Fifty-Difty-Doo!: 8 - A Pup Named Scooby-Doo

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).

The characters in A Pup Named, Scooby-Doo are completely different from those we’ve known throughout the Scoobyverse thus far. Instead of having personalities that are usually found in regular teenagers, these kid versions are more exaggerated versions of the gang we knew and loved then (and still know and love now).
--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!!”

Fifty-Difty-Doo!: The 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo

Greetings, mere mortals; ghosts, gremlins and ghouls alike.

You are about to enter a recollection so weak, so boring, so passe … other reviews are much more suffice.
Only you can reach the end and return to your possibly better lives…

because you clicked the link!

These are… The 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo.



This series is probably one of the best (if not the best) series of the franchise so far.
Oop, too early.

This series is the Scooby-Doo’s franchise’s series of firsts.
It’s the first to entirely drop the same old of mysteries involving “guy-in-costume” monsters and even actual monsters and have our favorite gang face real ghosts. It’s the first to drop the format of a story involving such for a story arc involving capturing said ghosts. It’s the first (if not one of the first) to use self-referential humor. It’s the first series to officially last just one season. It’s the first series where the Mystery Machine got an upgrade. And It’s also the first where Daphne and Shaggy have an overhaul to their usual outfit.
So much to handle.

This series begins with Daphne and S-Club 3 (Scooby, Shaggy and Scrappy) on what they think is the start of a trip (on their own plane no less; don’t ask how they got it -- that never got a ref) to Hawaii, but get sidetracked by Scooby misreading the map leading the gang to go to the Himalayas instead. But the troubles have only begun, as in a nearby castle, two ghosts - Bogel and Weerd - await them. Their plan is for one of them to open a chest that encrypts 13 of the most evil, dangerous and terrifying demons the world has never seen. And since you already know what happens next, we’ll get to that. Shag and Scoob are tricked Bogel and Weerd into opening… The Chest of Demons. During that time, the crew - and us the viewers - meet Flim Flam McScam (voiced by Susan Blu) - a child con artist who’s trouble for the local village he pillaged, and Vincent Van Ghoul - a mystick warlock with a brilliant sense of magic and a penchant for a damn good evil laugh (yes, the good old guy has an evil laugh); he was modelled after and voice by the one and only man/myth/legend Vincent Price. These two come became part of Mystery Inc. world by chance. Flim Flam joined after trying to scam the gang and later helped get their plane back, and now help them on their trek to capture the 13 Ghosts. Van Ghoul meanwhile helped the gang with his magic and contacted them by crystal ball from his place of residence (one with his person and the other en route with the group). On the other side of the coin, the ghosts did everything in their power to stop Mystery Inc. and Flim Flam from ending their plans of ruining some part of the planet and whomever inhabited it and sending them back into the Chest, with Bogel and Weerd as their second-hand henchmen. It’s almost a fight to the afterlife to capture all of the Ghosts and a return to (some) normalcy.

Let’s start with a walk on the dark side:
Up to this point, Scooby-Doo has been pretty scary (emphasis on pretty) with splotches of goofy, touches of cheesy and a big old dash of corny. But it also was entertaining and memorable -- for many reasons bad and good. This series meanwhile took scary and cranked it up to 12 AND A HALF, MEN. Instead of guys in a costume (some of such were genuinely menacing) that want to steal money and scare people away from a random warehouse, the following are actual spirits that commit some messed-up shit.
So let’s meet the haunted hoosegow :
Maldor the Malevolent - a Dark Age warlock who can fight you for a certain shiny utensil.
Queen Morbidia - a bossy ruler with a spider for a minion
Reflector Specter - the mirror demon that can trap victims in a parallel dimension
Zomba - transporter to media
Captain Ferguson - leader of a cruise ship the gang travelled on
Nicara - an enchantress that can steal a warlock’s powers with a kiss
Marcella - a witch from another dimension wanting freedom
Time Slime - a time-travelling ghost that can show a bad future
Demondo - who can trap you in random objects (including comic books)
Rankor - a vampire demon
Professor Phantasmo - the evil ringmaster of a haunting travelling circus
and Zimbulu - a lion demon

These ghosts do some unspeakable travesties  throughout the series and didn’t care about who or what was left in their wake barely in one piece (living almost literally be damned). While few ghosts have made me cringe with a chill, this motley crew left me almost screaming something fierce and fearing the dark during the day. Lord alive, these ones were not to be messed with.
There was a reason they were stored in the Chest of Demons in the first place.

Back to Bogel and Weerd, they’re an interesting duo. What they want more than anything is for the 13 Ghosts to acknowledge them. So they want outright dim fools to open the Chest of Demons to unleash them, kiss their backsides and be their bootlickers (enter Shaggy and Scooby). Evil and cunning, yes. But after Episode 1, these two knuckleheads become more (and very, I might add) entertaining. Their attempts to help the Ghost of the Half-Hour succeed in destroying a part of the world and piece of humanity (and smooching their ass sore) is nothing short of hilarious. They certainly add levity to the buzzsaw-cutting tension and scares throughout the series. Their banter certainly was one of the main things to love, even if the are the main recurring villains of the series.

