Animation Revelation Forum

It's Revelation Time! => Warner Bros. => Topic started by: Nameless on October 09, 2014, 12:51:07 AM

Title: What's so good about vintage Scooby-Doo?
Post by: Nameless on October 09, 2014, 12:51:07 AM
Even as a kid, I didn't find the earlier incarnations of the Scooby-Doo franchise to be that great, I found them lacking in energy and at best semi-entertaining. But they are something that a lot of people, young and old, remember fondly and well, and there's experiences assumed to be universal, like loathing Scrappy-Doo (as a kid I actually appreciated his presence for shaking up the formula, but I can understand why he would be grating now).

I also speak from the perspective of a classic Hanna-Barbera fan; for a lot of people (probably less interested in animation than we), Scooby pretty much IS Hanna-Barbera, and when I think of H-B, I think of Huckleberry Hound and the other cartoons hewing to that visual style. For me, the appeal of H-B is tied very strongly to the studio's original house style, and the older Scooby shows don't really hew to that (geometric stylization wasn't really Iwao Takamoto's bag anyway, with regard to the character designs at least - and yes, I know, things like Jonny Quest and their superhero shows don't hew to it either). I've seen a bunch of different explanations for why Scooby still endures - Shaggy and Scooby have great chemistry (http://yowpyowp.blogspot.com/2014/06/farewell-casey.html), it's about kids looking for truth (http://comicsalliance.com/ask-chris-81-scooby-doo-and-secular-humanism/) - but it doesn't really hook me.
Title: Re: What's so good about vintage Scooby-Doo?
Post by: Avaitor on October 09, 2014, 01:32:23 AM
I think the show had the right amount of spooky atmosphere to entice younger audiences, with an equal balance of goofier slapstick to keep them entertained. In that regard, Scooby is like a much less sophisticated television equivalent to Disney's Haunted Mansion.

Although I'm honestly sick of the original Where Are You, and you can blame years of Cartoon Network's overplaying it. Even when I see some of the series now, while I do find elements that are unique to it, I feel unimpressed. And this is coming from someone who still genuinely enjoys The Flintstones and HB's earlier "funny cartoon" material.

Although WYA did have some great backgrounds to look at. They helped to shake things up a little from the static designs of the characters themselves.
Title: Re: What's so good about vintage Scooby-Doo?
Post by: Daikun on October 09, 2014, 05:24:52 AM
It's more fun to analyze the show than to watch it.
Title: Re: What's so good about vintage Scooby-Doo?
Post by: Daikun on June 06, 2017, 02:22:37 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vhnjQfERXv0
Title: Re: What's so good about vintage Scooby-Doo?
Post by: Daikun on December 20, 2017, 12:52:08 AM
Daphne's voice actor has passed away. (http://ew.com/tv/2017/12/19/heather-north-dies-scooby-doo-actress-dead)
Title: Re: What's so good about vintage Scooby-Doo?
Post by: gunswordfist on December 20, 2017, 06:08:00 AM
Rest in peace, Heather North.
Title: Re: What's so good about vintage Scooby-Doo?
Post by: Avaitor on December 20, 2017, 10:51:40 PM
Daphne was never the most developed character, particularly in the original, but she did a good job of bringing her to life anyway. RIP
Title: Re: What's so good about vintage Scooby-Doo?
Post by: Daikun on August 28, 2020, 01:26:26 AM
R.I.P. Joe Ruby (https://variety.com/2020/tv/news/joe-ruby-dies-dead-scooby-doo-1234750948)
Title: Re: What's so good about vintage Scooby-Doo?
Post by: Daikun on November 09, 2020, 03:56:15 PM
R.I.P. Ken Spears (https://variety.com/2020/tv/news/ken-spears-dead-scooby-doo-co-creator-1234825813)