The Real Ghostbusters

Anyone who is interested in the paranormal should check out Ghost Hunters on the SciFi channel. I have always been a fan of shows that take a more serious approach to documenting and researching paranormal activity. Don't get me wrong, I also love horror movies and shows like Fringe or the X-files but I have a special place in my heart for true paranormal investigation.

Ghost Hunters is a documentary type reality show that follows the investigations of TAPS (The Atlantic Paranormal Society). Lead by Jay Hawes and Grant Wilson, TAPS takes a unique approach to investigating the paranormal. Rather than going into a location and trying to prove the accounts of ghost activity, they go in trying to disprove the accounts first. This makes the show much more interesting and believable because when they do come across something that they feel is solid evidence, it is usually quite impressive. The investigations are documented using high tech equipment that has been shown to be useful in the collection of evidence of the paranormal including EMF(electro-magnetic field) detectors, infrared night vision cameras, and thermal imaging cameras, to name a few. Ghost Hunters doesn't rely on the silly gimmicks that some of its predecessors have. One of the worst was MTV's Fear, in which people had cameras stuck to their heads and were forced to run around in the dark until they were freaked out and screaming. Mildly entertaining but stupid. TAPS members always work in groups to cut down on the fear and anxiety that can build up in some of the very scary locations that they investigate.

TAPS will investigate anywhere from a single home to very large locations such as prisons, hotels, or even aircraft carriers. Some of the more impressive locations include Eastern State Penitentiary, Waverly Hills Sanatorium, and The Stanley Hotel (the hotel from The Shining). Recently TAPS traveled to Europe to do some investigations. This trip spawned the spin-off Ghost Hunters International. The two shows share the same time slot on SciFi so when the season of the original Ghost Hunters ends, they pick right back up with Ghost Hunters International.

Note: There is one TAPS member who is a Super-Douche; Brian Harnois. The good news is that he is currently not a member of the original team or the international team but he has been in both so if you are watching reruns, I warned you. He's not bad enough to ruin the show but he is pretty unlikeable.

The new episodes are on Wednesdays at 9 on the SciFi channel but they show tons of reruns and they always have marathons so give it a shot.