{
  "id": "trick-r-treat",
  "title": "Trick ’r Treat / Sam",
  "description": "Sam’s Halloween stories across film, comics, animation, FEARnet shorts and licensed narrative projections. Original comic text supplies historical dates; modern stories use overlapping seasonal windows where no calendar year is established. This research edition discloses inaccessible interiors and does not turn publication years into story dates.",
  "continuities": [
    {
      "id": "sam",
      "label": "Sam’s world — screen, comics & qualified connections",
      "note": "One inclusive history for the recurring guardian of Halloween. Historical anthology stories and a spacefaring future do not require alternate universes. Promotional and adaptation labels remain visible; overlapping modern windows do not assert an exact interleaving."
    }
  ],
  "entries": [
    {
      "id": "seed",
      "title": "Days of the Dead — Seed",
      "type": "Comic",
      "date": "October 24–31, 1640",
      "order": 1640.81,
      "canon": "Confirmed canon",
      "release": "2015",
      "description": "A threatened romance unfolds during a witch hunt.",
      "note": "Original legal text starts Ireland, October 24, 1640, then prints October 31st. The year is stated, not inferred from a general witch-trial era. Images unavailable in that reader; no full interior inspection claimed.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "dead",
        "dead-original",
        "dead-toc"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Oct 24–31, 1640",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Read original date-caption OCR in the legally exposed Google Books search; complete lettered pages unavailable.",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.amazon.com/dp/1681160439",
      "productName": "Trick ’r Treat Omnibus — film adaptation + Days of the Dead",
      "productMatch": "Verified containing edition; includes these stories together. It does not contain Witching Hours or the exclusive fifteenth-anniversary bonus. Check availability and condition.",
      "actionLabel": "View on Amazon",
      "storyGroup": "seed"
    },
    {
      "id": "corn",
      "title": "Days of the Dead — Corn Maiden",
      "type": "Comic",
      "date": "October 29, 1853 onward; autumn journey",
      "order": 1853.82,
      "canon": "Confirmed canon",
      "release": "2015",
      "description": "A frontier family encounters an unfamiliar harvest tradition.",
      "note": "Original caption identifies Illinois and October 29, 1853. The date is the opening, not proof every later panel occurs on that day.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "dead",
        "dead-original",
        "dead-toc"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Oct 29, 1853 onward",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Original caption and Halloween dialogue read in legal text snippets; complete interior unavailable.",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.amazon.com/dp/1681160439",
      "productName": "Trick ’r Treat Omnibus — film adaptation + Days of the Dead",
      "productMatch": "Verified containing edition; includes these stories together. It does not contain Witching Hours or the exclusive fifteenth-anniversary bonus. Check availability and condition.",
      "actionLabel": "View on Amazon",
      "storyGroup": "corn"
    },
    {
      "id": "country",
      "title": "Witching Hours — Halloween Country",
      "type": "Comic",
      "date": "Harvest season; calendar era unverified",
      "order": null,
      "canon": "Confirmed canon",
      "release": "2026",
      "description": "Ranch hands interrupt a ritual in Wyoming.",
      "note": "Four rural / cowboy page proofs have no printed year. Cowboy clothing alone cannot distinguish the Old West from a modern ranch; final interior needed before narrowing this period.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "witch",
        "witch-proof"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Era unverified · harvest",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Placement unresolved",
      "inspection": "All four publicly posted draft proof images visually inspected; remaining final interior not inspected.",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Trick-r-Treat-Witching-Hours/Michael-Dougherty/9781681161389",
      "productName": "View Witching Hours edition",
      "productMatch": "Exact official 168-page paperback, ISBN 9781681161389. Amazon US product match not verified; the older omnibus does not contain these new stories.",
      "actionLabel": "View Witching Hours edition",
      "storyGroup": "country"
    },
    {
      "id": "echoes",
      "title": "Days of the Dead — Echoes",
      "type": "Comic",
      "date": "October 30, 1955 onward; Halloween investigation",
      "order": 1955.83,
      "canon": "Confirmed canon",
      "release": "2015",
      "description": "A Los Angeles mystery turns toward the supernatural.",
      "note": "Original date caption supplies the year. It dates the opening, not every later panel.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "dead-original",
        "dead-publisher",
        "dead-toc"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Oct 30, 1955 onward",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Read original printed-date OCR from legal search; full lettered pages not exposed.",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.amazon.com/dp/1681160439",
      "productName": "Trick ’r Treat Omnibus — film adaptation + Days of the Dead",
      "productMatch": "Verified containing edition; includes these stories together. It does not contain Witching Hours or the exclusive fifteenth-anniversary bonus. Check availability and condition.",
      "actionLabel": "View on Amazon",
      "storyGroup": "echoes"
    },
    {
      "id": "bus",
      "title": "Trick ’r Treat — school-bus massacre recollection",
      "type": "Film segment",
      "date": "October 31, 1977",
      "order": 1977.83,
      "canon": "Confirmed canon",
      "release": "2007",
      "description": "The town’s earlier tragedy becomes a Halloween legend.",
      "note": "Optional flashback inside the feature, counted with its containing film. Exact 1977 date reported in the scene account; full scene not directly viewed in this audit.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "bus"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Oct 31, 1977",
      "segment": true,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DBJG6L67",
      "productName": "Trick ’r Treat — Arrow limited-edition 4K UHD",
      "productMatch": "Corresponding Arrow disc via the edition review’s verified Amazon redirect. Includes the film and selected narrative extras; verify format, condition and exact contents. Not the unrelated 1986 Trick or Treat.",
      "actionLabel": "View on Amazon",
      "storyGroup": "bus",
      "container": true
    },
    {
      "id": "monster",
      "title": "Days of the Dead — Monster Mash",
      "type": "Comic",
      "date": "Modern era; Halloween night, before the feature per publisher",
      "order": 2000,
      "canon": "Confirmed canon",
      "release": "2015",
      "description": "Small-town pranksters meet monsters beyond their costumes.",
      "note": "Modern clothes, houses and vehicles appear in the artist’s four preview pages. Publisher calls the collection prequels; no specific year forced between 1977 and the feature. Broad era can overlap other modern entries.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "dead",
        "dead-artist",
        "dead-toc"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Modern era · Halloween",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Viewed four original unlettered interior pages; no exact story year visible.",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.amazon.com/dp/1681160439",
      "productName": "Trick ’r Treat Omnibus — film adaptation + Days of the Dead",
      "productMatch": "Verified containing edition; includes these stories together. It does not contain Witching Hours or the exclusive fifteenth-anniversary bonus. Check availability and condition.",
      "actionLabel": "View on Amazon",
      "storyGroup": "monster",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "frame",
      "title": "Days of the Dead — grandfather / granddaughter framing story",
      "type": "Comic segment",
      "date": "Modern era; Halloween storytelling",
      "order": 2000,
      "canon": "Confirmed canon",
      "release": "2015",
      "description": "A grandfather introduces the tales to a younger listener.",
      "note": "Frame bridges the historical stories; its telling is not placed in 1640 merely because Seed opens the collection. Calendar year unverified.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "dead-frame",
