RichardLess wrote:mrmichaelt wrote: ↑June 8th, 2022, 9:56 pm At GB Day, Gil and Jason only said the series will delve in an unexplored era and decade of canon, new characters, new places, in the future. Idk, sounds like Ecto-Force to me.
Based on the iffy quality of GBA I’m not sure Jason & Gil are the right people to be the “Kevin Feige” of the GB Universe. It’d be nice to have more comedic writers involved. It’s so weird that there is now a GBU. We went so long with no new Ghostbusters stuff and now we are going to be really seeing this franchise stretch her legs. Should be interesting times ahead. I’m sure this fan base will face this new era with all the *[clears throat]* dignity, patience, acceptance and goodwill that it’s known & (in)famous for!
But I must lament the fact that Ghostbusters use to be a comedy franchise and these two have never written a comedy. So I guess we can just kiss the comedy part of ghostbusters goodbye and it’s now just another high concept sci fi property. Well done Sony. Well done. Huzzah.
It sounds like Dan isn’t involved at all in Ghost Corp anymore, or is he? From his little appearance in that bit it seems like he’s taken a step back. I wish Sony would trust him more and find him a great co writer to act like Harold/Ivan. Bringing the best out of his imagination/comedic sense while tempering his more…”out there” ideas. At least get him involved in the story aspect. You have the guy who wrote/co wrote Blues Brothers, Ghostbusters 1 & 2, Spies Like Us, Dragnet & Coneheads! Not to mention years of work on SNL.
I disagreed with you yesterday but I'm going to cautiously agree here, with the caveat I am optimistic and happy we're getting any new Ghostbusters stuff at all.
When you look at the ingredients for GB I & II, Ramis and Murray were the comedy - and they're gone - Aykroyd has lots of wild creative ideas that need steering and editing, Ivan Reitman grounded the concept and crafted an all-time classic movie out of it. In contrast Gil & Kenan are fans, and I feel like so far we've seen the fan service version of how to continue this franchise and don't get me wrong, I loved and appreciate Afterlife on repeated viewing, but I'm also conscious of the things that movie
nearly could have been, which would 've tipped it over the edge into 'classic' status for me.
The cartoon does sound like Ecto Force because they mentioned the future and I'm curious what excites them about the concept... they can go wild with some of the tech and action? I hope they go for a retro-future aesthetic, that would work. If it's hover vehicles and too scifi that would feel far removed from the original concept. There's a bit of a contradiction here with what fans want because some of us are screaming for fresh takes, and the animated stuff does seem like it will be a new spin rather than derivative of the originals, and then we complain! But given they could revert back to the four guys in animation quite easily and figures like Straczynski and some of the OG RGB voice cast are still around, I just wonder what the arguments against some sort of RGB revival set in the 80's were, or if the new series will understand and recapture what made RGB special (the character driven elements). I am open-minded but there seems to be a lot of pitfalls with the concept.
Was the slide with the Slimer "No Ghost" logo in relation to the series or the animated movie? Did anyone get a screengrab?
I have similar concerns about the pedigree for the animated movie, because Brenda Hsueh is a Kate Dippold style pick, the script was the biggest weakness of ATC. She is a fresh voice and I liked How I Met Your Mother well enough. Melissa & Joey was a turkey (though that could largely be levelled at MJH). It could honestly go either way. A shame the Lord & Miller pitch didn't work out (alternatively fans may not have liked their direction, it's just they're a big name at the moment). Prynoski and Kluska I know very little about either but they seem to have worked on some decent projects.
So I agree with Richardless' post mainly about failing to capitalize on existing talent involved in the original movies and animated series. I am confident I will consume and enjoy every one of the Ghostbusters products Ghost Corp is putting out, BUT I just get the feeling that Jason & Gil aren't necessarily going to listen to any of the critical feedback from Afterlife and we're going to get more of the same pacing, callbacks, fan service, this time with the firehouse, Slimer (I would actually like Slimer to be in the movie in an RGB capacity), maybe Moranis and *shudder* (please, no).... VIGO.
So... I wouldn't say Jason and Gil are the wrong people to head the Ghostbusters Universe... in fact with their writing and directing talents and clear understanding of what makes the franchise work I think they are perfectly placed to lead it... but the peripheral names I see associated with the various projects don't have the same writing chops, comedic muscle or paranormal enthusiasm that I'd associate with Murray, Ramis, Aykroyd, Straczynski.
To me, it kind of feels like Sony and Ghost Corp know they have a baseline of white whale consumers in us fans. Because realistically... we're buying into all of this stuff regardless. And so there is a budget limit, and the talent involved reflects that budget limit, so it's about giving fresh talent a chance to make a name for themselves via the Ghostbusters IP, which is totally fair. But it would explain why we're not getting... eg. Taika Watiti's Ghostbusters. And in some respects I understand and am fine with that if it means we get new Ghostbusters content for the next few years. I just... out of all of it, I REALLY hope Afterlife II is a project which takes a step away from callbacks and fanservice and delivers something denser and funnier, perhaps the cast will feature some additional comedic talent this time.
Side note: If we don't hear more from the Illfonic game in the next couple of weeks (old E3 window) I'd maybe start to be concerned about it hitting a 2022 release date based on the assumption it would aim for a Sept/Oct release and Ghostbusters Day was the perfect time to drop a new trailer. Unless they're a part of Microsoft's showcase (unlikely) or just want to spread out announcements.
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