A Tentative TM Preview Review

[Alice]

OK, so here’s my very preliminary review based on last night’s shenanigans.

 

Major disclaimer: Hurricane Irma really messed up HHN prep this year from what I've heard, not so much in terms of things being damaged, but because of all the rehearsals that were cancelled and man-hours lost over the weekend we were closed. Thanks to that and the shift from having this night be for TMs AND their invited guests to strictly TM-only, with full-blown 'this is a dress rehearsal' communication just about everywhere in the park, I can't make a complete judgement as everything is still finishing up. I will probably do a full review with ratings/rankings about halfway through the season. 

 

That said: For all the complaining we did, the worries we had, the upset we experienced with the marketing and presentation of this event this year, the moment I was in the park, soaking in the atmosphere, everything just melted away. HHN is incredible every year and this year is no exception. It felt SO good to have it back. So 10/10 for the feels.

 

I do want to mention merch this year as I think they did two things right this time around: Firstly, everything with the skull motif still has a unique vibe to each piece as opposed to last year where it was all ‘Buy Chance’s Face on a Shirt! Buy Chance’s Face on a MUG!!!!’. Also, the Bill and Ted’s merch makes my heart happy (and my wallet empty).

 

My one caveat: I’m a big girl. Probably just a little bit chubbier than Chance. In any reasonable sizing range I’m about a 1X. I was very excited to see a nice, feminine tunic with the main skull motif in the shop in sizes up to a 2X. So I bought the 2X and went to change into it...and it’s TINY. Luckily I can sew, so I’ll be taking my seam ripper to it and letting it out but be warned, ladies of a certain dimension. Pretty much everything ‘women’s’ is really ‘junior’s’ sizing. Boo.

 

Food and Bev were knockouts. I especially love the new Mini Donuts. I did manage to buy my blinky cup with some Liquid Fear and it’s a 9/10 (losing a point because for some reason it was WEAK on the alcohol this year, and a small part of me hopes that’s just because they didn’t want us TMs getting wasted).

 

Anyway, here’s what you all came for!

 

Shows:

 

-Bill and Ted's was...excellent! I won't spoil too much, but if you're a long-time fan, prepare for some waterworks. There are several moments where you just feel the love that's been poured into this Farewell Tour. The show as a whole had some slow moments and it all feels about the same quality as last year, which seems to pale in comparison to many previous shows. If you love B&T, you're gonna love it. If you're lukewarm, you might not. But I think we can all agree it will be missed. 

 

-Academy of Villains were NOT performing yesterday as their stage is still being rebuilt at this moment. It was all taken down in prep for the hurricane. We will have to make our judgement tomorrow.

 

Zones:

 

-Festival of the Deadliest was a shell of what it will be due to hurricane reasons. I have a feeling that even with the complete setup tomorrow it will not be as active/interesting as Vamp was last year. Probably closer to 25's zone in this area with no large props in the middle of the road, though I'm unsure if any of the small stages will attract those crowds. 

 

-Invasion! is up there for my favourite zone. It’s got so much great stuff packed into it and I can only hope it isn’t a bottleneck most nights. The SAs will make this zone as much as the costumes/sets will and I’m sure once everyone is in the groove of their area this will be many people’s favourite.

 

-The Purge kind of just feels like last year with less cool costumes and props, BUT the SAs here are KILLING it already. Really happy with their interactions. Looking forward to spending more time here.

 

-Trick R’ Treat looks incredible at night, as expected. The SAs seem to be figuring out their roles but there was really not that much interaction as we passed through, despite the zone being fairly empty. I was expecting a lot more but I think it will improve.

 

-Altars of Horror is just...such a waste of a zone. I don’t know if there’s any more additions planned (like the stages for FOTD), but either way it really is just a Selfie/Photo Zone. And the SAs were definitely trained for that. They seemed more willing to pose for a photo than they were to go for a scare. The zone itself is dreadfully empty with just those advertisement-like signs for all the IPs. I’m hoping on busier nights it will seem less empty as people hang out here. Probably the only redeeming quality at this point were the Grady Twins walking hand in hand up and down the road. They look creepy as hell!

