Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Scooby Doo Mystery Incorporated Episode 26 Review/Season 1 Wrap-Up

Advisory: I fully apologize to anyone who reads this blog, who might be offended by some of the language I might use here. I do not wish to offend anyone, and I do not wish to use words that people might not use; for all those things that I may say, and that I probably will say, I truthfully, honestly and wholeheartedly apologize.

That being said, here is this week’s Scooby Doo Mystery Incorporated blog:

Well, it’s Tuesday night yet again, and it’s time for yet another new episode of Scooby Doo Mystery Incorporated. But tonight is not just any new episode; tonight is the pinnacle of everything that’s happened so far since Scooby Doo Mystery Incorporated debuted last year.

Tonight is Episode 26 of Scooby Doo Mystery Incorporated’s first season on the air, titled “All Fear The Freak”. In addition, tonight is the Season 1 finale of Scooby Doo Mystery Incorporated or SDMI for short.

All the mysteries that have been solved by the current Mystery Inc., and all the secrets that have been revealed so far have all led up to this point. As I expected, and to the surprise of no one(or at least very few people), the season 1 finale of SDMI is and probably was one of not only the best season finales in TV history, but in addition of the best cliff hangars that this author has ever seen.

This blog will not only be about this particular episode of SDMI, but it will also have a lot to do with the first season as a whole, and a lot of the characters as well. As I have mentioned in the comments on this blog, and in certain other places, I have plenty to say about some of the people in Crystal Cove, but I will get to that later after I review “All Fear The Freak”.

To start with, we get yet another glimpse of the original Mystery Incorporated solving a mystery, but this time in the caves beneath Crystal Cove.

Apparently the original Mystery Inc. was investigating the mystery behind the cursed Spanish Conquistadors treasure, which is something that the current Mystery Inc. took on later in the episode.

After uncovering the treasure apparently, Mystery Inc. with a piece of the Planespheric Disc in tow decided to split while the getting was good, and left the caves behind. Which leads us to the current Mystery Inc. including Scooby Doo; however, Scooby and friends start name calling each other, Daphne, Fred and Shaggy wonder why they hadn’t heard from Velma about Angel Dynamite’s real name and past earlier, and then everything goes all to heck.

Scooby and company start getting involved in trying to solve the mystery of Crystal Cove, but soon they are met by Sheriff Stone, Mayor Jones, and all the other parents of Crystal Cove. Needless to say, the parents are not happy, and after Daphne tells her parents of her engagement to Fred, which surprised Velma, Shaggy and Scooby to no end, Daphne’s folks go off the deep end.

They tell Daphne that Mystery Incorporated is over, and that she is never to see “That Jones Boy” ever again. But of course that doesn’t stop her, and after some name calling among the gang’s parents, which included Shaggy’s mother calling Velma’s mother a hippie, and something else which I don’t remember, the gang decides to sneak out of their rooms at midnight and meet to uncover the mystery once and for all.

Once the gang is in the caves, they encounter Professor Pericles once again, who wants the mayor’s piece of the Planespheric Disc, which we saw in earlier episodes, and which Mr. E, Angel and Ed machine want to stop. After Ed Machine’s disappearance, or death, or whatever occurred with him, the action shifts back to the caves, where the gang encounters the Freak of Crystal Cove, who we saw in last week’s episode.

After some chasing, and after a lot of water comes into the caves, the action shits to the streets, and to the unmasking of the Freak. Now, for the big revealing: the Freak of Crystal Cove is in fact, in reality….. MAYOR JONES!!!! Sorry for the all caps, but that was a shocking moment.

And if that wasn’t shocking, you’ll love this: as it turns out, Mayor Jones is NOT Fred’s actual father. Fred’s real father is… you’ve got it: Brad Chiles, of the original Mystery Incorporated. And if that wasn’t enough, Fred’s mother’s identity is revealed, and his mother is… Judy Reeves of the original Mystery Incorporated.

Mayor Jones mentioned that he came to Crystal Cove years ago because he was accepted into the Darrow College History Department. In addition, Mayor Jones learned of the curse of Crystal Cove, and of the hidden treasure, and as it turns out, of course he wanted it for his own.

So, the esteemed Mayor decided to team up with Professor Pericles, who betrayed the original Mystery Inc., just so that he could maybe get some of the treasure. After the mayor explained that he pretty much kidnapped Fred after the mayor implicated the original Mystery Inc.’s parents in various crimes(all of which were of course as phony as three dollar bills), he then dropped another bombshell.

Mayor Jones wanted the treasure for his own, but in order to search for it he had to become mayor, which meant that Brad and Judy had to go. So, after blackmailing Brad and Judy, they left Crystal Cove, and left Fred in the care of the mayor.

After all the shocks, we have another surprise. Fred after learning his life is pretty much a sham, breaks of his engagement with Daphne, says Mystery Incorporated is dead, and decides to go search for his real parents, without the aforementioned redhead.

Once that happened, Daphne blamed Velma for all this happening. Because in her mind, Velma should have told her and the rest of the gang about Angel’s true identity and past in the first place, and if she had, in Daphne’s mind none of this would have ever happened.

Daphne is then taken home by her parents, who would assume are sending her to boarding school (according to a poster on a message board). Then Velma is taken home by her parents, who one would assume would put her in lockdown I guess (according to that same poster).

