This latest episode is not so much scary and frightening as it is often amusing and fascinating. For this week’s episode, director, writer, and creator Mick Garris brings to life one of his own stories. I was often thinking back to “Twilight Zone” for this installment as it deals with unknown identities and sudden powers that arise from circumstances. As little expectations I had for “Chocolate” it ends up as a very solid episode. Henry Thomas is very much in the vein of Norman Bates here as a prudish young man named Jamie who works as a scientist synthesizing smells and tastes for products. One night after a vivid dream he awakes with the strong taste of chocolate in his mouth and begins to wonder if the dream was an actual figment of his imagination.
“Chocolate” is the whimsical display of what happens when our senses go completely out of control, while the main character finds himself in a bit of a mystery. He inexplicably begins to take on the senses of someone, and he awakes with the taste of chocolate. He discovers he’s seeing life through the eyes of a beautiful woman (Lucy Laurier) gazing at her through a reflection in a vanity mirror and soon becomes infatuated with her. But things are taken to whole new levels when he can feel her orgasms especially in one instance when she’s having sex with a man. Jamie whose life revolves around his inability to enjoy the finer things takes a bit of a wrong turn once these sense begins completely overwhelming him. Garris has fun with this concept bringing this character’s mind in to the woman’s in all aspects, even experiencing her masturbation with utter disbelief. The senses soon become overpowered and ruin his basic social abilities especially when he brings a girl home one night, and he begins to seek out his mysterious love with somewhat disastrous consequences.
Thomas gives a very good performance here in both a creepy yet funny characterization, while Lucy Laurier is a great inadvertent femme fatale. Garris really does derive much of his story elements on noir with all the basic character arch-types, but really adds his own meta-physical twist. Though Garris does trade scares for all out camp, “Chocolate” does stand out among the series as a cheesy entry without a punch line. Like many other anthology series before it, every episode thus far has had a punch line, one defining moment be it ironic or scary that helps wrap up the story, but “Chocolate” is basically without one, and much of what it offers up is weak. Also, Garris doesn’t pull a believable performance from Thomas in spite of his dramatic capacities. Watching him miming being straddled by a man is pretty weak even when meant as humor. In spite of cheesy elements and the lack of a truly ironic ending to book end the episode, Mick Garris provides a more whimsical episode this time around with an examination of life’s senses suddenly bursting to life. Thomas gives a good performance for an entertaining installment.