The Ghostbusters Thread (Old, New, Animated, Whatever)

[Rotollo 2]

Same here although I like to treat the Ghostbusters game as semi-canon too

Yeah the ps3/xbox 360 game was amazing, probably one of my favorite movie licensed games just for how they captured the wrangling, if anything at least that got released on modern consoles due to this coming out (wheres the multiplayer update you promised though you fuckers)

but honestly I couldn't stomach the comic's multiverse crossover format

I legit don't know why they keep trying to make a ghostbusters "multiverse" a thing, I mean obviously stuff like the comic, the game continuities, 2016, real and afterlife takes place in different universe and while the premise of paranormal exterminators is always fun I have no idea why they want to bring all the "alternate takes" into the multimedia stuff with ghost corps

 

[anti SJW]

Saw it last night. I loved it. But I do want to know if Muncher's first name is Carpet or Rug.

 

[Inflatable Julay]

Was decent but not worth waiting 30 years for. I don't know what this trend is with making black girls who can't emote beyond "smug one liners" the love interest. Finn needed to shut the fuck up for a minute but he's supposed to be a moody teenager so I guess that works. Egon Jr. was a bit of an Aspie stereotype and I didn't buy her as a real person. And did I have a stroke or did Podcast have some kind of Rainbow Dash figure? If bronies are canon in Ghostbusters I don't think I want to live any more.

 

[Rotollo 2]

If bronies are canon in Ghostbusters I don't think I want to live any more.

The real ghost they need to bust in the sequel is the brony community

 

[BrunoMattei]

Egon Jr. was a bit of an Aspie stereotype and I didn't buy her as a real person.

I thought it was more than decent but to each his own. But I disagree with this one point, I thought the actress did a good job emulating Egon. After all, Egon was not a people person and was more interested in spors and molds.

The brony line made me cringe but I can't help but think that that was an intentional dig on them being forced to add a woke character. Like, "Fine! We'll add a woke character but he'll be a brony because fuck you Sony!"

 

[Creep3r]

More salt from the Atlantic this time.

The Irreverent Beauty of the Original 'Ghostbusters'

The 1984 film was a goofy, blue-collar buddy comedy. The new one is a hollow imitation.

www.theatlantic.com

Yeah the ps3/xbox 360 game was amazing, probably one of my favorite movie licensed games just for how they captured the wrangling, if anything at least that got released on modern consoles due to this coming out (wheres the multiplayer update you promised though you fuckers)

The game was also the last time the cast was all together and was actually based on an unused story for a third film, like the Ghosbusters being in Hell, and it actually expanded on the universe by using Ivo Shandor as the true mastermind behind everything.

I legit don't know why they keep trying to make a ghostbusters "multiverse" a thing, I mean obviously stuff like the comic, the game continuities, 2016, real and afterlife takes place in different universe and while the premise of paranormal exterminators is always fun I have no idea why they want to bring all the "alternate takes" into the multimedia stuff with ghost corps

Its really corny and the art in those comics constantly shifted in quality to the point where only Tiamat looked consistently good. But nobody wants a Ghosbusters multiverse or crossover event when one universe can work just fine and the others can just be what-if scenarios or alternate timelines at best with no interactions. But I think the first movie (and maybe the second), the pre-Q5 cartoon and the 2009 game can all co-exist, especially since the game and first 2 movies are practically following the same beats to a tee and og scripts, and with a few retcons you can easily make the cartoon and II fit too. The rest of the Ghostbusters universes though are definitely not meant to take place in the same setting and shouldn't even overlap considering how drastic the differences are (then again I'm not a fan of dimensional crossovers).

And putting the Cisbusters front and center of everything just made this crossover that shouldn't have been even more unbearable.

Geez Peter you can do better than this 2016 pencil neck.

Only good thing to come from it was Tiamat's design.

A great villain idea and concept wasted on a crossover that can never be legit made solely to force people to like the 2016 Cisbusters.

