Topher's Log

HHN XXV: OPENING WEEKEND OVERVIEW

9/20/2015

Greetings internet dwellers!

HHN XXV has begun, and opening weekend is in the books. A couple of quick observations before we get into the current house and Scare Zone rankings. Firstly, hey, it didn't rain! This is only the second opening night I have attended, where it did not rain. That is call for celebration enough. The weather was quite nice Friday and Saturday. Makes me nervous as we move forward...

HHN XXV is huge. Epic. Big. Ambitious. Perhaps, a little too ambitious. It's nice that they are going all out for the 25th anniversary. However, with big and ambitious, comes issues. Things still need tweaking and fixing. Friday night, some things seemed very incomplete.

The flow will come with time. However, even in the houses things seemed like they weren't ready. Saturday was slightly better. Still, something was missing. Don't get me wrong, I like the scope they are going for, but some things need work. It will come with time.

Crowds. Holy shit this weekend was crowded. This poses a problem for the majority of the Scare Zones. Screampunk, Evil's Roots, and Die-In, are so congested. Evil's Roots suffers even more with the Carnage Returns show. Yes, they have routed the foot traffic. Still, it creates a massive bottleneck in that area. Die-In, Evil's Roots, and Screampunk, are in cramped enough spaces at it is.

On really busy nights, this is going to be a major issue. It was busy Friday and Saturday, but wasn't peak night busy. When HHN hits a peak night, well, good luck my friends. Navigating around is going to be hard. It's very hard to just look around in those Zones. This also hurts the scare factor with the actor's.

That being said. I dig the interactivity HHN is giving the Scareactor's this year. This is especially true in Psychoscareapy, Die-In and, Icons: HHN. With the Icon Zone, it is incredibly fun just to interact with all the Icons and other characters.

Chainsaws. You get a chainsaw! And you get a chainsaw! It seemed like every freaking actor had a chainsaw. Even old characters who don't use a chainsaw, had a chainsaw. Lady Luck with a chainsaw is kind of weird, but cool. Even Cindy had a chainsaw. There were clowns with chainsaws, prisoners, crazy people... they were everywhere.

Yes, chainsaws are the name of the game this year. HHN filled in some of the dead space nicely as well. Springfield, in front of Transformers, and MIB, have people roaming with chainsaws. It's a nice touch to help keep people immersed.

Thank heaven they gave us some new tunes this year. I like the music they are using. The choices in Pschoscareapy: Unleased, are nice and even quite funny at times.

So, yes, the first week is over. HHN XXV is an epic year, that still needs some tweaking going forward. However, it is a VERY strong year with what they are doing. I can't really fault them for trying. I can not wait to explore more next weekend!

CURRENT HOUSE RANKINGS

Ah, yes. The houses. I still have yet to complete all the houses. The Purge, The Walking Dead and Asylum in Wonderland, will have to wait until next time. Scope. That is the one word I will use to describe the houses this year. They are big, bold, and beautiful. I hope that as time goes on, HHN doesn't scale back the intensity in some of these houses. Don't cave to complaints!

From the bottom to the top.

6. AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON

CURRENT RATING: 3/5

Still trying to wrap my brain around this one. Is it the same house? Yes. However, the "tweaks" for me, only seemed to hurt it. The new wolf puppets are nice. We saw no extra wolf. The energy brought by the actor's in 2013, was sorely lacking in this version. I'm not sure I like the more "closer" sets either. The space in the first house, gave it a grander scale. That was missing here. Our first run through, we had audio problems, and a lot of the effects in the first few rooms, weren't working either. There seemed to be an incredible lack of flow in here, compared to 2013. What did still work from the house in 2013, was superb though.

5. RUN: BLOOD, SWEAT AND FEARS

CURRENT RATING: 3.5/5

This is going to be a house that people are going to love or hate. Nothing makes sense in here. It's weird, confusing, loud, and insane. Because of its bat-shit crazy vibe, I like it. I really dig the scene transitions in here. Keeping a tally on who is winning is a nice touch. It's also very bright. I found that interesting. I didn't really notice a whole lot of Hellgate in here, but its presence is there. Right down to Old Sparky. Love the opening scene in here. It sets up the vibrant nature of the house nightly. I couldn't help but feel something was missing. Still, if you like weird, crazy stuff, Run is for you.

