Scooby-Doo! Haunted Holidays - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo! Haunted Holidays

Premiered December 4, 2012

Quickly

The gang saves a toy store and Christmas.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The opening parade balloons remind me of the Joker parade in Batman 1989. And the mystery of the toy store owner who has changed and is facing failure feels like Christmas to me. Christmas is my favorite holiday because I like the magic of it but every year that magic is paired with a possibility of something bad. Maybe that's just my adult awareness of the world. Blegh. Okay, that's my last bit of angst for this post.

This isn't the gang's first snowman monster. It's not even the third snowman. But it is a pretty good snowman though. 

The toy store owner is pretty creepy. He gives off Harbinger of Impending Doom vibes. The owner's nephew explains a family curse that he's blaming for the events.

The gang marches on tennis rackets out into the night in a blizzard to investigate a mansion that is filled with ice. I can only think about how much damage that house has suffered from the ice.

They return to the toy store to capture the bad guy and problems ensue.

As is traditional with these kinds of specials Santa shows up to help Shaggy and Scooby.

Anyway, they solve the mystery. Unmask one of the five other characters in the episode and the only reasonable suspect. Solid little episode. They didn't reinvent the wheel but they made a pretty nice wheel.

I wish all problems could be solved with an unmasking.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S02E25 - Pizza O'Possum's/The Curse of Half-Beard's Booty - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Pizza O'Possum's/The Curse of Half-Beard's Booty

Season 2, Episode 25

Premiered March 18, 2014

Quickly

Two episodes in one.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

Scooby-Doo never seems to work well in shorter formats. Some episodes do use filler like extra chases to pad out the usual run time. But when they switch to half episodes, the episode can feel like it's over just as it started. When they switched to cartoon short style segments for the middle Scrappy-Doo era, they mostly dropped the mystery conceit in favor of...just stuff.

There are some episodes that don't have enough mystery to fill the typical 22 minute format but Pizza O'Possum's was not one of those episodes. It was a great concept (although it is just a Five Nights at Freddy's/Chuckie Cheese plot). The gang revisits Shaggy's childhood arcade. They find out an animatronic rat is terrorizing the arcade and driving away customers. This is a solid half sized episode but I would have preferred it to be a full episode.

The second half of the episode works much better because it built on the original Cutler episode from Scooby-Doo, Where are you!, A Clue for Scooby-Doo and the Easter eggs from other episodes in this series. The show earned this episode. 

Overall, this was half okay and half wonderful. And the surprisingly fun and good Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! ends with a step, step, splash.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S02E24 - Professor Huh? Part 1 and 6 3/4 - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Professor Huh? Part 1 and 6 3/4

Season 2, Episode 24

Premiered March 16, 2018

Quickly

Fred reunites with his father and his former childhood friend.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang is invited to a bank but find out they haven't been asked to investigate. They were invited there by Fred's other old friend and rival. Rose reveals Fred's father, a supervillain, has escaped prison. This is a tragic backstory for Fred.

I like Fred's dad. I wish Rose wasn't involved in the story. I understand her purpose but I'm not interested in her. She's just an obvious villain. 

Professor Huh? is a fun villain. It was fun to see Scooby and Shaggy's gag get turned around on them. I love the hand puppet. He's still a very tragic figure in the sense that he seems like he's suffering from a compulsion. The show never touches on a motivation for Professor Huh?'s crimes that would shed light on the events that seemingly destroyed Fred's family. They also never discuss Fred's mother.

The Mystery Machine modifications are some of the best. The split up and the bottom feeder modifications are really fun.

They pulled in a lot of references to prior episodes that add to the episode. There's Daphne's feud with sea creatures, Fred's childhood friends, the puppets and more.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S02E23 - World of Witchcraft - Toonstalgia

Season 2, Episode 23

Premiered March 15, 2018

Quickly

There's a witch trial..

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang arrive in Salem, Massachusetts for a really creepy celebration established to white wash the history of Salem's witch trials to find the situation is even worse than that. The town has gone witch crazy. Daphne stands up to the town mayor, a descendant of a judge from the trials. She's soon accused of being a witch because of course she is. The situation gets pretty serious quickly with Daphne tied to a stake and the gang put on trial.

It was nice to hear Lewis Black in the roll of the angry mayor but it was hard to not think "Hey, It's Lewis Black."

It's odd for the show to paint the town of Salem as vicious towards witches when Salem is actually home to several witch and metaphysical shops.

Overall, this is a very strong episode despite the witch hysteria.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S02E22 - Protein Titans 2 - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Protein Titans 2

Season 2, Episode 22

Premiered March 14, 2018

Quickly

The gang investigate a "ghost" in Silicon Valley.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang join Velma when she visits a software company that is interested in purchasing a code she wrote. Velma finds the owner of the company off-putting because he's a nasty, entitled little tech bro brat. 

They walk into a mystery. There's a ghost chef or there's a video game character that escaped the game. 

Also Fred has a very early midlife crisis.

This isn't the first chef in a Scooby series. It's more like the fourth. There's Scooby-Doo! and the Gourmet Ghost's villain, Chef Maras from The New Scooby and Scrappy Doo Show and Ghost of Chef Pierre Goulash from A Pup Named Scooby-Doo. I'd put Chef Pierre Goulash on the top of the list. A Pup Named Scooby-Doo has great monsters.

The episode touches on an interesting idea of intellectual property ownership but it's just kind of a motive.

This is one of those episodes that I'm just not the audience. I spent the whole episode just hating on the kid and wishing the ghost would get away with it. It's a little better than the robot episodes. I'm really wondering what she got charged with.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo - S02E21 - Junkyard Dogs - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo - Junkyard Dogs

Season 2, Episode 21

Premiered March 13, 2018

Quickly

The gang solve a dump mystery.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang is taking a pitstop on their endless road trip to solve mysteries. Daphne is dressed up as Fred and Fred is into it. Fred takes them to a dump to search for a car part. Daphne questions this and Fred gives the best answer possible. Daphne: "Aren't we trying to find a mystery?" Fred: "Nope, they find us."

Scooby runs into his former kennel mate, Axel. Axel is an egotistical police dog. The gang also runs into a giant trash monster. Fred quickly tires of a second him. 

There's a really funny lantern hung on the fact that when they split up the monster always chases Shaggy and Scooby.

The setting of the (not a) garbage dump is well used. Despite it primarily being brown, there's an interesting diversity to the landscape.

I absolutely loved the motive of the villain.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S02E20 - Night of Upsetting Shorts - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Night of Upsetting Shorts

Season 2, Episode 20

Premiered March 12, 2018

Quickly

An ape man terrorizes a retirement community in Florida.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang travels to Florida to visit Shaggy's grandmother. Shaggy's grandmother's retirement home is having an issue with an ape man. This is not the first ape man the gang has faced. The first ape man was a part of the Scooby-Doo, Where are you episode!, Never Ape an Ape Man.

The storyline about Shaggy lying to his grandmother because he wants her to be able to brag to her friends is good but not new. There's a running gag about Fred's shorts and Velma acting like a resident that gives them something to do without drawing time away from Shaggy. 

The episode sets up a good mystery. There are enough clues to allow the viewer to solve the mystery. Shaggy references the fact that nothing illegal was actually done which satisfied my curiosity about what the "monster" would actually get charged with.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S02E19 - Naughty or Ice - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Naughty or Ice

Season 2, Episode 19

Premiered March 11, 2018

Quickly

An ice man tries to rob an ice hotel

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang are at Daphne's family's ice hotel. Daphne has an ulterior motive. She wants to steal her necklace from the exhibit. There's a prehistoric exhibit and a revived prehistoric man. 

The episode lays out the clues quickly. This episode has suspects, a monster and Daphne. There's a lot to cover in the 22 minutes and this episode doesn't waste any time. This makes for a really good episode. They hit the usual notes like chase scenes and running gags. There are twists in the mystery.

The Ice Man in this episode appears to be a reference to the Scooby-Doo, Where are you!, Scooby's Night for a Frozen Fright. It also has an Ice Man frozen in a block of ice who is apparently revived after the block is melted. This is the better of the two episodes in my opinion.

This is a really good episode of Be Cool, Scooby-Doo!

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo - S02E18 - Ghost in the Mystery Machine - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo - Ghost in the Mystery Machine

Season 2, Episode 18

Premiered March 10, 2018

Quickly

The Mystery Machine tries to kill the gang.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang go to Velasco where they have previously solved a mystery. We never saw this mystery. It's a noodle story about a broccoli monster. I feel like that was a missed opportunity to either tie the episode into a previous episode or drop in an Easter egg for a different series.

