Ghost Hunters 2.3: "10 Aug 2005"

Case #1: DeVille’s House
Case #2: Brennan’s Restaurant


Short review this time around…I’m still catching up from the double whammy of vacation and a colleague’s exit at work. I was a bit concerned when I heard that the episode had changed at the last minute. That’s rarely a good sign; I wonder if there were issues with clearances, or worse, signs that someone had interfered with the investigation. This ought to get the naysayers all a’twitter.

This wasn’t the most exciting of episodes. I think, for me, the highlight was the focus on Paula. A gorgeous young scientist with an interest in the paranormal…be still, my beating heart! The TAPS Team gets my respect for that addition. When she pegged the halogen lamp as the source of electrical interference with the digital thermometer, I felt like Mulder when Scully said the words “spontaneous combustion”.

Anyway, on to the first case:

This one was interesting, if only because of how well it established the credibility of TAPS above and beyond the creation of “Ghost Hunters”. It’s more and more clear to me, as time marches on, that what gets on the air is not comprehensive. There’s a lot more instrumentation in place at each location than the audience ever gets to see. And that makes sense…the intent is to dramatize, and the editors only use what they feel tells “the story”. That sometimes makes the TAPS Team look foolish or unprofessional, and it feeds all those nitwits who claim fakery.

So as I’m watching this case unfold, I notice how the team tries to accommodate the desires of the clients. This guy was a real piece of work, and his various claims about his overall attractiveness to women were somewhat hard to believe. At the same time, if the local TAPS affiliate says that there’s merit to the case, then why not look into it?

The only real evidence was the movement of the door. Some will claim that not enough was explored in terms of a “real world” explanation. I assume that much of that was actually edited out, since it wasn’t compelling enough. I think it’s interesting that the one piece of evidence matches the claim so closely, but even Jason and Grant seemed to think that the real value was in the eyes of the client. They certainly had their doubts.

As for the second case:

What a waste of time. This must be the price of modest success. I’ve been to Brennan’s on a “Ghost Tour of New Orleans”, and we heard the same story, in nearly the same exact words. It was all about the restaurant wanting a bit of free advertisement and the chance to say that TAPS was there. I’m sure that they will be adding “Ghost Hunters” to the long list of television shows that featured their establishment.

Did anyone else feel like the footage was manipulated to highlight the comments on the food? I wonder if the network helped arrange that case. Whatever else might be true, I think it’s safe to say that the restaurant had little or no intention of letting a serious investigation take place.

Again, there’s the silliness over Brian’s behavior, Steve’s seeming lack of attention with the evidence, and the little intrigues that would be better replaced with a closer look at the investigation methods and evidence. Then again, on an episode like this, where the ups and downs of the business are highlighted, perhaps it doesn’t matter.

Chill Factor: 4/10