The Real Ghostbusters: "The Revenge Of Murray The Mantis"

                  

Premiered November 2, 1987.  

It's the day before Thanksgiving in New York City.  At their headquarters, the Ghostbusters are cleaning their Ecto-1 car so it'll look good when they drive it in in New York's Thanksgiving Day parade.  Peter Venkman (Lorenzo Music) is looking forward to the parade, since he thinks it'll be a great place for him to meet women.  

Later that evening, a work crew at a warehouse is rushing to finish a balloon in time for the parade.  They're being supervised by Anne Lawson (Amy Hill), one of the organizers of the parade.  It's a balloon of Murray The Mantis, star of a cartoon series where he protected a garden from bad guy bugs.  Anne is glad the balloon will be ready, but she gets a bit unnerved when she learns the warehouse used to be a morgue.  

At the parade, Egon (Maurice LaMarche) and Ray (Frank Welker) are excited to see the Murray balloon, since they're big fans of the cartoon.  Venkman, on the hand, has never heard of Murray or his show.  

The parade is going well until suddenly, the Murray balloon turns into an actual giant Praying Mantis!

It wrecks the parade and sends spectators fleeing in terror.  The Ghostbusters snap into action and attack the big bug.  Ann informs them the Murray balloon was made in a building that was once a morgue.  Ray figures that the balloon must have picked up "death force energy" from the old morgue, which made it come to life.  

After chasing the mantis to Central Park, the Ghostbusters realize they won't be able to defeat Murray by themselves.  Winston Zeddemore (Arsenio Hall) says if they want to take down Murray, they'll need help from "the Big Guy "- The Stay Puft Marshmallow Man!  The Ghostbusters stopped Stay Puft from destroying New York (as seen in the Ghostbusters movie) and he's been held captive in their containment unit ever since.  

If they release Stay Puft, he might be able to help them beat Murray.  However, there's also a possibility that he could destroy the city.  Is it worth the risk?  

Will Murray The Mantis ruin Thanksgiving?

J.A. Morris says:

This is a solid Thanksgiving episode of a good 1980s cartoon.  In earlier reviews, we/ve talked about how the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade is just a big as part of Thanksgiving Day as turkey, pumpkin pie and cranberries.  "The Revenge Of Murray The Mantis" puts its entire focus on the parade and we don't get the usual Thanksgiving tropes like culinary disasters or annoying relatives.  

The story here is pretty basic Ghostbusters stuff.  A parade balloon comes to life, animated by "death energy" and the Ghostbusters jump into action to stop it.  The addition of the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man makes the episode feel more connected with the original theatrical film, something you can't say about every episode.  Slimer, another ghost who appeared in the movie also helps them control Stay Puft.  

When I was a kid, there always seemed to be balloons that featured characters who had fallen into obscurity and my only point of reference for them was the Macy's parade.  Linus The Lion Hearted is a good example.  I believe Murray is meant to represent cartoon characters who have faded from public memory, since Peter Venkman has never heard of Murray or his old cartoon.  

The Real Ghostbusters featured a great voice cast and they all do fine work here, even if they don't sound much like their movie counterparts.  Frank Welker does double-duty as Ray Stantz and Slimer. 

If I had any problems with "The Revenge Of Murray The Mantis," it's that the series' low budget undermines the story, especially its action scenes.  The episode features a fight between Murray and Stay Puft, two giant monstrous characters.  However, we don't really ever see both characters in the same shot.   The closest we get to seeing Murray and Stay Puft onscreen simultaneously is when Ray watches them through his binoculars.  I understand it's a cheap cartoon from more than 30 years ago, but it's still disappointing.   

"The Revenge Of Murray The Mantis" is an enjoyable tribute to the Macy's parade that features likeable characters, fun action scenes and great voice-acting.  It's recommended to all fans of the parade and especially recommended to Ghostbusters fans.

J.A. Morris' rating:

3 pumpkin pies.