They discover a new mystery in the town and a detective invites them to solve it for him. They are told an evil force was released from a lab. This appears to be true when the Mystery Machine goes haywire.

After the Mystery Machine pursues them to kill them, they flee the Mystery Machin in Daphne's mother's racing car while Velma furiously searches for an incantation to bind the spirit inhabiting the Mystery Machine. The Mystery Machine succeeds in destroying the book. Fred realizes that it doesn't make sense for the Mystery Machine to be possessed or them to be in a dream (like Daphne assumes). He gets into the Mystery and retrieves the thing controlling the Mystery Machine. 

They unmask the guy using the Ogdimora legend to scare everyone.

The ending does a pretty good job introducing the big mystery at the end. Not the most mysterious mystery. There's a lot of car chasing. It's a decent episode.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S02E17 - Omelettes Are Forever - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Omelettes Are Forever

Season 2, Episode 17

Premiered March 9, 2018

Quickly

The gang do a spy caper.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang is headed to C.R.U.S.T. labs at Shaggy and Scooby's behest. They want to learn the secret of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Their visit is prevented by a British Secret Service agent falling on the Mystery Machine. Jenny Vex recruits them to help her stop Bubby from destroying breakfast. There's a chase and an aerial battle.

Jenny gets captured. The gang dive into the case to save Jenny and breakfast using Jenny's compact and mission information.

There's so much about this episode that works like Shaggy and Scooby coming up with a plan to trick a henchman using one of their usual bits.

Shaggy and Scooby had some fun one liners. The episode has some fun moments. They even sneak in a surprising unmasking. Really good episode. It ends on a good laugh.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S02E16 - American Goth - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - American Goth

Season 2, Episode 16

Premiered March 8, 2018

Quickly

A plant monster attacks the haunted hospital where Shaggy's old friend hangs out with her goth clique.

Thoughts, Details, Recap

The gang visits Shaggy's old friend. He discovers she's a goth with a group of friends who hang out at an abandoned hospital. Shaggy's not surprised because he knows her parents who are also goths. They get along very well. Shaggy starts trying to prove he's changed. Fred and the rest of the gang start investigating the plant monster roaming the hospital. But not as much Shaggy, he's just trying to hang out with his friend.

Scooby encourages Shaggy to be himself and to stop trying to impress Amelia. It's good advice. Plus Amelia already liked Shaggy. Shaggy and the gang get in deeper into the culture and the mystery. While completing the "darkest union ritual", they are attacked by the plant monster and destroy the Night Shadows party decorations.

It's a really cute episode. The relationship between Shaggy and Amelia is really sweet. They leave it on a really nice note. The motivation of the monster is very good. It makes perfect sense.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo - S02E15 - Greece is the Word - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo - Greece is the Word

Season 2, Episode 15

Premiered November 23, 2017

Quickly

The gang go to Greece.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

Mystery Inc has gone to Greece many times in the different series to varying results. This is a pretty good one.

The episode opens mid mystery. A death trap leads to a scroll and story time because the best time to tell a long story is while you're about to get crushed to death. Each member of the gang takes on a roll in the story. Daphne's a talkative servant, Velma's a progressive princess, Shaggy is a well fed philosopher, Fred's Fred and Scooby is an oracle in the tradition of the Wizard of Oz. The Grecian version of the gang solves the mystery of the Arachne attacks.

I don't love the conceit of it's just the Scooby gang but in Greece. It works with the series because the characters are cartoonish and exaggerated. It's like a Bugs Bunny cartoon where he's dropped into a different era or location.

They never really follow up on the Harpy but the past them solved their mythtery.

Not a top tier episode but entertaining and a very good Greece episode.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S02E14 - Fright of Hand - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Fright of Hand

Season 2, Episode 14

Premiered November 22, 2017

Quickly

Fred dreams of being a magician.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang go to the Hocus Pocus Palace. It's one of Fred's dreams come true. Fred is there to audition. This episode reveals Fred's previously unmentioned obsession with prestidigitation.

There are some interesting character details in this episode. Daphne apparently has a check list of things she wants to do or learn. While dining, Shaggy mentions the "usual complaints" he and Scooby get about their eating. Shaggy and Scooby attempt to negotiate the chase with the gang to avoid being the group chased by the monster.

Anyway, there's a rabbit monster disrupting Fred's effort to audition for the Hocus Pocus Palace as "Freddy or Not". Everything goes wrong for everyone except Shaggy and Scooby. Velma, Daphne and Fred are bummed. Shaggy and Scooby are cool.

This is a fun episode. The ending is not hard to guess. It's really nice that this episode has a mystery that can be solved by the audience paying attention to the clues. I would love to know what crime the bad guy committed.

There was a similarly magic themed episode released about two years after this in Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? featuring Penn and Teller with a giant bunny monster. Both episodes are pretty solid. I don't think there's meant to be a connection. It seems coincidental. They almost have the same monster because they are both drawing from the magic tradition of the white rabbit.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S02E13 - Silver Scream - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Silver Scream

Season 2, Episode 13

Premiered November 22, 2017

Quickly

The ghost of a famous actor-director returns to protect the legacy of his last film.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang are touring the Fletcher film studio. The tour guide tells them the story of the recent ghost attack by late actor-director Archie Barnes. Archie Barnes is a Harold Lloyd type. The ghost looking like he had just stepped out of the film is fantastic. It includes a flickering and the sound of sprockets. Not the most expressive monster but a really fantastic visual gimmick.

Scooby and Shaggy insist on eating snacks during any film they watch. At one point, they mention it's in their contract. I wonder if they're referring to the contract Fred made them sign at the end of "How to Train your Coward".

The chase reminds me of Pee-Wee's Big Adventure and I'm always happy to be reminded of that. It's a top tier chase.

The plot is pretty good. A lost Archie Barnes film is discovered and going to be finished by Fletcher Studio in a tragic and terrible way with robots and blegh. So the ghost of Archie Barnes terrorizes the studio to prevent the film from being released. The Scooby gang does their thing and unmasks the ghost to reveal it's someone who doesn't want the film ruined. Solid motive.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S02E12 - Doo Not Disturb - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Doo Not Disturb

Season 2, Episode 12

Premiered December 22, 2017

Quickly

The Scooby gang spends the night in a creepy hotel.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

I love this episode. It's got a great creep factor. There's a Shining vibe, a Psycho vibe and the name of the hotel makes me think of the film "The Good Son". I don't think I ever saw "The Good Son" but the trailer always stuck with me and not in the cheerful way.

They stop at the Good Son Hotel. We meet a Shining reference in the form of Mr. Stanley. The hotel is filled with plaques explaining the rules of the hotel. Scooby and Shaggy are the first ones to disregard the rules. The ghost disregards their attempt to distract her with a sketch.

Early in the episode Fred promises not to tell them what to do. Daphne and Velma take advantage of Fred's promise to not tell them what to do by doing what they want. Daphne's fixation with Feng Shui and an apparent lack of understanding of Feng Shui actually puts them in danger. Of course, Daphne's fixation helps them solve the mystery later.

The cellar has a plaque and creepy dolls. Neither of which creep me out but that's probably because I keep my creepy dolls in the living room. The cellar is a great touch. The episode is composed of parts that would make a classic horror film (aside from the soundtrack).

They capture and unmask Mother. Then they have a twist end that's perfect. This is one of the best episodes of the series.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S02E11 - Space - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Space

Season 2, Episode 11

Premiered December 22, 2017

Quickly

It's Scooby in space!

Thoughts, Details and Recap

It's the Spooky Space Kook!

This episode is Spooky Space Kook meets the Thing.

The gang is in the the space shuttle because Fred accidentally parked on the shuttle. The astronauts are fine with that. They arrive at the space station to find something amiss.

Scooby and Shaggy go with one of the astronauts to investigate the food stocks. The astronaut is replaced by the Spooky Space Kook. The rest of the gang search for the other astronauts. Shaggy and Scooby rejoin the rest of the gang. The Spooky Space Kook attacks again. Shaggy and Scooby flee into an unstable wormhole and take a brief tour of their recent past. The gang finds one of the missing astronauts in a pillow fort.

Velma assesses the situation as being...like the Thing. Daphne is replaced by the Spooky Space Kook then ejects the gang from the space station. So...murder attempt. We got a murderous villain. Fred saves them with the van and fireworks.

They get back on board. They come up with an alien test and decide none of them are the alien. Fred and Velma are inspired to the answer by a gold star. They catch the Spooky Space Kook. One of the scientists found gold, so it's kind of the same plot as Scooby-Doo and the Alien Invaders. Both this episode and the movie featured an attempted murder.

