Well Child’s Play fans, it’s been an exhilarating ride this year especially during Halloween ever since the broadcast premiere of the killer doll’s new series ‘Chucky’ appeared on SyFy and USA Network and just like the movies, the production staff stayed true to the formula and didn’t hold back on anything for this ‘supernaturally dark comedy’ series. So much has happened on this show that has left me with my jaw dropping and wanting more for this fantastic series as it is truly a terrifying work of art that Don Mancini has put together.
However, ‘Chucky’ has three more episodes left and coming Tuesday, the Andy-man himself Alex Vincent will finally be making an appearance hopefuly with co-star Christine Elise by his side who portrayed Andy Barclay’s foster sister Kyle from Child’s Play 2. Just like the Winchester Brothers from ‘Supernatural’, Andy and Kyle are on the hunt and are determined to stop Chucky and his bride Tiffany’s heinous acts of evil from destroying the people of his hometown Hackensack, New Jersey before anymore innocent civilians get caught up in their twisted games. But are Andy and Kyle fully prepared this time? What kinds of tricks do they have up their sleeve so that they don’t get one-upped by their adversaries this time? Will they be able to help Jake and his friends who are caught in Chucky’s crosshairs? And more to the point…what sacrifices will Andy be forced to make this time in order to stop Chucky for good?
*As I said in my last post…these two women may have to be that sacrifice, depending on what route Mancini decides to take this story.
But we’ll get to that part in a minute after a quick recap or two.
Evil in the Making (The Birth of the Lakeshore Strangler)
Well, after many years, the producers of Child’s Play have finally given serial killer Charles Lee Ray a backstory that connects the dots about his murderous impulses and how he came to be the demented demon that he is today (even after his death in Child’s Play). I gotta say, I didn’t know what to think when I saw Charles in his younger years, I mean the kid seemed normal at first glance but then he did things in episodes that really made me say ‘WTF?’. Hell, in one episode entitled ‘Give me something Good to Eat’, a young Charles had found an apple in his trick or treat bag with a razor blade in it and the kid toys with it for a moment. Then without warning, he takes a bite out of the apple and…well, you’re the audience, you can fill in the blank.
The worst part is, the kid is smiling with bloody teeth and it is here that you can tell something is terribly off about this kid and even Brad Dourif, the maestro behind the voice of Chucky tells people during a behind the scenes featurette of Chucky that Charles was always gonna be a killer. Brad doesn’t sugar-coat the truth with that fact and the apple-razor scene is just the tip of the iceberg showcasing what kind of a monster little Charles was going to grow up to be. I mean, it’s almost like this kid was born without a soul with only a taste for blood on his mind and needless to say, Chucky would soon begin to satisfy that urge later on in his younger days as the series progresses between present-day and past-time history. That’s one of the things that I’ve loved so far about this show…is that it focuses on main character Jacob ‘Jake’ Wheeler and his lifestyle while also showing bits and pieces of Chucky’s life from the past without detracting from the story. I love the flashbacks of Chucky’s life because it gives us more of an insight into his history and how it relates to Jake who is a victim of criticism and bullying from his drunken father and cousin Junior as well as experiencing hazing from some of his arrogant, antagonizing classmates like spoiled Lexy Cross and Oliver Hayden.
As the storyline progresses Mancini touches down on topics like bullying and how antagonistic behavior can sometimes drive humans to become the worst monsters in the world and that with a little push from people like ‘Chucky’ becoming that monster is not far from happening. But we can all sense some good in Jake and we just have to hope and pray that he can see ‘the light’ in time to avoid becoming what Chucky wants him to be…a killer. Because after many years, I’ve finally discovered that Chucky’s aim is like the Joker from Batman: he believe that madness is like gravity and all people need is a little push to get there. In a way, Chucky believes that everyone can be ugly and evil on the inside just like him but little does he know that that’s one area where he’ll always be alone.
Cause kids like Jake always have something to fight for…they just gotta find it. And needless to say, he does and he’s now ready to protect what he has.
Connecting the Dots:
(The Curse and Cult of Chucky storyline)
Well, now that that’s outta the way, let’s get back to the real topic at hand, the topic that I still enjoy discussing with Chucky fans now: the Fate of Nica Pierce and Jennifer Tilly.
Now as you all may remember, paraplegic Nica Pierce was given a bum rap in life even before the day she was born, thanks to Chucky. The endings of ‘Curse’ and ‘Cult of Chucky’ really hammered the point home of just how screwed up her luck is when she gets framed for the deaths of her family and placed in an insane asylum where Chucky continues to torment her and eventually does the one thing he’s *not* supposed to be allowed to do in any of the ‘Child’s Play’ films: he gets a human host and sadly, Nica is the ‘unlucky’ winner to get soul possessed by the bloodthirsty killer.
But she’s not the only one who’s become a back-seat driver to the hands of evil now as Tiffany Valentine, Chucky’s equally demented bride had also acquired a human host in the form of Jennifer Tilly (who played herself in the ‘Seed of Chucky’ story arc) and since then has been aiding Chucky in his quest for vengeance by mailing him to people who have escaped his clutches or whom he feels responsible for his predicament of being trapped in a doll. However, the writers have really let the Lakeshore Strangler level-up his sorcery abilities because now, Chucky has found a way to not only possess people, but he’s found a way to split his soul up so that it can inhabit other ‘Good Guy’ dolls, hence ‘the Cult of Chucky’.
