History Monster / Ghostbusters

* ''Film/Ghostbusters1984'' & ''[[Film/GhostbustersAfterlife Afterlife]]'': [[MesopotamianMonstrosity Gozer the Gozerian]] is an "[[EldritchAbomination extradimensional demonic entity]]" who's [[OmnicidalManiac sought the destruction of the world]] for centuries and proclaimed itself "[[DestroyerDeity Gozer the Destructor]]". As a means of being summoned, Gozer has its servants Zuul the Gatekeeper and Vinz Clortho the Keymaster each find a person to possess and then combine their powers to open a portal so it can come through. Gozer attempts to use its powers to kill the Characters/{{Ghostbusters|FilmSeriesGhostbusters}} for not being gods and then unleashed itself as the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man into New York to target them again before being defeated. Thirty years later, Gozer causes the death of Dr. Egon Spengler for impeding its next attempt to unleash itself onto the world and once again has people possessed--including a teenage girl--in order to guarantee it's not only freed but properly powered too. Gozer also has ghosts freed to target Summerville however they so desire and, when welcomed by Ivo Shandor--who built the monuments to make Gozer's arrival possible--responds to the human wanting to rule beside it by effortlessly ripping him in half.

%% NOTE: Due to the controversial nature of this trope, any changes (additions, removals, edits) should be discussed [[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=6vic3f9h1cy5qivsenw8llok here]].

%% NOTE 2: A CompleteMonster is an individual character, not a collective. Therefore a faction cannot be listed as one. %% A faction can attract Complete Monsters and can have them among its members, but cannot be one in and of itself.

[[quoteright:300:[[ComicBook/GhostbustersIDWComics https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ghost_67.png]]]]
%%

-->-- '''Ivo Shandor''', ''VideoGame/GhostbustersTheVideoGame''

* ''Film/Ghostbusters1984'' & ''[[Film/GhostbustersAfterlife Afterlife]]'': [[MesopotamianMonstrosity Gozer the Gozerian]] is an "[[EldritchAbomination extradimensional demonic entity]]" who's [[OmnicidalManiac sought the destruction of the world]] for centuries and proclaimed itself "[[DestroyerDeity Gozer the Destructor]]". As a means of being summoned, Gozer has its servants Zuul the Gatekeeper and Vinz Clortho the Keymaster each find a person to possess and then combine their powers to open a portal so it can come through. Gozer attempts to use its powers to kill the [[Characters/GhostbustersFilmSeriesGhostbusters Ghostbusters]] for not being gods and then unleashed itself as the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man into New York to target them again before being defeated. Thirty years later, Gozer causes the death of Dr. Egon Spengler for impeding its next attempt to unleash itself onto the world and once again has people possessed--including a teenage girl--in order to guarantee it's not only freed but properly powered too. Gozer also has ghosts freed to target Summerville however they so desire and, when welcomed by Ivo Shandor--who built the monuments to make Gozer's arrival possible--responds to the human wanting to rule beside it by effortlessly ripping him in half.

** Issue #24--"Carnival": [[RepulsiveRingmaster Master Cosmos]] is a circus ringmaster and secretly an [[EvilSorcerer evil wizard]] who arrived in a small town called Green Town in 1942. Cosmos was able to play on the town's fears about [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII the war]], showing that it would end with an atomic explosion. The town's people begged him to protect them from the war, so Cosmos used his powers to make the town's people immortal and remove any knowledge of the town from the outside world. Though the town's people could not die, [[AgeWithoutYouth their bodies kept aging]] until they became rotting zombies, [[AndIMustScream in a state of constant torment]]. When Cosmos's daughter Denetia decides to free the trapped souls and summons the Ghostbusters to help defeat her father, Cosmos tries to kill her, wanting to keep the town's people imprisoned so he can maintain his power over the valley.