The only thing I didn't like was the lack of the laugh. I love the Spooky Space Kook laugh.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S02E10 - Scroogey Doo - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Scroogey Doo

Season 2, Episode 10

Premiered November 30, 2017

Quickly

It's a Scooby-Doo Christmas Carol.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

This is kind of a bummer episode. It was one of the first ones I saw on Boomerang. I didn't enjoy the epilogue. It was a little too cynical. 

Multiple shows have taken on A Christmas Carol. One of the best in my opinion was Ducktales which shows the three ghosts having a friendship with the Scrooge McDuck. It was a nice notion.

The gang are versions of themselves that lived in 1843 (Or they're immortal). They've traveled to England. The ghost tries to show Velma how the gang is holding her back to disrupt the gang's mystery solving. They solve the mystery and unmask Scrooge's doctor.

It's not a new story for Velma's character. They've touched on her aspirations conflicting with the joy she feels as part of Mystery Inc. a couple times. This series made a point of developing the internal lives of the characters and developing them. It's something I really appreciate about this series.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S02E09 - Vote Velma - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Vote Velma

Season 2, Episode 9

Premiered December 21, 2017

Quickly

The gang gets involved with the democratic process when a ghost starts terrorizing Mayoral candidates.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The Scooby gang attend an art show by an artist who received a grant from the Blake Art Foundation. They meet a local mayoral candidate who is quitting the election because of a ghost. Velma offers to join the race to lure out the ghost. The ghost attacks immediately after she announces her candidacy.

They throw a pancake breakfast as a campaign event. The event is well received because of Scooby's impressive feat protecting pancakes. It all goes well until Velma starts to talk. 

The gang struggles through out the campaign with Velma's lack of tact and the ghost attacks. After Velma refocuses on the mystery, they quickly solve it. The gang traps the ghost without much stress. 

The ghost is a local artist who wants to keep the mayor in office so he can veto an arts funding bill and she can continue being the only artist in town.

This is a very good episode ending with a great, perfect closing joke from Velma.

Building a Road in Minecraft

Why I terraform and build roads in Minecraft?

I'm not good with Redstone. I don't really like building the factories. Lag makes my heart skip a beat as I fear for the health of my laptop so I don't like it when entities cause that stuttering. I get lost when I explore. But I've spent hours leveling mountains and building roads.

It's relaxing...sort of. I'm stressed. I'm currently very stressed. When I play the game, the stress can drift into white noise and I can just waste a couple hours not fixating on the problems I might have and use some stone bricks to build a road to a conveniently close Badlands biome. Deserts have been elusive in this run and I want some glass.

Building a fake road to get fake sand to make fake glass for my fake world is relaxing.

My Minecraft world looking cursed.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S02E08 - The Curse of Kanaiku - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - The Curse of Kanaiku

Season 2, Episode 8

Premiered December 21, 2017

Quickly

The gang solves a mystery in Japan.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang travels to Japan. They learn that Velma is a local celebrity following a prior visit to a Tokyo science fair. Daphne quickly starts to influence the local style with jackwards (wearing a backwards jacket). They quickly come across the fall out of a Kanaiku attack. Shaggy and Scooby go on a mission to find a unique culinary experience. They all fall into their usual roles. Fred's obsessed with the mystery, Shaggy and Scooby are starving and chased, Daphne's got her crazy on and Velma's got a lot of emotional stuff going on.

The local detective warns the gang off from investigating. The stakes are real because local businesses are being driven out of business. Their failure to solve the mystery quickly and discretely threatens to bring shame to Velma's friend. The Kainaku attacks Shaggy and Scooby at the festival. The detective blames the gang when the Kainaku attacks them when clearly it's not their fault.

Daphne's new status as an icon bums out Velma who liked the attention. Daphne returns attention to Velma at the end of the episode by dressing up as Velma.

Velma's phone apparently works like a tricorder on the Kainaku slobber on Scooby. This leads them to an abandoned factory where their lure Kaniaku and trap him. 

At the last minute, Fred finds the long lost legendary recipe.

It's an okay episode. Not top tier but solid all around.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S02E07 - Halloween - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Halloween

Season 2, Episode 7

Premiered September 28, 2017

Quickly

The gang saves Halloween.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang revisits Fred's past and fear. When he was a kid, a witch terrified him and ruined Halloween for a whole town. 

Shaggy and Scooby plan for an amazing Halloween haul. Velma complains about the inaccuracies of the celebration. Daphne embraces the holiday with joy. Daphne dresses up as Velma dressed as a Zombie. Fred recounts all the Halloween failures.

While trick or treating, Fred sees the house of his horrible Halloween then the witch. Scooby and Shaggy save the rest of the gang from the witch. While walking back, the neighborhood watch ruins Scooby and Shaggy's effort to return to trick or treating. 

Fred tells the gang about his history with the witch. Velma researches the witch and learns that every year, the witch attacks a different town and prompts them to permanently cancel Halloween. They return to the Witch's house to investigate. The house chases them on chicken legs.

They stop the witch house and unmask her to show the neighborhood watch. The most interesting part is the police mention the feds have been after the pair. 

The artists did a good job of including little Easter egg costumes through out the episode. 

Solid episode with a great backstory for Fred.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S02E06 - Mysteries on the Disorient Express - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Mysteries on the Disorient Express

Season 2, Episode 6

Premiered December 21, 2017

Quickly

The gang solve a train mystery.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang are going on a train trip. Daphne is restricting her senses to make the others stronger. The train ride is ruined for Shaggy and Scooby when a porter forces Scooby to go into a crate. Shaggy deals with this by dressing Scooby up as his mother. In the tradition of their best bits, Scooby embraces the role. 

Over the course of the train ride, people are attacked by a mummy, a grim reaper, Tengu, Haniver, Tzitzimitl, Hemogoblin, and Manticore. They meet a scientist transporting a single nostril to transplant into a waiting patient. They are eventually chased through out the train by monsters. The conductor blames them and locks them up in crates in the luggage car and says he's arranged to have them arrested.

The gang investigates from the dog crates with Shaggy and Daphne offering the clues needed to solve the mystery. It's one of the best scenes for demonstrating why they work as a team that I can remember. Shaggy observes a clue because he and Scooby spent time exploring the train. Fred is as always a good leader. Daphne is always looking to develop new skills. Velma is brilliant with computers. Scooby is always hesitant but willing to get involved with the hijinks.

They catch the menagerie. It's a bunch of international operators. And the conductor isn't a conductor, he's a government agent.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S02E05 - Worst in Show - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Worst in Show

Season 2, Episode 5

Premiered December 21, 2017

Quickly

Scooby-Doo enters a dog show.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang goes to the Vander-Grauff Dog Show at Scooby's request. Fred notices a mystery and on the spur of the moment enters Scooby into the show. Daphne is distressed by entering Scooby because it reminds her of being entered in child beauty pageants. 

Scooby is shunned by the other dogs because of course he is. How else would they write it?

Velma and Shaggy wind up paired together with Fredington is a little delusional, Daphne is busy being Scooby's handler and Scooby is in the show. Velma and Shaggy are soon chased. They do a bit together to get rid of the Demon Hound. They find common ground with Shaggy getting interested in reading by reading Velma's book about pretzels and Velma trying Shaggy's soft pretzel.

The scene of Fred's massage is almost a scene out of a good Spoof film. Fred fits in well among the hoity toity and makes it funnier.

It's a bummer to see Scooby so depressed by the show and Daphne's fixation on not winning to prove something to her past. Scooby dances with Daphne for the talent portion. The hound attacks during his performance. Scooby and the other dogs face off with the hound to save Daphne.

Scooby wins first prize. They unmask the hound to expose one of the other competitors.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S02E04 - How to Train Your Coward - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - How to Train Your Coward

Season 2, Episode 4

Premiered December 21, 2017

Quickly

Scooby and Shaggy replace themselves.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

Scooby and Shaggy are injured during a mystery. They decide they are fed up with the monsters and the chasing and the injuring. Scooby and Shaggy find a guy and a dog to replace themselves in the gang. Daphne is so depressed she doesn't want to learn the slide trombone (her thing for that day). 

They are driving through a dark and rainy night. They wind up at a creepy castle to search for a vampire.

In the castle, they find a creepy caretaker, a coffin and a vampire. The vampire chases them. Shaggy and Scooby wind up alone with the vampire and their replacements. They use this as an opportunity to demonstrate the positive assertion method of avoiding monsters. This is what Shaggy and Scooby call their little sketches they engage in to confuse them.

