The Cabin In the Woods...The Amusement Park!

It's official...or more official than usual: Joss Whedon..and Drew Goddard...are the Kings of Most Media

Who would have thought that a horror movie written by Joss and Drew over three days, put on the shelf for two years because of financial problems with the original studio, and then finally released and getting a Saturn Award and wide-spread respect from horror fans everywhere, would wind up as the theme for the annual Halloween event at a major theme park?

The Cabin In The Woods is actually going to be this year's theme at Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios Orlando. The proof is right here in this link. It may be unexpected but Universal has worked with Lionsgate before, when the park included an attraction connected with the Saw movie series.
Fox News was among the first to announce it. They talked to Drew, who said...

"It was certainly always the dream. I don't know how far we thought the reality would go. But we always wanted 'Cabin' to take on a life beyond us. It just felt like such a rich universe where people can drop in and have their own fun."

In a nice twist, visitors will not be the victims of the monsters, mermen, unicorns, Hell Lords, zombie family members and such in that cabin. They'll be going through the secret facility that keeps those monsters..but there's a chance the monsters may get loose (heh, heh) However, there are no Ancient Ones involved. This time, the gods just want your cash to see this attraction, which to them is even better than ripping the Earth apart.
Or...maybe the Ancient Ones were too ancient to rip anything beyond the cabin at the end of the film, and decided to hook up with Universal Studios for this.
The article also says there's a chance Drew may be one of the monsters at the attraction.

Sounds great....but should the Cabin also be located at Universal Studios Hollywood?

At one point the Hollywood park didn't have Hollywood Horror Nights, but the Orlando park did. Now, they both do, and for the most part, the Halloween attractions are similar. Last year, both had attractions connected to Alice Cooper and The Walking Dead. So, there's a chance Universal Studios Hollywood will have its own Cabin In The Woods. Since the fright doesn't start for another three months, it'll be a while until we know for sure.

Then again, how would Doll Faces, Hell Lords and mermen battle, say, Transformers and King Kong?
I'm guessing....they'd rather not.

And who knows? Maybe someday we'll have an amusement park with sections based on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Teen Wolf, True Blood, and The Walking Dead. Twilight would not be included, obviously.

Don't Be Fooled! Christmas Time Is Here

When I was trying to put together a costume for the Serenity Salute in Los Angeles in three weeks, I found two interesting things at Sears in Sacramento.
First< i found a nice tan pair of Dickies Jeans for 25 dollars. Along with a Hawaiian shirt and a Dollhouse t-shirt, plus a Jayne knit cap, I can be Jayne Wash for the costume contest. Granted, I'll wind up dead last compared to people bringing a Kaylee Pink Dress from "Shindig" or even more elaborate stuff. But I would at least be interesting.

The other thing I found was....Christmas decorations in the hardware section. It already had an outdoor diplay that reminded me of the one I saw at a shopping center in Cabo two years ago. Well, Christmas is two months away, and I am sure that stores in Canada, from HBC to Canadian Tire, are already in the first stages of the holiday season. Of course, the season will get into full gear in just a few weeks. Here in the U-S, it starts after Thanksgiving. In Canada, it starts after the Grey Cup.
It's the same story at my neighborhood shopping center. Suncoast Video is selling an artificial tree that looks just like the weak real tree in A Charlie Brown Christmas. The ironic thing is that it's supposed to represent the fading traditional Christmas spirit compared to a sea of artificial trees. Now, you can get a replica of that tree. It's almost cooler than getting an action figure of Rudolph or Herbie.
A few doors down, the traditional calendar store is open. New Calendars are always a nice last-second gift. Of course, there were a couple of Buffy calendars, but only one Dr. Horrible calendar. That was a sign they were selling out fast. Meanwhile, calendars for Lost, Twilight and Gossip Girl are still plentiful.

I say some parents should just admit defeat, and tell their kids to dress like Santa or elves. That way, it proves you've got a jump on the upcoming holiday season.
As for me, I wish I could dress up like an Active with a Dollhouse protest t-shirt, but I don't think too many people would get it. Besides, walking barefoot doesn't work. I do have some nice sandals, though.
I could get away with dressing like Simon Tam, except I am bald. Next year, I should put together a Niska costume, and develop a Czech accent.