[Haunts]/HHN's The Walking Dead: Zombie Overload?

In the past couple of weeks there have been a ton of announcements coming out of both Universal Studios Hollywood and Orlando resorts for this year's Halloween Horror Nights. One of the biggest had to be the reveal that both parks were bringing The Walking Dead back for another year. However, this has gotten quite the mixed reaction amongst fans of not only HHN, but the show as well.

Last year both parks featured a maze based around the immensely popular show, but reactions were all over the board with most of what I've seen leaning towards the negative side of things. In Hollywood the Terror Tram was taken over by the show's theme as well as a stand alone maze. As far as Orlando goes, a scare zone and maze were dedicated to it. That's all fine and good as Universal is wont to do with movies, TV shows and video games over the years.

This year, however, they have hit the overdrive button for the series. Hollywood pretty much remains the same with a maze and Terror Tram experience themed around the show's third season, primarily focusing on Woodbury this time around. Which, I can see fans out on the West Coast feeling a bit meh about, the experience pretty much has been done before. They're just advancing the themes a little to match the show's progress in that situation. Not a bad idea, but why not something new?

On the other hand, Universal Orlando has gone off the rails completely. Not only will they have a copy of the maze that will be in Hollywood, but they're going to be theming the entire park around the show. Yep, that's right, every scarezone at HHN23 will be The Walking Dead. I love me some zombies, but yikes! Sure, it's definitely an upgrade but the whole place around the show? Um...yeah.

Anyone see a problem with this yet?  



I get that the show is popular and a major draw for guests, but the entire park? Seriously?! Mike Aiello has reassured the legions of followers on Twitter and Facebook that they would be theming areas of the park around various iconic locations from the show, but many still have doubts. Most stemming from the fact that many didn't think last year's offering of The Walking Dead was mediocre at best. Though, to be honest, if anyone is going to recreate the world seen in a movie or TV show it's Universal, just look what they've done with Wizarding World and other properties for instance.

However, the creative staff letting Halloween Horror Nights being taken over by one show just seems wrong. In the past HHN has always been about the quest for creativity and pushing the boundaries of what's sane in the quest for the ultimate nightmare fuel. Over the years we've had unforgettable icons like Jack the Clown, Bloody Mary, The Undertaker and The Director; a snuff film maker of all things!

This year, there is no icon just as last year, unless you're going to count a TV show in that role and if you are, that just comes off as cheap and lazy. Where's the creativity and insanity from past years? I don't really see it so far, sure there's still time but I'm not holding my breath right now.

The other problem I see with this is that you're just recreating parts from a show, one that many have already seen. They know what's coming and exactly what's waiting for them. Sure, it could be scary, but in my opinion The Walking Dead really isn't a "scary" show. If anything, the walkers on the show aren't the scary part, the survivors are. The show's version of zombies are of the Romero kind; slow, deliberate and unyielding. How exactly does that translate to the quick scare? I'm not sure to be honest. While it would work for a single scare zone, to know what kind of monsters to expect in every part of the park kills some of the buzz and anticipation. That whole "never knowing what to expect in the next area" vibe is gone. We know what to expect, more zombies and scenes from a TV show. 

Don't get me wrong here, I love the idea of the house being based on Woodbury and the West Georgia Correctional Facility. There's a lot to go with there and I hope that they've learned their lessons from last year in order to make it a great experience for everyone. It just feels like dedicating every scare zone at HHN Orlando is overkill and unnecessary.

This is just amplified by the fact that only 50 miles down the road you have Busch Gardens Tampa's Howl-O-Scream which is offering up their own brand of insanity. While they are falling back on the old school archetypes of horror for their event with their 13 icons for this year, at least they're thinking outside the box some.

Now, one could argue the question of "What's the point of the movie themed houses then?" Well, that's a bit trickier to deal with. The other mazes at HHN Orlando are based around the Evil Dead and Cabin in the Woods movies, both of which are genuinely considered scary and disturbing to many people. They have scenes and situations that no one wants to deal with...ever (Unicorn or Merman anybody?) They're also both rather original in their take on things and not just "another zombie flick" as it were. They're also just two of what will likely be around 7 mazes, so they're isolated incidents in that light.

This does lead me to another issue I have with the park being overrun by one show, what of all this Evil Takes Root business that they've been touting? Sure, the Legendary Truth interactive campaigns have never really been that overreaching before when it comes to the central plot of things but this year it's been more prominently displayed and looking to be the biggest year ever for the experience.

The HHN Orlando site even has it right on their main page. Cabin in the Woods and Evil Dead both definitely fit in there. The Walking Dead? Not so much, I mean sure you could go out on a limb and say the woods around Woodbury and West Georgia would count. Though personally, that's a stretch and an unneeded one at that when you really think about it for a few seconds. A maze with a scarezone like they're doing in Hollywood would make more sense.

So, where does that leave us? I'm not really quite sure. I find the whole thing rather bizarre and strange to be honest. I've tried to figure it out, but I just can't wrap my head around it. So, while the idea doesn't really resonate with me at all nor make much sense, I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt on this one for now. I still think it's a bad idea but I'll hold as much judgement as best I can until we experience the event later this year.

Overall, I'm sure they'll do a great job with the theming and hopefully the make up department. I just wish that they would've been a bit more creative than rehashing a TV show. Which, no matter how popular is something that's already been done before. I guess like everyone else we'll just have to wait to see if the creative team and the actors can make this worth their while...or if the hordes of disappointment will end up overwhelming them. 

What do you think, are you excited? just meh? or hate the idea?