As for Shaggy and Scooby, Shaggy is told by his parents that Scooby is being sent to a farm, and that Mr. Rogers is going to a military school. And to close this whole thing out, Scooby and Pericles have a little chat, when Pericles reveals he now has the mayor’s piece of the disc.

Scooby is not happy about this and promises to reunite the gang to stop him, or his name isn’t Scooby Dooby Doo. And that my friends, is the end of Season 1.

Well, I think it’s safe to say that this episode is a 10 out of 10. One of the best Scooby episodes in a long time; major surprises, major shocks, and a great cliff hangar to boot, which will keep us guessing for quite a while.

Now that we’ve taken care of episode 26, it’s time to review Season 1, and I have plenty to say about some of the characters on SDMI, and the setting of the series itself.

Let’s start with the Mayor of Crystal Cove, Fred Jones Sr.: Mayor Jones, you sir are a blackmailer, a deceiver, a liar, a thief, a kidnapper and because this is the internet and may god forgive me for this but: a you know whathole.

For what he has done so far in this series, mainly not supporting his son and his friends, lying about pretty much everything he has said so far(IMO), being deceitful, going through his son’s room to search for a piece of the Planespheric Disc, kidnapping Fred when he was a baby and taking him away from his real parents, dressing up as the Freak of Crystal Cove to scare his son off the track of the mystery of the town, and above all caring more about money(in this case improving the town’s revenue by ignoring ghosts and other supernatural happenings), you sir have become to me in Scooby Doo, what Scrappy Doo and Flim Flam are to a lot of Scooby fans out there.

Mayor Jones, you have officially joined Scar(from Lion King), Ursula(from The Little Mermaid), Sideshow Bob(from The Simpsons), Ben Ravencroft(from Scooby Doo and the Witch’s Ghost), Jafar(from the Aladdin Disney movies), Mozenrath(from the Disney Aladdin TV series), Mirage(from the Disney Aladdin TV series as well) and others in the annals of cartoon history. In short sir, you are and have become one of the most despicable villains and people in TV and cartoon history.

I think it’s not a stretch to say that Mayor Jones of Crystal Cove has earned a nice little spot along with some other rather despicable people down below. To paraphrase a character on the Phil Hendrie radio show: Mayor Jones, you can go down, pit four, cook. That’s basically how I feel about you right now.

As a matter of fact, the way you look even makes me want you to suffer more. What with your black greasy hair, your glasses, your suit and tie, you make me want to kick you in the face. Basically you are the cartoon world’s version (along with Joe Quimby on The Simpsons) of Rod Blagojevich (I know I’m probably not spelling that right), Richard Nixon, Anthony Weiner, etc.; in short, you are one of the most corrupt people I have ever seen, either on TV or in real life, either in cartoon form or live action form.

I actually consider you to be the cartoon version of J.R. Ewing as well. Of course, his big thing was owning and operating an oil company, while Mayor Jones is well…. Involved in politics and likes all that sort of stuff.

However, just like J.R. Ewing, Mayor Jones you more then likely have a lot of enemies, and have made a lot of enemies because of some of the crap that you have been pulling during the course of Season 1 of SDMI. I’m sure you remember what happened to J.R. right? If you said somebody shot him, you’re right; and after all the stuff that you’ve done to Fred and the rest of the current MI, you more then likely will have something like that happen to you someday as well.

Moving on, we have another new character for SDMI, Angel Dynamite: now, she hasn’t done or participated in anywhere near anything that Mayor Jones has done, but she’s got her own web of lies that she has participated in.

First of all, Angel Dynamite participated in one of the biggest lies anyone could ever participate in: lying about her name, and her past. Angel Dynamite’s real name is Cassidy Williams, and she was a member of the original Mystery Incorporated, with Professor Pericles, Ricky Owens, Brad Chiles and Judy Reeves.

However, because she is a bald faced liar, she decided to not only not tell Scooby and friends about her true identity and her past, but every time the gang would ask her or try to get info about certain things about the mystery behind the Curse of Crystal Cove, she would lie, lie, and lie some more.

That to me is as utterly deplorable as was everything that Mayor Jones did. Lying about your name is one thing, and using an alias is another; but lying about being a teenage sleuth, and then not helping the current Mystery Inc. in their hour of need, and the times when they need it most is something that I don’t think I can forgive you for, and that I don’t think the gang should either.

The next character in focus in Sheriff Bronson Stone, very well voiced by Patrick Warburton(other wise known as Joe on Family Guy, and a bunch of other cartoon and voice over roles; notably the Ranger in a Radio PSA for the Forest Service and as Meriwether Lewis in a fantastic series of commercials for Alaska Airlines/Horizon Air. Seriously if you haven’t heard this series of commercials, they are fantastic.).

Now, Sheriff Stone is merely a pawn in this whole thing(in my mind at least). He tries to do his job, and as a result ends up running afoul of the current Mystery Inc. every so often; sometimes he doesn’t like it when the gang is around, and sometimes he needs the gang’s help(as seen in Dead Justice).

That being said, I think he’s not at all at fault for anything in this series. He was only trying to do his job, and as seen in the episode Dead Justice, his inability to do that cost him it, for a while at least, although he did get it back.