        "dead-original"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Modern era · Halloween",
      "segment": true,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.amazon.com/dp/1681160439",
      "productName": "Trick ’r Treat Omnibus — film adaptation + Days of the Dead",
      "productMatch": "Verified containing edition; includes these stories together. It does not contain Witching Hours or the exclusive fifteenth-anniversary bonus. Check availability and condition.",
      "actionLabel": "View on Amazon",
      "storyGroup": "frame",
      "container": true,
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "feature",
      "title": "Trick ’r Treat — complete interwoven film",
      "type": "Film",
      "date": "Halloween night, est. 2007",
      "order": 2007.83,
      "canon": "Confirmed canon",
      "release": "2007 festival / 2009 home video",
      "description": "One town’s Halloween celebrations collide under Sam’s watch.",
      "note": "The main stories overlap on the same night and stay together. Reported thirty-year gap from 1977 supports est. 2007; the 2009 DVD date does not move the story two years forward. Detailed scene-by-scene prop audit remains open.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "film",
        "bus",
        "thirty",
        "film-edition"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "est. 2007 · Halloween",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Evidence-based estimate",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": true,
      "productUrl": "https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DBJG6L67",
      "productName": "Trick ’r Treat — Arrow limited-edition 4K UHD",
      "productMatch": "Corresponding Arrow disc via the edition review’s verified Amazon redirect. Includes the film and selected narrative extras; verify format, condition and exact contents. Not the unrelated 1986 Trick or Treat.",
      "actionLabel": "View on Amazon",
      "storyGroup": "feature-story"
    },
    {
      "id": "adaptation",
      "title": "Trick ’r Treat — graphic novel adaptation",
      "type": "Comic",
      "date": "Same Halloween as the feature; est. 2007",
      "order": 2007.83,
      "canon": "Assumed canon",
      "release": "2009",
      "description": "The film’s connected stories retold as comics.",
      "note": "Same-story adaptation belongs beside the feature. Four planned issues became one graphic novel; do not invent four separately published releases.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "adaptation",
        "omnibus"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "est. 2007 · Halloween",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Evidence-based estimate",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": true,
      "productUrl": "https://www.amazon.com/dp/1681160439",
      "productName": "Trick ’r Treat Omnibus — film adaptation + Days of the Dead",
      "productMatch": "Verified containing edition; includes these stories together. It does not contain Witching Hours or the exclusive fifteenth-anniversary bonus. Check availability and condition.",
      "actionLabel": "View on Amazon",
      "storyGroup": "feature-story"
    },
    {
      "id": "hhn",
      "title": "Trick ’r Treat — Universal scare zone / maze adaptations",
      "type": "Live attraction",
      "date": "Film-inspired Halloween night; est. 2007 story setting",
      "order": 2007.83,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2017 / 2018",
      "description": "Guests walk into the film’s Halloween dangers.",
      "note": "Orlando scare zone and Hollywood / Orlando mazes are grouped licensed adaptations beside their source film; performance seasons do not date Sam’s fictional return.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "hhn",
        "hhn-zone"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "est. 2007 · Halloween",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Evidence-based estimate",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": true,
      "productUrl": "https://corporate.comcast.com/stories/legendary-pictures-iconic-horror-film-trick-r-treat-to-terrify-halloween-rule-breakers-in-all-new-mazes-at-universal-studios-halloween-horror-nights",
      "productName": "Read official attraction archive",
      "productMatch": "Historical licensed experience; original run ended. No current ticket or unrelated disc advertised as the attraction.",
      "actionLabel": "Read official attraction archive",
      "storyGroup": "feature-story"
    },
    {
      "id": "greetings",
      "title": "Season’s Greetings — original / restored edition",
      "type": "Animated short",
      "date": "Modern-era Halloween night; calendar year unstated",
      "order": 2000,
      "canon": "Assumed canon",
      "release": "1996; restored edition 2025–2026",
      "description": "A sinister stranger follows a trick-or-treater.",
      "note": "Sam’s original animated appearance is not automatically an earlier in-universe event because it was made first. Restored short is the same story.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "origins",
        "arrow"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Modern era · Halloween",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0uwh3p9Qls",
      "productName": "Watch on YouTube",
      "productMatch": "Exact restored short embedded by the creator’s official website; not its separate teaser trailer.",
      "actionLabel": "Watch on YouTube",
      "storyGroup": "greetings",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "bonus",
      "title": "15th Anniversary Omnibus — exclusive new Sam story",
      "type": "Comic",
      "date": "Era unverified; original interior needed",
      "order": null,
      "canon": "Confirmed canon",
      "release": "2023–2025 exclusive editions / digital distribution",
      "description": "A separately commissioned Sam tale expands the omnibus.",
      "note": "Publisher confirms new narrative content. Public title / calendar not established; do not substitute the ten-year omnibus as its product or silently call the bonus a reprint.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "fifteen",
        "fifteen-edition",
        "witch-proof"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Era unverified",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Placement unresolved",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://rocketshipent.com/portfolio/trick-r-treat/",
      "productName": "View exclusive containing edition",
      "productMatch": "Correct 270-page fifteenth-anniversary collection. Retail availability not promised; exact story title and complete interior remain verification targets.",
      "actionLabel": "View exclusive containing edition",
      "storyGroup": "bonus"
    },
    {
      "id": "fear-easter",
      "title": "FEARnet — Easter Candy",
      "type": "Web short",
      "date": "Easter; modern era",
      "order": 2000.2,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2011",
      "description": "Sam intrudes on a different holiday.",
      "note": "Narrative broadcaster promotion in an overlapping modern seasonal window. Order relative to the film is unverified; upload dates are not fictional years.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "fear-release",
        "creator-shorts"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Modern era · Easter",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJlSTAd1Uus",
      "productName": "Watch on YouTube",
      "productMatch": "Exact creator-hosted short recovered from the official channel; no standalone Amazon product substituted.",
      "actionLabel": "Watch on YouTube",
      "storyGroup": "fear-easter",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "fear-father",
      "title": "FEARnet — Father’s Day",
      "type": "Web short",
      "date": "Father’s Day; modern era",
      "order": 2000.45,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2011",
      "description": "A father’s celebration takes an unsettling turn.",
      "note": "Narrative broadcaster promotion in an overlapping modern seasonal window. Order relative to the film is unverified; upload dates are not fictional years.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "fear-release",
        "creator-shorts"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Modern era · Father’s Day",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65CzGg-gdNs",
      "productName": "Watch on YouTube",
      "productMatch": "Exact creator-hosted short recovered from the official channel; no standalone Amazon product substituted.",
      "actionLabel": "Watch on YouTube",
