Ghost Command NYC location-verifiable in the cartoon?!
Aug 22, 2020 11:36:05 GMT -5
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Post by smittenkitten on Aug 22, 2020 11:36:05 GMT -5
I posted this in a different thread, but it really should have its own.Pardon me if it actually does have one already...I haven't gone through this entire forum searching. Since I've been rewatching the series, I've been trying to figure out if Ghost Command's location is evident and canon. Not counting the comic books that actually say NYC since I'm unsure if they're considered canon or not, I searched for evidence within the animated series itself. There are two episodes that actually give identifiable evidence that Ghost Command is indeed in NYC. The twin towers are (or rather were) a NYC landmark, but it's never stated in the series if those two tall buildings we see Ghost Command nestled near, are actually NYC's Twin Towers.
Here's copied and pasted what I posted in a different thread with some additions/alterations.
Ghost Command can, with near certainty, be placed in NYC. Pre-9/11, there were several smaller buildings around the Twin Towers. A couple were small 3-4 story buildings, though none were of a historical nature like an old farmhouse which is what Ghost Command resembles. But still, plausible to put Ghost Command within the shadows of those towers. The team had no choice but to fly to the Statue of Liberty. It's an island with no connecting roads from the mainland. Only other option is to take a ferry, which is probably what Jake Sr. used to arrive there and may explain why he was a little 'late' in arriving since he'd have to use the ferry's time table. And I mention further below, I think Jake Sr's house, since it has land (something NYC's inner city housing does not have) is a little further away and not within the Manhattan borough at all.
The other evidence is when they head to Salem, MA to deal with the witch. They actually drive there, not fly. That's just under a 4 hour drive from NYC. When the Salem police dept. calls them regarding the Salem witch, Jake initially mentions having a parking ticket from Salem thinking that's why they were calling (Why he was there and how he got that, I guess we'll never know.). Corky and his family must live somewhere near Salem area or at least in the state of Massachusetts? That got me thinking another large city with a pair of largish twin towers and a harbor area is Boston, MA. It's less than an hour's drive from Salem. If I was going to put Ghost Command anywhere other than NYC, it'd be Boston. But a few of the bridges we see in city shots look similar to those in NYC as well. But a different episode's evidence further below tells me differently.
Further evidence that Ghost Command is in NYC is from "The Beastly Buggy" episode. If you look at the map Jessica has, showing the race route--the starting point is indeed NYC. Unless they arrive there by flying off-screen.
That one episode where Jessica heads off to NYC alone to confront ghosts baffles me, however. That's the one that fueled my idea of Boston really. (On a side note, I wonder, off screen, at the end of that mission, if Jake gives her a nice lecture about doing such a stupid thing without them.) This is probably the episode that throws many off in thinking Ghost Command is NOT in NYC.
I've searched, but I see no evidence of Ghost Command being anywhere in California or the west coast of the USA at all. They're definitely near a large body of water since there's a large harbor not far from Ghost Command. I've seen several suggestions of the west coast idea by fanfics, etc., but there's just too much evidence in the tv series itself to say otherwise.
The other evidence is when they head to Salem, MA to deal with the witch. They actually drive there, not fly. That's just under a 4 hour drive from NYC. When the Salem police dept. calls them regarding the Salem witch, Jake initially mentions having a parking ticket from Salem thinking that's why they were calling (Why he was there and how he got that, I guess we'll never know.). Corky and his family must live somewhere near Salem area or at least in the state of Massachusetts? That got me thinking another large city with a pair of largish twin towers and a harbor area is Boston, MA. It's less than an hour's drive from Salem. If I was going to put Ghost Command anywhere other than NYC, it'd be Boston. But a few of the bridges we see in city shots look similar to those in NYC as well. But a different episode's evidence further below tells me differently.
Further evidence that Ghost Command is in NYC is from "The Beastly Buggy" episode. If you look at the map Jessica has, showing the race route--the starting point is indeed NYC. Unless they arrive there by flying off-screen.
That one episode where Jessica heads off to NYC alone to confront ghosts baffles me, however. That's the one that fueled my idea of Boston really. (On a side note, I wonder, off screen, at the end of that mission, if Jake gives her a nice lecture about doing such a stupid thing without them.) This is probably the episode that throws many off in thinking Ghost Command is NOT in NYC.
I've searched, but I see no evidence of Ghost Command being anywhere in California or the west coast of the USA at all. They're definitely near a large body of water since there's a large harbor not far from Ghost Command. I've seen several suggestions of the west coast idea by fanfics, etc., but there's just too much evidence in the tv series itself to say otherwise.
Adding new evidence to support the NYC theory is the episode "The Ghost of Don Quixote." As they depart for Spain, there's a neat little map in the episode that plots out their departure from Ghost Command (seen as a large star on the map) and their less than direct route to Spain. That star, while huge on the map, seems to be sitting right over NYC. I took a screen cap of it, thanks to those Youtube episodes (I left the time stamp, etc. on the image in case you want to view yourself).
While there's no official "Canterbury Street" in NYC, it's plausible Filmation couldn't use a real street name (just like phone numbers on tv shows and movies) so they altered one. One of the main real roads next to The World Trade Center area is Church Street. Maybe Canterbury Street is the toon version of Church Street? And given all the analogies and references in this series about actual classic book titles or characters (Moby thingy, Don Quixote, etc.) Canterbury is also a book--The Canterbury Tales.
It really does get you thinking too...if the two universes existed between FGB and the other Ghostbusters...would these two Ghostbusting teams know each other? Their head quarters' are SO CLOSE to each other! Less than 10 minutes away! Even closer by bicycle since most NYC roads are one way--it's longer and less direct by vehicle. A bicyclist can get from one ghostbusting headquarters to the other within 5 minutes!
Also, Eddie's dad's house (I think it is anyway), is VERY close to Ghost Command. The fathers actually run on foot from that house to Ghost Command in the episode where the guys are turned back into kids. Jake's dad's house must be elsewhere and some distance away since there's almost no houses with land like that in Manhattan (there's one farmhouse left in real life--I linked an article about it in the post after this one). I'd theorize it's located on Staten Island or Brooklyn, or Queens (part of Long Island)--which would be just a short drive across a bridge or ferry ride across the harbor of the Hudson River from there to the Manhattan area. Anywhere else would put his house New Jersey. But I really think he's just a short drive away (not counting traffic).