For a while it seemed like the Mayor and him were good friends, and that Sheriff Stone was like the Mayor’s right hand man. However, that I think has changed; after spying on the gang and Fred, searching through his room, and just going off the deep end with the events of tonight’s episode, I think Sheriff Stone should distance himself from Mayor Jones.

Frankly I think the sheriff is better off, as he reminds me a lot of Chief Wiggum in the Simpsons(you probably are noticing that I’m referencing the Simpsons a lot; I do that because I watch the show a lot and I’ve probably seen a good number of the episodes).

Chief Wiggum is someone who is pretty much the worst police officer in all of fiction(well, next to the ones in Police Academy and Frank Drebin from the Naked Gun movies, those guys make Wiggum and Sheriff Stone look like J. Edgar Hoover and Elliott Ness).

Basically the reason I say Chief Wiggum is like Sheriff Stone is because while both have their good moments, but both of them work for people who are absolutely horrible mayors, and both of them are somewhat confused and have no idea what’s really going on in their cities.

Granted Wiggum and Stone do a decent job with their sheriff duties, but working for such corrupt mayors gives them a quality that makes them seem dumb in a lot of people’s eyes. Of course it’s not either of their faults, Mayor Jones and Mayor Quimby are just horrible at what they do.

That being said, Sheriff Stone is an unsung hero in this show, and someone who I think the gang should make sure to keep as a friend in the future. Or at least that’s what I thought until tonight, yet again he arrests the gang for doing what they do best, solving mysteries.

I’m really not sure what to think of Sheriff Stone now. I’ll definitely have to think about that and get back to everyone on that.

Moving on, let’s go to a returning favorite: Vincent Van Ghoul. But this time, he’s a horror movie actor instead of being a mystic; he was voiced excellently by Maurice LaMarche (other wise known as Brain from the Kids WB series Pinky and the Brain), and made a few appearances in this series.

Granted, no one could replace someone like Vincent Price, who did the role originally in 13 Ghosts of Scooby Doo, but Maurice was very close, and did a great job in the role. I would have liked to see how Maurice would have tackled the original Vincent Van Ghoul; hopefully that will happen someday, but for now I wouldn’t hold your breath considering what WB’s done with Scooby Doo in the past.

Next up, we have Alice May. A blonde haired high school student (I guess), we first saw her in The Secret of Alice May; she dressed up as a ghost in order to steal Fred away (sort of) from Daphne and the gang. But she’s got her secrets as well; at first she mentioned that she was Mr. Carswell (the Creeper from Jeepers It’s The Creeper)’s daughter, which of course she wasn’t.

In reality, she was a hired jack, or rather Jill of all trades. She came back in Pawn of Shadows, last week’s episode, after she was bailed out by Mr. E; apparently she was hired by Mr. E at first to leave behind a yearbook featuring pictures of the old Mystery Inc., which of course the current Mystery Inc. found.

But in Pawn of Shadows, she was more of a high tech assassin called the Obliteratrix. Because she wanted to destroy the current Mystery Inc. was she telling the truth the first time the gang met her and she was captured? If she was hired by Mr. E to take care of the gang as it were, then why would she leave the yearbook behind in the first place?

Obviously everything she did, and every move she made was planned by Mr. E. However, what role does she have to play in the overall story arc? We’ll probably know more about that in Season 2, and if not, then I guess that remains a mystery.

Next up, we have the parents of the gang. Since I’ve said a lot about Fred’s dad, let’s skip over him. Fred’s mom hasn’t made too many appearances, which begs the question what role does she play in all of this? Well, the role she plays is… Fred’s mother is Judy Reeves, a member of the original Mystery Inc., or at least that’s what it would seem.

While Fred’s real father is apparently Brad Chiles, another member of the original Mystery Incorporated. After the revelations of tonight’s episode, that Fred is going in search of his real parents, will Brad and Judy truly accept him as their son; the fact that they were blackmailed into leaving Crystal Cove by Mayor Jones makes this task a little more difficult, one would think.

I think after he finds his real parents, Fred will accept Brad and Judy, and things will get back to normal with Mystery Inc.; the only questions are how long will it take, when will it happen and will it be too late, both for the gang and for Crystal Cove? Only time will tell of course.

Moving on, let’s focus in on Daphne’s parents a bit. Daphne’s parents of course are seen as being somewhat wealthy(which has been pretty much accepted into the Scooby Doo canon by now); but this incarnation of Daph’s parents, unlike the ones in No Thanks Masked Manx or Pup Named Scooby Doo seem more… well, uppity and jerkish then previous ones.

In previous incarnations, Daphne’s parents are very proud of her in whatever she does, and wouldn’t mind her and Fred getting together. But this Daphne’s parents not only despise Fred and his father, but also seem to concentrate more on the red head’s sisters then her, which is very poor parenting if you ask me.

Next are Velma’s parents. Velma’s mom and dad seem to be the least horrible of all the parents on this incarnation of Scooby Doo, in fact they have helped Velma a lot in this series, by giving her advice and helping her and the gang out in their casers.

Plus Velma’s parents run the Haunted Museum of Crystal Cove (which is probably one of the coolest things in Scooby’s history), a haunted Crystal Cove tour, and a combination bookstore and coffee bar, the former of which dealing with all sorts of supernatural and paranormal phenomena.