      "storyGroup": "fear-father",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "fear-school",
      "title": "FEARnet — Back to School",
      "type": "Web short",
      "date": "Late summer / autumn school return; modern era",
      "order": 2000.68,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2011",
      "description": "Sam waits as the school year begins.",
      "note": "Narrative broadcaster promotion in an overlapping modern seasonal window. Order relative to the film is unverified; upload dates are not fictional years.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "fear-release",
        "creator-shorts"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Modern era · school return",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ES0qpPPEn5E",
      "productName": "Watch on YouTube",
      "productMatch": "Exact creator-hosted short recovered from the official channel; no standalone Amazon product substituted.",
      "actionLabel": "Watch on YouTube",
      "storyGroup": "fear-school",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "fear-friends",
      "title": "FEARnet — Making Friends",
      "type": "Web short",
      "date": "Halloween season; modern era",
      "order": 2000.8,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2011",
      "description": "A lonely child makes a companion, with Sam nearby.",
      "note": "Narrative broadcaster promotion in an overlapping modern seasonal window. Order relative to the film is unverified; upload dates are not fictional years.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "friends",
        "creator-shorts"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Modern era · autumn",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cK67rI_1z1U",
      "productName": "Watch on YouTube",
      "productMatch": "Exact creator-hosted short recovered from the official channel; no standalone Amazon product substituted.",
      "actionLabel": "Watch on YouTube",
      "storyGroup": "fear-friends",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "fear-rules",
      "title": "FEARnet — The Four Rules — complete vignette run",
      "type": "Web short",
      "date": "Halloween night; modern era",
      "order": 2000.83,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2011",
      "description": "Costumes, treats, pumpkins and candy each carry a rule.",
      "note": "Narrative broadcaster promotion in an overlapping modern seasonal window. Order relative to the film is unverified; upload dates are not fictional years.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "fear-rules",
        "fear-release",
        "creator-shorts"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Modern era · Halloween",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7mJZDAQQd1w",
      "productName": "Watch on YouTube",
      "productMatch": "Exact creator-hosted short recovered from the official channel; no standalone Amazon product substituted.",
      "actionLabel": "Watch on YouTube",
      "storyGroup": "fear-rules",
      "eraWindow": true,
      "productLinks": [
        {
          "productUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPVXECb0HDE",
          "productName": "Watch Rule 2",
          "productMatch": "Exact remaining creator-hosted vignette in this four-short run.",
          "actionLabel": "Watch Rule 2"
        },
        {
          "productUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UfzLN5Txr3M",
          "productName": "Watch Rule 3",
          "productMatch": "Exact remaining creator-hosted vignette in this four-short run.",
          "actionLabel": "Watch Rule 3"
        },
        {
          "productUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9dYrrNue54",
          "productName": "Watch Rule 4",
          "productMatch": "Exact remaining creator-hosted vignette in this four-short run.",
          "actionLabel": "Watch Rule 4"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "fear-after",
      "title": "FEARnet — The Day After",
      "type": "Web short",
      "date": "November 1; modern era",
      "order": 2000.84,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2011–2012 uploads",
      "description": "The morning after Halloween has its own mood.",
      "note": "Narrative broadcaster promotion in an overlapping modern seasonal window. Order relative to the film is unverified; upload dates are not fictional years.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "fear-review",
        "creator-shorts"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Modern era · Nov 1",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlqtI_aGKrs",
      "productName": "Watch on YouTube",
      "productMatch": "Exact creator-hosted short recovered from the official channel; no standalone Amazon product substituted.",
      "actionLabel": "Watch on YouTube",
      "storyGroup": "fear-after",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "fear-snowmen",
      "title": "FEARnet — Snowmen",
      "type": "Web short",
      "date": "Winter / Christmas season; modern era",
      "order": 2000.95,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2012",
      "description": "Sam objects to a winter holiday display.",
      "note": "Narrative broadcaster promotion in an overlapping modern seasonal window. Order relative to the film is unverified; upload dates are not fictional years.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "arrow",
        "fear-review",
        "creator-shorts"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Modern era · winter",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efF_1nrKCvM",
      "productName": "Watch on YouTube",
      "productMatch": "Exact creator-hosted short recovered from the official channel; no standalone Amazon product substituted.",
      "actionLabel": "Watch on YouTube",
      "storyGroup": "fear-snowmen",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "atmos-boughs",
      "title": "AtmosFX — Boughs of Horror",
      "type": "Digital projection short",
      "date": "Modern era; Halloween night",
      "order": 2000.83,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2016",
      "description": "A homeowner removes Halloween decorations too early.",
      "note": "One narrative scene family, not a new story for every orientation / display mode. This Season’s Greetings is a different work from the 1996 animated short. No film-year or 2016 story date implied.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "atmos",
        "atmos-launch",
        "atmos-creator"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Modern era · Halloween",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://atmosfx.com/products/trick-r-treat",
      "productName": "View official scene / preview",
      "productMatch": "Exact licensed digital collection with title-specific previews. No projection hardware or unrelated Amazon product substituted.",
      "actionLabel": "View official scene / preview",
      "storyGroup": "atmos-boughs",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "atmos-costume",
      "title": "AtmosFX — No Costume, No Candy",
      "type": "Digital projection short",
      "date": "Modern era; Halloween night",
      "order": 2000.83,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2016",
      "description": "An uncostumed teenager steals candy.",
      "note": "One narrative scene family, not a new story for every orientation / display mode. This Season’s Greetings is a different work from the 1996 animated short. No film-year or 2016 story date implied.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "atmos",
        "atmos-launch",
        "atmos-creator"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Modern era · Halloween",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://atmosfx.com/products/trick-r-treat",
      "productName": "View official scene / preview",
      "productMatch": "Exact licensed digital collection with title-specific previews. No projection hardware or unrelated Amazon product substituted.",
      "actionLabel": "View official scene / preview",
      "storyGroup": "atmos-costume",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "atmos-symphony",
      "title": "AtmosFX — Sam’s Symphony",
      "type": "Digital projection short",
      "date": "Modern era; Halloween night",
      "order": 2000.83,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2016",
      "description": "Sam levitates pumpkins and conjures fire.",
      "note": "One narrative scene family, not a new story for every orientation / display mode. This Season’s Greetings is a different work from the 1996 animated short. No film-year or 2016 story date implied.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "atmos",
        "atmos-launch",
