On February 4, 1948, zombie master George A. Romero was born! While zombies were a concept prior to “Night of the Living Dead,” Romero’s film birthed the zombie as we know it: every modern movie about the undead owes something to Romero. The daring director also used the ho-rror genre to eXXXplore sociopolitical issues, proving that monster stories can be more than just splatter-shows. A true pioneer in the putrid, George A. Romero will never truly die.
CREEPSHOW (1982) | THE FOG (1980) RINGU (1998) | DEAD SILENCE (2007) THEATER OF BLOOD (1973) | RAVENOUS (1999) DEAD RINGERS (1988) | ONE HOUR PHOTO (2002) INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS (1978) | THE FLY (1986)
A compilation of various Nordic mythology creatures.
The top row are the creatures though to belong to nature, bjergfolket (Creatures said to live in mountains, hills, and underground, which are the trolls and dwarfs) and ellefolket (All creatures said to live in the forest, bogs, fields, swamps, and under houses, which includes all the various elves, the nisse/tomte, and näcken). They are quite the party people, has very rich lives, and can be both good and bad. I explain a bit more about them here [link]
The bottom row are some of the much darker creatures found in Nordic mythology. From left to right:
Helhesten (Hel Horse): It’s death in the form of a horse. It walks around at night on it’s three legs (or missing it’s head), and should you hear it come your way don’t look at it. It comes to collect a soul, but anyone else who sees it will die as well a few days later.
Maren: Creatures known in many countries, who rides sleeping people, causing nightmares, but in the North it is said to be a human who turns into this creature at night and goes to hug those they love in a deadly grip. In some versions it is said that men turn into werewolves and women into maren.
Hvidslangen (White Snake): A huge white snake that is usually surrounded by millions of normal snakes, all twirling around it’s body to protect it. It is said to bring death and sorrow.
Kirkevare (Church protector): A very powerful spirit that protects churches, and are the enemies of the nature spirits. There are many stories of how people tried to build a church, but during the night the trolls would tear it all down because they hated the sound of the church bells. To prevent this people would use and ancient method from heathen times and bury a living creature on the building site. To make it more Christian they often used a lamb, but it could be any animal or even a human. The spirit would then protect the place from bjergfolk and ellefolk, and show itself to people who were about to die and were to be buried in the local graveyard.
Kirkegrim: Another creature buried alive under churches, usually a black sow, which was far more dangerous than the kirkevare. While the kirkevare took care of the nature spirits, the kirkegrim took care of humans, both the dead and the living. They chased away children who played in the graveyard, or young people who wanted a peaceful place to make love. They also chased the souls of evil people out of the graveyard where they turned into night ravens. A more peaceful job was to show the priest where to bury the dead.
Natteravn (Night raven): The souls of evil people who did not deserve to be buried in the church’s graveyard. Quite fond of hacking people’s eyes out.
Den Sorte Mand (The black man): A very scary creature said to live in wells. He has no purpose other than to scare the living daylight out of people who come to collect water and pull them down if they’re not quick enough.
Valravn (War raven): A raven that has eaten of the dead on a battlefield and has gained human intelligence that way. If they drink the blood of a newborn boy they will be able to turn into a knight, or as here, a half wolf half raven creature. Extreamly evil and dangerous. Can be befriended if you give it your firstborn baby.
This year Universal has put together a varied and entertaining set of mazes, and although it has more than ever before, the cracks are starting to show as the park attempts to pack more and more people into its biggest event. Here are all the mazes, ranked from worst to best.
Note: My friends and I purchased the front-of-the-line passes, and even though we went on a Sunday night, we still would not have been able to complete every maze without it. Expensive, but the only way to get the full experience.
Honorable Mention: All Hallow’s Evil
Not a maze, but rather an outdoor enclosed scare zone that is harvest and autumnal theme. Some great costumes and a cool premise.
Dishonorable Mention: Toxic Tunnel
In years past, a short tram ride took you to remote parts of the lower backlot. Now, you hoof it on foot for about a quarter mile, walking through a wide-open tunnel filled with strobe lights and rejects from the Toxic Avenger. It’s as annoying as it sounds.
On to the list!
#10 The Curse of Pandora’s Box
Easily the worst maze of the night, the designers attempted to create a sense of chaos by contrasting dark hallways with neon colors, but the costumes felt generic and the scares non-effective.
#9 The Walking Dead Attraction
Familiarity is the enemy of this maze, but if you’ve never done it before, it makes a good first impression. I just wish they would add something new, or at least increase the number of scare actors during HHN.
#8 Stranger Things 2 & 3
The surprise flop of the night, this maze at times had a queue that was 4 hours long. But once you finally get inside, you are treated to the same easily telegraphed jump scare about 8 times (not an exaggeration). There are some nice set pieces, but overall it lacked wows and scares.
#7 Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man
Nothing technically wrong with this one, but it failed to create many memorable moments. If you know the story of either character, you know exactly what to expect, and the maze delivers on that promise and little else. (Note: the finale in which the monsters literally jump off the screen was pretty damn clever).
#6 House of 1000 Corpses
This maze originally made its debut years ago, and while this year’s iteration delivered on tension and scares, it was missing several elements from its original incarnation. A thrill, but a slight step down from its former glory.
#5 Creepshow
This maze had an uphill battle, as the original film is slightly obscure and the new series hasn’t been released yet. Despite these limitations, it delivered several effective scares and featured a well-developed premise.
#4 Killer Klowns from Outer Space
This maze, perhaps better than any other, authentically recreates iconic moments from its titular film (even before you enter the maze proper). The scare actors also wore full-body costumes that were imposing due to size alone. One complaint though: enough with the squirt guns!
#3 GhostbustersAs a life-long fan, I thought this one would take the cake, and it was indeed quite good. However, some missed opportunities and an over-reliance on static figures kept it from soaring to the #1 spot. Spooky, not scary, but very very fun.
#2 Us
It starts with an impressive, full-size facade at the entrance, and from there the immersion goes even deeper. I wondered how Universal would convey the terror of a clone attack, and their delivery is truly one of their better tricks; instead of giving scare actors masks of Lupita Nyong’o, they hired a dozen or so women who look remarkably like her. The end result is the feeling that the scissor wielding psychopath really is everywhere. And their eyes will haunt you all the way home.
#1 Holidayz in Hell
The surprise hit of the night, this brand new original maze is a concept that I have seen attempted before: holidays run amok. However, what sets this maze apart is the amount of thought and creativity that went into it. From “champagne bubbles” that rained from the sky to the simulated fireworks, this maze kept surprising me. My favorite part, however, was the end. You think the maze is over, when all of a sudden you realize that the final part of the maze IS out in the open streets. And it’s a mad dash for safety through a gauntlet of killer Christmas gifts. Oh what fun.
the fun thing about miniature art is that in person it looks cool bc its small but when you take a picture of it and share it online at the same size youd share a regular drawing . it just looks Bad
[ID: a drawing of the creepshow creep standing outside the window at night. the second picture shows a little figure of mr creep sitting with a tiny sketchbook open to the drawing. he is propped up against a cat.]
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