Welcome back, everyone, to Fifty Difty Doo!
After the… success of The 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo, ABC awarded the franchise and the particular series’ staff with… nothing. After 13 Ghosts’ four-month run in 1985, Scooby-Doo never had another series, effectively ending the verse’s original run on the Alphabet network. (Heck, the reruns never aired either) For a time, it seemed like the kiddos would never see their favorite Great Dane and his height-, weight- and gender-assorted companions of Mystery Incorporated battling evil non-humans or humans convoluted-ly cosplaying as non-humans destroying facets of humanity ever again…
That is until 1988, when Jennie Trias (then head of children's programming at ABC and huge fan of Scooby-Doo) wanted to bring back our favorite ralking rog in a big, bold new way. She went to Tom Ruegger, whom was a writer and story editor for the franchise for the five years to that point, on an idea to breathe new life into the new show. He wanted the gang to freak out Tex Avery-style, while she wanted a stronger appeal with the kids. The two decided to converge their ideas and thus Scooby was reborn.
Ladies and gentlemen, He’s A Pup Named Scooby-Doo.
Welcome to Coolsville, a snappy, groovy, awesome, happenin’ town with the sensibilities of green grass, rockin' music, malt-shops, model Ts, apple pie, kids playing and all the ease and fun worth living in, and the monsters and ghosts possibly not worth living in.
Our favorite gang of Mystery Inc-- uhh, I mean, the Scooby-Doo Detective Agency (that’s what their collective was named at the time) are now children. Despite the prequel plot and their younger ages, they’re still solving mysteries and saving the day in Coolsville (a town the kids live in, with that name revealed in the series).
--Daphne is a vapid, stuck-up, pampered rich girl with an unbelievable for ghosts you’ll never hear the end of. (Picture Jackie Burkhardt from That 70s Show but less... lovestruck.)
--Velma is much more quiet and introverted with her speaking even one word being a quick surprise to the rest of the agency. (funnily enough, her trait originally was speaking just one word [you know that word]
--And Fred is a loud, dim conspiracy-theorizing loon
-While all three went through noticeable changes in character with this series to more entertaining and memorable returns, Daph and Vel’s redo’s are nothing compared to Freddy’s. While the girls had good traits (Daphne was the pretty, sweet girl with glamorous style and penchant to be captured by creepy grown men in costumes, and Velma was known for her heightened smarts and analytics and penchant to lose her glasses), Fred goes through it the most; for much of the Scoobyverse, Fred was just the leader -- the basic, standard leader without much of a personality. Sure, he’s sweet, smart, caring and a great leader (and personally, I dig Fred as much as the rest of the gang - maybe even more), but the most you’d remember about him is his usual outfit and the fact the orange ascot he wears that most casual fans would first think of him that comes to mind.
--Shaggy & Scooby are the same. Cause how could you crank up what was already ridiculous?
-And speaking of Shaggy, in this series, we finally reveal his first name: Norville. (Not a bad name -- pretty distinguished, actually. But I can see why he got Shaggy as a nickname. Cause what person would name their child that?)
--And to really prove that the gang are kids on A Pup Named…, three-fifths of the gang also got new voice actors. For Daphne, Kellie Martin replaces Stephaniana Christopherson and Heather North; For Velma, Christina Lang replaces Nicole Jaffe, Pat Stevens, and Marla Frumkin (oy); and For Fred, Carl Stevens replaced Frank Welker. And in Fred’s case, APN… is the only Scooby series in which Welker does not voice Fred (he does take on other roles here). Shaggy and Scooby are the only characters to keep their original voice actors -- Casey Kasem and Don Messick, respectively. (In fact, Kasem and Messick have voiced Shag and Scoob since Where Are You! Back in 1969. That’s quite a feat, and well deserved. Cause no one can voice the two like these guys… (Well, we’ll get to their replacements soon. And they’re very good.)
