Filmation's Ghostbusters (previously called Ghostbusters) is a 1986 American animated television series created by Filmation and distributed by Tribune Entertainment, serving as the sequel to Filmation's 1975 live-action television show The Ghost Busters.

The show premiered around the same time as the unrelated The Real Ghostbusters, which premiered five days later. When making their film, Columbia Pictures needed to obtain rights to use the name from Filmation.

The success of Columbia's (unrelated) film spurred Filmation to resurrect their own property, producing an animated series based on the characters from the earlier TV show. This animated series ran from September 8 to December 5, 1986 in daytime syndication, and produced 65 episodes. The series is technically called simply Ghostbusters, but home video releases used the name Filmation's Ghostbusters to avoid confusion. In the United States, reruns of the show previously aired on CBN Cable; The Family Channel, Qubo's Qubo Night Owl block from 2010 to 2013; and most recently on the Retro Television Network until 2015.

In the 1980s, ABC aired the series in Australia.

Summary Jake Kong Jr. and Eddie Spenser Jr. are the sons of the original Ghost Busters from the live-action comedy series of the same name; Tracy the Gorilla had worked with their fathers.

Their headquarters, termed Ghost Command, is located in a haunted mansion nestled between a number of tall skyscrapers (which resemble the World Trade Center's Twin Towers in New York City). They are supported by a number of secondary characters including Ansabone, a talking skull phone; Skelevision, a talking skeleton television; Belfry, a pink talking bat; and Ghost Buggy Jr., their talking car. They occasionally enlist the aid of Futura, a time-traveling Ghostbuster from the future, and Jessica Wray, a local TV news reporter.

Together, they have dedicated themselves to ridding the world of the evil ghost wizard Prime Evil and his cast of henchmen. Prime Evil's headquarters, termed the Hauntquarters (which resembles the British Houses of Parliament complete with a Big Ben-esque clock tower), is located in The Fifth Dimension. In a typical episode, Prime Evil uses his magical powers to open up a wormhole to enable one or more of his henchmen to complete a particular scheme that serves to help him take over the world.

Famous guest-star ghosts and monsters that appeared on the show include Count Dracula and the Headless Horseman (who also appeared in an episode of The Real Ghostbusters written by Jean-Marc Lofficier's wife, Randy Lofficier).

Like almost all 1980s Filmation cartoons, each episode closes with a segment describing a particular lesson that can be learned from the events of the episode. Skelevision (sometimes accompanied by Belfry) is the character most often employed in this role. From time to time, Jake Jr., Eddie Jr. or another protagonist would talk with Skelevision about the lesson.

Controversy When Columbia Pictures began work on the film Ghostbusters in 1984, producers overlooked the fact that Filmation had already created a live-action comedy series with that same name in 1975. Columbia agreed to license the name from Filmation for $608,000, plus 1% of the profits (of which there were ostensibly none, thanks to Hollywood accounting). This deal did not include giving Filmation the rights to make an animated series based on the film. After the film became a success, Filmation offered to make an animated series, but Columbia chose instead to give the contract to DiC. Filmation then made their own animated show based on their 1975 live-action sitcom. It was released just a few days ahead of DiC's series. DiC titled their own adaptation of the movie The Real Ghostbusters to distinguish it from the Filmation show.

The Filmation show and the DiC show aired simultaneously, and this left audiences confused because they had similar titles and concepts. This confusion led to poor toy sales for the Filmation show. In retrospect, producer Lou Scheimer felt that it had been an error to produce a Ghostbusters show in direct competition to the more popular Columbia show.

Home media BCI Eclipse LLC (under its Ink & Paint classic animation entertainment label and under license from Entertainment Rights PLC) released the entire series in Region 1 in two-volume sets in 2007. Each episode on BCI Ink & Paint's DVD releases of the 1986 animated series of Filmation's Ghostbusters was uncut, re-mastered and in story continuity order. Each set also features extensive special features including interviews, commentary, image galleries, bonus episodes and more. Unlike many of BCI Ink & Paint's R1 DVD releases of the Filmation in-house library, with the exception of two episodes ("Tracy Come Back", and "Like Father, Like Son"), this DVD release appears to have been sourced from the original NTSC film prints. As of 2009, these releases have been discontinued and are out of print as BCI Eclipse ceased operations.

TGG Direct, LLC released a single-disc The Best of Ghostbusters DVD that contains four episodes ("Mummy Dearest", "Shades of Dracula", "The White Whale" and "Like Father, Like Son"). The disc was available at Wal-Mart on a cardboard backing.

Mill Creek Entertainment announced the re-release of the series on DVD. DVD nameEp#Region 1 Filmation's Ghostbusters – Volume 132 February 27, 2007 Filmation's Ghostbusters – Volume 233 July 3, 2007

In Australia, the complete series was released on DVD by Shock Entertainment across three 3-disc volumes on June 1, 2016.

The animated series was previously released on VHS by Celebrity Home Entertainment's "Just For Kids" imprint.

