06.26
Ah, good old Scooby Doo. Is there anyone among us who isn’t at least passingly familiar with one of the shows featuring the talking mutt and those meddling kids who made up his posse? Traveling in the aptly-named mystery-machine, solving crimes involving some sort of bogeyman, which would invariably turn out to be Old Man Caruthers (or some other seemingly benevolent older man), who had chosen to disguise himself in order to propagate some villainous scheme.
Truth be told, I was never a big fan of the majority of Hannah-Barbera’s body of work, which is not to say that I hated their cartoons, I just didn’t consider them to be essential viewing. Basically, the cartoons created by Hannah-Barbera were simply there; I’d watch them if I felt like it, but I can’t say that they engaged me or sustained my interest after the episode had ended. Scooby Doo! Where Are You? Was not the exception to the rule and I can’t say I cared enough about the franchise to seek out the spinoff shows like A Pup Named Scooby Doo or the latter-day live-action movies. As such, when I heard that there was a new Scooby Doo show, my interest was at first practically non-existent. However, I soon noticed that people on various forums I frequent was talking about the new show titled Mystery Incorporated in quite positive terms and when I learned that the show’s director was a certain Victor Cook, who had worked with Greg Weisman on The Spectacular Spider-Man; one of my favorite cartoons ever, I decided to give this new Scooby Doo a shot.
I’m glad I did, because Mystery Incorporated is a genuinely great show, featuring a really engaging on-going plot which is revealed bit by bit during the course of the show’s two seasons. The show takes place almost entirely in the town of Crystal Cove, it’s here that we meet the eponymous Mystery Inc. consisting as always of Fred Jones Jr, Daphne Blake, Velma Dinkley, Norville “Shaggy” Rogers and last, but not least, Scooby Doo. When Mystery Incorporated opens, the quintet has already been in the mystery-solving business for at least some time – catching the various ghouls and ghosts that plague Crystal Cove and exposing them as regular crooks in costume. This is not looked upon kindly by Fred’s father, the mayor of Crystal Cove, who sees any seemingly supernatural activity – no matter how dangerous, as a great way to put Crystal Cove on the map.
Soon enough, the gang stumbles upon a new mystery which will turn out to be the biggest one they have ever been faced with. Guided by the enigmatic Mr. E, Mystery Inc. must attempt to find out what happened to their predecessors, the original Mystery Inc. and how their disappearance ties into the legend of a fabled treasure said to be hidden beneath Crystal Cove.
I’ll stop there for fear of having said too much. Suffice to say that Mystery Incorporated makes excellent use of its serialized format to gradually reveal more of the mystery that is at the center of the show and although not all the episodes revolve around that storyline, there’s usually something in each episode that adds to the puzzle. The writers of the show has also done a great job with the characters, keeping their most familiar traits intact (Velma is the smart one of the group, Shaggy and Scooby are the constantly hungry cowards, etc.) while also allowing them to step out of the types they represent and become fully fleshed-out characters. The one who differs the most from his original incarnation is undoubtedly Fred, while he still serves as the group’s de-facto leader his primary characterization this time is an obsession with traps which at times had me convinced that Fred was, at the very least, borderline-autistic. This is in my opinion a huge improvement over Fred’s characterization in the original show, which could charitably be described as bland.
The supporting cast is as rule engaging, my personal favorite being Professor Pericles who emerges as the chief villain of the series. Pericles is a genuinely sinister and competent villain who almost always manages to stay one step ahead of the protagonists; unsurprisingly the episodes that involve him are among the show’s more serious installments. Other noteworthy characters include the local lawman, Sheriff Bronson Stone, whose incompetence coupled with an inflated ego provides much of the show’s comic relief as well as local radio DJ Angel Dynamite, who serves as the kid’s closest ally.
As much as I liked Mystery Incorporated, the show is not without its flaws. The early episodes are plagued by a rather tedious love-triangle between Shaggy, Scooby and Velma, which quite frankly I could have done without. Another episode also introduces the character Jason, who is one of the most stereotypical and obnoxious nerd/geek characters I’ve seen in a recent cartoon. Thankfully, after his initial appearance the character is soon relegated to the occasional cameo, so he never has the opportunity to become Mystery Inc.’s Scrappy, thank heavens.
I guess I should’ve written a bit about the voice acting (great, but than what would you expect with such talented voice actors as Patrick Warburton, Grey DeLisle and Mark Hamill among others in the cast?) or the fact that the show provides us with an explanation for why one small town attracts so many weirdoes in masks, among other things, but that would’ve made this review even more long-winded than I fear it may already be. Suffice to say that whether you were a fan of the franchise or not, Scooby Doo: Mystery incorporated comes highly recommended for anyone who likes good, serialized animation and while I mean no disrespect to its predecessors this is quite frankly the only Scooby Doo cartoon that I’d rank among my favorite animated shows. Check it out.