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HHN XXI Speculation


Mark M.
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ok if Uni ISNT using the classic literature gone horror this year... then after reading all you guys posts they definately SHOULD use that idea in the future. Its too good an idea to pass up!!! nice work fellow HHN geeks!

also if a Librarian didnt have a mouth how would she eat? she'd have to be grossly skinny... even scarier!

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Well there hasnt really been an opening scaremony in a while so I don't think we'll have to worry about that.

But you make a good point about the park presence. Maybe we can hear her thoughts? Maybe she speaks through the books and what we hear is some narrator who speaks her words for her.

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Only thing with that what about shows or opening scaremonies she silent so what kinda show or park presence could she really have

Well there hasnt really been an opening scaremony in a while so I don't think we'll have to worry about that.

But you make a good point about the park presence. Maybe we can hear her thoughts? Maybe she speaks through the books and what we hear is some narrator who speaks her words for her.

The scaremonies aren't necessary and haven't been used "officially" in years. I think the last time an official show was used was '06 or '07. And if you really think about it, Julian Browning wasn't a huge talker (I don't even recall "hearing" him until the video for last year), and Bloody Mary didn't really "speak" but mostly screamed (think about it, only Mary Agana predominately spoke).

If you don't have a show, she doesn't need to speak. She just needs to exist. Her presence could be seen throughout the park in a fashion similar to Bloody Mary (glimpses of her in each house). To have even more fun, let her and her minion be a roving scarezone. That way her presence would literally be throughout the park.

It wouldn't be impossible, but the trick and effectiveness of it would be the simple fact that it would be so different. A completely silent icon (especially who looks normal outside of a shocking deformity) would unsettle a lot of people, which is the exact type of vibe I love the most from the event.

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The scaremonies aren't necessary and haven't been used "officially" in years. I think the last time an official show was used was '06 or '07. And if you really think about it, Julian Browning wasn't a huge talker (I don't even recall "hearing" him until the video for last year), and Bloody Mary didn't really "speak" but mostly screamed (think about it, only Mary Agana predominately spoke).

If you don't have a show, she doesn't need to speak. She just needs to exist. Her presence could be seen throughout the park in a fashion similar to Bloody Mary (glimpses of her in each house). To have even more fun, let her and her minion be a roving scarezone. That way her presence would literally be throughout the park.

It wouldn't be impossible, but the trick and effectiveness of it would be the simple fact that it would be so different. A completely silent icon (especially who looks normal outside of a shocking deformity) would usnsettle a lot of people, which is the exact type of vibe I love the most from the event.

I agree that the icon as a roaming character would be pretty interesting. And as far as silent characters, Fear was more or less silent, wasn't he? Oh, he talked on the website...I suppose...did his mouth actually move?...but as far as park presence, he uttered not a peep. (He DID, however, wave his hands around idiotically like a spokesmodel on "The Price Is Right" revealing a new car in the Showcase Showdown...but that's another topic altogether.) So not talking isn't really a dealbreaker.

Oh, and...um...I'm back.

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I agree that the icon as a roaming character would be pretty interesting. And as far as silent characters, Fear was more or less silent, wasn't he? Oh, he talked on the website...I suppose...did his mouth actually move?...but as far as park presence, he uttered not a peep. (He DID, however, wave his hands around idiotically like a spokesmodel on "The Price Is Right" revealing a new car in the Showcase Showdown...but that's another topic altogether.) So not talking isn't really a dealbreaker.

Oh, and...um...I'm back.

They've all had things piped over the sound systems. Fear was especially prevalent in the area between The Simpsons and Central Park/Kidzone.

I like the idea of a silent icon. There is a house on one of my America Haunts recordings that does not have any speaking done by the scareactors. I find that intriguing.

Mae

ps IT'S ABOUT DAMNED TIME MR B!!!

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The idea of the Librarian with no mouth is very, very cool. I like that idea. The only thing is that everyone keeps talking about how it'd have to be literature that hasn't been made into a movie and all that stuff. Honestly, I'd rather see their own stories. Made up stories, or stories that the Librarian wrote herself. Houses based off of existing books and stories just seems a little far out to me. Lets face it, not everyone loves to read, and not everyone knows all the good horror stories that are out there. Heck, I wouldn't be all that surprised if a majority of people didn't know any of literature that has been mentioned here. I feel like they'd go for their own original stories before they turned to existing literature.

