HHN XXIV OPENING WEEKEND OVERVIEW

MASKERADE: UNSTITCHED

    Greetings Horror Nights fans, it is that time. HHN XXIV has started and is now in full swing. Opening weekend for HHN, is always a tough thing to talk about. Generally, things are still being worked out, Scare Actor's are still finding their groove, and it's still a small work in progress. Don't get me wrong, the event is OPEN and it's not Employee Preview, but there are little things here and there that still may not be 100%.
    With that, there is also one other thing that usually hinders opening weekend: RAIN. We are in Florida folks, and while summer is winding down and the rainy season is coming to an end, it still rains. Sometimes a lot. It's become a tradition on Opening Night for it to rain, and rain it did.
    Most of the time here in Florida when it rains, it passes pretty quickly. We get a torrential downpour for a few minutes and it moves on. There are rare instances, which tend to show up this time of year, when the rain doesn't just go away. This year's Opening Night saw a steady stream of rain, virtually all night. It did briefly let-up for about an hour, but it was a very wet night.

IN-PARK HOLDING AREA AT FINNEGANS/NEW YORK

    Normally, HHN doesn't bring out the Scare Actor's in the streets if it rains, but surprisingly they did on Friday. It wasn't whole casts mind you, and in instances like The Purge: Anarchy and MASKerade: Unstitched;, some things had to be left under cover. The motorcycles for example in The Purge: Anarchy, and the stilt-walkers in MASKerade, were absent. Still, it surprised me.
    Opening Night wasn't just wet, but busy- very busy. I've been to my share of HHN Opening Nights, and this was by far, the busiest I've ever experienced. A few Houses also didn't have very accurate wait times. For instance, AVP: Alien VS Predator had a posted time of 30 minutes, but we waited well over an hour before we entered.
    I don't use an Express Pass, but I have a limit if I'm going to wait in line, especially the first time I'm doing a House. If I like the House, I may wait longer for it later as the event goes on, but waiting nearly two-hours on Opening Night, I pretty much won't do.
    Still, we did two Houses on Opening Night: AVP: Alien VS Predator, and Giggles & Gore Inc.. We will talk more in detail about Houses in a minute, but the first impressions of the Houses this year are very good. Things will change and fluctuate as the event goes on, and I will keep a running ranking as I do the Houses over the course of the event, but for the most part, they are strong.
    I still have yet to experience The Walking Dead: End of the Line, or From Dusk Till Dawn, but if they continue the trend of the other Houses, then HHN XXIV is shaping up to be one strong year. They seem to be pushing things a little bit and taking some chances. Especially when it comes to content, which is a good thing.

DOLLHOUSE OF THE DAMNED FACADE

    Everyone is of course shouting from the highest hills that Scare Zones are back. Are they? Yes, but only one so far really stands out. The others are kind of meh. I still have yet to see the sacrifice in Bayou of Blood, and I still haven't seen all the Face Off: In The Flesh characters either, so keep that in mind.
    Saturday was a much nicer day of course, and we spent a lot of time in the Scare Zones, and we did more Houses. So before I blabber on too much, let's get to the current rankings of the Houses and Scare Zones. It's entirely possible (and most likely), these rankings will change over the course of the event. Things change, casts change their approaches, things that don't work can work themselves out ETC... So I will keep a running commentary on all the rankings as we move forward in the event. A full, wrap-up review of the event, will come when it has ended.
    Overall, a great opening weekend for HHN XXIV!

MUCH DIFFERENT PICTURE ON SATURDAY IN THE HOLDING AREA

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CURRENT HOUSE RANKINGS

6. DRACULA UNTOLD: REIGN OF BLOOD

• CURRENT RATING: 2/5

This entire House just feels like a waste. I know it was on the bottom of my most anticipated list, but I was really hoping to be surprised here. Instead, I got nothing. No scares. Bland sets. No energy by the actor's in here, and where the hell was Dracula?

