Friday, August 10, 2018

Trickin' & Treatin': Midsummer Scream 2018

Who could have guessed that Long Beach would end up as the Halloween capital of California?

If you were at Midsummer Scream this year - and I know you were, because EVERYONE ON EARTH WAS - you know this to be true. Just a few years out from its debut, Midsummer Scream has established itself as the premier Halloween convention in California, and a bona fide destination event for Halloweenies from all over the country, if not the globe.

A convention dedicated to the spookiest night of the year shouldn't feel quite so right plopped in the middle of such an oppressively hot summer weekend, like a pumpkin patch that's magically sprung up in the middle of a beach. But we've all learned to embrace Halloween in July. And I really do mean all of us.

Because Midsummer Scream was CROWDED. AS. FUCK.

It's always crowded, of course. But this year was different. The parking situation was apocalyptic. The convention floor was claustrophobic. They actually sold out on both Saturday and Sunday! I was positively awed by the turnout. Awed, and a little anxiety-stricken. Here's my biggest survival tip: You're going to have to make peace with your feelings about crowds before you head into Midsummer Scream.



That being said, the convention itself was incredible. In every way but the overwhelming size of the turnout, this was the best Midsummer Scream yet. It certainly says something about your event when the only real drawback is how incredibly, and deservedly, popular it's become.



My favorite part of Midsummer Scream is always the Hall of Shadows, and this year's iteration was particularly wonderful. CalHauntS really outdid themselves with their entryway, which paid tribute to the 200th anniversary of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein with an elaborate faux-stone facade leading to a foggy landscape and a laboratory scene that would do Herr Doktor proud.




Six Flags Magic Mountain's Fright Fest offered a blacklight-reactive haunted forest scare zone that was truly spectacular, featuring performers on stilts, glowing cobwebs, sentient and sinister trees, and more.


Murder House Productions presented a scaled-down take on their Trick 'r Treat tribute maze, which is what I was most looking forward to since I regrettably missed out on their full-scale home haunt last Halloween. Despite the space limitations, this maze was incredible - my favorite in the Hall of Shadows. I'm not sure what the "official" T'rT maze at Universal Studios' Halloween Horror Nights this year means for the future of this maze, but I'll definitely be keeping an eye on any future offerings from MHP.



Everywhere you looked, there was something new to see - a pop-up Slashback Video installment, Linda Blair in the flesh, incredible cosplay (my favorite was Krustywise the Clown - a living embodiment of the Simpsons/It crossover I didn't know I needed), an Elvira Cafe (with lines too long to actually eat in, but still), a blacklight Dante's Inferno Room brothel from Coven FX that would make Beetlejuice himself giddy, photo ops with Knott's Scary Farm monsters, panels, classes, black cats up for adoption, celebrity signings, film screenings, live theater, VR experiences, and vendors, vendors, vendors, VENDORS. For those unafraid to dive in and ride the waves of people, this convention holds a true embarrassment of bat-black and pumpkin-orange riches.

Forget the annual reappearance of the PSL or the day the first seasonal Spirit store opens its doors - it's official: Midsummer Scream marks the beginning of the Halloween season in SoCal. Eat it, summer! This is our turf now!

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