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.

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - S01E25 - The High Wolfman's Musical Lament! - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - The High Wolfman's Musical Lament!

Season 1, Episode 25

Premiered July 2, 2020

Quickly

It's a musical episode.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

It's the musical episode! Unless they decide to do another musical episode. I'm getting serious Daria musical episode vibes from this.

It's fun to see the mix of monsters originated in this series and references to older monsters and episodes with clips. It helps that the look of the characters in this series matches the look of the characters in Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?

The gang is driving along Broadway when they're attacked by a werewolf. The Mystery Machine goes off the road into the water. There's so much logically confusing about this scene but I'm going to pretend it all makes sense because it's a musical episode and nothing will make sense.

Christian Slater pulls the Mystery Machine out of the water. "Greetings and Salutations" (I am obsessed with 80s films). He asks for the gang's help in dealing with the werewolf at a do over prom for his performing arts high school.

Simone returns as a former classmate of Christian's. She previously appeared in "Quit Clowning" and as a competitor in the ventriloquist competition in "Too Many Dummies!" I like her. She's weird. Happy to see her.

The werewolf attacks and Christian falls in a hole. There's a nonsensical chase scene. Not too bad. The score during this scene is stand out.

They pull Christian out of the hole and his leg gets put in a cast. They sing a song about the suspects, the drama teacher, the dance teacher and a classmate who is struggling financially and in his career. Also Simone's there. But they literally call them red herrings in the song. A red herring is a misleading clue in a mystery.

There werewolf attacks. Christian shows up in his wheel chair and attacks the werewolf. He winds up in a body cast. During the next song, they name drop Scrappy-Doo. I would love it if Scrappy was a guest star in a future episode but only if it wasn't an excuse to dump all over him.

They set up a trap with Scooby, Shaggy and Christian as the bait. I love that they commit to rolling around Christian in a full body cast on a chair dolly. They trap the werewolf.

Anyway, it's Christian Slater. He explains that he was the werewolf that ruined the original prom because he was afraid of embarrassing himself with Irish dancing. He did it once again to cover up and avoid facing a girl he liked in high school. None of this makes sense. Especially the fact that he asked for their help. He drops a "meddling kids" but really he would have gotten away with it if he hadn't asked them to come to the prom. More importantly, he tied up Simone and stuck her in the body cast. That's twisted and criminal and no one cares.

The best part of the entire musical episode is the dancing at the end. They reference the dance animations from "Jeepers It's the Creeper" from Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! with Scooby and Shaggy, and Fred and Daphne. I love that.

Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? - S01E24 - I Put a Hex on You! - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? - I Put a Hex on You!

Season 1, Episode 24

Premiered July 2, 2020

Quickly

The gang breaks a curse on the Hex Girls.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

I loved the Hex Girls in Scooby-Doo and the Witch's Ghost when I was a kid. I don't they've ever recaptured the magic of that first appearance. They still haven't and this one drops the "Wiccan" and "Ecogoth" angles in favor of a strange rocker angle.

The Hex Girls receive a gift of a guitar from an anonymous fan. Tuning the guitar causes a roadie to freak out and run off into the night.

Daphne was asked by the Hex Girls to do their makeup for their concert. There's no mention of the gang's previous encounters with the Hex Girls. While in the green room, the roadie shows up again. The Hex Girls are not distressed by his behavior. They reclaim the guitar. During the concert Thorn and Luna begin destroying the stage. After Shaggy tranquilizes many people, Ester Moonkiller shows up to declare the Hex Girls over and cursed. The crowd loves it. The Hex Girls love it.

Things immediately start going weird. Their manager has signed a ripoff act. Thorn and Luna begin acting sensibly. Dusk is worried she'll be struck by the curse of Ester Moonkiller even though she never touched the guitar.

They neglect to investigate the guitar and follow up on a bottle of calamine lotion. At the house, they find a photo of the previous incarnation of the Hex Girls that had four members including the president of their fan club. So we have our suspects presented naturally through the episode. Dusk because she keeps running off, the President of the fan club who's mad about no longer being in the band and their manager who wants to replace them. The stakes are set, they need to identify the ghost and get Luna and Thorn back to normal to perform.

The hallway chase scene is one of the weirder locations. It's in a sewer and it gets flooded. Really, it's just a detour from the story. They make it out into the Hex Girl's concert venue.

