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Ghostbusters: Picture Imperfect (Complete!)
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Author:  Fritz [ June 30th, 2020, 8:23 am ]
Post subject:  Ghostbusters: Picture Imperfect (Complete!)

I've been writing stories with an emphasis on Egon Spengler and Janine Melnitz's relationship since the beginning; the first fan fic I ever posted on GBN included some strong hints and the second dropped even more. I built an audience as I continued the story, culminating in their wedding and the birth of their twin children, fated to be literally the next generation of Ghostbusters

I sometimes worry that I've gotten myself pidgeonholed as the "Egon/Janine Guy". So having told the "big" stories, I drifted on to other things; other teams of Ghostbusters; Ray Stantz's love live; hobbit mating dances; and even romances that other franchises have fucked up.

Yeah, but some time ago, I realized there was one story I had to tell about the couple that brought me to the dance. One piece of the narrative that, due to a combination of creator politics and a perception of "this is a boys show and they hate this stuff", had barely been touched.

Ghostbusters: Picture Imperfect, Part One
January 1989--Timeline Year Seven
While Venkman and Winston are out of town, Egon and Ray get a call from the Manhattan Museum of Art, site of Vigo the Carpathian's recent defeat. Janine, meanwhile, finds herself questioning a lot of her recent activities while Ghostbusters' newest hire, Louis Tully, gets a surprise of his own.

Author:  Terrace [ June 30th, 2020, 2:22 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Ghostbusters: Picture Imperfect (Part 1)

Whatever happened to that painting during the 1992-97 period? I don't remember the Extreme team ever mentioning it...

Author:  ghostdiva [ July 1st, 2020, 6:50 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Ghostbusters: Picture Imperfect (Part 1)

I'm excited for this! Hope you can add more soon

Author:  Miss Janine [ July 5th, 2020, 4:03 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Ghostbusters: Picture Imperfect (Part 1)

Shows how long I've been gone. Came to reread my favorite story and found this! I know it's not really his fault, but Louis is still a dork...

Author:  Fritz [ July 13th, 2020, 12:31 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Ghostbusters: Picture Imperfect (Part 1)

I apologize for being a little extra distracted lately. Some of it's the usual stuff--other interests screaming for my time--some of it's been a lot more important real life stuff.

Terrace wrote:
Whatever happened to that painting during the 1992-97 period? I don't remember the Extreme team ever mentioning it...


Well...the real answer is that as of 1997 in the real world all the writers though Vigo was completely gone and done with. It wasn't until 2009 that the idea that he was still knocking around came back into canon (though I remember more than one fan fic that brought him back, some particularly notable ones written by some of my favorite fan writers)

ghostdiva wrote:
I'm excited for this! Hope you can add more soon


I'm working on it. Not as fast as I wish because of some of the stuff mentioned at the top of this post, but it's in progress.

Miss Janine wrote:
Shows how long I've been gone. Came to reread my favorite story and found this! I know it's not really his fault, but Louis is still a dork...


Well, yeah, it's not his fault--his creators made him that way. :ugeek:

Author:  Miss Janine [ August 18th, 2020, 6:32 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Ghostbusters: Picture Imperfect (Part 1)

Take care of yourself, and do what you have to. We'll all still be here waiting. ((hug))

Author:  Fritz [ August 21st, 2020, 3:50 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Ghostbusters: Picture Imperfect (Part 1)

Miss Janine wrote:
Take care of yourself, and do what you have to. We'll all still be here waiting. ((hug))


Thanks. Sorry for taking so long to reply. I try not to talk about personal stuff too much here, but I realized it was slowing down something that, at one point, I thought would have been done with by now so I felt like I owed at least a little bit of an explanation.

:|

(If you're confused, read the main page of the site)

Author:  Fritz [ December 15th, 2020, 8:31 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Ghostbusters: Picture Imperfect (Complete!)

Ghostbusters: Picture Imperfect, Part Two
January 1989--Timeline Year Seven
Venkman and Winston are back, and the mystery of the new Vigo painting deepens as everyone's lives get more complicated. Decisions must be made and secrets must be revealed before the Ghostbusters can truly move forward again.
----------
(Spoilers for the story)

Two thoughts brought me to this story idea. One old, one newer.

The older one was the realization that, with all of the Egon and Janine "moments" that were depicted in RGB canon and in my stories, there was one that hadn't made it in yet: just how did the events of GB2's disastrous turn in Janine's characterization come out? I'd touched on it briefly in Forever as a sort of aside during a flashback (the October 1989 one), but I thought maybe it was time to "show" that event.

The newer one: in 2009's Ghostbusters: The Video Game we see what appears to be the same painting of Vigo the Carpathian we'd seen in GB2, spouting menacing dialog and ironic foreshadowing. How did that get there? I kind of ignored it for a decade, until I thought I had a way to make it work for me.

Anyway, I hope you find it interesting, and once again, sorry it took so long to get part 2 done. For the first and last time, I'll just blame it on "Because 2020"

Author:  Miss Janine [ December 16th, 2020, 7:00 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Ghostbusters: Picture Imperfect (Complete!)

definitely worth the wait! Even though we know how things between E and J will end up, it's still nice to have the missing parts filled in. And Peter was actually right about the kitten! :)

Author:  Fritz [ December 19th, 2020, 9:14 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Ghostbusters: Picture Imperfect (Complete!)

Miss Janine wrote:
definitely worth the wait! Even though we know how things between E and J will end up, it's still nice to have the missing parts filled in.


As I told one of my beta readers, I don't know if I could have written this story without knowing that things will eventually work out. As Venkman says, Janine and Egon are both being very wrong about things right now; as a guy who drove off a romantic bridge of his own a few years before, but has thankfully managed a second chance, it's extra frustrating to him seeing them making such massive mistakes.

But I figure that Venkman's reaction in this story is why, during stories that take place later, Ray, Winston, and Janine were so intent on Venkman not finding out about the regrettable things she'd been up to doing the 90's hiatus.

Quote:
And Peter was actually right about the kitten! :)


Doing some sort of kitten gag came to me very early in the plotting of the story. It was one of the things that made me go "Nah, do it in two parts, and Venkman and Winston are back in the second part." It also inspired the "cover" gag, which I think is one of the best ones I've ever done.

The running gag about Venkman's couch on the other hand, came up as I was writing it and I just ran with it.

It's funny, though--real life and self-inflicted distractions kept me from sitting down and writing this chapter for far too long...but once I did, it came out quite quickly and easily.

Glad you enjoyed it.
:)

Author:  ghostdiva [ December 21st, 2020, 10:18 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Ghostbusters: Picture Imperfect (Complete!)

Too short, my only complaint, lol. Otherwise perfect.

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