Beware the Mantis Man

An all new Monsters and Mysteries in America aired on Wednesday, March 18, 2015. The first story was about a family in Spottsville, Kentucky; who got together on the roof of their house to have a showdown with the Spottsville Monster. The next story was that of the Tornado Phantoms witnessed in Joplin, Missouri during a tornado on May 22, 2011. These beings with wings shielded the witnesses from waves and debris, and saved their lives! The last story was about the Mantis Man of Hackettstown, New Jersey. One eyewitness said this giant insect put him in a trance. If you come across this creature, you better run at full speed in the opposite direction, because a can of Raid will not help you!

Chiller aired The Forgotten Ones on Saturday, March 21, 2015. This film is aka After Dusk They Come, and aka The Tribe, depending on which country you are in. But this 2009 thriller can best be described as Gilligan’s Island meets Aliens. It starts out with a group of friends who get shipwrecked on a deserted island. Soon afterwards, they are hunted down by a tribe of tall, hairy, lean people with ugly faces. This flick was a bit reminiscent of The Descent, which only makes The Forgotten Ones even more unoriginal, on so many levels. The tribe of cannibals does not appear very unique, nor are they scary. If you have a chance to see The Forgotten Ones, I recommend that you forget this one!

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This definitely ain’t Kansas

The weather was great on Wednesday, March 11, 2015, and so was the all new episode of Monsters and Mysteries in America on Destination America. The first story was about a giant reptile that stalks unwary visitors somewhere in North Carolina. There is actual video footage of a car that was mauled by the beast. If you don’t believe, then you gotta see it. The second story was about a rock musician who recalled his encounter with a succubus. This supernatural being has been seducing men for centuries, if not millennia! The last story was about the flying Rebobs at the end of Partrick Road in Napa Valley. California. These half men, half monkey beasts are rumored to be an experiment that escaped. It sounds like something from The Wizard of Oz. But I hope I can escape if I ever come across these guys!

Saturday night, March 14, 2015 was spent watching The Haunting of on Lifetime Movie Network. In this episode, Kim Russo helped Richard Burgi find closure with his paranormal encounter, where he grew up in New Jersey. Richard Burgi is better known for his other roles such as Teri Hatcher’s husband on Desperate Housewives, or the hypersensitive detective on The Sentinel. Kim encountered the entity which has left Burgi baffled for all these decades, and then she sent him on his way. Kim also noticed that Burgi possesses a unique gift of his own, and she challenged him to use it. He passed with flying colors! Not only did he play someone with hyperactive senses, he also possesses them in real life!

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Are we Alone? Who’s at the Door?

Last week was ‘Are we Alone Week’ on Science Channel. I finally enjoyed this special event with Close Encounters on Friday, March 6, 2015. In the first story, three men in Brazil do some illegal night fishing when they catch more than they expected. They also can’t explain how they lost four hours of their life which they will never get back. The second story was about a thirteen year old boy, at home with his sisters for one evening. In the early hours of the morning, he hears noises and sees flashing lights outside the house. He looks out the window, and sees a saucer scanning the area; all of a sudden the saucer blinds him with a beam of light. He should have worn his sunglasses that night!

On Saturday evening, March 7, 2015, I watched My Haunted Vacation on LMN. The first story was about a young couple who traveled to Hawaii. While there, they took a tour with a travel guide who took them on one scary journey. They stood by a wall where hundreds of warriors died centuries ago. The husband claimed he could still hear their war cries. The second story was about a family at a hotel, including grandparents, grandkids, aunts, and etc. The granddad apparently became possessed, which ruined the getaway. The last story featured a couple and their two sons, who spent a shortened stay in a cabin. There were a few things that went bump in the night. The final blow was someone knocking on the door, in the early hours of the morning. Yet there were no footprints in the snow!

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All Aboard the Meat Train

I started out the week with The Midnight Meat Train (2008) on IFC, on Monday, February 23, 2015. In this mystery thriller, a photographer (Bradley Cooper) becomes obsessed with a serial killer (Vinnie Jones) who preys on late night subway riders. I found this movie excessively gory and unnecessarily violent. There are other ways to get the point across without showing so much blood and guts. However, this film has not changed my mind about riding the MTA through NYC late at night, because I’ve already done so on countless occasions. This movie has a decent cast which also includes Brooke Shields and Leslie Bibb. Having said that, I found nothing special about this flick, and the violence was a major turnoff. If you have a chance to watch The Midnight Meat Train, I suggest you find an alternate route!

Wednesday, February 25, 2015 was a good day because Destination America aired an all new episode of Monsters and Mysteries in America. The first mystery centered on the Mill Race Monster. The greenish creature was witnessed in Columbus, Indiana by two separate groups of people, over forty years ago. The second mystery focused on a small town in Washington, where toxic rain globules fell to the ground and people fell ill, back in 1994. The last and best mystery was that of Mary Dean, her spirit resides by a lake in Wisconsin. If you venture at this lake late at night, she will summon her Devil Dog upon you! If this happens, you better be ready to run real quick for an extended distance, or else.

The season premiere of The Haunting of was Saturday, February 28, 2015, on LMN. They started out the season with Greg Grunberg recalling his experience at The Winchester Mystery House. This San Jose, California property was designed by Mrs. Winchester, wife of the gunmaker, and includes many rooms and weird configurations. This is where Grunberg encountered a spirit for The Civil War. Kim Russo opened the channel to the other side, and Grunberg got the closure he was looking for. My Saturday night was made complete!

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