Knott's Scary Farm 2023
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- Nov 7, 2016
- 1,585
- 1,749
For my trip, I'm thinking of this as a gameplan:
Room 13 (I always hear this gets the longest lines, so want to knock that out early)
Grimoire
Skip Origins for now, cut across the park
Sinema Slasher
Mesmer
Maybe catch the Hanging on its second show?
Chilling Chambers (I'm not sure when is best time to hit this since it's front of the park?)
Maybe now go back and hit Origins
Then the final 4 by Ghost Rider
Anybody think that'll work? If it's still before 8 somehow before I hit Mesmer, I might start throwing some rides in.
Room 13 (I always hear this gets the longest lines, so want to knock that out early)
Grimoire
Skip Origins for now, cut across the park
Sinema Slasher
Mesmer
Maybe catch the Hanging on its second show?
Chilling Chambers (I'm not sure when is best time to hit this since it's front of the park?)
Maybe now go back and hit Origins
Then the final 4 by Ghost Rider
Anybody think that'll work? If it's still before 8 somehow before I hit Mesmer, I might start throwing some rides in.
- May 10, 2023
- 146
- 280
On my visit, Chilling Chambers had shorter lines during the Hanging, many people head straight there after the show lets out. But absolutely hit Room 13 first, that was the longest line all night
Going tonight with no concept of where the houses are located being relatively unfamiliar with the park. In what section of the park is Room 13 located?
The queue for Room 13 is the ramp up to the Charles Schultz Theater, next to the Wheeler Dealer bumper cars.
Unless they've changed it, it's unnecessarily confusing... there are two separate queues at the bottom of the ramp, and both are for general standby. Express is a 3rd, separate queue that doesn't use the ramp at all, and they all end up merging together. Which is why the line moves so slowly. I don't understand why they did it that way.
Unless they've changed it, it's unnecessarily confusing... there are two separate queues at the bottom of the ramp, and both are for general standby. Express is a 3rd, separate queue that doesn't use the ramp at all, and they all end up merging together. Which is why the line moves so slowly. I don't understand why they did it that way.
I went this past friday night and I was shocked at how short the lines were. Most tings were showing 5 min waits early on and I finished everything by 830ish. Took a power nap by the lig flume and did the haunt across from sierra sidewinder (forgot the name). It had a 30 min wait tim listed but it took like 10 mins. Was out the park and back at the hotel by 10.
I'll going solo again tonight. If anyone's interested in meeting up for a maze, show, zone, drinks or whatever, PM me.
Heard the interactive lanterns are sold out for the season. Mine kept shutting off after 30 seconds towards the end of the night Thursday. They gave me new batteries so hope that's just it. My top button is sorta loose so if it breaks, they won't have a replacement for me. We'll see.
There's also an unannounced sliders show in The Gauntlet zone. Will try to catch that tonight. If anyone is in that zone early tonight, can you ask for showtimes and post it here? TIA!
Cinema Slasher never had a long line Thursday. Strange since it's a new maze and has been getting great reviews. I went three times that night. First time was less than 15 and other times were less than 5.
Chilling Chambers is long at opening since it's right by the entrance but can get pretty short in between The Hanging shows like @ParksandSights said.
I think it has to do with how close it is to the train tracks which makes that path not quite wide enough for two lines.
Heard the interactive lanterns are sold out for the season. Mine kept shutting off after 30 seconds towards the end of the night Thursday. They gave me new batteries so hope that's just it. My top button is sorta loose so if it breaks, they won't have a replacement for me. We'll see.
There's also an unannounced sliders show in The Gauntlet zone. Will try to catch that tonight. If anyone is in that zone early tonight, can you ask for showtimes and post it here? TIA!
I'm changing up my game plan tonight and starting with Room 13 then play it by ear depending on what I'm in the mood for. Room 13 usually has the longest wait.
Cinema Slasher never had a long line Thursday. Strange since it's a new maze and has been getting great reviews. I went three times that night. First time was less than 15 and other times were less than 5.