4. INSIDIOUS

CURRENT RATING: 4/5

Insidious is all about atmosphere. And it oozes it. I LOVE the sets in here. The house itself feels long, the actor's are intense, it's dark, creepy and at times, frightening. The house was populated nicely. I've actually done this three times now, counting my preview at the media event. I will say, the beginning is still kind of bland for me, but it really picks up and goes full throttle to the end. Some really nice lighting in here too. The house also had a whole lot more fog in it last night.

3. BODY COLLECTORS: RECOLLECTIONS

CURRENT RATING: 5/5

Gorgeous. Simply gorgeous. This house is awesome. Fantastic sets, great atmosphere, intense, bloody, and scary. There is an incredible haunting vibe in here. The Body Collectors are nicely done. Really awesome scenes and images. The random kills are back in here, which is a great throwback to past Body Collector houses. And they found an operating theater again. Good for them! The facade is gorgeous as well.

2. FREDDY VS. JASON

CURRENT RANKING: 5/5

Everything that AVP got wrong last year, Freddy Vs. Jason does right this year. This house is EPIC too. Great, grand sets and atmosphere. And yes, Freddy and Jason FIGHT! The addition of the screens is a nice touch. However, the actor's pretending to go at it as well, just elevate the experience. Both characters get equal time too. I will say, I am not quite sure about the ending. I know that we are supposed to get a different winner randomly. However, I wasn't so clear on that. Still, just a wonderfully done house!

1. JACK PRESENTS: 25 YEARS OF MONSTERS & MAYHEM

CURRENT RATING: 5/5

To be honest, my current top 3, could all be number one. Freddy Vs. Jason, and Body Collectors are just as good as Monsters & Mayhem. Even Insidious is incredibly strong. Monsters & Mayhem, is just perfect. It hits the right bit of nostalgia for HHN fans. Meanwhile, it is intense and immersive enough, for those who may be experiencing these greatest hits for the first time. Mayhem has two things that put it at number one right now for me. One: BEAR. TWO: Surprise ending. This house is BIG too. Love the Universal Classic Monsters segment as well. So wonderfully realized and, a little bit surprising. In a good way. I love the facade as well.

SCARE ZONES

With the Scare Zones, we were only able to chill in two. Because of the crowds, it was hard to just stop and find a spot to soak it all in. Still, we spent a lot of time in the Scare Zones on Friday and Saturday.

5. SCARY TALES: SCREAMPUNK

CURRENT RATING: 2.5/5

Because of the lack of sets, this is a Zone where the actor's need to be involved. For the most part, they weren't. A few of them stepped up, like Pinocchio there, however the rest just kind of stood there. I do LOVE the costumes in here though. Crowds were an issue in here too. Cramped as the night went on. Overall, a disappointing.

4. EVIL'S ROOTS

CURRENT RATING: 3.5/5

This Zone is a victim of the crowds. The actor's really can't do anything because it is so crowded. However, the atmosphere is just incredible. The lighting, the fog, the costumes and the music, all work well. I need more time in here.

3. ALL NITE DIE-IN: DOUBLE FEATURE

CURRENT RATING: 3.5/5

Another victim of crowds. Still, lots of energy by the Scareactor's in here. We have seen both the black and white cast, as well as the color cast. Both are great. The modern cast, has a lot more interactivity with the actors. It is a lot of fun, and I loved seeing the Invisible Man in the black and white cast!

2. PSYCHOSCAREAPY: UNLEASHED

CURRENT RATING: 4/5

Psychoscareapy is incredible fun. Love, LOVE the actor's in here. It is pretty much The Purge: Anarchy, but the actor's have personalities. Every single one is a hoot to follow and watch. I love the stalking of the trick or treater's. While the costume contest doesn't have the same vibrato as The Purge auction, it is still fun. We did notice on Saturday, it appeared the kills in the windows were either off, not working, or not happening as frequently. We spent a lot of time in here just watching.

1. ICONS: HHN

CURRENT RATING: 4.5/5

While it may lack in the scare department, Icons: HHN makes up for it with spectacle. The random kill shows on the Icon stages, are awesome. The other characters and Icons walking around, are so much fun. Happy to see some lesser known people like Lady Luck, and the Iniquitus get some love. So much fun in here, and the actor's are so interactive with everyone. To a certain degree of course. Love this Zone.

So there you have it. Week one has come and gone. I already can't wait for next week. Hopefully, I will get a chance to do Asylum, Purge and The Walking Dead next time. Lots more content throughout the course of the event! Stay tuned!

Hasta la Bye-bye for now.

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