SEASON 2 SUMMARY

Unlike the other seasons of this series that went to ABC first, these episodes all went straight to syndication.  This season was ordered and made at the same time as the first season and it aired during the same time as the third.  This extraordinary long 65 episode season created the foundation for the overall success of the cartoon.  Because of the large amount of episodes the TV producers were able to air episodes every day of the week right before school.  This amount of airtime allowed and entire generation of children, particularly young boys of the ages 8-14, to enjoy the show and become hooked on it.

Ghostbusters getting ripped off!

                The quality of the episode varied.  Season 2 produced some all-time classic episodes such as “Doctor, Doctor”, “The Man Who Could Never Reach Home”, and "Slimer, is That You.”  On the flip side the mass produce season could also produce some real duds like “The Adventures of Slime and Space” and “Cry Uncle.”

                When originally aired, like the first season of Star Trek, these episodes were aired out of order they were both created and intended. For the most part it doesn’t matter for clear majority of these episodes are self-contained.  There are however moments where it did matter.  For example the episode “Cold Cash and Hot Water” aired before “Venkman’s Ghost Repellers” and “The Spirit of Aunt Lois” despite the fact that CCHW featured characters introduced in those episodes and referenced events in them.

Big bad guy in Season 2

                Even when watched in the order they were intended, something the DVDs to this point let you do, there are still clear continuity problems.  Some of the earlier Season 2 episodes feel like they take place before the later episodes of the first season in terms of relationships and character development.   But the bigger problem can be best highlighted with how the character of the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man is treated.  SPMM is one of the two ghosts from the movie that make an appearance, the other being Slimer.  Slimer in the first season got an episode to explain why it is Slimer went from their first capture to their pet.  SPMM, who was destroyed in the movie, is featured on the intro (which I always saw as cannon) yet there is never any explanation in any of the episodes featuring the character to how and why he was reborn. 

When SPMM first makes an in episode appearance, not counting the dream SPMM in the first season, strange things start happening.  In “Cry Uncle” the SPMM is released when Egon’s uncle fools around with the controls of the Containment Unit.  The first season explained how the Containment Unit works, not only should Uncle Cyrus not be able to work the controller but when released the Unit opens right up and only one ghost escapes!?!  STMM starts small an immaterial but becomes solid again when outside and fully formed.  The Ghostbusters work to trap him but for some reason they need multiple traps because STMM is too big.  This has never come up as an issue before and we saw in the show's intro SPMM being trapped with company.  The issue of trap size returns sporadically in the second season depending on the writer.

Peter's Dad proved to be a cheat with these "ghost repellers" that didn't work.

In the episode “Ghost Busted” the SPMM is seen walking around randomly at the end of the episode, how he got out isn’t explained but he is apparently caught again by “Deadcon I” where Janine is made to release him by the hotel ghosts.  This also contradicts how the Containment Unit works set episodes back.  Despite their leaving him at the hotel he is back in the Containment Unit for the episode “The Revenge of Murry the Mantis.”  There his escape from the Containment Unit is when the Ghostbusters release him on purpose.  His leaving resembles the mass break out in the movie, even though it's only him.  This is the only episode where STMM's movie history is mentioned.  However now he has become an agent of the Ghostbusters, trained and directed to fight the Mantis.

Despite these flaws Season 2 is awesome with a great many adventures for the Ghostbusters.  The characterization of each Ghostbuster, plus Janine, and Slimer is spot on.  There is a lot of chemistry for the characters and great stories told with those characters.  Even though Season 1 probably produced some of the best episodes, many in Season 2 can rival them and Season 2 is the backbone of the series.         

{I realized after I first posted this that the video was from season 3, now we have a correct season 2 video}