But Velma’s parents have their faults, like anyone else in this show. Velma’s folks at first didn’t want their daughter sharing that every single ghost and monster in Crystal Cove (at least the ones the gang have caught) are fake. They may or may not have reversed that status, but for now one would imagine that Velma’s folks still believe in the supernatural (go figure huh?).

Next are Shaggy’s folks. We didn’t see much of them, other then the fact that Shaggy’s parents want him hanging out with other people(which one would assume means rich teenagers) and that Shaggy’s dad didn’t want him using the Rogers name at Darrow College(as seen in the episode The Shrieking Madness).

This is troubling, as the fact that Shaggy’s own father doesn’t want his son using the family last name at college is definitely not normal. Although maybe Shaggy’s folks aren’t normal; I wouldn’t mind knowing if they’re rich, and if their money came from… well, something that’s legal, as opposed to what I’m thinking, which is that they’re involved in a business with the mayor.

Now, we’ve covered Velma’s folks, Shaggy’s folks, Fred’s parents and Daphne’s parents, so let’s move on to other characters and topics. Next up is the appearance of the Hex Girls (after all, you think I would do a review of the season without covering them? I think not).

The Hex Girls did indeed come back, performing a concert in Crystal Cove (as seen during In Fear Of The Phantom). Two of the gals voices were the same as they were in the What’s New Scooby Doo episode they were featured in, as well as Scooby Doo and the Legend of the Vampire and Scooby Doo and the Witch’s Ghost.

But of course Jane Wiedlin (I believe that’s who it was) didn’t voice her character, so she had a replacement. The Hex Girls had an interesting look to them in this episode, not to mention a super fan in the audience in Velma; that episode premiered when I was out of town, which meant that because we were staying elsewhere, my parents watched part of the episode as well.

Oddly enough, they thought the Hex Girls were possessed because of the way they dressed, but I didn’t get a chance to explain to them that they were like a Goth rock band, and Goths are like that. Oh well; however, in that particular episode Daphne did join the band as Crush, which was kind of intriguing (at least to me). Wonder if she’ll dress up as Crush again if the Hex Girls ever come back to Crystal Cove?

Moving on from the Hex Girls, I think it’s time to get to the five main characters of the show, starting out with Scooby Doo. Scooby in this show has proven his worth, time and again; however, he’s still a chicken, and of course he’s cool like that. But he’s also become a bit too controlling, and has thought that if Shaggy hangs around Velma too much, he thinks that Shaggy’s cheating on him.

I don’t know if I like that the current generation of Scooby writers are making him out to be a third wheel while Velma and Shaggy become a couple. It’s understandable, but if Shaggy and Velma are going to work as a couple, and if Shaggy is going to have a permanent girlfriend, Scooby Doo is going to have to stop being so needy and controlling, and Scooby is going to have to get himself a girlfriend, sooner or later.

One would hope sooner rather then later because he really needs to stop being so darn controlling and let Shaggy live his life. I know this may upset some people, but Shaggy is going to live a lot longer more then likely then Scooby, so when Scooby’s gone, Shaggy is going to need someone as a companion, as opposed to Scooby Doo. While Scooby is a great companion, Shaggy’s going to need a human companion if he ever wants to grow up(no offense to either Shag or Scooby of course).

Moving on, we go to Shaggy Rogers himself now. Shaggy is, well a bit of a slacker, a bit of a hippie, and always hungry and cowardly, always has been, and pretty much always will be. After he and Velma dated for a while, he pretty much dumped her for Scooby, which left a bad taste in her mouth, as well as Scooby’s(although he doesn’t want to admit it).

After rescuing Scooby from the Animal Asylum(in Night of the Fright Hound), Shaggy wants to be just friends with Velma. Miss Dinkley of course realized that being friends in this case meant being dumped; while she took it very hard, Shaggy is at fault here as well.

Shaggy didn’t let Velma down easy, he just dropped the bomb on her right away. This was not a good decision, and Shaggy should have known better; he should have either learned how to manage his time better, or just told Scooby during Episode 1: “Scooby, I know we’re best friends, but I love Velma, and I want her to be my girlfriend.” Or something like that.

If Scooby really understood Shaggy at all, he would be happy for him no matter what. Which is why(even though I hate to say it), Scooby Doo was way over the line when he though Shaggy was “Cheating” on him. And the fact that Scooby was encouraging Mi-Lee(in Dragon’s Secret) to date Shaggy is a complete and utter turnaround of what Scooby was doing with Velma.

Back to Shaggy though for a moment. I think Shaggy and Velma and Scooby are going to get this triangle thing resolved, and Scooby after understanding what’s going on, will get Shaggy and Velma back together again. However, this is going to take some time, as the bigger issue right now is having Shaggy out of Military School, Scooby out of the Farm, and Velma out of lockdown in her bedroom.

Speaking of her, let’s move on to Miss Dinkley. She was a bit too snotty in this series (I think that’s the right for it); she was also controlling, with wanting to control what Shaggy eats, how he speaks and what he wears. A real girlfriend, and someone who really likes Shaggy or any guy would want him to be himself (within reason), and someone who would accept him for who he is.

That’s what Shaggy and Velma should be doing, and I hope the writers take note of this for Season 2 of SDMI.

On to Daphne Blake now. Daphne is pretty much being herself in this series; although the whole Goth rocker thing was interesting, and pining over a clueless Fred has been done to death over the years. But for the most part, other then the romance stuff, and trying to avoid being set up on blind dates by her parents, Daphne’s been somewhat normal in this series.

