Stranger Things Ghostbusters

Stranger Things Ghostbusters

McFarlane Toys Convention Exclusive

Though it is a bit heavy on nostalgia over story, I don’t hate Stranger Things.  And although McFarlane figures are a bit fragile and overpriced, I won’t pass up a Ghostbuster-related product like this on clearance.  I got this boxed-set for $27 at Gamestop a few weeks back, and it’s not too shabby at that price point.  

There are some small details here and there that should make you feel a bit better about buying four similar looking figures.  This includes some variations of buttons and labels on the proton packs, and the double-Venkman name patch is a great show-specific nod.  Dustin fairs the best with accessories, coming with Dart and the ghost trap.  Unfortunately the trap pedal is glued to the side of his pack and the opening doors have a tendency to pop off.  Will gets the show and era specific camcorder, while the rest get nothing.  C'mon, not even pillowcases of candy?  The head sculpts do resemble the actors decent enough, and each figure has a clear, foot-peg stand with the Stranger Things logo on it to help them balance on your shelf.

What's with the weird, ratcheting-looking joints?

The figures do have a pretty decent articulation scheme for someone who remembers early McFarlane “statue” figures.  Be careful and go slow with the joints, possibly giving these a hot water soak to loosen them up before posing.  Like NECA, tight joints and paint slop equal breakage.  Also, getting both hands positioned to hold the wands can be a bit of a trick.

"If he's cool, then you be Winston!"

As you can see, these size up well with the Diamond Select Ghostbusters line.  And did you hear that Wolf Finnhard is going to be in Ghostbusters 3:  Dawn of the Junior Ghostbusters?  Buying these figures is a one-way ticket to custom city, baby!  Wait...kids in Ghostbusters?  Didn’t they learn anything from the baby?  And casting a Stranger Things kid seems a bit lazy, don’t you think?  I remember seeing a couple of the other kids testing for Anakin Skywalker in The Phantom Menace and thinking at least one was better at line reading than Jake Lloyd...but, hey, Jake Lloyd was the go-to kid actor of his time.  All of the Stranger Things kids can be a bit grating at times...feeling that they are screaming their lines.  Now, I have no idea where they are going with this casting or how big a part it actually is...and I know they fast-tracked this movie to get it done by next year...but I hope that this isn’t an area where taking a bit more time would have made the product that much better.  Hell, we’ve already waited several decades for a decent Ghostbusters sequel, so what’s another couple of months?  Jumping the gun, they missed out on seeing Jack Dylan Grazer’s comedy chops in the spectacular “Shazam.”  Again, who knows if the role is supposed to be funny or straight...but we did see him in in “It” alongside Wolf...who was supposed to be the funny one? *shrugs* 

*Just repeat to yourself...”It could never be as bad as GB 2016” and “I have the Ghostbusters 3 I always wanted: Ghostbusters the Video Game."

Note - At the time of publication, this set is still available on Gamestop.com for under $40.

"He's an ugly little spud, isn't he?"