidentally sends Pepsi spilling on a computer and crashing it, she goes ballistic. She starts screaming at Ricky, pulling her hair in frustration. And she then fired him on the spot.
* FrivolousLawsuit: When her father's camera is accidentally wrecked when Ricky is using it, she threatens to have him sue Ricky's family over it.
* HateSink: She is clearly meant to be as detestable to the reader as possible. The Creeps might be acting like bullies in order to pass for normal students, but she has no excuse whatsoever.
* {{Jerkass}}: She's as horrible to Ricky as possible for no reason other than thinking she's superior to sixth graders like him.
* JerkWithAHeartOfJerk: After firing Ricky from the newspaper, she agrees to give him a second chance, but does it in the most backhanded way possible, telling him ''repeatedly'' that she only went to him as a last resort. She quickly finds an excuse to fire him anyway.
* MadeASlave: [[spoiler:At the end of the book, along with the rest of the students]].
* MisplacedRetribution: She fires Ricky from the newspaper for grievances that were his bullies' fault. When Jared, Brenda, David and Wart cause Tasha's computer and camera to get destroyed, she immediately blames Ricky and refuses to listen to his attempts to defend himself.
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: She gives a pretty brutal one when firing Ricky for the second time.
* SmugSnake: She rubs it in Ricky's face when she foils his edit to the paper.
!! Iris Candler
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/irisgbumps.png]]
-> '''Portrayed By:''' Hamille Rustia ([[Series/{{Goosebumps}} TV]])
A new student who enters Ricky's class, and makes friends with him.
----
* HeelRealization: When Ricky is showing her around the lunchroom and he gets tripped by his enemies, he notes that she is one of the people laughing at him. However, when she sees Ricky being treated like garbage and fired for something that wasn’t his fault, she realizes just how awful his life at school is, and she wants to be his friend.
* LoveInterestTraitor: Subverted. Initially she appears to be on the side of the Creeps, even pretending to be their commander's second-in-command, but she's really just a genuinely nice girl who only wants to help out. Amazingly, she manages to fool the Creeps, who don't ask her to change to prove it.
* NiceGirl: The only character in the entire book to show any sympathy for Ricky's plight.
* OnlyFriend: Is the only one to be willing to hang out with and be friendly with him. [[spoiler: By the end of the story, this isn’t enough to prevent Ricky from joining the Creeps’ side.]]
* RaceLift: Described in the book as having a round face, blue eyes and blond hair, she's Filipino in the TV adaptation.
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: In the book, she inexplicably disappears during the last act and isn't present when Ricky tries to prevent the students from eating the spiked cookies that turn them into Creeps. In the TV adaptation, she begs Ricky not to go through with the Creeps' plan after he finally snaps; it's not indicated if she also gets turned.
!! The Creeps
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/callingallcreeps.jpg]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/humancreeps.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Brenda, Wart, and David]]
-> '''Portrayed By:''' Matthew Lemche, Tonya Johnson, and Travis Kutt (David, Brenda, and Wart) ([[Series/{{Goosebumps}} TV]]); Ashton Lee Wolden (Wart) and Katie Lumpkin (Brenda) ([[Film/{{Goosebumps}} Film]])
--> ''"Humans are the past. Creeps are the future!"''
An unpleasant group of lizard-creatures masquerading as human school bullies.
----
* AdaptedOut: Jared doesn't appear in the TV episode.
* AerithAndBob: Their names: Jared, Brenda, David... Wart?
* AliensAreBastards: We don't know just ''what'' they are, but they fit every other criteria.
* AndThenJohnWasAZombie:[[spoiler:The entire student body by the end of the book, including Ricky]].
* AssimilationPlot: Creeps are created when special "identity seeds" are consumed by humans. The main four plan to disperse these seeds among the student body.
* TheBadGuyWins: [[spoiler:A rare example that benefits the protagonist]].
* BigBadEnsemble: Of ''Calling All Creeps!''
* BlueAndOrangeMorality: Like most creatures in the series, the Creeps have very twisted and strange customs.
* ChildSoldiers: The main four, though it's unclear how old they are.
* CrazyPrepared: Ricky "accidentally" drops their bag of seeds in an attempt to escape them? No worries, they've got a spare one on hand.
* EvilPhone: How they contact Ricky.
* GangOfBullies: As humans, they solely exist to make Ricky as miserable as possible.
* HiddenHeartOfGold: It's hinted that they're only acting like bullies to blend in with everyone else. Of course, they're still planning an alien invasion...