Edited by Goo
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Well i was reading a Tweet and it says "Employing reverse, reverse, reverse Psychology...with a twist" what about a Psycologist besides Maryof course...an Icon that can reach into your mind and twist your hopes and dreams and turn them into nightmares and failures

Edited by dante
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The idea of the Librarian with no mouth is very, very cool. I like that idea. The only thing is that everyone keeps talking about how it'd have to be literature that hasn't been made into a movie and all that stuff. Honestly, I'd rather see their own stories. Made up stories, or stories that the Librarian wrote herself. Houses based off of existing books and stories just seems a little far out to me. Lets face it, not everyone loves to read, and not everyone knows all the good horror stories that are out there. Heck, I wouldn't be all that surprised if a majority of people didn't know any of literature that has been mentioned here. I feel like they'd go for their own original stories before they turned to existing literature.

Again, why stick with strictly horror? Charlie and the Chocolate Factory could be an amazing house. So could any of Mark Twain's stories or even William Shakespeare (dear God, a Shakespeare house could be epic). Fairy tales aren't considered horror stories, and they work incredibly well for horror. There are tons of "classic" stories, writers and characters that could be considered "well-known" enough to be adapted as horror and still be recognizable to the GP. I would hope A&D wouldn't limit themselves to just horror. The Three Musketeers, Swiss Family Robinson, 20,000 Leagues, Treasure Island, Jekyll and Hyde, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Bearstein Bears, Where the Wild Thing Are, Edgar Allen Poe, Roald Dahl, the obvious Pride and Prejudice... There's far more twisted possibilities in those than limiting yourself to one genre. And that variety will make for a better event.

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I missed exactly how people shifted over to the Librarian idea but I think it could be a nice idea. The character sort of reminds me of a character I've written into a personal short story. Basically, the character's name is Rot. He lived as an illiterate farm boy, who worked for the family farm. He was kept away from most people and out of school by his very mean and hateful drunk of a father. Rot hears from others about the glories of reading and books and desperately wanted to learn how to read and escape into the fantasy worlds that books guide readers to. The father didn't like this and one night while Rot was up in the hay loft "studying" The father gouged out his eyes and set fire to the barn, blaming Rot for the failure of their farm. Rot died in the fire, blind and stumbling through the flames. Rot's desire to read and then hatred toward his father made him into a vengful ghost in the afterlife, still blind he struggled. Some higher being, could it be Fear? Took pitty on Rot and gave him the task of watching over a large library. Not only watching the library, but stocking it with new books. He was given the task of being the sole author of the books that are put into the library. All the books within this library were blank to any normal person's eyes, but Rot when he picked up any of the books he could see the story in his head, not only see it but conduct it. The cool thing about this is, Rot basically controls the story, the characters, etc. witihin the book, those characters in each book actually exist on the mortal realm. Basically, Rot is death and creator of life, he creates characters and controls their lives by "Writing" Their lives. How will your story end?

Perhaps Rot could create a character that creates a Butchering shop for the characters he is unsure how to end their stories. Sort of a cope out device. Perhaps Rot, could write a story that changes and manipulates reality, like something from twilight zone. Or he creates a monster of a person who creates an extreme haunted house, where your fate will be determined, whether you live or die, live while walking through the house. Walk in your story, how will your story end? Only one knows, and he doesn't like to ruin a good book.

Edit:

Also the reason why I named him Rot was to symbolize that all of our "Stories" Are rotting away. Once we are born, we are always moving forward, ripening, then soon deteriorating and rotting toward nothing.

Edited by Keosilver
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One thought toward literature.

The Gashlycrumb Tinies by Edward Gorey.

Be it a house or zone, a literature theme would be nothing without them.

A is for Amy, who fell down the stairs

B is for Basil, assaulted by bears......

Read a BOOK? I hardly think so. Instead, perhaps I shall wildly misinterpret your post thusly:

OMFG WE'RE GETTING A SCAREZONE DEDICATED TO BEARS!!

Yes, that'll do.

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Read a BOOK? I hardly think so. Instead, perhaps I shall wildly misinterpret your post thusly:

OMFG WE'RE GETTING A SCAREZONE DEDICATED TO BEARS!!

Yes, that'll do.

So we are going to get to see some of the members of the chainsaw drill team in leather, assless chaps? Hawt.

