Ms. Grunkle

Ms. Grunkle is a witch who is the villainess of JumpStart Adventures 4th Grade: Haunted Island.

Appearance
Ms. Grunkle has gray skin, straight whitish-gray hair, yellow eyes, and dark pink lips. She has a slim figure, an angular face with a pointed chin and nose, and long fingers. She wears a black pointed hat, a black dress with skull-shaped buttons down the front, red and white striped stockings, and black shoes.

Personality and Characteristics
Ms. Grunkle is wicked, cruel, and unkind. She is prideful and confident in her abilities.

According to a biography for Ms. Grunkle from the Knowledge Adventure during the mid-to-late 90s, her main motivation for holding the fourth grade class hostage is so that she can properly discipline them, though not surprisingly, it is implied that she is an over-the-top disciplinarian with ridiculous expectations. The biography also paints her as cynical and anti-social, but mentions that she enjoys needlepoint.

JumpStart Adventures 4th Grade: Haunted Island (1996)
One day, Ms. Grunkle was the substitute teacher for a fourth grade class, when she turned all of the kids in that class into monsters and whisked them away to the Haunted Island, which she rules over. While returning to her house on the far side of the island, she accidentally dropped the keys to her house as well as her wand.

The player takes on the role of a fourth grader who happened to be absent on the day of Ms. Grunkle's arrival, and must rescue their classmates from Ms. Grunkle by completing quests around Haunted Island. In order to enter Ms. Grunkle's House and free the kids trapped in her attic, the player must collect 25 keys to unlock the five doors in her house. Each time the player unlocks a new room in Ms. Grunkle's house, she will confront them and send them to the labyrinth. Ms. Grunkle will also sometimes appear before the player to intimidate them and taunt them, usually after the player completes an activity, particularly if they have just recovered a classmate's possession or turned a classmate back to human. She is also served by her loyal servant Repsac, a ghastly ghost who appears to challenge the player.

In the ending cutscene, the player confronts Ms. Grunkle in the attic, and, using her magic wand to threaten her, forces Ms. Grunkle to flee. Ms. Grunkle vows her return before disappearing.

Quotes

 * "So, at last we meet in my domain. Rather brave, aren't you? I must admit, I never thought you'd get this far. But no matter. It's just a shame you missed that fateful day when all of your classmates turned to monsters. Now it's your turn, but not until I have some fun with you first. Out, I say, out!"
 * "Ha! You thought you could sneak past me? The all-seeing, all-knowing, all powerful Mrs. Grunkle? No such luck!"
 * "You're getting a bit too close for comfort! I'll see to it that you never reach your classmates! Be gone with you!"
 * "I hate to be a spoil-sport. But I don't remember putting you on the guest list. And just to give you an idea of how I treat gate crashers... (cackles)"
 * "Hahahaha! The perfect plan. I knew you'd make it. Now that I have you all together, I can be sure I'll never be foiled! Monsters you will all become...forever."
 * "My magic wand! My most secret power! How on earth...? Of course. Madame Pomreeda. Well, you may have outwitted me this time, but Grunkle's power is immortal! Here, broom. I command you to fly."
 * "Don't get too comfortable. You haven't seen the last of me yet! I'll be back!"

Trivia

 * In most pre-release promotional material, Ms. Grunkle was often referred to as "Mrs. Grunkle". Presumably this was to have been her name, but by the time of the game's release it was changed to Ms. Grunkle.
 * Despite this, sometimes "Mrs. Grunkle" is used in the game, such as in one of Repsac's riddles, as well as Ms. Grunkle referring to herself as "Mrs. Grunkle" in one of the cutscenes.
 * One promotional image for the game that appeared on the JumpStart website circa 1996 depicts what appears to be a screenshot of the game, showing Ms. Grunkle standing in front of the gate leading to Madame Pomreeda's Cart. Curiously, she never actually appears here in the game itself.
 * According to the bugs in the Spider's Web, Ms. Grunkle's favorite beverage is vampire-blood tea.
 * Ms. Grunkle ties with Polly Sparks (and technically Repsac) as the very first villain to ever appear in the JumpStart series.