The Tale of the Chameleons

Season 5, Episode 4, Aired

Episode Summary

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8.0
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After Janice is bitten by a chameleon at the local pet store, it follows her and her friend Sharon home. The chameleon soon tries to take over Janice's life, following the saying among chameleons- 'Bite you once, bite you twice, a little water, pay the price.' Seems that if a chameleon bites you twice and water touches you, you switch places with the creature.moreless
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Fan Episode Reviews (5)

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  • Great episode, Nickeledoen!

    9.1
    "Superb"
    By spongegab13, Nov 24, 2010
    This story starts when Jeanice is bitten by a chameleon. A boy says "Water, water bite you twice". But after Jeanice is bitten two times, she turns into a chameleon. Now her best friend must figure out a why to get the old jeanice back. But suddenly, the original jeanice came back. So that Sharon couldn't figure out, the fake mixed themselves. Who will she believe? Watch it! The ending was soooooo! funny!!moreless

  • Wierd not what is expected of a ayaotd episode.

    1.7
    "Abysmal"
    By Vipper_devil, Nov 24, 2010
    This episode was very confusing for me since it told of a chamelion and a girl who is cursed by it. Since the chameleon takes on her form and the two fight in the end. I was confused on which one was killed in the end was it the girl or the chameleon.
    This episode was not the best and it was very very confusing. It is not what I expected in a are you afraid of the dark episode! Enough said they should have stuck with demons, monsters and ghost stories instead of this trashy episode.moreless

  • After a visit to a pet store, Janice is menaced by a body-snatching iguana...I mean, chameleon.

    7.2
    "Good"
    By Valiere, Sep 17, 2008
    "Are You Afraid of the Dark?" I will remember fondly as one of my few childhood shows that had what I call downer endings. Most shows for kids almost invariably end with the good guys triumphant and all wrongs righted, a phenomenon that now seems especially fantastical in comparison to real life. Kids' shows are determined to make children into rosy-eyed optimists, leaving them ill-prepared for a world of chaos and injustice. The truth is, sometimes the real heroes don't exactly make it. Sometimes the bad guys win. And sometimes you end up a lizard drowning in the bottom of a cold, dark well while an evil doppelganger of yourself lives your life, all because your idiot friend couldn't tell which one was the real you.

    In the Youtube comments for this episode, you get two common sentiments: "Man, is Sharon stupid" and "Those are iguanas, not chameleons." Apparently, the production crew couldn't find or afford real chameleons, so they went the cheaper route. Now you know why kids today just don't know their tropical lizards!

    Anywho, the premise of this tale is that "chameleons" have the ability to steal someone's body by biting them twice. If that person is then exposed to water, they become a "chameleon," while the original "chameleon" takes their form. This is what happens to Janice after a chameleon stows away in a bag of groceries after a visit to the pet shop. "Bite you once, bite you twice, a little water...pay the price!" hisses the evil chameleon at poor Janice, because it's always important to tell your victim exactly what you're planning to do to them before you actually do it.

    When Janice gets transformed into a chameleon and an impostor takes her place, it's up to her friend Sharon to save the day. I know I dug on Sharon earlier, but her heart's in the right place at least. She even plunges her hand right into a sink disposal right before it's turned on to save her lizard friend. I don't know about you, but it'd take a lot to get me to risk my hand like that. I guess that's the kind of person Sharon is: impulsive. Which is why it takes her a couple minutes to decide which of the near-identical Janices is her friend and which deserves the hose. A few minutes to decide WRONG.

    Rest in peace, Janice. Although there won't exactly be a funeral for you, because you're still with us. Sort of.

    Snarking:

    "I know which one the impostor is! She's the bad actor!"moreless

  • In this not-as-bad-as-you'd-think story, a girl finds out not to mess with small reptiles. Bodering on the painful,but with some flashes of brilliance.

    6.0
    "Fair"
    By Gazza_14, Jul 04, 2006
    I was expecting to have given this a score of 0.3, and by the first half it had dropped to 0.1. This is not classis ayaotd by any means. The plot is so original that it's ridiculous and not half as scary as other stories. The fact that nothing is explained also grinds, while that stupid rhyme seems to have little purpose and no reason.
    But wait, it's not all bad. Great acting from all. Some scary moments, like when the chamaelon shows its real eyes, and the nice twist ending.
    It's not all that bad, but certainly is teetering on the edge. That said, it has to be applauded as an experimental and original story.moreless

  • Mystery endings like this episode's really bug me.

    1.0
    "Abysmal"
    By TigerJester14, Jun 25, 2006
    Ever since I was a kid, this ep has never been my cup of tea. I totally agree with Vipper_Devil, this is not one of their best and I really do think it's the chameleon who won in the end, usually the endings of this show are real happy ones, not mysterious ones like this. What also weirds me out is they used iguanas instead of the actual lizard.
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