The characters of this series have a lot going for them here (starting on our main four):
--Daph continues her role from The New Scooby-Doo (and Scrappy-Doo Show/Mysteries) as the brilliant leader and is now more of an action girl, actually fighting against the monsters to save the day. Plus, her new outfit of a tracksuit is perfect, as her dress and scarf aren’t worth acing off against these
--Scrappy continues on his maturity streak, abstaining from fighting random tall dudes for no reason (although seriously he can do it) and is just as aware of the craziness as Daph. Although he talks a lot here. (Nope, still not annoying to me.)
--Shaggy & Scooby are still their usual goofy dippy selves, but even they get serious here. And their iconic friendship and loyalty is as strong and powerful as ever here, and is tested in heartbreaking ways in a few episodes (especially “It’s a Wonderful Scoob” when a ghost exposes Scoob to a bad future where everyone is trapped in horrible fates, Shag screams at him in painful insanity for his return after he quits the gang temporarily.

It’s very refreshing to see our favorite gang solidify their traits from the last... (either two shows or one series) and become a more awesome team to fight the villains.

And now let’s meet the new members of the team:
Flim Flam (as mentioned earlier) is a child con artist. While his oil selling is irritating the people of the Himalayan village he frequents, he does become somewhat more useful when he helps, saves and joins Mystery Inc. on their journey. Emphasis on somewhat, because his plans rarely go what and befallen the gang into more turmoil. Fortunately, his work with the rest does save the day.
Here’s a shock: Flim Flam... doesn’t really annoy me. And even funnier, I expected to find him annoying before watching. I see him as an okay character, and someone who’s able to help the rest of the team whenever necessary - goof ups aside. Anyway, I find this funny: while Scrappy-Doo is seen as the abomination that forever tainted the franchise (the hell he did), he’s generally not the most hated thing about The 13 Ghosts -- Flim Flam is. I can understand why (maybe), but to me he’s not as reprehensible as many other people do find him. He’s a-okay in my book, but I do find his scratchy voice (by Susan Blu) pretty irritating in some episodes, his confidence and cockiness being obnoxious, his flip-flopping between overconfident cockiness and begging not to be hurt being aggravating, his somehow being friends with Vincent (he affectionately calls him Vince [ironically, Shaggy once called him just that, and Van Ghoul shaded him for it]) baffles me, although his friendship with Scrappy is pretty cute…



Oh. Never mind.

And finally, probably the real reason why The 13 Ghosts is awesome and is still fondly remembered years after its first airing is Vincent Van Ghoul. As a warlock, he is incredible incarnate. His powers are awe-inspiring. His voice is both chilling and charming (with brilliant touches of comic seriousness in it too; the guy does it well). His suit game is on-point. And he has the most awesome evil laugh any hero can produce. Makes sense, as he is modeled after and voiced by Vincent freakin’ Price. And when I hear him speak, I’m caught on every word; his voice has so much charm, charisma and character, whether he’s being serious or funny (or even both), is calm or hammy, you’ll know you’re in for his own brand of entertaining in any in every episode. And it’s very clear Mr. Price himself had a grand old time in the booth portraying the character the producers made for him. And the fact that the producers made Van Ghoul for Mr. Price and based much on him and the characters he portrayed throughout his legendary career, says so much - like they loved his works and thought he’d be perfect to star in a Scooby-Doo series. Sweet Trilogy of Terror, they were so right. Whether good guy or not, Mr. Van Ghoul was - still is - and always will be one of the best characters in all of the Scooby-Doo franchise.


Now a bit about the tone: It’s scary as shit. But it’s also funny as fuck.
As I said earlier, The 13 Ghosts is the scariest and darkest incarnation of the S-D franchise. Actual ghosts committing actual carnages that would scare even The 10,000 Volt Ghost, Miner 49er and the Ice Cream Ghosts into fetal positions; characters going through shit that would put them in an insane asylum; and animation that some probably wouldn’t even watch in the day. While its dark tone is brilliantly done, so is its funny side. The humor was also cranked up to beyond bizarre levels. Besides the usual goofy antics of Scooby and Shaggy, sight gags of many types were featured and written very well. And I think the reason why is because had these gags and the ramped-up humor not been a part of The 13 Ghosts, there’s a chance the horror and thriller aspects would scare and turn off young viewers, causing them to turn off ABC during its timeslot. Even without that in consideration, The 13 Ghosts has to be the funniest Scooby-Doo series I’ve ever seen (and so far, the last was New Scooby and Scrappy). It’s use of breaking the fourth wall is also a plus; really, it’s so blatant, it’s like the characters are saying to you “Yes, we just broke the fourth wall”, without ever uttering it. And it’s like they had a hundred fourth walls at the ready for one joke and get three more for the next;  And as someone who loves referencing self (especially in the deprecating type causeImugly), The 13 Ghosts is chock full of SRH; what with punchlines based on from Scooby’s raccent, the ghosts being weirded out by the main group’s randomness, the show itself, the franchise itself, how everyone got on random outfits and props out of thin air (unless they came from Flim Flam’s hoodie pocket), this show went way past out there to be funny, and it worked. All of this can make your head spin if you think hard about it, but it makes you laugh your butt off when you just go with it.
Really, you’ll be on the floor in seconds.