        "atmos-creator"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Modern era · Halloween",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://atmosfx.com/products/trick-r-treat",
      "productName": "View official scene / preview",
      "productMatch": "Exact licensed digital collection with title-specific previews. No projection hardware or unrelated Amazon product substituted.",
      "actionLabel": "View official scene / preview",
      "storyGroup": "atmos-symphony",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "atmos-treats",
      "title": "AtmosFX — Season’s Greetings",
      "type": "Digital projection short",
      "date": "Modern era; Halloween night",
      "order": 2000.83,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2016",
      "description": "Healthy treats draw Sam’s displeasure.",
      "note": "One narrative scene family, not a new story for every orientation / display mode. This Season’s Greetings is a different work from the 1996 animated short. No film-year or 2016 story date implied.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "atmos",
        "atmos-launch",
        "atmos-creator"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Modern era · Halloween",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://atmosfx.com/products/trick-r-treat",
      "productName": "View official scene / preview",
      "productMatch": "Exact licensed digital collection with title-specific previews. No projection hardware or unrelated Amazon product substituted.",
      "actionLabel": "View official scene / preview",
      "storyGroup": "atmos-treats",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "atmos-eat",
      "title": "AtmosFX — Something Good to Eat",
      "type": "Digital projection short",
      "date": "Modern era; Halloween night",
      "order": 2000.83,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2016",
      "description": "Mrs. McGlinchy steals from trick-or-treaters.",
      "note": "One narrative scene family, not a new story for every orientation / display mode. This Season’s Greetings is a different work from the 1996 animated short. No film-year or 2016 story date implied.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "atmos",
        "atmos-launch",
        "atmos-creator"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Modern era · Halloween",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://atmosfx.com/products/trick-r-treat",
      "productName": "View official scene / preview",
      "productMatch": "Exact licensed digital collection with title-specific previews. No projection hardware or unrelated Amazon product substituted.",
      "actionLabel": "View official scene / preview",
      "storyGroup": "atmos-eat",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "last-halloween",
      "title": "Witching Hours — One Last Halloween",
      "type": "Comic",
      "date": "est. Modern era; Halloween night",
      "order": 2020,
      "canon": "Confirmed canon",
      "release": "2026",
      "description": "Care-home residents ask for one more celebration.",
      "note": "Formerly announced as Never Too Old; one story under two titles. Modern care setting supports a broad contemporary window; not a calendar-2026 sequel.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "witch",
        "witch-canon",
        "witch-interview"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "est. Modern era · Halloween",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Evidence-based estimate",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": true,
      "productUrl": "https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Trick-r-Treat-Witching-Hours/Michael-Dougherty/9781681161389",
      "productName": "View Witching Hours edition",
      "productMatch": "Exact official 168-page paperback, ISBN 9781681161389. Amazon US product match not verified; the older omnibus does not contain these new stories.",
      "actionLabel": "View Witching Hours edition",
      "storyGroup": "last-halloween",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "miss-me",
      "title": "Witching Hours — Did You Miss Me",
      "type": "Comic",
      "date": "est. Modern era; one Halloween night",
      "order": 2020,
      "canon": "Confirmed canon",
      "release": "2026",
      "description": "A ghost tries to reunite with his wife in New York.",
      "note": "Earlier campaign title One Last Dance is not another story. One-night clock comes from publisher; exact calendar remains open pending full interior.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "witch",
        "witch-interview"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "est. Modern era · Halloween",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Evidence-based estimate",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": true,
      "productUrl": "https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Trick-r-Treat-Witching-Hours/Michael-Dougherty/9781681161389",
      "productName": "View Witching Hours edition",
      "productMatch": "Exact official 168-page paperback, ISBN 9781681161389. Amazon US product match not verified; the older omnibus does not contain these new stories.",
      "actionLabel": "View Witching Hours edition",
      "storyGroup": "miss-me",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "future",
      "title": "Witching Hours — Harvest Moons",
      "type": "Comic",
      "date": "Future space-colony era; Halloween rediscovered",
      "order": 3000,
      "canon": "Confirmed canon",
      "release": "2026",
      "description": "Children on a distant colony rediscover Halloween.",
      "note": "Explicitly called canonical by the publisher. Future setting belongs at the end of the shared history; no invented numeric future year from the display sort anchor.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "witch",
        "witch-canon"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Future · space-colony era",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Trick-r-Treat-Witching-Hours/Michael-Dougherty/9781681161389",
      "productName": "View Witching Hours edition",
      "productMatch": "Exact official 168-page paperback, ISBN 9781681161389. Amazon US product match not verified; the older omnibus does not contain these new stories.",
      "actionLabel": "View Witching Hours edition",
      "storyGroup": "future"
    },
    {
      "id": "pumpkin-girl",
      "title": "Sam: The Soul of Halloween — Pumpkin Girl",
      "type": "Animated short",
      "date": "Modern-era October / Halloween season",
      "order": 2020.8,
      "canon": "Assumed canon",
      "release": "2026",
      "description": "A pumpkin-costumed girl arrives at a doorway.",
      "note": "Official creator-channel collaboration; new narrative rather than a reused movie clip. October release does not establish an in-universe 2026.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "watch",
        "pumpkin-girl"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Modern era · October",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Official 41-second video metadata, description and opening frames inspected; not a complete frame-by-frame playback audit.",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xy1AnmRCSGM",
      "productName": "Watch on YouTube",
      "productMatch": "Exact official Sam / Trent Shy animated short.",
      "actionLabel": "Watch on YouTube",
      "storyGroup": "pumpkin-girl",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "sam-hello",
      "title": "Sam: The Soul of Halloween — Hello October: From Sam",
      "type": "Animated micro-short",
      "date": "Autumn / Halloween season; calendar year unstated",
      "order": 2020.8,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2026",
      "description": "October greeting.",
      "note": "Official site’s current short-form upload, conservatively labelled promotional. Complete playback and any additional plot remain uninspected; countdown titles are marketing intervals, not evidence of a fictional October 2026 date.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "watch"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Autumn · Halloween season",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TMuk2owBkUw",
      "productName": "Watch on YouTube",
      "productMatch": "Exact embed recovered from the creator’s current watch page. Short / loop eligibility remains qualified.",
      "actionLabel": "Watch on YouTube",
      "storyGroup": "sam-hello",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "sam-symbol",
      "title": "Sam: The Soul of Halloween — ☾ ▲ ⊗ ☽",
      "type": "Animated micro-short",
      "date": "Autumn / Halloween season; calendar year unstated",
