952 replies to this topic

[chica345]

I guess as a current student I feel obligated to start this:

PARANORMAL STATE is an upcoming half-hour series chronicling the extraordinary life of Ryan Buell and other members of the Penn State University Club The Paranormal Research Society (PRS) as they seek to find the truth behind terrifying real life mysteries, hauntings and ghosts

It premieres next Monday

I asked my roomate if she had heard anything about the show, she hadn't. I knew they had a club though. Maybe I don't run with the right people?

[geistmadl]

I think this is the group:
http://www.pennstateprs.com/

I hope A&E does a better job (more reliability, less attitude and more scientific investigation/less sloppiness and nondisclosure) with this group than SciFi has done with Ghost Hunters--- and anything is better than Most Haunted!

[Nittany84]

I'm a recent Penn State grad (as my handle suggests). I was fairly familiar with the group. One film major friend of mine was offered a chance to work on the pilot, but he turned it down because he thought nothing would come of it. (He's kicking himself now.) I checked out one or two PRS events--they held a research conference around Halloween, if I remember correctly--because I've always had a passing interest in paranormal stuff. I never went back because it was so, well, boring. They take it very, very seriously. I went to a talk or something on hauntings, and the entire session was spent discussing equipment. That's obviously how they got a reputation to be good at what they do and is a good sign for this being a serious show, not just a Ghost Hunters knockoff.

I also have heard through the grapevine that Ryan, the leader, is a weird dude, but that's not exactly shocking.

Edited by Nittany84, Dec 4, 2007 @ 10:21 PM.

[geistmadl]

I listened to a couple videos-- I hope he lives up to some of the things he professed.

[SVNBob]

Caught a short preview a couple days ago. The team meets a 10-year old boy that has befriended the ghost of a man that used to live in the house and whose body was discovered in the woods behind the house post-mortem.

Let me repeat that;it's a young boy that sees dead people. I'm calling shenanigans. Not on the Penn State crew, but on the kid and his family. It's way too Sixth Sense for my taste.

[truffles17]

I can't wait to watch this. I am a Penn State alum and have heard all the ghost stories about campus. The PRS conference that they had in October sounded interesting (yes, I read the Collegian online almost every day!)

[geistmadl]

Sounds a bit hokey--- but I'm game to see what's up with it before I give it a pass/no pass.

[chica345]

I heard a little gossip yesterday. Appearently one of my roomates friends tried to join the club either this year or last. The made her fill out a questionare about why she wanted to join (understandable to me at least, you don't want people there for camera time) and then provide a headshot (??).

[geistmadl]

Oh here we go----if you don't fit the media bandwagon take a hike.... *sigh* This show may be going down hill before it starts.

[LittleLou]

I will watch this show. That being said, I hope it is not as histronic as the "OMG Portal-To-Hell" preview I have been seeing.
Packing your stuff and going home because a "psychic" said hell is under your coffee table does not really make good ghosthunting.


eta:
I suppose I ment paranormal research, not just ghosthunting.

Edited by LittleLou, Dec 9, 2007 @ 9:41 PM.

[Xuewi]

I think it should be called ' Paranoid State'! How deep can you sink, A+E?[rolls eyes]

[babyblackcat]

As a Penn State grad, I'm going to check this show out, just to see what it's like. I'm a big fan of Ghost Hunters though, and really like their more technical/skeptical approach, so I have a feeling this show might be a little over the top for me.

[Tinanu]

I cannot wait for this show!

[LemurCat]

I heard a little gossip yesterday. Appearently one of my roomates friends tried to join the club either this year or last. The made her fill out a questionare about why she wanted to join (understandable to me at least, you don't want people there for camera time) and then provide a headshot (??).

I'm not shocked by that. I heard the same thing with Ghost Hunters. TAPS has like a ton of members but only a select few get camera time and the appearance fees that go with it. I'm not shocked that they're looking for photogenic people.

