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Released by: Travel Channel-Gaiam
Released on: September 6, 2011
Director: Various
Cast: Zak Bagans, Nick Groff, Aaron Goodwin
Year: 2009/2010
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The Series:
Comprised of buff and goofy haired lead investigator Zak Bagans, co-investigator and cameraman Nick Groff and co-investigator and equipment manager Aaron Goodwin, Ghost Adventures has been on the air for five years now and shows no signs of slowing down. The series has managed to differentiate itself from other ghost shows not only by seeking out interesting and less explored locations (lots of abandoned or partially abandoned locations get the once over on this show) but also due to Bagan's tendency to provoke the spirits and specters they're out to capture evidence of. Some of the show's detractors have called this offensive and disrespectful and there's a case to be made for that but Bagans, who claims to have had a life changing experience when he came face to face with the spirit of a woman who killed herself in an apartment he lived in, says otherwise. He claims, and the show backs this up more often than not, that he only antagonizes evil spirits that are out to harm or frighten the living - he does tend to be nice to less intrusive and obnoxious ghosts, so interpret that as you will.
Regardless, like all the other paranormal research reality TV shows flooding the airwaves of cable TV these days, the show starts off with a brief history of each location before interviewing people who work or live in or around the location. From there, the three investigators are put into 'lockdown' meaning that they spend the night, just the three of them, in the haunted location with the doors locked so that no one can get in or out. As their investigations move forward, EVP and video evidence is disclosed right then and there, usually with the EVP evidence played back three times in a row (which is helpful for letting you make up your own mind as to what, if anything, is being said). After the investigation, other evidence that turns up after that fact during review is then exhibited.
How much you get out of this show is obviously going to depend on how much stock you put into the existence of ghosts and the evidence that these guys turn up. It's also going to depend on whether or not their personalities, Bagans' in particular, appeal to you or not. Personally, I get a kick out of this show but it's easy to see why others may not. As far as the evidence goes, it goes without saying that a lot of this stuff would be easy to fake or manipulate. Assuming these guys are on the up and up in regards to the authenticity of their evidence, they capture some pretty amazing (and frequently freaky!) stuff. If this isn't always the most believable ghost show on the air, it does, however, deliver a whole lot of entertainment value and if the three man investigators aren't getting legitimately scared on a regular basis, well, they're very good actors. This is a show less concerned with the science of the paranormal than with busting through a wall and catching a ghost in the act, if such a thing is possible. The show is loud, brash, periodically obnoxious and always a lot of fun. Often times it's the sites and locations explored that are the real stars of the show, however, and anyone with an interest in the dark side of history will appreciate learning about strange new folk tales and haunting in each episode.
This 'third season' of Ghost Adventures, the long running Travel Channel paranormal investigation series, actually combines episodes out of sequence from the show's second, third and fourth seasons for some reason.
DISC ONE:
Eastern State Penitentiary-Philadelphia, Pa: An investigation into the haunting said to plague one of the oldest prison facilities in the United States. This massive stone structure once housed Al Capone who is rumored to have been plagued by ghosts during his time there.
Remington Arms Factory-Bridgeport, CT: The GAC crew point out that it makes sense that there'd be haunting here as this was a factory that essentially manufactured items that would claim the lives of millions of people over the decades. There's more to the history of this location than that, however.
Old Washoe Club And The Chollar Mine, Virginia City, NV: This investigation of these old school Nevada locations produces some fairly convincing EVP evidence. Again, these locations have an odd history and the GAC guys use their knowledge of the events that took place here to get some decent evidence.
Execution Rocks Lighthouse, Long Island, NY: Just off the shore of Long Island is this old lighthouse that was built on a rock that was once used by soldiers during the Revolutionary War to torture their enemies - they'd tie them to the rocks and let the tide come in and drown them. It's a bizarre location, but again, they get some interesting evidence here.
Prospect Place, Trinway, OH: This old mansion was once part of the Underground Railway and as such it has some interesting and unusual events attached to it. This location was also explored by Ghost Hunters at one point. There was apparently a suicide that took place there and a few other deaths associated with the property that make it a good choice for an investigation.
DISC TWO:
Hill View Manor, New Castle, PA: One of the best episodes in the set finds the GAC team on location at an old poor farm that was later turned into a nursing home before being abandoned. It's proximity to a prison and its history of housing the unwanted members of society leads to some seriously spooky EVP evidence.