** [[ComicBook/Ghostbusters2013 Vol. 2]] issues #8-12's "Happy Horror Days" arc: [[WouldHurtAChild Rodefhiri]] was the first recorded and most powerful [[ThingsThatGoBumpInTheNight Bogeyman]]. Originally a medieval monk who was angered by misbehaving children, [[DealWithTheDevil he sold his soul to the Devil]] in exchange for a cloak that made him invisible and gave him the power to [[IKnowWhatYouFear make people see their worst fears]]. Rodefhiri would kidnap and even [[ChildEater devour children]] who really offended him. In the present day, Rodefhiri tries to gain access to the living world, by tricking a young girl named Jasmine into building an unholy altar, lying to her and saying it will bring back her dead grandmother's spirit. This altar trapped ghosts like a Death spirit named Santa Muerte on Earth, where the latter begins to attack a crowd of civilians. The Ghostbusters find the altar that trapped Santa Muerte, freeing Jasmine and her mom. After Jasmine tries to explain what happened, Rodefhiri tries to drag Jasmine to a hellish dimension. Later, Rodefhiri creates a magic lighting storm that makes kids violent, so he can punish them for their naughty deeds later. On New Year's Eve, Rodefhiri plans t feed on the mental energy of every child in Times Square, exposing them to their worst fears and stealing their life force. Rodefhiri then plans to use the power he gained from draining those children to feast on every child in New York City.
** ''[[ComicBook/GhostbustersAnswerTheCall Answer The Call]]'', written by Creator/KellyThompson: Dr. Kruger (aka "Schreckgespenst", a German word for bogeyman) was a MadScientist active in the 1900s who was obsessed with fear. He would kidnap innocent people and [[MindRape experiment on them]], [[IKnowWhatYouFear torturing them with their fears]], often resulting in their deaths. After Kruger died, the city sealed the building he was living in, [[SealedEvilInACan trapping his spirit there]]. Decades later, when the city decided to develop Kruger's building, Kruger used the ghost of a young boy he killed to lure the [[Film/Ghostbusters2016 Ghostbusters]] to his building. The Ghostbusters deal with the problem, but Kruger possesses Dr. Yates and manages to escape his building. Kruger escapes from the Ghostbusters and takes over the Empire State Building. The Ghostbusters confront Kruger, but he uses his powers to expose them to their worst nightmares. Kruger exposes more citizens of New York to their nightmares to gain more power. Ultimately, Dr. Kruger plans to merge the world with his personal nightmare realm, wanting to torment humanity with its fears and rule this new world as [[AGodAmI a god]].

[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ghost_67.png]]

-->--'''Ivo Shandor''', [[VideoGame/GhostbustersTheVideoGame 2009 game]]

* ''WesternAnimation/TheRealGhostbusters'' NOW Comics:

** Vol. 1 issue #24--"Carnival": [[RepulsiveRingmaster Master Cosmos]] is a circus ringmaster and secretly an [[EvilSorcerer evil wizard]] who arrived in a small town called Green Town in 1942. Cosmos was able to play on the town's fears about [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII the war]], showing that it would end with an atomic explosion. The town's people begged him to protect them from the war, so Cosmos used his powers to make the town's people immortal and remove any knowledge of the town from the outside world. Though the town's people could not die, [[AgeWithoutYouth their bodies kept aging]] until they became rotting zombies, [[AndIMustScream in a state of constant torment]]. When Cosmos's daughter Denetia decides to free the trapped souls and summons the Ghostbusters to help defeat her father, Cosmos tries to kill her, wanting to keep the town's people imprisoned so he can maintain his power over the valley.
* [[ComicBook/GhostbustersIDWComics IDW Comics]]:

** ''Happy Horror Days'' arc: [[WouldHurtAChild Rodefhiri]] was the first recorded and most powerful [[ThingsThatGoBumpInTheNight Bogeyman]]. Originally a medieval monk who was angered by misbehaving children, [[DealWithTheDevil he sold his soul to the Devil]] in exchange for a cloak that made him invisible and gave him the power to [[IKnowWhatYouFear make people see their worst fears]]. Rodefhiri would kidnap and even [[ChildEater devour children]] who really offended him. In the present day, Rodefhiri tries to gain access to the living world, by tricking a young girl named Jasmine into building an unholy altar, lying to her and saying it will bring back her dead grandmother's spirit. This altar trapped ghosts like a Death spirit named Santa Muerte on Earth, where the latter begins to attack a crowd of civilians. The Ghostbusters find the altar that trapped Santa Muerte, freeing Jasmine and her mom. After Jasmine tries to explain what happened, Rodefhiri tries to drag Jasmine to a hellish dimension. Later, Rodefhiri creates a magic lighting storm that makes kids violent, so he can punish them for their naughty deeds later. On New Year's Eve, Rodefhiri plans t feed on the mental energy of every child in Times Square, exposing them to their worst fears and stealing their life force. Rodefhiri then plans to use the power he gained from draining those children to feast on every child in New York City.
** ''[[Film/Ghostbusters2016 Answer The Call]]'': Dr. Kruger (aka "Schreckgespenst", a German word for bogeyman) was a MadScientist active in the 1900s who was obsessed with fear. He would kidnap innocent people and [[MindRape experiment on them]], [[IKnowWhatYouFear torturing them with their fears]], often resulting in their deaths. After Kruger died, the city sealed the building he was living in, [[SealedEvilInACan trapping his spirit there]]. Decades later, when the city decided to develop Kruger's building, Kruger used the ghost of a young boy he killed to lure the Ghostbusters to his building. The Ghostbusters deal with the problem, but Kruger possesses Dr. Yates and manages to escape his building. Kruger escapes from the Ghostbusters and takes over the Empire State Building. The Ghostbusters confront Kruger, but he uses his powers to expose them to their worst nightmares. Kruger exposes more citizens of New York to their nightmares to gain more power. Ultimately, Dr. Kruger plans to merge the world with his personal nightmare realm, wanting to torment humanity with its fears and rule this new world as [[AGodAmI a god]].

