When the crypt goes creak, and the tombstones quake. Spooks come out for a swinging wake. Happy haunts materialize, and begin to vocalize. Grim grinning ghosts come out to socialize!
So, a couple of weeks ago, my wife and I took our 2-year-old daughter to Disney World since she had so much fun there back in February. I know, just about everyone goes to take their kids, but I had a pretty good time, and it gave me a chance to revisit my favorite ride at the park: the Haunted Mansion. I am fan of older Disney and while this ride is certainly one of the oldest, I have loved it my entire life. I love everything about it (except for that Eddie Murphy crapfest of a movie from a few years ago): a “scary” concept ride, the animatronics, the innovative (for the time) effects, and the overall aesthetics all appeal to me a just about every level. I am obviously not alone because there is no shortage of souvenirs throughout the Magic Kingdom related to the ride, and there is a shop (Memento Mori) right outside of the ride exit devoted completely to it.
You can get everything from antenna toppers to plush to ornaments to fine China there, but while I did pick up more than a few things during my time there, my favorite, of course, was the action figure set. So I made my wife and daughter ride the ride five-six times while we were there, and the Hitchhiking Ghosts set is always one of the highlights. So you better believe that I was not going to pass up this set.
When it comes to Disneyana (that is a thing), there is a pretty alarming lack of action figures (I would KILL for good figures of the classic characters) so I was pretty stoked when I clapped eyes on these spooks. Sure, they are not cutting edge or anything, but they are the perfect little piece of memorabilia of our trip for me, and since they are park exclusives, I could not pass them up.
The Hitchhiking Ghosts are some of the most memorable specters of the entire ride, so they have really become the mascots for the Mansion. If you don’t know them, they try to hitch a ride in your Doombuggy near the end of the ride and even cause some mischief in the haunted mirrors before they leave you alone. They are classically known as the “Traveling,” “Skeleton,” and “Prisoner” ghosts, but they were later given the names of Ezra, Phineas, and Gus, respectively. My favorite has always been the Skeleton Ghost, but the Traveler is probably the best figure in the actual set.
Like I said, this set is more for fun than being set on serious action figures, so while the sculpts (and the figures themselves) are a little soft, there is no mistaking any of the three. They actually have a lot of personality, and I really love the head sculpts on the Skeleton and Prisoner. The Prisoner comes with his signature ball and chain, and the Traveler has his satchel. I do wish that the Skeleton’s hat was removable to complete the effect. There is a bit of articulation to these, and the hinge elbow and knees are a nice surprise, especially since I was really anticipating no more than five points.
Of course, the ghosts all glow in the dark and they get a pretty bright effect going. My daughter already loves charging them up in the light and then flipping the switch to darkness to see them in their glory. I can already tell I am going to have a tough time keeping these guys on my shelf with little interested hands flitting about.
Hey, if you dig the Haunted Mansion and find yourself at Disney World (or Land), pick up this set; it will only cost you 20 bucks, and that is getting off pretty light at the Mouse House.
