The Ghostbusters’ increasing notoriety is throwing them for a loop. While Trevor steadies himself by trying to plan a “friendiversary” celebration for him and Lucky, Phoebe meets someone who might be a real friend instead of just a social media follower. But friendships new and old have to take a back seat to more immediate concerns when a ghostly saber summons the ghost of Captain Kidd and threatens to transform NYC into a ghostly pirate town! Ghostbusters: Dead Man’s Chest #1 kicks off a new ghost busting adventure while exploring the price of fame.

Ghostbusters: Dead Man’s Chest #1 is an interesting comic with a vibe that’s a mix of the latest films and a bit of a throwback to the classic animated series. Written by David M. Booher, the comic’s strength is exploring a family dynamic with the pressure of being Ghostbusters. While one member of the classic lineup is featured in the comic, this has more to do with Trevor, Phoebe, their mom, and Gary Groober.

And that’s the strength of the comic. It’s able to do what the previous Ghostbusters couldn’t really do, feature a family dynamic. Trevor and Phoebe are doing what they can to balance their new life with being kids while their mom and Gary are balancing a new job and city with trying to raise these kids. Oh yeah, they also catch ghosts. It’s an interesting growth of the series and evolves it from the classic monster of the moment of the animated series, movies, and comics. The dynamic has shifted from friends/team taking on the supernatural to an actual family doing it.

Booher also explores the impact of fame on them as well. Phoebe is trying to be a normal kid but her notoriety has attracted fans and bullies resulting in an inability to live a semi-normal life in and out of school. The fame that comes with being a Ghostbuster is something teased and danced around in the past, but here its front and center and not too subtle with the opening ghost busting.

Aviv Or‘s art is good. With color by Cris Peter and lettering by Jimmy Betancourt the characters are recognizable though not perfect likenesses of the actors that play them. The ghosts remind me a lot of what we saw in the Real Ghostbusters cartoon and there’s some fun with the specters there. Overall, it looks good.

Ghostbusters: Dead Man’s Chest #1 is an interesting start and the negative is an ending that feels rather abrupt and sudden with not a ton of setup but beyond that, it’s a nice continuation of the Ghostbusters new chapter.

Story: David M. Booher Art: Aviv Or
Color: Cris Peter Letterer: Jimmy Betancourt
Story: 7.0 Art: 7.0 Overall: 7.0 Recommendation: Read

Dark Horse provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

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Purchase: Zeus Comics – Kindle