[[AC:[[VideoGame/GhostbustersTheVideoGame 2009 video game]] (Realistic Version)]]

[[quoteright:350:[[ComicBook/GhostbustersIDWComics https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rodefhiri.jpg]]]]
[[caption-width-right:350:"And then it basically started eating the children?"..."Basically, yeah, it was stealing extra juice from the kids in the crowd. That was its plan the whole time--if it had not been fighting the trap, it could have emptied '''every kid''' in the 5 boroughs."]]

** The evil [[KingOfTheDinosaurs Nurtog]] is a powerful being from the Earth's core who formed an uprising with his own forces. Killing countless beings until he took over, Nurtog pursued rebel leader Spike to New York and had Spike's city destroyed in payment for his defiance. Trying to kill Spike and the Ghostbusters in New York, Nurtog later returns to wipe the city out in his quest to dominate and destroy all he can.

** Issue 24 ("Carnival"): [[RepulsiveRingmaster Master Cosmos]] is a circus ringmaster and secretly an [[EvilSorcerer evil wizard]] who arrived in a small town called Green Town in 1942. Cosmos was able to play on the town's fears about [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII the war]], showing that it would end with an atomic explosion. The town's people begged him to protect them from the war, so Cosmos used his powers to make the town's people immortal and remove any knowledge of the town from the outside world. Though the town's people could not die, [[AgeWithoutYouth their bodies kept aging]] until they became rotting zombies, [[AndIMustScream in a state of constant torment]]. When Cosmos's daughter Denetia decides to free the trapped souls and summons the Ghostbusters to help defeat her father, Cosmos tries to kill her, wanting to keep the town's people imprisoned so he can maintain his power over the valley.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheRealGhostbusters'''s finale "20,000 Leagues Under The Street": [[BigCreepyCrawlies Apshai]] is the Egyptian god of insects. 3,000 years ago, Apshai ruled Egypt, but was driven out due to his cruelty, taking a crystal that was his source of power with him. In the present, the crystal is buried under New York City, and Apshai reemerges when he is accidentally awakened. Apshai uses his powers to [[PestController control insects]] and mutate them into giant monsters, and causes an earthquake that devastates part of New York. Apshai uses his giant insects to build him a new temple, where he will place his crystal atop of to gain new god-like powers. Apshai also captures Peter Venkman and plans to [[HumanSacrifice sacrifice]] him at the temple. Apshai's ultimate goal to [[KillAllHumans destroy humanity]] with his insect army and powers, believing they are unfit to rule the Earth and [[FantasticRacism that insects are superior to them]].

* [[Film/Ghostbusters1984 Original 1984 film]] & ''[[Film/GhostbustersAfterlife Afterlife]]'': [[MesopotamianMonstrosity Gozer the Gozerian]] is an "[[EldritchAbomination extradimensional demonic entity]]" who's [[OmnicidalManiac sought the destruction of the world]] for centuries and proclaimed itself "[[DestroyerDeity Gozer the Destructor]]". As a means of being summoned, Gozer has its servants Zuul the Gatekeeper and Vinz Clortho the Keymaster each find a person to possess and then combine their powers to open a portal so it can come through. Gozer attempts to use its powers to kill the Ghostbusters for not being gods and then unleashed itself as the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man into New York to target them again before being defeated. Thirty years later, Gozer causes the death of Dr. Egon Spengler for impeding its next attempt to unleash itself onto the world and once again has people possessed--including a teenage girl--in order to guarantee it's not only freed but properly powered too. Gozer also has ghosts freed to target Summerville however they so desire and, when welcomed by Ivo Shandor--who built the monuments to make Gozer's arrival possible--responds to the human wanting to rule beside it by effortlessly [[HalfTheManHeUsedToBe ripping him in half]].