The gang force Luna and Thorn to get into their Hex Girl gear. Velma makes a gun that reverses the guitar's effect on the Hex Girls. They catch Ester Moonkiller and it's the President of their fan club. The show succeeded in setting up the suspects but it didn't really drop the clues. There was only ever really the one suspect because the Manager gets paid when the Hex Girls are successful and what's Dusk's motive. Even with the President of the fan club, it's not well developed. The idea that she quit the band because she got hives when she tried to perform is just written in so it's actually not their fault. There's no resolution to their relationship.

They are not as good in this episode as the film but it is nice to see them again.

The ending feels really abrupt because Thorn says they promised their fans a concert then it ends. It feels like Boomerang messed it up but it doesn't seem like they did.

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - S01E23 - A Run Cycle Through Time! - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - A Run Cycle Through Time!

Season 1, Episode 23

Premiered July 2, 2020

Quickly

Malcolm McDowell takes the gang on a trip through time.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang is driving through the desert near Santa Barbara. A wormhole opens and a monster comes out. This is the first episode where I noticed the outline that appears to belong to recurring clown Simone in the opening credits. 

Malcolm McDowell comes out to meet the gang. Apparently, they were traveling to meet him to answer an invitation. He invites them into his work shed. He claims to have invented a time machine.

They are attacked by a monster. Shaggy and Scooby are spared from being chased for a while as they are busy eating. They note the food all tastes the same. Everyone flees on the time machine into the future. Shaggy and Scooby apparently destroy the world in their travels.

While fleeing from the monster, Malcolm is knocked off the carousel. They arrive further in the future. The future is a land of devastation and floating robots. They meet Scooby-Doo's future self. He's part robot and attacks them. Cyborg Shaggy and Malcolm show up and save them. Cyborg Shaggy and Robo-Scooby fight.

Shaggy and Scooby make a vow to always be best friends. This transforms the future into a paradise.

The Chronobeast attacks again. They flee on the time machine. They miss a perfect opportunity to reference A Pup Named Scooby-Doo when a younger Scooby and Shaggy appear. They kind of look like their counter parts but not enough for it to be a reference. The warping background makes the chase hard to look at.

They land again in the distant future. The carousel is destroyed. Velma has a plan to capture the beast. It works. Velma reveals they never time traveled. They were in a high tech soundstage. Malcolm explains he was trying to convince them time travel was real so they would endorse their park. The gang agrees to endorse the park because they were had fun. 

The RoboScooby and Cyborg Shaggy are revealed to be sentient animatronic robots. They steal the Mystery Machine.

This was a really interesting and fun episode. It's not really a mystery even if there's an unmasking. It's a great adventure piece that reminds me of "Epic" or "Escape in Time" from the 60s series, The Avengers. I like that it's something different.

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - S01E22 - The Wedding Witch of Wainsly Hall! - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - The Wedding Witch of Wainsly Hall!

Season 1, Episode 22

Premiered July 2, 2020

Quickly

The gang helps Jeff Foxworthy hunt a phantom bride.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang arrives at Wainsly Hall.  They are nearly crushed by a stone angel pushed off the roof by the Wedding Witch of Wainsly Hall. Jeff Foxworthy arrives in a truck. He intends to move the building before it's destroyed by highway construction. The Wedding Witch is interfering with his efforts.

Jeff gives them a tour of the hall. He breaks into stand up randomly. It's normal for the comedy style of the stand up to be incorporated. It's just not subtle here. Perhaps it's less noticeable to someone who doesn't recognize the jokes. Velma explains the history Lenora and how she was jilted at the altar by her master chef beau. The Wedding Witch appears and chases them around the hall. It's an interesting variation on the hallway chase. The witch searches different doors and they keep appearing and disappearing. 

After losing the witch, they are found by the woman in charge of the house relocation. She refuses to move the house until the witch is taken care of. Jeff, Shaggy and Scooby are yelled at by a neighbor who wants the house destroyed because she's excited by the prospect of a highway. Jeff is trying to take the house so what's her problem?

Jeff, Shaggy and Scooby eat a drugged pie and pass out in the kitchen. Shaggy wakes up as a groom with Jeff arranged to be the officiant. This presents the uncomfortable question of "Who changed Jeff and Shaggy's clothing while they were unconscious?" This doesn't seem to be one of their costume gags. So they didn't do it. They do have a costume gag later. It's one of the creepier things a ghost or monster has done that doesn't involve attempted murder.

Daphne, Fred and Velma find them and get them to sit in as bait for the trap. It's one of the more dangerous traps. It involves a crane and a tub flying through the air.

The witch is unmasked to reveal the food truck chef. Jeff says he's glad to give her the old food she wanted to steal and reverse engineer recipes from. The attempted murder from the beginning of the episode is forgotten. Unfortunately, Shaggy and Scooby get to it first. 