I saw it last night. It's a once in a lifetime kind of bad. There are almost no redeeming qualities. The cast is either incredibly bland or obnoxious beyond belief. The ghost designs are completely generic, with most being reused from the original. Most of the audio from the original is also reused. It also holds every single minuscule reference to the first movie shown in a glowing light, Every time an item is shown like the proton pack, Ecto-1, PKE meter etc. there is a 10 second pan like it's some holy artifact. The plot is almost the exact same as the original with a stupid Stranger Things overlay, This doesn't work because whenever adult humor is involved, a staple of the original, it comes across as creepy because kids are involved.

The fact that the Ghostbusters are in the movie actually detract from the film.

Spoiler

Their cameo is incredibly shoehorned in at exactly the time you expect and they get their asses kicked. The final battle also takes place in a backyard, a far cry from the epic Shandor building in the original and the Statue of Liberty in II. In the end it's the little girl and a Ghost CGI Harold Ramis that save the day. It comes of as disrespectful of course, but that's another discussion entirely. Bill Murray cracking jokes and Dan Akyrod's performance are the only redeemable parts of this film.

Ghostbusters II is still better than this. Even though it has a completely infantile plot, the original cast is all there and their chemistry works.

The 2016 movie has more soul. There was an original plot and at least some jokes hit. It realistically understands the tone of the original better than Afterlife. At the very least it can be made fun of.

Every time I rewatch the original and II I will be thinking about this film. That's its worst offense.

I sort of agree with you except on the '2016 version having soul' part. It just tries to repeat the first too but with worse humor and even more unlikable characters. Its only redeeming factor is laughing at how bad it was and making fun of Feige till the end of time.

Was decent but not worth waiting 30 years for. I don't know what this trend is with making black girls who can't emote beyond "smug one liners" the love interest. Finn needed to shut the fuck up for a minute but he's supposed to be a moody teenager so I guess that works. Egon Jr. was a bit of an Aspie stereotype and I didn't buy her as a real person. And did I have a stroke or did Podcast have some kind of Rainbow Dash figure? If bronies are canon in Ghostbusters I don't think I want to live any more.

The kid was a brony too?! Please don't tell me the pony toy was in a jar.

It could be a reference to this abomination.

But either way kill it with fire.

 

[Travoltron]

Those IDW comics looked like cancer to me. The designs for the Ghostbusters look hideous and offputting deformed caricatures. Maybe it's because they don't have likeness rights. I don't know why they just didn't uses the existing RGB designs if that's the case.

There were Real Ghostbusters comics in the 80s, but instead of being licensed to the Big Two like most IPs were, NOW Comics got the license. These comics were extremely hard to find for me and I only had a handful.

Tiamat and Marduk appeared in an episode of The Real Ghostbusters. It's been a while since I've seen it.

 

[Creep3r]

Those IDW comics looked like cancer to me. The designs for the Ghostbusters look hideous and offputting deformed caricatures. Maybe it's because they don't have likeness rights. I don't know why they just didn't uses the existing RGB designs if that's the case.

Yeah, even when the art is decent the characters still look like shit or have this inconsistent angular style, and it references RGB and the movies all the time so I don't understand why they couldn't just have it take place in that setting with those designs if they can't use the likenesses of the actors. The crossover and 2016busters shilling just made it unbearable.

There were Real Ghostbusters comics in the 80s, but instead of being licensed to the Big Two like most IPs were, NOW Comics got the license. These comics were extremely hard to find for me and I only had a handful.

I vaguely remember the NOW comics but I recall that they at least followed the cartoon, films and the cartoon's designs. One thing of note I remember is that one of the Ghostbusters got transported to an alternate timeline where Gozer won.

Tiamat and Marduk appeared in an episode of The Real Ghostbusters. It's been a while since I've seen it.

From what I can remember it was alright and they actually followed babylonian mythology but Tiamat didn't really feel like as big of a threat as Cathulu was despite being a class 7, I mean the ambience didn't really feel as ominous, like no dark cloudy skies and Marduk's true form wasn't as impressive as Tiamat's.

 

[Gaear Grimsrud]

Saw Afterlife tonight.

It was okay.

I thought the first half was kinda boring. Just a lot of exposition dumps, and telling everybody they meet that they moved into the spooky farmhouse over and over.