* [[TheCorrupter The Grundel]] is an evil spirit who enjoys corrupting children. The more bad actions the child commits, the more the child falls under the Grundel's influence, eventually turning into a Grundel themself. First appearing in the ''WesternAnimation/TheRealGhostbusters'' season 3 episode "The Grundel", he convinced a child named Alec to tamper with the Ghostbusters' proton packs during a school assembly, [[WouldHurtAChild endangering all the other children present]]. The Grundel also manages to convince Alec to bring his brother Lee to him so he can corrupt Lee as well, despite Alec's initial protests. When Peter Venkman tries to save Alec and Lee, the Grundel tries to prevent this, stating "If I can't have them, neither can you!" He returns in the ''WesternAnimation/ExtremeGhostbusters'' episode "[[Recap/ExtremeGhostbustersE23Grundelesque Grundelesque]]", taking place 10 years later. It is revealed that he has a connection to one of the new Ghostbusters, Kylie. The Grundel tried to corrupt Kylie as a child, but when she successfully resisted, he corrupted her friend Jack instead. The Grundel places Jack in a cocoon for 10 years, so that he will become another Grundel. When Kylie confronts the original Grundel about this new Grundel, the Grundel taunts Kylie about their past history and the fate of her former childhood friend. The Grundel later escapes from the containment unit and tries to corrupt Roland's brother Casey. While the Grundel knows [[CompellingVoice his powers]] only work on children, he thinks [[ForTheEvulz it would be fun]] to murder Kylie anyway.

->''"Most of the old staff knows the stories about the Spider Witch...who did unimaginable things in a room on the twelfth floor back in the 1920's. Her victims were hung from the ceiling, drained of blood then dragged around. The walls of her room were literally painted with blood. The furniture was hacked, chewed and crushed up in the corner like a giant nest."''
-->--'''Sedgewick Hotel's manager''' on '''the Spider Witch''', [[VideoGame/GhostbustersTheVideoGame 2009 game]]

[[AC:Others]]
* [[VideoGame/GhostbustersTheVideoGame 2009 video game]]'s Realistic version: [[SeductiveSpider The Spider Witch]], a ([[HumanoidAbomination supposedly]]) human follower of [[BigBad Ivo Shandor]] in life, operated in Hotel Sedgewick as a gruesome SerialKiller for the time she was alive. The Spider Witch lured men to her room where she proceeded to savagely murder them, hang up their bodies, and paint the room with their blood. No less vicious in undeath than she was in life, the Spider Witch is implied to be [[YourSoulIsMine keeping the souls of some of her victims enslaved as the Webbed Fiends]].

When the worst ghouls, ghosts, and demons of the spirit world terrorize New York and the world, WhoYouGonnaCall These are the [[CompleteMonster vilest, most evil beings]] the Franchise/{{Ghostbusters}} have faced throughout their long careers.

** [[DestroyerDeity Gozer the Gozerian]], from [[Film/Ghostbusters1984 the first Ghostbusters film]], is just as dangerous in this series. Originally worshipped as a god in ancient Sumeria, he was banished from the Earth by his sister Tiamat. After his defeat in 1984, Gozer's body is destroyed but his physical presence remained on Earth. Gozer's servant Idulnas kidnaps Ray Stanz and takes him back to Gozer's temple so that he can choose a new Destructor form for Gozer. Ray once again chooses the Stay Puff Marshmallow form, so that Gozer is forced to remain in that form. Gozer is angered, but not fully formed and lacking much of his power, allowing the Ghostbusters to capture him, but a lot of Gozer's presence remains at large. Later, Gozer's sister Tiamat comes to Earth to play a game with her brother. Tiamat's presence awakens what is left of Gozer and having already established a connection to Ray, manages to [[DemonicPossession possess him]]. Gozer, humiliated by his sister, plans to [[SiblingMurder kill her]] and [[OmnicidalManiac then destroy the world]].

