Demonic Toys is a series of films that center on a collection of seemingly harmless playthings that are in reality the avatars of powerful demons from hell who seek to cause havoc in the mortal world.
| Demonic Toys | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Peter Manoogian Charles Band Ted Nicolaou William Butler |
| Written by | David S. Goyer Charles Band C. Courtney Joyner William Butler |
| Produced by | Charles Band Anne Kelly |
Production company | Full Moon Features |
Release date | 1992 - current |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Produced through Full Moon Features, the first film in the series, Demonic Toys, was released direct-to-video in 1992. It was followed by three additional films, all of which have crossovers with other Full Moon properties. The series has also led to a comic book series that was released through Full Moon Pictures and Eternity Comics, and a television spin-off series based on Baby Oopsie, which started airing on August 27, 2021. Season 2, titled Murder Dolls is set to premiere on July 15, 2022.[1] as well as other merchandise.[2]
Development
editFull Moon Features, then Full Moon Entertainment, released the first film in the series, Demonic Toys, direct-to-video in 1992.[3] Directed by Peter Manoogian, the script was written by David S. Goyer and featured a score by the composer, Richard Band. His brother, Charles Band served as one of the film's producers.[4]
The following year, Full Moon Features released a follow-up, Dollman vs. Demonic Toys, which crosses over with the films Bad Channels and Dollman. Footage from the first Demonic Toys, as well as from Dollman and Bad Channels, were used in the creation of the movie.[5]
In 2004, Full Moon Features released a third film, Puppet Master vs. Demonic Toys, which is a crossover with the Puppet Master series. The film was created as a made-for-TV movie for the SyFy Channel as a Christmas horror special.[6] Filming took place in Bulgaria and had a limited budget.[7]
In 2010, a direct sequel to the first film was released titled Demonic Toys: Personal Demons. Screenwriter and director William Butler has stated that the first rendition of the movie's script used Los Angeles, California as a setting. This was re-written to utilize Charles Band's castle in Italy and also include a character from Band's 1997 film Hideous!, Dr. Lorca. Most of the filming was completed in Italy and the remainder was shot in the United States, using a cavern set used in the television series, Weeds.[8][9]
A television series, titled Baby Oopsie, premiered in August 2021 on the Full Moon Features App and on Amazon Prime Video, as a spin-off and semi-sequel of Demonic Toys 2.[10] Though it was at first thought to be the fifth film in the series, the conflict was resolved when Full Moon uploaded a trailer for Season 2 on April 25, 2022.[11]
Films
edit| Film | Date | Director | Writer(s) | Producer(s) |
| Demonic Toys | 1992 | Peter Manoogian | David S. Goyer | Charles Band & Anne Kelly |
| Dollman vs. Demonic Toys | 1993 | Charles Band | Charles Band | Charles Band |
| Puppet Master vs Demonic Toys | 2004 | Ted Nicolaou | C. Courtney Joyner | Bob Perkis and Jörg Westerkamp |
| Demonic Toys 2 | 2010 | William Butler | William Butler | Charles Band |
| Baby Oopsie | 2021 | William Butler | William Butler | Charles Band |
| Baby Oopsie 2: Murder Dolls | 2022 | William Butler | William Butler | Charles Band |
| Baby Oopsie 3: Burn Baby Burn | 2022 | William Butler | William Butler | Charles Band |
| Demonic Toys: Jack-Attack | 2023 | William Butler | William Butler | Charles Band |
Television series
editFull Moon began airing a television series titled Baby Oopsie, based on the title character from the original films, The series follows a woman named Sybil, who is forced to cover up her tracks after unknowingly adopting a murderous and loudmouthed baby doll. The series premiered on August 27, 2021 on Full Moon's Streaming App and their Amazon Prime Video channel. Season 2 premiered in Summer 2022.[12] Season 3, the third and final season premiered on November 4, 2022 just a few months after the end of the second season.
Season 1 (2021)
edit| Episodes | First Aired | Director | Writer(s) |
| Chapter One | August 27, 2021 | William Butler | William Butler |
| Chapter Two | September 3, 2021 | William Butler | Charles Band |
Season 2: Murder Dolls (2022)
edit| Episodes | First Aired | Director | Writer(s) |
| Chapter One | July 15, 2022 | William Butler | William Butler |
Season 3: Burn Baby Burn (2022)
edit| Episodes | First Aired | Director | Writer(s) |
| Chapter One | November 4, 2022 | William Butler | William Butler |
Characters
editToys
edit- Baby Oopsie Daisy - The foul-mouthed, perverted doll in a similar manner to a Cabbage Patch Kid or other "baby" doll and leader of the toys.
