Universal Monsters: Eternal Bloodlines (HHN 33)

[Kichkinet85]

may I remind you that Other people complained about the lack of characters in the mummy house ( even in this forum) and how werewolf or Dracula didn't appear enough lol
I'm not even complaining, it just reminded me.
(you can see the reviews for that year)
or how little invisible man was in the other house lol

??? What’s ur point here if not complaining ???

 

[Lucky Planet]

??? What’s ur point here if not complaining ???

curiously wondering?

 

[Clive]

curiously wondering?

None of us know. The house hasn't opened.

 

[Lucky Planet]

None of us know. The house hasn't opened.

yeah that's true but sometimes people know things. I love vampires and I love the bride so I will be happy. I think I'll love it. I'm pretty sure.

 

[Clive]

yeah that's true but sometimes people know things. I love vampires and I love the bride so I will be happy. I think I'll love it. I'm pretty sure.

Okay, but can we all collectively work on making posts that actually contribute something to the conversation?

For example: Instead of this obfuscating back and forth, you could've just said something like --

"In the past there's been some criticism about how many times each featured character appears, like in Legends Collide where Dracula was barely there. Hopefully they'll keep those concerns in mind and this won't be a house where it's the same two characters over and over. That said, I love vampires and the bride, so maybe that wouldn't be too bad."

versus

"so its just gonna be the same characters over and over?"

...followed by several posts of you defensively clarifying your position. Do you see how that's unproductive and grinds threads to a halt?

 

[Lucky Planet]

Okay, but can we all collectively work on making posts that actually contribute something to the conversation?

For example: Instead of this obfuscating back and forth, you could've just said something like --

"In the past there's been some criticism about how many times each featured character appears, like in Legends Collide where Dracula was barely there. Hopefully they'll keep those concerns in mind and this won't be a house where it's the same two characters over and over. That said, I love vampires and the bride, so maybe that wouldn't be too bad."

versus

"so its just gonna be the same characters over and over?"

...followed by several posts of you defensively clarifying your position. Do you see how that's unproductive and grinds threads to a halt?

I'll make my posts longer

 

[Clive]

I'll make my posts longer

Not my point. Make them constructive.

 

[Lucky Planet]

Not my point. Make them constructive.

I'll try my best.

 

[Tobias]

When it comes to the cast and such, I wouldn't worry.

Spoiler

The house is better balanced with the cast than last years Unmasked (which focused solely on Phantom in the beginning), everyone's in their own sections to start off with, and then they're all together for a good bit at the end.

 

[saint.piss]

I can't get over how messed up the ending is for this house. Seriously bleak/evil stuff. Lmao

 

[SeventyOne]

I need a second run to fully judge this house, because I think (hope?) bad timing and empty boo-holes put a damper on my first.

Spoiler

A little overstuffed and hard to follow, even having watched the preview video. Mummy sections probably could have been cut to streamline the story, make it feel like less of a rehash of Monsters Collide. I picked up on a couple plot points at the end, but still not 100% sure what that climax was all about.

That said, the sets and costumes are gorgeous, the cast I did see seemed very into their roles. Fingers crossed this one will improve.

 

[saint.piss]

I need a second run to fully judge this house, because I think (hope?) bad timing and empty boo-holes put a damper on my first.

Spoiler

A little overstuffed and hard to follow, even having watched the preview video. Mummy sections probably could have been cut to streamline the story, make it feel like less of a rehash of Monsters Collide. I picked up on a couple plot points at the end, but still not 100% sure what that climax was all about.

That said, the sets and costumes are gorgeous, the cast I did see seemed very into their roles. Fingers crossed this one will improve.

The ending in detail:

Spoiler: ENDING SPOILERS

[The guests are attacked by Dracula's daughter holding Saskia's severed head while the Bride watches in despair. They then return to the Van Helsing crypt, where the Bride brought back Saskia's headless corpse to rest alongside her deceased family. The guests are attacked one last time by the She-Wolf, Anck-Su-Namun, and Marya laughing maniacally before it ends with the Bride screaming in agony.]