* [[TheCorrupter The Grundel]] is an evil spirit who enjoys corrupting children. The more bad actions the child commits, the more the child falls under the Grundel's influence, eventually turning into a Grundel themself. First appearing in the ''WesternAnimation/TheRealGhostbusters'' season 3 episode "The Grundel", he convinced a child named Alec to tamper with the Ghostbusters' proton packs during a school assembly, [[WouldHurtAChild endangering all the other children present]]. The Grundel also manages to convince Alec to bring his brother Lee to him so he can corrupt Lee as well, despite Alec's initial protests. When Peter Venkman tries to save Alec and Lee, the Grundel tries to prevent this, stating "If I can't have them, neither can you!" He returns in the ''WesternAnimation/ExtremeGhostbusters'' episode "Grundelesque," taking place 10 years later. It is revealed that he has a connection to one of the new Ghostbusters, Kylie. The Grundel tried to corrupt Kylie as a child, but when she successfully resisted, he corrupted her friend Jack instead. The Grundel places Jack in a cocoon for 10 years, so that he will become another Grundel. When Kylie confronts the original Grundel about this new Grundel, the Grundel taunts Kylie about their past history and the fate of her former childhood friend. The Grundel later escapes from the containment unit and tries to corrupt Roland's brother Casey. While the Grundel knows [[CompellingVoice his powers]] only work on children, he thinks [[ForTheEvulz it would be fun]] to murder Kylie anyway.

->''"I am the Destructor. I am the Architect. I will pave over your fields to start anew. I will fill your seas with concrete and stone. I will pierce your world with girders of steel and panes of glass. I will crush your world under the weight of my cities. I will smother your creation under my own!"''
-->--'''Ivo Shandor''', [[VideoGame/GhostbustersTheVideoGame 2009 game]]

** The evil [[TyrannosaurusRex Nurtog]] is a powerful being from the Earth's core who formed an uprising with his own forces. Killing countless beings until he took over, Nurtog pursued rebel leader Spike to New York and had Spike's city destroyed in payment for his defiance. Trying to kill Spike and the Ghostbusters in New York, Nurtog later returns to wipe the city out in his quest to dominate and destroy all he can.

[[AC:[[VideoGame/GhostbustersTheVideoGame 2009 video game]] (Realistic Version)]]
* [[MisanthropeSupreme Ivo Shandor]] is a renowned architect and [[MadDoctor doctor]] who is responsible for all of the bad things that happened in the game. During his lifetime, he was notorious for performing unnecessary surgery. He is also the leader of the Cult of Gozer, which is trying bring their god, Gozer, to wipe out humanity. To this end, he manipulates several American famous power brokers--including the Chairman of International Steel--to do his bidding, and renovates several famous landmarks. He also builds the infamous [[MalevolentArchitecture 55 Central Park West]] building to summon Gozer. After his death, and due to his master's failure to destroy the humanity for the second time, Shandor then possessed the mayor of the New York City and then tries to pin his crimes into Walter Peck to distract the Ghostbusters so that he could kidnap one of his descendants, Ilyssa Selwyn, in order to [[AGodAmI become a god]] and remake the world [[InTheirOwnImage in his own image]].
* [[PsychoForHire The Spider Witch]]--better known as [[BlackWidow Evelyn Lewis]]--is one of Ivo Shandor's mighty followers who in life [[TheVamp lured innocent men into her suite]] while murdering them brutally by hanging them in the ceiling while their blood is drained and their bodies were dragged around. After making a pact with Shandor, she then becomes the [[SpiderPeople spider-like humanoid creature]] after death, and it was revealed that she makes the souls of the men that she murdered as her [[AndIMustScream eternal slaves]]. She did all this both for fun, and to become more powerful in the afterlife.

!!Comic Books
[[AC:''WesternAnimation/TheRealGhostbusters'' NOW Comics]]
* The evil [[TyrannosaurusRex Nurtog]] is a powerful being from the Earth's core who formed an uprising with his own forces. Killing countless beings until he took over, Nurtog pursued rebel leader Spike to New York and had Spike's city destroyed in payment for his defiance. Trying to kill Spike and the Ghostbusters in New York, Nurtog later returns to wipe the city out in his quest to dominate and destroy all he can.
* [[RepulsiveRingmaster Master Cosmos]] from issue 24 ("Carnival"), is a circus ringmaster and secretly an [[EvilSorcerer evil wizard]] who arrived in a small town called Green Town in 1942. Cosmos was able to play on the town's fears about [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII the war]], showing that it would end with an atomic explosion. The town's people begged him to protect them from the war, so Cosmos used his powers to make the town's people immortal and remove any knowledge of the town from the outside world. Though the town's people could not die, [[AgeWithoutYouth their bodies kept aging]] until they became rotting zombies, [[AndIMustScream in a state of constant torment]]. When Cosmos's daughter Denetia decides to free the trapped souls and summons the Ghostbusters to help defeat her father, Cosmos tries to kill her, wanting to keep the town's people imprisoned so he can maintain his power over the valley.

