Nightmare Fuel / Chad Vader

Maggie can be a real monster.

For a Slice of Life parody series involving Darth Vader's incompetent, less successful brother, Chad Vader has some surprisingly dark moments.

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The Series in General

• Randy's Sanity Slippage. Starting in Season Two when he begins to hallucinate that Baby Cookie can talk, which leads to him trying to kill Chad — and actually killing Weird Jimmy — and almost blowing up Empire Market.
• Weird Jimmy. While he's gradually revealed to be a (mostly) decent, helpful guy, there's always something mildly unsettling about him. Particularly his creepy giggle.
• Baby Cookie. Let us count the ways:
  • In spite of her cute appearance with a Domino Mask and her surprisingly high-pitched, somewhat raspy voice, she is a manipulative, sociopathic being, and a subtly corrupting influence who slowly drives Randy into further insanity.
  • Her sentience possibly being a dark, subconscious voice in Randy's head from his increasing madness...or she may ''actually'' be fully sentient, possessing Psychic Powers and being capable of Offscreen Teleportation. The fact that we never find out which it is just makes her storyline all the more disturbing.
  • Her suggestions of murder and genocide are played much darker and more sinister than the more comedic-toned, Jerkass antics of Clint and Maggie. She also has some very destructive impulses, culminating in her manipulation of Randy to destroy the store with an army of Baby Cookie copies strapped with bombs.
• Even though they're played for Black Comedy, Chad's imagined attempts at killing Maggie in a variety of increasingly aggressive ways are surprisingly violent.
• The fact that Chad Vader can use Force Lightning, unlike Darth Vader. If Chad was on the same level as his brother (due to not having the same handicaps, and not being restricted to a Slice of Life series), he'd be an even more dangerous Sith Lord than his brother.
• Maggie herself can be Nightmare Fuel at times. She's a Bitch in Sheep's Clothing with an insane amount of professional power, who is seemingly able to manipulate anyone into doing anything — which she will do, just because she can. It's hinted that she plans to turn Jeremy to her side from the moment she buys Empire Market. The fact that (unlike, say, Baby Cookie) there are plenty of people like her in Real Life just makes it worse.
  • In Season 2, she arranges for Libby — a sweet young immigrant woman with no criminal record — to be deported, just to punish Chad for breaking her rule against dating a co-worker.
• The fact that in the context of the series itself, Star Wars is real. Everything in cannon — from the Clones Wars, to the seedy criminal underworld, to Order 66, to the genocidal actions of the Empire (not to mention Palpatine himself) — actually happened.

Season 1

The Date (S1 E2)

• The story of how Chad got his suit: as a child, he was riding his bike and accidentally drove over an embankment and into a volcano, leaving his body horribly burned inside and out. If he ever takes off his helmet, he will die. While it's obviously a spoof of how Anakin obtained his wounds and respirator, it becomes disturbing when you stop to think about it: Chad says that his accident happened because he veered off his ordinary bike route; this implies that it happened in his own neighborhood, and that a lot of people — probably including his neighbors — got to watch a child get burned alive.
  • Chad is still mentally scarred by the experience, such that he finds it difficult to talk about it as an adult.
• The ending of the episode, after Chad is demoted to Night Shift Manager. A shot of the store's desolate, moonlit parking lot, (complete with a Dramatic Wind and paper trash blowing like a tumbleweed) accompanied by increasingly deep and dissonant chimes — and ending with a shot of Chad standing alone in the middle of the empty store.
  Weird Jimmy: Welcome to the night shift... Chad. (Cue Creepy, insane laughter.)

Drunk (S1 E5)

• Chad Vader almost being Driven to Suicide after the Trauma Conga Line he has to endure. Until a Force Ghost talks him out of it, that is.
  Clarissa: (voiceover flashback) Why don't you do something with your life, and stop being so lame?
  Chad: Yes, I'll do something with my life. I'll end it. How's that for doing something with my life, Clarissa?
• For people who have been bullied or humiliated, Chad's public humiliation in the restaurant, with the entire place laughing at him and the woman he loves looking on, isn't easy to watch.

Trapped in the Trash (S1 E7)

• The ending to "Trapped In The Trash": all the lights in the store go out, one by one, leaving everyone in darkness. Not to mention the Homage to The Empire Strikes Back that follows.
  Clint: (Mocking) Ooooo, the dark! Oooo! What, you think I'm afraid of the frickin' dark?
  Chad: You will be. (Ignites lightsaber, bathing Clint in ominous red light.) You will be.
  • Also, Jeremy becoming stuck in a trash can in the stock room (in a Shout-Out to the trash compactor scene in A New Hope) and finding out that something alive is trapped in there with him. That "something" turns out to be a King Cobra. And a raccoon.
    Jeremy: I've got a bad feeling about this...