Chilling Chambers is long at opening since it's right by the entrance but can get pretty short in between The Hanging shows like @ParksandSights said.
It's now called the Walter Knott Theatre since the 100th celebration.
I think it has to do with how close it is to the train tracks which makes that path not quite wide enough for two lines.
Oh it was and I said it must suck to have brought fastlane lol. I did the boo-fet so I started with the backstage maze. I skipped depths because I vividly remember going through it several times in the past. Once the rest of the park opened, went to Origins with just a walking line wait. After that went directly across to Grimoire with a less than 5 min wait. I was confused as they brought us in a room with space opened in the middle then all of a sudden they just sent us on. I thought it would be a pre-show or something but oh well. Room 13 was next and that was the longest wait. Not because the line was long, they were not moving the line at all at times. Also, by longest wait I mean like 15 mins. After that went to Mesmer with no line at all. Went straight to Sinema Slasher with a less than 5 min wait. Took my nap lol then went to chilling chamber.
I would have stayed for the shows but I was dog tired and my thighs and calves were killing me. I was at HHN hollywood the night before and wed night I was at HHN orlando so knotts was my 3rd night back to back experiences haunts and walking!
this is a heroic effort. salute to your poor feet.
- Apr 2, 2019
- 107
- 53
- May 13, 2023
- 149
- 69
were you there on saturday? When I went last saturday there was no preshow and we walked straight into the maze when the girl was reading the book? I tried to stop myself and watch but they told me to keep moving. I might have to go back to this maze and see the preshow. I recommended if you want the preshow maybe go a little later into the night because if it has a short wait you most likely aren't getting a preshow.
Not sure if it's the same every night, but the funeral procession was at 11:45 last night. Also, the sliders show was at 10:30.
- May 13, 2023
- 149
- 69
can someone clarify on this? Can anyone post more times on when the show started the day they went? That would be very appreciated.
I've been to the event around 6-7 times now. I'll be there again this weekend as well. For those asking/wondering, below are some times for some of the pop-up shows that have hard to find showtimes. Keep in mind that some of these times may not be super accurate. This is just info that I've gathered from being there in person as well as scrubbing around the Internet.
Opening Ceremony:
Gates open around 6:30 PM. Park opens at 7 PM. It's tough to get a good spot, so be prepared.
Forsaken Lake Funeral Procession:
8:45 PM & 11:45 PM
The Royal Procession in the Gauntlet:
9:40 PM & 11:40 PM
Slider Show in The Gauntlet:
10:30 PM near the Ferris Wheel.
Gore-ing 20's band:
8 PM, 9:45 PM, 11:30 PM & 12:45 AM.
Witching Hour in the Gore-ing 20's:
9:00 PM & 11:00 PM near the Blind Tiger.
A few other things I wanted to throw out there that some people may not know. There is a hidden scavenger hunt game around the park. All you need is your phone and to follow the clues within the allotted time period given. I won't give anything away, but if you see any of the signage you can start anywhere.
The interactive lanterns are sold out for the season. I had heard this might happen, but was unsure as the event went on and I kept seeing them getting stocked. If you missed out on one, you are unfortunately out of luck for this season at least.
Opening Ceremony:
Gates open around 6:30 PM. Park opens at 7 PM. It's tough to get a good spot, so be prepared.
Forsaken Lake Funeral Procession:
8:45 PM & 11:45 PM
The Royal Procession in the Gauntlet:
9:40 PM & 11:40 PM
Slider Show in The Gauntlet:
10:30 PM near the Ferris Wheel.
Gore-ing 20's band:
8 PM, 9:45 PM, 11:30 PM & 12:45 AM.
Witching Hour in the Gore-ing 20's:
9:00 PM & 11:00 PM near the Blind Tiger.
A few other things I wanted to throw out there that some people may not know. There is a hidden scavenger hunt game around the park. All you need is your phone and to follow the clues within the allotted time period given. I won't give anything away, but if you see any of the signage you can start anywhere.