It picked up when the Ghostbusting stuff started kicking in.

It all plays out pretty typical. Gozer and the Terror Dogs return, but you get no new insights into them as characters, and they just do the same things they did in the first one.

6/10

 

[Gaear Grimsrud]

I didn't buy the reason the original 4 split up.

Spoiler

Egon becomes obsessed because he thinks the world is gonna end, and they don't believe him? Why wouldn't they? Especially Ray. Didn't make much sense to me.

 

[anti SJW]

I think they were more upset that

Spoiler

Egon basically took all the ghostbusting equipment and went to Oklahoma to try and stop Gozer. Leaving them with nothing.

 

[BrunoMattei]

I didn't buy the reason the original 4 split up.

Spoiler

Egon becomes obsessed because he thinks the world is gonna end, and they don't believe him? Why wouldn't they? Especially Ray. Didn't make much sense to me.

I think they were more upset that

Spoiler

Egon basically took all the ghostbusting equipment and went to Oklahoma to try and stop Gozer. Leaving them with nothing.

Fuck spoilers. I think it was a problem where the filmmakers painted themselves in a corner. They want to pay tribute to the Egon character and to the actor Harold Ramis but don't have footage to setup what they need to happen for a passing of the torch kind of movie. So okay, they deify Egon and they do that by making him save the world but when you do that and you want to introduce these new characters it limits what exactly you could do with Egon. They could have just referenced him or had him go out quietly but they wanted to deify him and play up his role.

Logically, Egon would not have just taken off with the equipment and would have discussed this with his fellow Ghostbusters to stop Gozer from coming back. And probably wouldn't have just up and abandoned his family. But if you have it happen that way, you can't have the whole mystery element in figuring out what happened, what brought him out here, what happened to the Ghostbusters because you have a 30 year gap from the 2nd movie to now.

You could set it up in other ways but the emphasis wouldn't be on Egon as much.

 

[KillThemCrackasBabies]

I want to see Jay Baumans reaction that his fear of a CGI Egon came to fruition.

 

[BrunoMattei]

I want to see Jay Baumans reaction that his fear of a CGI Egon came to fruition.

I thought it was Rich who predicted it? Either way, the RLM video is going to be good.

 

[Vyse Inglebard]

Full disclosure: I just saw the original for the first time in theaters a few weeks ago, in the run up to Afterlife, so that might've colored my opinion on the latter somewhat (LOVED the original). I originally wasn't planning on seeing Afterlife, but the intro trailer with Ivan and Jason Reitman that ran before the movie started changed my mind, because from the way that they talked about it, it looked like it was going to at least try to pay respects to the original. Just got back from seeing it in IMAX, and you know what? Color me pleasantly surprised. I mean, could they have done the whole thing with Egon better? Yes. Was it disappointing that they just reused the same villains from the 1984 original instead of coming up with new ones? Absolutely. Is it derivative of Stranger Things? Oh, yes. And the Rainbow Dash pen scene? KILL IT. WITH FIRE. But aside from those things, I think Jason and Gil Kenan did a pretty OK job "passing the torch", so to speak.

Like @BrunoMattei pointed out, Mckenna Grace did a good job with Phoebe's performance. Like, you look at her and go, oh yeah, that's definitely Egon's grand-kid. The family drama with Egon was actually pretty well handled (until the end, that is). The ghostbusting action was pretty exhilarating. And what's this?! A white male character actually gets to play the role of a hero?! And he's allowed to be horny?! Where am I? Is this real life?! Did I fall down?! It's 2021, and I'm watching a sequel movie where the mere act of having a white male in one of the main protagonist roles and having sexual desires for a character of the opposite sex and race doesn't result in a stern talking-to in the name of "ZOMG DIVERSITY!" Not only that, said white male and non-white female love interest actually build a functional (if a bit under-developed) relationship with each other?! Welp, that does it. 10/10! 50/10! Movie of the year all years!

In seriousness though, holy fuck was that a breath of fresh air. In reality, I'd probably give it a 7/10. 7.5/10 if I'm being really generous. Maybe my opinion will diminish after a re-watch, but for now? That'll do, Jason. That'll do.