I don’t know if this is going to change in Season 2, but I think Daphne should stay with what works best. Hopefully thinks will work out though, and she gets the heck out of that boarding school she’s been sent to; because I know that she wouldn’t like that, no way, no how. By the way, how come almost all rich, or so called spoiled children in fiction, whether it be TV, movies, radio or books or comics end up in boarding school?

It’s just something that’s a bit weird to me, I mean wouldn’t a rich or spoiled kid be sent to somewhere where he or she would learn the value of a dollar or something as punishment? Maybe, although that’s just me I guess, and maybe it’s just my line and way of thinking.

Well, I’ve covered Daphne, Scooby, Velma and Shaggy, so let’s move to Fred. Fred in this show is a bit too obsessed with traps, in fact it’s a little weird, and I know other fans will agree with me there. Although, after some brief flirtation with Alice May(which seems to be a theme in modern Scooby Doo; Fred flirting with other girls, to the annoyance of Daphne), Fred realized that Daphne loved him, and he finally admitted that he loved her as well.

In addition, Fred’s relationship with his father was one of the definite highlights of the season. Partly because his father wanted Fred to become the future mayor of Crystal Cove, while Fred just wanted to be with Daphne, and solve mysteries and build traps. Not to mention, it was definitely as rocky as Rocky Road ice cream during the course of the season.

For a while, it seemed like Fred and his father would be best friends, but now after the season finale, I wouldn’t blame Fred if he never talked to his father ever again. Frankly speaking, if I were Fred Jones, I would disassociate myself with my father, and never speak to the ex-mayor ever again, he’s that much of a jerk wad.

Let’s see: we’ve covered the main characters, the parents, and a few other characters. Next up, I think we’ll cover that leader of larceny, that crooked cracker eater, the former pet of the original Mystery Incorporated: Professor Pericles. From what we’ve seen so far, Professor Pericles seems to be going for the same thing as the mysterious Mr. E, mainly the cursed treasure of Crystal Cove, or rather the Spanish conquistadors that visited the city hundreds of years ago.

During the course of the season, while Pericles has teamed up on occasion with Scooby Doo, the Great Dane and the purple parrot for the most part are sworn enemies. It’s clear that Pericles wants the gang alive so that he can get each piece of the Planespheric Disc for his own, something that Mr. E wants.

It seems to me, that Pericles will be the main villain in Season 2 of the show, so expect quite a few battle royales between the parrot and the canine. Who will prevail? Well, the only thing that’s for certain is that Season 2 of Mystery Incorporated promises to be one wild affair.

Now we’ve come to the last of the major players in this little drama in animated form: Mr. E. A mysterious man, who at first was hidden in shadows, only sending messages and clues to the current Mystery Inc. to help them solve the mystery of Crystal Cove; eventually we found out his identity, which was Ricky Owens, a member of the original Mystery Incorporated.

Ricky, or Mr. E along with Ed Machine, CEO of the Destroido Corporation and Cassidy Williams, or Angel Dynamite if you will, have tried all season long to stop Professor Pericles from gaining everything he wants.

In episode 25, Angel tried to warn the current Mystery Inc. that the same thing that would happen to the current group, as what happened with the original Mystery Inc., which so far seems to be coming true. Mr. E, or Ricky, changed quite a bit from his teenage years to somewhat of a well, it’s hard to really say what he looks like now, as Mr. E.

So, we’ve covered all the major players in this little drama, and how they’ve come to be, and their backgrounds. Now, the only thing left to do for Scooby Doo fans is wait: wait for Season 2 of SDMI, and the inevitable conclusion of this mystery that has left the Scooby fandom baffled, bewildered and has kept us guessing ever since April of last year when we got a sneak preview of the show, and since last July when the show officially debuted on Cartoon Network.

What’s going to happen in Season 2 of Scooby Doo Mystery Incorporated anyway?

Will Fred find his real parents?

Will Daphne stop blaming Velma for what’s happened?

Will Daphne and Velma be friends again?

Will Daphne and Fred get back together and will they go back to being engaged?

Will Velma and Shaggy be together again as a couple?

Will Shaggy, Velma and Scooby resolve their differences, in order to all be friends again?

And most of all: Will Scooby Doo get Daphne out of wherever she is, wherever Velma is, wherever Fred is and Shaggy out of Military School, and whatever farm he’s at?

In short: Can and Will Scooby get the gang back together to solve the mystery of Crystal Cove? I think he will, but for now all we can do is wait, wait until Cartoon Network airs Season 2 of SDMI, and forever peace and order to return to the world of Scooby Doo.

I’ll keep people updated, or try and keep people abreast of what’s going on with Scooby Doo. In addition, I might do some classic Scooby reviews here and there, although I don’t know if that will take place or not.

For now, it’s wait and watch, and wait and see. In addition, we have to hope and think in our minds that Mystery Inc WILL be reunited, which they of course will. The only questions are how, when, and what amount of time that it will take to do this? For now, all I can say is keep a stiff upper lip, keep smiling, and always remember in the words of Casey Kasem: Keep Your Feet On The Ground, And Keep Reaching For The Stars.

And until the next Scooby Doo blog from this Scooby Doo fan, I will bid you adieu.

