Analyzing Season One of "Chucky" and Giving My Theories/Hopes for Season Two

I don't even know where to begin with this, I swear I don't. I've been a diehard fan of the Chucky series of films for 30 years. The first horror film I remember watching was the first Child's Play, and I was only six years old when I watched! I've watched the movies too many times to count, to the point where I could basically describe it bit-by-bit and point out each key line and moment from the films. So when I learned about a Chucky TV series coming to USA and SyFy, I was elated! I knew I would absolutely love it; I had the highest of expectations for this show, and it managed to exceed them!

We all know how this whole franchise started. The 1988 film, Child's Play, saw notorious serial killer Charles Lee Ray being pursued by detective Mike Norris; a pursuit that saw his accomplice, Eddie Caputo, drive off and leave Ray behind. Ray took a desperate refuge in a toy store, leading to his ill fate--shot to death by Norris. Before expiring, Ray makes his vengeful vow, and one Damballa chant later, the rest ends up being horrific history. Six sequels, a reboot (which shall not be mentioned), and 33 years later, we have this series.

Let's start with the obvious main trait: Brad Dourif is back as the voice of Chucky. That alone is fantastic. We are treated to an amazing regular cast on the series, but we also get the added bonus of returning characters from the seven films. It was in the midpoint of the season that Alex Vincent returned as Andy Barclay, the very person who had been in the middle of this since the beginning. Andy served as the protagonist in the first three films, though while Vincent played the character in the 1988 original and the 1990 sequel, it was Justin Whalin who played a teenage Andy Barclay in 1991's Child's Play 3. Vincent returned as Andy in a post-credits scene in 2013's Curse of Chucky, and returned in a larger role in 2017's Cult of Chucky. Vincent's first appearance in the TV series came in episode 1.06, "Cape Queer."

Jennifer Tilly also made her return as Tiffany Valentine, the titular Bride of Chucky who debuted in the 1998 film. 2004's Seed of Chucky saw Tilly (who this uber-Family Guy fan also knows as the voice of Bonnie Swanson) return as not only Tiffany, but as a satirical version of herself. As we know (Spoiler alert for those who haven't seen it; though I don't know how you haven't), Seed ended with Tiffany successful in possessing Tilly, and we see the human Tiffany again in Curse and Cult. Tiffany's first appearance on the TV series came in episode 1.05, "Little Little Lies."

I was very elated when Christine Elise resurfaced as Kyle in the TV series. As we know, Kyle was Andy's foster sister in Child's Play 2; a typical 90s punkish teenage girl who often teased Andy but ended up learning about Chucky and having rescue her brother from the demonic doll in the film's climax. It would be 27 years before we saw Kyle again, as she would appear in a cameo during the post-credits scene of Cult--similar to Andy Barclay's surprise appearance in Curse. Also similar to Alex Vincent's Andy Barclay, Kyle's first appearance in the TV series came in episode 1.06, "Cape Queer."

I have to talk about how excited I was for Nica Pierce's return, well, actually her overall appearance. First off, Nica is played by Fiona Dourif, the daughter of Brad Dourif, which is epic on its own. She debuted as the main protagonist of Curse, which revealed that her mother, Sarah, was an object of affection for Chucky--who abducted Sarah and was holding her captive as recently as hours before his ill fate. Chucky killed Nica's whole family and left her to be blamed for the murders, and the film ended with Nica institutionalized, which is where she was in Cult.

I watched Cult on the evening of October 4, 2017, and I am still amazed by what happened in the climax: Chucky possessed Nica. This was epic for three reasons. One, Chucky finally had a human vessel after 29 years. Two, Chucky's vessel was female, and three, I and others who saw this got to see Fiona act evil, crazed and psychotic, as well as give a maniacal cackle of her own while basically imitating her father. Similar to Jennifer Tilly's Tiffany, Nica's first appearance on the TV series came in episode 1.05, "Little Little Lies."

So let's talk about how this season ended. The penultimate episode, "Twice the Grieving, Double the Loss," saw Chucky reveal his endgame: he needed to successfully convince someone to actually commit murder (that someone happened to be Junior, who beat his father to death with Chucky). so that his horde of possessed Good Guy dolls could be activated, and thanks to Junior, they were--in the finale, "An Affair to Dismember." The plan was to send the dolls all over to wreak murderous havoc, but we see Tiffany display a bit of jealousy over Chucky conversing with possessed Nica, while all of them held Devon captive. After Nica mocks Tiffany, she ends up slapped by Tiffany, bringing Nica back to herself (we've seen Nica switch between herself and Chucky in this series).

Chucky orders Tiffany to kill Nica, and later does the same to Junior when Tiffany is reluctant to do so. Tiffany later lops off Chucky's head, and afterwards, she follows her actions with the following shocking reveal: Tiffany was the one who called the cops on Chucky on that infamous fated day in 1988. Oh my goodness! So Tiffany proceeds with the plan, but not before leaving a bomb in the house as a trap for Andy; the bomb was built by Glenda (more on that character a bit later). We actually see Kyle track Andy (who appeared via a side entrance) to the house and enter, and an explosion sets off.

