Inside Universal Forums

Welcome to the Inside Universal Forums! Register a free account today to become a member. Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members and unlock our forums features!

  • Signing up for a Premium Membership is a donation to help Inside Universal maintain costs and offers an ad-free experience on the forum. Learn more about it here.

HHN 28: Academy of Villains - Cyberpunk

AoV's headline show this year at a main dance competition was called Cyberpunk. After that performance they had it professionally filmed and released on youtube as part of their Chvpter series. I expect parts of that show to show up in this one plus a whole lot more. The final song and opening song would both work well. Warning: Language in the video below!



They also mentioned on twitter yesterday that they know about people's concerns with moving to a theater and losing that "up close and personal" feeling the show had. I'm sure they will create an outstanding show, but I hope it doesn't lose that "personal" feel it used to have. To me, being up close, feeling the heat from the fire, seeing their facial expressions, etc was what set the show apart. I'm going to make sure I get there early so I can get a seat up close. I can't see them turning away cameras. AoV WANT'S the free publicity. It's not like Bill and Ted where SO many IP's were getting used loosely that could have landed them in hot water. However I do hope they let us in earlier and continue playing some awesome pre-show muisic!

EDIT: After watching the video again, I really hope they increase the cast size. With B & T gone, they should have more of a budget for this show so I hope it happens! The number of people in that video is more than double than what we have seen in the past two years.
 
Last edited:
EDIT: After watching the video again, I really hope they increase the cast size. With B & T gone, they should have more of a budget for this show so I hope it happens! The number of people in that video is more than double than what we have seen in the past two years.
I hope that too but remember Universal also added an extra house with extra scare actors, clothing, maku-up etc so I think that is where the money is going.
 
how many shows do you suppose AOV will have a night? i imagine it must be incredibly tiring work.

My guess will be 4 during 1am closings and 5 during 2am closings. Yes it is tiring, but these are extremely skilled and talented performers. No doubt that they spend 8+ hours a day rehearsing before big competitions and stuff. With a 30 minute show, they will only be performing 2-2:30 hours a night.
 
I had never watched that one! Thanks for sharing it!

I was really hoping AoV would embrace the whole 80's theme and go totally out of control with it just like this video. I don't think that is going to be the case sadly. However, Cyberpunk has a lot of roots in the 80's. The 1982 version of Blade Runner really helped create the Cyberpunk genre and just look at the Stranger Things title music so hopefully we get some 80's music tossed into the show.

This is one of my most anticipated parts of HHN this year. They blew me away in 26 and in 27 they killed it even with all the stage uses from Irma. The fact that it is in a real theater this time gives me high hopes for an outstanding show. They said during the round-table that they are building a crazy stage unlike anything Fear Factor has ever housed along with brand new effects. Also, the fact that one of the original founders of AoV, Phoenix, is performing ALL season long just raises the bar even higher since she has never performed at HHN before. Will be going to the first show on opening night for sure!
 
The very little amounts of pyro used in this show are fireworks from Sindbad. Guess they gotta use the leftovers somewhere
 
I’m gonna need the preshow playlist on my desk by next week. Haha. That remixed 80’s music was what I was hoping would play throughout the park this year.
 
this was not the best year for this show. so they are doing this "terminator/matrix" style show, and they are using the screens to tell the story, but the story comes off as kind of cheesy and kind of lame.
I get what they were doing, I understand what they were doing, but it felt like watching a genetic, lame sci fi movie. it just didnt work as well as i wish it did.

another problem is that the stunts and the dance moves they are using are the same as the last two years, they are even doing the audience dance battle and the "picture frame" dancing, that makes no sense in the context of the show. (I know the story is not the point of the show and the dancing is the point of the show, i get that. I fully know you are there as a guest to see the dancing)
but even the dancing stuff feels old news now. I hate to say this because i really loved AOV but some of the stuff they did is feeling stale now. there were parts of the show that i got a little bored.

the show has more lasers and is more technological and has more lights and more effects and they use the screens a lot and their costumes are more detailed and their face paint is really nice and they are using a lot of glow in the dark effects...
but the show lost the charm it had before. it lost the comfy feeling you got from watching them. the friendliness you felt before, the show lost its soul. for all the technological upgrades the show got and for all the lasers and the convoluted story they created, for all the glow in the dark effects they did,
the show last year with the bare bones stage and the audience participation was much more fun. the show last year felt better, more charming.
the stage feels limiting and feels claustrophobic, having AOV on the open stage felt more comfortable to watch.
the open stage (with people standing) felt more fun, there was something about the open show that made it feel more like a party. the actors interacting with the audience was so much fun. it was entertaining. as small as the show was last year, i had a much better time watching it.

this show is so much bigger and it has so many more effects, but it just felt... annoying, i honestly got annoyed at some parts of it. sometimes it annoyed me and a couple of times i was bored.
 
Last edited:
Does anyone have a tracklist of the songs used in the preshow/during the show? I've only been able to find one of the songs so far.
 
Boy, I really wanted to like this show but....it just didn't work for me.

To be clear, I really loved them the last two years, and thought they could blow the doors off with this one on a bigger stage and bigger budget.

I'm glad a lot of people love it, and there are moments of greatness (the laser glove bit). Most of it just comes off as trying too hard.

The frames feel really forced. The bouncy tight rope bit was fun to watch for thirty seconds, until you realize that they're not choreographed at all, they're just bouncing up and down.

But the biggest sin in my opinion is trying to force in audience participation with "the wave" and "the robot".
 
Top