10 Stephen King Stories That Wouldn't Work As Movies
6. The Reaper's Image
Another story from the Skeleton Crew collection, The Reaper's Image is another of King's stories that stands well on its own. At best it could work in an anthology of shorts, but a story about a guy buying a magic mirror can only sustain interest for so long.
This tale starts with an antique collector named Johnson Spangler and his visit to the Samuel Claggert Museum. Spangler's goal is to buy the legendary Delver's Mirror. The museum curator, Mr. Carlin, explains that many attempts have been made to destroy the mirror. This was because many people claimed to see an image of the grim reaper in the mirror. Each person then mysteriously disappeared.
The skeptical Spangler notices duct tape in the mirror's corner, but when he touches it he only feels glass. When he looks again, the tape is gone. As Mr. Carlin relates a story of a teenage boy who went missing after seeing the reaper, Spangler suddenly becomes sick and rushes out of the room.
At best, The Reaper's Image would have worked as an episode of Tales From The Darkside. At worst, it would be compared to Maximum Overdrive.