21 comments:

Tyler said...

Hey I heard the SDMI got canceled after the amazing episode 26? Is this true?

Scoobyfan1 said...

@Tyler: there are a few rumors about that floating around, but it is 100 percent not true.

Someone posted over at a website called Scooby Addicts Board(someone that went to Comic Con, and attended the Scooby panel) that Mystery Incorporated is indeed coming back, and even mentioned some details about Season 2.

As for when it will air, no one really knows. It could air during the fall, the winter, or it could take as long as next spring or summer.

hobbyfan said...

Cartoon Network would be wise to get season 2 scheduled ASAP to bring immediate resolution to this storyline and restitution to long-time Scooby fans, and I mean the ones who've been there from day 1, all the way back in 1969. Quite frankly, I watched "All Fear The Freak" On Demand, and, knowing what was coming, was prepared to hate it.

I've been saying all along that head writer Mitch Watson has been playing to the internet, and throwing random things up to see what sticks, just to get people talking. I'm sorry, but he's lost my respect.

There is something just inherently wrong about the idea of Fred being abducted as a baby and raised by a corrupt mayor who acted like he was a clueless putz the entire time the gang saw him. You know and I know WB will roll out another Scooby DTV as if nothing happened, and that's because the movies are in their own continuity. Sorry, but you can't have your cake and eat it, too! WB can't have it both ways, putting out videos to mollify the loyal fans, and continuing the current series, which now stands as an even worse insult, IMPO, to the franchise than anything else before it.

I feel sorry for Daphne, sure, but Fred is being a total dork, as usual, for refusing the help of his beloved in locating his "real parents". I'm sure that fan fic fans will find their own answers within the realms of their imaginations, and I encourage them to submit their ideas to CN, so either Watson gets some help, or gets bum-rushed out the freakin' door!

They're saying on Toon Zone that Jonny Quest will appear in season 2, to follow up the pointless cameo from a week ago. So Watson's decided to ruin another beloved franchise. Dynomutt is scheduled as well, along with Blue Falcon, to mark their 35th anniversary. Oh, I know how to work them into the mix better than Watson can or is trying to. Just watch.

Sagg said...

Hello again, Nickle. I wanted to take my time and re-read your blog to take in what you wrote. A few things:

I won't argue anything you said about the Mayor and Angel, save for two things--the Mayor saving Fred and Angel saving the gang from the Obliteratrix (sp?). Neither had to do that. Perhaps you can back a tad off on declaring them despicable scum? :)

Sheriff Stone, I might point out, seemed to forget about the gang helping him out in "Dead Justice". Recall that he said he owed them one. So much for keeping that promise, huh? The moment they were caught sneaking out of the Mayor's office, he leads the mob by declaring them felons! He deserves very little sympathy from me.

You were pretty much spot on about the parents of the gang, with Shaggy's folks a tad worse than Daphne's, imo. Velma's gets a pass. They indeed seemed the most normal of the group.

As for your depiction of the gang, pretty much again on target.

Can't wait for the next season. Good job on your blogs.

Scoobyfan1 said...

@hobbyfan, all good points; by the way, I saw the first chapter of your take on what SDMI season 2 should be, very well done so far.

Scoobyfan1 said...

@Sagg, first on Sheriff Stone: at first he was going to get some sympathy from me, but as I said in the part of the blog that was a review of last week's season finale, now I don't know.

On Angel/Cassidy: I agree, she did save the gang from Alice May aka Obliteratrix. However, in my book, lying about your life and real name and using an alias to hide things is not OK.

The question has come up in several places before, and it bares repeating: if Cassidy/Angel and the rest of the original Mystery Inc. wanted to really get to the bottom of things, then they would have made sure their parents weren't involved in any crimes like the so called mayor said they were.

I know one thing, if I was a teenager, I would not be scared at all of the Freak, and I would have delved further into the mystery. The problem with Cassidy and the original MI is I think they were frightened away too easily, and could have easily continued their investigation and could have helped the gang more in the open rather then what they did.

I understand that the Freak said he would hurt those the original MI loved and cared for. However, unless the Freak was somekind of demon or supernatural creature that possessed real power, that could possibly make someone die or dissappear for a long period of time, there was no reason to be afraid of him.

All the freak basically was was the hopefully ex-mayor in a Freak suit. They didn't say he had any supernatural powers(unless I missed something), so the original Mystery Inc. screwed up big time.

However, Angel is really a pussycat compared to the hopefully ex-mayor of Crystal Cove.

Fred's dad did save Fred in the final episode of the season, but that doesn't deserve a pass from me at all.

Maybe it's all the Matlock, Murder She Wrote, Walker Texas Ranger and similar shows that I watch with my folks and by myself, but in every crime and mystery show i've watched where something like what happened to Fred happened in those shows, the crook is usually dead, in jail for twenty-thirty years, or is disgraced enough to leave town and never come back.

For Fred's so called father, I could see all three. The mayor first off kidnapped Fred when he was a baby basically, then he lied to Fred through the entire season and cared more about the town and politics then his own son, and worst of all blackmailed his real parents into leaving town.

I could seriously see why Fred was so upset with his father. And I could see him never speaking to the mayor again. While he may get a pass in some people's books, in my book lying, kidnapping and blackmailing not only doesn't get a pass from me, but if the mayor was a real person and the media caught wind of this(which I could understand) not only would Fred's so called father be asked to resign his post as mayor, but he would probably never be able to show his face in public again.