The interactive lanterns are sold out for the season. I had heard this might happen, but was unsure as the event went on and I kept seeing them getting stocked. If you missed out on one, you are unfortunately out of luck for this season at least.
- May 13, 2023
- 149
- 69
Went for a 2nd time last night. Park was more crowded, with most mazes having 45-60 min waits up til midnight (when we left). Still beats HHN waits, haha. Basically all scareactors were on point, it was a good time despite crowds.
Batteries in our lantern started to die after 1 1/2 nights use (we did have it on the entire time first night we went). Anyone else having that issue? Also still trying to figure out all the interactive spots in the park. Do those work during the daytime?
Didn't see any sign of a scavenger hunt... would it also be available during a daytime visit?
Saw the Hanging... it's never really been my jam. I appreciate the fan base it has, but I've always experienced it as maybe 3 good jokes and a lot of cringe and things that don't land at all. This was about the same, but I suppose it was one of the better Hanging to me, but I don't need to see it again. Will try to see the dance show on next visit.
Batteries in our lantern started to die after 1 1/2 nights use (we did have it on the entire time first night we went). Anyone else having that issue? Also still trying to figure out all the interactive spots in the park. Do those work during the daytime?
Didn't see any sign of a scavenger hunt... would it also be available during a daytime visit?
Saw the Hanging... it's never really been my jam. I appreciate the fan base it has, but I've always experienced it as maybe 3 good jokes and a lot of cringe and things that don't land at all. This was about the same, but I suppose it was one of the better Hanging to me, but I don't need to see it again. Will try to see the dance show on next visit.
- Nov 7, 2016
- 1,585
- 1,749
Saturday, October 7th
I can’t get too into detail with these mazes, because like my reviews before on this event, all the mazes start to gel together. Just the nature of the beast here, they are oddly not distinguishable at some point.
ARRIVAL
Got there around 4:20pm and parking was super confusing. Went through the usual entrance way on Grand, the tunnel was blocked off, then got stuck in the preferred parking lane. Had to turn left at the light on Crescent, and make another left at another light back on to Beach, then find the lane that’s sneakily off to the right to get into the parking lot that had NO SIGNAGE whatsoever. Anyway…went over to TGI Fridays for some drinks and apps beforehand, got out of there at 6:30pm. Went to line up, got in super fast, and huddled together. Aside, do you HAVE to go through Ghost Town or can you go up the middle through Silver Bullet? Will definitely want to do something else next time, because Ghost Town entrance takes a minute and you definitely cannot hear or see whatever show is going on (I was directly under the Ghost Town sign at 7pm, so pretty far back).
ROOM 13
Advertised Wait was 15 minutes at 7:12pm, but actual wait was 12 minutes — pretty accurate enough.
While no real facade to speak of, I was still impressed the moment I walked in. Something I did notice about almost all the new mazes this year…a bar or counter top scene…kinda weird, but oh well lol. The sets in here were very well put together, it didn’t have the usual funk that KSF is known for and they tried to replicate reality for the most part. While it does remind me of Universal Horror Hotel, I thought this one was distinguishable enough. And what did I find when walking in here? TRIGGER SCARES! I was elated. Some of the effects were pretty cool and I thought the monsters were all on their game. I was pretty blown away by the set design, immersion, and scares. It actually looked thought out for once as for what the scare in the room is supposed to be, while giving some monsters the freedom to roam. I always said when Knotts utilized trigger scares and ROAMING monsters, they will be KING once again. And true to my word, this is the first time in a LONG time that they did equal to or better than a HHN maze. And I was very shocked to find that won’t be the only time I feel that way tonight…more on that later. Honestly, this was one of the best KSF mazes they’ve ever done. Bravo!!!
A+
GRIMOIRE
Advertised Wait was 15 minutes at 7:32pm, and actual wait was 14 minutes.