* {{Jerkass}}: They take every opportunity to get Ricky fired from the newspaper.
* KidsAreCruel: Also in their human forms, along with the rest of the school who bullies Ricky.
* TheLadette: Brenda, the only female, is no less ferocious than her comrades.
* LizardFolk: Huge, purple lizard/raptor kids. The cover makes them look oddly adorable.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: They're mortified when they "discover" that their Commander is the one they had been bullying, and apologize to Ricky for how they treated him.
* PetTheDog: Their loyalty toward Ricky, their supposed leader, seems surprisingly genuine. [[spoiler:At the very end, they give him the extra push to take revenge on the cruel student body as he's being mocked.]]
* TheSmurfettePrinciple: Brenda's the only female member of the initial group of Creeps.
* TakeOverTheWorld: Their plan is basically "today the middle school, tomorrow the world".
* TeensAreMonsters: Both figuratively and literally, they're eighth graders who love to torment Ricky and are revealed to be the Creeps calling Ricky.
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: If Ricky isn't really their Commander, then where's the real one?
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rickygbumps.png]]
-> '''Portrayed By:''' Zachary Carlin ([[Series/{{Goosebumps}} TV]]); Lucky Mangione ([[Film/{{Goosebumps}} Film]])
--> ''"On Friday and Saturday I ran home a disgrace, a loser, a creep. Tonight I ran home a winner. A champion! A genius!"''
The nerdy protagonist of ''Calling All Creeps!'' who mistakenly ends up as the leader of a group of reptilian aliens who want to TakeOverTheWorld.
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* AdaptationDyeJob: He mentions in the book that he has curly black hair, dark brown eyes, and freckles. The actor that portrayed him in the TV episode has straight brown hair, blue eyes, and no freckles.
* AllOfTheOtherReindeer: He's actually surprised when nobody at school picks on him at lunch the day after he writes that message in the newspaper.
* AndThenJohnWasAZombie: [[spoiler:After spending half the book trying to save his classmates from being turned into creeps, he decides that if you can't beat them, join them]].
* BecomingTheMask: [[spoiler:He pretends to go along with the Creeps’ thinking that he’s their commander in order to ensure that they don’t attack him if they find out that he’s a fraud. However, when he does a FaceHeelTurn, he genuinely views them as his new friends, and passes out the cookies with the transformation seeds to the students. He even discreetly eats one himself, to prove to the Creeps that he’s one of them.]]
* BeingGoodSucks: He tries his hardest to save the school from the Creeps, only for them to blow him off or continue to pick on him. [[spoiler:Eventually, he decides they aren't worth it.]]
* BigBadSlippage: Ricky inadvertently lands himself as the leader of a squadron of monsters out for world domination. He tries all he can to stop them from the inside, but it's not helped by his ungrateful peers. Then he learns just how easy it is to turn the other cheek, and embraces his new power.
* BullyMagnet: He gets bullied all the time. By the end of the story, ''nobody'' [[note]]apart from Iris, though this is in the TV adaptation; in the book, she inexplicably disappears during the last act [[/note]] is surprised when [[spoiler:he snaps and joins the Creeps]].
* ButtMonkey: He's constantly picked on by his classmates and by [[AlphaBitch Tasha]], the head of the school newspaper. [[spoiler:Let's just say his FaceHeelTurn at the end isn't entirely out of nowhere.]]
* CantGetAwayWithNuthin: When fired by Tasha, he decides to get revenge by putting an insulting ad about her in the school newspaper, which included her name and phone number. But Tasha spots it, and decides to turn the tables on him by putting HIS name and address on the ad instead.
* CassandraTruth: When he attempts to inform his parents, teacher and classmates of the Creeps' plan, they either make fun of or ignore him.
* DidntThinkThisThrough: He didn't consider the very plausible possibility that Tasha likely edits the newspaper and would notice he put her phone number there.
* EmbarrassingNickname: "Sicky Ricky" and "Ricky Rat".
* FaceHeelTurn: [[spoiler:When he learns that his classmates will be his slaves once they've turned into Creeps, he decides that if you can't beat 'em, join 'em]].
* FreudianExcuse: [[spoiler:For his FaceHeelTurn. The relentless bullying he faced from his classmates led to him deciding to let them perish and joining the Creeps]].
%% * GettingCrapPastThe Radar: Due to overwhelming and persistent misuse, GCPTR is on-page examples only until 01 June 2021. If you are reading this in the future, please check the trope page to make sure your example fits the current definition.
