"A PUP NAMED SCOOBY-DOO: COMPLETE 2ND, 3RD & 4TH SEASON"
DVD Review
by Kevin Carr
| MOVIE: **1/2 (out of 5 stars)
DVD EXPERIENCE: *1/2 (out of 5 stars) STARRING Casey Kasem as SHAGGY Don Messick as SCOOBY-DOO Christina Lange as VELMA Kellie Martin as DAPHNE Carl Steven as FREDDY Not Rated Available on DVD March 17 Official Kids WB site Studio: Warner Bros./Hanna-Barbera Back to DVD Review Home |  |
WHAT IT’S ABOUT
In 1988, the Hanna-Barbera company brought to life its eighth incarnation “those meddling kids” and their dog Scooby-Doo. This time, in line with many other cartoons of the 80s, Scooby and the gang have been made a little younger. Instead of being high school kids, the gang is around junior high age while Scooby-Doo is just a pup. Together, they solve bizarre mysteries in Coolsville and hone their skills as young detectives.
WHAT I LIKED
I was a bit too old to watch this show in its original incarnation, although I have watched it recently on Boomerang with my young sons. Over the years, I have thoroughly enjoyed the entire Scooby-Doo canon, although I will always hold a special place in my heart for the original mysteries. “A Pup Named Scooby-Doo” does retain a lot of the flavor of the original mysteries, only presenting them with a very 80s feel. Think of it as “Scooby-Doo” given the “Muppet Babies” treatment with a “Garfield and Friends” look.
On one hand, this series doesn’t take itself too seriously, which works to the subject matter. Not that the original series was hard-core serious mysteries, but this one gives the show an even lighter tone. It’s not a borderline horror show for kids, which was the case with the original mysteries, and is more accessible to younger children.
Even though the characters have been “juniorized,” they still retain a realistic set-up unlike “Lil' Archie,” which was just the same stories put upon kids. As junior high kids, the Mystery Inc. gang is able to develop their skills. Freddy isn’t nearly as smart as he is in the preceding adventures, and I did enjoy seeing Velma learn to use her “Jinkies!” exclamation.
Oh, and with Scooby as a pup himself, there’s no need for an annoying Scrappy-Doo.
WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE
I’ve never been a huge fan of the “juniorification” of popular cartoons. Even as a kid, “Lil' Archie” was a lame concept, and I thought that “Muppet Babies” was a flop. So this series had a little going against it from my critical standpoint. Of course, as an adult, I’m not the target market, and younger children (like my own boys at home) do enjoy the show.
In a way, “A Pup Named Scooby-Doo” may have been a bit too early for its own good. By the late-1990s, television animation hit a new Renaissance, and it would have been neat to see this incarnation of “Scooby-Doo” produced after the late-80s when children’s animation springboarded from Saturday mornings and onto cable.
DVD FEATURES
This two-disc DVD set includes 17 episodes of the series, which comprises the final seasons (numbering two, three and four). That results in pretty short seasons, at the end of its relatively short run. To help pad it out and to seed the new incarnation of Scooby-Doo, there’s a bonus episode of “Shaggy & Scooby-Doo Get a Clue!”
WHO’S GOING TO LIKE THIS MOVIE
Die-hard Scooby fans and younger kids.