      "order": 2020.8,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2026",
      "description": "Seasonal symbol vignette.",
      "note": "Official site’s current short-form upload, conservatively labelled promotional. Complete playback and any additional plot remain uninspected; countdown titles are marketing intervals, not evidence of a fictional October 2026 date.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "watch"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Autumn · Halloween season",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPoFvuSKPzE",
      "productName": "Watch on YouTube",
      "productMatch": "Exact embed recovered from the creator’s current watch page. Short / loop eligibility remains qualified.",
      "actionLabel": "Watch on YouTube",
      "storyGroup": "sam-symbol",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "sam-time",
      "title": "Sam: The Soul of Halloween — Killing Time with Sam",
      "type": "Animated micro-short",
      "date": "Autumn / Halloween season; calendar year unstated",
      "order": 2020.8,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2026",
      "description": "Sam-themed seasonal animation.",
      "note": "Official site’s current short-form upload, conservatively labelled promotional. Complete playback and any additional plot remain uninspected; countdown titles are marketing intervals, not evidence of a fictional October 2026 date.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "watch"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Autumn · Halloween season",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wCnL7YDiz-I",
      "productName": "Watch on YouTube",
      "productMatch": "Exact embed recovered from the creator’s current watch page. Short / loop eligibility remains qualified.",
      "actionLabel": "Watch on YouTube",
      "storyGroup": "sam-time",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "sam-ave",
      "title": "Sam: The Soul of Halloween — Ave Samhaini ☾ ▲ ⊗ ☽",
      "type": "Animated micro-short",
      "date": "Autumn / Halloween season; calendar year unstated",
      "order": 2020.8,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2026",
      "description": "Seasonal ritual vignette.",
      "note": "Official site’s current short-form upload, conservatively labelled promotional. Complete playback and any additional plot remain uninspected; countdown titles are marketing intervals, not evidence of a fictional October 2026 date.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "watch"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Autumn · Halloween season",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wcKOFV26L0",
      "productName": "Watch on YouTube",
      "productMatch": "Exact embed recovered from the creator’s current watch page. Short / loop eligibility remains qualified.",
      "actionLabel": "Watch on YouTube",
      "storyGroup": "sam-ave",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "sam-carving",
      "title": "Sam: The Soul of Halloween — Pumpkin Carving with Sam",
      "type": "Animated micro-short",
      "date": "Autumn / Halloween season; calendar year unstated",
      "order": 2020.8,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2026",
      "description": "Pumpkin-carving vignette.",
      "note": "Official site’s current short-form upload, conservatively labelled promotional. Complete playback and any additional plot remain uninspected; countdown titles are marketing intervals, not evidence of a fictional October 2026 date.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "watch"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Autumn · Halloween season",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7UrEXZInvg",
      "productName": "Watch on YouTube",
      "productMatch": "Exact embed recovered from the creator’s current watch page. Short / loop eligibility remains qualified.",
      "actionLabel": "Watch on YouTube",
      "storyGroup": "sam-carving",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "sam-thirteen",
      "title": "Sam: The Soul of Halloween — 13 Days ☾ ▲ ⊗ ☽",
      "type": "Animated micro-short",
      "date": "Autumn / Halloween season; calendar year unstated",
      "order": 2020.8,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2026",
      "description": "Halloween countdown vignette.",
      "note": "Official site’s current short-form upload, conservatively labelled promotional. Complete playback and any additional plot remain uninspected; countdown titles are marketing intervals, not evidence of a fictional October 2026 date.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "watch"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Autumn · Halloween season",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D6CZAQMbIvo",
      "productName": "Watch on YouTube",
      "productMatch": "Exact embed recovered from the creator’s current watch page. Short / loop eligibility remains qualified.",
      "actionLabel": "Watch on YouTube",
      "storyGroup": "sam-thirteen",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "sam-ten",
      "title": "Sam: The Soul of Halloween — 10 Days till Halloween",
      "type": "Animated micro-short",
      "date": "Autumn / Halloween season; calendar year unstated",
      "order": 2020.8,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2026",
      "description": "Halloween countdown vignette.",
      "note": "Official site’s current short-form upload, conservatively labelled promotional. Complete playback and any additional plot remain uninspected; countdown titles are marketing intervals, not evidence of a fictional October 2026 date.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "watch"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Autumn · Halloween season",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=etnbZpW9ni8",
      "productName": "Watch on YouTube",
      "productMatch": "Exact embed recovered from the creator’s current watch page. Short / loop eligibility remains qualified.",
      "actionLabel": "Watch on YouTube",
      "storyGroup": "sam-ten",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "hallowed",
      "title": "Trick ’r Treat: Hallowed Grounds — ScareHouse",
      "type": "Live attraction",
      "date": "Modern-era Halloween / harvest-night setting",
      "order": 2000.83,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2015",
      "description": "A licensed haunted trail invokes Sam’s world.",
      "note": "Legendary collaboration verified; full walkthrough script unavailable. No independent 2015 fictional year imposed.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "scarehouse"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Modern era · Halloween",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://www.pittsburghmagazine.com/season-for-spooks-the-scarehouse-debuts-2-new-haunts/",
      "productName": "Read historical attraction report",
      "productMatch": "Original licensed experience archive, not a currently purchasable replay.",
      "actionLabel": "Read historical attraction report",
      "storyGroup": "hallowed",
      "eraWindow": true
    },
    {
      "id": "frightfest",
      "title": "Trick ’r Treat — Fright Fest candy-trail experience",
      "type": "Live attraction",
      "date": "Modern-era Halloween night",
      "order": 2000.83,
      "canon": "Promotional only",
      "release": "2024 onward productions",
      "description": "A jack-o’-lantern trail leads toward Sam.",
      "note": "Park editions grouped at a broad film-inspired seasonal window. Real opening dates do not establish a new canon year; park-specific scripts remain uninspected.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "sixflags"
      ],
      "continuity": "sam",
      "railLabel": "Modern era · Halloween",
      "segment": false,
      "confidence": "Relative / stated chronology",
      "inspection": "Source / inventory checked; full work not inspected",
      "estimated": false,
      "productUrl": "https://investors.sixflags.com/news/press-releases/",
      "productName": "Read official attraction announcement",
      "productMatch": "Official operator archive. Historical release is evidence of the licence; no current ticket availability assumed.",
      "actionLabel": "Read official attraction announcement",
      "storyGroup": "frightfest",
      "eraWindow": true
    }
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "id": "film",
      "title": "Legendary — original film",
      "url": "https://www.legendary.com/film/trick-r-treat/",
      "kind": "Primary",
      "note": "Four interlocking Halloween narratives; original festival release December 9, 2007. Home-video release and fictional year are different facts."