NEW TO ME as I didn’t come last year. They were stopping people for the pre-show but made no effort to really keep people back to watch the pre-show, so…we just kept walking. Love the trench scene, that was freakin’ awesome. Watching back some videos of this maze though, there’s a lot of stuff I did NOT see, like the soldier reading the book, and the next black and white sequence was completely empty when I went through. I think everyone else through the rest was in there spots, but I don’t remember too much about the rest of it in particular. I remember digging what I saw and got some good scares in here.
B-
Was going to hit Origins but at this point, I was feeling ancy, so kept moving to…
CINEMA SLASHER
Advertised wait was 30 minutes with that queue out front full at 8:03pm, but it was only 12 minutes. This line at this venue always goes fast, love it.
The moment I stepped in, I already was in love. Hey, another counter scene. SO MANY details to KSF past that I absolutely adored, while also paying tribute to slasher films. The idea of giving past KSF mazes essentially a sequel, but in slasher form within an anthology, was a genius touch. While the scares weren’t super heavy when I went through, the overall experience is what really sparked joy for me. Trick or Treat segment was freakin’ awesome in the sorority house. Not what I’d expect from a Trick or Treat sequel, but hey it worked lol loved the Psycho homage. The scene of the girl being gutted over the bed was insane. Camp Gonnagetcha is a maze I never got to go through back in the day, so I was pretty happy to be able see this version. Also want to note that I love the films being projected. Also in this segment is a Dead Man’s Wharf section — another maze I never got to go through — so was very excited to get that here. If we ever wanted to know what KSF would do with a Friday the 13th maze, now we know — it was gory as all hell. Special shout out to the projector creatures with their weird movements. Another neat touch that I loved, every time you went into a theater auditorium, it was becoming more and more insane. Man, I love what they were able to pull off in here with the idea of progression. Slaughterhouse was a great one for me back in the day that overstayed its welcome, but I am glad they found a way to update it here to make it interesting. Loved the people in the tanks drowning. And the GIANT CHAINSAW — WTF?!?!?! Then the final auditorium scene, just absolute chaos, and the giant projector monster...man, super cool. Again, while I didn’t go all the scares in this one, the amount of fun I had made this my favorite maze of the night, and it may be a contender for top 3 mazes of all time here. This one cannot be missed.
A+
MESMER
Advertised wait was 15 minutes at 8:29pm and after walking through the Xcelerator queue for no reason, it was about 17 minutes.
Something that annoyed me, even though it shouldn’t, was the spiel from the guy letting us in about not touching the monsters and that there’s special effects…I don’t know man, seems like a pretty standard KSF maze to me. I thought we were about to get an actual magic show or something with the way he was talking (something I wished they utilized on year one — actual magic, that is). I didn’t love this maze too much the first time I went through (I gave it an A- on what was a VERY lackluster night and event in 2021) and this time, they didn’t do anything special to keep it going. The narration I thought was cool on year one, but now I just find it annoying and hard to track. Things like the tightrope stuff just looks like a regular floor with how little upkeep they’ve given it. For the most part, the maze was empty of monsters. I was having a great time tonight until now and remembered exactly where I was lol almost tricked me into thinking KSF was doing better, but alas, exited the maze and saw what seemed to be ALL the monsters on break. Is there no way to fix this and have rotations? It’s ridiculous. I think we saw maybe 3 monsters the entire maze.
F
CHILLING CHAMBERS
Advertised wait was 45 minutes at 8:59pm and was actually 21 minutes.