Waverly Hills Sanatorium, Louisville, KY: This odd building, which features what are basically massive balconies going all the way around it allowing patients to get some fresh air, was one of the biggest tuberculosis hospitals in the area. Thousands of people died there, young and old alike, and it was more or less abandoned for years. This location has been featured on pretty much every ghost show you can name, and for good reason, the place has got a 'body shoot' tunnel for quick disposal of corpses! A lot of weird stuff happens in this episode...
Vulture Mine, Vulture City, AZ: An old mine settlement built in the 1800s is up next. A few deaths reportedly occurred in and around the mines, which isn't hard to believe given the hazards of that particular occupation, and the buildings around it are creepy and in total disrepair. Not the best episode of the set but interesting nevertheless.
La Palazza, Las Vegas, NV: This big old school Las Vegas mansion is rumored to have been a hot bed of mafia activity at one point. The GAC team goes to investigate and gets some rather compelling evidence of bizarre orbs and EVP transmissions. More history on this location would have gone a long way towards making this a stand out episode, as it stands, it's lacking in that department. We're not given enough information on the place to really get a feel for it before the lockdown happens.
Fort Chaffee, Greenwood, AR: Used as a training ground during the Second World War before finding new life during the Cold War and then turned into a Vietnamese Refugee camp, this fort has a strange history. Split into two parts, half of the fort is still a functioning military base, the other was used for Cuban refugees and prisoners in the eighties before being abandoned. As hundreds of prisoners died there over the decades, it's not surprisingly an interesting location.
DISC THREE:
Armagossa Hotel And Opera House, Death Valley Junction, CA: This is the strangest location of the collection. This was at one point a big hotel that had an infirmary in it. It's been scaled down now and a large chunk of the place is abandoned but the owners still run the place as a hotel. Employees and owners alike swear it's haunted by a few different spirits and the investigation backs that up. It's also noteworthy for featuring some rather amusing footage of Zak taking a tumble over a stair that, in the bumper for the show, makes it look like he was pushed. This is just a really, really weird place and the fact that it has a lot of creepy dolls in it doesn't help matters.
U.S.S. Hornet-San Francisco, CA: This ship saw a lot of action during the Second World War and because of that a lot of people died while it was in service. Now retired, it's used a museum but there are a lot of reports that claims this boat is a lot more active than it looks. Another location that's been explored on a few different ghost shows, the lockdown segment is a good one and the closed quarters make for a tense night of ghost hunting.
Rolling Hills Asylum, East Bethany, NY: Both a poorhouse and an asylum at various points, this place is now a paranormal research center of sorts. Prior to that it was a nursing home and was abandoned for some time. The GAC crew investigates and tries to dig up the truth about the building's most famous ghost, that of a former patient named Roy who suffered from gigantism and is approximately seven feet tall.
Return To Bobby Mackey's Music World, Wilder, KY: This is the GAC team's second investigation to this odd music store in Kentucky, they first visited in season one in the show's premiere episode. This episode is interesting not just for the investigative aspect of it but also because the three core Ghost Adventures Crew members also talk about how their 'job' has had unusual side effects in their personal lives as well.
Video/Audio/Extras:
The show is broadcast on The Travel Channel in 1.78.1 widescreen and that's how it appears on DVD, anamorphically enhanced and looking just as good if not even a little better than it does on standard definition cable. As it is with all of the recent crop of ghost shows to hit the airwaves, the 'lockdown' scenes that are shot with night-vision cameras can only show so much detail so you have to keep your expectations in check there. Some minor compression artifacts are present but overall the image quality is pretty clean.
The only audio option on this release is an English language Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo mix, no alternate language options or subtitles are offered. Clarity is fine though sometimes during the investigations when things start to get hectic you'll pick up on some distortion and background noise. This is par for the course, really and overall there's nothing to complain about here.
The only extra in the set is found on the third disc and it's the special 'Valentine's Day' episode where the GAC go to Longfellow's Wayside Inn in Sudbury, MA. Here a spirit supposedly waits in the old abode for its long lost lover to return, freaking out guests and employees in the process.
The Final Word:
If you dig the series, this third volume contains some pretty memorable episodes thanks to the show's penchant for digging up interesting locations and knack for putting the three core investigators right into the thick of things. There isn't much going on in the way of extras but the bonus episode is a nice inclusion and the A/V quality is fine. All in all, a pretty good set for fans of the show, though not likely anything that will convince those not already converted.