* TheGlassesGottaGo: [[spoiler: In the episode, when he bites into a cookie containing a seed that will transform him into a Creep, he takes off his glasses because he assumes that his Creep form will not hold them on his snout. In the 2015 movie, this appears to be the case.]]
* IdiotBall: The first night he gets the calls from the Creeps, he simply just keeps hanging up the phone over and over again. When he FINALLY gets the idea to unplug the telephone, it’s two in the morning. This leaves him with no sleep and his parents, who also didn’t get any sleep, furious with him.
* LooseLips: When the Creeps inform Ricky that no one has transformed into Creeps at lunch, Ricky blurts our that this was because he put them in the Mac n’ Cheese, which nobody eats. He even notes to himself that he should not have said that. He quickly covers this up by lying and saying that he only found out afterwards from a student.
* MistakenForBadass: After his revenge plot goes wrong, the Creeps assume he is their leader.
* NoSympathy: Doesn't get a bit of sympathy from ''anybody'' except Iris. Is it any wonder that he eventually snaps?
* PickedLast: This is the main reason why he chooses to attend the newspaper club. All students at his school have to join at least one club or they will have to attend summer school, and since Ricky is argued over by the sports captains on who should pick him, Ricky decides that the newspaper club will be the next best thing instead of a sports club.
* RevengeBeforeReason: He's so eager to get revenge on Tasha that he forgets that as the head of the newspaper, she probably checks over her work and would've noticed his message. Her edit results in the Creeps mistaking him for their Commander.
* ScaryShinyGlasses: [[spoiler: In the tv episode, as he watches the other students at the bake sale eating the cookies that will transform him into his slaves, he looks on the scene with his glasses reflecting the students as they start chewing, about to change. This shows that he really has turned morality-wise at this point.]]
* ThenLetMeBeEvil: [[spoiler:He tries hard to not be the cruel Commander that the other Creeps expect him to be. However, when he snaps due to bullying from the students whom he is trying to save, he caves in and has them transformed and enslaved]].
* TokenGoodTeammate: He finds himself as this after being coerced into the Creeps. [[spoiler:Unfortunately, this goes right out the window when he finds EvilFeelsGood.]]
* WhosLaughingNow: [[spoiler:When he does his FaceHeelTurn]].
* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: [[spoiler: He certainly made everyone who picked on him regret it]].
!! Tasha [=McClain=]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tashagbumps.png]]
-> '''Portrayed By:''' Maia Filar ([[Series/{{Goosebumps}} TV]])
--> ''"That was your last chance. You didn't deserve it. You're just a creep. Why do you think all the kids call you Ricky Rat? Because that's what you are--a little rodent!"''
The head of the school newspaper, and the bane of Ricky's existence.
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* AdaptationDyeJob: A redhead in the book, her hair is black in the TV adaptation.
* AlphaBitch: She hates all sixth-graders, and treats Ricky like a bug she wants to squash. She gives him bad stories that she doesn't publish anyway, calls him names, and threatens to have her rich father sue him when his camera gets wrecked, even though it wasn't Ricky's fault.
* AssholeVictim: [[spoiler: She's the first one Ricky gives a cookie to, and it's impossible to feel bad for what's about to happen to her]].
* TheBully: She viciously belittles and humiliates Ricky at every turn, even telling him to his face that no one at all likes him. When he's trying to warn everyone not to eat the cookies, she leads the entire school to hurl abuse at him.
* FieryRedhead: She has red hair, and when Ricky accidentally sends Pepsi spilling on a computer and crashing it, she goes ballistic. She starts screaming at Ricky, pulling her hair in frustration. And she then fired him on the spot.
* FrivolousLawsuit: When her father's camera is accidentally wrecked when Ricky is using it, she threatens to have him sue Ricky's family over it.
* HateSink: She is clearly meant to be as detestable to the reader as possible. The Creeps might be acting like bullies in order to pass for normal students, but she has no excuse whatsoever.
* {{Jerkass}}: She's as horrible to Ricky as possible for no reason other than thinking she's superior to sixth graders like him.
* JerkWithAHeartOfJerk: After firing Ricky from the newspaper, she agrees to give him a second chance, but does it in the most backhanded way possible, telling him ''repeatedly'' that she only went to him as a last resort. She quickly finds an excuse to fire him anyway.
* MadeASlave: [[spoiler:At the end of the book, along with the rest of the students]].
