"Thriller" has been scaring Michael Jackson fans for 17 years. Has it finally lost its edge?



With Michael Jackson costumes topping the list of popular get-ups this Halloween, I thought it would be appropriate to take a look at the original "Thriller" video, which has been haunting people's dreams with wolfmen and zombies since 1982. I knew I needed to quote an authority to lend my story an air of credibility, so I turned to the foremost experts I could find -- my nieces Natalie, 8, and Clara, 6. They were able to unlock the secret of just why the "Thriller" video is still scary 27 years after inception.

Do you like the Thriller video by Michael Jackson?
Natalie: Oh my god, no.
Clara: No, we do not like it. We just hate it. We hate it.

Why do you hate it?
Clara: Because. It's just ridiculous.
Natalie: She doesn't like the part where it turns into a werewolf.
Clara: We don't like it anywhere at all, because we just hate it.

Does it scare you?
[A jumble of "yes" and "no."]

What is it about the video that's scary?
Natalie: When Michael Jackson turns into a werewolf.

Does it look real?
Natalie: Yeah, kind of.

What happens to you after you watch it and you try to go to bed?
Clara: She never goes to the restroom [Natalie giggles] because she's so scared to go to the bathroom because she's afraid if she goes to the door and opens it, [screams] "Michael Jackson's there! Michael Jackson's there!"
Natalie: So, so scared.
Clara: That's why she never goes to the bathroom in the middle of the night.

Do you like other Michael Jackson videos? Is it just this one that scares you?
Natalie: Yes, just this one.

You don't like those monsters?
Natalie: Oh, no. They creep me oooout.

Have you ever thought that he's trying to protect his girlfriend by becoming a werewolf he can fight the zombies?
Natalie: I don't know.
Clara: That's not protecting your girlfriend! That's attacking your girlfriend!