Welcome to Spinnaker’s History of Horror. Here we will be taking a look back at everything spooky in both film and video games and analyze how horror has evolved over the last century. Check back at unfspinnaker.com every day for a new installment!

Happy Friday the 13th, and what better way to celebrate than to talk about the infamous slasher movie series named after the day. When people think of the “slasher” sub-genre, they almost always think of the Friday the 13th franchise. More specifically, they think about the hockey mask-wearing Jason Voorhees. However, Jason doesn’t even appear until the second film and he doesn’t wear the hockey mask until the third!

In the original, Friday the 13th (1980), a group of kids vacation at the newly reopened Camp Crystal Lake. It was closed for so long because after a young boy named Jason Voorhees drowned there, camp counselors were mysteriously killed one-by-one. Naturally, the same thing starts happening to these kids.

Though the franchise hadn’t quite come into its own yet, there are obvious signs of what made the series so popular. The kills are gruesome, elaborate, and gory. My favorite is when Kevin Bacon gets an arrow pushed through his neck. The effects are done by Tom Savini who also did the gore for Dawn of the Dead. It’s the best part of all of these movies for certain.

In part 2, Jason becomes the villain, though he’s wearing a sack on his head rather than the iconic hockey mask. In part 3, he gets the mask and becomes the famous immortal, unstoppable villain we all know. It’s a testament to the series that even someone who has never seen any of the films know exactly who Jason is.

The fourth film, Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter (1984), is my favorite (and not at all the final chapter). The special effects are better than ever and the kills are so creative and silly, you can’t help but laugh. It also has the most memorable characters yet, though, not likeable enough that you don’t still cheer for Jason.

After part 4, the series goes all the way up to part 10, taking Jason to NYC, Hell, and even space (yes, that’s a real thing that happens). None of these films are “good”, but they are definitely entertaining. Then, in 2003, Freddy vs Jason happened. Who is Freddy and why does Jason fight him? Find out tomorrow on Spinnaker’s History of Horror! HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

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