One of DC Comics' stranger creations was Brother Power the Geek, a tailor's mannequin brought to life by a combination of bloodstained clothing and a bolt of lightning.A similar idea lies behind the Demonic Dummy and Scary Scarecrows. Despite how ridiculous a doll trying to kill people should be, it's still seen as quite frightening. They may even be the antagonist or be used by the antagonist. Like clowns, what should be a silly, innocent bit of childhood fun can make a scene ironically unnerving, depending on where they're placed, what they're doing, or even simply how they're lit. In horror, dolls are often used as part of the scenery to help establish the mood, even providing a theme for The Doll Episode. This goes even more when the doll is damaged in some way, such as missing limbs or eyes, or having holes in its head.Īnother way to do it is make it a clockwork toy ( usually an organ-grinder's monkey with cymbals) something that moves on its own when someone winds the key, then not have it wound up for years, and have it click its cymbals in a haunted, mechanical rendition of Terrible Ticking. The blank gaze and unmoving stare reminds us too viscerally of corpses, perhaps. It's probably because many of them fit squarely in Uncanny Valley territory. Dolls are perceived as harmless, and they can be gorgeous and/or adorable, but there's still something scary about dolls.

Radi skull and devil doll