# Poll: Stephen King Fans - Favorite story from Skeleton Crew **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 7, 2011, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565 "2011-04-07T19:03:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565/1 "2011-04-07T19:03:39Z")
That’s it. What would you say is your favorite story. Just curious, as I consider this collection to be his best and most seminal. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565/2 "2011-04-07T19:13:58Z")
Just _one_?! Fine, I’ll just have Survivor Type since you took The Jaunt, so there! ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565/3 "2011-04-07T19:16:19Z")
Yup! Use all your might to narrow it down, Constant Reader. Feel free to elaborate on your runner-ups though! ---
**Author:** ![Sicks\_Ate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Sicks\_Ate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sicks_Ate)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565/4 "2011-04-07T19:18:12Z")
Horribly unfair question, I’ll be back to actually answer when I’ve narrowed it down to 5. Then I’ll just pick one at random and vote 😃 ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565/5 "2011-04-07T19:18:34Z")
The Man Who Would Not Shake Hands has possibly one of the dumber endings in Western Literature. I voted for The Mist. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565/6 "2011-04-07T19:19:01Z")
Evil runs thick in my blood. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565/7 "2011-04-07T19:22:05Z")
The Mist, Survivor Type, Word Processor of the Gods were all ones I had to arm wrestle my brain over. But ultimately, I decided The Jaunt is the perfect blend of science fiction, haunting philosophical horror, and tragic ending that couldn’t have ended any other way. Also, I consider Stephen King highly under-appreciated for his science fiction. **The Jaunt** wins. ---
**Author:** ![filling\_pages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b9bd4f/32.png) [@filling\_pages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filling_pages)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565/8 "2011-04-07T19:31:37Z")
I had to go with The Jaunt, because that one effed me up in the best way when I was about 14, but I really love at least half of these and enjoy 90% of the rest. This is easily some of the best short work King’s ever done. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565/9 "2011-04-07T19:34:32Z")
Survivor Type, with an honorable mention for The Jaunt. When I first read it (maybe 20 years ago), I wasn’t impressed by The Jaunt, but I reread Skeleton Crew last year and I liked it. I also warmed a bit on The Ballad of the Flexible Bullet, which I thought was stupid as a kid. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565/10 "2011-04-07T19:43:01Z")
Yeh, actually, I remember reading all these for the first time when I was 14, and liked his more approachable stuff more then. I remember thinking I was missing something with **Ballad of the Flexible Bullet** when I was young, but appreciated it. Now, I think it’s my “favorite non-fav”. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565/11 "2011-04-07T19:43:30Z")
I think I recently chose The Jaunt in a thread about your five favorite short stories. I also really love Mrs. Todd’s Shortcut, it’s so atmospheric and sweet. Nona’s just bizarre, but it grew on me after a few WTFs. The Raft always seemed so plausible and terrifying, likewise Gramma. (Hey, if you knew my Grandma, you’d be scared too). I think Steve says in the foreword that he was just stricken with glee when he came up with the idea for Survivor Type, and it is just a super-fun story idea with a nice punchline. So, um…_those_, and then the rest of them in some order. ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565/12 "2011-04-07T20:05:57Z")
Mrs. Todd’s Shortcut is one of my all-time faves. Only slightly gruesome, but if you look at it just a little cross-eyed, you get just a hint of Cyclopean horrors just offstage… ---
**Author:** ![divemaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/divemaster/32/78_2.png) [@divemaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/divemaster)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565/13 "2011-04-07T20:12:24Z")
So many good ones. The Jaunt, of course, and Survivor Type, and The Raft, and Mrs. Todd’s Shortcut, and The Ballad of the Flexible Bullet… But I went ahead and cast my vote for **The Monkey**. King has a way with getting into the mind of young boys and the characterization was fleshed out a bit more in this story than, say, The Jaunt. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565/14 "2011-04-07T20:19:29Z")
Love _The Raft_ and _The Mist_ but _The Reach_ is my favorite. And it’s not even a horror story. ---
**Author:** ![Dogzilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@Dogzilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogzilla)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565/15 "2011-04-07T20:28:50Z")
\*The Raft \*is the one that stuck in my mind, “Oh, was that one in Skeleton Crew or Monkey Shines?” So many compilations of short stories. I really want to read this one again. I remember _Survivor Type_ being very… disturbing, yet a fascinating read, and I loved _The Mis_t as well. I forget _The Jaunt_, but I suspect it’s one of my favorites too, because so many have mentioned it here. But every time I’m swimming near a dock or raft or something (wooden platform made of boards with cracks in between), I think of The Raft and if anyone else is with me, I’ll re-tell the story. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565/16 "2011-04-07T20:45:56Z")
> **[Best story in Stephen King's Skeleton Crew?](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=578287)** > > If we do Night Shift, we need to do Skeleton Crew, too. Which one do you like best and why? Here’s a linkto wiki with links to a short summary of each story if your memory needs a jog. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565/17 "2011-04-07T20:49:31Z")
Gah! I should’ve known. It’s what I get for not searching. But still, I never got to vote. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![PeskiPiksi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e495f1/32.png) [@PeskiPiksi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PeskiPiksi)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565/18 "2011-04-07T21:04:11Z")
No worries, **cmyk**. I goofed when I made that original poll, and made it possible to choose more than one option. Yours will be more scientific. 🙂 I chose The Raft, although The Jaunt came in a very, very close second. I like The Mist, too, but it has a little bit of bloat that knocks it down a few notches IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![sleestak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/919ad9/32.png) [@sleestak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sleestak)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565/19 "2011-04-07T22:53:52Z")
I opted for Nona though there are so many good stories in Crew it is hard to choose. I think it comes down to the mood of the story. It just hits the perfect feel of creepy. In fact, I wrote a song right after reading this story that I think catches the feel quite well. Slee ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2011, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565/20 "2011-04-07T23:22:35Z")
So tough to choose! I finally had to go with _Survivor Type_ because it was so disturbing, and at the same time, so darkly funny. But I also _love_ _Mrs. Todd’s Shortcut_, _The Mist_, _The Jaunt_, _The Raft_, _Gramma_. . .OK, it’s my favorite King collection, let’s leave it at that! 🙂 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-stephen-king-fans-favorite-story-from-skeleton-crew/577565.md?page=2)