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Just unlocked Ghostbuster peter. Now onto repairing the graveyard.

^The thing is...all of that could be scary. It's just the emphasis is being placed on the show rather than the scare.

Haunt review: I won't focus too much on the returning mazes, since those are still the same... Voodoo: definitely the most visually stunning maze Knotts has ever done. Loved that there are multiple paths, only disliked that the monsters directed you instead of letting you choose the path. Tooth Fairy: A mash up of Delirium, Asylum, and some new sets to create a creepy environment. No review of Special Ops, since even though I got there in time to get tickets for my group, I was denied because they weren't present. Would have been nice if that was made clear somewhere, but I understand the logic behind it. Standby line barely moved, so I didn't want to waste anymore time with it. Somehow we ended up in the skeleton key room for dominion of the damned...fun little "pre-show." Hanging: didn't seem like it had as many hard hitting jokes about celebrities, but overall it was still good. I liked that they made fun of themselves a lot and the overall theme of how uptight everyone is was cool. One totally disappointing thing is that overall I feel like Haunt has lost its soul. I feel like now they are trying so hard to be in character that they have lost sight of what made them so good: fun and scares. The scares were all very basic and lazy because you could tell they were trying to stay in character for the show. I suppose I am bias because I was fortunate enough to work two mazes at Haunt (C3 and the Asylum) where the generic theme allowed us to do almost anything and still be in character, but still...

This is real. But it's just a home haunt. Seems more like the guy has a fetish to me...

HHN performers have different directions than Haunt monsters. I've never heard many performers in the mazes making sounds/talking unless it is someone playing a victim.

SFMM does have some good team members...the problem for SFMM is when the culture is bad and the pay is low, many of them leave for better jobs as soon as they can! There are many supervisors, managers, mechanics, ride programmers, stage managers, lighting techs, etc. throughout the industry in southern california that got their start at SFMM and had to move on.

^Considering it is a Mobius coaster with only one station, having it match up and duel shouldn't be a problem. Until SFMM can't keep the trains running!

Fright Fest Review... Ultimately, the event is better than the last time I visited (10+ years ago), but it is still nowhere near the level of the other major So Cal Haunts. I do like that most of their monsters are in makeup/prosthetics, which is a nice touch compared to other haunts around! My favorite maze of the night was Willoughy's. Aside from the annoying photo op and first empty room, the rest of the maze had decent sets on par with Knott's and monsters actually into their role. Second favorite was The Aftermath. Made great use of the Batman theater. The actor at the entrance wasn't really into her role, and the long tunnel of just black walls was a weak start, but after that it picks up. The monsters did a good job of playing their zombie role, but didn't really do any special scares. Vault 666 had sets on par with Knott's, but the monsters were not really into it. Just popping out and screaming isn't scary. Red's Revenge had a ghetto facade, but the rest of the maze again featured sets on par with Knotts. Again this one was ruined by monsters who were not into it. Toys of Terror was crap. Just black light painted walls the entire maze with very few set pieces. And again monsters who just popped out and yelled. Willoughy's Garden was also crap. Just camo netting and monsters in ghilly suits. Embarrassingly low quality for a "professional" haunt. Chupacabra was slightly above terrible. Mostly painted walls with a few actual very basic set pieces. The scare at the end is the only highlight. I didn't bother with blackout. Scare zones were very devoid of energy, probably due to lack of crowds. I saw more monsters taking photos and talking to each other rather than scaring. I was bummed that Gotham City seemed to have less fog machines.

It doesn't matter. The park sent us an email saying the photos were clearly taken from a backstage area and not authorized to be posted.

My understanding is that you don't get to "let loose." You'll have a "squad leader" that takes you through the various encounters/vignettes. I believe there is two "operations" per route with some other stops along the way.

No need for the reminder. SFMM is getting an RMC coaster if you haven't heard, which is why RMC is being discussed. Actually, there is a need for a reminder because there is already a thread discussing potential RMC makeovers We also have an SFDK thread if Roar needs to be discussed.

LED's are here to stay until a more efficient/cheaper solution is designed. Even sporting arenas are switching to LED's for their house lights.

FYI: This is the SFMM thread.

The first few Thursday's are usually dead. I was actually planning to go next Thursday myself. The wild card this year is the season pass...I suspect that will make things a bit busier, but I am guessing no line will be more than 30 minutes (if that).

^You will still receive it when you enter.

Gate A is just another term for front of the line

If you do not have a FOL pass (they WILL sell out in advance---don't count on being able to upgrade at the park), you should take advantage of early entry. The gates will open around 5PM for you to queue up to get a head start on the lower lot mazes. This line usually shuts down by 6PM. The only trade off is you miss the opening ceremony, but that is nothing special to begin with... OR...as I stated earlier, if you are local and have an annual pass you are able to enter the park for day operations and queue up in the transformers queue for HHN instead of leaving the park. You go through security and have your HHN ticket scanned down there and get to head towards the backlot around 6:15PM. That queue opens at 4:30 and closes at 5:30. As far as Stage 28 goes, it was barely used---no theme park guests ever had access and productions mainly used it for staging instead of filming. It was an old wooden building. The opera house sets were removed for preservation, and those are not even entirely original---they were modified over the years.

I hope so! I haven't got any of the rare items to drop yet.

It also didn't make sense to take the #1 rated coaster in the world, add wrap around head rests with speakers, and a bizarro theme, but they did it! Did they already have another top rated ride with audio and a bizarro theme when they did that? If the park didn't already have Scream, it would make sense to "plus" RRv with floorless trains. But since they already have a floorless coasters...

One key difference between Cedar Point and SFMM: Cedar Point didn't have a floorless so it actually works from a marketing standpoint. It makes absolutely no sense to convert RRv to a floorless...

They have to do routine maintenance to make sure the ride doesn't completely fall apart.

If you are an annual pass holder you can enter the park for day operations and take advantage of "first stab" by scanning your HHN ticket and going through security at the Transformers overflow queue---you're held there and given first opportunity to walk to the backlot mazes

I think you are over-estimating the impact of the eyegore awards. It' not a free concert from Slash---you have to attend the eyegore ceremony (media/invited guests and $50 up charge ticket holders only).

Processing fees, resort fees, baggage fees...all ways to screw the consumer over for easy profits.

^I totally agree that it's awesome they have started to invite the media to get a more behind the scenes look. The funny thing about that is that (at least back in my time), Scare School was thought of as a joke amongst the veterans. One year for dress rehearsals, I just held up a sign that said "I went through scare school and all I got was this piece of paper" and another year I made one that said "Scare School Dropout" with a shaker can in my other hand.