Directed by
John Landis. On the surface, Harold (
George Wendt) is a friendly man that lives alone in a quiet Midwestern neighborhood. Underneath, he's a crazy serial killer obsessed with forming the perfect "family", and he has set his eyes upon the new young couple that has moved across the street, the Fullers (Meredith Monroe and Matt Kesslar).
Tropes:
- Action Girl: Celia Fuller is well capable of running and kicking.
- Batman Gambit: Everything the Fullers did was part of a plan to capture Harold and kill him.
- The Bait: Celia is actively playing with Harold's interest in her.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Harold, perfectly nice neighbor on the surface and ruthless killer underneath. Unfortunately for him, the same goes for the Fullers.
- Black Comedy: One of the straightest examples in the series, with the scene where Celia finds the skeletons of Sarah and her "grandparents" standing out.
- Chekhov's Skill: David Fuller is a doctor. At the end, he comments that he knows how to torture Harold without killing him for two weeks.
- Cold-Blooded Torture: The Fullers keep Harold alive for two weeks, torturing him from beginning to end before they kill him.
- Disposing of a Body: Harold buried his first "wife" in the garden. His use of Hollywood Acid is not an example of this, however, as it is to strip bodies to the bone and keep the skeletons instead.
- Exact Words: David allows Harold to skip the line in his hospital, joking that Celia wouldn't forgive him if Harold bled to death before receiving medical attention. It is true that she would be disappointed if that happened, because they want to kill him and make sure he knows why and suffers first.
- Faux Affably Evil: Harold acts like a really nice guy, but it's a thin veil over the fact that he's a murderous psycho.
- Imagine Spot: Harold has several wherein he talks with his intended victims, including Celia.
- Freudian Excuse: Harold had a lousy family as a kid, so he kills to have a better one.
- Metaphorically True: When the Fullers confront Harold about the murder of their daughter, he recalls that they told him she died of cancer. Their reply: "You ARE a cancer."
- Mummies at the Dinner Table: Harold kills random people, melts off their flesh, and uses their skeletons as mannequins to create his vision of the perfect family. He has repeated conversations and arguments with them, including when he "murders" his current "wife" (again).
- Murder the Hypotenuse: Harold becomes attracted to his new neighbor Celia, and is called out for it by his "wife" (in his mind). After an intense argument with himself, he destroys the skeleton to make himself "available".
- Oh, Crap!: The film ends on a shot of Harold's horrified eyes, upon hearing the Fullers' intent to further his torment.
- Outliving One's Offspring: The Fullers are recovering from the death of their only daughter.
- Parental Incest: It is hinted that Harold has incestuous feelings towards his prospective teenaged "daughter" when he goes scouting for victims to fill the role. Averted with the little girl skeleton that Howard also considers to be his "daughter". He cuddles up to her in bed, but in a clearly fatherly/caretaker role.
- Pay Evil unto Evil: David and Celia know who Harold is and that he killed their daughter, and the whole episode is a plan to torture him to death.
- Replacement Goldfish: The Fullers argue if they should have another child. Harold sees Celia as a better "wife" than his current one.
- The Reveal: The Fuller's daughter didn't die of cancer. She was Sarah, the little girl that Harold "adopted". Everything they did was part of a plan to capture Harold and unleash their bloody vengeance.
- Screw Politeness, I'm a Senior!: How Harold imagines his "mom".
- Shout-Out: In one scene, Harold's current "wife" is posed reading the "Bat Boy found" number of News of the World.
- Serial Killer: Harold. His modus operandi is abducting, murdering people, and keeping their skeletons in his house as a replacement "family".
- Soundtrack Dissonance: Harold is introduced dissoving his latest victim's body while listening to the uplifting gospel song "Jesus Gave me Water". It plays again at the end when Harold is told that he is going to be kept alive for as long as he resists while being tortured.
- Stepford Suburbia: Harold's home looks like a sweet, normal suburbanite home, but is the home of a serial killer and outfitted for his needs. Then his neighbors turn out to be the parents of one of his victims, so they manipulate him into coming to their home, where they imprison, torture and murder him.
- Take That!: Harold has a portrait of Dick Cheney in his living room.
- Through the Eyes of Madness: Harold has constant hallucinations where he sees his "family" as if they were alive. He also sees prospective new members actively tempting him to take them.
- The Oner: The episode starts with a long camera shot from Harold's house door to his basement.
- Undercover When Alone: A happy couple move in next door to a Serial Killer Villain Protagonist who is later revealed to have murdered their daughter and everything was part of a plot to get revenge on him. However, despite their knowledge of his true nature they seem to take no caution whatsoever, still acting completely blissful and don't discuss their plan even when they're not in his presence.
- Villain Protagonist: The narrative follows Harold Thompson, who abducts people and kills them for their skeletons to help him live a fantasy.
