THE GHOSTBUSTERS GHOSTBUSTING WITHOUT THEIR STUFF

The Haunting of Heck House

Original Air date September 15, 1990

Writer: J. Michael Straczynski

Director: Raymond Jafelice

Main Cast:

• Dave Coulier as Peter Venkman
• Frank Welker as Raymond Stantz
• Maurice LaMarche as Egon Spengler
• Buster Jones as Winston Zeddemore
• Kath Soucie as Janine Melnitz
• Frank Welker as Slimer
• Rodger Bumpass as Louis Tully

(Rating 5 of 5)

Summary:  A group of school kids are touring the Ghostbusters firehouse and come across a snowglobe.  Peter lets the kids know there is a story behind it.  He begins to tell them the tale of the time the Ghostbusters team were challenged by strange financier to stay in world’s most haunted house for one night, Heck House, without the use of their proton packs.  If they do this they win one million dollars each. 

Strange things in Heck House!

                The Ghostbusters take the bet and decided to stay over.  They experience a rash of hauntings, even Slimer is being chased around the entire episode.  Egon manages to spend most of his time in the place's library that seems to be less haunted.  Egon discovers that Heck House is the most haunted house ever.  For comparison the second most haunted house had only twenty five ghosts in it.  Heck House has over two thousand.  It was because of the spells Joseph Heck put on the place.

Egon hanging out in the Library

                The Ghostbusters rewire the house to become one big ghost trap.  When they turn it on they break out of the pre-sealed doors and make a run for it.  They made it out and proved they could ghostbust without their packs, but they did it five minutes too early so they lost out on the money.  Peter took the house that had shrunk down to miniature size as a souvenir to scare kids with.  

  

Victory Trophy!

My Take: A fun episode that proves even if they don’t have their packs these four are the people ghosts should not want to mess with.

                Now for my stray observations:

•       The kids didn’t expect to see Peter, so the Ghostbusters allow schools to take tours of their firehouse unaccompanied by a member of their organization? 
•       So why did Heck want the Ghostbusters to do it without their packs?  That part never made sense.
•       The singing skeletons were funny.
•       Why didn’t they all hang out in the library?
•        I like when Peter reminded Egon of their first case and the movie made about that.
•        I assume Slimer got out of the house before they turned it into a giant trap.
•        The one I feel the worst for is Slimer. He missed out on a million dollars again.

A generally fun episode one that I remembered from childhood.