There are just some movies you don’t even need to watch to know they are going to be absolutely terrible.
And, the biggest movie of the summer is no different.
MEGA SHARK VS GIANT OCTOPUS!!!
And, while it releases May 19th, straight to DVD…I’m fairly comfortable in declaring it won’t be too awful long before it goes straight to the SciFi Channel.
And, we’ll be waiting with another gripping review from the family on a movie sure to be as gripping as Dragon Wars…
We made it down to Lagoon, and Talia got her first taste of the Dark Rides…
First was Terror Ride.
Now, Terror Ride…there is just something WRONG about it. From the beginning. The sign tilts off kilter with it’s skull and blood dripped letters…
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| From Halloween buildup 09 |
Then, there is THOSE THINGS. A witch, and a skeleton, that open and close shutters leaning out to stare at the patrons.
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| From Halloween buildup 09 |
To the two year old, this is enough to overpower even the comfort of a chocolate chip cookie…
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| From Halloween buildup 09 |
Then there is THE MURAL.
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| From Halloween buildup 09 |
There is something…OFF…about that mural. Always has been.
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| From Halloween buildup 09 |
The odd skulls, the wierd dancing guy in the background, the illogical combination of characters…something.
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| From Halloween buildup 09 |
UNFORTUNATELY. I was still learning the camera operation at this point, and we didn’t get a good video of the Terroride. They’ve changed most EVERYTHING in this one since I’ve last been, and things were coming fast and furious on sides differing from the past. The thing is even more chaotic and fast hitting than before now. We’ll get a good video next time.
Talia got off of the Terroride wanting to go find mommy, most definately not wanting to ride again. However, she happily called “bye-bye monsters” as we left, and got really upset later in the evening when I had told her we were going to go ride some monsters (Dracula’s Castle), but walked BY the Terroride. “Monsters!!!”
Next was Dracula’s Castle.
Dracula’s Castle has this darn owl out front that makes REALLY bad jokes…
And, while some of it has changed since I’ve been here, things were in the same places, so the video was easier to take.
Talia’s review:
One would think that, by now, the neighbors would be used to seeing me out working on Halloween stuff.
Apparantly not.
Having been chipping away on Bob this week has seen me out in the garage with the door open, music playing, and lamps shining on bob for about an hour each night after the kids have been tucked in.
Somewhat limited in my ability to do everything at once due to the delicate nature of that ribcage, it’s been a bit here, a bit there, mix a bit of clay, work a bit, do a bit of mache, let it dry, etc.
And, the parade of neighbors to pass on by cannot fail to ask.
“Starting already?”
“Little early isn’t it?”
“Why?”
“What is that?”
And etc.
As my wife says. Some people hunt, some fish, some golf. I Halloween. Not that anyone around here understands that.
So, progress on Bob?
Nothing blatantly amazing. The ribs are all mache and sturdy now. And, it wouldn’t be right to be talking to a ribcage all this time, so we had to give him a head. Oh, sure, it’ll all be covered up, but it will always crack me up knowing that grin is underneath. And, we’ve begun on adding the clay. This is a slow process, but, I think it’s coming along quite nicely.
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| From bob |
In other news, we picked up our season passes to Lagoon (local amusement park) yesterday. We’ll try to get down there today. I’ll certainly be getting some pictures of Dracula’s Castle (1974) and the Terroride (1964), if not video… 2 traditional darkrides (a disappearing breed) right here in Utah that most assuredly shaped much of my obsession with this kind of stuff. And, of course, later in the year, we’ll be getting plenty of stuff from Frightmares…
As I was mentioning earlier, the idea for Bob was ORIGINALLY going to be Fred.
I even stumbled on the theme song for the idea, finding an old CD, and taking a listen to an old favorite tale of Uncle Fred…
But, Fred is heavy, and he really don’t bend all that well to make sit up to begin with.
Sure, one could go buy a bucky torso to make a new Fred, I really don’t have the cash to be doing so. And, despite my original intentions to keep to the naming convention, and name everything Fred, it would get REALLY confusing here for you guys.
And so, Bob was born.
Now, I know what you’re thinking. Cole, Fred has his song, and he even has a song for this project! What about poor Bob?
Yer right…Bob needs a song too.
Bob has been in the planning since shortly after the fair last year. So much so, that I had gone out and purchased a $25 lifetime table at the Black Friday sales. The more I thought on this, however, the more it became apparant that those plastic table tops would not hold the mutilation I needed to impart upon them. So, I was forced to search out a wooden one.
Fortunately, I found them on sale at Staples.
Next, I salvaged some of that failed Charr prototype conduit for the primary mechanism. Some PVC pipe, a gate latch, and a couple bungie chords later, Bob was not only sitting up, but doing so on command.
Time for the hard part.
I really don’t know where I read about making the spine from pipe insulation and wire ties. But, I filed it into the back of me brain for future use, and there ya go.
I dug Fred out from his hiding spot, took as close of a tracing as I could get from his chest cavity, and put that into a cardboard frame for the ribcage.
Bob is now taking shape.
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| From bob |
Talia finds him too fun…
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| From bob |
Bob’s already begun quite well, scaring Alec with his abrupt sit-up.
Next, is to mache the spine and ribcage with a base coat, then start the painstaking process of filling in the bones one by one…
For that, it’s time for a SPECIAL brew…
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| From bob |
I recall barely anything from when Stardust came out.
Other than a faint impression I wanted to see it, it slipped away quietly with little to no fanfare. Few commercials marking it’s theater run. None that I can recall marking it’s DVD release. And, little to no critical acclaim.
A few weeks ago, however, I saw it was running, and set the DVR to record it.
This weekend, Kyle and I sat up late watching.
Not knowing what to expect, it was a pleasant surprise to find such a wonderful tale done in the lighthearted spirit of The Princess Bride.
The whole gamut of characters is well cast, and well performed.
What stands out best for me, however, was the witches.
These are the kinds of witches written of through the ages. Not corrupted by the more modern visions of crystal balls and green faced hags. These witches divine their magic through the entrails of animals, casting of runes, and voodoo dolls, for the use of spells has it’s price. And, at the end of the road, those witches are not all spells and magic, either. They can kick some ass in their own right.
Kyle has been, frankly, discouraged, by the whole idea of going the witch direction next year.
Thinking in his mind of the Wicked Witch of the West, and the fear I’ld dress him up all girly.
Once Stardust ended, however, he looked at me. “We GOT to do witches.”