- Jack Attack - The evil jack-in-the-box with a grotesque killer-clown face attached to it.
- Grizzly Teddy - The monstrous teddy bear.
- Mr. Static - The demonic toy robot with real shooting lasers and fire like a flamethrower.
- Zombietoid - The blond-haired GI Joe action figure that makes a loud scream and kills people with his machete.
- Divoletto - The smiling, cloaked ancient toy doll that makes a robotic ticking noise whenever he moves. He also makes a giggling sound now and then.
- Toy Soldier - The spirit of Judith Gray's unborn child who possesses the toy soldier and protects her from the demonic toys.
Humans
editJudith Gray - A female officer, and the protagonist of Demonic Toys and secondary protagonist of Dollman vs. Demonic Toys.
The Master, or The Kid - is an extremely powerful and malevolent demon. He is the main antagonist of the first Demonic Toys film.
Brick Bardo - The main protagonist of the 1991 film Dollman and its crossover sequel Dollman vs Demonic Toys, he teams up with Judith Gray in taking down the Toys.
Nurse Ginger - A character from another Full Moon film Bad Channels.
Sybil Pittman - A meek and mild mannered doll collector, and the main protagonist of the Baby Oopsie show.
Robert Toulon - The main protagonist of Puppet Master vs Demonic Toys, he is the great grandson of Andre Toulon.
Alexandra Toulon - Robert's daughter.
Comic book series
edit| Demonic Toys: Play at Your Own Risk! | |
|---|---|
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Eternity Comics |
| Format | Limited series |
| Genre | Horror |
| No. of issues | 4 |
| Main character(s) | Jack Attack Baby Oopsie Daisy Grizzly Teddy Mr. Static Jack Norton/"The Kid" |
| Creative team | |
| Written by | Doug Campbell |
Demonic Toys: Play at Your Own Risk! is a 1993 limited horror comic book series by Eternity Comics, based on the 1992 film of the same name.
A teaser poster for Demonic Toys was made with Grizzly Teddy and Jack Attack on it. The Jack Attack and Grizzly Teddy on the poster resembles the ones that appear in the comics. The comics take place 8 years after the first film; the Toys have drastically changed in appearance, Jack Attack is the most significant, and he has arms. The Toy Soldier is also aligned with the Toys.
Issues
edit- Play at Your Own Risk #1 (January 1993): Eight years after Officer Judith Grey survived the toy massacre at the Toyland Warehouse, the demon child known as "The Kid" attempts another birth through a human infant.
- Play at Your Own Risk #2 (February 1993): "Toyland" is changed to "Arcadia Toy Company", and now run by Jack Norton and assistant Mr. Horse. The factory is torn down and replaced with a high-tech skyscraper. But evil still exists beneath them. Mr. Horse hires some thugs while Jack unveils the new skyscraper.
- Play at Your Own Risk #3 (April 1993): While out, Jack discovers Baby Oopsie Daisy, who kills him. His body is taken over by The Kid, who tries to dictate a policy for the largest toy producing company in the world. But Grey's son, Matthew, now 8 years old, has suspicions about Jack.
- Play at Your Own Risk #4 (August 1993): Arcadia employee Dapne meets Jack, who, when he discovers her pregnancy, decides to keep her for it.
Dollman Kills the Full Moon Universe
editDollman Kills the Full Moon Universe is a comic series based on the Dollman film series released from August 2018 to January 2019. The first issue is a callback to Dollman vs Demonic Toys, making it the second time the character has gone against the demonic toys.
Video game
editOn Halloween 2023, the Demonic Toys cast became playable DLC characters in Puppet Master: The Game.
