Only the Mistress of the Dark could get away with taking an axe to Christmas’ most jolly of gift givers; merry ol’ Santa Claus. To be fair, it was a complete accident. What’s a gal to do when she’s wearing heels in the snow and just wants to cut down her own Christmas tree in peace, anyway? And Santa doesn’t exactly stay dead either…
The original run of Elvira’s Movie Macabre started in September of 1981 and ran for five seasons, launching the B-movie queen to pop culture icon status in short order. The first horror host to be syndicated nationally, Elvira’s off-beat sense of humor, quick wit, and Valley girl persona complemented the B-horror movies featured in the episodes well. While she’d continue on to reign as the Queen of Halloween for decades with multiple movies, books, shows, music CDs, and more, Elvira eventually returned to Elvira’s Movie Macabre for a revival in September of 2010. This time the films chosen were in public domain.
December’s sole episode in this revival brought with it a holiday treat co-written by Elvira’s creator herself, Cassandra Peterson. The film at the center of the episode was the schlocky 1964 sci-fi comedy Santa Claus Conquers the Martians, a repeat offender on “worst movies ever made lists.” The plot saw Santa Claus getting kidnapped by Martians so he could give their kids presents, and it was the precise type of wacky that made for great fodder for Elvira. But what really made this episode special was the animated short film that served as an intro, an homage to classic Claymation Christmas specials. Just with a gothic, Mistress of the Dark kind of twist.
In it, Elvira wades through snow, axe in hand, in search of the perfect tree. She just keeps getting interrupted by ghoulish friends before completing her mission. By the time Santa Claus arrives, poor Elvira’s had one scare too many. The best part about this animated short, titled “Elvira’s Very Scary X-Man,” is that it’s a Chiodo Bros. Production! Directed by Stephen Chiodo and produced by Edward Chiodo, two-thirds of the sibling special effects artists behind films like Killer Klowns from Outer Space and Critters, this short outshines the feature length film attached. Watch it below.