Posts
"But haven't you watched the movies?" you might be asking right now. Yes, I have. But that's all the more reason to listen to these books. Did you know the novels can sometimes be slightly different than the books? Well, you would if you listened, and considering that the new "Ghostbusters: Afterlife" is coming out this year, I think this is an excellent time to pick this one up.
Here are my critiques.
Firstly, adjust your speed settings. I'm not sure what the reader was on, but he went fast on default 1.0. If you like your speed at 1.25, leave it at 1.0. If you prefer a slower pace, adjust on Audible, this could be too fast for you and come off clipped. Thankfully on Audible, that adjustment comes out perfectly well, and I enjoyed that I could change it. Also, there is a notable audio pacing difference between the first and second parts, so adjust again to the 2nd part if you prefer.
My only other critique is that parts of the story have pacing issues involving audio or narration. Sometimes the pacing is just right, and sometimes it is not. I found that a bit clunky at times, from action pacing that seemed correct to casual dialogue pacing that was off sync at beets. I have seen the films, and I don't remember the dialogue coming off clunky as it can in the book. So I'm not sure why that was a thing, but it was.
Now for what I enjoyed. This is the comfort food part; this is a two for one special, my friends; you get Ghostbusters 1 and 2 in one novel. It's lovely. I saw differences between the two, and it helped me follow along with the franchise better.
Another thing I enjoyed, and I think this is where it will help prepare for the new movie because there is a lot of backstory to Egon Spangler. I mean, I didn't realize things about the character because it didn't come up in the film, and it helped me understand some of the quirks he has. This will help, I think, with the new film which is centered on his grandchildren. So if you are ready for that film coming up, this may help you be even more prepared.
My favorite part of this novel is explaining the villains' motivations that we did not necessarily get in the films. I liked that. It was a lot of fun to read. Vigo was amazing, seriously. Gozer made a lot more sense in this book than it did initially in the many times I've watched the first film. But I liked these elements that made the story more palpable.
Overall, I'm giving my new comfort food audiobook a score of 81/100, which is a 4-star review on Goodreads, my blog, and Audible. Pick this up if you liked the first two Ghostbusters and if you are interested in some insight for the new film coming out.