If Fred's dad, the so called Mayor was a real person, he would also be thrown in jail for kidnapping and blackmailing. Remember, we all saw the sheriff say he couldn't believe what was happening, but since the mayor is a crook, he's just like any body else in that town.

He should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Which means he won't even get to run for City Council, as I understand that convicted felons cannot run for public office.

Also, thank you for the comments on my blogs and on everyone else as well.

Scoobyfan1 said...

@Sagg One last thing, I know I said the mayor should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, and the sheriff arrested Scooby and the gang because he thought they were criminals.

Scooby and company should never be prosecuted, after all they were only trying to do what they do best: solve mysteries. And from where I sit, that's not a crime.

By the way, I was thinking of something about Shaggy's parents. Just a weird thought, but can't you see them after saying Shaggy should find new friends have them trying to set Shaggy up on dates, or trying to introduce him to some of his parents friends that are Shaggy's age?

I think it would be funny(since the staff of this show seems to like throwing cameos and guest shots from older HB shows in there) if Shaggy's parents introduced him to some other people that are his age, and they happen to also be mystery solvers like say, the Clue Club.

I could definitely see Shaggy falling for Pepper or Dottie(slightly older of course). And then once Velma finds out, she could have a bit of a stare down with Pepper or Dottie.

I could also see the Clue Club getting into some trouble during a mystery and who else but Shaggy has to help them, and he suggests that his friends(Mystery Inc.) help out in solving the mystery.

I could see this being a good second season or third season episode of SDMI(if we get one). Since hobbyfan is so good at coming up with ideas, I might have him see what he could come up with, although I think my idea is a great start.

Sagg said...

Hello again, Nickle. I didn't mean to imply that the Mayor should be given a break. Everything you wrote was correct and spot on about him. It's that he did do one thing which kept him from being a complete monster: He saved Fred's life. He could've easily kept going, since he had the disk, and ignored Fred's call for help. But he didn't. I think the Mayor became used to Fred being his "son", and even meant it (to a certain extent) in the season finale when he told Fred that he loved him. That's why he saved Fred. However, to reiterate, you're absolutely correct on everything else about him.

Angel, I think should be given more of a break. Unlike the mayor, she clearly cared for the entire gang, even while she was lying to them. We saw it when she was talking to Mr. E, even subtly warning him that she wouldn't stand for it if anything bad happened to them. Again, she saved them from the Obliteratrix (sp?). She could've stayed on the sidelines, but she didn't. She also was genuinely shocked that Mr. E had hired Alice May to use the gang to attempt to draw out Pericles. I suspect she confronted Mr. E off-screen and told him she didn't want to work with him again because she had been lied to about this. It was only because of the Freak that she was forced to work with Mr. E again to keep the gang safe. Fred, of course, didn't want to hear of it. Angel really cares, whether it would be a result of guilt for the lying or whatnot, she cares. There's a reason why Velma kept the secret of Angel from the gang for awhile: Velma's gut instinct about Angel. I think Velma turned out to be right.

Speaking of the Freak, you of course know this is Scooby Doo. It could be assumed that Angel and the other members of the original Mystery Inc. (save for Pericles, since he was working with Jones) thought he was real. It's usually one of the Unspoken Rules of Scooby Doo, right? That the villain is real *until* he or she is unmasked, though the gang may SUSPECT they're not real, especially when they discover that something during the case may be not quite right, leading to said conclusion. I think the original Mystery Inc. was even more gullible than the current one in thinking the Freak was real. After all, did not the current one unmask him? ;)

Sagg said...

By the way, I think Clue Club was the best "spin-off" of the Scooby Doo clones of the 70's. It was the clever repartee between the regular characters that made it stand out, as opposed to the mysteries, which were pretty bland.

Scoobyfan1 said...

@Sagg: very true on Angel and Mayor Jones, very true.

Also agreed on Clue Club. It's too bad that it came out in the 70s and not in the Kids WB days; because it came out in the 70s it was pretty disposable as was every other Scooby clone in those days.

However, I think that if that quality of a show came out in either the 90s or 2000s(2000-2009 at least), it would have gotten at least two or three seasons.

How many completely dumb cartoons got two or three seasons on Saturday mornings in the 90s or 2000s? Probably a lot more then you would like to admit.

In fact, i'm surprised Warner Brothers didn't open the vaults and remake Clue Club, but more technologically advanced(sort of like WNSD).

Hey, if they can remake Scooby Doo for the 21st Century, why not CC?

hobbyfan said...

WB had a golden opportunity to "open the vaults" back in 1999, but Cartoon Network refused to play along.

Prior to the release of "Scooby-Doo & the Witch's Ghost", CN decided to parody the "Blair Witch Project" with "The Scooby-Doo Project". The right way to play it would've been to play up Scooby & the gang being missing, and filling the zillion holes in the schedule with Clue Club, Funky Phantom, et al. CN refused to to do that, demonstrating that they'd rather have the cake and eat it at the same time, if you get my drift. The Scooby repeats continued unabated while the "Project" was ongoing, and thus CN screwed the pooch by sabotaging their own stunt. It is this kind of idiotic decision making that has infuriated viewers of CN and Boomerang (to a lesser extent) ever since.