So many details in here, I don’t even know where to begin. Just an absolute love letter to the past and I loved every second of it. Not super scary though, so that’s the only downside. The maze doesn’t really find its momentum between segments the way Cinema Slasher does. Something I noticed about this maze was the lighting was exceptional… it just looked…different? Not sure how to explain it, more bright and vivid, even in the dark rooms, there seemed to be an intention. Whatever they did, I think this is what they should do for mazes moving forward. Maybe all the new mazes are lit this way and I didn’t notice, but this one definitely stood out. Usually the mazes here are just dark and brooding, but I appreciated the craft here! The Asylum scene could’ve been more chaotic, I remember that maze being an absolute beast back in the day. The Underground sequence was pretty nuts, definitely gave this maze a lot of life and Club Chupacabra was fun — hey, another counter/bar scene! Loved the coffins to the mazes of the past, great touch. Carnival of Carnivorous Clowns was a classic back in my day, so this was a huge treat hearing that IIII’M SOOOO HAPPYYYY song. And the poop room, hated it back then, still hate it now, but at least this time it was tied to nostalgia haha. Dominion of the Dead segment was too quick. Doll Factory was oddly a maze I never got tired of, so it was nice seeing that again. There was one girl that looked exactly like a doll, she scared me pretty good when she started moving outside of the house haha. The little tombs area, a monster got me pretty good and the final graveyard was lovely. All in all, another maze I LOVE — I just wish it was scarier.
A-
I can’t get too into detail with these mazes, because like my reviews before on this event, all the mazes start to gel together. Just the nature of the beast here, they are oddly not distinguishable at some point.
ARRIVAL
Got there around 4:20pm and parking was super confusing. Went through the usual entrance way on Grand, the tunnel was blocked off, then got stuck in the preferred parking lane. Had to turn left at the light on Crescent, and make another left at another light back on to Beach, then find the lane that’s sneakily off to the right to get into the parking lot that had NO SIGNAGE whatsoever. Anyway…went over to TGI Fridays for some drinks and apps beforehand, got out of there at 6:30pm. Went to line up, got in super fast, and huddled together. Aside, do you HAVE to go through Ghost Town or can you go up the middle through Silver Bullet? Will definitely want to do something else next time, because Ghost Town entrance takes a minute and you definitely cannot hear or see whatever show is going on (I was directly under the Ghost Town sign at 7pm, so pretty far back).
ROOM 13
Advertised Wait was 15 minutes at 7:12pm, but actual wait was 12 minutes — pretty accurate enough.
While no real facade to speak of, I was still impressed the moment I walked in. Something I did notice about almost all the new mazes this year…a bar or counter top scene…kinda weird, but oh well lol. The sets in here were very well put together, it didn’t have the usual funk that KSF is known for and they tried to replicate reality for the most part. While it does remind me of Universal Horror Hotel, I thought this one was distinguishable enough. And what did I find when walking in here? TRIGGER SCARES! I was elated. Some of the effects were pretty cool and I thought the monsters were all on their game. I was pretty blown away by the set design, immersion, and scares. It actually looked thought out for once as for what the scare in the room is supposed to be, while giving some monsters the freedom to roam. I always said when Knotts utilized trigger scares and ROAMING monsters, they will be KING once again. And true to my word, this is the first time in a LONG time that they did equal to or better than a HHN maze. And I was very shocked to find that won’t be the only time I feel that way tonight…more on that later. Honestly, this was one of the best KSF mazes they’ve ever done. Bravo!!!
A+
GRIMOIRE
Advertised Wait was 15 minutes at 7:32pm, and actual wait was 14 minutes.
NEW TO ME as I didn’t come last year. They were stopping people for the pre-show but made no effort to really keep people back to watch the pre-show, so…we just kept walking. Love the trench scene, that was freakin’ awesome. Watching back some videos of this maze though, there’s a lot of stuff I did NOT see, like the soldier reading the book, and the next black and white sequence was completely empty when I went through. I think everyone else through the rest was in there spots, but I don’t remember too much about the rest of it in particular. I remember digging what I saw and got some good scares in here.
B-
Was going to hit Origins but at this point, I was feeling ancy, so kept moving to…
CINEMA SLASHER
Advertised wait was 30 minutes with that queue out front full at 8:03pm, but it was only 12 minutes. This line at this venue always goes fast, love it.
