View new posts | View your posts Why were the ghost traps hooked on to the proton packs

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Hey, I'm not sure if this was covered in an earlier topic, and the subject doesn't really bother me. I'm just curious to why the ghost traps were strapped to the proton packs instead of hooked to the Ghostbusters' Belts. In 2 episodes I can think of, the ghost Trap was capable of being hooked to the belt. In Short Stuff when the guys bail out of the Ecto 1 to escape a ghost, Egon has the trap hooked on his belt, however that's only because the ghost had stolen their proton packs. In Something's Going Around during the final fight Peter is all geared up, but he has the trap strapped to his belt instead of on his pack. Do you think it was an asthetic choice? Either way it doesn't bother me, I'm just curious.

If anyone has any thought I'd love to hear them.

why not?

It was probably easier to animate

"artistic license" ?

I would definatly go with ease of animation as the answer to the question.

Heck why not carry two traps. Just in case you ran into more than one ghostie. Then each buster could carry them where they would be able to use them best.

What about the video game too? U carried only one trap, but u could catch as many ghosts as u wanted?

sent from my PKE meter

I imagine that it was done for a number of reasons...

1. They needed an "easy access" place to put the PKE Meters when not in use (in RGB the PKE Meter is worn on the belt where the Trap would normally go). It's possible that having the Trap and PKE side-by-side made the character design a little too cluttered / complex, so the Pack and Trap were merged.

2. It might have been done to make things easier on the artists. Merging the Trap and Pack means that all of the blocky parts of the character are pretty much kept in one spot (the exception being the PKE...which isn't always depicted being worn by the characters). This means that the artist doesn't have to keep switching between (and trying to merge) organic and mechanical lines. It also means less headache where perspective is concerned. Simply draw the character with all his/her expressive, organic, lines... then add the blocky, non-flexible Pack/Trap.

3. It might have been done to make things easier on the writers. A number of times the RGBs have been attached while not wearing equipment (or after their equipment had been stolen). Having the Pack and Trap merged means that the characters only need to go after one piece of equipment to be fully armed and ready to bust ghosts. It also means that taking away that same, singular, piece of equipment leaves the characters completely unarmed. This streamlines the story and keeps the action flowing.

4. Finally, it frees up the character's movement. A bulky Trap on the thigh would get in the way of arm movement, sitting, leaping, pratfalling, etc. Moving the Trap to the back leaves the character free to move naturally and with ease.

Awesome Guys, Thanks for shedding some light on the subject. You all make excellent points..

I've grown to like the design a lot, almost to the point that I wish the packs in GB2 had the traps mounted on them that way. It just makes sense. Grab and go design where you aren't leaving any essential equipment behind by accident.

Yeah, As a kid, even though I saw the movie first I always prefered the cartoon design as well. It did seem to make more sense, all in one easy to use equipment. I even felt that it made the proton pack look more complete. Now that I'm older I don't really have a preference, but rather enjoy the contrast of the movie and cartoon designs. It certainly makes for excellent conversation.

This subject reminds me...did they design the Kenner toys so you could attach the Kenner trap to the Kenner pack? I forget.

Yes they did, but it didn't really look the same as it did in the cartoon. You could either put the trap on the pack when your thrower was unhooked or you could pull a tab out on the trap and hang it on your belf. So the Toy design gave you options. It is a bummer that there was no way to hook the trap to the pack while the gun was hooked on as well. At least there was no way that I know of.

Does anyone know if anybody has made a non-RGB pack with the trap attached to the pack?

A couple have. THIS THREAD is my attempt.

But in order to be practical the trap needs to be reduced in size, and the handle lowered. Otherwise you'd need a "Caution: Wide Turns" sign on your butt and forget about walking straight through doorways.

Slime Gut that looks so cool, I had wondered what that would look like if a fan tried that with their prop replicas.

when I was a kid, I modified the trap so the belt clip was on the back of the trap near the handle. I then cut a notch in the left side of my proton pack. Looked awesome, worked perfectly and the trap still opened and rolled until the day I had to sell them at a garage sale.

I never could figure out how to keep the trap hose wrapped up like in the show, but I was only like 8 at the time