In 2000, it was the debut year of the Carnival of Carnivorous Clowns in 3D, the next year, it was Malice in Wunderland, the following year was Curse of the Spider and in the years 2003 and 2004, it was the Asylum.
The above-mentioned mazes have carved their way in the history of Ultimatehaunt.com all thanks to you, the fan of the event. Each year, we ask you to watch the mazes with eagle eyes and look a bit deeper into the mazes than you may have previously. We ask that prior to casting your vote, you consider the design (specifically the sets), the theming and of course, the acting.
For the year 2005, it our mind, it was truly going to be a toss up between 13 Axe Murder Manor and Fear-y Tales. Well, you proved us wrong due to the simple fact that 13 Axe Murder Manor’s number of votes squashed the other mazes and attractions. Why? Perhaps we can analyze some of the factors that made this maze your favorite. YOU certainly have your own reasons why you liked this maze, but for starters, let’s hear a bit about what some of the visitors of the website, in general, had to say about it…..
“Everything for some reason reminded me of a scarier version of the haunted mansion. The whole picture changing effect to the crystal ball on the table even the garden room had a feel. But it was most excellent every part of it actually gave me the chills, who ever had the idea of creating this maze in the first place good thinking. It was to the point and is a great haunt maze and hope to see it over the years to come.”
“I loved 13 axe murder manor. I have to agree that the set was freakin awesome. Everytime I went to halloween haunt I made sure to go in that maze if not once then twice. The talent in there is also very talented:)”
“Once you get out alive, you'll want to live the nightmare again! Mwahahaha….I went on the 19th and thought this was the best maze by far. Definitely my vote for maze of the year. The sets were great. The dark hall with the white curtains really felt like a genuine haunted house. The changing pictures were cool too. But my favorite part by far was the girl in bed with her intestines strewn up to the rafters. It's a very decorative way to die. I also liked all everything found hanging from the ceiling, the floating girl/books, the man hanged in the hall, the body parts, the intestines, etc. I guess I have a thing for things hanging from the ceiling/floating in the air. Also, the entire walk-through reminded me of Willougby's mansion/woods at Magic Mountain Fright Fest. Although axe murder manor was far better. I went through the maze a total of five times.”
“I mean 13 had a whole front house elevation built! That was ridiculously awesome!!! And the bungi at the end was great. “
“I'm not even sure what to say. Manor is phenomenal, surely the best maze at Haunt this year by far. It may be one of the best in the history of Haunt. The sets, scareactors, score, everything is incredible and it all comes together for one hell of an experience. If you can only see one maze at Haunt this year, make it Manor. 10/10 “
“13 Axe Murder was very well themed and brought it to another level in my opinion“
“I was pleasantly surprised by 13 Murder Manor--the sets were beautiful and creepy, and the talent was pretty fun. Many of the characters really got into the spirit of things. I hope that one stays around a while.”
“i thought the best maze was 13 axe murder manor....i dont think ive been that scared in the 7 years ive been going, and i didnt know that i can scream that high pitch. lol.”
”13 Axe was freaking incredible. The room with the lady spinning
with the books flying around her will be in my nightmares for sometime.
LOVe the soundtrack in there.”
”This entire maze is eye candy. Sets almost like you're walking
through the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland. Absolutely fantastic. And the
talent worked it better than any other maze that night. They knew they
were in an outstanding maze, and behaved as such. My favorite of the night.”
“13 Axe Murder Manor was superb. The talent in here was great. I
believe this was the biggest maze and it truly stood out in my mind. They
got my vote for maze of the year.”
“this maze got me a few times and the theme was awesome. i liked
the sound track.”
Okay, now that we have heard from a few fellow fans, let’s take a look at some of the common factors: theme, size, props, actors. What makes a maze at the Halloween Haunt stand among the “greats”? What makes a maze stand above the rest? Well, we know that it’s not just ONE factor, right?
With
regard to theme, 13 Axe Murder Manor may not be the most unique in the
history of the event’s history (i.e., Bait’s Motel’s
earlier years, several of the rooms of Blood Bayou became “glorified”
in 13 Axe), but the way in which it was presented is probably the biggest
difference.
However (in our opinions), the story became lost a bit in the shuffle
of things. The name of the maze alludes to the concept of “axe”
murders but no axes were to be found. Some of the earlier rumors of the
maze were that the theme would be “Lizzie Borden” based. Be
that as it may, should we really even care? The sets and decorations stood
out enough on their own and we’re not sure the average Haunt guest
is there to dig into the continuity of a particular theme in a maze, do
you?
We might look into the themes a bit more closely because this is written for you and you’re reading this and you took the time to vote, but we’re the minority in the big picture of things. The average guest wants to be SCARED, because it’s Knott’s SCARY Farm after all. And THAT is one of the main factors in our opinion, why this maze was so great. It entertained AND scared.
13 Axe strayed from the cartoonish “good-gone-bad” theme that seems to be overwhelming as of late and provided a back drop of “foreboding” doom that is really only sensed in the Asylum Maze at the event, and perhaps The Curse of the Spider. Most of the other attractions are based upon good-gone-bad (clowns, fairy tales, high school, etc.) and 13 Axe stands on its own as one of the greats in this day and age of the Halloween Haunt.
Now, we’re not trying to say anything negative about the others mazes or attractions of the event. In the contrary, we certainly acknowledge every single maze and attraction for the event has something unique and special to offer. However, no one can deny that the main focus of mazes like Spider, Asylum, 13 Axe is to scare and put more of a focus on the unease and senses of guests.
The actors of the maze did what they had to do to entertain and scare the thousands and thousands of guests that would go through each evening. With such a huge “stage” for the actors to command, the mix truly came together in a positive way.
Between the props and the sets, designs, sounds and actors, 13 Axe Murder Manor was truly entertaining and scary. Again, many factors make up a great maze for this event, but is it any wonder why, for the past four years the mazes YOU voted for set out to be “scary” instead of just entertaining? Is it not the mix between quality entertainment AND scare factors that make this maze work?
A HUGE 'congratulations' goes out to ANY one of you who had anything to do with this maze. You seem to have got “it”. You brought back a taste of what some of the mazes of the Halloween Haunt’s “Glory Years” brought to the table in the past. The envelope has been pushed as Knott’s Scary Farm has done for over 30 years and 13 Axe Murder Manor provided each one of us a taste of what makes this event Number One.
