Plasma Series Ecto-1

 Plasma Series Ecto-1

1:18 scale vehicle - Hasbro

Hoo boy...where to start?  Well, how about thinking I’d never have the same sense of dread about my favorite property as I did back in the Mattel/Mattycollector days?  It’s too early to tell if Hasbro has Hasblown Ghostbusters just yet, but this new “toy” certainly rubs me the wrong way.

Mattel couldn’t (or wouldn’t) deliver the Ecto-1 for their 6-in figure line close to a decade ago.  Since taking over, Hasbro has given us hope with a slightly shorter than 6 inch line...short enough for a massive, in-scale car, perhaps?  Fast forward a few months into the pandemic...Ghostbusters Afterlife has been delayed, San Diego Comic-Con was canceled (please stay that way), and Hasbro Pluse-con (an online event featuring all of Hasbro’s properties) unveils this car in the hands of Jason Reitman.  It looked a bit on the small side in the video, but at the time, no one confirmed the scale.  They announced it as “Plasma Series”...so was this just a smaller mock up, or dost our eyes deceive us?

It would be “available” (ha) on Target.com a few days later.  Instant sell out, thanks to scalper-bots and Target’s piss-poor management of their stock.  The website showed the packaging in the same style as the 6in line...but then you get down to the fine print:  1:18th scale.  

Wait...what?  Does that mean there will be figures coming to fit this car?  Again, with the delay of the new GB movie (now pushed to November), maybe Hasbro is holding something back.  Then again, on closer inspection of this “toy”, maybe not...

First, let’s talk about the good.  It looks good.  No, phenomenal.  Inside and out.  The paint detail for this dilapidated, rusted version of the Ecto-1 is near perfect (save for maybe too much black on the front end). The sculpting on the roof rack, dashboard, and all gizmos in the back are superb.  And it was only $50.  That’s a steal for cars in this scale, let alone one that has some notoriously funky licensing deals.  

Added new movie bonuses:  suicide door opens for pull out gunner’s seat!  The seat is on a swivel, and has some sort of weapon or support arm that lifts up on the right side.  Popping open the back door, you get the remote control ghost trap, ready to roll out.  We’ve all seen these gizmos in trailers/leaks, but are itching to see them in action.  My imagination will have to fill that gap for now.  Good thing I can play out...oh...wait...no figures...

Here’s where we get to the main concern.  The gunners seat has no real restraints.  The seatbelts are sculpted on.  If there are to be figures for this car, you have to precariously perch them on the seat?  Eh, big deal, Toyman, right?

Okay.  Try this one out.  I grabbed several 1:18th scale figures from my collection.  Clone Girl from Jurassic World is standing in for Mckenna Grace, Bespin Leia for Finn Wolfhard, and Rebel Fleet Officer for an adult Ghostbuster in uniform.  Clone girl sits and fits just fine in any seat in the car.  Even the driver’s seat.

Oh dear...the driver’s seat.  Princess Wolfhard’s legs just barely clear the gap between the seat and the car’s immense steering wheel.  This figure is pretty tiny (on par with the the diminutive, early-1980s Carrie Fisher) and she’s having trouble getting in the car.  I wish that last line was a Carrie/drug joke...

I picked the Rebel Fleet Trooper because, from the waist down, he’s close enough to a Ghostbusters jumpsuit:  tucked military boots, baggy pants with pockets.  He looks great scale-wise standing next to the car.  He can even fit the passenger seats.  But that steering wheel...

I can’t imagine a suited Ghostbuster figure in this scale, outside of the kid characters, being able to fit in the driver’s seat.  Maybe that’s the plan, right?  I mean, it’s about the next generation of Busters.  The trailers only show kids operating the Ecto-1.  Suck in the guts all you want, boys...maybe our beloved legacy characters never take it for another spin?  

Or maybe this “toy”, (despite the previous scale offerings, despite the similar packaging, despite having the same line title) was never intended for action figures at all?  Sadly, I am leaning towards this.  If this is the case, shame on Hasbro for not being more upfront about it from the get-go.  On one hand, it’s still a nice, working model in the 1:18th scale at a great price.  On the other, Ghostbusters fans have already been jerked around enough concerning a modern, detailed action figure line being cohesive with their signature vehicle.  

It’s not like we’re asking for a 6-inch scale firehouse. (Stay away from Ghostbusters, Haslab!)  If the number one toy company in the world can deliver a car this scale for $50, they could surely scale up for $50 more, right?  $100 for a 6-inch scale would be a dream.  Skip the lights and sound effects, looking nice and not costing you a months rent/mortgage would be nice.  Sigh, I would like to be less cynical and more excited about the future of this franchise...but I’ll never forget the folly of Mattycollector...and Jabba’s f*%#@&* sail barge...

Side note - These finally became available on Target.com recently.  Sort of.  The link was active and had a send to cart button, but you would get an error message trying to check out.  This went on for weeks.  Contacting Target customer service online, the representative said it was out of stock and they would be working to fix the error.  However, a friend of mine was able to order one through Google shopping working as a middleman for Target.  I followed suit.  Success, but how f*&#@^* up is that?  Using a middleman to sell stock you told me was out of stock and your site was broken?!  Target is the absolute worst.  As much as toy fans want to complain about Walmart, I have never had as much problem tracking down their exclusives.

Side-side note - My car came presumably repackaged by USPS.  The address portion of the original Target box was crappily taped to the outside.  Inside, my “Plasma Series” packaging was dented, damp, and crusty feeling.  There was water damage visible on the inside of the box too, and it left some visible moisture on the bottom of the car.  The car was just fine, as far as I can tell.  Maybe it’s lucky this is the aged, beat up version?  Though I doubt Egon or Ray ditched it at the bottom of a lake before putting it in the barn.  Great job, USPS!  Having weathered the Trump administration, it’s good to see you back at the same old level of service!

Take a look back at some other, not-6-inch-scale Ecto-1 cars in my collection:

1:24 die-cast - https://terribletoyman.blogspot.com/2019/01/ecto-1.html

1:64 die-cast - https://terribletoyman.blogspot.com/2020/03/johnny-lightning-ecto-1-proto-ecto-1.html

And don’t forget the “Real” Plasma Series Ghostbusters:

https://terribletoyman.blogspot.com/2020/06/ghostbusters-plasma-series.html

https://terribletoyman.blogspot.com/2020/11/louis-tullys-terrible-night.html