[[AC: [[ComicBook/GhostbustersIDWComics IDW Comics]]]]
* [[DestroyerDeity Gozer the Gozerian]], from [[Film/Ghostbusters1984 the first Ghostbusters film]], is just as dangerous in this series. Originally worshipped as a god in ancient Sumeria, he was banished from the Earth by his sister Tiamat. After his defeat in 1984, Gozer's body is destroyed but his physical presence remained on Earth. Gozer's servant Idulnas kidnaps Ray Stanz and takes him back to Gozer's temple so that he can choose a new Destructor form for Gozer. Ray once again chooses the Stay Puff Marshmallow form, so that Gozer is forced to remain in that form. Gozer is angered, but not fully formed and lacking much of his power, allowing the Ghostbusters to capture him, but a lot of Gozer's presence remains at large. Later, Gozer's sister Tiamat comes to Earth to play a game with her brother. Tiamat's presence awakens what is left of Gozer and having already established a connection to Ray, manages to [[DemonicPossession possess him]]. Gozer, humiliated by his sister, plans to [[SiblingMurder kill her]] and [[OmnicidalManiac then destroy the world]].
* [[WouldHurtAChild Rodefhiri]], from the ''Happy Horror Days'' arc, was the first recorded and most powerful [[ThingsThatGoBumpInTheNight Bogeyman]]. Originally a medieval monk who was angered by misbehaving children, [[DealWithTheDevil he sold his soul to the Devil]] in exchange for a cloak that made him invisible and gave him the power to [[IKnowWhatYouFear make people see their worst fears]]. Rodefhiri would kidnap and even [[ChildEater devour children]] who really offended him. In the present day, Rodefhiri tries to gain access to the living world, by tricking a young girl named Jasmine into building an unholy altar, lying to her and saying it will bring back her dead grandmother's spirit. This altar trapped ghosts like a Death spirit named Santa Muerte on Earth, where the latter begins to attack a crowd of civilians. The Ghostbusters find the altar that trapped Santa Muerte, freeing Jasmine and her mom. After Jasmine tries to explain what happened, Rodefhiri tries to drag Jasmine to a hellish dimension. Later, Rodefhiri creates a magic lighting storm that makes kids violent, so he can punish them for their naughty deeds later. On New Year's Eve, Rodefhiri plans t feed on the mental energy of every child in Times Square, exposing them to their worst fears and stealing their life force. Rodefhiri then plans to use the power he gained from draining those children to feast on every child in New York City.
* ''[[Film/Ghostbusters2016 Answer The Call]]'': Dr. Kruger (aka "Schreckgespenst", a German word for bogeyman) was a MadScientist active in the 1900s who was obsessed with fear. He would kidnap innocent people and [[MindRape experiment on them]], [[IKnowWhatYouFear torturing them with their fears]], often resulting in their deaths. After Kruger died, the city sealed the building he was living in, [[SealedEvilInACan trapping his spirit there]]. Decades later, when the city decided to develop Kruger's building, Kruger used the ghost of a young boy he killed to lure the Ghostbusters to his building. The Ghostbusters deal with the problem, but Kruger possesses Dr. Yates and manages to escape his building. Kruger escapes from the Ghostbusters and takes over the Empire State Building. The Ghostbusters confront Kruger, but he uses his powers to expose them to their worst nightmares. Kruger exposes more citizens of New York to their nightmares to gain more power. Ultimately, Dr. Kruger plans to merge the world with his personal nightmare realm, wanting to torment humanity with its fears and rule this new world as [[AGodAmI a god]].

!!Western Animation

''[[AC:WesternAnimation/TheRealGhostbusters]]''
* [[BigCreepyCrawlies Apshai]], from the finale "20,000 Leagues Under The Street", is the Egyptian god of insects. 3,000 years ago, Apshai ruled Egypt, but was driven out due to his cruelty, taking a crystal that was his source of power with him. In the present, the crystal is buried under New York City, and Apshai reemerges when he is accidentally awakened. Apshai uses his powers to [[PestController control insects]] and mutate them into giant monsters, and causes an earthquake that devastates part of New York. Apshai uses his giant insects to build him a new temple, where he will place his crystal atop of to gain new god-like powers. Apshai also captures Peter Venkman and plans to [[HumanSacrifice sacrifice]] him at the temple. Apshai's ultimate goal to [[KillAllHumans destroy humanity]] with his insect army and powers, believing they are unfit to rule the Earth and [[FantasticRacism that insects are superior to them]].

