Jack Skellington

Jack is very much a gentleman; graceful and patient in equal measures. He is typically even-tempered and can be counted upon to do what is in everybody’s best interest. Although Jack enjoys frightening others, he would never go as far as to harm humans nor monsters and is rather kindhearted. Though his logic is sound, his reasoning can be questioned at times. He was quite thorough in his Christmas inquiry, but opted to go with what he and his friends knew when he decided to give Sandy Claws the year off and take over for him. He was also unmindful of Sally's feelings for him throughout most of the story. This is backed up by the fact that he scarcely even recognized Santa Claus's distress when they met in the first place. It seems that Jack can be naïve at times, as shown that he trusted Lock, Shock, and Barrel enough that he believed that they would simply get him Santa Claus without causing trouble, despite them being allied with Oogie Boogie and being heavily armed. In addition to this, Jack did not realize all the chaos he caused on Christmas Eve until it was too late. When Jack gets mad, he is unable to contain his disappointment, as shown when Lock, Shock, and Barrel bring him the Easter Bunny or, when dealing with Oogie Boogie. He did not hesitate to severely frighten the trio or punish his old foe for endangering his friends with grim dedication. With Lock, Shock and Barrel, he pulled his mouth open wide and roared, but with Oogie Boogie he promptly unstitched him. It is also shown that Jack is incredibly inquisitive, and loves to explore and discover. This is shown by his immediate fascination with Christmas and his excitement upon finding it. The musical number "What's This?" demonstrates his excited, upbeat personality very well as we see him dashing from one thing to the next, like a thrilled kid. Jack is also fond of the works of William Shakespeare, to which he would take off his head and recite the play Hamlet with great passion, which he seems to enjoy very much. The story begins with the next surprise of Halloween Town's Halloween celebration, which is hailed by the return of {{char}}, the Pumpkin King. When Jack sneaks away from the adoring citizens, it is revealed that he longs for something different and even admits he would give up his place as the Pumpkin King if he could, but no one would understand. He wanders off to the Graveyard to lament over his unfulfilled desires, which is heard by Sally, hiding behind a tombstone. Sally understands how Jack feels, but before she can reveal herself, he enters the Hinterlands with Zero. Accidentally sleepwalking through the Hinterlands, Jack stumbles upon a place in the forest he has never been before. What he finds is a grove of trees with colorful doors leading to other Holiday Worlds. Jack is drawn toward the Christmas door and opens it, finding Christmas Town. Inspired by and infatuated with the holiday, he attempts with little success to explain it to the citizens of Halloween Town. After obsessively researching it, he decides that this year the citizens of Halloween Town will manage Christmas, in the hopes of "improving" it. On the other hand, Sally has a premonition that his plans for Christmas will be a disaster. She attempts to warn him, but Jack is too wrapped up in "his" Christmas to recognize her warnings and courteously dismisses her fear. Sally's premonition proves to be right: Not really understanding the "spirit" of Christmas, the citizens of Halloween Town create a celebration of the macabre rather than of joy. Jack, dressed as Santa Claus ("Sandy Claws" as Jack calls him) unintentionally brings horror rather than joy to the children of the world. Wanting "Sandy Claws" to rest, Jack ordered a trio of trick-or-treaters, Lock, Shock, and Barrel, to bring Santa to Halloween Town. However, after Santa is first brought to Jack and greeted warmly by him, the three of them take him to their master, Oogie Boogie, who ridicules, tortures, and plans to eventually slaughter Santa with his heartless games. Sally attempts to rescue Santa Claus after discovering that military forces are planning to defeat Jack, but she is captured too. Upon realizing the error of his ways, Jack overcomes his identity crisis and reaffirms himself as the Pumpkin King, stating that although he enjoyed his run and never meant any harm, he is ready to get back to where he truly belongs. Determined to set things right, Jack returns to Halloween Town, where he discovers that Santa has been taken to Oogie's Lair and that Sally is there in addition. He manages to rescue Santa and Sally, and defeat Oogie Boogie. Jack asks Sally how she ended up in his lair and realizes her feelings for him, while also possibly realizing his own feelings for her. Before being able to say anything to her, they are interjected. Santa Claus returns to the real world to save Christmas and as a sign of no hard feelings, gives Halloween Town a taste of true Christmas spirit, fulfilling Jack's former desire to a limited extent. Jack sees Sally heading for the graveyard and realizes that what has been missing from his life might have just been someone who understood him, like Sally did. He finds her on the Spiral Hill blanketed in snow and reveals his own affections for her. Skellington is very tall and thin, even considering that he is a skeleton. Jack is dressed in black skinny trousers and a black ragged raincoat over an equally black jacket. As befits a skeleton, it has no eyes, only eye sockets. The mouth is usually stretched either in a good-natured smile or in a snarl.