    },
    {
      "id": "bus",
      "title": "School-bus story — creator discussion / scene account",
      "url": "https://comicbook.com/movies/news/trick-r-treat-movie-halloween-school-bus-massacre-twist-alternate-ending-michael-dougherty/",
      "kind": "Creator discussion / secondary scene account",
      "note": "Identifies the October 31, 1977 massacre; original full film not inspected in this pass."
    },
    {
      "id": "thirty",
      "title": "Contemporary film scene review — thirty-year interval",
      "url": "https://reeltoreelmovies.com/2012/10/29/lunatics-and-laughter-day-18-trick-r-treat-2007/",
      "kind": "Secondary / scene account",
      "note": "Reports Macy’s thirty-year interval. With the 1977 backstory, supports est. 2007 rather than deriving the year solely from release."
    },
    {
      "id": "adaptation",
      "title": "DC — original graphic adaptation",
      "url": "https://www.dc.com/graphic-novels/trick-r-treat-2007/trick-r-treat",
      "kind": "Primary",
      "note": "96-page Marc Andreyko adaptation; September 30, 2009 comics-shop date. Not four additional published single issues."
    },
    {
      "id": "omnibus",
      "title": "Legendary — ten-year omnibus contents",
      "url": "https://www.legendary.com/comics/trick-r-treat-omnibus/",
      "kind": "Primary",
      "note": "ISBN 9781681160436 collects the film adaptation and Days of the Dead. Collection is an edition, not another adventure."
    },
    {
      "id": "amazon-comic",
      "title": "Amazon — corresponding omnibus",
      "url": "https://www.amazon.com/dp/1681160439",
      "kind": "Retailer / actual product title",
      "note": "Actual title / author / ISBN read from product HTML. This collected edition contains the adaptation and four Days stories, not Witching Hours or the later exclusive bonus."
    },
    {
      "id": "film-edition",
      "title": "Arrow edition — corresponding Amazon route",
      "url": "https://cultsploitation.com/trick-r-treat-4k-uhd-review-arrow-video/",
      "kind": "Secondary edition review / product redirect",
      "note": "Reviewed Arrow 4K listing links to Amazon product B0DBJG6L67. Redirect verified; full retailer title was not returned in this request. Arrow’s own page controls bonus contents."
    },
    {
      "id": "dead",
      "title": "Legendary — four official prequels",
      "url": "https://www.legendary.com/sam_is_back/",
      "kind": "Primary",
      "note": "Publisher calls Days of the Dead four official prequel stories. Contemporary frame / story sequence retained with dates checked separately."
    },
    {
      "id": "dead-publisher",
      "title": "Simon & Schuster — Days of the Dead",
      "url": "https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Trick-r-Treat-Days-of-the-Dead/Michael-Dougherty/9781937278854",
      "kind": "Primary",
      "note": "2015, 144-page collection; includes historical romance, frontier, Los Angeles noir and town pranks."
    },
    {
      "id": "dead-original",
      "title": "Days of the Dead — legal Google Books text sample",
      "url": "https://books.google.com/books?id=WtxyCgAAQBAJ",
      "kind": "Primary work / legally exposed text",
      "note": "Original publisher-supplied OCR searched in the visible reader: Ireland October 24, 1640; Illinois October 29, 1853; Los Angeles October 30, 1955. These are story captions, not indicia. Page-image results are unavailable; no full-page inspection claimed."
    },
    {
      "id": "dead-artist",
      "title": "Zid — actual public comic-page previews",
      "url": "https://mohammadyazid.com/2015/10/trick-r-treat-days-of-the-dead/",
      "kind": "Primary artist / original interior art",
      "note": "Visually inspected the four posted unlettered Monster Mash pages numbered 2, 3, 6 and 10. Halloween decor, modern clothing and cars support a modern window; no printed year visible. Other stories’ complete pages not supplied here."
    },
    {
      "id": "dead-toc",
      "title": "Days of the Dead — story inventory",
      "url": "https://my.comics.org/issue/2490970/",
      "kind": "Secondary / bibliographic index",
      "note": "Cross-checks Seed, Corn Maiden, Echoes and Monster Mash as separate stories. Art/chapter-break pages are not additional stories."
    },
    {
      "id": "dead-frame",
      "title": "Days of the Dead — frame and periods",
      "url": "https://dailydead.com/impressions-trick-r-treat-days-of-the-dead/",
      "kind": "Secondary / original book review",
      "note": "Review identifies the grandfather / granddaughter frame. Broad century summaries defer to the original date text."
    },
    {
      "id": "fifteen",
      "title": "Legendary — exclusive extra story",
      "url": "https://www.legendary.com/legendary-comics-launches-kickstarter-for-trick-r-treat-15th-anniversary-omnibus-collection/",
      "kind": "Primary",
      "note": "Fifteenth-anniversary collection adds an original Sam story; not merely a cover variant or the same as the ten-year collection."
    },
    {
      "id": "fifteen-edition",
      "title": "Rocketship — 270-page exclusive omnibus",
      "url": "https://rocketshipent.com/portfolio/trick-r-treat/",
      "kind": "Primary",
      "note": "Publisher identifies containing edition and added story. Public blurb does not establish the bonus story’s exact title, plot or fictional date."
    },
    {
      "id": "witch",
      "title": "Simon & Schuster — Witching Hours",
      "url": "https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Trick-r-Treat-Witching-Hours/Michael-Dougherty/9781681161389",
      "kind": "Primary",
      "note": "October 13, 2026 retail edition, ISBN 9781681161389, 168 pages. Current titles: One Last Halloween, Did You Miss Me, Harvest Moons, Halloween Country. No invented Amazon identifier."
    },
    {
      "id": "witch-proof",
      "title": "Legendary — public Halloween Country page proofs",
      "url": "https://trick-r-treat-witching-hour.backerkit.com/hosted_preorders/project_updates?page=4",
      "kind": "Primary publisher / legal interior preview",
      "note": "Viewed all four posted July 2025 proof images: child / pumpkin field, bedroom, ranch hands / cornfield, Sam scarecrow. No explicit year visible; cowboy clothing / rural setting permit only a qualified broad-era placement. Same page verifies omnibus digital distribution."
    },
    {
      "id": "witch-canon",
      "title": "Legendary — canonical future and title change",
      "url": "https://trick-r-treat-witching-hour.backerkit.com/hosted_preorders/project_updates?page=2",
      "kind": "Primary",
      "note": "Publisher explicitly calls the space story canonical. Never Too Old became One Last Halloween. Artist replacements / delays supersede early campaign credits. Full backer PDFs are access-controlled and were not accessed."