''[[AC:WesternAnimation/ExtremeGhostbusters]]''
* [[HumanoidAbomination Crainiac, Corpuscle, and Gristle]], from "[[Recap/ExtremeGhostbustersE4Deadliners Deadliners]]", are Vathek, spirits who enter the living world [[RealityWarper through the act of writing]]. They contact writer J.N. Klein and promise him wealth and fame if he writes about them. Klein does so, allowing the 3 Vathek spirits to take physical forms. Crainiac, Corpuscle, and Gristle then enslave Klein, chaining him to a typewriter and controlling his mind, forcing Klein to write a story where the Vathek are invincible. Crainiac, Corpuscle, and Gristle then begin their work; they see themselves as [[MadArtist artists]] and human flesh is their best canvass. They kidnap a local waiter named Jimmy and use surgical tools to [[BodyHorror transform him]] into a horrible, mindless monster, who is just a tool of their will. Jimmy and the Vathek trio go to a local hotel and kidnap all the guests and staff, planning to transform them into monsters as well. Ultimately, Crainiac, Corpuscle, and Gristle plan to transform all of humanity into their twisted masterpieces.
* The ectoplasmic being known only as "[[Literature/ThePiedPiperOfHamelin Piper]]", from "[[Recap/ExtremeGhostbustersE11ThePiedPiperOfManhattan The Pied Piper of Manhattan]]", initially seems a savior to New York City when introduced, as his pipe has the ability to repel ghosts even the Ghostbusters are powerless against. Piper soon reveals his true colors, however: he is the one responsible for the sudden plague of ghosts, and when the Mayor attempts to pay him according to contract, Piper reveals he wants more. After his requests for a statue of himself down 5th Avenue and an office in city hall are denied, Piper uses his flute to [[DisproportionateRetribution hypnotize the children]] of the city and tries to [[WouldHurtAChild force them to drown themselves]], gloating the mayor will "rue the day he refused to pay the Piper." When the Ghostbusters intervene, Piper has no compunction using the kids as {{human shield}}s in the ensuing fight.
* [[DimensionLord Surt]], from "[[Recap/ExtremeGhostbustersE22SlimersSacrifice Slimer's Sacrifice]]", is a godlike ghost who seeks to bring about [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt the apocalypse]]. His minion Fenris prepares his coming by turning three humans into his vanguards. When Slimer ends up in the containment unit, Surt demands to know how Slimer got in there and hints that he is going to torture the information out of him. When Surt senses Eduardo's presence, he allows him to rescue Slimer and waits for him to open the exit to the containment unit so he can follow them. When Eduardo realizes Surt's plan and destroys the remote that will open the exit, Surt [[BrainwashedAndCrazy activates a spell he placed on Slimer]] to make him cut Eduardo's oxygen tank, before releasing Slimer from his control so he can [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone realize that he just doomed his friend]] and be left to watch him suffocate and die, with Surt promising to return and torture Slimer after Eduardo dies.

!!Video Games
[[AC:[[VideoGame/GhostbustersTheVideoGame 2009 game]] (Realistic Version)]]

* [[DestroyerDeity Gozer the Gozerian]], from [[Film/Ghostbusters1984 the first Ghostbusters film]], is just as dangerous in this series. Originally worshipped as a god in ancient Sumeria, he was banished from the Earth by his sister Tiamat. After his defeat in 1984, Gozer's body is destroyed but his physical presence remained on Earth. Gozer's servant Idulnas kidnaps Ray Stanz and takes him back to Gozer's temple so that he can choose a new Destructor form for Gozer. Ray once again chooses the Stay Puff Marshmallow form, so that Gozer is forced to remain in that form. Gozer is angered, but not fully formed and lacking much of his power, allowing the Ghostbusters to capture him, but a lot of Gozer's presence remains at large. Later Gozer's sister Tiamat comes to Earth to play a game with. Tiamat's presence awakens what is left of Gozer and having already established a connection to Ray, manages to [[DemonicPossession possess him]]. Gozer, humiliated by his sister, plans to [[SiblingMurder kill her]] and [[OmnicidalManiac then destroy the world]].