Back to the young voice actors, they give great performances of their characters. Martin performs young Daphne’s posh, vain and snobby yet alert and caring characteristics and sarcastic and un-enthused wit wonderfully; Lang brilliantly portrays the understated yet well-bred intelligence of Velma (in fact she was initially planned to say just “Jinkies!”, but thankfully she got more lines which work in Lang’s favor); and Stevens played off the wild, gonzo, and borderline-scatterbrained antics and untenable, unflappable voice of Freddy (in fact, I think Steven’s performance is my favorite of the cast because of the work he puts in to Freddy’s dimness, even as his voice dropped as he Reveled In Puberty).
Despite the changes in the gang not named Shaggy or Scooby (whom ironically are the most normal of the gang now), A Pup Named Scooby-Doo features some of the best friendship moments of the franchise. Besides Scoob and Shag being the best buds ever as usual, . Like the gang going to the defense of , and the best moment of all: when in "The Computer Walks Among Us", Velma is accused of thefts taking place thanks to her computer, with the rest of the gang believing she really did the crime (Freddy immediately points the finger, while Daph and Shag come close before changing their minds). Scooby was the only one who believes she's innocent, and stuck by her to the very end, even refusing Scooby Snax to go into a dark closet! He only does so for Velma. (Don't worry, she's cleared, thank Jebus). This and many moments between Scooby and Velma are one of my favorite moments of the series. They were written real well and showcase just how cute they are; and not just because he's acting sweet to her for some more Scooby Snax.
While this series boasts the most openly outlandish version of the gang yet-- nah, ever (*remembers Be Cool…*) oh yeah right, yet, A Pup Named Scooby-Doo also includes one of the franchise’s most memorable and equally-eccentric secondary characters ever--(*remembers Mystery Incorporated*) wait… I mean, up to that point.
The most dickish of them all: Red Herring.
Red is the neighborhood bully. No matter what the kid or time of day, he’s always there to beat up and terrorize to his ever-indignant self-gratification. He’s also the main (and only) target of accusation and ire from Freddy during investigations. I find him entertaining and only a bit annoying because of his incessant bullying of the gang. He obviously doesn’t deserve Fred’s finger-pointing, but really deserves his comeuppance for the crap he throws against pretty much everyone that isn’t him. Plus, the performance by Scott Menville also well-done and well worth the praise and fond nostalgia. (Also, the one episode where he isn't falsely accused of a crime. Check that out.)
Since A Pup Named… takes place in the early 60’s (before WAY! [1969 when they were teenagers]), the background music and tone on the show is heavily inspired by two of the most iconic genres of the medium -- Rock n’ Roll and Motown. As a kid growing up in a household that plays classic R&B, R&R and soul, the incidental compositions played were just a big plus. (And since I’m black, it awakens my love of the unadulterated, powerful, well-constructed and repeatedly-stolen--I mean replicated sounds of my family’s enders’ youth that’s ever so intristically and complexly linked in my DNA.) The music speed goes from usually goes from brief and soft (the start of an episode), to snappy midtempo (when the gang begins their detective-ing) to fast, fun and uptempo (during monster chase scenes). The BGM is fun to hear no matter what clip or tone is used… and no matter how many times you hear a variation of “Scooby(-Dooby)-Doo” over and over. It’s like the world’s first use of subliminal messaging by something towards itself (...or towards the 38 versions of itself, I dunno). And I still dance in my seat and using along whenever the stock “Doo-Doo Scooby” song plays.
And speaking of music, let’s quickly discuss the theme song. It’s awesome.
Throughout it’s short runtime, it mentions the S-D.D.A., their work, the plot and atmosphere and the wacky tone of the series. Just like the incidental music, it also has inspirations from rock n' roll and7 Motown, and it shows throughout its runtime. The lyrics well encapsulates the Motown influence, and are brilliant and catchy. The cat who sang the theme did a damn great job too. The title sequence is also brilliant with its taste of the series through visual aids-like peeks of the Agency, said work, plot and tone. It all plays together incredibly and is so much far and away one of my definitive favorites of the Scooby-Doo TV series theme songs.