* MisplacedRetribution: She fires Ricky from the newspaper for grievances that were his bullies' fault. When Jared, Brenda, David and Wart cause Tasha's computer and camera to get destroyed, she immediately blames Ricky and refuses to listen to his attempts to defend himself.
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: She gives a pretty brutal one when firing Ricky for the second time.
* SmugSnake: She rubs it in Ricky's face when she foils his edit to the paper.
!! Iris Candler
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/irisgbumps.png]]
-> '''Portrayed By:''' Hamille Rustia ([[Series/{{Goosebumps}} TV]])
A new student who enters Ricky's class, and makes friends with him.
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* HeelRealization: When Ricky is showing her around the lunchroom and he gets tripped by his enemies, he notes that she is one of the people laughing at him. However, when she sees Ricky being treated like garbage and fired for something that wasn’t his fault, she realizes just how awful his life at school is, and she wants to be his friend.
* LoveInterestTraitor: Subverted. Initially she appears to be on the side of the Creeps, even pretending to be their commander's second-in-command, but she's really just a genuinely nice girl who only wants to help out. Amazingly, she manages to fool the Creeps, who don't ask her to change to prove it.
* NiceGirl: The only character in the entire book to show any sympathy for Ricky's plight.
* OnlyFriend: Is the only one to be willing to hang out with and be friendly with him. [[spoiler: By the end of the story, this isn’t enough to prevent Ricky from joining the Creeps’ side.]]
* RaceLift: Described in the book as having a round face, blue eyes and blond hair, she's Filipino in the TV adaptation.
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: In the book, she inexplicably disappears during the last act and isn't present when Ricky tries to prevent the students from eating the spiked cookies that turn them into Creeps. In the TV adaptation, she begs Ricky not to go through with the Creeps' plan after he finally snaps; it's not indicated if she also gets turned.
!! The Creeps
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/callingallcreeps.jpg]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/humancreeps.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Brenda, Wart, and David]]
-> '''Portrayed By:''' Matthew Lemche, Tonya Johnson, and Travis Kutt (David, Brenda, and Wart) ([[Series/{{Goosebumps}} TV]]); Ashton Lee Wolden (Wart) and Katie Lumpkin (Brenda) ([[Film/{{Goosebumps}} Film]])
--> ''"Humans are the past. Creeps are the future!"''
An unpleasant group of lizard-creatures masquerading as human school bullies.
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* AdaptedOut: Jared doesn't appear in the TV episode.
* AerithAndBob: Their names: Jared, Brenda, David... Wart?
* AliensAreBastards: We don't know just ''what'' they are, but they fit every other criteria.
* AndThenJohnWasAZombie:[[spoiler:The entire student body by the end of the book, including Ricky]].
* AssimilationPlot: Creeps are created when special "identity seeds" are consumed by humans. The main four plan to disperse these seeds among the student body.
* TheBadGuyWins: [[spoiler:A rare example that benefits the protagonist]].
* BigBadEnsemble: Of ''Calling All Creeps!''
* BlueAndOrangeMorality: Like most creatures in the series, the Creeps have very twisted and strange customs.
* ChildSoldiers: The main four, though it's unclear how old they are.
* CrazyPrepared: Ricky "accidentally" drops their bag of seeds in an attempt to escape them? No worries, they've got a spare one on hand.
* EvilPhone: How they contact Ricky.
* GangOfBullies: As humans, they solely exist to make Ricky as miserable as possible.
* HiddenHeartOfGold: It's hinted that they're only acting like bullies to blend in with everyone else. Of course, they're still planning an alien invasion...
* {{Jerkass}}: They take every opportunity to get Ricky fired from the newspaper.
* KidsAreCruel: Also in their human forms, along with the rest of the school who bullies Ricky.
* TheLadette: Brenda, the only female, is no less ferocious than her comrades.
* LizardFolk: Huge, purple lizard/raptor kids. The cover makes them look oddly adorable.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: They're mortified when they "discover" that their Commander is the one they had been bullying, and apologize to Ricky for how they treated him.
* PetTheDog: Their loyalty toward Ricky, their supposed leader, seems surprisingly genuine. [[spoiler:At the very end, they give him the extra push to take revenge on the cruel student body as he's being mocked.]]
* TheSmurfettePrinciple: Brenda's the only female member of the initial group of Creeps.
* TakeOverTheWorld: Their plan is basically "today the middle school, tomorrow the world".
* TeensAreMonsters: Both figuratively and literally, they're eighth graders who love to torment Ricky and are revealed to be the Creeps calling Ricky.
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: If Ricky isn't really their Commander, then where's the real one?
