What is your favorite franchise of the licensed characters?
We have:
- A Nightmare On Elm Street. 6 main entries, a reboot, Freddy vs. Jason, and a remake. 9 films.
- Halloween. 5 main entries, 1 "side story", some crappy follow-ups, two poor Rob Zombie entries, and a sort of "we'll fix this mess" new official sequel. 11 films with another coming soon.
- Evil Dead. 3 main entries, 2 seasons of a TV series, and eternal love for Bruce Campbell
- Scream. Four main entries.
- Saw: 7 main films and a sort of half-assed reboot
- Stranger Things: 3 seasons of a TV show.
- Texas Chainsaw Massacre: 3 main films, 1 sort of attempt at renewing the franchise, then ten thousand reboots and remakes and prequels and sequels to all of the above. I have no idea how many films there are anymore.
- Silent Hill: 1 very good game, 1 brilliant sequel, 1 good sequel, and about half a dozen increasingly forgettable further entries. Plus P.T. which was awesome.
So what do you guys think? If you had to pick one - JUST one, which I know is difficult - which horror franchise would you say is your favorite and why?
For me I'd have to say Saw. I think that the original Saw, Elm Street, Chainsaw, and Halloween films were all roughly equivalent in terms of greatness, but I liked what Saw did more than the others. Not the most organically frightening (that would be Chainsaw) but the most compelling in my opinion. I loved the first 3 films, enjoyed the fourth one alright, and found the sixth one to be rather decent. That leaves only two terrible entries and one that I never saw (the reboot). Meanwhile I only truly love Nightmare 1 and 3, don't even remember most of the Halloween movies, and think that the only truly great Chainsaw film was the original. Silent Hill has 2 games that, together, are an awesome package, but the series began to dwindle with the third game. I love Evil Dead 2 but don't think that the first one or, in particular, the third one, stand up. Never saw the series. Lastly Stranger Things has been totally solid to me but they're as much about nostalgia as horror to me, so I don't appreciate them on a straight horror level like I do the other franchises listed here.
How about the rest of you? Between all the various franchises and all of their various entries, which one would you have to say you've enjoyed the most?
Comments
Probably Resident Evil. But of current franchises? Stranger Things definitely. It was the first DLC I bought.
Yeah I guess I could technically count RE now, I was just going by what's currently available. We can throw in RE if that's the one that a lot of people would choose.
For me the first DLC was Silent Hill, then Saw, then Stranger Things. All really solid entries in my opinion.
Probably Silent Hill, Texas Chainsaw is a runner-up for me. Don't have much interest in the rest beyond Stranger Things, honestly.
Halloween all the way. Cannot wait for Halloween Kills in October.
What were your thoughts on Silent Hill 3? I was surprised that I was somewhat disappointed with the game. I felt that it just didn't live up to the first 2, and then the series just seemed to get worse. That's why that one's not at the top of my list.
The original Halloween is a masterpiece.
I got Halloween after Stranger Things. Because I was told Myers was the best killer in the game. (Yeah, I feel lied to!). Also Decisive Strike sounded like the best thing ever even to a newbie like me. Followed by Saw for Surveillance and Leatherface for BBQ+Chili. Though I bought Saw for Surveillance, I became a Pig main because <3 Pig. *boop*
Honestly? Haven't gotten past 2 yet. Maybe it's dumb to call myself a fan when I've only played the first, but I absolutely love that first game and the overall aesthetic of the series, and have already had a ton of stuff spoiled anyways.
From these i would say Scream (even though technically we don’t have the scream franchise featured..)
second would be Halloween, but I only watched a few of those movies.
Halloween and there is also a scream 5 coming out next year
I love the Pig but it guts me that I can't play a version of Amanda without the mask. Hubba bubba!
Everyone told me that Freddy was the best killer in the game. But I rarely ever face him, so when I do I don't really understand his powers. Now I hear everyone say that he sucks. I don't understand life anymore. I do like Michael though!
There's nothing wrong with that, especially since the first game is a Barker-esque icon of atmosphere and production design. Kind of a messy story though. If you know nothing of 2, keep it that way until you can play it. It stands alone (no connection to the others) and is what I consider to be possibly the best story and presentation in video game history. 3 connects with 1 and was definitely good, just lacking the visceral details of the first game and the incredible narrative of the second.
There is?
*Shakes head*
Evil Dead all the way!
There was a 3rd season of the Show as well, which is well worth a look and a reboot, which for 60mins is freaking awesome, before being let down in the final act. DYK there was also a musical, not to mention a whole host of other video games, comics, etc...
Still, they could have stopped at Evil Dead 2 and my answer would have been the same!
Why the head shake?
i think Scream 4 was pretty well done (and way better than 3)
Honestly, I really love Resident Evil, A Nightmare On Elm Street, Halloween, and Evil Dead. It's really hard to pick my favorite out of them, I really don't think I can.
Pyramid head and Freddy.
Pyramid head because I think he is just cool, I know very little about silent hill but I like p head.
Freddy because he was the first licensed killer I got and I loved playing old freddy. Too bad he is so freaking boring now.
Ah okay, my understanding is that the show was canceled after 2, not 3. I'm sure it's good though. And yeah, Evil Dead 2 stands against the best of any of these other properties. That's an amazing movie.
I shook my head because I gave up watching the Scream movies after 3. You're right, that one was garbage. :)
What I find most interesting is that David Arquette and Courtney Cox were dating during Scream 1, engaged during Scream 2, married during Scream 3, and divorced during Scream 4. I suppose that means that one of them will have killed the other by the time Scream V rolls around, thus completing the cycle.
One of the coolest things about Pyramid Head is that you're not supposed to know much about him. At all. He has one specific purpose (well, possibly two, depending on how you interpret some of Silent Hill 2's very metaphorical narrative) and, to be honest, is kind of irritating as the mascot of the series. He was meant for one game, for - again - one VERY specific purpose - and no information about the character was given at all. I liked it that way. On one hand I love that he's become so famous, but things like his inclusion in the Silent Hill film don't really gel with is original lore. It's alright though. He's an awesome character.
Seriously guys, play SH2 and if you absolutely can't, watch a commentary-free longplay of it. It's a tremendous game.
The third Elm Street is my favorite, but the first is easily the best. That's the kind of thing I myself considered when coming up with my choice for Saw: How much of a percentage of each of these franchises do I truly love? Freddy was my guy growing up but I'd be lying if I said that Elm Streets 4, 5, (especially) 6 were worth watching. New Nightmare was good. Vs. was good. Everyone in the world despises the remake so I haven't bothered and likely never will. Especially since it includes an ogre named Quentin Smith.
I think Scream 4 is worth to watch, way better than 3 and for me personally even better than 2. I do like Emma Roberts though so that might make me a bit biased.
i think either Dewey or Gale are pretty likely to be the/one of the killer/s.
I guess Halloween, as I've watched/enjoyed the original and most recent films.
Also, you forgot to include Left 4 Dead with Bill.
Silent Hill definitely.