Chad Fights Back (S1 E8)

• Clint's Kick the Dog by kicking Jeremy's helmet in the finale of Season 1, his wide-eyed Evil Laugh is disturbing from the usually toned down Jerkass that he usually is.
  Clint: Hey! What did I tell you about that STUPID helmet? (Knocks off helmet and kicks it across floor.)
  • Also, Clint's Curb-Stomp Battle against Chad. It's a bit unsettling to watch him easily beat Chad down, then taunt him while he lies on the floor, helpless.

Season 2

Into the Basement (S2 E3)

• The basement itself. It's strongly hinted to be more than just a Creepy Basement — bordering on an Eldritch Location. Chad even describes it to Jeremy as a portal to the dark soul half.
  Weird Jimmy: [Chad]´s probably dead. The basement isn't safe for...upstairs-ers.
• During his time in the basement, Jeremy sees a vision of Maggie waving at him and smiling...before she suddenly morphs into a vampiric-looking monster, complete with fangs, and snarls at him (perfectly symbolizing her Bitch in Sheep's Clothing nature). The scare chords during the scene certainly don't help.
  • Before that, he has a vision of himself, well-groomed and dressed as a businessman, carrying a briefcase and talking on the phone. Not very scary per se, but it's so bizarre that it comes across as a bit unsettling. It's actually a hint as to the plans Maggie has for him.
• Baby Cookie talking to Randy for the first time. Especially given that it happens right after Hal says that she can't talk.
  "Hiiiiii, Raaandy...."

The Basement Fights Back (S2 E4)

• The trio of robots in the basement. Especially with their child-like desire to play, in spite of being Ax-Crazy robots.
  • Even worse, they were Chad's creations. He had previously created them as service droids for the store; they failed, however, and he stuck them down in the basement and forgot about them. Even Jeremy points out how irresponsible and dangerous it was.

Somebody Dies (S2 E8)

• During Chad and Jeremy's battle, a cabinet door opens to reveal a crazed Randy preparing to kill either (or both) of them with a knife. He ends up nearly stabbing Chad in the back — until Jimmy gets in the way.
• Weird Jimmy's Jump Scare reveal that he's returned as a ghost (just when Jeremy believes he's gotten off the hook for his murder).

Season 3

• Maggie has a Companion Cube of her own: "Fire", a lighter that she speaks to when no one else is around. While the character trait is never explored any further, it's unsettling all the same.
  "Oh, Fire; why can't everyone be like you?"

Rockets and Chaos

• Sean Banditson's breakdown after a customer insults marshmallows veers between this and hilarious. Especially when the camera (representing his perception) focuses on a distorted closeup of the customer's mouth, laughing deeply.
• Chad using his Force Lightning to stop the Marshmallow Bandito is surprisingly brutal. Until it causes his pants to fall down, that is.

Lloyd Town

• Baby Cookie's reappearance. First, she mentally speaks to Randy as he's mopping the floor. Then, she suddenly appears underneath a cabbage in the produce department. Even the customer ran away screaming.
  • Randy's manic, insane face as he tells the customer, "Ask the baby!"
    • It's also revealed that Randy lied about throwing Baby Cookie in the trash. Showing that he's deeper under her thrall (or possibly, that much more insane) than previously shown.
      Baby Cookie: If I don't exist, then why didn't you throw me in the trash like you was going to? You could have got rid of me, Randy, and you didn't! You didn't! Cuz you're a special baby friend, remember? Take me out of this dark cabbage hole! Let's have fun time adventures like we used to!