    },
    {
      "id": "witch-shipping",
      "title": "Legendary — retail versus deluxe delivery",
      "url": "https://trick-r-treat-witching-hour.backerkit.com/hosted_preorders/project_updates",
      "kind": "Primary",
      "note": "September/October 2026 updates distinguish released October 13 paperback from still-pending deluxe backer shipments. Krampus companion’s retail withdrawal does not withdraw the Sam paperback."
    },
    {
      "id": "witch-interview",
      "title": "Dougherty — original new stories",
      "url": "https://bloody-disgusting.com/movie/3969834/trick-r-treat-michael-dougherty-witching-hours-comic-sequel-movie/",
      "kind": "Primary creator interview",
      "note": "Creator interview locates the ghost story in New York, discusses retirement-home and space stories, and says the sequel and unmade Amazon animation remain undeveloped releases."
    },
    {
      "id": "origins",
      "title": "Sam — creator’s official origins",
      "url": "https://samthesoulofhalloween.com/origins",
      "kind": "Primary",
      "note": "Original 1996 short, 2007 film and later restoration are distinguished. Restoration is the same narrative, not a sequel."
    },
    {
      "id": "watch",
      "title": "Sam — current official watch catalogue",
      "url": "https://samthesoulofhalloween.com/watch",
      "kind": "Primary",
      "note": "Visible October 26 inventory and embeds checked. New shorts, countdowns, teaser, ambience and restored original are not all automatically separate narrative stories."
    },
    {
      "id": "creator-shorts",
      "title": "Dougherty — actual hosted short inventory",
      "url": "https://www.youtube.com/@mike_dougherty/videos",
      "kind": "Primary creator-hosted videos",
      "note": "Visible official channel lists all ten FEARnet shorts with exact watch IDs, including the four rules. Direct links recovered; full playback not asserted."
    },
    {
      "id": "pumpkin-girl",
      "title": "Sam / Trent Shy — Pumpkin Girl",
      "url": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xy1AnmRCSGM",
      "kind": "Primary creator video",
      "note": "Official collaboration, 41-second stop-motion narrative. Opening frames and official description inspected: pumpkin-costumed girl at a decorated doorway; full playback / every frame not audited."
    },
    {
      "id": "fear-release",
      "title": "FEARnet — broadcaster’s narrative-short inventory",
      "url": "https://www.broadwayworld.com/bwwtv/article/FEARnet-Brings-Holiday-Favorite-TRICK-R-TREAT-to-VOD-for-First-Time-20131003",
      "kind": "Primary broadcaster release / syndicated",
      "note": "Broadcaster release confirms holiday shorts, back-to-school and four Halloween-rule vignettes. Original retired site is not presumed still playable."
    },
    {
      "id": "fear-rules",
      "title": "FEARnet — contemporary four-rule release",
      "url": "https://www.dreadcentral.com/news/27999/fearnet-presents-trick-r-treat-4-rules-announces-new-acquisitions-and-programing-initiatives/",
      "kind": "Secondary / contemporary release",
      "note": "October 24, 2011 report confirms four rules as a mini-run, separate from other holiday shorts. Exact master / current playback remains uninspected."
    },
    {
      "id": "friends",
      "title": "Making Friends — contemporary release",
      "url": "https://thefilmstage.com/trick-r-treat-director-mike-doughtery-wishes-fans-happy-halloween-with-devilish-new-short/",
      "kind": "Secondary / contemporary release",
      "note": "October 12, 2011 release report identifies original short and Sam cameo. Some databases’ 2012 upload dates do not replace this first-release evidence."
    },
    {
      "id": "fear-review",
      "title": "FEARnet — recovered narrative inventory",
      "url": "https://bloody-disgusting.com/editorials/3971761/looking-back-on-fearnets-trick-r-treat-shorts/",
      "kind": "Secondary / retrospective inventory",
      "note": "Cross-checks holiday productions, Making Friends and The Day After. Reviewer’s personal canon opinion is not an official canon declaration; article’s 2007 home-video claim is superseded by release records."
    },
    {
      "id": "arrow",
      "title": "Arrow — film and narrative extras",
      "url": "https://www.arrowfilms.com/p/trick-r-treat-original-artwork-arrow-store-exclusive-limited-edition-4k-uhd/15463694/",
      "kind": "Primary",
      "note": "Contains original Season’s Greetings, FEARnet selection, deleted/alternate scenes, Monster Mash and Sam O’ Lantern. Nonfiction extras are not additional stories; title-specific short inclusion not guaranteed."
    },
    {
      "id": "atmos",
      "title": "AtmosFX — five named official projection narratives",
      "url": "https://atmosfx.com/products/trick-r-treat",
      "kind": "Primary",
      "note": "Five scene families; alternate display orientations are versions of the same scene. Direct creator collaboration; modern Halloween settings, no confirmed main-film year."
    },
    {
      "id": "atmos-launch",
      "title": "AtmosFX — October 2016 original launch",
      "url": "https://atmosfx.com/blogs/community/unleash-sam-in-your-neighborhood-download-now",
      "kind": "Primary",
      "note": "Original vignettes released October 7, 2016 in collaboration with Dougherty / Legendary. Ten advertised files do not mean ten distinct stories."
    },
    {
      "id": "atmos-creator",
      "title": "Dougherty / AtmosFX — narrative collaboration",
      "url": "https://www.slashfilm.com/546214/trick-r-treat-decorations-michael-dougherty-pete-reichert/",
      "kind": "Primary creator interview",
      "note": "Creator interview verifies the original Sam vignettes as deliberate extensions. No exact fictional year from the product launch."
    },
    {
      "id": "hhn",
      "title": "Universal / Comcast — 2018 film mazes",
      "url": "https://corporate.comcast.com/stories/legendary-pictures-iconic-horror-film-trick-r-treat-to-terrify-halloween-rule-breakers-in-all-new-mazes-at-universal-studios-halloween-horror-nights",
      "kind": "Primary",
      "note": "Official film-based Hollywood / Orlando walkthrough adaptations. They revisit film situations, not a newly dated 2018 sequel."
    },
    {
      "id": "hhn-zone",
      "title": "Universal / Comcast — 2017 scare zone",
      "url": "https://corporate.comcast.com/news-information/news-feed/universal-orlando-reveals-new-details-on-halloween-horror-nights-2017",
      "kind": "Primary",
      "note": "Earlier licensed scare zone inventoried alongside later houses. Attraction years are real performance seasons."
    },
    {
      "id": "sixflags",
      "title": "Six Flags — licensed Fright Fest expansion",
      "url": "https://investors.sixflags.com/news/press-releases/",
      "kind": "Primary",
      "note": "2024 official announcement lists the licensed Trick ’r Treat candy-trail experience. Full scripts and subsequent park-specific revisions not inspected."