Spoiler: BONUS: HOW I WOULD HAVE WRITTEN THE MOVIE (AKA Ghostbusters: Ghost Dance)

Make Podcast the (secondary and unwitting) villain. In fact, I legit think making Podcast in particular the villain is where Jason and Gil were going in an earlier draft, but Columbia had a heart attack at making an Asian character a villain, so they just reused Gozer. Sounds crazy, but hear me out. The fact that he's obsessed with ghosts and the GhostBusters to begin with is a dead giveaway. The fact that he does a menacing podcast where he talks about such is giveaway #2. Hell, you could even throw in a bit of extra pathos for Phoebe's story arc. Have their friendship start out just like it does in the actual movie, right up to the point where they discover the ghost trap and accidentally release the ghost, who turns out to be Wovoka. Who is Wovoka? The Native American prophet responsible for the Ghost Dance (because Oklahoma, plus it'd be a different mythology).

Have the Ghost Dance be banned because it caused an unholy supernatural event in the 1800s instead of what happened IRL (maybe that caused Krakatoa in the Ghostbusters universe?). Have that be what Egon was predicting instead of Gozer's return. Phoebe, with Podcast (reluctantly) and Trevor's help, traps Wovoka again. The dead communicating with the living freaks Phoebe out something fierce, but Podcast? Totally into it. He's so into it, in fact, that he wants to expedite the process instead of stopping it, which of course, causes friction between him and Phoebe. Phoebe make him PROMISE that he isn't gonna do anything stupid, which Podcast reluctantly goes along with at first, but his curiosity gets the better of him. He releases Wovoka, who possesses Podcast, and does the ritual. Chaos erupts. Native American spirits run amok through Summerville, making a whole mess of everything. Phoebe and Trevor are confused at first, then it hits her: Podcast. This tears Phoebe up something fierce. Here's the first friend she's made in, like, ever, and he turns out to be just a little too curious for his own good. It's around this time that she calls Dan Aykroyd and asks him for help, cause she isn't sure she can "neutralize" Wovoka/Podcast without killing the latter. Cue Egon's massive ghost trap field.

Phoebe, Trevor, Lucky, (who, in my improved script, had their relationship fleshed out a bit more), the summer school teacher, and the Spenglers' mom (having found a new appreciation for Egon much like she does in the actual movie) head into the mine to lure Wovoka/Podcast back to the trap field. It goes swimmingly.....until the time comes for the actual trapping. Phoebe aims her proton pack at Wovoka/Podcast.....but she can't do it, knowing damn well that without more proton packs, she could very well kill the only friend she's ever known. Cue the 3 original Ghostbusters showing up and doing their thing. No Egon spirit in my version. Wovoka is defeated, Podcast is back to normal, Phoebe and the gang live happily ever after. The end.

 

[UnKillFill]

Juno fucking sucked. The only yardstick Juno should be used as is, "How much will this movie suck comparatively to Juno?"

Serious film, my ass. Did you take a community college film course or something?

The only interesting thing about Juno, is that the pregnant chick from that movie now thinks she's a man XD...

Did they actually make a Harold Ramis ghost? I've heard rumors that they did.

 

[Vyse Inglebard]

Did they actually make a Harold Ramis ghost? I've heard rumors that they did.

Yep, they did. Honestly, could've been worse. Could've denigrated him as an ICKY, WHITE MAIL WHOM PHOEBE WAS BETTER THAN BECAUSE VAGINA. Plus, he didn't talk, which granted, is probably because they couldn't, but still, if it HAD to be done, I think they did it the best possible way they could.

 

[Dom Cruise]

I loved it, it's not as funny as the first two films, Phoebe and the Asian kid are likable, the older brother and the black girl are only ok, but it's 1000 times more well done and respectful than the 2016 film, thank goodness this is one franchise that's been saved.