Now, the pros to the Cult of Chucky ending is that it opened a gateway for the Chucky series to continue where ‘Cult’ left off, to introduce new characters into the storyline and create some new type of suspense for those who encounter Chucky, with only a select few learning his secret and what he’s capable of.
The con to the Cult of Chucky ending is that it allowed a cinema sin to take place: ‘The Bad Guys Won’. Yeah, I know what you’re thinking, it’s a horror movie, slasher flicks don’t have happy endings and that’s mostly true, sometimes they have ‘Bittersweet Endings’. But the ending to Cult of Chucky kind of frustrates me because they dumped on Andy’s rescue op. of Nica and Nica is now being controlled like a puppet on a string. Or is she?
Where there’s Good, there’s Hope. (A quick look at the episode, ‘Little, Little Lies’
‘DANGER WILL ROBINSON! SPOILERS AHEAD!’
(If you don’t want things spoiled for you, stop reading now)
The episode ‘Little, Little Lies’ really set things up for the last three episodes of the season. Jacob has convinced close friend Devon (a sleuth for supernatural and unsolved mysteries) as well as Jacob’s nemesis Lexy of the threat that Chucky is and how more lives will be destroyed unless they put a stop to his evil. While the group supposedly gets their victory, it’s a little too easy and it’s a little too soon for them to celebrate as Chucky is far from finished with them.
Elsewhere, Nica and Jennifer are still possessed by Chucky and Tiffany and while they’re rollin’ about with each other in bed like a pair of crazed ferrets (LOL!) there’s some helpless guy watching while he’s tied to a chair and gagged. I’m like, ‘O.M.G., these two are really unbelievable!’ Like I said, at this point, Jennifer and Nica are just puppets for Chucky and Tiffany’s evil and the fact that they’re going around committing murders while in their form really doesn’t help Nica or Jennifer’s situation at all in this storyline, especially with Andy and Kyle right around the corner in the coming episodes.
However, there is one thing that does give the audience a glimmer of hope that Nica (and maybe Jennifer can be saved though). Nica ended up returning to normal for a moment, albeit she ended up losing the use of her legs because of her paraplegia and she’s horrified to learn what she’s done and what’s been happening to her since her ‘possession’ by Chucky. The poor guy that she and Tiffany tied up and help captive is scared witless and even as she tries to convince him that she’s not a killer, the man tells Nica that he watched her stab a guy to death.
Though Nica attempts to get the guy free after telling him her story of how she was framed and possessed by a killer Good Guy doll, this doesn’t last long as Tiffany comes back and Chucky is able to retake control of Nica’s body…and I don’t think I need to tell you what happened to the poor sap once Chucky is back in control.
All in all, the episode ‘Little, Little Lies’ definitely set the stage for what’s in store in the last three episodes.
Can Nica and Jennifer be Saved?
I think the biggest problem with Child’s Play is that when it comes to the whole voodoo ritual/soul possession thing, the writers didn’t or don’t’ fully explore or explain what happens to an individual’s soul when Chucky or Tiffany possess someone. Sure, they can take over inanimate objects like dolls but what happens to the spirit of someone who gets possessed by Chucky?
-Is the soul booted out or does it merely act as a conduit to allow the evil spirit to take control of the host they have? (More to the point, if the soul of the original host is still present, what is Chucky doing to keep them under ‘his’ control?)
-Can the ‘soul possession be reversed? (Based on Nica’s regaining temporary control of her body and senses in ‘Little, Little Lies’ survey is saying that it can be. However, we’ve yet to see Jennifer regain control of herself while in Tiffany’s clutches but maybe it works a different way).
These are questions that I’ve asked people all over the Internet and so far, no one can really give me any true straight answers. But so far, I’m in suspense and I am eager to see if Nica and Jennifer can be rescued by Andy and Kyle once they make an appearance. But the thing of it is, will Andy really try to save them or will he just straight put them out of their possessed ‘misery’ like he tried to do to with Nica at the end of ‘Cult of Chucky’ when she got taken over by Chucky?
Wrapping Things Up
I saw an episode of ‘Hercules: the Legendary Journeys’ that deal with possession and exorcism when Dahak, the one great evil, took over the body of Hercules’s friend Iolaus. As they vied for Iolaus’s soul, Dahak would consistently mock Hercules for his failure to free Iolaus’s soul from his grasp. Undaunted, Hercules only had this to say to his foe:
Hercules: The tighter you hold onto something Dakak…the easier it is to lose it. You can’t hide behind Iolaus forever!
Iolaus (possessed by Dahak): I don’t need forever. I just need until sunset.
So in a way, that’s kind of the situation that Andy, Kyle and Jacob’s cohorts will probably be in as they fight to stop Chucky and hopefully free Nica and Jennifer from Chucky and Tiffany’s hold. Honestly, I really am hoping Andy and Kyle will be able to set them free without either one of them dying as that would really be upsetting to see Nica go through the crap she went through and to die with crimes hanging over her head that she didn’t commit.
All in all, it was great to finally see Fiona Dourif and Jennifer Tilly back in the saddle again. Now let’s just hope Andy and Kyle can do their thing and set them free. I’ll be rooting for Andy and Kyle’s return, as well as a hope that they’ll score a victory in the next couple of episodes. And I hope you viewers at home will do the same.
The Cable Critic 