The writing is on the same footing as The 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo: self-parody, sight gags, self-referential humor and breaking the fourth wall. As a kid, I loved the humor on this, because I loved wacky, breathless, fast-paced, over-your-head humor (amongst many types). That’s why Looney Tunes, Tom & Jerry and other classic cartoons like them (Seriously, thank God for CN and Boom; but considering the wild things I’ve done parroting moments from these ) Even though through research that it actually wasn’t as praised as it is today. Back when it first aired, APN… was derided by critics for its limited, recycled animation (even though pretty much every other Hanna-Barberra production till this point was known for it), heavy use of parody, by-the-book, paint-by-numbers plots and being one the big trend in the 80s and 90s of baby/kid versions of popular cartoons. Several fans of Where Are You! Also dislike A Pup Named… because of the aforementioned reasons, and also because of the change in character (or dumbing-down) of Fred. While I agree that Fred’s drop in intelligence and overexcitement in his conspiracies is irritating half the time, but I still find it funny. Plus, Fred is a kid on this show (which takes place before WAY!), and - if you think about it - becomes more mature and competent come Where Are You!. (Although his change in character is a different discussion for a different day) That’s (literally) their opinion, and I’m cool with it but clearly mine is the opposite.
I also love the animation, which is the most smooth, warm, bright and colorful the franchise has ever been up to that point. Even taking out the Tex Avery-style freakout reactions, the characters’ movements and expressions are more rubbery and fluid in comparison to (literally?) almost every other S-D show before it. The designs of the characters not only are really cute - especially Scooby, Velma and like Shaggy’s baby sister Maggie (known as Sugie) - they perfectly represent the decade APN… takes place (as if it needed any difficulty). And even if they’re meant to be much less threatening and seen in a more lighthearted limelight, they still look sorta menacing, and that’s impressive.
While my love for the franchise is strong (as you’ll see here), I think few
series have been a major part of my young cartoon-watching life: Where Are You!, New S-D Movies, and A Pup Named -- with this one being second in the few that I hold near and dearly. I’ve watched APN… near-religiously when I was a young cat; whichever network it was on -- Cartoon Network or Boomerang, whichever chance I get, I watch. The kid versions of the characters I already knew and love related and resonated with me in a lot of ways. (because they’re kids, I can watch in a way I was cool with). Ironically, rewatching as an adult makes it all the more entertaining; catching jokes, gags and character tics again and more closely and clearly makes them much more funnier and memorable.
I’m very grateful for this series. It was still around in reruns at a time I didn’t know I needed it, it was always at a time I’d watch fully and it was always entertaining -- especially these days when I’m aware of everything else that made it so iconic. Truly one of the best series in the Scoobyverse by far.
It’s just as well, because it really is interesting that the best series of the franchise so far (to me at least) turned out to be a reboot of it.
And in two weeks, it all starts over again. Our favorite gang are back to being Mystery Inc., they’re back to solving mysteries around the world. And more importantly, they’re back to being teenagers… or are now adolescent; like, I dunno -- it’s still hard to tell.
It’s the return of Scooby-Doo! on television with - appropriately - What’s New, Scooby-Doo!
Later this week, in the meantime, it’s time to bridge the old guard with the new school, as I’ll review my favorites of the Scooby-Doo TV- and DTV-movies. (And maybe give small reviews of some more. We’ll see…), beginning with the first three TV-movies:
Scooby-Doo Meets the Boo Brothers (1987),
Scooby-Doo and the Ghoul School (1988) and
Scooby-Doo and the Reluctant Werewolf (also '88), along with
the hour-long special Scooby Goes Hollywood (1979).
See you then.
And that takes care of another review from me, Andrew Pollard & A Pup Named… (in his voice) “Rooby-Rooy-Roo!!”
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