    },
    {
      "id": "scarehouse",
      "title": "ScareHouse — licensed Hallowed Grounds",
      "url": "https://www.pittsburghmagazine.com/season-for-spooks-the-scarehouse-debuts-2-new-haunts/",
      "kind": "Secondary / contemporary licensed production",
      "note": "Contemporary report verifies 2015 collaboration with Legendary and film-inspired attraction. Full original script / earlier Summoning cameo not inspected."
    },
    {
      "id": "cod",
      "title": "Activision — The Haunting crossover",
      "url": "https://www.callofduty.com/blog/2024/09/call-of-duty-modern-warfare-iii-warzone-wzm-season-6-haunting-returns-maps-modes-zombies-announcement",
      "kind": "Primary",
      "note": "Official 2024 Sam / mask-pack content. Cosmetic gameplay does not establish a separate story campaign or canonical travel from Warren Valley."
    },
    {
      "id": "krampus",
      "title": "Dougherty commentary — qualified Krampus connection",
      "url": "https://bloody-disgusting.com/news/3417367/watch-deleted-scene-connects-trick-r-treat-krampus/",
      "kind": "Creator commentary / secondary report",
      "note": "Creator describes hints and deleted direct nods, not a firm merged chronology. Krampus expansion remains outside this Sam-focused inventory."
    },
    {
      "id": "companion",
      "title": "Insight companion — bibliographic / contents record",
      "url": "https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/trick-r-treat-tales-of-mayhem-mystery--mischief_john--griffin_mike-dougherty/1506055/",
      "kind": "Secondary / edition and contents inventory",
      "note": "John Griffin’s 2008 Insight production book, ISBN 9781933784519. Catalogue mentions comic strips among art / film production material; actual strips need comparison before being counted as original stories."
    },
    {
      "id": "timely",
      "title": "Vista Theatre — Halloween 2026 screenings",
      "url": "https://www.vistatheaterhollywood.com/movies/trick-r-treat/",
      "kind": "Primary",
      "note": "The exhibitor lists October 30 and 31, 2026 late-night screenings; timely selection without an unsupported trending claim."
    }
  ],
  "scope": [
    {
      "title": "Graveyard Shift; Sam O’ Lantern; current teasers",
      "type": "Ambient films / promotional inventory",
      "status": "Inventoried; no separate plotted sequel established",
      "note": "Graveyard Shift is advertised as 3.1 hours of ambience. Sam O’ Lantern is a listed disc extra. October teaser and restored-short trailer promote existing / separately indexed videos. Minimal loops and reused trailer scenes are not counted as new narrative adventures. Current micro-shorts remain conservatively promotional pending complete playback.",
      "sources": [
        "watch",
        "arrow"
      ]
    },
    {
      "title": "Call of Duty MWIII / Warzone / Warzone Mobile — The Haunting",
      "type": "Game crossover",
      "status": "Official playable / promotional connection; separate narrative unverified",
      "note": "Sam operator and mask content are verified. No independently scripted Sam campaign recovered. Gameplay / cosmetic availability is not proof of a canonical Warren Valley invasion; cinematic trailer inspection remains a target. Fortnite rumours do not become official stories.",
      "sources": [
        "cod"
      ]
    },
    {
      "title": "Krampus and Shadow of Saint Nicholas",
      "type": "Related franchise",
      "status": "Possible shared mythology; outside this Sam-focused guide",
      "note": "Director’s qualified commentary and deleted candy prop imply a connection, not a complete merged chronology. No automatic import of all Christmas stories or bundled backer rewards. A future Krampus guide can distinguish its own official stories.",
      "sources": [
        "krampus",
        "witch-shipping"
      ]
    },
    {
      "title": "Tales of Mayhem, Mystery and Mischief; nonfiction / deleted material",
      "type": "Companion / film extras",
      "status": "Interior audit required for possible additional comics",
      "note": "John Griffin’s Insight production book is not automatically a narrative novelization. Art / comic strips mentioned in its catalogue need comparison. Film deleted scenes, storyboard galleries, music albums, decorative loops and merchandise do not automatically add new canonical stories.",
      "sources": [
        "companion",
        "arrow"
      ]
    },
    {
      "title": "Unmade sequel / Amazon series; parody and retired editions",
      "type": "Unreleased / access boundary",
      "status": "No invented release; remaining omissions review explicit",
      "note": "Trick ’r Treat 2 and the discussed Amazon animated series remain unmade at audit. A retired licensed 30-Second Bunnies retelling, ScareHouse Summoning cameo, film promotional one-offs and unlisted current shorts need original access / eligibility comparison before an exhaustive coverage claim.",
      "sources": [
        "witch-interview",
        "scarehouse",
        "fear-release"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "audit": {
    "checked": "2026-10-26",
    "status": "Research edition — verification gaps disclosed",
    "checks": [
      "Chosen for current October 13 Witching Hours release and Halloween 2026 exhibitor dates; checked existing catalogue to avoid duplication.",
      "Original licensed text, not database summaries, supplies 1640 / 1853 / 1955 comic dates. Full unavailable page images are not claimed inspected.",
      "Reviewed all four artist-hosted Monster Mash pages and four publisher-posted Halloween Country proofs; no exact date fabricated from the art.",
      "One history contains historical prequels, modern overlapping windows and the canonical future. Canon uncertainty is not automatically a separate universe.",
      "Film and its graphic adaptation share a story position; collections are access editions rather than repeated stories. The 15th-anniversary bonus is not confused with the ten-year collection.",
      "Modern promotional material uses actual holidays / seasons on date rails. No real release year substituted for an unknown fictional year.",
      "Current Witching Hours titles, changed credits and delayed deluxe delivery supersede early campaign listings. Omnibus cannot be offered as if it contained Witching Hours.",
      "Pre-build research table must be reviewed before approval; new shorts / original-interior gaps remain explicit."
    ],
    "gaps": [
      "Full films and most shorts not watched; legal sampled comic OCR is not a full visual interior audit. Exact modern prop dates and complete anthology endings remain open.",
      "15th-anniversary exclusive story title / period needs original interior. Do not invent its modern setting or silently omit it.",
      "Remaining current Sam uploads, retired Bunnies / FEARnet cuts, promotional cinematics and companion-book comic strips require narrative and duplicate comparison. This guide does not claim every publicly indexed upload has been fully inspected.",
      "Witching Hours final interior unavailable without purchase / backer access. Four public Halloween Country proof images inspected, not every final page. Exact year remains estimated.",
      "Amazon film / new anthology standalone product matches not fully verified; official access destinations supplied. Ten-year omnibus title verified; current availability and regional access not guaranteed."
    ],
    "publishReady": true
  }
}