Hypnotic Poison Eau de Toilette 
Christian Dior (1998)

Hypnotic Poison (1998) was almost like an omen with the way it was released 13 years after the original controversial Dior Poison (1985), and sufficiently "cleaned up" the primary accord of the original to be something mass-appealing. Hypnotic Poison isn't the first flanker of the iconic original, as that honor goes to Tendre Poison (1994), but that green-focused variant didn't survive the changing times quite like the first version or this iteration, so a lot of people don't remember it. If the Jean Guichard-penned original seemed way too aggressive and out of place in a late 90's perfume market full of beige masculine freshies and sweet gourmand feminines, this new Annick Menardo-composed creation was just the fix Dior needed to keep relevant, furthered by the fact that the animalics and indolic florals in the recent new pillar Dune (1991) were almost seen like dinosaurs in an emerging synthetic era of perfumery. I'm not particularly a fan of what's going on under the hood of Hypnotic Poison, but I can understand why this equaled, then surpassed the popularity of its namesake pillar. Hypnotic Poison presents itself as a sort of bready gourmand floral with sweet bakery elements on top of a scrubbed and pared-down version of the original Poison's core.

Hypnotic Poison is nowhere near as complex of a perfume compared to the original, but it neither does it try to be as serious. A smell almost like almond flour opens Hypnotic Poison, joined by caraway and lemon, creating an accord similar to the Dutch sugar cookies we sometimes get around Christmas time. From this very confectionery-like introduction comes sweet jasmine sambac mostly scrubbed of the indole, and a hit of an oakmoss/tonka tandem, giving Hypnotic Poison almost a Fougère-like interpretation of the signature Poison aesthetic, freed from the dark macerated fruit elements. There is something of an inferred cherry accord thanks to the almond, but once the rich base comes into the picture, the fougère comparisons fade while vanilla, white patchouli. musk, amber, and rosewood form an oriental base. Hypnotic Poison stays mostly in its gourmand lane from there on out, with the oriental riff underneath preventing the final skin scent from being too sickeningly sweet but still a bit too warm and wholesome for my comfort. I see why Hypnotic Poison was a breakout hit in the 90's, as it tapped perfectly into that bubbly "valley girl" feigned naivety that was popular at the time, and parodied by films like Clueless. Wear time is all day and although this doesn't have the frighteningly never-ending sillage of "OG" Poison, it can actually get cloying more quickly if you're within its field of effect.

If you like almond fragrances, sweet creamy gourmands, or anything that is generally pleasant and inviting, Hypnotic Poison is your perfume. Almost at the opposite end of the spectrum from Poison, this flanker seems to be more of the deceptively disarming type of succubus versus the dark, terrifying-yet-beautiful she-demon that is the original. The person who wears Poison wants you to know they mean business, but someone using Hypnotic Poison would rather sneak up on you after setting you at ease. It's just not a vibe I like because if you had given me a sample of this without showing me the bottle or the name, I'd just assume I was smelling another late 90's or early 2000's gourmand and would just wave it on, but this thing carries the Poison mantle for crying out loud! Still, Hypnotic Poison can obviously go places that regular Poison cannot, like to work or to casual events, but I'd still avoid warmer weather, even more with this one than the first due to the baked cookie opening. Give this a test if the old grande dame that is Poison just comes across as too much to take, although you're not getting a whole lot of what made that scent so unique here, but rather just a slightly-spicy toasted almond gourmand riding on the back of something else's reputation. It's not bad, but once again, I can't really get behind it. Solid neutral.

The poison is still there, but this balsamic version - which doesn't have the audacity of the original - is less Poison and more gourmand 'sent bon'.
No doubt some will think that's a good thing...