[emma675]

I think I'll give this one a try. I like Ghost Hunters and since they aren't back until January and everything else is ending, I've got the time.
I was a little hesitant after reading the description of the second episode on my DVR, one of the team leaders confronts a demon who has been following him around . Huh, we'll see.

[jcin617]

After watching the first shorter episode... I think I could do without the tape-recording narration. Or at least, not use that effect every 10 seconds.

Edited by jcin617, Dec 10, 2007 @ 10:37 PM.

[fasces7]

Director's log: Star Trek isn't even on anymore and Patrick Stewart still kicked my ass.

After watching the first shorter episode... I think I could do without the tape-recording narration. Or at least, not use that effect every 10 seconds.

I had a very hard time taking the show seriously with that. I'm not sure I would have thought any better of it without the narration, but it certainly wasn't doing the show any favors.

[Lovecat]

I much preferred the format of the "case update," with the traditional sit-down commentary, vs. the director's log v.o.

I thought this was interesting. I liked how they were very calm and methodical about everything, vs. running all over screaming like ninnies (*coughMostHauntedcough*), and the score was not that intrusive (*coughGhostHunterscough*). I'd like to see a bit more analysis of the evidence, which is one thing I do like about Ghost Hunters. There wasn't any follow up on the bathroom door that appeared to open and close--did they even try to debunk??

[babyblackcat]

The first episode was OK, but I agree, the taped narration is pretty annoying. It's too frequent, and I feel like I'm listening to half the show through a walkie talkie. That kid definitely had something going on with him, paranormal or not. But whatever was going on in the house seemed suspect - the breathing and the shadow in the basement (did no one go down there to make sure it wasn't a real person?)
The second episode was kind of a big old mess. Right off the bat I figured whatever was going on had to do with the adolescent turmoil her son and as a result the mother was going through. Then she "forgot" to mention to the investigators that oh yeah, a whole family was murdered here a while ago? Come on. That's the first thing you'd tell investigators when you called them, and the first thing investigators would look for before even getting in the car to go to a place.
I also think the whole demon thing is either 100% faked or extremely blown out of proportion for the sake of the cameras, as was the door incident. And bringing in two mediums, noting that one had worked on the Amityville Horror case - wasn't that later proven to be a hoax?
For a half hour show, there was a heck of a lot of storylines going on, yet no real investigating or a look at any evidence collected. They seem to have all the cameras, recorders, etc, but do they actually use them, and do we get to see what they caught? If every episode is going to center on this Ryan guy (who I didn't really care for) gearing up for a good vs. evil showdown, no thanks, I'm out.

Basically my take on the show is that in two episodes, the investigators have done nothing to gain any credibility in my eyes. I'll probably give it a few more episodes, but I was not impressed yet, and the whole thing felt very scripted. It felt like an MTV "reality" show.

Edited by babyblackcat, Dec 10, 2007 @ 11:15 PM.

[geistmadl]

This show isn't anything special-- it's just another joke.

[absolutelyido]

I enjoyed the show, it was really creepy and spooked me a bit. I don't really believe any of it was real, but even if mostly fiction I enjoyed it like I would a good scary movie. Either Ryan really believes all this stuff, or he is a really great actor. I don't really believe Ryan is being stalked by a demon and, yeah, as a medium you might want to take the long-debunked Amityville off your resume. I'd watch it again.

[ThatPoshGirl]

I've only seen the first episode so far but that kid was definitely put on.  The whole thing seemed very staged to me.

I don't have kids, are they normally that fidgety at that age?  The way he was constantly squirming around made me feel nervous and tense.

[msbeesknees]

Just saw PS and yeah, ugh.

I could appreciate it for its entertainment value but the show is clearly just a vehicle for spreading Catholic propaganda. I was suspicious of this at first when Ryan gave the small boy the holy water but was certain of it after Lorraine Warren (The Infamous Demonologist) was invited to visit the second family. And believe you me, Lorraine Warren knows her demons!! Even the one whose name mustn't be spoken!

Meh. Over it. PS needs to learn from the Ghost Hunters and keep religion out of the investigation.

