31 Days of Horror Recommendations: "Chucky"

 

Years: 2021-????

Number of Seasons: 3 (so far)

Creator: Don Mancini

Subgenre: Doll Horror/Slasher

Episode Runtime: 42 minutes

Company: NBC Universal/Syfy

Star: Zachery Arthur & Brad Dourif 

When this series first premiered on Syfy two years ago it was amongst several that Syfy was putting out based on classic film series' that just failed miserably (among them "I Know What You Did Last Summer" & "Day of the Dead"). So, I had the assumption that this would be just another in that ilk. I remember thinking, as they all premiered within a couple of weeks of each other, "here we go again." But, of course, I watched it anyway! Boy was I in for a surprise. First of all, I had not actually looked up who was voicing Chucky, because I assumed it wasn't going to Brad Dourif (I know what assumption does! I love the British version of that "assumption is the mother of fuck-up"). Imagine my shock when that classic Chucky voice whined through the stereo. Well that had my attention! Right away the classic Child's Play slashing started up.  But, from there I don't think anyone could predict how truly weird, twisty and just plain strange the series would get; and that was all in the first season! Brought back are Jennifer Tilley as the human Tiffany and Nica Pierce as Charles Lee Ray (Fiona Dourif, Brad's own daughter) that we see getting together at the end of Cult of Chucky. Andy Barclay (Alex Vincent) also makes a return. This is an all out slasher family reunion, done up weird, in a good way.  I mean, by about half way through the first season, things get positively Lynchian. There are a couple of episodes, save for the bandying about of the Chucky name, you'd swear you were watching an episode of "Twin Peaks."  And this is just the first season, mind you. With a lot of these types of series that provide a highlight "mashup" of classic film franchises or director's bodies of work (or classic author's in the case Mike Flanagan), you usually get a start from the early work and a progression from there. Here, the series was created by Don Mancini himself, the man who gave us Chucky in the first place. Mancini wrote all the Child's Play/Chucky scripts and directed the films from Seed of Chucky on. He does give us a few early Chucky moments in the first couple of episodes (the trick or treating episode is not to be missed), but his intention all along was a continuance from the most recent films. He does both, and what he does with it is beyond just slasher territory. Mind you--it's plenty deadly, plenty gory, plenty comically violent--and there is lots of slashing. But there is more to it than just that. Take for an example the occasion that Chucky has to tell the young protagonist Jake Wheeler, who is the current kid with the Chucky doll, about his transgender child Glen/Glenda. This is a series that takes the vitriol that has come from fascistic quarters in the last 1/2 decade and vomits blood back in it's face. There is even a nice little moment on a school stage where Chucky really let's the verbiage rip, that reminds me both of Donnie Darko and a scene with Fats the dummy out of Richard Attenborough's 1978 doll horror Magic stuck together with serious wit. I am not going to go descriptions beyond the first few episodes of season 1, suffice to say, if I did it would include spoilers that Chucky might come after me for! So not for everyone, but also not just for us Brad Dourif Chucky fans either. Also, someone should suggest this as essential viewing for Dourif's Lord of the Rings cast mate Bernard Hill, who, after hearing Dourif speak at a red carpet event, emoted something to the effect of "that's the worst American accent I've ever heard!" 😉