If you’re well-versed on the Scoobyverse -- or even if you’re not, the work on The 13 Ghosts is by the staff fronted by a dude by the name of Tom Ruegger (whom has worked with the franchise before starting with New Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo, and later gained heightened praise throughout the 90s as creator and producer of Tiny Toon Adventures and Animaniacs, along with being  the next series in the franchise). Honestly, this guy is incredibly talented and deserves high regard in the television animation industry. There’s no end to his genius.

Oh, and speaking of no end, The 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo infamously ended its 13-episode run on December 7, 1985 with Mystery Inc, Flim Flam and Vincent capturing only 12 ghosts. This was a shocking development that made me wonder why. But since typical Saturday morning cartoons were usually 13 episodes long (previously 16 or 17 in the first season, then to 8 for some reason in the second [seriously can someone explain this to me please?]). Also, it was a smart call to have the first episode set up the overall story and get the gang and Flim Flam on their way to find fight and capture the titular collective of ceased colorful criminals, with Mr. V helping from afar and doing whatever Vincent Van Ghoul do that’s too cool for school. But that leaves twelve episodes left; why did we have a steady stream of one ghost per episode? It would’ve been better to have one or two episodes that have two ghosts team up and get captured. Plus, in my opinion, I didn’t like that the ghosts were introduced sometime after the start of an episode. Either way, it would’ve been great for just one more episode that introduced the 13th and last ghost and have the gang fight it in a bang-up of a final battle that finally brings The 13 Ghosts of Scooby to a fiery and satisfying conclusion…

Oh wait, there is.

Scooby-Doo! And the Curse of the 13th Ghost.
On February 5, 2019, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment released a direct-to-video feature film follow-up to the series, and it more than does give us that...along with more questions. The main characters are back with Fred and Velma joining the ride and a fantastic performance by Maurice LaMarche as Ms. Van Ghoul (taking over for Mr. Price, whom passed years after its non-ending). I’ll give it a review soon.

But for now, this is the end. The end of Scooby-Doo on ABC, the end of the original incarnation(s) of Scooby-Doo, and the end of a legendary franchise. For now…

Next week, Scooby is reborn. Join him and Mystery Inc as they solve mysteries… while they’re still in elementary school, and he’s barely house-trained. He’s A Pup Named Scooby-Doo.

For now, though, tis the end of another passible review to another rip-roaring, wild, crazy and iconic show seen anew. I'm Andrew Pollard,saying "Rooby-Rooby-Roo!"

Fifty-Difty-Doo!: The New Scooby-Doo Mysteries

More Fifty-Fifty-Doo!

Is it the same show? Is it its own show?

That … is its own mystery.

That is, The New Scooby-Doo Mysteries.

During the last series, Daphne returned to Mystery Incorporated as an investigative reporter, and brought her newly-brilliant expertise with her to help Scooby, Shaggy and Scrappy solve mysteries the world over -- or rather help Scrappy, as Shag and Scoob are too busy making viewers laugh. Now, in this series, our favorite gang (at least in the second episode) are all certified reporters for Daph’s employer Peep-Hole Magazine (which sounds less like an investigative piece collective and more like a ripoff rag of Playboy and Penthouse). This development makes some sense, as it gives Mystery Inc some bigger clout to continue travelling the world to solve them and fight crime. At least it’s all on Peep-Hole’s dime and not for some reason come out of wherever they store money -- cause it damn sure ain't their pockets.

And now, to this theory: As I implied during my last review, I pondered as to whether The Scooby-Doo Mysteries is either yet another incarnation of the Scooby-Doo franchise or actually the second season of The New Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo Show.

Here’s why:

-The characterization I mentioned during my review of TNS-D&S-DS (smart reporter Daphne, smart and mature Scrappy) has been firmly cemented;

The gang still travels the world to get to the bottom of random mysteries;

The episode format is still two-shorts;

Even the title card is the same (in fact, that title card has been the exact same card since Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo in 1979 with rare changes [3/4ths of the gang appear in the background but stay until season 3 of V2]. I guess the budget is so important for everything but the title card, since it has the title characters’ names in it so ehhh close enough [even though this show’s title doesn’t have Scrappy’s name]). Just...nah.

The reason I say this is because Wikipedia calls S-D Mysteries the second season of TS-D&S-DS. Other places say otherwise for sake of convenience.