Return of Clint

• Randy standing alone in the office, mumbling merchandise prices to himself. And then he turns a swiveling office chair around, revealing Baby Cookie.
  Randy: Please, leave me alone!
  Baby Cookie: I'm sowwee, Wandy. I go away and leave you alone forever.
  Randy: ...Really?
  Baby Cookie: NAW, I'm just kiddin! I'm your little baby friend! And little baby friends are always true to their BIG BUDDIES!
  • The creepy nursery music as Baby Cookie speaks doesn't help. Especially when it's interrupted by a Scare Chord as Baby Cookie reveals her true intentions.
  • "Yeah, we're gonna destroy the world..."
• Clint's back, and he's as much of a Jerkass bully as ever. When he finds out about Randy's Sanity Slippage, he ignores the danger, and instead uses Randy's fragile mental state to threaten and manipulate him into helping him. What a bastard.
  • There's also this little tidbit (which isn't elaborated upon or mentioned again):
    Clint: What do you know? That shopkeeper was right: that doll was cursed.
• Chad using a Jedi Mind Trick to hypnotize Lloyd into using his taser on Clint. Even though he definitely deserved it.
• At the end of the episode, Lloyd, hypnotized by Chad, goes into a toilet stall with a customer inside, pulling out a taser while chanting "Clean the Toilet" as the screen turns to black as the poor customer is shocked. The monochrome-esque lighting does not help matters at all.

Duel To the Death

• The Reveal of the extra dolls is especially creepy after Baby Cookie has been taken away from (a seemingly now powerless) Randy, with the latter opening up a set of six lockers to show six dolls — all of them talking like Baby Cookie and strapped with bombs — and Randy wearing Baby Cookie's Domino Mask with vertical diamond slits. With a Slasher Smile plastered on his face.

Six Ways to Die

• Maggie's meltdown at the end of the Season Finale. Even worse, she's been demoted to night shift manager — a position known for causing Sanity Slippage in anyone who takes it.

Season 4

The Return of Weird Jimmy

• Maggie's position as night manager (rather than making her insane, as it has with others) has turned her into a Stepford Smiler with a disturbing sense of serenity (which she claims is due to studying Japanese philosophy). She even withstands the dreaded night shift without losing her mind.
• Weird Jimmy's ghost suddenly re-appearing and attacking Johnny as he's going through his personal belongings.
  Jimmy: Don't worry, brother. I have a feeling we're gonna be getting a lot closer. (Lunges at Johnny with a snarl and a Scare Chord.)

The Possession of Weird Jimmy

• All of "The Possession of Weird Jimmy" is pretty unsettling.
  • Weird Jimmy deciding to take over the body of Johnny, his own brother (even if the man stole from a church), who briefly fights from the inside before Jimmy completely takes over from that point onwards.
  • Johnny trying to fight off Jimmy's influence in the episode's teaser.
    Johnny: (to Maggie) Could you.. please call the nearest church? (growls in pain and exertion.) C...c...CLEANUP ON AISLE FIVE! (insane laugh)
    • The terrified expression on Johnny's face as he realizes what's just happened does not help.
  • When Johnny runs to the stock room and looks in the mirror — and sees Jimmy staring back at him with a Slasher Smile.
    Johnny: Why are you doing this to me?!
    Mirror!Jimmy: Because I CAN!
    • Throughout their conversation, Jimmy is trying to take over Johnny, who keeps wincing in pain and jerking his body as he tries to fight off Jimmy's influence. In the end, Jimmy declares, "Now I'm gonna do the world a big favor — by taking those nice, strong mopping arms and putting them to GOOD USE!"
  • The entire possession scene. Jimmy tries to force Johnny to pick up the mop, while Johnny struggles to maintain control over his body. In the end, Jimmy wins, and Johnny — now fully controlled — walks off with a dead expression on his face. While it's mitigated by that fact that Jimmy literally only wants to resume his cleaning duties (without hurting anyone), it's still disturbing.
• The scene where Chad finds Possessed!Johnny.

  Chad: Johnny, what are you still doing here?

  Possessed!Johnny: (slowly turns to face Chad, without blinking) There is no Johnny. Only Jimmy.

Vader VS Vader

• Chad's trip to the basement to confront the "Dark Soul Half". It leads to an homage to Luke's vision from The Empire Strikes Back, which is almost as strange and disturbing as the original. To summarize: Chad ends up fighting his brother, the real Darth Vader, in a lightsaber duel. At the end, he decapitates his brother. Then the elder Vadar's helmet opens, revealing Chad's own helmet-covered face.

Martial Law (S4 E)

• Chad escalating his Bad Boss tendencies by bringing out Storm Troopers, in addition to the red robed Praetorian Guard belonging to Emperor Palpatine, fully emulating the tyrannical aspect of his brother. He has his new agents monitor the store and threatens the staff to work indefinitely under alternative of death.
  • Not helped by the fact that his first action as "Lord Vader" is to use Force Lightning into Lloyd's mouth for annoying him — a disturbing step up from his usual antics.

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