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5. ROANOKE: CANNIBAL COLONY

• CURRENT RATING: 3/5
  

I feel like I'm missing something in here. I heard a lot of raving about this House, but I thought it was just OK. Some nifty set design, and some good energy, but I didn't really feel all of it. Yes, it's pretty gory as well, which is a plus, and it does kind of have an "old school" Horror Nights feel. However, I left the House kind of like "that was it?".

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4. GIGGLES & GORE INC.

• CURRENT RATING: 3.5/5

A pleasant surprise. Yes, it's gory. It's also a whole lot of fun too. The House has some nifty scares, and some great interactive elements for guests to mess around with. The cast is great in here too, and they bring a cool vibe to the House. It feels longer than it actually is too, considering how short it really is.

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3. DOLLHOUSE OF THE DAMNED

• CURRENT RATING: 4.5/5

Positively creepy and twisted. The facade is great too and sets up the House nicely. Some really great scares in here, and the overall vibe is just great. Certain rooms in here, really give off an "I really shouldn't be in here" feeling. Some of the things are just so eerie and disturbing, it's awesome. Such a creepy House.

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2. AVP: ALIEN VS PREDATOR

• CURRENT RATING: 4.5/5

Facehuggers. Predators. Aliens. Sets. Scares. Special effects. This House is an awesome achievement from A&D. They did a terrific job taking the AVP concept and making it their own. Great scares in here, great cast energy, and it's wonderful just to look at. The Alien puppets are awesome, and work just as good as they did in An American Werewolf in London last year. The Predators also look really good. My only complaint is a spoiler, so I won't post it here, but it's missing in this House. I wish they added it. Still, a great, great House.

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1. HALLOWEEN

• CURRENT RATING: 5/5

I only got to do Halloween once, but it is dangerously close to beating out An American Werewolf in London as my favorite House of all time. Good Lord, this House is awesome. FANTASTIC scares, awesome energy from a great cast, and you are transported into the film. Everything just falls into place with this one. The facade is great, and the effects projected on the front only make it better. Michael Myers is freaking EVERYWHERE in this House. Such a bloody good time.

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    As I said above, I still have yet to do From Dusk Till Dawn, and The Walking Dead: End of the Line. Check back over the course of the event, to see how and if, the House rankings change.

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CURRENT SCARE ZONE RANKINGS

4. BAYOU OF BLOOD

• CURRENT RATING: 2.5/5

There are a couple of problems with Bayou. The first is the lighting. It's so damn dark, you can't see anything. The second is the sacrifice show. I still have yet to see it, but it seems they are relying heavily on it, for the Zone to work. Everything else in here is just bland. Some cool scenery though. I just wish there was more.

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3. MASKERADE: UNSTITCHED

• CURRENT RATING: 2.5/5

MASKerade gets the same rating as Bayou, but I'm putting it slightly ahead on my list as of now for one reason: people watching. It's a great Scare Zone to just chill and watch. There's not much to this place really, and the actor's aren't really doing much besides just walking around being creepy. Still, if you like to just watch and chill, it's a great Zone to do it in.

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2. FACE OFF: IN THE FLESH

• CURRENT RATING: 3/5

Yes, it's just 7 with different characters, but it's still a whole lot of fun. If you like to take pictures with the Scare Actor's at HHN, this is your place to do it. A complaint I have with this Zone though, is in the minions who populate around the different creatures. SCARE US PLEASE!

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1. THE PURGE: ANARCHY

• CURRENT RATING: 4/5

I think my hatred of these films is quite known, but man, this is a kick-ass Scare Zone! It's energetic, chaotic, interactive, and BIG. I love how some of the characters roam around to places where they shouldn't be either sometimes. The auction is also evil and fun! I love how they round up the victims too. Some of them blend in really well with the crowd. I had no idea one of them was next to me, before she was taken into the truck. A whole lot of fun.

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    So that's it for now. I also have not yet seen Bill & Ted. I should be seeing it this coming Thursday. I also added some photos from this past weekend, and more will be coming as we go forth. You can view all the photos HERE I can't wait to see how the event shapes up over the coming weeks!