The only thing different here are the show’s title, title sequence, theme song and animation.

And speaking of…

The animation is better than the last series, everything is more fleshed out, the movements are more fluid, and colors are still vast and sometimes bright, if not still pretty flushed (in fact, a bit more flushed than New S-D and S-D). Later episodes do much better and give a more clearer, brighter and warmer appearance and atmosphere -- that’s thanks to a very neato (yet primitive) pioneering animation technique Hanna-Barbera used in the 80s in which its cartoons' ink and paint are drawn digitally, instead of physically by hand with a camera recording the process. This technique and technology all sound awesome. The episodes painted under the system start from "A Code Through the Nose" to "The Nutcracker Scoob".

Like last time, the group crossed paths with “guys-in-costume” villains and real monster villains. Honestly, I’m cool with a mix of both; I’ll never know which I’ll get until the end of an episode and while it’s corny for me to say the reveals of this kids show legit surprises me, I haven’t watched any of them in this franchise in years. So… I’m legit surprised by the reveals of this kids show. It’s the fun of guessing it all.

Some of the best were in “Happy Birthday, Scooby” and “Scoo-be or Not Scoo-be”.

But the most important surprise came in the first episode… Fred and Velma are back!

Yes, folks, after an absence of five years, the other two members of the gang have returned and have appeared in occasional roles in several episodes. In their absence, Velma brought her brilliant mind and awesome analytic skills to NASA as an assistant research science apprentice, and Fred took his talents of leading and… helping...solve mysteries to become an aspiring mystery novelist. Their disappearances from the series/franchises were heavily felt, and even if it took me a couple weeks of rewatching to get to see them again, I’ve missed them a lot -- and I feel sorry for the fans of either or both to wait all that time to see them again, even if for a few episodes in a single year. Their fates during their time away though are perfectly created and obviously fit their skills nicely, and they both deserved nothing less. Good on the writing staff for that. Velma appears in “A Night Louse at The White House”, Fred pops up in "Sherlock Doo" and "A Nutcracker Scoob", and both are in “Happy Birthday, Scooby-Doo”, "A Halloween Hassle at Dracula’s Castle" and “Ghosts of the Ancient Astronauts” (all two-part episodes). (Also, when Scoob immediately figures them out as guests of his televised birthday party [from their catchphrases no less], his reactions with both strongly heartwarming [no surprise that he missed them as much as we did and that he was so happy] and extremely hilarious [him jumping into Velma’s arms like she was Shaggy, and especially knocking over Fred and licking his face]).

The writing was alright, and consistent with the rest of the franchise. Some good laughs, genuinely fascinating mystery solves and reveals (especially in “Scoo-be or Not Scoo-be” which I didn’t see coming, and whom I rightly knew did it was the first villain), but nothing to write home about. It’s all good fun though, and that’s the point here.

Oh yeah, the theme song. It’s frickin’ awesome!

It pretty much rips off “Thriller” by Michael Jackson based on his late-Motown and early-Epic eras of his career. It’s hot, fun, upbeat and instantly memorable. Every time I play it, I’m dancing in my seat and singing the lyrics (especially the high notes, cause I’m tone-deaf like that); it’s that infectious. It’s mostly replicated twice in the title sequence where typical monsters are doing the most iconic part of the music video's iconic dance -- as in thrust-raising their arms like an egyptian on one side then on the other. It’s funny, cute and incredible all at once. The rest is just typical Mystery Inc. hijinks, except with more Hip-Hop and graffiti. It’s the same we’ve seen before in other Scooby titles, but I’ll call this the best since New Scooby-Doo Movies because of its bouncy, colorful atmosphere ang likable goofy nature (especially when seeing the fact that Scooby moonlighted for a long time despite one year passing).

And for now the mystery is solved.

That’s The New Scooby-Doo Mysteries. 

Next week is probably something we’ve all waited for. And I’ve got TH1RTE3N reasons why. It's The 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo.

See you then.

I'm Andrew Pollard saying "Rooby-Rooby-Roo!"

Fifty-Difty-Doo!: The New Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo Show (82-83)

Fifty-Fifty-Doo time again!

She’s baaaaack!

Yes everyone, Daphne has returned after three years -- and one show’s (or version?) -- of television silence to rejoin Mystery Incorporated and our S Club-3. In her absence, she became an investigative reporter for a major… let’s say news service, and utilizes her occupation to get hot, fresh scoops involving (or discounting) the usual “bad-guy-in-costume” hoax and unusual oddity involving the supernatural. But this is Scooby-Doo, so guess what happens.

Welcome to The New (and Improved?) Scooby and Scrappy-Doo Show.

We’ll get to more on Daph in a moment, but first...

As you know, the franchise has gone through a lot of changes since the addition of Scooby’s nephew Scrappy-Doo to the franchise in 1979.

