For decades, Knott's Berry Farm has been home to the biggest and best Halloween event in the world.  Rarely have outside influences applied directly to mazes at the Scary Farm for the sole purpose of being a marketing vehicle.  And those rare occasions that this was the case - never worked out well (thinking of Crypt Keeper's Inquisition and Elvira's Nightmares at the moment).  Never had a major studio offered a huge amount of money to Knott's to develop a maze with no other purpose than to promote an up-coming horror film.  When we learned about The Grudge 2 coming to Knott's, we were less than thrilled, to be frank.

Being hard core Haunt fans ourselves, we actually felt offended that Knott's would allow a studio to influence their event in such a huge way.  We felt that on a certain level, Cedar Fair, Ltd. and Knott's management had sold out to make some extra money during an event that already makes them a lot of cash each year consistently without fail.  Yet, on another level, we were at least curious; curious to see just what The Grudge 2 would be like and how Knott's would step up and create a different kind of maze with studio money and marketing behind it.  And so, as The Grudge 2 took physical shape at the Scary Farm last summer, we watched and waited.

It was clear from the get-go that The Grudge 2 was going to be a force to be reckoned with aesthetically.  Untraditional building materials were being used to create this maze and the attention to detail was unreal - absolutely on par with what studio executives demanded from Knott's and its design team.  It was evident that the maze was going to be stunning; was the key to a sure-fire Halloween Haunt success story simply money and marketing influence from an outside production?  We truly started to wonder.

Our answer came when we walked through The Grudge 2 for ourselves.  The maze was definitely amazing to look at; the extra attention and mountain of money behind this particular Haunt attraction were evident.  However - and this is a huge however - it wasn't the building or the numerous props that grabbed our full attention.

It was the talent.

Most notably, the female talent.  It was apparent to us that something extraordinary was taking place inside the walls of The Grudge 2.  Each year, Theme Park Adventure takes note of an individual that is a stand-out in a cast of hundreds - someone that raises the bar and catches our attention off-guard in a positive way - and we honor them with a nod that we call a Screamy Award.  The only time we have noticed a group of talent and have given them a special nod was in 2005; the original Fearies in Feary Tales.  That group of women captured the hearts and admiration of Haunt fans and monsters around the Farm and they were given their due props.

Last year, as we walked through The Grudge 2 time after time, we realized that we had the same situation on our hands - but on an unprecedented scale at Halloween Haunt.  The females that made up the cast of Grudge Girls were all amazing.  While they worked individually, they were a well-oiled machine as a team and turned out a performance that will go down in Haunt history as unusual and so superior that we simply don't know how any group can ever top this.  The Grudge Girls came together and kicked ass, plainly put.  They kicked major ass.  Each Grudge Girl brought their own style - one dragged herself all over the floor; one seemed to crawl down the wall with her arms backward; yet another one crept with eerie jerks and ticks along the walls, much to the terror of Haunt guests; another moved close to the ground in such a way that she looked like a prop - one of the maze's animatronics figures, and when she looked at you - her eyes were solid black - the single creepiest visual in our opinion of Haunt 2006.

The Grudge 2 was populated with many crew members - and our love goes out to each of them.  The entire cast was incredible - ghouls in the graveyard, stilt walkers, hair... things.. everyone was totally in to it - and that is what made this maze so outstanding of an experience.

The props and design of the maze itself were fantastic - and we totally were impressed on all levels; money is a good thing when creating a maze, and it showed in every aspect of The Grudge 2 at Haunt.  Major kudos to the design team that built the props that populated this maze - truly some of the best work we've ever seen at the Scary Farm; well done!

When it comes to soundtrack, The Grudge 2 had a good one - although in this case, less was more - and rather than being a huge, overpowering aspect of this experience, it took a back seat to the Grudge Girls and let the cast simply do their thing.  And do it they did - night after night.

And it is that extreme dedication that must be addressed and praised.  We went through The Grudge 2 more than any other maze at Haunt, no question.  One reason was because we were so blown away by the girls.  The other reason was to see if we could actually catch the Grudge team not on their game - with their guard down or simply tired and ready to go home.  Not once, folks.  Not once.  No one was ever standing around just saying, "Boo.." as guests walked by.  Not one person was standing around, telling another about the party he'd gone to or the hot chick that just came through the maze.  Here's a huge statement, folks... it is our opinion that the Grudge crew - the majority of them being the Grudge Girls themselves - are perhaps the most professional and spot-on team that we have ever seen at Halloween Haunt in a maze or attraction.  That is huge, and a statement like that doesn't come very often.  Much respect to you all.

All of that said, that leaves huge shoes for the Grudge 2007 team to fill.  That is tremendous pressure that has to play heavily on the minds of the incoming crew, especially the Grudge Girls - many of which have moved on this coming season to other positions throughout the Farm.  We bow down to the Grudge Girls and entire maze crew from 2006 and wish the new kids in 2007 all the very best - just get in there, be inspired and kick ass like you never thought you could, because yes - the fans will be watching and waiting with very high expectations.

In the end, the movie The Grudge 2 sucked, to be kind.  The merchandise was pushed very heavily at Knott's and yeah, people bought in to it.  However, regardless of the massive failure of the film, the maze itself was so well done and so well staffed that no one cared about the movie being terrible - it was almost as if the marketing campaign was all for nothing.  The maze was great and no one remembered or cared about the movie it was hyping.  Even with the film's debut at Knott's - it was as if no one really associated the two with each other, which is amusing and amazing to us.

It just goes to show - the bottom line no matter what is your talent.  Without fantastic talent, you have nothing.  Congrats to the entire Grudge 2 family from 2006!  You all set the standard for generations of Haunt maze monsters to come; be extremely proud of yourselves.

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