The name patch on his jumpsuit reads 鈥淐obra,鈥� but Ryan Doell said he preferred the grander and possibly controversial nickname 鈥淜ing of the Ghostheads.鈥� This gets a uproarious laugh out of the other members of the Ghostbusters of British Columbia in attendance at Fan Expo 麻豆传媒映画mostly because it鈥檚 a good natured take-down of a Ghostbuster in a far away city who laid claim to being the fan leader. (Impossible, the local guys said, Ghostbusters are notoriously too disorganized to have a leader.) The joke never gets old, especially in the bemused presence of somebody who is not wearing a proton pack nor vintage combat boots.
This is Ghostbusters culture and, it鈥檚 true 鈥� they do act more like game show hosts than scientists.
Todd Whalen, whose name patch reads straight up 鈥淲halen,鈥� noticed more fellow professional paranormal investigators at the comic convention held on the long weekend at the 麻豆传媒映画Convention Centre than in the past four years the Ghostbusters of British Columbia have been in attendance. The spike in interest is likely due to this year鈥檚 Ghostbusters remake, a film that sparked such an outcry with its all-female cast that it鈥檚 no surprise a woman did not later win the U.S. presidential race.
鈥淭hey鈥檝e been coming by the table and asking, 鈥楬ow do I join?鈥欌�� Whalen said. 鈥淎nd we tell them, 鈥榊ou鈥檙e pretty much doing it.鈥欌��
The group isn鈥檛 official and that in itself makes it easier to have a group. There are no brand bylaws, rules of conduct or copyright issues to worry about. The Ghostbusters of British Columbia is really just a group of friends, both male and female, with a Facebook page.
Whalen was five when he watched the original Ghostbusters movie for the first of many times. It was 1984 and peak action-adventure hero. Unlike other Hollywood hits of the time, such as Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Back to the Future and Return of the Jedi, it was the paranormal that got him hooked.
鈥淚t was science fiction, plus the fact it was kinda scary, it stimulated the imagination, and there was a science behind it,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 was interested in it off and on throughout my life and it was one of those Halloween costumes I didn鈥檛 want to do unless I could do it right.鈥�
So Whalen, now 33, grew up, and sourced the Ghostbusters outfit. It includes a military surplus flight suit, elbow pads, military surplus belt, custom-made key chain, military boots, a police radio and firefighter distress signal device. And then came the pack, made by people he met at a Dan Aykroyd autograph signing event a couple years ago (Aykroyd, of course, co-wrote and starred in the originals as well as made a cameo in the 2016 reboot).
The proton pack, used to trap the negatively charged energy of a ghost, is the mark of a Ghostbuster who, sans pack, could be mistaken in appearance for a high school janitor. Its authenticity lies in its intricacy. Some members of the Ghostbusters of British Columbia own silver or black packs. Doell wears a gold version with purple tubing (along with a chain and sparkly No Ghost emblem around his neck). Most of the members鈥� packs light up, some play the Ghostbusters theme song on repeat. Some members design and make their own packs out of molds and other prop-making tricks to create the knobs, bumps and buttons. Nobody in the group has the $3,500 U.S. number, as seen on ebay.com (with 57 watchers as of press time).
It鈥檚 the packs that draw the crowds. 鈥淭he questions range from people wondering if it鈥檚 actually the real stuff that was used in the movie,鈥� Whalen said. 鈥淥r, 鈥楧oes it actually work?鈥� 鈥� that鈥檚 a very common question. Some wonder if it works for real. I tell them yes.鈥�
There are also many who want to talk prop shop with the Ghostbusters as some group members have loads of experience, added Whalen, himself a visual effects artist who worked on Ghostbusters (2016) with a 麻豆传媒映画studio that can鈥檛 be named due to confidentiality reasons. There are also those who take cosplay to a whole new level, who revel in pointing out a hex nut on a pack is off by one millimetre. 鈥淥r that my gun grips are too big, or whatever,鈥� Whalen said with a shrug.
For a donation to the BC Children鈥檚 Hospital, people were also allowed to wear the Ghostbusters of British Columbia鈥檚 near-accurate packs for a photo. It鈥檚 the charity and the community aspects that keep Whalen involved.
鈥淲e鈥檙e a group of friends who love to do this stuff and love to build the gear. Events like this give us the opportunity to share the fun we have with everybody else.鈥�
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