• His addition
• A new name
• Less of Fred, Velma and Daphne
• The show morphing from one-story eps to a three-shorts format
• Changing from bad guys in costumes as monsters to actual monsters
• The same show and format going back to two-show hour-block form
• Fred, Vel & Daph being dropped altogether
• The change of partners of the hour-block, and
• Change in location from wherever the monster is to a detective agency

(If you think learning about all this makes your head spin, try typing it down from memory.)

Fortunately, the staff decided to cut loose the extra stuff (We barely knew ye but ye won’t be forgotten, Yabba-Doo and Deputy Dusty.) and take us back to basics here. Sure, ghosts and monsters are still around, but the “guy-in-costume” villains are back, one of the human members of the gang is back (bringing us back to half of it) and the show is now in a longer-but-now-split-in-half two-shorts format (this format was never done before), and unlike the three-shorts format I like this more because I can watch two stories in a snappier-yet-satisfying pace.

Daphne also got some major character development during her time away: she’s now the leader of Mystery Inc. and is more smarter. While she was never stupid or unaware of her surroundings before, throughout the franchise she was known by the rest of the gang as “Danger-Prone” -- as in captured by villains and monsters and used to their creepy advantage a lot. Fortunately this trait has been toned down gradually as the show(s) come and go, and Daph is more capable of taking care of herself -- as in not get herself in any major crap by the villains. Because Fred and Velma are still out of the picture, the staff decided to give her their well-known characteristics -- Vel’s intelligence and skills in analytics and Fred’s leadership and skills in driving the Mystery Machine (succeeding Shaggy during V2 ...and Scrappy-Doo [probably for the better]). Episode 4 also introduces family members of Daph’s -- her high-school-aged cousin Jennifer in “The Creature Came From Chem Lab” and her parents (along with the reveal that her fam is loaded) in “No Thanks, Masked Manx”.

(Speaking of fam, Scooby has yet another cousin in Dooby Dooby Doo as introduced in “The Dooby Dooby Doo Ado”

One thing I find weird about Daphne’s new employment here is: While she has made very clear is that she is a reporter, she never mentions which news company she works for. Even during the first episode, nothing has been mentioned there isn’t even any exposition about her rejoining Mystery Inc. The series just begins with her back in the gang as if nothing happened. I know it shouldn’t matter cause Daph is back anyway, but it’s just baffling to think about. Anyway, it's great to have Daphne back in the franchise and I think it's in a much better state since her return.

Scrappy too got some needed development: He’s also smarter and less oblivious to danger, with less of an urge to fight  While he wasn’t dumb either, his new smarts are much more noticeable as he is more engaged in converstations about the monsters/villains of the week with Daphne (while Uncle Scooby and Shaggy take care of the comedy as usual). His wanting to beat monsters (and the excitement of such) also gets toned down more here, and there are even times where Scrapps even backs down from actual threats. (This trait should be refreshing to see for everyone, because that’s all people who hate him see him as -- but with more of the jittery-ness of a squirrel on LSD laced with sugar). And his adoration for his unc was toned to only when Scooby accidentally finds a clue integral to solving a mystery (which is very cute). Plus, his voice has matured along with his new characteristics, sounding much less like a child and more like a growing puppy (even if he is still a puppy height-wise).

The animation here is unpleasant to me in two ways:

--The ink and paint here look cheap and flat, like a show by DFE Films or if The Christmas Tree got a slightly bigger budget. The characters movements are wooden and robotic, the backgrounds look like they were drawn by a really talented child, and the colors look both bright and flushed. There is a positive, as the characters do look the same as before (thin outlines notwithstanding).

--Another positive, as the animators do make the monsters actually look scary and threatening. The most haunting are The Baskerville Hound (“Hound of the Scoobyvilles”), The Gremlin (“The Fall Dog”), The Chem Lab Creature (“The Creature Came From Chem Lab”), and that damn building in the title sequence.

If that ain’t the definition of chilling, I don’t know what is.

There’s a brilliant balance of comedy and mystery on this series. Since there are now four members of Mystery Inc. a split creates two teams that perfectly go their own ways. While Shag and Scoob bring the laughs as usual, Daphne and Scrappy team to scrounge for and analyze the clues, and converse about the oddities surrounding the town and people they’re visiting. It's this balance that makes this incarnation one of the best in the classic era of Scooby-Doo.

I think The New Scooby and Scrappy-Doo Show is one of the best classic-era Scooby-Doo incarnations ever. Why? Lemme count the ways...

-Daphne returning, with bigger smarts and new reigns as leader

-Scrappy being smarter and mature

-Leaving the laughs to Scooby and Shaggy

-Going back to guys-in-costume villains, and

-Surprising us every so often

I'm surprised I didn't watch this version a lot more as a kid, because I never remembered or seen even the theme song and title sequence before. Which is a shame as Wikipedia cites this as a full series with the next series as it's second season. Maybe Boomerang skipped it from rotation or did air it in some fashion and I missed it. Speaking of…

Coming up soon, I'll review that "second season" … or full series (whatever) of Scooby-Doo, entitled The New Scooby-Doo Mysteries. We'll see if there's enough evidence to prove it's the former. (Either way, I swear at this point this franchise has become a bit of the television version of The Fast and the Furious.)