We see Devon reunite with main protagonist Jake, so Devon survived and helped Jake and Lexy against the horde of Chuckies in the movie theater. Andy survived and hijacked the van full of possessed Good Guy dolls, but ends up held at gunpoint by a gun-toting Tiffany doll. We later see the trio of protagonists at the graves of their loved ones, with their teacher, Miss Rachel Fairchild, watching them, though as the scene shows, a gloved hand suddenly appears, belonging to someone else watching over the trio.

Chucky got renewed for a second season, but before I delve into any theories about Season Two, I have to talk about Nica's fate. Prior to that gloved hand scene, we see Nica wake up in Tiffany's apartment, and a zoom out shot revealed what I had feared happened to Nica: both of her arms and legs were amputated! Tiffany did this because she knew that she would suffer Chucky's wrath after her big reveal, so after drugging Nica and taking her back to her place, she committed the hatchet job. This was clearly the one problem I had with the finale, and here's why. Nica had been suffering since before she was born. It was Chucky who caused Nica to be born paraplegic, as he stabbed Sarah's pregnant belly in anger. Then came killing Nica's family, causing Nica to be committed, possessing Nica, now this. Nica's still in there with Chucky! Just awful that she continues to suffer.

So as I said before, the show's getting a 2nd season set for 2022, most likely October of that year, so we're in for a long wait. In the meantime, here are a few possibilities for the 2nd season:

Is Miss Fairchild Actually Glen/Glenda?: I didn't know about this theory until literally an hour after watching the finale, but it had been out there for weeks that Miss Fairchild (played by Annie M. Briggs) is actually Chucky and Tiffany's offspring. About that: Tiffany gave birth at the end of Bride, and Seed introduced us to Chucky and Tiffany's child, Glen. As that film's progression saw, Glen actually had a split personality, a female half named Glenda, and as we witnessed, Glenda is quite psychotic, while Glen is mostly docile. Seed's end saw Glen and Glenda in separate human vessels, occupying Jennifer Tilly's twins (one boy and one girl), but the TV series sees Chucky refer to his singular child as being queer, while Tiffany mentioned Glenda by name and use the proper non-binary/genderfluid pronouns. So unless we see the exact continuity from Seed, Glen/Glenda will most likely be genderfluid should they appear in Season Two.

Now, the theory is mainly based on Miss Fairchild's appearance, mainly her red hair. I was hoping for dual siblings because I love an evil twin story, and Miss Fairchild being Glenda would turn the genial teacher into a maniacal villainess for Season 2. However, I do love that they're making Glen/Glenda genderfluid, because we don't really see that represented nearly enough on TV and film, and this would a huge step. Either way, I find myself not really expecting that twist, because I think it would be made for the sake of twists. Another theory has Miss Fairchild being Tiffany's sister; I don't see that either, but who knows?

Should Kyle Turn Heel in Season 2?: So the appearances of Devon and Andy post-explosion have led us to believe that Kyle perished, though that may not be the case, as we never saw a body. Many have theorized that the gloved hand belonged to Andy, but that can't be the case, as Andy had his hands full with the van of dolls, as well as the Tiffany doll. An immense possibility exists that the gloved onlooker could be a totally different (possibly villainous) character to be introduced in Season 2, though others have believed that Kyle made it out and made that appearance in the end, her face hidden of course. However, gloved hands are known to be sinister 999 times out of 1000, and it's piqued my hope that, as shocking as it could be and knowing the infinitesimal chance of this, Kyle could become a villainess in Season 2.

I admit this; I have my selfish reasons for wanting a Kyle heel turn: one, I haven't really seen Christine Elise play a villainess, and two, shock factor. As crazy as my theory sounds, Kyle may have a reason or two for turning heel; for one, being left behind by Andy at the gas station didn't set too well for her, and another reason, if that gloved hand does belong to Kyle, she was basically left for dead without a thought from anyone, even Andy. Plus, Kyle and Andy are only connected due to the horrors enacted by Chucky. Those factors could result in Kyle going on a villainous vendetta against Andy, and it could start with the youths, as heel Kyle could send some misguided blame towards them as well.

Returning Characters: When this show premiered, I was hoping for a plethora of returning characters from the classic films. The renewal does give us some hope that we could see more characters pop up. Two of the characters I hope to see in Season 2 are Mike Norris (Chris Sarandon) and Karen Barclay (Catherine Hicks). Of course, Karen is Andy's mother, and it was mentioned in the second film that she ended up committed after dealing with Chucky in the first film. As I stated before, Mike Norris was the detective who killed Chucky, but he's more than that. As the post-credits scene in Curse revealed, Mike and Karen actually married each other, so Mike is actually Andy's stepfather. I also hope to see the return of Kristen DeSilva, Andy's love interest from the third film, as she knows about Chucky as well. Season 2 will definitely be off the chain!

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