Honestly? I’m relieved. When he posted the jumpsuits with that familiar logo, I thought we were going to get stuff that was “too close to home.” But with the reveal of that Proton Pack, I’m not really concerned anymore. I’d like this Ghostbusters to be as different as possible, and not make the same mistake the Star Trek reboots did.

Max wrote:

Initially i didn’t think this new one was all that bad, but the more I look at it, the less I like it. I can see the hardware store bits jumping out to a degree that I’m pretty sure i could put together a shopping list that would get pretty close to this without having to leave the plumbing isle.

The original packs were essentially built in Egon’s garage, I think it’s safe to assume something similar about these. Doesn’t it makes sense for them to have a bit of Home Depot to them, with that in mind?

@luke: yes and no. Egon’s pack looked like it was a prototype made by a professional; this looks like it is a comic-con prop made by a cosplayer.

The braided steel lines on the new one are obviously hot water hoses for a sink, designed to carry fluids. The green handle is again a water or gas shutoff valve like you’d see on a propane grill or home water heater. The thrower portion is made of obvious galvanized pipe sections right off the plumbing isle, and the reactor? portion looks like it is made of a speaker grill with copper tubing wrapped around the middle. Then there is a calculator stuck on with some other random metal bits. All the little tubing elements look like copper tube that has been braised together and spraypainted sloppily.

If you look at Egon’s, you can’t as easily pinpoint the original function of any of it, but it all goes together with a sense of design while still feeling homemade.

*Melissa McCarthy puts on the proton pack, immediately losing her balance and toppling over onto her back. The gag continues as she rocks back and forth like a turtle. This is the entire second act.*

I’m in agreement with @maxacree’s opinion. Egon’s design follows the allusion that the nuclear material contained in it needs to be shielded and the external elements are only visible because it is a prototype (and its a movie and needs to look cool/busy). An outer case to keep the cables and lines protected while running around would be practical, but take away from the aesthetic.

The new pack looks more compact, but by going with the design they have now, it looks like they derailed from conveying that this is a nuclear accelerator and that really any radioactive material can be contained in a hot water heater. I can’t buy into this as a group from the scientific community so much as a group of amateurs. Admittedly, this may be the direction of the film, but it derails from the pseudo science involved. (ie radiation is dangerous)

This does look a bit like a stem punk version of a proton pack, thoughts?

A producer I worked with taught me a term: “Demo-itis.”

Essentially, demo-itis is when you reflexively dislike a change to a song you’ve been working on just because it’s different than the demo version you’ve gotten used to. The change might be great, and the next day you might think it’s the most brilliant idea ever, but in the moment you first hear it you’re almost unable to judge it fairly; the feeling you get from the disconnect between what you’re hearing and your memory feels very similar to actually disliking something.

I think there’s a lot of demo-itis going on with New GB.

@Luke, nothing any of this team has done since Bridesmaids has given me any indication that it will be as charming as the original films, or even marginally entertaining for that matter. Had they done nothing since then, instead of things like The Heat or Tammy, I’d probably have a little more faith in them.