I'm Andrew Pollard saying, "Shaggy-Shaggy-D"--

I mean... "Rooby-Rooby-Roo"!

Chloe x Halle's Halle Bailey Cast as Ariel in Disney's "The Little Mermaid" Live-Action Remake

So...another year, another Disney live-action remake.
While I believe some of them are good (I got to see the new Aladdin in May and loved it), I wasn't a fan of the idea. The original animated Disney films are well-beloved classics (I got to see the originals of the remakes and am definitely a fan of them all) and we all know them enough to give the company a lot of clout on social media and money from buying them from iTunes and Google Play (yes, the latter still exists). And on the concept of Hollywood remaking films... I tolerate it. But I'm in agreement with a lot of people who say that good films should not yet be remade (actor Michael Caine has said that bad films are the ones that should be remade, which I also agree with). But I also hate the argument some people always throw that Hollywood has ran out of ideas -- seriously, either there's a movie you're not interested in or not even looking for that shows the opposite, and even if one film rips off another older film even a lot, at least they have a different touch to the concept and genre.

All that aside, all the criticism didn't stop Disney from plans of remaking yet another animated classic. The Little Mermaid is joining the other recent films getting the real-life flesh-and-blood treatment (and that's after four remakes this year alone: Dumbo, Aladdin, The Lion King and Lady and the Tramp [along with Maleficent sequel Mistress of Evil]). And while that news didn't get my attention, this news got everyone's unbridled attention (and then some): who got cast as the titular character herself, Ariel. That lucky lady is Halle Bailey. Not Berry, as in Monster's Ball, BAPS, Catwoman (shiver) and X-Men; Halle Bailey is one half of popular musical sibling duo Chloe x Halle. They also act, as prevalent in their starring roles Jazlyn "Jazz" and Skylar "Sky" Forster on Grown-ish.

They even sang the theme song.


They also performed America the Beautiful at Super Bowl LII (in one of the few best parts of the whole telecast):


So yeah, they're a perfect double threat (triple if they dance too). So you can at least see why Disney would cast her as ... wait. Ariel??

Yeeeaaaaah. You guys know, Ariel is a white female mermaid. And as you saw, Chloe Bailey is black. As you can expect, a lot of people were furious by the casting news. Many (mostly white) took to Twitter and Facebook to blast Disney for casting a black girl as a "white" mermaid and wanted her to be dropped from the production.

In my opinion... I'm cool with this. I don't care about the mermaid controversy because it's stupid, and because mermaids are mythological creatures based on fish, one feature of which is that they were never tied down by race. While the mermaids we've seen in TV and movies over the decades were usually (mostly) white (TLM is one of them), we've seen black and brown mermaids too in both. So it really shouldn't matter who gets cast in the film as Ariel as long as the actress or singer can act and sing. And I very much think Halle can do both. Otherwise she wouldn't have been on Grown-ish or have a music career with sister Chloe. Black Ariel will be only the second black Disney princess in over 70 years of Disney animated productions -- and the last, Tiana from The Princess and the Frog, was introduced only 10 years ago.
And we can't forget this isn't the first time Disney had a black actress and singer portray a Princess.

To anyone who thinks Halle won’t make a good Ariel just because she’s black, throwback to when Brandy absolutely killed it as Cinderella in the 90s 😍😩 pic.twitter.com/cq0WVWo21F

— Common Girl (@girlhoodposts) July 3, 2019

Brandy played Cinderella in the 1997 live-action TV movie, and she absolutely slayed the role (not to mention one of the Evil Stepsisters was also black [implying Lady Tremaine had a black lover] and Prince Charming was biracial and played by a Filipino-American actor).

It's a shame that Disney hasn't had even had more than one Black Princess more years ago than they'd like to admit because it really is time for more diversity in the line of Princesses, and this is a big great step.

The backlash is so unnecessary and annoying and the people who spewed such hate at Halle for starring in a film about a mytho who wants her sea legs to become real legs, please do three things:

• Calm down and take a breather
• At least look her up to know who she is to get an actual legit opinion, and
• Know that mermaids were never legitimately white (or any other race) in the first place

The backlash would've been warranted had people had legit things to say like the film being made in the first place.

As much as the Disney live-action remake-churning machine makes me roll my eyes continuously, I have faith in the new The Little Mermaid. And I wish Halle nothing but the best in her role. Grown-ish already made her a star, but this film will take her star to the stratosphere. I say congrats to Halle Bailey, just like Halle Berry did too post-confusion. (And yes, I was one of the many who thought that Berry was cast as Ariel, and not Bailey). But if Disney wants to have a scene in the future after Ariel marries Prince Eric and features them as royalty with a family, have Ms. Berry's number on Speed dial.