Scoobyfan1 said...

@hobbyfan, couldn't have said it any better myself.

Oddly enough back in 1999, I hadn't been a Scooby fan for very long, so I wanted to see all the episodes of the various series that I hadn't seen yet to that point.

However, after seeing the various Scooby knockoffs various times on CN(back when they aired them) and Boomerang(more recently), i've started to get on the bandwagon of opening the vaults and letting Warner Brothers shine the spotlight on some of the shows that shall we say got the shaft once Scooby had a resurgence in popularity.

Don't get me wrong, I still love Scooby Doo, but watching Clue Club and other HB mystery shows has gotten me interested in them and possibly purchase them on DVD as well.

It's interesting though, speaking of Warner Brothers that with all shows from Hanna Barbera that have gotten live action movie treatment, why not Clue Club?

Or at least an animated TV movie or something similar to the Scooby Doo ones. Like a Direct to Video movie with the Clue Club characters solving a case as college students or something.

Too bad this wasn't the early 90s when all those HB shows were on USA Network. Partly because Johnny Quest got a couple movies during that period, and then got a new show on CN/TBS/TNT, so why not Clue Club?

AnotherScoobyFan said...

All your comments are good! But there are still some points that nobody has come to realize:

1. What are some teens doing solving mysteries? As all the other characters point out, is not a trend nor something normal nor a phase. Then why the Scooby gang are doing it? My guess is that they are trying to avoid some real mystery they have: None of them could truly communicate with his family.

2. The people who solved the last episode, who knew who was the Freak even before he unsmasked was not know-it-all Velma, but Fred! Fred, whose mind is always in traps and only recently has recognized that Dafne feels something for him.

3. Did you notice why the Mayor was rejecting the love Fred, his supposed son, always displayed him in all the episodes? Even to the point of cruelty or sociopathy? It was because he was feeling guilty: He did something terrible to Fred, and Fred never gave up on him.

4. Dafne have not realized that she not only get Fred’s love: She made him confront the terribly fact that his father was hiding a secret, a secret he was terrified to find. Fred is not leaving her not only because he’s a jerk (you can’t deny that either) but because he needs to find the truth before he can compromise.

5. Mayor Jones is really a monster, but a sad one: As Fred remarks, the legendary treasure may not exist at all: He not only has destroyed the lives of four teens and kidnapped a baby only to defend his dreams, he has dedicated his life to a dream that may not even be true. All he has to show for it is a disk and the love of his “son”.

6. Will you trust your parents if you were any of the Scooby gang? Nobody of them has the healthiest relationship with them. That’s why it was so easy to convince the former Mystery Inc of their parent’s crimes: Nobody of them trust or know very well her parents either.

7. You forget to mention the terrible destiny of Danny Darrow: A little boy so obsessed by the treasure that he never thought of anything else, (except tramps) that remained a little boy for 70 years. At least his last words were wise: “That those object get you more happiness that it ever give to me”.

8. Scooby Doo rocks. Not the show, him (or it?). This dog is the better adjusted of his team, and maybe the only one who can defy Professor Pericles.

9. This blog rocks too. I love your comments of the episodes.

Anonymous said...

i agree in general to a great many comments made.i personally would like to see them draw the explaination of the season ending cliff hanger over 2 or 3 episodes( with the mystery inc. kids coming out winners in the end)......but don't forget, we still have brad and judy to be revaled yet

Anonymous said...

to those who did not understand the last episode of SDMI, by the way, please understand the story well before making comments, first of all Fred was not abducted, the mayor himself told him that he scared Fred's parent and ask them to leave the baby to them and that he will keep him safe. another thing Velma never mentioned Angel Dynamite's real name because there was an episode wherein she was confronted again by Velma, in which Angel told Velma that she promised that she will tell the truth herself. And come on people the cartoons was not made for adults to like only.. the series was made for kids also. If the writer has done what all you people said, the children's head might get messed up for all those complicated things you wanted. By the way Scooby doo is a mystery cartoon and no need detailed scenarios so that things maybe cleared up.. Hello.. Logic people.. That's the beauty of Cartoons like it, it makes you think. what would be a cartoons with so much details and so much explanation?.. I guess it would be boring.. I respect your comments but hey, think about it. Cartoons are really not made for us adults, its made for children..

triz(owner) said...

well Mayor Jones did terrible things of course but still i feel somehow was was suffering from that and was very guilty inside. and he definitely considered Fred as his 'son' lately...or else he wouldn't had to save Fred's life when he got the disk and could have escaped easily. but he was caught after saving Fred and somehow i feel sorry for this Mayor because the treasure he was looking throughout his life may not even exist...and his whole life waiting can be for nothing!

Shiva said...

can anyone tell when season 2 will be released ?

schoobyfan said...

when does seasn to come out??? really...thanks if u comment

magicdog said...

CN website says SDMI will return to TV in May. No exact date, but during the month of May.

Anonymous said...

you know if you want the season 2 to start you might want to petition

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/scooby-doo-mystery-incorporated-season-3-renewal/

on this site there are a pattition pass it around so it can be aired

Anonymous said...

I just saw episode 27 last friday, It was really exciting and you get too find out what's become of the characters. No petition needed, season 2 really is coming in may (episode 27 got leaked), but unfortunately it is also confirmed to be over after episode 52