I was very impressed with how this movie really understands something core about Ghostbusters, Phoebe and the Asian kid exploring the old factory with their Ghostbusters equipment, it's like kids playing and using their imagination, but it's real, that right there taps into what is so appealing about this franchise's central premise, it's like when kids dare themselves to explore the neighborhood abandoned house that's rumored to be haunted or exploring a relative's old house, ghost hunting like that is a common occurrence of childhood, Scooby Doo captures a similar vibe and it's not unlike other movies about childhood fantasies coming to life ala The Goonies (going on an adventure for old treasure) or Jurassic Park (dinosaurs!)

So whatever flaws the movie may have, it understands the point of Ghostbusters in a way that is really impressive and only makes the 2016 movie look like even more of a misfire.

One thing I will say that's a bit of a disappointing though is despite all that it's strangely lacking in... ghosts, there's Muncher, Gozer, the terror dogs, the mini pufts, a brief scene of some weird eyeball ghost and the old miner ghost, but I feel like it could have used a few more scenes of ghostly mayhem in the small town near the end like the first two movies had and it needed something like the librarian ghost.

I got some big questions lore wise though, when are the Ghostbusters supposed to have gone defunct? Ray's conversation on the phone was pretty dense and I feel like I might have missed a few details, Egon is supposed to have died only a week prior to the events of the movie, right? Ray says something about "ten years later", did the Ghostbusters continue on throughout the 90s?

And what happens next? Winston is reviving the Ghostbusters, where do we go from here? I hope they're smart enough to have a new antagonist and not bring back Vigo.

I also really wonder if the video game is canon, it doesn't seem like there's any blatant contradictions, save for the fact that Gozer seemed pretty dead and don't you find Shandor's skull as an item in the game? Been a while since I've played it.

I felt like the scene where the kids ride around in the Ecto-1 and some water splashes against the logo, removing the dirt and grime from it, was a veiled dig at the remake.

Winston also looks at the Ecto-1 and says something like "what did they do to you?" which also seemed like a dig at the remake.

Those IDW comics looked like cancer to me. The designs for the Ghostbusters look hideous and offputting deformed caricatures. Maybe it's because they don't have likeness rights. I don't know why they just didn't uses the existing RGB designs if that's the case.

This is what keeps me away from the IDW comics, I hate the art style, there's even a Ghostbusters board game from 2015, but it uses the IDW art, why can't we just have the movie likenesses?

There were Real Ghostbusters comics in the 80s, but instead of being licensed to the Big Two like most IPs were, NOW Comics got the license. These comics were extremely hard to find for me and I only had a handful.

Haven't even heard of these, wonder if you can find scans online?

I didn't buy the reason the original 4 split up.

Spoiler

Egon becomes obsessed because he thinks the world is gonna end, and they don't believe him? Why wouldn't they? Especially Ray. Didn't make much sense to me.

Maybe Egon really did start to exhibit symptoms of mental illness? Even if he was right, maybe he came off like he was acting crazy.

If you consider the video game canon, if they defeated Gozer twice, that would have made it seem all the more unlikely that Gozer would be a threat again.

I want to see Jay Baumans reaction that his fear of a CGI Egon came to fruition.

It is funny that he called it.

My personal canon is: Ghostbusters, Pre-Q5 Real Ghostbusters. with Ghostbusters II as semi-canon. (Ghostbusters being out of business for years contradicts the cartoon.)

That's the only thing that really bugs me about Ghostbusters II.

I never really thought of the cartoon as being the same continuity as the movies, but I guess you can kind of consider it a version of events that did happen to them.

using a new villain like Tiamat who was mentioned in the 2009game

How does the 2009 game reference Tiamat?

 

[UnKillFill]

Yep, they did. Honestly, could've been worse. Could've denigrated him as an ICKY, WHITE MAIL WHOM PHOEBE WAS BETTER THAN BECAUSE VAGINA. Plus, he didn't talk, which granted, is probably because they couldn't, but still, if it HAD to be done, I think they did it the best possible way they could.

There are *technically* people who could have voiced Egon. (Maurice LaMarche "could" have done it... He voiced Egon in the cartoon.) I'm glad that they didn't do that though.

 

[Dom Cruise]

Who was the stand in for Egon I wonder?

Next up Jason Reitman needs to make his own Heavy Metal movie (his dad was producer on the 1981 one), the world needs the return of Harry Canyon!