Somehow, Halloween has landed on my front burner today, so here's a roundup of upcoming theme-park doin's that build up to Oct. 31.

Wandered around earlier this afternoon looking for Universal's Halloween Horror Nights billboards. Have to say the one in the Fairbanks stretch of Interstate 4 made me think "dead man's curve." Haven't seen any at night yet, but above is a Universal-provided shot that's freakin' me out a little.

Universal has officially introduced its Bloody Mary icon, and you can read a lot about it at www.halloweenhorrornights.com/orlando. We're looking at eight new haunted houses (Mary has her own) and six "scare zones." The latter sound very creative. Bill & Ted and Rocky Horror are back ... plus Brian Brushwood's show has expanded into his own gig. First night is Sept. 26 at the Universal Studios park.

After the jump: SeaWorld's Halloween Spooktacular and Mickey's Not-So-Spooky Halloween Party at Disney's Magic Kingdom.

Disney so often gets it right, it's shocking when something happens to truly detract from the park's magic. I had a "bad show" experience recently that really threw me for a loop, it was so un-Disneylike. On the flip side, I also had an outstanding show experience, too. The details after the jump.

Mom's in town so we have been hitting the theme parks. Some times it takes a set of fresh eyes, ie. a visitor, to give you a different perspective on our attractions. Here are some of Mom's thoughts:

The Seas With Nemo and Friends -- Mom thought this was great, her favorite thing at Epcot, because it's so cute. Just goes to show a super thrill ride isn't always what guests leave talking about. There's a lot to be said for clever theming and a novel approach (in this case, projecting animated characters into real aquariums).