Many, many things make the Ghostbusters cool but near the top of the list has to be their gadgets. Ghost traps, PKE Readers, proton packs and, of course, their neutrona wands. That’s the Ghostbuster version of a gun which fires powerful streams that could grab a ghost and, well, bust it. It’s a key accessory if you ever wanted to be like Ray, Peter, Egon, or Winston, and Hasbro now has just the thing.
Released earlier this year as a tie-in for the now-delayed Ghostbusters: Afterlife, the Plasma Series of Spengler’s Neutrona Wand retails for about $150. That seems like a lot for a bit of plastic, but this thing is way more than that (Hasbro sent us this one to review). After giving it a look, it’s definitely a toy I would’ve used every single day if I had it when the original Ghostbusters came out…and just might use it every day as a 40-year-old man. It’s that cool. Click ahead to see me try it out. Warning: You may see shit that will turn you white!
The Packaging
At first glimpse, the packaging is just your basic cardboard box. Once you remove the label though, the box looks way more like an old, dirty metal box. The kind, we assume, the kids in Afterlife find it in.
The Packaging Pt 2
Unboxing
Inside the box is the wand, a plastic stand (in multiple parts), and the instructions. It also needs three AA batteries, which are not included. Of note, you will need some kind of razor or knife to open this because it’s packed annoyingly tight.
(Not Stephen King’s) The Stand
Part of what makes this toy unique is that, yes, it’s a toy, but you can also display it. That’s a huge selling point for me, personally. So here’s the completed stand. It’s made of a pretty flimsy plastic, much less durable feeling than the wand itself, but the design is nice and hey, it’s better than nothing.
The Wand Itself
The wand itself is just plain awesome. It’s plastic, but a heavy plastic that gives it a good weight. The details, as you can see, make it look very weathered and used. Like it’s been sitting in a box for 40 years. The grip feels comfortable. Plus, you can easily display it in either direction. They both look good.
The Switches
A closer look at the switches is really where you start to get an idea of how excellent this wand is. All the levers and switches not only move, but they also have functions. Functions that will work once you put batteries in. You’ve got the power, activation, and a few other buttons I don’t quite get but are fun nonetheless. The whole thing also vibrates once activated to give it that full-of-energy feel. Plus, if you don’t click the buttons in sequence, it doesn’t work, so you need to do it in the correct order.
Turning the wand on allows it to really shine, figuratively and literally. Once you turn it on and activate it, you can pull the little green level and pop the front out. Then, you press “Intensify” and, well, you’re busting ghosts.
It’s better than that though. By clicking the orange button near the front you can switch the wand into four different modes. There’s orange, green, blue, and finally a red PULSE.
Bustin’ Makes Me Feel Good
In the end, we don’t know how exactly this specific wand — not Ray, Peter, or Winston’s, but Egon’s — plays into Afterlife. Hopefully, we get to find out in March. But overall, it’s just a gorgeous piece for any collection. It looks great, feels solid, and sounds cool — you can play with it or display it. Truly, outside of the fact it takes three batteries instead of two or four, and how difficult it is to open, I couldn’t recommend enough picking one of these up.
Hasbro Pulse is sold out but you can preorder at Entertainment Earth, or the Big Bad Toy Store.