Jason Hewlett Archives | Otaku No Culture

When These Cursed Waters Aren’t As Scary. Why Do We Love The Creature of Lake Okanagan?

Now available to view on Prime Video (USA) and purchase on the official website.

Small Town Monsters is taking a break by doing something different. Instead of searching for Bigfoot in Cursed Waters: Creature of Lake Okanagan, they are investigating the legends and recent sightings of Ogopogo! This creature that’s the mascot of Kelowna, British Columbia has been sighted several times in recent years, and it seems that’s holding steady.

Ever since it was “discovered” as early as 1872 (by settlers), and perhaps longer by indigenous tribes, what makes this documentary compelling is with what locals believe it represents. This work is better because what’s presented here differs from what Josh Gates offered when he visited back in 2009 (with the episode airing in 2010), and also the TV series Monster Quest.

Continue reading “When These Cursed Waters Aren’t As Scary. Why Do We Love The Creature of Lake Okanagan?”

Top 3 Hits of The Paranormal Network’s We Want to Believe Series

I provide my list of favourite We Want to Believe episodes about the various hauntings going on around the interior of British Columbia!

Twenty episodes and about nine different locations later, The Paranormal Network’s (formerly JoBlo Horror Network) We Want to Believe is showing it has staying power. Even after a hiatus due to the pandemic, this short form version of many paranormal reality television shows has resumed. Since mid 2022, the team have been visiting places off the beaten track in the heartland of British Columbia. After approximately nine cases, this group continues to show how dedicated they truly are!

This homegrown program follows the Canadian Paranormal Society in Kamloops. What they’ve done is more than just providing peace of mind for some. There are supernatural forces at work up in them thar hills. In some instances, it’s to also solve a mystery of why they caught an EVP in the middle of nowhere! I need to rewatch those episodes and the follow-up they’ve done all in one night. I’ve put together the playlist to watch on All Hallow’s Eve to truly appreciate how the veil is thinner in the woods. The Irish believe that once when you step into the forest, you’re in faerie territory!

Apparently, what I wrote (that the producers read) made them decide to figure out where that voice came from.

Continue reading “Top 3 Hits of The Paranormal Network’s We Want to Believe Series”

How Much do We Want to Believe? Haunted Objects Part Two

By the end of the day, this team shows there’s no definitive means to contact the other side.

Are Ouija boards the real deal? It’s tough to say when Spiritualists swear by it, occultists warn about being careful in what you seek, and mediums say as long as you perform the right ceremonies before and after use, it’s safe. This means having the right mindset, if not wards of protection up. Other caveats are to say “goodbye” before removing your finger from the planchette (which is nicely included in this video) and politely ask that those entities not follow you home afterwards.

The We Want to Believe team (also known as Canadian Paranormal Foundation) had a fun time with this board in part two of Haunted Objects. They used an old one that was allegedly destroyed; it repaired itself the next day. They used it to communicate with those entities said to be connected with it. Instead of following up with the items they were investigating in part one, this next episode examines new objects. This episode is a different kind of watch given the jovial energy the group was putting out. If any nasty ghost was there, it’d flee instead of throwing a poltergeist tantrum.

Continue reading “How Much do We Want to Believe? Haunted Objects Part Two”

The History on Why We Want to Believe’s Latest “The Village” is Haunted!

By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Just when I thought there aren’t enough ghost towns in British Columbia, I learn the tiny community of Ashcroft is also spooked in We Want to Believe’s latest episode, “The Village.”

This episode doesn’t offer a complete history, so I’m here to fill in the gap: Third Lieutenant Governor of BC, Clement Francis Cornwall and his brother founded this mining community. It’s also the site where freight from the Canadian Pacific Railway gets unloaded and hauled to Cariboo Wagon Road to other communities during the 1861-1867 Cariboo Gold Rush. Many people flocked to the region to make their fortune and many also perished in their attempts.

Typically, where there’s a railroad, there’s also labourers to lay the line. The big reason why this place is very recognizable is because of the many television and film productions that’s been through here. Viewers may remember instances from the movie The A-Team (2010) or television show The X-Files.

Continue reading “The History on Why We Want to Believe’s Latest “The Village” is Haunted!”

Presenting We Want to Believe’s Bigfoot Hunt in Full

Whether Bigfoot is around or not, I suspect the team will have to make a return search.

By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

The Search for Bigfoot has no end in sight in We Want to Believe. JoBlo.com’s channel rebranded as The Paranormal Network some time ago, and after so many episodes of this type of content, perhaps they need a Cryptoid channel too?

Jason Hewlett, Chris Bose, Shawn Knippelberg, and Peter Renn (who is finally in this latest arc) are part of the team looking for the seminal beast and using everything from a baby’s cry to a spirit box in an attempt to contact him (or her). They got something, but as for what it is exactly, we’ll never know. Bose’s narrative been a lot more compelling throughout this arc because he connects this giant to his aboriginal heritage (the Secwepemc). He talks about them with great respect, not only as spirits of the land, but also in regards to others–the mimics–who can pretend to be like us or anything we can imagine. They are not the type from Dungeons and Dragons lore, but instead are tricksters if I’m understanding him correctly. They’re known as C’eweneytmx. These entities like to play with us. He also smudges the area so no bad energies will follow the team as they go looking for signs of a Sasquatch late at night.

Continue reading “Presenting We Want to Believe’s Bigfoot Hunt in Full”

We Want to Believe in Part Three of the Bigfoot Hunt!

We get theories from Ken Gerhard about why they live isolated and he’s sure they are endangered. Many documentaries said they have adapted their habits so that they can avoid human contact, and after getting newcomers up to speed with common facts, this reveals looks at a hamlet a pack lived in.

By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

The next episode of JoBlo.com‘s We Want To Believe series look for Bigfoot is here. We get theories from Ken Gerhard about why they live alone–sometimes in small packs–and he’s sure they are endangered. Many documentaries said they have adapted their habits so that they can avoid human contact, and after getting newcomers up to speed with common facts, this segment reveals a hamlet a family unit lived in.

It’s well known these creatures are nomads. As for why they are everywhere needs other documentaries to offer ideas too. I’ve been watching a lot of Expedition Bigfoot lately, and an idea this Travel Channel show offered is the possibility they find underground passages (natural or lava tubes) to make travelling further distances easy. This extended series versus the short still has yet to suggest anything concrete.

Continue reading “We Want to Believe in Part Three of the Bigfoot Hunt!”