 

Houses:

 

-Saw, The Shining, and Blumhouse are the 3 I’ve skipped for now. I am waiting until Friday in hopes that media get the chance to film so I can judge the creep factor before I go.

 

-AHS is our Ubermaze this year but I hate to say it...it felt LONG this time around. Last year’s seasons were so different in theming and color palette that you almost felt like the house was really 3 different ones back-to-back. This year’s 3 are so similar that it feels like one long, long walkthrough, with just a small hint of transition between the seasons. I went into both years having watched 1 out of 3 seasons, so I wasn’t going in totally blind but I’m guessing if I’d watched all 6 it might have been more enjoyable. The SAs in here are really promising though (I’m told they had minimal rehearsal due to hurricane).

 

-Ash vs. Evil Dead both scared the shit out of me and left me grinning like a maniac by the end. It’s gonna be at the top of my list all season if they keep it up. Granted, I’ve never seen the show, but I know the premise and I’ve seen some clips. Die-hard fans may have gripes with some of the scenes/missing scenes, but the ones that stand out will make you point and laugh and give A&D major kudos.

 

-Scarecrow is INTENSE. Out of the 6 houses I fit in, it was the most challenging. Combo of atmosphere, tight corridors, costumes/set creepiness, and frequency of scares makes up the intensity. My partner came out of the house and immediately said ‘THIS is what an original is supposed to be like!’. It’s quite detailed but you don’t have much time to notice a lot of it.

 

-Hive had me rolling my eyes at the non-facade, and I’m not sure how I feel about it yet. About  halfway through there was a vampire who looked decidedly like Nosferatu and seeing that changed my entire perspective. I need to go back and pay more attention to the details. I left this one with several scares but really no sense of what the hell I’d just seen, lol.

 

-Dead Waters? Dead. Waters. God, it’s incredible. This needs to be on my lights-on tour. I want to just steep in there and soak in the atmosphere. Good shit. Good. Shit. SAs are getting into the groove in here as well and I expect improvement over the season. Seeing the Voodoo Queen made me want to jump for joy. She’s gorgeous.

 

-The Fallen, with the cuts mentioned by Ringwraith, seemed half-empty for obvious reasons. There’s so much story missing now. But the bungee SAs are incredible, so this is on my list for several re-dos to see them again.

Anyway, to sum last night up: 10/10, really. The love that A&D puts into this event makes up for all the negatives. Things are going to improve for sure, but I left the park last night feeling rejuvenated in a way that nothing else really makes me feel. I will be around most nights so check the meetup and member photo threads if you’d like to hang out!

 

[duh1011]

I'm glad to see you were able to enjoy the event as much as you did! I'm even surprised you enjoyed Ash vs Evil Dead, since it seemed most people only liked it if they saw the show before going. I'm glad to see that so much of the event is all together despite everything!

[Rikku]

Is the Voodoo Queen in Dead Waters the same as the one in Bayou of Blood (wearing same outfit?)?

[Alice]

27 minutes ago, Rikku said:

Is the Voodoo Queen in Dead Waters the same as the one in Bayou of Blood (wearing same outfit?)?

 

I was not here that year, but she does wear the same outfit as the one they had in the Anniversary zone in 2015 so I'm assuming yes. 

[Ueeediot]

1 hour ago, Alice said:

Food and Bev were knockouts. I especially love the new Mini Donuts. I did manage to buy my blinky cup with some Liquid Fear and it’s a 9/10 (losing a point because for some reason it was WEAK on the alcohol this year, and a small part of me hopes that’s just because they didn’t want us TMs getting wasted).

 

 

 

All of the drinks served at all of the popup bars using the premixed concoctions are always weak every year.  