Edited by msbeesknees, Dec 11, 2007 @ 2:30 AM.

[elmothefuzzy]

So Voldemort is real? I guess I am kind of mixed about the show. I love how there was no creepy music that seems to be plaguing a lot of the other ghost hunting shows. But there wasn't really any pressing evidence of these particular hauntings. No mists, no shadow people or anything of real consequence. Just a bunch of people sitting in a circle saying that they sense people in front of them. There wasn't really any debunking of the door shutting either.

[LemurCat]

It's not Catholic propaganda at all. Then there is a legit case of demonic possession -- and that's determined after a whole long process that this show didn't even touch on -- your choices for exorcism are the Catholics or the Pentecostals (and assorted other charismatic groups). The Catholic Rite of Exorcism is far more formal though, which is possibly why it's preferred.

Anyway, while I enjoy the production values of this show when compared to Ghost Hunters or Most Wanted, I agree that it's a little short on evidence and debunking. And that it's obvious they're going to use that Ryan guy's "demon issues" as a common thread through out all of the episodes. Great. Especially as the guy's about as charasmatic as a sweat sock.

Edited by LemurCat, Dec 11, 2007 @ 9:08 AM.

[Skelley]

This article seems to be about the dead guy in the first episode, Tim Shirey:
http://www.pittsburg...t/s_190244.html

I was looking forward to this show because I live in State College, Pa which is where Penn State is. I thought this would be about local hauntings and that I would recognize things. But Mount Pleasant and Elizabethtown are not nearby. They show Penn State's Old Main building in the credits, but that's about it. I guess I should be relieved that my hometown isn't overrun with demons. But since the demons only want to mess with Ryan, it wouldn't be too bad.

And there's far too much religion in this show.

[LemurCat]

I don't know if it's too much religion or if the focus is muddled. Are they trying to provide scientific proof of existance beyond death? Or are they trying to deal with the eschatological? The minute you imply demonic possession, you're dealing with the eschatological as opposed to the metaphysical. I guess that's what annoys me -- that and the involvement of the Amittyville Horror lady.

[dogwalker]

I tend to agree. The whole thing just seemed a little muddled. It seemed less about the actual investigation and more about the buildup. Perhaps it's the pilot syndrome, where all these stories have to be told at once to get the viewers caught up?

The religion stuff sort of offended me just because I have an interest in the occult and was raised Buddhist. Plus, it seems interesting to label a dark entity a 'demon' when we (the viewers, anyway) don't know much about this supposed 'he who shall not be named' that follows the "Director" around.

I thought the voice-overs were hokey, too, with the disembodied "calling from a cell phone' sound. Why tell us something when you can show us? It hearkened back to the cheesy radio shows that my great grandparents listened to (not that they're not fun to hear now).

What are the PRS members' credentials, anyway? (Although, I suppose a couple of plumbers might not have had obvious credentials either.)

[truffles17]

I was looking forward to this show because I live in State College, Pa which is where Penn State is. I thought this would be about local hauntings and that I would recognize things.

This is what I was hoping too. Penn State has a lot of reports of paranormal activity, such as in Old Botany, the Pattee stacks, and some of the older dorms.

[lilblondedancr1]

Ugh...I was so disappointed in this show...I couldn't even finish it.

I couldn't stand the "director." He seemed to be putting on some act and I couldn't stand how pretentious he came across. What was the point of using all that equipment if we the viewers barely saw anything? I kept asking myself when they were going to finally show some evidence.

Maybe I feel a lack of credibility coming from them. I am 22, but some of those girls looked and sounded 15! More power to them for researching the paranormal, but does that mean anyone can be a paranormal investigator then?

Granted the Ghost Hunters fellows are plumbers but they come across as being well-invested in their tools and don't jump the gun (ie: the boy recognized a picture of the man, therefore, he definitely sees him). Where was the debunking? Where were the thermal cams? And if these cases were so terrible and dangerous, I am surprised TAPS wasn't contacted first. They travel all over the country, so I'm sure they could travel over a couple states.

Nothing seemed to add up.