* The ectoplasmic being known only as "[[HumanoidAbomination Piper]]", from "[[Recap/ExtremeGhostbustersE11ThePiedPiperOfManhattan The Pied Piper of Manhattan]]", initially seems a savior to New York City when introduced, as his pipe has the ability to repel ghosts even the Ghostbusters are powerless against. Piper soon reveals his true colors, however: he is the one responsible for the sudden plague of ghosts, and when the Mayor attempts to pay him according to contract, Piper reveals he wants more. After his requests for a statue of himself down 5th Avenue and an office in city hall are denied, Piper uses his flute to [[DisproportionateRetribution hypnotize the children]] of the city and tries to [[WouldHurtAChild force them to drown themselves]], gloating the mayor will "rue the day he refused to pay the Piper." When the Ghostbusters intervene, Piper has no compunction using the kids as {{human shield}}s in the ensuing fight.

''[[AC:WesternAnimation/TheRealGhostbusters]]'' [[AC:NOW Comics]]

* [[MisanthropeSupreme Ivo Shandor]] is a renowned architect and [[MadDoctor doctor]] who is responsible for all of the bad things that happened in the game. During his lifetime, he was notorious for performing unnecessary surgery. He is also the leader of the Cult of Gozer, which is trying bring their god, Gozer, to wipe out humanity. To this end, he manipulates several American famous power brokers--including the Chairman of International Steel--to do his bidding, and renovates several famous landmarks. He also builds the infamous [[MalevolentArchitecture 55 Central Park West]] building to summon Gozer. After his death, and due to his master's failure to destroy the humanity for the second time, Shandor then possessed the mayor of the New York City and then tries to pin his crimes into Walter Peck to distract the Ghostbusters so that he could kidnap one of his descendants, [[spoiler:Ilyssa Selwyn]], in order to [[AGodAmI become a god]] and remake the world [[InTheirOwnImage in his own image]].

* [[DestroyerDeity Gozer the Gozerian]], from [[Film/Ghostbusters1984 the first Ghostbusters film]], is just as dangerous in this series. Originally worshipped as a god in ancient Sumeria, he was banished from the Earth by his sister Tiamat. After his defeat in 1984, Gozer's body is destroyed but his physical presence remained on Earth. Gozer's servant Idulnas kidnaps Ray Stanz and takes him back to Gozer's temple so that he can choose a new Destructor form for Gozer. Ray once again chooses the Stay Puff Marshmallow form, so that Gozer is forced to remain in that form. Gozer is angered, but not fully formed and lacking much of his power, allowing the Ghostbusters to capture him, but a lot of Gozer's presence remains at large. Later Gozer's sister Tiamat comes to Earth to play a game with. Tiamat's presence awakens what is left of Gozer and having already established a connection to Ray, manages to possess him. Gozer, humiliated by his sister, plans to kill her and [[OmnicidalManiac then destroy the world]].

[[AC:IDW Comics]]

* ''WesternAnimation/ExtremeGhostbusters'': [[HumanoidAbomination Crainiac, Corpuscle, and Gristle]], from "[[Recap/ExtremeGhostbustersE4Deadliners Deadliners]]", are Vathek, spirits who enter the living world [[RealityWarper through the act of writing]]. They contact writer J.N. Klein and promise him wealth and fame if he writes about them. Klein does so, allowing the 3 Vathek spirits to take physical forms. Crainiac, Corpuscle, and Gristle then enslave Klein, chaining him to a typewriter and controlling his mind, forcing Klein to write a story where the Vathek are invincible. Crainiac, Corpuscle, and Gristle then begin their work; they see themselves as [[MadArtist artists]] and human flesh is their best canvass. They kidnap a local waiter named Jimmy and use surgical tools to [[BodyHorror transform him]] into a horrible, mindless monster, who is just a tool of their will. Jimmy and the Vathek trio go to a local hotel and kidnap all the guests and staff, planning to transform them into monsters as well. Ultimately, Crainiac, Corpuscle, and Gristle plan to transform all of humanity into their twisted masterpieces.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rodefhiri.jpg]]
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IMAGE

When the worst ghouls, ghosts, and demons of the spirit world terrorize New York and the world, WhoYouGonnaCall? These are the [[CompleteMonster vilest, most evil beings]] the Franchise/{{Ghostbusters}} have faced throughout their long careers.