I like Bumpy (Scooby's replacement). Morly's okay (Shaggy's replacement). They declare themselves ready to take over. Shaggy and Scooby depart. They get chased again and this time it doesn't go well. Morly and Bumpy get captured. Scooby and Shaggy return to the gang. They never really left because Fred was their ride. The gang blame Bumpy and Morly for their inability to solve the mystery sooner because Morly's efforts to solve the mystery set them on the wrong path. 

They trap the vampire under an organ. He's unmasked to reveal the Sheriff. The gang reveals the caretaker was part of the scheme to rob the town and scare people with vampires.

The gang leaves Morly and Bumpy trapped in a cage in the castle. But I'm not worried. Bumpy can easily fit through the bars and get help.

Good episode. Great monster.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S02E03 - Renn Scare - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Renn Scare

Season 2, Episode 3

Premiered December 21, 2017

Quickly

The gang goes to the Renaissance Faire.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

I've only been to one Renaissance Faire a long time ago while on a road trip. I got to shoot arrows and there was a lady with pet rats. Cool day. I still have the necklace I bought there.

The gang goes to the Renaissance Faire. Velma is especially excited because she consults on the Faire to make it accurate (and therefore not fun). The gang are quickly enlisted to investigate the court jester ghost...monster...guy. The man ruling over the faire assigns them all jobs to do while they investigate.

Daphne spends the day messing with Velma's pedantic devotion to accuracy by "inventing" things. I am completely on Daphne's side here. Renaissance Faires aren't fun because they are accurate. They're fun because they're romantic ideas of the past. The past wasn't romantic. Of course this results in her being a branded witch by the self important faire king.

There's a reference to "Bippy's Medical School Adventure" which is a call back to "The People Vs Fred Jones" where Daphne played "Bippy's Law School Adventure" and believed this made her a lawyer.

The Jester attacks during an important feast. The feast is destroyed. The king "imprisons" them. Velma explains why the accuracy of the faire is so important to her. She finds meaning in seeing how humanity used to live and how far they're come.

They have another feast and capture the jester. They unmask him to find the investor. He wanted to make the Renaissance Faire inauthentic and profitable.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S02E02 - There Wolf - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - There Wolf

Season 2, Episode 2

Premiered December 21, 2017

Quickly

Scooby goes to the hospital.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

Daphne's a mime. The gang isn't happy. I like mime. It's an artform. I'll never mime but I feel no aversion to them. 

Scooby feels ill. They take him to an animal hospital after he tells them he's not hungry. The lab tech at the front desk refuses to treat Scooby but Daphne uses mime to intimidate him. The doctor explains that there's a wild animal, possibly a werewolf loose in the hospital. He also tells them that his brother is a space pirate. The space pirate is played completely straight.  His sister is a fairy princess mermaid but that's a little less odd because mermaid is a career. I guess in a world where men constantly wear diving suits and clowns terrorize people while dressed up as a different clown, Space pirate could be a viable career path somehow.

While Shaggy accompanies Scooby, Daphne, Fred and Velma search for clues. Of course, the werewolf finds them.

Daphne, Velma and Fred discover an article referring to a local story about a werewolf that used to live in the house.  They run into a woman who wants to be with her cat while she gives birth. They also run into the werewolf. 

The werewolf is really well done. It's creepier than a lot of werewolf films I've seen.

The gang accidentally lets all of the patients go. While the cat lady and the veternarian are upset about everything, the gang hears the final clue thanks to Daphne. The vet tech created the story of the werewolf so he could steal one of the valuable kittens.

Also Scooby is fine. He was just full.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo - S02E01 - Some Fred Time - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo - Some Fred Time

Season 2, Episode 1

Premiered December 21, 2017

Quickly

Fred is the crazy one.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

Fred is going a little solve crazy. The episode opens with multiple unmaskings. We see the cameo return of Wayne. 

They decide to take Fred on a vacation. They go to Daphne's family's beach house.

They find out from the butler that a walking shark has been terrorizing the beach. They decide to keep this from Fred and solve the mystery while he rests. They investigate. They find Dorsalfoot and a paparazzo. The paparazzo is obsessively searching for a celebrity who lives on the beach.

Fred notices something odd is going on. But he's kept in his room.

Daphne is relatively subdued in this episode. She's a little fixated on abiding by her mother's rules. This was likely to balance the dynamic of the team because Fred is insane and paranoid throughout the episode.

Fred solves the mystery for everyone. The butler at the beach house was behind the shark. He was working with the paparazzo, selling him pictures of the celebrity.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E26 - The People Vs. Fred Jones - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - The People Vs. Fred Jones

Season 1, Episode 26

Premiered June 20, 2017

Quickly

Fred is put on trial.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

Fred is framed as the villain by the villain and must defend himself at trial. This is one of highest stakes for an episode. Aside from the multiple times people try to murder them throughout the series.

I'm not going to recap this because I don't want to. I think this episode works because it is both a familiar story form for the episode to take and a unique episode in Scooby-Doo history to the best of my recollection. There's a lot of Scooby-Doo. I've seen a lot of Scooby-Doo. I don't remember another trial episode. This show excels when it creates episodes that are unique and work within the Scooby-Doo formula like this one. It also makes sense in reality because a bunch of teenagers trespassing in a restricted area open themselves to legal charges.

There's a great sight gag when they show the jury is composed of previous villains from this series.

The monster reminds me of Toxie (The Toxic Avenger). It's a mutant created by the toxic waster in the town.

Majorly, I love Gus and his Snacks by Gus. Heavy and awesome. I love the creative artistic flourishes like the food designs.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E25 - The Norse Case Scenario - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - The Norse Case Scenario

Season 1, Episode 25

Premiered June 20, 2017

Quickly

The gang goes camping.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang is camping in the woods. It's a traditional camping episode. Daphne's treating it as a chance to be a Nature Ranger. They meet the Park Ranger who warns them not to break the rules and that there's Norse Ghosts.

Shaggy and Scooby continue their tradition of meeting ghosts and bears. Three ghosts chase them out of the woods (meaning 3 culprits). 

Velma is oddly excited by the possibility of the Norse ghosts rewriting history books. She doesn't believe in ghosts. Why would the presence of 3 fake ghosts change history? It would make more sense for her to get excited by the archaeologists they meet later.

They meet a pair of bird watchers who direct them towards archaeologists. They don't find them immediately because they get lost and get chased by the Norse ghosts again. The archaeologists are a group of 3. They're struggling because their dig permit hasn't come through. The presence of a Tufted Hookbill proves their birdwatchers are either bad at their birdwatching or lied to them.

Shaggy and Scooby wander into the woods to find food and are about to eat mushrooms. This is really bad to even suggest. It is so easy to eat the wrong mushroom if you don't know what you are doing. Fortunately, the bear shows up again and eats them.

The gang meet up with the Park Ranger who gives them citations and detains them. He calls out the chase music as not being to his taste. While in Forest Jail they find the permit the archaeologists are waiting for.

This mystery is set up well. It's a fairly simple mystery but it makes sense. The permit clears the archaeologists and leaves three suspects.

This is one of more brutal traps. Velma calls Fred out for being insane.

The Ranger and the fake bird watchers were the Vikings. It was an illegal logging plot. Most surprising twist is Scooby making peace with the bear.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E24 - Into the Mouth of Madcap -Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Into the Mouth of Madcap

Season 1, Episode 24

Premiered June 20, 2017

Quickly

Daphne babysits.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang is joined by Wayne on a trip to the boardwalk. Wayne is the son of Andrea. Daphne offered to babysit. 

The title of the episode is a reference to the John Carpenter film "In the Mouth of Madness" so that's foreboding.

The owner warns them to not mention clowns because a couple were recently attacked by Madcap. Madcap was a clown at the Loony Park. He eludes to a history of murder ("Madcap took the saying "Slaying them with laughter" a little too literally."). Fred is abandoned by Daphne for babysitting and Velma due to her Coulrophobia. Daphne takes Wayne on the most dangerous roller coaster ever constructed. There are no safety restraints. Not even a bar.

Shaggy and Scooby enjoy the park until they are attacked by Madcap, a cross between Ronald McDonald and IT with a giant mallet. Shaggy continues defending clowns after he and Scooby and Daphne and Velma are attacked by Madcap.

The capture Madcap and unmask another clown they saw throughout the episode, Oopsy. Wayne finally speaks up and somewhat rudely recaps the episode. The police tell them they don't know what to charge him with. Attempted murder, assault and and destruction of property would seem like good options to me but the issue is resolved by the Clown Police who have jurisdiction.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E23 - El Bandito - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - El Bandito

Season 1, Episode 23

Premiered June 20, 2017

Quickly

Fred tries to make himself a legend.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

Fred lies to Scooby and Shaggy to get them to agree to attend a Dia De Los Muertos festival. The decorations and costumes are fantastic. I am instantly in love with this episode.

