The Tale of Old Man Corcoran

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Midnight Society

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Air Date: Saturday, October 2, 1993
Storyteller: Kiki (Jodie Resther)

Frame: In one of the more fun openings to the show, we get the Midnight Society playing a bit of Hide 'n Seek in the dark. As everyone rushes to "home," David (Nathaniel Moreau) loses out and speaks up about skipping to the story. Kristen (Rachel Blanchard) agrees in her way, asking why they're playing a "stupid kid's game." Said "kid's game," however, happens to be the inspiration for Kiki's story that night. She then sets the mood by talking about the game, how those moments spent alone in waiting can be spooky, and begins her story.

Story: Jack (Adam Bonneau) and his brother, Kenny (Michael Alexander Jackson), are new to town and haven't socialized much yet, until one day, they meet a group of kids, led by a boy named Marshall (Jonathan Cameron), who invites them to play Hide 'n Seek in the local cemetery that night. The brothers meet them later, and get told the story of "Old Man Corcoran," a spooky groundskeeper who allegedly committed violent acts. While the brothers try to prove themselves to this new group of kids, they soon discover that Corcoran isn't actually the creepiest thing about this graveyard.

Review: Overall, I thoroughly enjoy this one, but it's far from perfect. Story-wise, it's another great one for the Halloween season, and the fake-out at the end, although it's easy to see coming, is still a cool twist. Corcoran (David Francis), himself, is a creepy character, and altogether, the episode works. On the other hand, some of the characters are hard to like. Jack is a bit of a cocky jerk, and one of the kids, Cissy Vernon (Tamar Kozlov), is almost too easy to hate. These characters take me out of it a little bit, but I have to admit, it's probably one of Kiki's better stories, considering everything else about it.

Final Rating: Scared

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