RigbyMel says:

I remember watching a fair bit of The Real Ghostbusters back in the mists of the 1980s, partly because my youngest brother was really into the show, but I have no memory at all of seeing this Thanksgiving themed episode until checking it out in recent years.  

The action essentially boils down to the Thanksgiving day parade being interrupted by a kaiju battle between the possessed Murray The Mantis balloon and the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man.  High concept!

I like the balloon/kaiju mayhem idea very much but, as J.A. Morris points out above, I do feel that the low-rent animation makes the overall impact a bit...underwhelming.  

Still, "The Revenge of Murray The Mantis" is enjoyable enough to appeal to Thanksgiving day parade and Ghostbusters fans alike, even if it's not a "classic."

RigbyMel's rating:

2 and a half pumpkin pies.

The Real Ghostbusters: "The Scaring of the Green"

Premiered November 16, 1987

On St. Patrick's Day Eve,  the Ghostbusters have been called to clean up a pesky ghost at a banquet attended by the mayor.   They get the ghost, but unfortunately, they also manage to zap the mayor's wife by accident (she was fine, her dress got fried though), which lands them in jail.

Deputy Police Chief O'Malley arrives with an offer for the Ghostbusters.   He'll have the charges dropped (and pay for the Mayor's wife's dress) if they help him with a little family problem.   Back in Ireland many years ago, the O'Malley clan stole a leprechaun's pot of gold and was cursed.  The curse says that when there is a full moon on St. Patrick's Day, a Bog Hound will rise and carry off the head of the clan.   Since he's the head of the clan and the conditions are right,  O'Malley wants to avoid a presumably grisly fate.   He says that the only way the Bog Hound an be stopped is with the aid of a four leafed clover.

The Ghostbusters (especially Egon) are skeptical, but agree since this gets them out of jail.   They decide to search the city for a four leafed clover.    Ray (Frank Welker) goes to Central Park where he runs into some trouble with an Irish beat cop. 

Venkman (Lorenzo Music) visits the Botanical Gardens and Winston (Arsenio Hall) visits every florist in NYC (!!).   Venkman manages to find a four-leafed clover and is very excited about it, but Slimer eats it when he gets it back to the firehouse.

Egon (Maurice LaMarche) remains skeptical, thinking that science will solve this problem better than superstition, but goes to the Bronx Zoo anyway.   It turns out that many of the animals have escaped and have fled the Bog Hound, which is prowling the zoo!

Egon and some lions are treed by the Bog Hound!

Egon tries to use his proton pack on the beast, but it fails him and he has to resort to climbing a tree and then fooling the Bog Hound into playing fetch to get away.

Meanwhile, the St. Patrick's Day parade is getting underway and the Bog Hound is still on the loose!  Will the Ghostbusters locate another clover and save the day?  Will science (and ghost traps) or superstition prevail?

RigbyMel says: 

I watched The Real Ghostbusters with some regularity due to having a little brother that was crazy about the show,  but I do not recall ever seeing this episode until deciding to write about it for the blog.

It definitely has lots of St. Patrick's Day thematic elements to play with,  four-leafed clovers,  stereotypical Irish cops, a St. Patrick's Day parade and even a variation on the ghostly black dog myth in the form of the Bog Hound.

Interestingly, the design of the Bog Hound resembles the hellhounds from the original 1984 Ghostbusters film.  

The plot is slight,  but amusing and I've always appreciated the vocal talents in the series, even if they bear little resemblance to the voices of the characters from the original movie.

"The Scaring of the Green" is a light, silly episode of a solid 1980s animated series and might be a nice addition to your St. Patrick's Day viewing.

RigbyMel's rating: 

2 shamrocks

Garfield's Halloween Adventure (aka Garfield In Disguise)

Premiered October 30, 1985

"Halloween is my kind of a holiday. Not like those other stupid holidays. I don't get pine needles in my paws. There's no dumb bunnies, no fireworks, no relatives, just candy. Boom, you go out, you get candy. It's as simple as that."

