More Howl-O-Scream!

Who doesn't like pumpkin-headed demonic entities?
Not me; I love that stuff.

I mentioned Howl-O-Scream a few days ago and I am doing a return post now.  Not that I went back.  I mean, I would love to, but it's really pricey and I have other haunts to attend.  Howl-O-Scream has a mascot named Jack.  Makes sense, right?

In previous years Jack has appeared as a menacing figure with a human face on a pumpkin head.  I don't mean a human face carved into a pumpkin, I mean a fecking human faced pumpkin.  Which, when one thinks about it, isn't really very scary.  Human faced vegetables are really sort of humorous.  Be that as it may, the nature of Jack  of the Lantern (as he is identified on the BG website) was always a bit malevolent.  This year Jack's 2010 makeover is not quite so mean.
Observe:

Sure and I'm pished, me boyo!

Yep, he looks like he is about to hit you up for a fiver and piss off down the pub.  Or possibly like Albert Sharpe in Darby O'Gill and the Little People.

Shamelessly boosted from Amazon.com

Which amounts to the same thing, yeah.

Jack's particular haunt is the Ireland section of Busch Gardens in Killarney.  There is a stage for his show "Jack Is Back" in the town square, just outside of Grogan's Pub and across from Abbey Stone Theatre (where Monster Stomp Revamped plays).  A few times a day, starting at 6:00 PM, "Jack Is Back" plays live for about 15 minutes.  You will notice, if you observe the picture above, that Jack has popped out of a giant pumpkin (jack o'lantern really).  This is like you popping out of a giant papier-mache of your own head.

At this point you might be asking yourself, "Self, shouldn't Jack O' Lantern really have a turnip for a head?  What with Ireland being so rustic and the original jack o' lanterns being made of turnips and pumpkins being a new world vegetable?"
Just stop it.  Don't nuke this.  Jack moves with the times.  I mean, look at him:

Looks like the sort of Muppet that put us kids into therapy way back when.  He has teeth like a redneck shark and a hat that says "Give me a Guinness or feel the rough edge of me tongue, laddie!" (I might have just slipped into Scot there at the end, but hey, two stereotypes for the price of one!)
Anyway, that isn't near as disturbing as previous years when he could be seen carrying around a jack o' lantern that strongly resembled his head.  That would be like you carrying around your own head, but still having your head on your body.  Like you murdered your twin, scooped out the head and stuck a candle in there...
And that's okay, because this is a Halloween party and Jack is the spirit of Halloween.  Or 'a' spirit of Halloween.  I mean, we still have Sam.
And this guy:

The incredibly misleadingly named Samhain!  Dig the upside down Celtic cross, nothing says pretend Satanic like upside down crosses, well that or BOC fan.

Yes, from the Ghostbusters RPG (he's just not as cool in the Real Ghostbusters cartoon).  Dig the colonial attire.  Okay, that's also the inspiration for my Halloween costume this year.

Enjoy a small excerpt of the show "Jack Is Back" from Busch Gardens Howl O Scream that Frau Punkenstein cleverly bootlegged on our digital camera.  This year featured Patch and Pie, two little pumpkin girls with HUGE HEADS!  Oh, and some dudes in colorful garb trying to look like a very tough Irish street gang that fully intends to 'serve' any punk who steps up.  Of course the whole thing is MCed by Jack, who seems concerned with making you dance, probably to get you to drop change he can scoop up later to take to the nearby pub.

Scary as hell.

As always, keep your pumpkins lit.