T5W: Spooky Settings

This week's T5W topic is all about spooky settings, in honor, of course, of Halloween. I'm really excited for this topic because all things spooky have a special place in my heart, after all, A Haunting, as well as a smorgasbord of other ghostly shows, was usually what was on TV in my household growing up, also Supernatural is basically the best show ever created. Anyways, let's get into some of my favorite spooky setting!

*IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER*

Spooky Forests

There are so many books, movies, and tv shows that use forests for part of their creep factor, and we all know why, they are spooky as all hell when they want to be; from low fog to dark shadows and everything in between, spine tingling shivers are inevitable in such a place. There's also the big question; what else is in the forest? From giant spiders in the Dark/Forbidden Forest on the outskirts of Hogwarts to the mysterious killer fae praying on tourists in The Darkest Part of the Forest, I think it's safe to say that the concept of being hunted is never far off the mark in whatever situation you find yourself in.

Haunted Houses

Haunted houses are a classic when it comes to the ghostly and the mysterious, besides, it's incredibly relatable; I mean, who hasn't felt a weird breeze or had a random cold shiver while being home alone and automatically thought about ghosts. Then there are hauntings, like that of Sunshine, where ghosts experience echoes causing them to relive their deaths, which is terrifying prospect in that you can't do anything but listen to them be killed. Of course, there are also those, like in Woman in Black, where the ghost is just bad-sh*t-crazy and wants to kill people because her child was taken away from her...yeah, those are the ones that creep me out the most, where there is nothing you can really do to stop it.

Asylum

Another cult classic in the horror genre; abandoned asylum settings are the ones that creep me out the most because all you can think about are the crazy off kilter people that lived and died there. Plus, stories like The System of Dr. Tarr and Prof. Fether where the crazy people basically take over and start running the place make me question everything. On that note, don't even get me started on the mind blowing craziness that is Shutter Island, now that was a movie (I never read the book, though I want to) that really messes with you, I don't think I will ever be able to go into an "institution" of the likes ever, regardless of the reason. Plus, if you want your socks knocked off, watch Grave Encounters, now that is an asylum movie that will make you question everything in life, and you have to watch both of them in a row to get the real affect...let me just tell you, I will never watch those movies again, I practically died the first time I watched them.

Post-Apocalyptic

I feel like post apocalypse is something that a lot of spooky stories play off of these days; from zombie outbreaks to natural disasters and everything in between, it's a common setting. Of course there are the popular franchises; The Walking Dead, Resident Evil, The Hunger Games, etc. that we all know and love, than there are some smaller side ones that I feel like don't get enough love; All the Beautiful People and The Girl with All the Gifts, to name a few. Now, you may be thinking, post-apocalypse doesn't necessarily have to include zombies, I know, I just prefer it over natural disaster based ones, e.g. Life As We Knew It, in my opinion they're just the better of the two. Also, when it comes to zombies, I like ones that have a twist to it, like a beauty complex or child zombiehood, I'm not really a classic Dawn of the Dead kind of person, besides, the whole concept of zombies being able to run is too ridiculous for me.  

Serial Killers

Okay, I know I said these were in no particular order, but this one is probably my favorite; I am a fan of serial killers to say the least. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that I approve of the whole murdering thing, it's just, if I'm going to follow something along those lines than I would prefer them to be serial killers. There is of course the classic Hannibal Lecter, whose name you may have heard from Silence of the Lambs and Red Dragon, whom is one of my favorites. (I also just finished watching season 1 of Hannibal and I want to cry, it's just so good). There's also Dexter, who is another love of mine, I will say though, that even though I have read Darkly Dreaming Dexter, the show is so much better in my eyes. But it's not just the serial killer thing that I want, I want the story, whether it be rage, psychopathic tendencies, sociopaths, or even the simple "urge", regardless, I need something more than mindless killing. To name one, the SAW movies are definitely on my list of favorites; there is a story, gore, depth, and just so much to it, I feel like it can be such an underrated series. I think one of the main reasons that serial killers are my favorite is because they are the most realistic, if something is too ridiculous to me than I just don't find it frightening at all. I need something that could actually happen and with serial killers, that is usually delivered. 

So what are your favorite spooky settings? Also, what spooky thing can you imagine in the forest? Let me know!