I had two dreams as a child of the 80s, being a Jedi and being a Ghostbuster, and thanks to Haslab’s crowdfunded proton pack, I’m almost making one of those dreams come true!
For those of you who don’t know, Haslab is Hasbro’s crowdfunding platform that brings epic-level quality “toys” to market once a certain number of people pledge to purchase. Several years ago they launched this platform with a Vintage Collection Jabba’s Sail Barge from Return of the Jedi which I’m still kicking myself over for not investing in. They’ve done Haslab projects for all kinds of IPs including GI Joe, Star Wars and Transformers to name a few. When they decided to do a “Plasma Series” version of Spengler’s proton pack from Ghostbusters: Afterlife; well I was on that like a Slor roasting Shuvs and Zuuls!
The Packaging
The box the proton pack comes in is made to look like a trunk, stamped with the famous Ghostbusters logo and complete with printed locks and clasps. I may someday make a real one of these in this design because it just looks so cool.
The Proton Pack
I’ve never owned a proton pack before but I do know there are a ton of people who have gone to great lengths to make screen-accurate packs. As a casual fan who’s never gone deep into the cosplay or collecting, I didn’t know what to expect here since this was truly the first time ever seeing one of these up close!
It. Is. Beautiful.
It just looks like something you’d see a real Ghostbuster wearing to take down spooks and specters. Hasbro did a great job with the details and for the less discerning of you out there that don’t care about screen accuracy, out of the box this can be a great addition to any collection and cosplay.
I may do some minor modifications to it like weathering, updating some of the wiring, etc. so make sure you subscribe to the YouTube channel or keep this site bookmarked for future updates!
The “playability” of the pack is outstanding as well. You can even take apart the cyclotron for added details and reenactment! This is also where you can adjust the “mode” of the pack, going from 1984’s Ghostbusters light and sounds; to 2021’s Ghostbusters: Afterlife sound and light effects. I went the 1984 route because, well, that’s my jam. I loved Afterlife as well, don’t get me wrong. I’m just a sucker for nostalgia.
Other Unlocks
As more and more people pledged to purchase this during the crowdfunding period, different unlocks were achieved including:
A stand to hold the pack. Putting this together was ridiculously difficult and required a lot of elbow grease (and pressure), just be warned.
A neutrona wand tube. While the pack doesn’t come with a wand (such a miss in my opinion), you can purchase one from the Hasbro Pulse website, the pack has a tube that allows you to connect the wand and even power it through the packs 4 D batteries which is pretty cool.
Marshmallow goop. Okay it’s not really goop, but you do get some marshmallow plastic things to hang off your pack. I wasn’t impressed with this so will probably sell it on eBay. Nice try, but when you use it it totally delegitimizes the pack (because you know it’s a toy and you want it to be as real as possible…)
Burn Stay-Puft minions. Another neat unlock were some little Stay-Pufts that have scorch marks on them. Cute but something else I’ll probably throw on eBay or give to the kids.
Wrap-up
I’m so glad I got this. My life just seems so much more richer now that it’s in my clutches. I can’t wait to pick up the Nutrona wand and get out there and bust some ghosts (or at least let my 8-year-old self run wild and free).
Did you pick one of these up? What did you think? Are you a hard-core collection? Did it live up to your expectations? Leave me a comment below and let me know!
Thanks for stopping by.
