Ghostbusters International #6

Writer: Erik Burnham
Artist: Rachael Stott
Colourist:
Luis Antonio Delgado & Anna Chher
Letterer
: Neil Uyetake
Editor: Tom Waltz
Publisher: IDW

A review by Amelia Wellman

Ghostbusters International #6We’re half a year into the Ghostbusters International storyline and we’re only just getting some Egon action scenes? How is this possible!? Way back in issue one, his leg is injured by a ghost and he was relegated to the backburner for research-related exposition dumps and research-related mystery cliff-hangers. As a steadfast Egon fangirl, I was disappointed to not get his unflappable logic in some international adventures. Issue #6 clears that right up!

Winston, Peter, and Ray just decimated some of the most famous artwork in the world so they’re laying low while Egon, Special Agent Melanie Ortiz, and Kylie head up their own investigation in Cayey, a college town in Puerto Rico, where a violent ghost has been terrorizing students.

Egon has strapped on his proton pack once again and he and the ladies have jetted off mainland USA to clear up whatever nasty ghoul is haunting Cayey. Moving away from Winston, Peter, and Ray is a nice change of pace at the sixth issue mark. It’s helping to round off the characters that have been relegated to side positions as the main Ghostbusters globetrotted. They’re not forgotten though. With a brief interlude featuring a panicked Walter Peck booking travel arrangements to Paris to meet up with them, we’re sure to have another huge adventure waiting for us with the three of them in issue seven. Besides, how do you top destroying artwork in the Lourve? You need a little time to recover from something like that!

So Ghostbusters International #6 did just that and focused on a one-off ghost hunting adventure with Kylie, Melanie, and Egon. While I’ve never watched enough Extreme Ghostbusters to know much about Kylie (beyond her Gothic look), or read the Ghostbusters comics when Melanie Ortiz was first introduced, I am loving how they each fit a certain archetypal role within the Ghostbusters (Kylie is knowledgeable and enthusiastic like Ray, Melanie is cool, calm, and charming like Peter), but are still each their own character. And varied characters at that: not just a one-layer, what-you-see-is-what-you-get type characters. The story they tackled was fitting too, heading to a town where young adults are targeted and the native populace only speak Spanish. It highlights each character in a unique way and makes them relevant to the events happening, not just shoe-horned in so Egon has some cookie-cutter characters to interact with while he does all the work.

Concerning the artwork, Dan Schoening has been switched out (for this single issue it seems) for Rachael Stott, who has recently had her talented hand in Doctor Who and Star Trek comics. She’s hitting all the major nerd bases with Ghostbusters International now added to her credit! Stott’s artwork breaks the angular models we’ve had up to now. It’s less stylized, but the extra details on the ghosts and characters are great. The action sequence at the end is nicely done as well. It’s paced and panelled beautifully. The one thing I had trouble getting behind though, was Delgado’s colouring on Kylie. Her chosen skin tone just doesn’t work on Stott’s more realistic models. It crosses over from pale Goth girl to cave-dweller who’s never seen the sun. It was distracting, which is a shame because Stott did some great work.

The Verdict
Buy It!
The next issue has the boys put back in the spotlight and headed to Ireland, but Ghostbusters International #6 took us on an unexpected detour away from the main storyline and it was a great variation to shake up the pacing. Kylie, Melanie, and Egon work well together, and the story and artwork are interesting diversions to keep readers paying attention and engaged!

Amelia Wellman
fatal_frame_chick@live.com
I read, I write, I play videogames, Ghostbusters is my favourite thing in the known universe, but quasars come in at a close second. I've been known to cry at the drop of a hat over happy and sad things alike. I've also been known to fly into a rage if things don't go my way, leading to many a fight in high school and breaking someone's nose on the TTC one time. I'm an anxious introvert but also a loud-mouthed bad influence. Especially on my cat. He learned it from watching me, okay!

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