The mayor of the town, Mayor Rogers, introduces herself and warns them about El Bandito. It's an odd choice to give the Mayor the last name Rogers considering Shaggy's name is Rogers. They never address it.

Daphne connects with her late great aunt Cookie by seeing signs. Velma tells her it's just chance. I've always heard about past relatives sending signs so it doesn't really feel like Daphne's being quirky. It feels pretty normal to me.

Fred is acting pretty weird. He's obsessed with establishing himself as a mythological figure like the skeleton Bandito. It's not new. It's an extension of the character trait he showed in "Giant Problems" when he dressed up as knight.

The Mayor kicks the gang out of town because she doesn't want them to interfere with the business of the festival. A motive that reminds me of Mystery Inc. The gang dresses up to stay in town. Shaggy and Scooby-Doo dress up as a bride and groom for the second time in two episodes.

El Bandito locks them in an air tight tomb. It's interesting how often the villains attempt to murder Mystery Inc. They are able to escape after some encouragement from Aunt Cookie.

They capture and unmask El Bandito to reveal Gustavo, a local El Bandito expert. Fred reveals El Bandito's treasure. And they are not arrested after the Mayor forgets about them upon setting eyes on the gold and jewels. 

Top tier episode for design and atmosphere.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E22 - I Scooby-Dooby Do - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - I Scooby-Dooby Do

Season 1, Episode 22

Premiered June 20, 2017

Quickly

The gang works to keep a ghost bride from derailing a wedding.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang is at a wedding. Scooby is the officiant. Shaggy is the best man. Daphne and Velma are bridesmaids. The groom tells them a ghost attacked him the night before. A wedding party was previously killed in an accident. But for some reason the bride that wasn't killed is the ghost. This is a particularly large threat because the bride to be is very superstitious.

The ghost chases Daphne off the edge of a cliff. So we have a murderous ghost. 

The episode is a bit distracted from the mystery by Velma and Daphne trying to hide the ghost from the bride. The wedding ceremony is interrupted by the attack of the ghost bride.

Daphne's obsession with the wedding traditions fits perfectly with Daphne's character and doesn't feel random. This isn't my favorite obsession of Daphne's (Puppets!!!) but it is the one that feels the least random.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E21 - Eating Crow - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Eating Crow

Season 1, Episode 21

Premiered June 20,. 2017

Quickly

Fred tries to charm a girl with by solving the mystery of the scarecrow ruining her family farm's business.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang is driving through ambiguously located farmland with no explanation for their trip. 

This episode has fantastic visual gags like the locals glaring at them. The gang meet a farmer and his nice daughter. They immediately set up the farmer as the culprit by establishing his three word vocabulary of "Yup", "Nope" and "Meddling". Why else would "Meddling" be in his vocabulary if he wasn't meant to be a suspect. The fact that his business is being negatively effected raises some questions but still "Meddling" is an important clue. The gang offers to investigate the scarecrow monster terrorizing their farm.

Daphne spends her time trying to bond with an animal in the way Scooby and Shaggy are bonded. Scooby and Shaggy try to protect the vegetables until they're chased by the Scarecrow Monster. Fred tries to impress the daughter of the farm owner. Velma is suffering progressively worse from allergies.

Shaggy and Scooby flees the Scarecrow with a Wizard of Oz bit. It's a fantastic bit.

Fred struggles with the investigation because the clues don't add up. He figures out the answer after Daphne calls him out for trying to impress Beth with his mystery solving talent.

Both Tom and the Farmer are the scarecrows. They knew about natural gas reserves beneath their land. They resolve the conflict by agreeing to amicably to work together because they're both going to be rich. Fred ruins his shot with Beth by telling the police to arrest her father.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E20 - Giant Problems - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Giant Problems

Season 1, Episode 20

Premiered March 12, 2016

Quickly

The gang investigates a Giant at Daphne's family's castle.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang visits a castle Daphne's family recently discovered they owned. They meet Colin McQuaid, a local historian who tells them the land is cursed by a giant. Shaggy and Scooby splits off into their own plot. They meet a chef who offers them a meal then sucks them into an Irish Green Eggs and Ham.

Daphne, Velma and Fred investigate. Fred walks around with a helmet, sword and shield. I appreciate the detail of the Mystery Machine emblazoned on the shield. Velma is rendered incapable of understanding Daphne when she affects an Irish accent.

This episode sets up the clues well. Scooby notes a scent of oil in the footprint of the giant. Velma notices the giant avoided entering the water. They repair to the library for research and discover a map of the area and a history detailing how the land was once inhabited by magical creatures.

Daphne and Fred find their way to the giant's sitting room. Velma, Shaggy and Scooby see Daphne and Fred fleeing from the giant as they drive back from investigating in town. This leads to a very strong chase scene with Velma driving.

They don't so much have a trap as a Kaiju fight. The gang throws down with the giant using the transformed Mystery Machine.

They unmask the historian that was working for a theme park developer. They lay out the mystery. The historian protests they were wrong but they ignore him.

This is one of the top episodes. It is great to see an episode where the bad guy's robot almost makes perfect sense.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E19 - Be Cold, Scooby-Doo! - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Be Cold, Scooby-Doo!

Season 1, Episode 19

Premiered March 5, 2016

Quickly

Shaggy sees snow for the first time.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang takes Shaggy on a ski trip to see snow for the first time. They are warned by a snowboarder about a Snow Monster. Shaggy and Scooby are not dismayed by the Snow Monster because they are determined to have fun. The episode leads to a lot of chasing and a few contentious run ins with snow boarders. Shaggy and Scooby ditch the Snow Monster with a Disney Princess style gag that is wonderfully weird. 

The gang find a weather station on the hill. The occupant claims to have created the Snow Monster. The owner of the ski lodge complains about the weather station interfering with his expansion and now a Snow Monster scaring away the tourists.

This is great episode. It has a lot of chase sequences but it also shows investigation and good gags. Also, it's nice to see Fred as the bait even if the trap didn't quite work correctly. After all, they trapped the still trapped the monster.

They unmask the monster and find Heidi Ho Swift, a professional snowboarder who was mad about the ski lodge becoming a popular tourist destination and the weather station interfering with her snowboarding. Solid episode, okay mystery.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E18 - Saga of the Swamp Beast - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Saga of the Swamp Beast

Season 1, Episode 18

Premiered February 27, 2016

Quickly

The gang hunts a Swamp Beast in a Louisiana Bayou.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

That gang are in Louisiana. Daphne is pretending to be a vampire in Interview with the Vampire style. Scooby and Shaggy have their own Hot Ones challenge. They volunteer to solve the mystery of the Swamp Monster for Bayou Pierre.

After running out into the swamp, Shaggy and Scooby are attacked by the Swamp Monster. The gang returns to the swamp to investigate Scooby and Shaggy's sighting. They are quickly attacked by the Swamp Monster. They are saved by Bayou Pierre. Bayou Pierre joins them in their investigation of the swamp.

They meet Hermit Hank. He tells them the Gentleman Bandit drove an armored truck into the swamp (possibly a reference to "Which Witch is Which?"). They get a ring from Chomps, a mystery solving alligator, with Kingston University (a reference to the premiere of the series).

I love the character design on the Swamp Monster. It's a unique design that looks like plant material draped over a body made of roots.

Chomps helps the gang capture Dwayne, the Gentleman Bandit. He gets all of the credit. Only Fred is bothered by this.

This is another really good episode. It possesses all of the best traits of this series. It's meta, strange, funny and it builds a mystery.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E17 - Sorcerer Snacks Scare - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Sorcerer Snacks Scare

Season 1, Episode 17

Premiered February 20, 2016

Quickly

We learn the origin of Scooby Snacks.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The episode opens with Sorcerer's Snacks (proto-Scooby Snacks) and a commercial that reminds me of Wilkin's Coffee. Then there's the Sorcerer attacks.

Shaggy and Scooby arrive at the factory to test the snack. They love it but it's been discontinued. Daphne sees a display of puppets. Unfortunately, Fred stops her.

Upon hearing the factory is getting terrorized by a wizard, they offer to investigate. Fred uses the last box of Sorcery Snacks to get them to investigate a scary room. Daphne questions how ethical it is to bribe Scooby and Shaggy and judges Velma for pondering applying the principles of operant conditioning to Shaggy and Scooby.

The gang is attacked by the Wizard and his magic staff. They escape him. During the investigation, they meet Piero (possibly a reference to Pietro the Puppet Master from Backstage Rage).