Wait, isn't Ariel a redhead?

    

Okay, good.

Meghan McCain Might Leave "The View" (She's IS!) Because She's Tired of People Hating Her for Being a Loud, Desperate, Irritable, Father-Bragging, Nonsense-Spewing, Trump-Teething, Wealthy C#nt

"I AM JOHN MCCAIN'S DAUGHTER!"

Conservatives Triggered by Nike Cancelling Code-Violating Shoes with 'Racist' Betsy Ross Flag

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and the Nike Air Max, both here
looking like the multi-material money-wasting forsaken failures they are

Well, fellow Americans -- freedom-lovers, freedom-fighters, equality-givers and right-wingers alike, another Independence Day has come and gone. Another day of celebrating our country's birth and beginnings (big, wide, breathing pulsating warts and all) in the history books. And yet another controversy has come and gone with it, and conservatives are angry about it. Not, not the continuing drama of the crisis of immigration on our Southern border--that shit is irrelevant (to them). No, something they're genuinely furious and passionate about.
NIKE HAS CANCELLED DISTRIBUTION OF A NEW LINE OF SHOES DESIGNED WITH THE BETSY ROSS AMERICAN FLAG!!!

OH, THE HUMANITIES!!!!!

Yes, this was a thing. With the shoe, and Republicans' piss-tivity of its being held back by Nike.
Here's what happened.

The Air Max, a pretty good-looking shoe, besides the heel
The Geek Herald

Nike was to release a new line of shoes tied to the 4th of July called the Air Max 1 featuring a design of the colors of the American flag, with an image of the original American flag representing the 13 Colonies designed and sowed by Betsy Ross in 1776 featured on the heels. These were to be released shortly before the birth of our nation. That is until Colin Kaepernick put a stop to it.

Esquire

Kaepernick, a hero of civil rights for people of color (especially African Americans) today, looked at the shoe and asked Nike (he has an endorsement deal with the company) not to sell as the BR flag represented a time in United States history where slavery and oppression were still running strong against natural Africans, plus the fact that these days white nationalist groups have used the version of the flag as their rallying symbol. After news of Kap's stopping the presses on the Air Max hit the web, Republican politicians and Conservative talking heads alike did what they did best(?) at: bitching about it.

Now, look. I'm not a certified sneaker-head. I love to own a good pair of sneakers every once in a while, and most of them I'm lucky to have. Although most of them come from thrift stores rather than the actual stores that sell them hot and fresh off the assembly line. But this is absolutely ridiculous. I will believe that right-wingers do have a certain style and appetite for sneakers -- designer or comforting -- as much much as the next guy (some more than the more important's issues of the matter sadly). But had Kap not said anything about the Air Max shoes, right-wingers wouldn't have cared about it, let alone bought them. And its' this is yet another example of them putting their politics and policies aside (as if they had any that benefits us) for a non-issue that affects literally no one (even though I'm talking about it now, it certainly as hell didn't affect me). In fact, this isn't the first time they've done this; fuck, this isn't the first time they done it involving Nike.

Remember the "controversy" of Fox News Channel hosts Tucker Carlson and Laura Ingraham that sponsors to drop their deals with their shows last year? The former said misogynistic, homophobic and racially insensitive remarks on Florida radio shock jock Bubba the Love Sponge’s program, (That got companies like Lexus, Jaguar, Pacific Life, Pfizer, AstraZeneca and bedding maker Sheex saying adios to “Tucker Carlson Tonight”, which later experienced a y-t-y revenue drop in 2018.) while the latter mocked Parkand Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting survivor David Hogg for not getting into four prestigious universities. David then decided brilliantly to hit back at Ingraham where it hurts: her wallet. He took to Twitter to ask his supporters to boycott the companies that support her show and directly convince said sponsors that they are supporting a white supremacist (supporter) whose views on such are toxic and racist, and they should think about what they're buying into. They agreed and dropped her like Precious' evil bitch mom dropped her baby.

Or the time fellow Fox News host Sean Hannity saw his show lose sponsors like Yeti coolers and Keurig coffer makers. It's this sponsor boycott that got Hannity's and Fox News' viewers and other conservatives really in blood-boiling tizzy as it got them to destroy the products in various ways while recording them doing the deeds and posting them to YouTube and social media; they also comment on the boycotts saying in unison that they won't be buying the companies' products after the boycotts. The companies have since come back to Hannity, but nothing as of yet in some cases in Carlson's and Ingraham's cases as of this MMost's posting. But here's the thing: they bought Yeti's and Keurig's products anyway... and they gave the companies their money anyway, so... yeah, that was pointless and stupid.

And the Nike thing was also stupid. Speaking of...