The moment I stepped in, I already was in love. Hey, another counter scene. SO MANY details to KSF past that I absolutely adored, while also paying tribute to slasher films. The idea of giving past KSF mazes essentially a sequel, but in slasher form within an anthology, was a genius touch. While the scares weren’t super heavy when I went through, the overall experience is what really sparked joy for me. Trick or Treat segment was freakin’ awesome in the sorority house. Not what I’d expect from a Trick or Treat sequel, but hey it worked lol loved the Psycho homage. The scene of the girl being gutted over the bed was insane. Camp Gonnagetcha is a maze I never got to go through back in the day, so I was pretty happy to be able see this version. Also want to note that I love the films being projected. Also in this segment is a Dead Man’s Wharf section — another maze I never got to go through — so was very excited to get that here. If we ever wanted to know what KSF would do with a Friday the 13th maze, now we know — it was gory as all hell. Special shout out to the projector creatures with their weird movements. Another neat touch that I loved, every time you went into a theater auditorium, it was becoming more and more insane. Man, I love what they were able to pull off in here with the idea of progression. Slaughterhouse was a great one for me back in the day that overstayed its welcome, but I am glad they found a way to update it here to make it interesting. Loved the people in the tanks drowning. And the GIANT CHAINSAW — WTF?!?!?! Then the final auditorium scene, just absolute chaos, and the giant projector monster...man, super cool. Again, while I didn’t go all the scares in this one, the amount of fun I had made this my favorite maze of the night, and it may be a contender for top 3 mazes of all time here. This one cannot be missed.
A+
MESMER
Advertised wait was 15 minutes at 8:29pm and after walking through the Xcelerator queue for no reason, it was about 17 minutes.
Something that annoyed me, even though it shouldn’t, was the spiel from the guy letting us in about not touching the monsters and that there’s special effects…I don’t know man, seems like a pretty standard KSF maze to me. I thought we were about to get an actual magic show or something with the way he was talking (something I wished they utilized on year one — actual magic, that is). I didn’t love this maze too much the first time I went through (I gave it an A- on what was a VERY lackluster night and event in 2021) and this time, they didn’t do anything special to keep it going. The narration I thought was cool on year one, but now I just find it annoying and hard to track. Things like the tightrope stuff just looks like a regular floor with how little upkeep they’ve given it. For the most part, the maze was empty of monsters. I was having a great time tonight until now and remembered exactly where I was lol almost tricked me into thinking KSF was doing better, but alas, exited the maze and saw what seemed to be ALL the monsters on break. Is there no way to fix this and have rotations? It’s ridiculous. I think we saw maybe 3 monsters the entire maze.
F
CHILLING CHAMBERS
Advertised wait was 45 minutes at 8:59pm and was actually 21 minutes.
So many details in here, I don’t even know where to begin. Just an absolute love letter to the past and I loved every second of it. Not super scary though, so that’s the only downside. The maze doesn’t really find its momentum between segments the way Cinema Slasher does. Something I noticed about this maze was the lighting was exceptional… it just looked…different? Not sure how to explain it, more bright and vivid, even in the dark rooms, there seemed to be an intention. Whatever they did, I think this is what they should do for mazes moving forward. Maybe all the new mazes are lit this way and I didn’t notice, but this one definitely stood out. Usually the mazes here are just dark and brooding, but I appreciated the craft here! The Asylum scene could’ve been more chaotic, I remember that maze being an absolute beast back in the day. The Underground sequence was pretty nuts, definitely gave this maze a lot of life and Club Chupacabra was fun — hey, another counter/bar scene! Loved the coffins to the mazes of the past, great touch. Carnival of Carnivorous Clowns was a classic back in my day, so this was a huge treat hearing that IIII’M SOOOO HAPPYYYY song. And the poop room, hated it back then, still hate it now, but at least this time it was tied to nostalgia haha. Dominion of the Dead segment was too quick. Doll Factory was oddly a maze I never got tired of, so it was nice seeing that again. There was one girl that looked exactly like a doll, she scared me pretty good when she started moving outside of the house haha. The little tombs area, a monster got me pretty good and the final graveyard was lovely. All in all, another maze I LOVE — I just wish it was scarier.