VHS UK history Video Gems (later Little Gems) (September 1987 – 1993) VHS video title VHS Studios Year of releaseEpisodes Ghostbusters – The Ransom of Eddie Spenser / A Friend in Need Video Gems 1987 "The Ransom of Eddie Spenser""A Friend in Need" Ghostbusters – Further Adventures of Your Favorite Ghost Hunters Video Gems 1988 "The Battle for Ghost Command""Like Father, Like Son" Ghostbusters (Little Gems – Junior Video Club) Little Gems 1991 "The Ransom of Eddie Spenser""A Friend in Need" Ghostbusters – Further Adventures of Your Favorite Ghost Hunters (Little Gems – Junior Video Club) Little Gems 1991 "The Battle for Ghost Command""Like Father, Like Son"

Recurring characters

Heroes Jake Kong Jr. is the son of the original Jake Kong from The Ghost Busters. Jake is the leader of the Ghostbusters, just like his father was. He is often responsible for coming up with ideas to solve difficult problems. Action is what Jake lives for, and he takes ghostbusting very seriously. His nose twitches when ghosts are nearby. Jake is of Swedish heritage on his father's side of the family. Voiced by Pat Fraley. Eddie Spenser Jr. is the son of the original Eddie Spenser from The Ghost Busters. Eddie is often frightened by ghosts, though he always means well. He is klutzy, but what he lacks in wits and resourcefulness he compensates for in enthusiasm. Voiced by Peter Cullen. Tracy the Gorilla is the same ape from The Ghost Busters. Extremely smart, Tracy is credited with supplying the various ghost-busting gadgets which Jake and Eddie use; he will often produce one on the fly, if needed. Tracy's as strong as he is clever, which also helps in the crunch. Unlike the live-action series, in which he usually wore a beanie, Tracy wears a fedora with a backpack and khaki shorts. Voiced by Lou Scheimer. Belfry is a pink-colored bat who can emit a sonic scream. Belfry calls it the Belfry Blast. Belfry will sometimes tag along on Ghostbusting adventures, but often is told it could be too dangerous. Belfry has three cousins: a Southern bat named Beauregard, a Brooklyn bat named Rafter, and a British bat named Yves. His name and species are a reference to the expression "bats in one's belfry". Voiced by Susan Blu. Futura is a ghostbusting sorceress from the 30th century who uses technology instead of magic. She is as intelligent and brave as she is lovely. Her vehicle of choice is the Time Hopper, a futuristic motorcycle. Futura is often called in by her 20th century predecessors whenever a bad situation gets worse. She can predict what is going to happen in the present time, as well as being telekinetic. She also seems to have a crush on Jake; often complimenting him on how he looks and periodically kissing him, much to his delight. In her original design, Futura was an African American with long, light-brown hair. Voiced by Susan Blu. Jessica Wray is a TV news reporter. She often reports on the events the Ghostbusters will go investigate and sometimes accompanies them. Jake seems to have a crush on her and she for him. She had blonde hair in her initial design. Voiced by Susan Blu. Madam Why is a fortune-telling Roma woman who speaks with a European accent, resides in a wagon, and occasionally assists the Ghostbusters. Voiced by Linda Gary. Ghost Buggy Jr., a.k.a. G.B. is the Ghostbusters' Southern accent-talking car that can assume many forms of transportation (including a train complete with graffiti on the sides), along with the ability to travel through time. Ghost Buggy Jr. is often found sleeping in Ghost Command's garage and gets annoyed when the Ghostbusters land on him. His face is the ghost shown in the series logo. Voiced by Pat Fraley. Corky is Jessica's young nephew. He wears an orange shirt with the Ghostbusters logo on it. Voiced by Erika Scheimer. Ansabone is Ghost Command's talking skull telephone. When the Ghostbusters get a call for help, Ansabone will usually make it hard for them to answer him and will give the caller a sarcastic message. Voiced by Lou Scheimer. Skelevision is Ghost Command's talking skeleton television. Skelevision often shows the Ghostbusters the problem they will have to face and is very often the one who talks about the lesson that can be learned from the episode. Voiced by Lou Scheimer. Skelevator is Ghost Command's bony elevator with a mind of its own. It is the primary transport for the Ghostbusters to change into their ghost-busting attire. A portable version is used when the Ghostbusters are on location while tracking ghosts. Voiced by Erika Scheimer. Shock Clock is Ghost Command's talking cuckoo clock. Voiced by Erika Scheimer. Merlin is the famed wizard of King Arthur's era, who has previously crossed paths with Prime Evil. Voiced by Alan Oppenheimer. Fuddy is Merlin's apprentice. When a full moon is out, Jake is able to chant and call him for help by casting a magic spell, which rarely works the way it is intended. Voiced by Lou Scheimer. Jake Kong Sr. and Eddie Spenser Sr. are Jake and Eddie's fathers, the original Ghostbusters, who occasionally appear in animated form as well. They are voiced by the same actors that do the voices of Jake (voiced by Pat Fraley) and Eddie (voiced by Peter Cullen), respectively. Skelescope is Ghost Command's talking telescope. Voiced by Pat Fraley. Ghost Buggy Sr. is the car of the original Ghostbusters and GB's father. Time Hopper is Futura's hover scooter. GB has a crush on her, but she does not feel the same way. Voiced by Susan Blu. Foxfire is a super-fast-running male fox who resides with Madam Why.

Villains