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Ghostbusters: Infestation #1
Publisher: IDW
Writer: Erik Burnham
Artist: Kyle Hotz
Cover: Kyle Hotz

Finally, Infestation has made its way into the Ghostbuster universe, and I for one couldn’t be happier. Above all of the other tie-ins, this was the book that I was most excited about and Burnham and Hotz didn’t disappoint. As the story opens, Britt makes an early appearance at the scene of a zombie attack which she is going to use to help further her plans. Soon after, the Ghostbusters are introduced and we find out that they’ve been having trouble storing a new type of poltergeist in the containment grid. So when Ray and Peter come across the victim from the zombie attack while hunting a poltergeist, things get a bit weird even for these guys. After they are quickly joined by Winston and Egon, the proton beams start flying and our story begins to take shape.

Burnham makes the Ghostbuster/zombie theme work like a charm in this issue! The story immediately feels like one of the films as Burnham captures the voices of the ghost hunting quartet quite effectively. His dialog is smart and the comedy is never forced on the reader and only enhances the story’s credibility. He also gave Peter one of the best lines in the issue right when the guys go up against zombie-cat. Yeah, you read that correctly, “zombie-cat.” There is also a twist that he throws in concerning the zombie/poltergeist relationship which is an unexpected one, but it definitely works as soon as it’s introduced and explained. It was also pretty cool that just like in Star Trek: Infestation where the phasers had no effect on the zombies, Burnham tweaks the effect of the proton beams on the undead in this series.

The writing is only enhanced by Hotz’s great style, which I think helped carry the fun of the issue. Though a bit cartoony, he’s able to balance it out with a hint of realism, and the guy draws one disgusting zombie-cat, if you ask me.  Hotz was also able to transfer the likeness of the characters pretty well, though I was a bit confused as to how Winston, who was played by Ernie Hudson in the movie, looked like two different people from time to time. I also noticed the same thing with Ray, who was played by Dan Akroyd, and though I understand that the likenesses weren’t going to be exact consistency with character faces, it is a necessity if you establish a certain look at the beginning of the issue.

When you watch a Ghostbusters movie you expect supernatural events, a few laughs, and to just have a good time. Burnham and Hotz deliver exactly that with this issue and then some! I’d say that the only thing that was missing from the book was an appearance from everyone’s favorite spud: Slimer. So I’m hoping he pops up in the next issue which comes out in a little less than two weeks. After reading all of the first issues for Infestation, I can decidedly say that Ghostbusters: Infestation #1 tops them all!

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