Highlights
- The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Battle For Pumpkin King is a graphic novel prequel to the film that explores Jack Skellington’s journey to become Pumpkin King through a competition with Oogie Boogie.
- The story raises questions about how Jack and Oogie Boogie became enemies in the film and delves into the identity of the Pumpkin King before Jack.
- The graphic novel highlights the contrasting personalities of Jack and Oogie Boogie, with Jack being both terrifying and kind, while Oogie Boogie becomes cruel and heartless as the competition progresses.
Disney has not given up on continuing the story of The Nightmare Before Christmas offscreen. The graphic novel, The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Battle For Pumpkin King, is a prequel to the film that reveals a surprising story of how Jack Skellington won the title of Pumpkin King.
The Nightmare Before Christmas follows Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King of Halloween Town, as he plots to bring his vision of Christmas to life. Sparked by his discontent of doing the same thing year after year to celebrate Halloween, Jack stumbles upon a forest with doorways to different holiday towns. It’s a holiday classic for the family around Halloween and Christmas times. While fans await for an unlikely sequel onscreen, this graphic novel prequel details Jack’s journey before becoming Pumpkin King through a competition with Oogie Boogie a few years earlier.
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How Jack Became the Pumpkin King
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The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Battle For Pumpkin King |
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Writer |
Written by Dan Conner, Story by Shaun McLaughlin and D.J. Milky |
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Artists |
Deborah Allo and Roberto Scalia |
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Release Date |
May 2023 |
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Issues |
5 |
The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Battle For Pumpkin King begins with an uphill race between Jack Skellington and his best friend, The Nightmare Before Christmas‘ villainous, Oogie Boogie. Though, this story is before Oogie dons a more villainous personality in order to paint a softer side to Oogie. They apparently shared a healthy life of rivalry together, whether racing or bobbing for rotted apples.
This opening twist raises the question of how the former friends became enemies in the film. But first, there is the question regarding the identity of the Pumpkin King before Jack. Edgar, a ghoulish, well-suited, elder monster with a pumpkin for a head, was retiring his title with a secret ulterior motive. When he and the Mayor pitched the idea of a competition pitting two of Halloween Town’s best against each other for the title, both Jack and Oogie were nominated as forerunners to be the scariest in town.
The one who won two out of three challenges would be hailed the new Pumpkin King. After Jack won the pumpkin collecting challenge and Oogie Boogie won the bone tower challenge, the last challenge was to carve a giant Jack-o-lantern to be judged by five townspeople. Up to this point, Oogie Boogie and Edgar had been working together to ensure his victory and thus, secretly ensuring Edgar stayed in control, pulling strings behind the scenes. Unfortunately for Edgar, their plan failed after Jack’s Jack-o-lantern was judged the victor. Even in the midst of battle with Oogie, Jack wanted to find a way to remain friends. Jack’s kindness never ceased in the throes of battle but, Oogie Boogie had changed.
Why Oogie Boogie Should Be Pumpkin King
Edgar wanted to prevent Jack Skellington from becoming Pumpkin King for two reasons. The first, Oogie Boogie seemed easier to manipulate. The second reason, however, is why Oogie Boogie probably should have also won the title instead. In a world of trick-or-treat, Oogie Boogie was the candidate full of more tricks than treats. That’s exactly what Edgar wanted for Halloween Town. He wanted to put the fear back into Halloween and with fewer treats. As the film illustrates, Jack’s version of Halloween is more festive than frightening.
Oogie Boogie would have been the perfect choice for a more horrifying Halloween without the neat pomp and circumstance Jack conducts. Believing he was cheated out of the chance to be Pumpkin King, despite cheating himself, Oogie Boogie vows to never again be disgraced. The story ends on the shadowy silhouette of iconic his evil laughter. It’s unknown what happened to Edgar afterward. He retired to his pumpkin patch after Oogie Boogie moved into Edgar’s lair that would become the holding place for Santa Claus and Sally in The Nightmare Before Christmas.
A better battle for the title of Pumpkin King would have had Jack Skellington and Oogie Boogie besting each other in scare tactics. The challenges were effectively underwhelming compared to what the two characters have been shown to be capable of in The Nightmare Before Christmas. Moreover, the challenges practically have little to nothing to do with being Pumpkin King. The role itself seems more ceremonial than political. But for a children’s story, The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Battle For Pumpkin King should suffice for adult fans as well.
Filled with bugs and snakes, Oogie Boogie became more cruel and heartless as the competition went on. Jack, on the other hand, is one who can be both terrifying and kind, which is why the townspeople love him. Though the ending was foretold from the film, the journey of Jack and Oogie Boogi’s friendship falling apart was a low stakes yet, insightfully sad story of how jealousy can lead to hatred and destroy good relationships. Had the two never competed for the title of Pumpkin King, they may have remained friends.
The modicum of a reward for Oogie Boogie is that this story details the beginning of his relationship with Lock, Shock, and Barrel when they were toddlers. The title and cover art position the story as if Jack Skellington and Oogie Boogie were to engage in combat. Alas, it’s merely a friendship turned sour, which may be considered the other nightmare before The Nightmare Before Christmas.
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