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Only thing with that what about shows or opening scaremonies she silent so what kinda show or park presence could she really have

I think it would be an interesting show if it was done right. Pantomime and silent acting are major hallmarks of such famous performances as the Blue Man Group, and a good silent actress and writing/blocking for the show would certainly be very engaging.

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So we are going to get to see some of the members of the chainsaw drill team in leather, assless chaps? Hawt.

That.... Was the best response. EVER.

But anyways, The Librarian just simply wouldn't work. Every icon so far has talked and I am certain that there voice, however much they talk, is a really important element in the media. People can connect much easier if they HEAR the icon. It makes them feel connected to it. There are bound to be people who are going to whine and complain about her being too close to Elsa. There is also complications with the literature theme that goes along with the Librarian. Not many people read anymore and the target audience has probably never even read "Pride and Prejudice" or the other classics. The ones they have heard of HHN has already done with the ScaryTales trilogy, Asylum in Wonderland, and Path of the Wicked. Too many complications and I'm sorry to say that we are perhaps over-estimating the Creative Department or whatever they are called (sorry, I'm not being a smart-ass. I forget what they are called and I'm too lazy to look it up). If they can screw up that badly on a seemingly fool-proof plan of using Fear personified, I doubt they can make a good year with all the obstacles they face with The Librarian. I really would like to see it and I really hope they can prove me wrong this year.

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For the people who don't think a silent antagonist will work for Horror Nights, need I remind you of THESE minions?

The-Body-Collectors66675.jpg

If I'm not mistaken, these guys are completely silent, yet they manage to scare the absolute sh!tes out of people regardless.

Anyway, the way you guys are talking about a Librarian icon, it sounds more like a silent Mary Shaw than anything. Think about it, the only way Ms. Shaw can kill someone is if the victim screams. Therefore, silence is golden (and duct tape is silver) when dealing with a threat that is attracted to sound. I find a silent monster infinitely more scary than one who won't shut their yap, which is why I prefer Jason and Michael over Freddy and Chucky (although Freddy has the added ability to kill people in their dreams).

Oh, and about that scarezone dedicated to bears...

polar_bear_and_chainsaw.jpg

.....yeah, I'm down.

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For the people who don't think a silent antagonist will work for Horror Nights, need I remind you of THESE minions?

The-Body-Collectors66675.jpg

If I'm not mistaken, these guys are completely silent, yet they manage to scare the absolute sh!tes out of people regardless.

But could you honestly see someone like them as the star of the whole HHN event? What would they blast on the speakers besides the background music? How could they make an interesting radio advertisement?

lol I'm not trying to be an ass-hole about this, I'm kind of seriously wondering about those questions :P

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That.... Was the best response. EVER.

But anyways, The Librarian just simply wouldn't work. Every icon so far has talked and I am certain that there voice, however much they talk, is a really important element in the media. People can connect much easier if they HEAR the icon. It makes them feel connected to it. There are bound to be people who are going to whine and complain about her being too close to Elsa. There is also complications with the literature theme that goes along with the Librarian. Not many people read anymore and the target audience has probably never even read "Pride and Prejudice" or the other classics. The ones they have heard of HHN has already done with the ScaryTales trilogy, Asylum in Wonderland, and Path of the Wicked. Too many complications and I'm sorry to say that we are perhaps over-estimating the Creative Department or whatever they are called (sorry, I'm not being a smart-ass. I forget what they are called and I'm too lazy to look it up). If they can screw up that badly on a seemingly fool-proof plan of using Fear personified, I doubt they can make a good year with all the obstacles they face with The Librarian. I really would like to see it and I really hope they can prove me wrong this year.

Considering the mouthless Librarian is my idea, and considering the fact I DON'T want an icon this year, I think it's the only way it could really work. First, a silent icon stands out as something completely different when compared to all the other icons. Visually, the lack of a mouth and ability to speak would immediately limit a lot of the "Storyteller" similarities (and look back in this thread, I'm the person who was making the Storyteller = Writer = Librarian argument). It would still be story-based, but a direct comparison couldn't be effectively made. Secondly, who cares about what the target audience as actually read. All that matters is what they are aware of. If you think about it, none of us had actually scene Wolfman in 2009. All a house or scarezone needs to make a connection with the audience is that immediate, recognizable connection. I haven't actually read Huck Finn (shame on the English Major, I know), but you can be damn sure I would recognize who a zombie boy on a raft in overalls and straw hat is suppose to be. You think it's complicated, but it really isn't. The fact that most people won't have a strong connection to a specific visual (like, saw with movies) actually alleviates the most complicated aspects of haunt-design.

