The latest installment of paranormal television shows is called Ghosts in The Hood. As you can probably tell from the title, the network seems to be going for the laughs rather than being taken seriously as paranormal investigators. However, after watching the first two episodes, this show has proven to be not only hilarious but also intelligent, down to Earth and a breath of fresh air. The network, WEtv, undoubtedly is looking to pull the audience away from Ghost Brothers as well as target an entirely new demographic. With proper marketing and promotion, Ghosts in The Hood has the potential to become the next big hit in the ghost hunting television genre and enjoy many more seasons on the air.
Ghost Brothers arrived on the scene in 2016 with a not-so-subtle marketing ploy of the first all African-American cast which, of course, is stereotypically terrified of the supernatural and hang out in a barbershop. Unfortunately, despite the hyped up comedic relief promoting, the jokes feel forced and the scenes too staged. Poor editing was another issue which highlighted the overly staged scenes and dialog. Ghost Brothers has been renewed for season 2 to be aired this year, 2017.
Kindred Spirits premiered in October of 2016. You may have recognized the two-person cast from the days of Ghost Hunters on SyFy. The focus of this show seems to be private homes with children. Nearly every episode involves Adam's 'omg I'm so shocked' face in a cafe, Amy sitting in a library to 'research' and assuming the haunting is the ghost of someone that died miles away from the actual haunted location. Well, that makes sense right? The current status of the show is unknown at the time of this publishing.
Ghost Asylum has been around since 2014. The gimmick and niche of Ghost Asylum is to capture a spirit in odd and sometimes silly homemade cages. The very first episode featured a trap made out of chicken wire. I doubt I was the only person that hurt themselves laughing while watching. If you're religious and enjoy watching a buff guy in a tight shirt walk around saying ''Is that you?'' over and over, this is your show.
Ghost Adventures is still here after all these years. Whether or not you like Bagans, it's difficult to argue that he doesn't put on a good show. The GA crew seems to favor brothels and demons. More specifically, demon possessions as most episodes feature at least one cast member acting as if they have no control over their thoughts and behavior. The only weak link, if you had to find one, would probably be Billy Tolley. He's often visibly uncomfortable in front of the camera, which can make the viewer uncomfortable watching. His acting is lacking, well, acting skills and he tends to overact because of these shortcomings. With their huge following of loyal fans, Ghost Adventures is sure to continue as long as Zak wants it to. It's kind of hard to believe that just a short time ago Zak Bagans was a wedding DJ.
Paranormal Lockdown is Nick Groff's latest attempt to take the spotlight away from Zak Bagans. His female castmate was formerly on Paranormal State, which was canceled after several lawsuits by clients claiming Ryan Buell fabricated much of their stories. Nick's first show was called Ghost Stalkers, which was arguably the worst paranormal show to date with its blatant fakery and overdramatized theories and scenes. It doesn't appear that either one of these ''paranormal investigators'' has learned anything from the past.
Hopefully, future ghost hunting TV shows will steer clear of the same old formula and format. Watching cast members stop in the middle of investigating to talk directly to the camera and reiterate what we just watched and heard, is not only stale but it's boring and tedious. Venturing into the same old haunted locations but with a different crew is about as interesting as Donald Trump's tweets. New ideas and new formats are needed for this genre to continue entertaining the masses.
Written by MH
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