{"id":3261,"date":"2010-01-07T04:24:51","date_gmt":"2010-01-07T10:24:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=3261"},"modified":"2011-08-04T01:50:42","modified_gmt":"2011-08-04T06:50:42","slug":"itsalltruereview-ghostbusters-classics-winston-zeddemore-ecto-1-ornament","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=3261","title":{"rendered":"Ghostbusters Review: Winston Zeddemore (& Ecto-1 Ornament)"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a>A few days after Christmas, I finally received what will be the centerpiece of my Ghostbusters collection, a movie accurate figure of Winston Zeddemore. As I said in my Ray review, I really can’t pick a least favorite Ghostbuster. Each one has their strengths and their importance to the overall story. It wouldn’t work if one of them were missing. What I can do, is pick a favorite and it’s always been Winston Zeddemore. <\/p>\n

Winston is not introduced until almost halfway through the first film, but, even in his limited screen-time, he got all the good lines. One of the most quoted lines belongs to Winston, he’s the one who instructs Ray how to answer future questions about godhood. From working for a steady paycheck to being turned white by the things he saw, Winston provides the scale of how a common man would relate to the events of the movie. Winston represents the viewer. He’s thrust into this world of ghosts and science right along with us and it’s the Twinkie metaphors that keep us in the loop. Despite his lack of a scientific background, he quickly acclimates and stands alongside the team. When victory is obtained, it’s Winston who gives out the “I love this town” to close out the first film. I loved his character as a kid and I still enjoy him the most hwen I rewatch the films. And now, I’m excited to finally have a toy of my favorite Ghostbuster, even if the line that produced it could use some more love from Mattel.<\/p>\n

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If Winston is your third purchase in this line like it is mine, you know what to expect from the neck down. I’m still not a big fan of the fact that I’ve paid about $70 for three near-identical figures with different heads. It’s not horribly inaccurate since most of the guys were of average build and around the same height, but it still stings a little more when you see the different pieces mixed and matched on Mattel’s other buck-based lines. Peter should be getting some of his own details (he wore his uniform differently), so that may help. Walter Peck should be a new suit body. And hopefully we’ll see more differences in the figures debuting at NYTF and SDCC. A little more variety would help any Ghostbusters shelf at this point.<\/p>\n

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Winston’s head is probably the best Ghostbusters likeness so far. They’ve all been decent, but Egon was a little too Al Pacino and Ray’s head seemed out of proportion from some angles – like head on. The only drawback to Winston’s head is that it’s a bit glossier than the other two figures. You can see in the group shots that the glare on him is much higher. I might have to use some dullcote to tone that down because it looks out of place.<\/P><\/p>\n

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Instead of including a pack-in ghost, Winston was given the ghost trap. It’s a cool accessory, but I don’t know if it counts the same asa pack-in. The doors have tabs that extend out a bit for easy opening and the cable is detachable so that it’s as functional as a tiny ghost rap can be. The blue lighting effect fit in seamlessly and is big enough to “capture” Slimer in there if<\/em> you can find the right balance. There is one big drawback though, the cable is curled from being in the package and it likes to push either the plunger or the trap off the ground. I’m going to have to straighten it out without damaging it.<\/p>\n

One thing I was excited about was that Mattel said the Containment Unit (included with Walter Peck in March) will be compatible with the trap. But, as I was disappointed to find out today, the figures can’t hold the traps. The handle is probably of accurate size to the prop, but since it’s smaller than the proton wand, the one-size-fits-all hands can’t hold it. For my pictures, I’ve got Winston holding the cable with it twisted loosely around the arm, and the plunger tucked into the proton pack’s cable. It’s not a deal breaker, but this a silly mistake on a $20 toy.<\/P><\/p>\n

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Like with the other figures, the proton pack is permanently attached. That means it doesn’t count as an accessory. The paint apps (less silver brushing and darker reds) are closer to Ray’s then Egon’s, and the cable connecting the wand is again made out of a sturdier plastic this time around. The upside is that the wand was not as warped by the packaging, but the downside is that cable may be more prone to breaking. Overall, the paintwork on the figure is solid. I didn’t have any issues. Continue to Page 2…<\/a><\/p>\n

