IDW Publishing Forums

[GothicGhostBuster]

i only ask because other franchises have branched out and modernized their stories in one way or another but the ghostbusters have always been stuck in the late 80s-Early 90s never going further than that

I'd imagine things would be a lot different with Smartphones tablets and the internet going strong

[Tothenines]

My kneejerk reaction is: No.

But Ghostbusters is unique in that it's never been rebooted (ignoring a few obscure comics). Stuff like Ninja Turtles, there's been like 8 substantial different versions, but every version of Ghostbusters (animated, video game, IDW) all ties-in to the movie.

I feel like there's still a lot of good story to mine out of the movie universe, but if someone had a good way to go about it, Ghostbusters could absolutely work in a modern setting.
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[Trey]

There's a good way to go about it and if done that way I have no problems with it

[GothicGhostBuster]

[Erik Burnham]

The video game is the only thing that put the franchise into the past.

The movies were both set "now." (Ghostbusters 2 was a little bit more specific with mentioning years, but if you fudge that...)

The comic book takes place in a timeless now. Tristan Jones used to joke about it being 1994 (and the joke was taken seriously) but it's written to avoid that.

Not everything is ON the internet, believe it or not, so that wouldn't necessarily help with research. I know I have reference books I still turn to because their contents aren't available online (sometimes not at all, sometimes simply not enough of the right info has been translated.)

Cell phones? They've been using those in the series.

And in issue #2, there was a digital camera.

We don't overuse the stuff because "timeless" can almost always be seen as "now" until there's a bigger technological shift than there's been.

Put another way; take pagers and PDAs. They were huge and "modern" for a while (pagers for decades) and they're all but gone, now. Replaced. With some of the technology shown at the CES this year, current designs of iPod will likely disappear, meaning showing those could date the book more than not showing them. If I had an iPad used, but in, I don't know, five years the standard became the flexible technology recently shown (thinner, and something you can bend) that would tie me to a specific time for sure.

This way, suspension of disbelief just says you're not seeing the stuff "on camera" but doesn't keep it from existing. Some guy down the block from the firehouse could just as easily be playing Angry Birds on his tablet as Galaga on a stand up arcade.

Or just out of view in Ecto, you can say there's a low-console mounted GPS. Or not.

This isn't nostalgia goggles.

(And trust me, anything that overuses modern anything in a few years will be looked upon as quaint and dated more than something that underuses. Maybe you should watch the "very modern" movie Hackers.) (;
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[GothicGhostBuster]

What abou the jumbo screens on so many buildings in New York? That's kinda hard to ignore as its been apart of the cities culture for many years now and I'm not asking for ipads on every page or anything like that

it's just been so many years since the last ghostbusters cartoon and even longer since the last movie

yet little to nothing has been done with the franchise since then outside of comic books

and the one video game that did try to modernize things(GB: Sanctum Of Slime)Got pelted with bad reviews....

it's easy enough to say you don't want to fill the comic with gadgets and pop culture references you fear will become outdated sooner rather than later

but even something such as a newspaper can be outdated and in fact it is to the point where nobody really reads them anymore sure they may casually buy one once in awhile or have them delivered but it's not something they rely on for their news it's more or less reading material on the toilet now

so what about that? what do you about common every day things that have become outdated that people now treat as Ancient Relics now

[Erik Burnham]

[Erik Burnham]

[Spengs85]

I think the 88MPH book was the only one to actively make a big deal about bringing the Ghostbusters into the present, and I found that setting the series in a hard contemporary date really didn't add anything to the experience.

When I read the IDW book, I'll admit, I do tend to view it with hard dates in the back of my mind, but that's just me. Refraining from showering the book in modern technology and pop culture references is a wise move, as that's the quickest way to date something and make it feel "quaint" down the line as opposed to future readers enjoying it at face value.

Most episodes of the Real Ghostbusters didn't revel in '80s trends and cultural references and they were better for it. But remember the ones that did? Like "Banshee Bake a Cherry Pie" with all the 80s glam music and hair styles?

When I read a Carl Barks Duck comic or an old Peanuts strip I never feel like it's taking place in the 40s or the 60s because they actively downplay contemporary technology and culture and that indefinitely extends their shelflife. I go back and I read something like The Ultimatesl, which is only like 10 years old, I role my eyes at the already outdated pop culture references like Freddy Prinz Jr. That kind of topical flavor of the month stuff ultimately hurts the book down the line and it's a gimmick most writers are better off avoiding if they don't want their book to be laughed out once those trends expire.

With the Ghostbusters, I suppose it's harder to avoid utilizing modern technology, at least in terms of internal logic within the series, as they'd most assuredly WANT to add the latest iConveniences to their arsenal. But I always saw the Ghostbusters as guys who make their equipment out of spare parts and whatever they can afford and build them to last, not become obsolete as soon as the next upgrade is available. Yeah, it may seem strange that they aren't running around with iPhones and social networking to expand their business, but guess what? A few years ago, they'd have been making My Space references and those would already be outdated and groaned at. Burnham could have them making Facebook references now, but who knows how long those will stay relevant.

While I personally read the comic with a static timeline in mind, I appreciate the attempts to keep it "timeless" and the book is better for it.
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[GothicGhostBuster]

[Erik Burnham]

Less people does not mean barely anyone, just to use the newspapers as an example, and in New York City the NY Times, Wall Street Journal and others are still very much read.

As for technology, you got your wish already. (Smaller) cell phones, a digital camera and (in Infestation) a DVD player have all been seen. This is clearly later than the movies, cartoon, or game.

The WTC is not seen in the book, either, which may or may not be a chronological point for people. (They can assume we're post September 11, or they can assume we're just being respectful and not showing the towers.)
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[GothicGhostBuster]

you still can't argue that newspapers are struggling in the digital age where many people would rather read the news on a tablet than spend a few bucks on it in paper form

difference between comics and newspapers comics are enjoyable to read and it's fun to collect the issues

newspapers?...unless it's something special like a historic event or some sweet comic strips there's not much sense in keeping newspapers especially when you can just recycle them

[mrmichaelt]

I personally stick to the AU choice. There are similarities but not everything happened way as real history. There already are tech and buildings that nod to current times, in the AU aspect, fine with me. They don't come across as anachronisms.

[Trey]

[GothicGhostBuster]