 

[SeventyOne]

The ending in detail:

Spoiler: ENDING SPOILERS

[The guests are attacked by Dracula's daughter holding Saskia's severed head while the Bride watches in despair. They then return to the Van Helsing crypt, where the Bride brought back Saskia's headless corpse to rest alongside her deceased family. The guests are attacked one last time by the She-Wolf, Anck-Su-Namun, and Marya laughing maniacally before it ends with the Bride screaming in agony.]

Yeah, I got the first part, but the lack of actors in my first run made a lot of that far from clear.

 

[Legacy]

Yeah, I got the first part, but the lack of actors in my first run made a lot of that far from clear.

Spoiler

Team Marya basically follow Bride to Van Helsing’s crypt for one final attack. It doesn’t really read that way, but that’s what is happening.

 

[Wesker69]

After hearing the synopsis of what is supposed to be happening/the plot... I feel like I need to watch another POV video or two.

Also is the "corpse"(?) on the gypsy wagon supposed to be a Frankie cameo? Did She-wolf attack him & piss off Bride?

 

[Brian G.]

After hearing the synopsis of what is supposed to be happening/the plot... I feel like I need to watch another POV video or two.

Also is the "corpse"(?) on the gypsy wagon supposed to be a Frankie cameo? Did She-wolf attack him & piss off Bride?

Yeah - that's the cause of the team-up.

 

[GA-MBIT]

This was sold to me as Brides 2, but it's really a Van Helsing house, framed through the lens of a bunch of female Monsters. That's a good idea, and especially makes sense if Creature was off the table. Probably one of the only totally new directions they could've gone with. I also totally get why there was nothing Dark Universe here, the plot is convoluted enough and there's just really no space for it.

Need another few runs to get a proper feel for the house. It's got solid sets, and the new Tents feel incredibly long, especially compared to a house like The Darkest Deal which despite being a contender for an all-timer was basically 3 scenes long total haha. There are multiple scenes and set-pieces here that worked as well as a soundstage or parade building in terms of scale and production value. It might just be my early memories being fuzzy, but one specific forest-y scene felt almost like a long take in a film, with a lot of stuff happening within the same room as you walk from the front to the back. I think this one will probably rise up my ranking if I get a few good runs.

 

[Crypt Keeper]

The weakest Universal Monsters house so far. Sets are very repetitive and the story just doesn't do anything for me. This house sounded like Legends Collide, but there are zero fighting scenes whatsoever. There were a couple scenes/scares that I thought were cool, but that's about it.

Just give me a Creature house already.

 

[Disneyson1]

Just listened to the podcast for the first time, and while I think that the house absolutely stands on it’s own, I think the story’s pain is so well highlighted by knowing some of the character’s internal thoughts.

One of the things I think that a Haunted House CANNOT do as well as a movie is create a great deal of existential fear related to regret, heartbreak, and hopelessness.

Spoiler: Finale Spoilers

The concept that, no matter how hard you try, you will never be good enough, is one of my personal greatest fears, and the conceit that bad things will continue happening to you is a really existential horror. While sometimes we hear about the backstories of innocent characters being turned evil at HHN (Usher, Major Sweets), I feel that we rarely watch these stories play out in real time during a house, or (more to the point) watch them lose.

This house’s concept is really successful to me because it leaves me with a taste of true hopelessness, desperation, and dread that I find very unique for a mainstream haunted attraction. I rarely pity HHN characters, and they really nailed this.

P.S, let it be said that these characters are not uncomplicated, as Saskia really overestimated her ability to channel her anger and had a lot of unkind and haughty things to say about her dead brother. I know this is a lot of psychological examination for a haunted house, but isn’t that a part of what makes Horror Nights so special?

I also wonder if the intense psychologically unsettling finale of this house is a test to see how guests react to it, and how guests may react to a similar attraction finale in Dark Universe, in which the hero dies/loses at the end.