‘Mountain Monsters’: Why the Thrill of the Unsuccessful Hunt Brings You Back?

Mountain Monsters fans just love John “Trapper” Tice and his band of merry men who make up the Appalachian Investigators of Mystery Sightings or AIMS. Through six seasons of Mountain Monsters, these men come equipped with state of the art weapons. Still, they’ve yet to bag themselves a monster.

Mountain Monsters: Many Hunts – Little Success?

But it certainly doesn’t appear that the Mountain Monsters crew comes up empty-handed from lack of trying. As these guys scour every inch of the mountains, valleys, and forests that make up the Appalachian Mountain range.

From rustling in the leaves to screeches heard from somewhere deep in the woods, there’s certainly enough evidence to suggest they’re not alone. But when it comes to the vast array of legendary Mountain Monsters they hunt, one hasn’t materialized as of yet.

Mountain Monsters does have the feeling that there’s some kind of a script they follow from time to time. On occasion, it also seems too way out there to be real but people return for more each week.

Another problem seems to center on the legendary monsters themselves. Like – who exactly makes up the legends that send these guys tromping through the woods with weapons and traps?

The people who live in the Jackson County, West Virginia, area heard the show Mountain Monsters is was after the legendary Waya Woman in their area. So they took notice.

Mountain Monsters: Willy Mcquillian - Joseph Huckleberry Lott - Jacob Buck Lowe

Who is that Waya Woman -It Seems Folks Never Heard of Her?

People didn’t take notice because they wanted this beast caught. They took notice because it’s hard to find anyone who’s heard of the legend. From watching Mountain Monsters, you learn this is a mythical female beast that stands about 7-feet tall.

The scary beast moves around on its hind legs. It’s also described as a wolf-human hybrid. So when AIMS came to hunt this local legend, people scratched their heads. It seems it’s the first many heard about this mythical beast.

So if the Waya Woman is not a popular legend among locals, is she just scripted for the show? That’s what the naysayers seem to think.

Scripted or not, the beast was the target of the hunt on one of the Mountain Monsters episodes. Perhaps it’s more of a secret than a legend in those neck of the woods.

So what do the audience members find so mesmerizing about Trapper and his crew? After all, they’re on their sixth season of Mountain Monsters and going strong. That’s despite never capturing themselves a real live monster.

Mountain Monsters: Trapper’ Failing Health

This Travel Channel show collected some die-hard fans. When Trapper recently revealed his health is failing, people hopped online to share their sadness along with their wishes that he’ll recover. He’s been ill since they discovered a blood clot in his leg a few years ago.

At the beginning of this latest season, Trapper shared a rather grim outlook on his health with two of his co-stars, Jacob “Buck” Lowe, and Joseph “Huckleberry” Lott. He said it doesn’t look promising when they visited him at his home. He also said he’s “facing up to dying”.

Not only did this upset his co-stars but Trapper’s fans as well. That news just made the Mountain Monsters team more determined to do the work they set out to do.

For Trapper, they’ll continue to hunt the elusive legendary beasts in the different rural towns that surround the Appalachian Mountains. Despite Trapper not with them on the hunts, Buck says he’ll always be their team leader.

What Does This Show Have in Common With a Classic Movie from 20-years-ago?

Two decades ago The Blair Witch Project became an overnight success. The 1999 blockbuster movie never showed the demon or just what was after the people in the woods. They left much of the fear to the viewer’s own speculation.

Take away the shaky camera and the odd-angled shots of that classic flick and that’s pretty much how Mountain Monsters operate. You don’t see the monster but you do hear it and see the aftermath of its visit.

The Mountain Monsters conjures up fear of the unknown in the viewer. It also builds that fear with the thrill of the hunt. Much like that movie that emerged 20 years ago – they tend to scare everyone in the audience without showing very much of anything.

The fear surfaces when the background noise, like the distant scream, bump, or howl, goes off. Plus the description of what they’re hunting adds to the intrigue. Put that all together and combine it with the look on the AIMS team members’ faces and this puts the viewers on the edge of their seats.

The next episode of Mountain Monsters puts the guys of AIMS hot on the trail of the Silver Giant. They describe the massive creature as bear-like. But they also explain how different it is from any bear you’ve seen. This beast is said to have a silver streak down it’s back. It also stands over 10-feet tall on its hind legs.

Check out Mountain Monsters at 9 pm Wednesday, nights on the Travel Channel.

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