The Fleshyard: 2019 Review
The Fleshyard, Anaheim, CA
We’ve hit the midpoint of October, and our haunt reviews will be coming hot and heavy as we continue to visit more and more haunted attractions. And as we start moving to more one-off destinations, we’ll be reporting with greater frequency to bring you our thoughts and reviews as quickly as possible.
Today, we’re visiting a familiar destination in Anaheim, on the corner of La Palma Avenue and Imperial Highway. The Fleshyard is a haunt that we’ve been covering since its second year. It returns to Anaheim this season after a one year venture as a part of HorrorWorld. A grittier and more old school haunt, The Fleshyard retains the feel of a more elaborate home haunt, which makes sense, since founder Adam LeBlanc used to help out with the Perdition Home Haunt folks.
Apparently, this is a witch that needs to be burned.
Over the past five years, this haunt has fostered the story of the tragically befallen Kearny Family, exploring their hideously gruesome fates and what led up to the fateful night where the entire family was slaughtered in their very own homes. As the storyline goes:
In the 1800s, Bernardo Yorba became one of the most successful ranchers in Alta California. He received a huge land grant that was composed of a large part of North Orange County, including present day Yorba Linda. During this period, thousands of cattle would graze upon his more than 35,000 acres. He built a huge Hacienda which was one of the finest and largest of the area. During the latter parts of his life, many people would help him maintain his livestock, including the Kearny family. The Kearny family was one of Bernardo Yorba’s hardest working families, and they established their own farm through their success with Bernardo Yorba.
People would travel from local areas to the Kearny Family Farm to get food for their families. Every few weeks, people would come and buy beef, chicken, and pork from Abraham Kearny. Abraham Kearny, along with his wife Sarah, had three daughters and two sons who helped run the farm. They specialized in raising and slaughtering cows, pigs, and chickens.
All seemed well for Abraham, Sarah, and their five children, until one day, a neighbor went to visit and purchase some of their meat and discovered the entire family and their livestock horrifically massacred in their own homes. The property was ultimately burned after the stench of the rotting flesh and decaying meat proved unbearable, but every October, the spirits of the Kearny family and the smell of their farm rises again, and The Fleshyard returns to this mortal coil.
There’s been a lot of murderin’ here at The Fleshyard.
Last season, at their HorrorWorld installation, The Fleshyard revealed that the person responsible for such wretched violence was actually their oldest daughter, Alvina, who had been possessed by a demon and driven to commit such an atrocity. We noted that The Fleshyard 2018 brought a level of add polish and a clearer focus on the storyline, adding depth to the attraction and the experience. We were thus rather curious to see how this season, which as been teased as the last in the Kearny saga, might unfold.
Unfortunately, from the narrative seems to have fallen flat this season. This year’s Fleshyard seems to be a mash-up for the past two seasons, combining a trip through the cursed Kearny home and property with a new chapel set that was introduced last year. There’s less of a discernible plot for guests, who walk through familiar scenes such as the farmhouse, the relative rooms of the Kearny House itself, and the chapel next door.
This is some Grade A animal slaughter—except the animal is human.
This might have bee due to the circumstances of our visit. The Fleshyard opened one week earlier this year compared to past years on this site, and on our off-night visit (made possible due to the haunt’s operation for haunters night), there were still a few items that had not been completely flushed out. Inconsistent lighting and minimal soundtrack—particularly in the first half of the maze, a lack of overhead cover to control outside light bleed, a lighter-than-normal crew, and a gusty evening from the local Santa Ana winds made for challenging operating conditions. Fortunately, since then, Adam has worked to mitigate some of these aforementioned issues and bring the maze up to a more complete package.
Fans of Perdition Home may recognize a few elements in this year’s Fleshyard.
From a scenic view, the Fleshyard had its moments. The first half seemed a little incomplete, but the second half looked fantastic with the addition of some props and theming elements temporarily donated by Adam’s friends at Perdition, who are unfortunately dark for this season. This is a high gore and high blood content attraction, and the theming through the dining room and study in particular looked vile and disgusting and befitting of the bloody backstory of the maze.
The Fleshyard thrives on the fetid odor of fear.
Despite their small numbers on the evening of our visit, the scareactors of The Fleshyard were fantastic. Utilizing multiple actor pass-throughs, they followed us throughout the layout, striking at multiple locations, engaging with ferocity and unhinged aggression that keep up the adrenaline. The energy exhibited showed a stirring effort, and helped maintain interest throughout the course. We really appreciated the enthusiasm of the monsters, especially on what was a relatively quiet night.
The Fleshyard has unearthed itself once again, back to its Anaheim roots, for another season!
Ultimately, The Fleshyard is a solid, rough and tumble haunt that will appeal to those who prefer the old school haunted house style in the vein of Knott’s Scary Farms past to today’s more polished and sophisticated haunted attractions that utilize technology, special effects, and high contrast visuals to create a slick and stunning look. There’s plenty of great theming at The Fleshyard, but no one will confuse it for a Hollywood-style set. Instead, the strength of the haunt comes from its actors and the life they breath into the haunt experience. The best looking sets in the world won’t make a haunted maze memorable if it doesn’t have good actors, and The Fleshyard’s crew is not beyond stalking, sliding, and startling their way into one’s nightmares!
The Fleshyard runs Fridays through Sundays plus Halloween night from now through Saturday, November 2nd. Parking is free but somewhat limited on site, though a neighboring Anaheim Hills Inn and Suites provides a bit of overflow parking. Tickets can be purchased online or on site.
Architect. Photographer. Disney nerd. Haunt enthusiast. Travel bugged. Concert fiend. Asian.