Fear wasn't full-proof. No matter how a Sumerian god was designed, people were going to be disappointed. The build to the character over-hyped him for us. Most of the GP didn't care.

If I'm not mistaken, these guys are completely silent, yet they manage to scare the absolute sh!tes out of people regardless.

Anyway, the way you guys are talking about a Librarian icon, it sounds more like a silent Mary Shaw than anything. Think about it, the only way Ms. Shaw can kill someone is if the victim screams. Therefore, silence is golden (and duct tape is silver) when dealing with a threat that is attracted to sound. I find a silent monster infinitely more scary than one who won't shut their yap, which is why I prefer Jason and Michael over Freddy and Chucky (although Freddy has the added ability to kill people in their dreams).

Oh, and about that scarezone dedicated to bears...

The Plague Doctors don't speak either (they just cough).

Thank you for mentioning how two of the big three don't speak, and Mary Shaw (I did recognize a comparison to her with the Librarian). There's a lot of monsters that thrive on or are silent. It's not uncommon and definitely not impossible.

And the Bearstein Bears as a chainsaw scarezone? Oh dear god, give me that instead of the werewolf lumberjacks and I could be happy.

But could you honestly see someone like them as the star of the whole HHN event? What would they blast on the speakers besides the background music? How could they make an interesting radio advertisement?

lol I'm not trying to be an ass-hole about this, I'm kind of seriously wondering about those questions :P

Yes. Absolutely. 2004, they mounted an entire marketing campaign around a silent mental patient. Between Crypt-Keeper and Jack (seven years), there was no icon. Just marketing. The only difference between an icon and a marketing campaign (really, when you think about it) is back-story. The audio in a commercial is developed by the whimpers of her victims and the turning pages of a book (I'll even write up a synopsis on one later). Commercials don't need to be loud. Icons are rarely heard on the radio outside of their catchphrase anyway. Just because the icons have always "talked," in no way does it mean they have to. This is the new era, and it's time for new approach.

EDIT - Here is a quick synopsis of how a commercial for a mute Librarian could work:

Black

Audio – Long thunder roll

Fade to slow pan of books on a library shelves. The titles on the book spines are stories and authors houses and scarezones are based on.

Audio – Begin to hear an occasional page turn and a male’s whimpering. The sounds continue throughout the commercial.

Fade to close-up of male wrist strapped to chair-arm struggling to get free.

Fade to close-up of woman’s face reading a book. She glances up.

Flash of lightning and cut to close-up of males panicked eyes. His whimpering gets louder.

Fade to wide shot, slow pan. Male has back to camera. We see Librarian hiding the lower part of her face with the book she is reading across the table from male. Table is covered with books.

Quick inter-cut, close-up of male’s sewn-shut mouth.

Audio – Thunder-crack.

Cut to wide shot, slow pan. Opposite view from previous shot. Male is wearing contemporary casual clothing.

Fade to medium-shot of male, suddenly struggling noisily to break free. He knocks a book of the table in his struggle.

Cut to close-up of Librarian’s eyes.

Cut to close-up of book as Librarian closes and sets it on the table.

Cut to close-up of reaction shot as male sees Librarian’s face.

Cut to close-up of Librarian’s hand as she pulls a blood-stained bookmark from another book.

Cut to wide-shot from behind the Librarian as she stands, bookmark raised, ready to strike. The male panics, but can’t scream or escape.

Lightning flash

Audio-Thunder-crack

Cut to title-card. Announcer spiels.

Cut to medium-shot of Librarian reading a book. She suddenly slams it down and lunges at the camera, giving us a good look at her mouthless face before the commercial ends.

Viola! Instant commercial with no need for words outside the announcer's bit of the title card which is the same every year.

Edited by Legacy
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Yep. Looking very likely we're getting a gambling theme of some sort. I'm excited!!!

EDIT: For the record, I'd just like to point out that we started discussing the gambling theme on May 4th... back on page 35 of speculation. Looks like we were on the right speculation page from the start!

Edited by Lizz
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