Getting a "funny" maze to work at Halloween Haunt is no simple task.  And if you ask some fans, funny just doesn't work, no matter how well it may be executed.  Over the years, there have been several attempts at humor when it comes to Haunt attractions, most notably Toon Terrortory and Kingdom of the Lounge Lizards.

TerrorVision had a solid start several years ago at the Scary Farm - and unfortunately, became stagnant very quickly.  The themes of various television show parodies was well done, but the novelty wore thin after the 2005 Halloween Haunt at Knott's.  By 2006, with little new added to the maze, TerrorVision was ready to be taken off the air.

It's safe to say that the star of TerrorVision was definitely its high-intensity soundtrack, a driving bass line overlaid with an awesome assortment of TV tunes - from "I Love Lucy" to "Twilight Zone."  Mad props to the sound team on this one - always a plus and always a great amount of fun.  Unfortunately, a terrific soundtrack cannot carry a maze by itself; even though some of the talent was absolutely fired up, many folks in TerrorVision seemed uninterested, tired or perhaps just... new and clueless.  It's often difficult to tell without knowing the talent well in any given maze or attraction.

The creativity was definitely there in TerrorVision - and the laughs were usually fairly bountiful.  The irony is that once set in its way, no Haunt maze changes very much at all - including TerrorVision, which was supposed to be someone flipping through different programs and channels; we got the same shows over and over each year.  There were some changes - but it would have been nice to see this maze given mostly new TV rooms each season; that would have kept it fresh, more fun and would have given the team more to play with and get in to.  In a serious Haunt maze, becoming stagnant means death over several years.  In a funny maze that is only going to have limited appeal right off the bat, being stagnant will only serve to hasten its run at Haunt; the fans just aren't about that for the most part.  They want to be scared.  We want to be thrilled.

What did continue to thrill year after year throughout TerrorVision, was the artwork and direction.  The masterful painting and artwork along the halls and walls - that will be remembered for years when TerrorVision is discussed amongst Halloween Haunt fans.  The "Outer Zone" images - the "I Scream of Jeanie" bottle; it's all amazing and we love it.  Much respect to the men and women of the TerrorVision art/paint crew.

TerrorVision is definitely an anti-climatic story.  The maze came out its first year with guns blazing and blew away the competition of the other mazes; it was unique, fun and the talent was off-the-charts.  Over the years, the laughs died out and the talent seemed to mellow as opposed to maintain or better yet, grow.  It almost feels like TerrorVision was a slam-dunk its first year, and then those monsters moved up and on - only to have the following years populated with rookies or monsters that just were content to float along below the radar.

And for us, that is a great shame, because we really enjoyed and were huge supporters of TerrorVision from the very beginning.  Never in a million years would we have guessed that TerrorVision's inital fire would burn out so quickly and without fanfare.  It just goes to show - talent can make or break a maze and it can be different each year.  Never assume that a great maze will remain great or that a lame duck won't become a swan.

In closing, we do thank the men and women that have made TerrorVision a fun addition to Halloween Haunt over the past several years; through the good and bad, it's never been ugly - so that is always going to be remembered as a plus. 

TerrorVision has concluded its broadcast.

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