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Articulation is standard for the line – ball-joints for the neck, shoulders, elbows, and wrists. Swivel joints on the waist, thighs and calves. Hinge joints on the knees and ankles (with rocker joints). And finally, the “Mattel hips” that you can find on most of their boy’s lines. All the joints move well, but the belt details block the legs a bit and the elbow pads prevent the arms from achieving a completely straight position. These are minor quibbles since I can pose the figures just about any way I want to, but if there’s ever something for them to sit down in<\/em>, it may not work well.<\/p>\n

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Overall, this is my favorite figure in the line so far. I might come across as being a bit annoyed by it, but it’s more about frustrations with the line than the figure itself. The constant body re-use is annoying, but it’s a top notch buck at least. With the money that should be being saved on parts reuse, I’d like to see Mattel invest more in the accessories for this line. I would like to see extra traps, more Ghosts, alternate gloved hands, and most of all… proton streams! At some point Mattel needs to include proton attachments and they’ll need to figure out a way to get some extras into fan’s hands for the already released figures.<\/p>\n

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I just feel like, if I’m going to go beyond the four Ghostbusters, then there needs to be something besides these figures with 95% of the same body. I’ll buy Peck because he comes with a large playset-type piece, but Mattel needs to figure out the accessories angle if they really intend to make Louis, Dana, Janine, etc. As it stands right now, I’m down for two more figures and I’m ready to call this collection done until Real Ghostbusters products come along. I love the figures I have, but they need to do or come with more for $20. <\/p>\n

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Ecto-1 – 2009 Hallmark Keepsake Ornament<\/h4>\n

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I thought I’d add this at the end since I’m not sure where else to put it. I had the hardest time finding this ornament this year and ultimately I had to rely on some luck from Santa (along with a network of friends and family, and a very much appreciated Hallmark franchisee in Arizona) to get it.<\/p>\n

The ornament itself is spectacular. It’s about five inches long and well detailed for the scale. The paint and tampos (even the license plate) are sharp and contribute to a great miniature. The best part is that the batteries are internal (no more connecting these to the strand of lights) which means if you don’t mind the little metal ring that protrudes from the top, this baby can sit on your desk instead of just being out for Christmas. Plus, you can hear a snippet of the Ghostbusters theme song at the press of a button. This is an excellent collectible for any Ghostbusters fan and I hope you have luck in finding it just like I did!<\/p>\n

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Continue to our Ghostbusters Classics Collector’s Guide<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/center><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A few days after Christmas, I finally received what will be the centerpiece of my Ghostbusters collection, a movie accurate figure of Winston Zeddemore. As I said in my Ray review, I really can’t pick a least favorite Ghostbuster. Each one has their strengths and their importance to the overall story. It wouldn’t work if […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_themeisle_gutenberg_block_has_review":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_options":[]},"categories":[11,34,10],"tags":[393,55,392,394,20,395,2569,2560,225],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pObc6-QB","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":31395,"url":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=31395","url_meta":{"origin":3261,"position":0},"title":"SDCC Armchair Coverage: DST Calls up the Ghostbusters","date":"July 12, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"","rel":"","context":"In "News"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":28673,"url":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=28673","url_meta":{"origin":3261,"position":1},"title":"Lego #21108 Ghostbusters Ecto-1 Review","date":"July 16, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"","rel":"","context":"In "Ghostbusters"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":9802,"url":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=9802","url_meta":{"origin":3261,"position":2},"title":"Ask Matty October 15th Edition","date":"October 15, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"Ask Matty October 15th Edition","rel":"","context":"In "Ask Matty"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":30675,"url":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=30675","url_meta":{"origin":3261,"position":3},"title":"Toy Fair Armchair Coverage: Diamond Select Ghostbusters","date":"February 17, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"","rel":"","context":"In "Event Coverage"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":6549,"url":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=6549","url_meta":{"origin":3261,"position":4},"title":"Truetorial: Has Mattel Crossed the Streams?","date":"June 18, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"Normally, I get to express my opinions on toys in the form of reviews. If I have thoughts about a particular line or the job a certain company is doing, I usually work them in there. But I can only do that if I\u2019m buying the toys and in the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Toys"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":199,"url":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/?p=199","url_meta":{"origin":3261,"position":5},"title":"ItsAllTrue Review: Ghostbusters Minimates","date":"July 16, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"","rel":"","context":"In "Ghostbusters"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3261"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3261"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3261\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13844,"href":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3261\/revisions\/13844"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3261"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3261"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.itsalltrue.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3261"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}