Silent Night, Deadly Night: The Covina Christmas Massacre

I hope everyone loved this episode! Was a difficult but compelling one to write. A massive thanks to Matty Grand for inviting me on!!

I think the reason he killed himself was because of the burns. He underestimated how fast the fire would spread and got hurt. They were really, really bad, and he wouldn't have been able to heal without going to the hospital. Once there, they would have been able to figure out what he'd done and he'd be held responsible for his actions, so this was the better alternative in his mind.

Merry Christmas, all! Hope you all enjoy this very special episode!

He ended himself because the suit burned on to him and he knew it wasn't going to be able to get away with it. He was obviously badly burned red velvet.

It's kinda funny how the fact the santa suit melted into the guy's skin is overlooked. Those things are usually cheap plasticy fabric that burns like napalm, and probably contrubuted a great deal to the ending.

I agree with Liam's analysis. The Santa suit ended up being seared into the killer's body, so I imagine he wouldn't be able to pass through airport security. Alternatively, it'd be suspicious as hell if he was admitted to the local hospital with burns and a melted on Santa suit. Seems like it could've been some very strong circumstantial evidence.

The best part of Simons videos of this format - apart from "I love my kids" tangents - are Simons genuine connection with his writers ("XY and I same page"). Seeing even the writers like to colab with each other is just priceless. This is how you know you created a functional team.

I absolutely love the camaraderie that has developed amongst the writers trapped in Simon's basement (the Blazement for all the OGBBs out there). Thank you Matt, Liam, and Emma for collaborating together to make this wonderful work of awfulness!

My wife was so excited when she heard the words Christmas massacre this morning! Thank you all! PS. Used to be a ghostwriter, so it’s always good to see someone actually pay writers and have long term relationships with them. Warms the heart

I wish they’d made it more clear to Simon that one of the reasons Bruce shot himself was that he was in immense pain from having a cheap-ass Santa costume seared into his skin. The man was so badly burned and injured that he probably could not have continued the massacre if he wanted to, so he gave up. That was possibly some sort of Christmas blessing in disguise that helped save some lives

As a kid, when I learned about the seasons and that Christmas is in summer in the southern hemisphere, it absolutely blew my mind. Christmas and winter (especially when it snows) were inextricable for me, so the idea that it could be any other way shocked my child brain.

Merry Christmas, and thank you writers and simon! I think he offed himself not because he realized what he had done, he did it because he hadn’t planned on setting himself on fire, and having his suit melt onto his body, knowing he would need medical attention and would never be able to escape as planned, he klled himself.

I think the unplanned burning of his suit into his skin is what derailed his original plan and subsequently resulted in his self check out

I agree with Liam. I think the only reason he shot himself was because he accidentally badly injured himself and could not hide or explain away the burns (and they would be painful as well). If he'd been uninjured, I think he would have followed through with a plan to try to escape the consequences, just like he tried to escape the consequences of his first son or stealing from his almost-wife. He never took responsibility for anything and this was one last, drastic example of that pattern.

I imagine he self-destructed because his escape went wrong. Kinda hard to get on a plane with a melted Santa suit fused to your skin.

I think Simon's confusion about why Bruce killed himself comes from a misunderstanding of narcissism as well as the myth of a killer who "snaps." Narcissists fear shame above anything else. The sole focus of their lives is to avoid the feeling of shame, whether that's through deception, shifting blame to others, and/or through killing themselves when accountability is unavoidable. People don't "snap" when their lives fall apart: Their goals remained the same all their lives and their behavior only serves to maintain that goal. When things are going well, that behavior is playing the devoted family man and/or successful businessman. When things fall apart, that behavior is to annihilate their family before their family discovers their shame and then kill themselves if they don't think they can avoid being shamed/held accountable by police. This is what happened to Bruce, Jim Jones, Brian Laundrie, and many other narcissistic killer asshats. This wasn't despair over a devastating divorce. This was yet another manifestation of utter selfishness in a lifelong pattern of selfishness.

Ah yes, settling down on Christmas evening with my cat on my lamp, a full tummy and Fact Boi talking about murder and bloodshed. What a nice way to round out the festivities.

Simon must not realize that he could never get away with it because he was burned so badly he needed a hospital.

We had an open pool growing up. The house was from the 50's. Our parents made sure that we knew how to swim and what to do before we could even walk. Pool safety was also constantly stressed. Always jump a good distance from the edge. Never dive or do anything like that in the shallow end. Always wait for people to move out of the way, don't just jump one after another. Etc. Whenever we have parties, we have someone dedicated to watching the kids. All kids have to have someone watching at all times because a lot of kids drown at parties with the adults assuming "someone else is probably watching." I agree that it's better to have fencing for safety and such, but I think an even bigger factor is that people don't appreciate the danger and aren't careful. Immediately I wonder how the kid even got to the pool without him noticing because that would NEVER happen at our house. I can't imagine a scenario at our house where a child not old enough to get themselves out of the pool would ever get anywhere near the pool without us noticing. Someone was always specifically watching the kids. I don't recall ever having an accident in our pool save for things like someone accidentally hitting another person with a toy because they weren't looking and things like that. We've always taught the kids an appreciation for the power of water in general. Don't underestimate water, because it WILL throw you around like you're a ragdoll.

I appreciate the kind words that someone cares. For those going through difficult times like separation from a narcissist with a child/children involved, there really isn't always someone to talk to. Help lines don't always pick up. Time and money for therapy runs out. Friends can only be expected to witness so much.