We see the return of the puppet gang! Best part of the episode.

They unmask Piero, the puppeteer behind the mascot. He created complex animatronics and used his staff to remote them. It's not my favorite kind of solution. He was smart enough that he could have done anything!! This is just my personal feeling. It doesn't 

This episode is just a new Scooby Snack backstory. I prefer the muddled history established in A Pup Named Scooby-Doo. Still a fun episode.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E16 - Gremlin on a Plane - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Gremlin on a Plane

Season 1, Episode 16

Premiered February 13, 2016

Quickly

The gang takes a flight.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang joins Big Earl on a flight of the largest plane ever made. Daphne's fixated on planes but this is described as a long standing obsession (not a recently developed fixation). They are warned by Ed Johnson, the engineer, about a gremlin. Shaggy's comment about Earl's catch phrase indicates they all know Big Ed.

As soon as the plane reaches cruising altitude, they split up to search for clues to the gremlin. Scooby and Shaggy are attacked while "investigating" the food court.

The pilot is scared off by the gremlin. Fred insists on sitting in the pilot's seat. Fred selfishly fixates on how he should be in the driver's seat despite Daphne's expertise and it being her dream. Daphne finally gets to take her proper seat when Fred leaves to fix the sabotaged wing. While out on the wing, the Gremlin attacks him. The gang works together to save him. Eventually, Fred gets over his need to be in control, by controlling the situation and telling Daphne to fly.

With plots like these, there's not a ton of suspense. We know no one is going to die. I find episodes where the stakes are personal or reputation or legal consequences a little more suspenseful because we know they're not going to kill anyone. That all being said, what's the goal for the Gremlin? Is he actually trying to crash the plane?

This may be one of the longest prison terms for a Scooby-Doo villain. He crashed a plane and attempted to murder six people. We don't see the plane crash but it's in nose dive over farm land the last time we see it. Also, a plane of enormous proportions would cause devastation even in a sparsely populated area. Given that a piece of debris hit the Mystery Machine, a lot of property and possibly people were killed.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E15 - If You Can't Scooby-Doo the Time, Don't Scooby-Doo the Crime - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - If You Can't Scooby-Doo the Time, Don't Scooby-Doo the Crime

Season 1, Episode 15

February 6, 2016

Quickly

The ghost of a prisoner haunts the prison where he was mistreated.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang is visiting a prison. Fred is especially excited because the Warden is a hero of his. He views the prison as a symbol of ultimate justice. I do not see prisons this way...especially prisons that indiscriminately kill birds. The prison is being haunted by the ghost of Stealin' Stan. The gang volunteer to investigate.

Wayne Bowman is psychotic and it's not a subtle build up. This is maybe the darkest episode I've ever seen. They show multiple references to torture and a reference to execution. Warden Bowman is kind of the worst. 

Fred is affected by the atmosphere of the Vault (the prison) and possessed with suspicion of Shaggy. 

The character design for the ghost of Stealin' Stan is great. They don't completely explain "Stealin Stan" like how he gained the nickname. Did he have a history of theft? "Once a thief, Always a thief"? Was he a thief? Or was he a completely innocent man? He lost years of his life to a false conviction and a corrupt warden. He stole Stealin' Stan's letters and hid the evidence of Stan's innocence. It's dark. It's really dark. Fred's even darker by association. Also, Fred didn't have any evidence of Shaggy's theft. He just accused him.

The best part of this episode is the twist at the end. 

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E14 - Scary Christmas - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Scary Christmas

Season 1, Episode 14

Premiered December 10, 2015

Quickly

The gang celebrates Christmas and Daphne's birthday with a pterodactyl mystery.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang is celebrating Christmas in Rockwellville. Daphne insists the gang celebrate her birthday rather than Christmas. She refuses to celebrate Christmas because she wants to celebrate her birthday for once. Fred brought the gang to Rockwellville to find a Christmas related mystery. Why wouldn't Daphne have brought this up earlier? Why didn't the gang know her birthday?

They are attacked by a pterodactyl. Velma mentions an archaeological dig outside of town. Fred refuses to accept the mystery is not a Christmas themed mystery. He brings them to an orphanage. Velma insists they go to the dig to investigate the mystery. At the dig, they meet the head of the dig. He's working to dig out a nest of pterodactyl eggs buried in a cave in. 

The Mystery Machine is torn in half. Daphne and Scooby are abducted by the pterodactyl. They are able to rescue Daphne and Scooby but the pterodactyl causes significant damage. 

They also meet the artisan in charge of creating the star for the town tree. 

They realize that the non-Christmas mystery is about saving Christmas. The Pterodactyl wasn't trying to steal Christmas but he needed to steal Christmas to get a valuable thing. They recover the valuable pterodactyl egg and save the orphanage.

I really love Christmas and this was a great Christmas episode. Several elements were familiar like a character having a birthday on Christmas which has been done in shows like Happy Endings and the spontaneous visual parallels to Santa. But it works in the episode. They're cute, festive and well done.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E13 - Where There's a Will, There's a Wraith - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Where There's a Will, There's a Wraith

Season 1, Episode 13

Premiered October 28, 2015

Quickly

A reimagining of "A Night of Fright is No Delight".

Thoughts, Details and Recap

My first thought in the opening moments is "This reminds me of Clue."

This episode is a remake of "A Night of Fright is No Delight" where Scooby is a beneficiary in the will of a man Scooby saved. It's a different take on the plot.

The gang goes to a mansion to hear the reading of a will. To inherit from the estate, Scooby must stay at the mansion all night. The gang remains with him. The twin cousins are very "The Shining". Cousin Kenneth is a cat person...yeah, that. 

Fred assigns Shaggy and Scooby to stay in the room. They leave the room after a power outage and meet the green phantom. The phantom is a slight redesign. It's a hard thing to redesign an iconic monster like the Green Phantom. I think the original had a stronger silhouette but I like the boney hands.

The gang uses Velma as a ride. It's a moment that's fun for someone who is very familiar with the original series. This entire series respects the original series and regularly includes great references to it.

There's a big point made of Scooby being too cowardly or too selfish to save anyone else's life. I'm not a fan of this characterization. The earliest incarnation of Scooby had significant courageous moments like jumping onto a rope bridge to save Candy Mint.

The original episode was better. The original episode had the creepy moment of the coffins in the basement. This episode had Cousin Nathan. The conclusion made a little bit more sense in this episode but I'll never sacrifice the creepy for a more sensible mystery.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E12 - Area 51 Adjacent - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Area 51 Adjacent

Season 1, Episode 12

October 25, 2015

Quickly

The gang sees a UFO.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang is driving through the desert. They start talking about extraterrestrials and nearly hit a guy screaming about aliens. 

The art of the desert landscapes is well rendered. It's a beautiful vista.

The gang search for the crashed UFO. They are attacked by a luminescent green extraterrestrial. Then they are arrested by the military under suspicion of being aliens. Scooby is muzzled. I find the dissonance of the talking and extremely anthropomorphized Scooby in a muzzle. They are transported to Area 53. They are interrogated. The interrogation goes about as well as can be expected.

The facility is attacked by the extraterrestrial. Daphne tries to communicate with the extraterrestrial. They flee with the help of General Stall's key card. They find a bunch of outdated equipment. Although given the highly secure nature of the facility, old computers could have legitimate value like the ones at nuclear facilities. They can't be hacked. But that's not the case in the facility, it's made clear they have been denied funding.

There's an alien craft and a highly destructive crash. Daphne's devastated by the fact that the alien is hostile because her dream of hanging out with aliens. Shaggy reassures Daphne that the life she imagined with aliens is exactly the life she has.

They capture the alien and unmask the General who wanted funding.

This is a really good episode. It has some great artistic touches, real stakes and an interesting motivation.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E11 - Me, Myself, and A.I. - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Me, Myself, and A.I.

Season 1, Episode 11

Premiered October 22, 2015

Quickly

The gang deals with a robot uprising.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang goes to Mannputer tech. This is not the episode for me. I don't like robots. 

This episode reminded me of A Pup Named Scooby-Doo's episode "The Computer Walks Among Us" and Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!'s episode "Foul Play in Funland". It's almost the obligatory robot episode. But there is some fun flair.

When they find out a robot became violent, they offer to help investigate the anomalous event. Scooby-Doo and Shaggy wander off in search of food. They spend time with the apparently artificially intelligent harrassy corporate mascot and tour guide.

Velma, Daphne and Fred investigate the creator of the robot who complains that all technology has recently turned on him. They find a sign of a remote receiver. They can't investigate any further because the robot is reactivated and attacks them.

