Luke Owen reviews the latest issue of Ghostbusters…
The unexpected after effects of the knock-off proton packs utilized by the Ghost-Smashers have unleashed one very juiced up ghost on the city of New York! If even the tried and true equipment of the real Ghostbusters can’t stop this thing… what can?
The Ghost Smaher days are over and the Ghostbusters are victorious and it all felt so… anti-climatic. A storyline that could have been spread over a good number of months is over in just 3 issues. The Ghost Smashers were introduced at the tail end of Issue #13, proved to be frauds in Issue #14 and their problems have been solved here.
But that’s not to say that Ghostbusters #15 doesn’t have its merits. The artwork of the unleashed evil is really cool and the scene in Peck’s office is incredibly reminiscent of the scene in the first movie with the mayor (“yes it’s true…”). It was also really nice to see some true emotion from Egon as he lashes out at the foolish Ron Alexander for causing all of this havoc – it was a refreshing change of pace for his character that is mostly used for exposition dialogue (a role not unknown to the character in both film and cartoon).
It was also really nice to see the Ecto-2, the 2-man autogyro that first appeared in The Real Ghostbusters episode Ghost Busted and was one of my favourite toys growing up – another great nod to the fans as a means of tying together all Ghostbusters continuity. The issue also does a nice job of tying up a storyline involving Egon’s college friend Eugene Visitor as well as introducing Jenny Moran who could become a new love interest for Ray.
However, as I stated before, the issue as a whole feels like a letdown. The final battle with the evil demon is only spread over a few pages where an entire issue could have made for a more epic showdown. I’m sad to see the end of the Ghost Smashers, but at least we haven’t seen the last of Ron Alexander who will be returning in February’s The New Ghostbusters.
Erik Burnham and Dan Shoening are doing a great job with Ghostbusters and I hope their reign continues for many more months. But the Ghost Smashers could have done with more time to establish themselves as villains and the evil they unleash could have been more terrifying than Gozer, if it was given more than 5 pages.
Luke Owen is a freelance copywriter working for Europe’s biggest golf holiday provider as their web content executive.
Originally published November 28, 2012. Updated November 29, 2022.