Reception
editThe first film in the series, Demonic Toys, received a predominantly negative reception upon release. A reviewer for TV Guide criticized it as "a rehash of the company's Puppet Master series".[13]
The second film, Dollman vs. Demonic Toys, was panned by Dennis Fischer in his book covering science fiction directors as "one of Band's worst missteps".[14] A reviewer for Billboard was more favorable, writing that "Good-humored viewers will enjoy this silly but fast-moving quickie."[15]
Critic Scott Weinberg wrote a negative review for the third film on DVD Talk, writing that it was "not funny, it's not scary, and it's certainly not a worthwhile way to spend 90 minutes of the time you're given on this planet."[16] Director Ted Nicolaou was critical of Puppet Master vs. Demonic Toys in a 2017 interview with Video Fugue, as he felt that it was "kind of a big mistake, I think, in a lot of ways".[7]
Dread Central reviewed Demonic Toys 2, stating that "While I find myself neither enjoying nor hating the return of the Demonic Toys, it was the film’s irritating, repetitive score that soured me more than anything else."[17]
Horror Society reviewed Baby Oopsie and rated it a 3/5, stating "the film makes good use of practical effects and beautiful puppets. We get some bloody kills that sometimes happen off screen or was only in frame for a quick second but they did deliver some fun practical effects that you would expect from Full Moon. Overall, Baby Oopsie was a lot of fun and the movie I didn’t know I needed. It was very enjoyable and I look forward to where this story is going to take me next."[18]
Releases
editThe Demonic Toys series has been predominantly released direct-to-video with the exception of the 2004 Puppet Master vs. Demonic Toys, which premiered on the SyFy Channel in 2004 before it was released to DVD on January 17, 2006.[16][19][20][21]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ BABY OOPSIE: MURDER DOLLS (2022) - Official Trailer | Full Moon, retrieved 2022-06-24
- ^ "Demonic Toys Jack-Attack Statue Pops Out of the Box This September". Dread Central. 2015-08-05. Retrieved 2021-02-03.
- ^ Manoogian, Peter; Scoggins, Tracy (1991), Demonic toys, Hollywood, CA: Paramount, ISBN 978-0-7921-2230-2, OCLC 25576244, retrieved 2021-02-03
- ^ Goyer, David S; Kelly, Anne; Band, Charles; Manoogian, Peter; Scoggins, Tracy; Mitchum, Bentley; Cerny, Daniel; Russo, Michael; Weston, Jeff (2012), Demonic toys, Hollywood, Calif.: Full Moon Features, OCLC 886942330, retrieved 2021-02-03
- ^ Davies, Clive (2015-03-06). Spinegrinder: The Movies Most Critics Won't Write About. SCB Distributors. ISBN 978-1-909394-06-3.
- ^ "Puppet Master Full Franchise Timeline Explained (All 14 Movies)". ScreenRant. 2020-12-12. Retrieved 2021-02-03.
- ^ a b FugueBurg (2017-09-01). "Ted Nicolaou on the Austin diaspora, Romanian vampires and TV terror visions". Video Fugue. Retrieved 2021-02-03.
- ^ "EXCL: William Butler Talks Demonic Toys 2: Personal Demons". ComingSoon.net. 2009-11-21. Retrieved 2021-02-03.
- ^ Vogl, Peter (2018-10-31). Das große Buch des kleinen Horrors: Eine Film-Enzyklopädie (in German). Mühlbeyer Filmbuchverlag. p. 126. ISBN 978-3-945378-52-6.
- ^ "FROM PIRANHA WOMEN TO BABY OOPSIE, FULL MOON FEATURES ANNOUNCES 2021 LINEUP OF NEW HORROR MOVIES". SyFy. 20 January 2021. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
- ^ Baby Oopsie: The Series | Trailer Premiere, retrieved 2022-04-25
- ^ Baby Oopsie: The Series | Trailer Premiere, retrieved 2022-04-26
- ^ "Demonic Toys - Movie Reviews and Movie Ratings". TV Guide.com. TV Guide. Retrieved 23 October 2017.
- ^ Fischer, Dennis (2011-12-14). Science Fiction Film Directors, 1895-1998. McFarland. p. 88. ISBN 978-0-7864-8505-5.
- ^ Wheeler, Drew (September 4, 1993). "REVIEW: Marquee values -- Dollman Vs. Demonic Toys starring Tracy Scoggins and Tim Thomerson". Billboard.
- ^ a b Weinberg, Scott. "Puppet Master vs. Demonic Toys". DVD Talk. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
- ^ unclecreepy (2010-02-17). "Demonic Toys 2 (2010)". Dread Central. Retrieved 2021-02-04.
- ^ "Baby Oopsie (Review)". Horror Society. 13 September 2021. Retrieved 17 January 2023.
- ^ "TV listings". The Tennessean. Newspapers.com. December 18, 2004.
- ^ "Halloween Harvest of Fear". Daily News. Newspapers.com. October 5, 1993.
- ^ "Demonic Toys 2: Personal Demons Trailer - ShockTillYouDrop.com". Archived from the original on 2012-10-08. Retrieved 2010-06-20.