Daphne's strange fixation is proving humanity is better than technology. Shaggy and Scooby tend towards Daphne's side but they do gain an appreciation for the virtual reality system. Velma waxes poetic about the value of technology over people. Fred gets obsessed with a stupid gadget.

The virtual reality room features one of the best chase sequences of this series. It changes the scenery like "Duck Amuck". They include a reference to the first episode of this series including Daphne's hand puppet. There's also a quick reference to Charlie the Robot from "Foul Play in Funland".

The episode gets so caught up in the action that the mystery is dropped. There are only three people in the episode (four if you include the creepy corporate mascot). Anyway, the bad guy is the personal assistant. The episode ends with a pro-technology message despite the fact that the technology was almost the weapon used to kill them.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E10 - Kitchen Frightmare - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Kitchen Frightmare

Season 1, Episode 10

Premiered October 21, 2015

Quickly

Shaggy and Scooby help their favorite chef save his restaurant.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

Shaggy and Scooby bring the gang to the brick and mortar restaurant of their favorite food truck chef. He's struggling to run his restaurant nearly alone. Nearly his entire staff has been scared off by a Yeti. The gang finds this significantly odd because there's no thematic connection to his restaurant and it's extremely hot out. Shaggy and Scooby volunteer to be his waitstaff while Fred, Velma and Daphne investigate.

Daphne is in the middle of a standup phase. Fred struggles to ignore her working on her tight five. One of her jokes draws attention to the fact that the freezer is warm. They never call out the fact that all of the food is probably ruined because the freezer has been off long enough to allow the butter to melt to the point of liquidity. Her obsession pays off at the end when she uses her material to keep the restaurant full.

They've done Yeti episodes before but this one sets itself apart by making the presence of a Yeti confounding enough to drive Velma to distraction. There's no connection between the cheese restaurant and the Yeti. Their investigation exposes a history of Yeti attacks on restaurants that previously inhabited the location. The Yeti attacks tear the restaurant apart. The gang offers the chef the use of the Mystery Machine kitchen. His final dish of the night captures the Yeti.

The motive of the villain is understandable and the mystery of the "Why a Yeti" ties in perfectly. He lives over the restaurant and wanted the restaurant gone. He'd been keeping up the act for years and at one point the Yeti costume made sense. The first restaurant he drove out of business was a Tibetan restaurant.

I love the Cheese Man!

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E09 - Screama Donna - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Screama Donna

Season 1, Episode 9

Premiered October 20, 2015

Quickly

The gang gets a gig as an opening act to Bones Malone.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

After the gang is unable to get concert tickets, Fred sees an opportunity to solve a mystery and see the concert. Fred offers the gang as an opening act for the show. This episode has a fantastic mislead. It seems like the gang is going to embarrass themselves on stage. Shaggy reveals himself to be a skilled guitarist and that he actually thought they were a band. Scooby demonstrates his talent on bass. Daphne explains she took piano for years. Fred has never played drums before but demonstrates an innate talent. Velma is left to be the lead singer but the local ghost scares them off stage before she is forced to rehearse.

They identify the wraith as the Primadonna, a singer that once performed on the stage. They split up to investigate. Shaggy and Scooby meet Bones Malone. Bones explains his manager is making up myths about him, controlling him creatively and causing him to be isolated. This is a distressing plot point.

The gang is unable to solve the mystery before the concert. They are forced to take the stage. Their performance is interrupted by the ghost and the trapping. They expose Bones Malone's manager. He was going to be fired. Velma is forced to sing the wrap up. 

This episode has solid music. Good episode, fun monster, great premise. The notion of the manager controlling Bones' behavior and artistic expression was heavy but at least he had the option of firing him.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E08 - Party Like It's 1899 - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Party Like It's 1899

Season 1, Episode 8

Premiere October 6, 2015

Quickly

The gang attends a party and solves two mysteries.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang goes to Wuthering Manor for a Murder Mystery Dinner Party. Daphne is assigned Queen Victoria. Fred is assigned the role of bumbling police officer. Velma is assigned the role of the scullery maid. Shaggy is a chimney sweep. Scooby is Lady Bethabeth. Fred is very unhappy with his role because he wants to solve the mystery and the party host insists he act like an idiot. Velma is incapable of not following the rules of the party strictly and cannot break from the role Flumsy even to talk to Fred.

While the mystery of the party is playing out, a second headless ghost is abducting the guests. Shaggy and Scooby investigate the party mystery. Freed of the fear that normally distracts them, they prove themselves to be capable investigators of fake mysteries.

Daphne teams up with Bradwick. He has solved the mystery for the last five years.

Fred discovers clues to the real mystery like missing guests and tossed rooms. He tries to warn others but the gang refuses to stop playing the game until the headless ghost tries to chop Daphne's head off. This leads to a chase scene that results in the party goers being abducted. The song is great. It's reminds me of the second era of Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! 

Everyone gets abducted aside from Fred, Daphne, Velma, Shaggy, Scooby and Bradwick. Then Bradwick is abducted. Then Fred is abducted. Then Daphne is abducted.

Scooby and Shaggy solve the party mystery. Velma solves the real mystery. Velma trips the Headless Count when he attacks Scooby and Shaggy. It's Bradwick. He robbed all the guests.

The Headless Count resembles the Headless Specter from Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! The murder mystery party is a fun premise. It makes sense that they would be there. 

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E07 - Be Quiet, Scooby-Doo!

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Be Quiet, Scooby-Doo!

Season 1, Episode 7

Premiered October 15, 2015

Quickly

The gang can't keep quiet.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang is arguing while on the road to the Crystal Canopy. Daphne's fixated on the possibility of enhancing psychic abilities. Velma was invited her old professor. Her old professor tells Velma she can't allow her in the caves. They also learn about the Crystal Crawler.

The gang has an arc about arguing and not listening to each other. It's fun. The arguing is never real enough to be annoying.

Velma becomes obsessed with the beauty of the Crystal Canopy. She decides to act as the Crystal Crawler to chase them away and protect the caves. Her inability to climb around the cave like the Crystal Crawler solves the mystery.

The mystery is well thought out and makes perfect sense. The guy who wanted to make a living off conducting tours of the cave acted as the Crystal Crawler to scare away the scientists working to prove the caves should be closed. It's not clear how this plan would have worked.

Why didn't they make any effort to protect the crystals? They were just assuming they wouldn't get destroyed. Dampen the crystals with some kind vibration absorbing padding.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E06 - Trading Chases - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Trading Chases

Season 1, Episode 6

Premiered October 12, 2015

Quickly

Fred leads a team of kids while a museum tour guide takes the lead over the gang.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang goes to the museum to see a tour about the history of mystery solving. It turns out the tour is targeted towards children. The tour guide informs Fred of the the recent attack by the god Sobek. To prove his skill and knowledge, he switches with the tour guide.

While working with their new temporary leader, they meet the museum's competing Egyptologists and they discover a second Sobek statue and meet Sobek. The gang enjoys their time with Jeff. Fred begins assigning roles to the kids he's leading through the museum based on the gang and leads them in their own investigation.

There's a very subtle Jurassic Park reference when Sobek lands on top of a dinosaur skeleton and a banner drops from the ceiling.

After Fred confesses his jealousy, the gang and kid gang team up to catch Sobek. The trap goes off without a hitch.

One of the Egyptologists is in the Sobek costume. Jeff gives the summation and it doesn't go well. He proves to be dangerously delusional. There was a valuable statue in the sarcophagus that she wanted to sell. Jeff decides to solve mysteries with the kids. He steals the Mystery Machine.

Not a stand out episode. But a very solid episode with some really cool gags.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E05 - Grand Scam - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Grand Scam

Season 1, Episode 5

Premiered October 9, 2015

Quickly

Shaggy investigates a haunting to save his favorite baseball team.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang is at the field of Shaggy's favorite baseball team. Daphne's quirk of the week is wearing the Maurice the Mothscot costume.

The team is being haunted. Fred volunteers the gang's services as investigators. They investigate with the owner's approval. They meet an organ player and a former ballplayer who is employed by the team as the equipment manager.

Shaggy is highly invested because he loves the team and doesn't want to lose the Gypsy Moths. He shows great courage by doing the same thing Fred and Velma do in every case. Daphne, Shaggy and Scooby are attacked by the Ghost of Chip Braverton and this isn't enough to frighten off Shaggy for long. In the tradition of Shaggy overcoming his fear when motivated, he is glad to be the bait in the trap.

The ghost is not surprising at all. It's the guy that used to play for the team. The only other suspects are the organist who didn't have the physicality or motivation and the team owner.

