Summary[]
Watch is one of the protagonists of the Spooksville series. He is often cited as the most intelligent member of the group, and has an extensive knowledge of basic subjects (particularly science), as well as talent for deductive reasoning and logical thinking. Watch, although one of the core members of the group and present for all 24 novels, is arguably the most mysterious of the group. He also has an unknown last name! Watch is born January 28th making him an Aquarius on the astrological calendar.
History[]
Little is known about Watch, like his real name. The name "Watch" comes from his tendency to wear four watches at once. Each watch is set to a different time zone in the United States, in order to keep track of the time zones that his relatives reside in; his mother lives in New York, his sister in Chicago, and his father in Denver. In The Haunted Cave, it is noted that Watch has had a very difficult childhood and has not told anyone about it - not even Sally, who he has known for years. It is even suggested that the split of his family marked the beginning of the decline in his vision. Adam asks Watch if his aunt is cooking him dinner during their time on the spaceship in Aliens in the Sky, but Watch remarks that he has to make his own food. This is the first mention of Watch's aunt, and it suggests that she is not in a position to take care of him, whether she be handicapped, absent for the majority of the time, or just neglectful.
It is unclear as to how Watch manages to live mostly on his own, as the subject of his family is considered "touchy" by the others; however, in The Dangerous Quest, it is revealed that Watch's past self, created in Time Terror, lived in Spooksville on his own for a short time, and even traveled to Los Angeles to find a job.
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Personality[]
- "You are lonely. I saw that the moment I met you. You have no real family. You live here but you don't feel at home here. Even your friends - you are close to them but you never totally feel as if you are one of them... You would sacrifice your own life to protect your friends. But I think part of the reason is that you're not in love with your life... You are a stranger to this world, Watch. You don't really belong here. You know - you've felt this all your life." - Tira Jones, Invasion of the No Ones
Watch is the most self-sufficient member of the group. He is a natural loner, and this is most likely due to his very distant and detached family. In place of his family, Watch does develop very deep friendships with Adam, Sally, and Cindy. He has known Sally the longest, as the two of them both grew up in Spooksville, but he appears to treasure his relationships with each group member equally. In The Haunted Cave, only the third novel in the series, Watch realizes how horrible it would be if his friends died, and he feels genuine sorrow when he realizes that he cannot save them. He develops an extremely deep sense of compassion and selflessness, which he shows in instances such as his sacrifice for the other Spooksville's Watch in The Dangerous Quest.
Though generally kind, Watch often has little tact when it comes to telling the truth. It is very common for him to state, matter of factly, the group's chances of survival given a certain situation; he rarely promises or believes in false hope. Watch does not wish to die, but he is very fatalistic and is usually the first to admit that there is no hope in dire situations. He muses in The Haunted Cave that he doesn't expect to live past age 20 while remaining in Spooksville, and this thought does not bother him very much. However, he still has a strong desire to live, and will actively try to get out of situations alive - provided that there is a logical option or chance.
Watch is extremely intelligent, insightful, and imaginative. He has built three telescopes on his own and carries a calculator at all times to perform complex calculations. At only twelve years old, it seems Watch has an intuitive understanding of advanced mathematics. He has a passion for science, as well as most school subjects, and finds the supernatural fascinating. In The Evil House, Watch dresses up for Halloween as Sherlock Holmes. He is a "clod" at sports due to his generally poor health and clumsiness.
Appearance[]
Described by Adam as "an interesting looking fellow", Watch can be considered somewhat awkward. He is as tall as Sally, has large ears, long and lanky arms, and blond, sun-colored hair.
Although described as "well muscled" in The Living Dead, Watch is clumsy and in overall poor physical health. He is legally blind without his glasses, the lenses of which "could have been swiped from the ends of telescopes". He mentions in The Secret Path that he couldn't dig out someone he heard screaming from their coffin because he has a bad back. In The Witch's Revenge, the necklace he chooses to wear improves his general health by giving him intense physical strength as well as perfect eyesight and hearing. When Ann Templeton grants him a treat for Halloween (The Evil House), instead of asking for a physical commodity, he requests that she increase the strength of his glasses.
Relationships[]
Watch keeps a relative distance from the others; although he is always present for adventures and group hangouts, he rarely discusses his private life. His closest male friend is Adam, and his female, Sally, simply because of the length of time he has known her. Of all of the main characters, Watch has the least turbulent friendships with everyone, showing an equal amount of compassion and dedication to each of them.
- "Love is an emotion I only know about from textbooks." - Watch, The Howling Ghost
He does not show any romantic interest in anyone throughout the series with the exception of Tira Jones , whom he defends against the group's accusations in Invasion of the No-Ones, despite clear evidence that she may be keeping secrets from them.
- "To him, she was the most remarkable girl he had ever met, and ordinarily girls didn't impress him." - Invasion of the No Ones
Sally and Bryce claim that Watch likes Tira because of her looks, but Watch truly feels an unspoken, emotional connection to her. Tira keeps a distance from the others, much like Watch does on a daily basis; this fact supports the idea that he feels empathetic with her rather than a romantic attraction.
Sally remarks that "if he wasn't so weird, I'd be attracted to him".
Cindy and him has a special bond, because Cindy care about him along many novels asking about his personal life and Watch care about Cindy a lot. Cindy suggest a minor crush on him in The Deadly Past.
Bryce and Watch are good friends and respect each other since Bryce is introduced as a member of the gang in the Invasion of the No Ones, but Watch isn't impressed by Bryce.
Trivia[]
- Was once given a crystal ball by Ann Templeton on Halloween, with the intention that it "would one day save [his] life" (The Evil House).
- Enjoys The Twilight Zone and the movie, Terminator.
- Watch claims that he is not a picky eater in The Little People, but dislikes mayonnaise and has lost his taste for eggs and chicken after eating half a dozen uncooked eggs during an Easter egg-eating contest.
- He in the future is a scientist.
- There is a little chance that his name is actually the same name of the book's author: Christopher PIke.
- In the TV Series his last name is Waverly, but his name remain unknown
- His real name is Winston