A-
- Nov 7, 2016
- 1,585
- 1,749
THE HANGING
10pm showing
I read online somewhere the show started at 9:30pm, so I thought I was late, The Wagon Camp entrance is not by the Ghost Town sign, but is around the other side and there’s a…line for it? Anyway, we all got seated around 9:35pm, I was thinking “aren’t we late, isn’t it starting soon?!” Turns out it starts at 10pm. But the theater was full and we all just sat there for 15 minutes, because they stopped letting in people by 9:45pm. There’s a whole section stage left that wasn’t used at all, and they definitely could fit 20ish more people there, and not all the cabins are being used, not sure why.
On with the show! Man, being able to sit for this show is a blessing. Seriously, never change this, and the use of the auditorium really lends itself. Reminded me of Bill & Ted, in a good way. I was very surprised by the show’s writing — usually it’s WAY too dumb, but the self referential nature and meta jokes were so great. Seriously, this year is for either major fans of the event or people in the know of theme park culture right now. Pop culture oddly took a back seat. I loved the framework of bringing back major characters from the past and the Marty McFly costume was insanely hilarious. There’s some jokes that didn’t land and were the usual amateurish self, but for the most part it was strong, so I couldn’t be too mad. Blood, fighting, cursing, and laughter, while also feeding your nostalgia…what’s not to love here? I can honestly say I haven’t liked a Hanging show in the last decade or even more. This reminded me of the early 2000s when I used to love this show and this year in general was a reminder of why I fell in love with this event. Watching it, everything kinda came full circle. It was nice to remember what KSF used to be in the good days…actual quality. At some point it dropped off and fell victim of comparison to HHN, but with the new mazes this year and this show actually being good (unlike Purge: Dangerous Waters and actually being a comedy show that tries instead of throwing the dancing Jabawockeez at us) — it felt like falling in love all over again. I am ofcourse speaking too soon, because the rest of the night was pretty terrible in regular KSF fashion (spoiler alert lol), but to feel that again for the first half the night?! A beautiful gift.
A
DINNER
Everywhere was jam packed. I wanted to try the new pizza though by Room 13. The line was long but it moved quick. I got in line at 10:40pm and we were done eating by 11:15pm. Usually dinner takes me an hour anywhere, so that shows you how quick it was overall. After eating, caught that dance show in the Gore-ing 20s. Fun stuff.
ORIGINS
Advertised wait was 60 minutes and it looked it at 11:35pm, stretching way back to the graveyard with multiple zigzags…was only 35 minutes, luckily. This was our longest wait of the night.
Still really love the queue area and interactions, it really sells the idea of story. And the maze itself? Still pretty strong, but starting to show signs of age. Considering this maze has been here for awhile now though, it’s impressive it’s not a total bore like Mesmer is currently. Nothing necessarily stuck out, but I was into it.
B
BLOODLINE
Advertised wait was 15 minutes at 12:21am and looked kinda long, so wasn’t sure if that was true, but it was actually 18 minutes, so I guess that makes sense. It was basically a walk-on right after I got out though.
NEW TO ME, but honestly, it felt…old? Ditching the guns dated this maze too fast as it feels like a maze on its last year and they just wanted to get over with. At least get rid of the references to the guns, but as you can see, it’s very tied into the overall theme. So a lot of things didn’t really gel. I honestly don’t remember much about this maze and at this point, I felt kind of “mazed out.” Like I said, the mazes, even if they are vastly different — feel so indistinguishable to some degree that it almost seemed like I was just going through one long maze the whole night. Would this maze have fared better earlier in the night? Probably not, as I just don’t think it’s that good. Even when I watched the walkthrough last year, I was not impressed.
C+
DARK ENTITIES
Advertised as 5 minutes at 12:45am in its dark little corner with no love and sure enough, it was a walk on.
Yeah, this maze still sucks. It should’ve been gone its first year. Why it’s stuck around this long, is beyond me. Put it out of its misery. There was some talent in here trying though, so I do want to give props. And the problem isn’t the design of the maze…I actually think it’s cool. But there’s something about this maze that just doesn’t…work.
