'On the Trail of...Hauntings' Makes Televised Paranormal Investigation Fun Again

This review is based on the first episode of On the Trail of…Hauntings.

The latest video series from Small Town Monsters, On the Trail of…Hauntings, is a refreshing change of pace from the traditional tropes that have come to dominate paranormal reality television. This Small Town Monsters Squad exclusive series is filmed with a tiny fraction of the budget used on their other projects, but has as much charm as anything the production company has filmed to-date. Featuring Seth Breedlove and crew (Aaron, Santino, and Zac), along with frequent on-camera contributors Heather Moser and Mark Matzke, the first episode of On the Trail of…Hauntings sees the group head to Hanoverton, Ohio, where they investigate the gravesite of a woman wrongly executed of witchcraft.

Missing from the episode are insects misinterpreted as orbs and the scapegoating of demons for every errant noise and shadow. Instead, the team approaches the phenomena with the intention of explaining what they can and accepting what they can’t on its own terms. The chemistry displayed onscreen between team members can’t be replicated by any casting director’s decision making, and clearly stems from a group of friends out doing what they love—exploring the strange and unusual. This camaraderie leads to a number of interesting insights—the level of comfort had by the team allowing them to simply conduct an investigation rather than stiffly perform for the camera—but perhaps its most pronounced benefit is something that isn’t often produced in the paranormal field: fun. It’s legitimately enjoyable to watch this group of friends, especially with the level of professional experience they have, go out and hunt ghosts in a profoundly, entertainingly human way.

On the Trail of…Hauntings is smart, insightful, charming, authentic, and perhaps best of all, skeptical without being dismissive. It’s exactly what you were hoping the Small Town Monsters crew is like in real life, and any fan of the paranormal is sure to be equal parts informed and entertained. For more information on joining the Small Town Monsters Squad to view this series and other exclusive videos, click on this link to visit their YouTube page.

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