Lost Troll

Troll Bridge

Original Air date: October 11, 1986

Writer: Bruce Reid Schaeffer

Director: Richard Raynis

Main Cast:

·        Lorenzo Music as Peter Venkman

·         Frank Welker as Raymond Stantz

·        Maurice LaMarche as Egon Spengler

·         Arsenio Hall as Winston Zeddemore

·         Laura Summer as Janine Melnitz

·         Frank Welker as Slimer

(Rating 3 of 5)

Summary: A small troll sneaks into New York through the sewers, escaping other larger trolls.  The next morning the Brooklyn Bridge is swarmed with trolls.  At the station Peter is angry that Slimer had slimed him again by sleeping on top of him. The alarm rings and they go down to find Janine watching the news seeing the people overwhelmed and the newsman screaming for their help.  The Ghostbusters show up and confront the trolls, Egon looking at Tobin’s Spirt Guide comes to the conclusion that their weapons will either turn the trolls to stone or make them more powerful.  The Ghostbusters decide to negotiate, Egon, fortunately, speaks their language.  The trolls tell Egon that one of their members is missing and they need to bring him back within 12 hours or they destroy New York with their fire flies.  (They fly and shoot fire.)

Bad news troll with a timer!

                The Ghostbusters then search the city looking for him and finally find him in a disco.  But they didn’t find him in time and the fire flies attack.  The Ghostbusters defeat the fire flies given their very predictable weakness.  Nevertheless they don’t want to continue and fight the trolls and their fire flies yet they don’t want to send the happy little dancing troll back where he doesn’t want to go.  So they trick his fellow trolls into thinking resisted and was turned to stone because of it.  The rest of the trolls leave sulking caring the stone remains of their citizen. The Ghostbusters later send the run away troll on a bus to hang out with Peter’s friend who owes him money.

Lost Troll

My Take: Okay it was not one of my favorite episodes.  First are trolls even in the Ghostbusters’ jurisdiction?  They’re not ghosts, how are they supposed to catch and place them in the Containment Unit?  It seems to me they should have just called the National Guard if the cops failed.  The trolls, even with their fire flies weren’t that impressive.  Also how old is this rebel member?  He strikes me as he if might be a kid! Did the Ghostbusters do the right thing not turning him over to his people?  Never really discussed.

Some of my stray observations:

·         Slimer must create lot of laundry for them.

·         Their Eighties are showing: beat box and Mohawks.

·         Janine was watching the news on her computer?  The Ghostbusters were ahead of their time.

Very advanced for Eighties tech

·         I had forgotten the story Three Billy Goats Gruff , after watching this I googled it and I now know why I forgot it: it’s a stupid story.

·         Egon can speak troll, sure why not?  What can’t Egon do?

Good thing I can speak Troll

·         I want a fire fly.

·         $5 is a lot in the 1980s.