F
10pm showing
I read online somewhere the show started at 9:30pm, so I thought I was late, The Wagon Camp entrance is not by the Ghost Town sign, but is around the other side and there’s a…line for it? Anyway, we all got seated around 9:35pm, I was thinking “aren’t we late, isn’t it starting soon?!” Turns out it starts at 10pm. But the theater was full and we all just sat there for 15 minutes, because they stopped letting in people by 9:45pm. There’s a whole section stage left that wasn’t used at all, and they definitely could fit 20ish more people there, and not all the cabins are being used, not sure why.
On with the show! Man, being able to sit for this show is a blessing. Seriously, never change this, and the use of the auditorium really lends itself. Reminded me of Bill & Ted, in a good way. I was very surprised by the show’s writing — usually it’s WAY too dumb, but the self referential nature and meta jokes were so great. Seriously, this year is for either major fans of the event or people in the know of theme park culture right now. Pop culture oddly took a back seat. I loved the framework of bringing back major characters from the past and the Marty McFly costume was insanely hilarious. There’s some jokes that didn’t land and were the usual amateurish self, but for the most part it was strong, so I couldn’t be too mad. Blood, fighting, cursing, and laughter, while also feeding your nostalgia…what’s not to love here? I can honestly say I haven’t liked a Hanging show in the last decade or even more. This reminded me of the early 2000s when I used to love this show and this year in general was a reminder of why I fell in love with this event. Watching it, everything kinda came full circle. It was nice to remember what KSF used to be in the good days…actual quality. At some point it dropped off and fell victim of comparison to HHN, but with the new mazes this year and this show actually being good (unlike Purge: Dangerous Waters and actually being a comedy show that tries instead of throwing the dancing Jabawockeez at us) — it felt like falling in love all over again. I am ofcourse speaking too soon, because the rest of the night was pretty terrible in regular KSF fashion (spoiler alert lol), but to feel that again for the first half the night?! A beautiful gift.
A
DINNER
Everywhere was jam packed. I wanted to try the new pizza though by Room 13. The line was long but it moved quick. I got in line at 10:40pm and we were done eating by 11:15pm. Usually dinner takes me an hour anywhere, so that shows you how quick it was overall. After eating, caught that dance show in the Gore-ing 20s. Fun stuff.
ORIGINS
Advertised wait was 60 minutes and it looked it at 11:35pm, stretching way back to the graveyard with multiple zigzags…was only 35 minutes, luckily. This was our longest wait of the night.
Still really love the queue area and interactions, it really sells the idea of story. And the maze itself? Still pretty strong, but starting to show signs of age. Considering this maze has been here for awhile now though, it’s impressive it’s not a total bore like Mesmer is currently. Nothing necessarily stuck out, but I was into it.
B
BLOODLINE
Advertised wait was 15 minutes at 12:21am and looked kinda long, so wasn’t sure if that was true, but it was actually 18 minutes, so I guess that makes sense. It was basically a walk-on right after I got out though.
NEW TO ME, but honestly, it felt…old? Ditching the guns dated this maze too fast as it feels like a maze on its last year and they just wanted to get over with. At least get rid of the references to the guns, but as you can see, it’s very tied into the overall theme. So a lot of things didn’t really gel. I honestly don’t remember much about this maze and at this point, I felt kind of “mazed out.” Like I said, the mazes, even if they are vastly different — feel so indistinguishable to some degree that it almost seemed like I was just going through one long maze the whole night. Would this maze have fared better earlier in the night? Probably not, as I just don’t think it’s that good. Even when I watched the walkthrough last year, I was not impressed.
C+
DARK ENTITIES
Advertised as 5 minutes at 12:45am in its dark little corner with no love and sure enough, it was a walk on.
Yeah, this maze still sucks. It should’ve been gone its first year. Why it’s stuck around this long, is beyond me. Put it out of its misery. There was some talent in here trying though, so I do want to give props. And the problem isn’t the design of the maze…I actually think it’s cool. But there’s something about this maze that just doesn’t…work.
F
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