Remember the "controversy" of kneeling Kaepernick gave during renditions of the Star Spangled Banner, in which he believes (agreeably to me) that the song was made during a time of inequality in the U.S., and does not fully represent black people whom have suffered brutality at the hands of law enforcement for the past several years?

Yeah, that got him to lose his job with the NFL after they threw him under the bus for rightfully expressing his free speech and brilliant race rights. Fortunately, he dusted off the crap and become a beloved civil activist fighting for equal rights for people of color -- which I love wholeheartedly. (While at the same time, being an enemy to stupid racist white people who know nothing about the realities of oppression in black and brown America and rejoice their supremacy. Other athletes like U.S. Women's soccer star Megan Rapinoe have since joined him in his iconic stance to similar praise) and Nike recognized this fight in him and gave him a lucrative enforcement deal leading to this incredible, beautiful ad campaign encouraging people to  beat the odds the be the best while being themselves.


And Republiconservatives were seething. And they showed their seeth by destroying Nike products in foolish and over-the-top ways and posing videos of it on YT ans SoMed. Oh and not buying any more products too.




Again, they bought the Nike stuff, and gave it their money. So what's the point of all of this?!?! Nike (and all those other companies mentioned earlier) are not suffering from GOP's "suffering". They are all multi-million-dollar (some billion-dollar) companies who don't give a sweet, sappy shit about who buys their products and who doesn't buy them. As long as they're still in the green afterwards, cry away babies--cry away. It just makes them all look dumb.

Which leads back to this issue with the Swoop Troop.


Many Republiconservatives are triggered by the cancellation because they are driven by greed and corruptions disguised as love for "their" country. They don't care about what truly keeps her heart beating today but about the past that's slowly and severely killing it. And almost buying and mourning the death of a shoe that is more a cartoon of that love instead of a celebration of its founding and startup shows it proudly.
This Air Max 1 isn't something everyone's got to have; it isn't like the iPod or the Atari or Walkman or even the Slinky. Even if it was a hit today, the popularity and trendiness would die off soon after it's hit the store shelves, as another product would beat it to be the king of the moment. It's like literally every meme on the internet before and since.  It doesn't give you life or anything that is necessary to keep you alive; it's just a pair of something to keep your feet from getting dirty and damaged. And the design isn't something to write (or text) home about. It's just a few colors wrapped around the exterior; whoopie.
But the real reason people care about it now at all because of the Betsy Ross flag on the heels. They don't even look good, the design (to me, at least) looks very tacky, sloppy and it violates the United States Flag Code.


Oh, bet'cha didn't know that exists huh? Well, it does.

According to Wikipedia,

The United States Flag Code establishes advisory rules for display and care of the national flag of the United States of America. It is Chapter 1 of Title 4 of the United States Code (4 U.S.C. § 1 et seq). This is a U.S. federal law, but the penalty described in Title 18 of the United States Code (18 U.S.C. § 700) for failure to comply with it is not enforced. 

Some important sections of the code to to gawk a gander at include:

•  The flag should never be used as wearing apparel, bedding, or drapery. It should never be festooned, drawn back, nor up, in folds, but always allowed to fall free.
• The flag should never be used for advertising purposes in any manner whatsoever. It should not be embroidered on such articles as cushions or handkerchiefs and the like, printed or otherwise impressed on paper napkins or boxes or anything that is designed for temporary use and discard.

And most importantly:

• No part of the flag should ever be used as a costume or athletic uniform.

So, unless you work for law enforcement, a fire brigade or the military, YOU CANNOT WEAR THE AMERICAN FLAG ON YOUR FUCKING CLOTHES!
It's ILLEGAL. And it's also obnoxious, tacky and cringe-worthy.
Tomi Lahren did it in 2017 as part of a Halloween costume, and learned about the code the hard way, thanks to her favorite thing, social media.

And all of you "American patriots" came very close to doing the same in time for the 4th of July. You Republicans think you are in love with the very fabric of America, but don't jack shit about it under the surface of it out side of the flag, the bald eagle, Mount Rushmore, the plains and prairies and oceans and the guy in the most famous address who really doesn't know or care about any of them--and you. Just like the last boycott, this didn't work, because people on the left bought Nike products just to support Nike and Kaepernick, showing them as more sensible to progressing history and him as much more patriotic then the hatriots were before and ever will be. So keep it up, y'all. It all won't work like it did those last time, but Nike will keep reaping the rewards of and raving Republicans ranting about a pair of footwear. So shame on all the Republicunts ignoring the real issues of the world to bitch about something most of them probably won't even have the care (or money, mostly money) to have in the first place once again showing them to be what they are: greedy, insignificant, uncaring, self-absorbed taints with no business being even near political discourse -- let alone office.

Now, about the thing about Nike being a cesspool of harassment and discrimination for women...?

Fifty-Difty-Doo!: Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo (V2 3-shorts / 80-82)

Literally the same show...

but fifteen minutes less...

times three...

plus yet another Doo.