Gotta’ work on the new logo above for Pandemic Theater‘s replacement or really what existed before CV-19. Of course I know the virus is still spreading and continues to be dangerous; the goddess Capitalism decided it’s over as we’ve been forced back into our veal-fattening pens. Let’s hope the million people infected in China don’t create a super powerful mutation, putting us all back into 2020.
For the new chapter on movies I caught on a big TV instead of spending Alamo Drafthouse money to see, it’s a flick the pandemic definitely defeated economically thanks to it getting released in the heat of the lockdown, May 2020. Much like bands labelled “classic rock,” I’ve had a reconciliation with Scooby Doo. Back in the Seventies, I loved watching reruns of the original 13 Fred Silverman had made for CBS followed by the “newer” adventures afterwards when ABC became the gang’s home for years to come. The hour-long show with Blue Falcon and Dyno-Mutt would be my peak fandom days, plus I didn’t mind the cousin Scooby Dum tagging along some days.
By the Eighties I had evolved into the standard cynical Tweener and Scooby Doo was lame and formulaic. In adulthood, I felt it was overrated via the two live-action movies pumped out 20 some years ago. In truth, the first one starring Freddie Prinze Jr, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Linda Cardanelli and Matthew Lillard is pretty clever even if the musical act didn’t age well. Other incarnations came off as time fillers for the Cartoon Network. I should give a few shows/movies a second look given how audiences have become more demanding with their animation; Velma with Mindy Kaling looks promising too, I personally feel she’s a great person alongside Lind and Kate Miccuci to portray the gang’s know-it-all. Two things brought on my change of heart. Meeting the wonderful Grey DeLisle, the main voice of Daphne; and for this movie, Converse made some Chucks to promote Scoob! One pair glows in the dark!
So did this movie really kick ass and had the potential to create new fans? Probably not. At best it would have been another activity for divorced dads to use during their weekend with the kids. This doesn’t mean it was bad or awful, just not strong enough to justify how much it costs to watch in a theater. If you’re a fan of Mystery, Inc. and Hanna-Barbera’s universe, Scoob! was great and worth watching a couple more times in order to find all the nods to other characters and creators. For example, there’s a bowling alley named after Iawo Takamoto (a key designer of Scooby), the Peebles Pet Shop (from Magilla Gorilla), the villain is Dick Dastardly (Whacky Races) and a concert poster of The Banana Splits. Makes the movie a nice side piece with Jellystone which I’m sure the dumb tightwad transforming HBO Max into an expensive Peacock cancelled. I also enjoyed the updated renderings of the first show’s opening sequences/credits with Best Coast covering the theme song; the closing song remains something awful to anyone with taste, another gripe I had about Chip n’ Dale‘s recent update. My only complaint was their choice for playing Blue Falcon and Dyno-Mutt alongside them changing roles, Dyno-Mutt should always be the comic relief!
Will you regret the 90 minutes you spent watching Scoob!? No, but animation fans and/or animation history buffs will enjoy this more than the average viewer.