[Oysterhead00]

Sooooo happy to hear your review of AvED as I can't wait to see that.  Initial reaction from EP was that it was great, then that it sucked...and I usually seem to agree with your opinions.

 

Nothing would make me happier to have BOTH be true, people don't care for it and it's back by itself this year so nobody goes and it has 15min lines....but it's awesome and I can do it repeatedly  

[Alice]

 

15 hours ago, Ueeediot said:

All of the drinks served at all of the popup bars using the premixed concoctions are always weak every year.  

 

Oh, that I'm well aware of. It just seemed weaker than last year's. And the 'washer-fluid blue' drink last year was like 80% orange juice, lol. 

[Grime]

Great info  I've been very critical of the last few years of the event, didn't even bother to go in 2014 and 2016. But I'm pretty optimistic for this year. What scarezone do you see being the premier "hang out" spot for people watching, taking photos, etc.? There's usually one every year. Doesn't necessarily have to be the "best" one, but one that's got good lighting, lively scareactors, and room to hang out that's out of the way of them working.

 

As far as the drinks go, pregame at Citywalk. I'll have a couple rum and cokes from one of the bars and if you tip well they'll normally pile up the booze. Especially if you're there before the event several nights and they recognize you as a regular who tips well. Prices are the same (or close enough to) the specialty drinks in the park but way more worth it. I'll still usually get 1 just to get the collectors cup.

 

And then there's the option of drinking in the garage before the event. We'll throw a couple shots back. But you absolutely will get in trouble if you're caught, and since you're a TM I'm going to recommend against that for obvious reasons

[Alice]

23 hours ago, Grime said:

Great info  I've been very critical of the last few years of the event, didn't even bother to go in 2014 and 2016. But I'm pretty optimistic for this year. What scarezone do you see being the premier "hang out" spot for people watching, taking photos, etc.? There's usually one every year. Doesn't necessarily have to be the "best" one, but one that's got good lighting, lively scareactors, and room to hang out that's out of the way of them working.

 

As far as the drinks go, pregame at Citywalk. I'll have a couple rum and cokes from one of the bars and if you tip well they'll normally pile up the booze. Especially if you're there before the event several nights and they recognize you as a regular who tips well. Prices are the same (or close enough to) the specialty drinks in the park but way more worth it. I'll still usually get 1 just to get the collectors cup.

 

And then there's the option of drinking in the garage before the event. We'll throw a couple shots back. But you absolutely will get in trouble if you're caught, and since you're a TM I'm going to recommend against that for obvious reasons

 

I'm gonna recommend Purge as a hangout zone, which seems really strange, but FOTD really isn't doing it for me like I thought it might and they seem to have (strategically?) placed a ton of fog machines behind most of the park benches out there. Purge has more open space on the sidewalks and I've been getting better interactions there overall. 

 

A quick addendum after last night:   AOV is using the temporary stage in front of Horror Makeup to put on a 10-minute show "Presented by Irma" ;). If they're still doing it tonight and beyond, don't be turned off by the first segment being from last year's show--the rest is new, and they've done an AWESOME job coming up with this last-minute abridged version. I'm even more excited to see their full show once the main stage is back together. Not sure on timeline for that but probably fairly soon. 

 

Also, managed to hit Saw last night, and the iffy design shows. I'm sure plenty of people like the movies and liked the house last time they did it, but it just wasn't great. Plenty of traps to distract while the pig masks go in for the jumpscares, of which nearly all were predictable and not well-hidden. 

 

Inside the Magic managed to get videos of ALL 9 houses last night, so catch them before some are inevitably taken down. I think I'll hit Blumhouse and Shining on Sunday as I'm going it alone tonight. Still feeling really good about this year overall!

[YourPallbearer]

On 9/15/2017 at 9:49 AM, Grime said:

Great info  I've been very critical of the last few years of the event, didn't even bother to go in 2014 and 2016.

'14 was a low point for the event (even more so than 2012), as far as the past decade goes. 2015 and '16 were comfortable years, almost on autopilot, but serviceable.