Solid episode. Shaggy is outstanding in this episode and Daphne remains my favorite character in this series.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E04 - Poodle Justice - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Poodle Justice

Season 1, Episode 4

October 8, 2015

Quickly

The gang stop a gargoyle from interfering with the filming of Scooby's favorite television show.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

After a visit to the crime scene supply store, the Mystery Machine is fully stocked. Daphne has a beard. They come across the set of Poodle Justice, Scooby's favorite show. They quickly learn the show is being subjected to attacks from a gargoyle. The director has a high artistic reputation but consistently fails to keep to his budget. His career will be ruined if he fails to deliver the episode.

One thing I like about the show is that no two episodes are the same. They've taken the formula of the original series, revitalized it and created something unique to the series.

Scooby is in love with Lady Annabelle, the star of Poodle Justice and too shy to approach her.

They established the red herring suspects quickly, including the human star of the show and a disgruntled resident of the building where they are filming. There's less mystery and investigation in this episode and more antics. The beard does a lion share of the investigating. One particularly fun gag is a Shaggy and Scooby drawing the gargoyle into a sitcom scenario. I always try to figure out the internal logic of scenes like this.

The director is a tool to make meta commentary on the show. It's a little early in the series to make metacommentary on the tropes of the series but it could have aired out of order.

The gang solves the mystery with samples of the gargoyle picked up by Daphne's beard. Scooby saves Annabelle from falling to her death and makes a love connection. 

The gargoyle is the assistant director. She wanted to direct. She acknowledges the stupidity and shortsightedness of her plan.

Great episode. I love the beard. Daphne is my favorite character in this incarnation.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E03 - All Paws on Deck - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - All Paws on Deck

Season 1, Episode 3

Premiered October 7, 2015

Quickly

The gang goes on a sea cruise.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang takes a trip on the ship of Fred's cousin Scott. Daphne doesn't have an obsession in this episode but she does have a feud with sea creatures. This Daphne subplot is not the best but it does pay off. Velma's afraid of water. Scooby and Shaggy are thrilled at the culinary options and the peace of the cruise.

Scott's in trouble. His cruise ship has been suffering from attacks by a sea monster. Velma overhears Scott arguing about the sea monster. Fred and Daphne are attacked but escape back to the ship. Velma tells the history of Bribery Bay through a popup book.

The dynamic of the ship captain becoming progressively grizzled and Daphne's feud with dolphins is a little strange. They're background jokes that get a lot of attention. Daphne eventually apologizes to the dolphins. Both jokes kind of pay off but they're not the best.

The gang takes the Mystery Machine into Bribery Bay. The van is attacked. They're forced to suit up. The design of their wetsuits is similar to the traditional suits in the series but with more detail and elaborate details.

They return to the ocean to catch the sea creatures (sans Velma). She stays on deck. The first plan to trap them fails. When the gang lures the sea creatures to the surface, Velma crane games them.

Overall, a solid episode.

Be-Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E02 - Game of Chicken - Toonstalgia

Be-Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Game of Chicken

Season 1, Episode 2

Premiered October 6, 2015

Quickly

The gang searches for Fred's former partner after he disappears while exploring a cave.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

While the gang is wrapping up a reimagined version of the "Ghost of Captain Cutler" (he's Dr Cutler in this version), Fred gets a message from his old frenemy Chuck asking for help. Chuck and Fred used to work together but there's little friendliness in their friendship.

They go to the Zatari caverns, Velma provides the background on the caves (a Zatari warrior and a hidden treasure). It's pithy and funny and I love it. Daphne establishes her quirk of the episode, narration. Scooby gets mad at Shaggy for saying he's a responsible dog owner. The fight continues throughout the episode until the end.

They entire the cave and meet the last of the Zatari. He tells them his name. "Rick" but chastises them for mispronouncing it. He warns them to leave. They continue into the cave. In the cave, they are attacked by a masked warrior. The masked warrior chases them deeper into the cave.

Fred goes through a whole crisis of identity but eventually concludes he needs to do things his way. They solve the mystery and unmask the warrior. It's Chuck. He didn't want to admit to Fred that he needed help. Chuck was jealous of Fred.

The ancient Zatari treasure is "Larry", the chicken.

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - S01E01 - Mystery 101 - Toonstalgia

Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! - Mystery 101

Season 1, Episode 1

Premiered October 5, 2015

Quickly

The gang accompanies Velma to a college interview.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

I avoided this series when it first premiered. I felt an aversion to the art style. I tried it because it was on Boomerang. This rates as one of my top 3 favorite Scooby-Doo series.

The episode opens with a father bringing his reluctant son to Kingston University and reminiscing about how he was a reluctant student just like his son. They are attacked by the ghost of Elias Kingston. This episode establishes that the series will take established lore and reimagine it. Elias Kingston first appeared in the episode "What the Hex is Going on?" from Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?

Velma is stressing over her interview at Kingston University. Daphne reassures her with puppets. Even rewatching it, Daphne's puppet antics make me laugh. The scene establishes the dynamics that will carry through the series. Daphne is kind of wacky with a different obsession in each episode. This is a familiar character from cozy cop shows like Psych where Gus would often have a coincidental interest that related to that week's murder. Daphne develops fixations that may be helping her to understand something. Shaggy and Scooby walk up with a cake and wearing costumes. Scooby literally shakes off his costume. It's a wackier gang with a few new traits but it's building on the character development from previous series.

Daphne accidentally puts the van into gear. Fred uses his remote to prevent property damage. They arrive at a service station where the attendant tells them about the ghost of Elias Kingston. They get to Elias Kingston University and run into campus security. Velma has her meeting with the dean. The dean challenges Velma to solve the mystery of the ghost to secure her place at the school.

They split up to search. Scooby and Shaggy find their way to the vending machines. Elias Kingston finds them. Velma, Daphne and Fred search the Dean's office and that leads them to the library. Scooby and Shaggy flee to the library where Elias Kingston causes the gang to knock over every bookshelf. I've never really liked the domino bookshelf gag but that's so minor a complaint.

The gang is a bit upset about their failures. Daphne's puppets help the gang reconcile. The book they found helps Fred figure out the answer to the mystery. They go to investigate on a roof. Fred falls. Scooby and Shaggy immediately jump into action to save Fred. I love this. It's a character trait that's often forgotten about Shaggy and Scooby. They are afraid of ghosts but they are also courageous when someone they care about has often been lost in favor of humorous cowardice.

They don't really have a trapping time moment. Elias Kingston attacks them. They accidentally trap him. They unmask Elias Kingston. The identity of Elias is not surprising because there were very few characters in the episode.

Velma decides to stay with her friends for now and enjoy the learning experiences they offer.

The characters are heightened but the reality they live in is heightened too. Everyone is a little weirder.

There are inventive gags throughout the episode. Daphne's puppets show up many times and the jokes are great. It's different than the "Too Many Dummies!" because the puppets aren't telling jokes and sometimes they're not even talking. This is one of the best uses of the "Fred is obsessed with tricking out the Mystery Machine" gag ever with his security system.

Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? - S01E26 - Space Station Scooby - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? - Space Station Scooby

Season 1, Episode 26

Premiered July 2, 2020

Quickly

It's Scooby in Space!

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang joins Bill Nye in testing his experimental space voyager. Shaggy and Scooby instantly regret this before they even get to the monster. They take it to the Multinational Space Station.

When they get inside, the crew is missing. They find Neil DeGrasse Tyson locked in. He informs them about a monster tardigrade. The fact that two people were taken by the tardigrade means we already know who the tardigrade is. Captives are rare in Scooby-Doo.

Shaggy and Scooby wander off and get attacked by the Tardigrade that disappears because the people behind it really don't have a plan. They use a floating ball to track the monster but this doesn't actually help because they don't have a plan. So everyone goes to investigate anyway.

They find a member of the crew working and there are two bags with floating goo coming of them. Bad. That can cause trouble the electronics.

I waited the entire episode for an obvious Alien reference and I got it. Scooby thinks there's something in his suit. For a second it looks like a chestburster but it's just his tail. They also tagline drop "In Space no one can hear you scream.". Neil DeGrasse Tyson adds that no one can hear you explode either.

The trap goes wrong and Shaggy and Scooby are nearly blown out an airlock. They force the tardigrade monster out the airlock. Velma insists they go after it. Considering every monster has been a human, that's sensible.

They land back on Earth with help from the Mystery Machine.

Anyway, it's the two guys from the beginning in the oddest and most uncomfortably tight design for a suit since Tik-Tok on Return to Oz. The kidnapped guys were the tardigrade.

Solid episode.