Ghostbusters was produced, nobody involved gave any consideration to a follow-up. The massive success of the 1984 original took the studio by surprise, but the key creatives had little interest in returning. It was The Real Ghostbusters that kept the property alive, with this classic cartoon series debuting in 1986.
The Real Ghostbusters followed the continuing adventures of Venkman, Egon, Winston and Ray, while characters like Janine and Slimer also played major roles. The show added new elements to the franchise lore too, including villains like Samhain or the Boogieman. The Real Ghostbusters - which has a rarely seen pilot - also spawned Kenner action figures and video games and was such a success that the studio eventually pushed for a theatrical sequel with 1989's Ghostbusters II. The Real Ghostbusters ran for seven seasons in total, coming to a close in 1991.
At its best, The Real Ghostbusters was able to recapture both the humor and scares of the original movie and is still fondly ed. The series also spawned its own spinoff with the short-lived Extreme Ghostbusters, which introduced a new cast of characters with Egon and Janine acting as mentors. Recent years have seen the arrival of two new Afterlife. Oddly, despite the nostalgia for the property, there's been no attempts at rebooting The Real Ghostbusters as either a cartoon series or animated movie, but not only should this happen, it should bridge the gap between franchises and have the movie's cast voice the main characters.
The Real Ghostbusters brought on new voice actors for the series, who put their own unique stamp on the roles. At the time the show was produced, it wasn't really feasible - at least financially - to expect the movie's cast to reprise their roles for an animated series, which isn't the case anymore. Ernie Hudson, Dan Aykroyd, Annie Potts and Bill Murray - whose sequel suggestion was used in Afterlife - all have experience reprising their roles in voice over for 2009's Ghostbusters: The Video Game, and while Murray has been historically shy about returning for live-action Ghostbusters appearances, voicing Venkman for an animated series or film should be an easy task.
While the core team could sadly never be fully reunited due to Harold Ramis' ing in 2014, the role of Egon could be taken by Maurice LaMarche, who voiced the role in The Real Ghostbusters. It might be strange to see the show come back with the characters voiced by the movie's cast, but it could also be a unique way to reboot the dormant property too. The Real Ghostbusters - whose goofiest ghost will never appear in a movie - is part of the reason the series endures, and there's plenty of life left in the concept.