Garfield (Lorenzo Music) wakes up and is excited to learn that it's Halloween.  He informs Odie (Gregg Berger) that this is the night when dogs help cats get candy.  If Odie helps, he'll get one piece of candy.  They go hunting in the attic for costumes.

After trying on many outfits, they settle on pirate costumes.

Orange Beard the Pirate and Odie the Stupid 

Their owner, Jon Arbuckle (Thom Huge) sends them off to trick or treat.

They have a productive evening of trick or treating, and score bags full of candy.  (Plus a couple of unusual trick or treaters.)

"Candycandycandycandycandy!"

Garfield then notices lots of houses on the other side of the river and wants to go across to pillage more candy.  He and Odie find a boat and commandeer it "in the name of Orange Beard, the pirate!"

However, Garfield's plan doesn't work out as intended.  Odie quickly loses the oars and they drift downstream for a while, unable to steer.  They are dejected and Garfield says he's done being a pirate. Just when all seems lost, Odie spots a dilapidated, old house on an island.  Garfield thinks maybe  they should go inside.

What the house contains will make this a Halloween they will never forget!

RigbyMel says:

I remember watching this special when it first aired.  I was a big fan of Garfield back in his 1980s heyday and watched many (but not all) of the assorted tv specials and series featuring the character.   This one really sticks in my memory because the whole pirate ghost plot scared the bejeezus out of me when I was a wee, sensitive little girl.

ZOINKS!

That being said, Halloween is supposed to be spooky and this special delivers horror and hilarity with just the right amount of gusto for kids (and the young at heart).

The scenes of Garfield and Odie trying on Halloween costumes found in a trunk in Jon's attic are quite amusing as is Garfield's mantra of "Candycandycandycandycandy!" and also stuck in my memory.  Recent re-watchings made me realize how many inoffensive, but forgettable songs were included in this special,   (The best ones are the cod pirate song Garfield sings on several occasions and the presence of Lou Rawls's singing voice.)

 We also get plenty of fun interaction between Garfield, Jon and Odie, as one would expect. There is also a nice little moment where Garfield doesn't let his greed get the better of him and decides Odie deserves his ACTUAL fair share of the candy after all they've been through together on this particular Halloween. This is not an unexpected plot point, but it is well deployed.

It's also interesting to note that Garfield's Halloween Adventure was the first Garfield animated special to feature a completely original story, as opposed to one that was adapted from the comic strips.

Garfield's Halloween Adventure is definitely worth seeking out during the Spooky Season!

RigbyMel's rating:



3 and a half jack o'lanterns

"My boat's gone, my candy's gone, the dead pirates are coming any minute, it's past my bedtime, and I wanna go home!"

J.A. Morris says:

While I was also a huge fan of the lasagna-obsessed feline back in the 80s, I didn't watch this special until recently.  But it's become a Halloween tradition in our house.  It has just enough spookiness to keep viewers (especially younger ones) on their toes.  The last act is especially chilling compared to other holiday specials of its era.

While the songs aren't classics, two of them are sung by Lou Rawls.  The opening theme is a fun up-tempo number.  Rawls also delivers another song called 'Scaredy Cat', sung from the perspective of Garfield.

Garfield & Odie get a scare from a creepy old man.

The voice actors here are the same ones who later worked on the series Garfield And Friends.  For me, Garfield will always "speak" with the voice of Lorenzo Music, and Music is great as always.  C. Lindsay Workman is also memorable as the voice of the old man who lives in the (possibly) haunted house.     

A note about the title:It originally aired as Garfield In Disguise, I'm not exactly sure when or why the name was changed.  The special currently streams on Hulu and Amazon.  It's being reissued on a dvd titled Garfield Holiday Collection on November 4. 

Spaceclown?

I didn't see this as a kid, so I'm giving it slightly lower rating than RigbyMel, since it doesn't hold any nostalgic value for me. But Garfield's Halloween Adventure is an entertaining special and a reminder of why Jim Davis' characters were so beloved in their time.
J.A. Morris' rating:

3 jack o'lanterns