Good episode but the ending was groan inducing. It does kind of explain that the wedding might have entirely been a hallucination but it's still vague and uncomfortable.

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - S01E21 - Dance Matron of Mayhem! - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - Dance Matron of Mayhem!

Season 1, Episode 21

Premiered July 20, 2020

Quickly

Maddie Ziegler's dance studio is haunted.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

Maddie Ziegler won a haunted dance studio in a dance contest. She needs to renovate the studio to keep it. But the ghost of the original owner is resisting her renovation efforts.  In 48 hours, the city will reclaim the studio and tear it down to create parking.

The gang goes to see the grand opening of her studio and finds it closed and ruined. They investigate and find Maddie in the studio. The episode establishes her as friends with Daphne.

They tell the story of Madame Zobrinsky, a Russian ballet dance. Their investigation uncovers an occupied penthouse. Madame Zobrinsky's ghost shows up and curses Maddie then challenges her to break the curse. She needs to teach one of three very specific dances. Shaggy and Scooby happily volunteer but the ghost keeps electrocuting them and ruining the effort.

The ghost comes back. Maddie is defiant. She calls the ghost out for being unfair.  The ghost gives her one more chance to break the curse by performing the Zobrinsky triangle with Scooby and Shaggy. While the three of them are performing, the rest of the gang sets the trap. They use the apparently mystic powers of the Zobrinsky triangle to distract the ghost while they trap the ghost by Rube Goldberging a stack of tutus on her.

They unmask the ghost to find Madame Zobrinsky. Velma explains Madame Zobrinsky faked her death 30 years earlier. Somehow no one realized that this person wasn't dead despite the fact that she was still using her credit cards. 

The trap in this episode ranks as one of my favorites. It works out perfectly and it has so many parts. It's fun to see Shaggy and Scooby enthusiastic and demonstrate skill in dancing. Overall it's a solid episode.

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - S01E20 - Too Many Dummies! - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - Too Many Dummies

Season 1, Episode 20

Premiered July 2, 2020

Quickly

The gang delivers a possessed dummy to a competition.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang is hired to deliver a dummy to a ventriloquist competition. As soon as they leave, the dummy attacks a security guard. They return to talk to the founder of the charity event. They meet Jeff Dunham and Darci Lynne Farmer who are there as judges. Darci and Jeff think Shaggy is a ventriloquist. 

Scooby and Shaggy are attacked by the possessed dummy next. They flee. When they return, the dummy is still on the stage. Scooby freaks out and attacks the dummy. 

The possessed dummy attacks Shaggy and Scooby at the hotel. Jeff Dunham pranks Shaggy and Scooby with Walter. Darci comes in. Petunia's been abducted. They track her to a creepy house filled with dolls. An older lady in the house and her son confess to stealing Petunia. The lady and the son attempt to steal Walter. The idea that a couple strangers broke into a child's room to steal from her is the creepiest thing in the entire episode.

Scooby and Shaggy spend the entire episode accusing Walter. It's a great running gag.

The charity show starts. Simone makes a return appearance. She first appeared in the episode "Quit Clowning" with Kenan Thompson. You don't need to know that but it's a nice touch. Shaggy and Scooby join the competition as bait. They're attacked by the possessed dummy again but the audience thinks it's part of the show.

They catch the dummy and expose the creator of the charity show. He's a frustrated ventriloquist. The lady and her son claim they would have paid for the dummies but she broke into a little girl's room and stole her dummy. They're apparently not arrested. The charity show founder is arrested and I'm unsure what his crime was. It doesn't seem like Shaggy or Scooby are going to press charges. Maybe the security guard will but he didn't injure anyone.

The characters of Petunia and Walter, Darci and Jeff's puppets, really shine owing to the character development both have from the years of Darci and Jeff's work. I would love to see another episode with them especially if Peanut made an appearance. The four of them collectively are some of my favorite guest stars. 

The possessed dummy is conceptually a great. He just looks too much like the Joker. If his look was a little different, I'd rate him as one of the best monsters in this series.

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - S01E19 - Fear of the Fire Beast - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - Fear of the Fire Beast

Season 1, Episode 19

Premiered July 20, 2021

Quickly

A fire monster stalks Steve Buscemi in Italy.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

Steve Buscemi is in Italy and every person he meets mistakes him for the characters he plays. They think he's a monster. Then they run from a fire monster. He flees from the monster that's been dogging him during his trip. He runs into the gang. They're in Italy hunting the monster. In keeping with the premise of the show, they team up.

While having a meal with Steve's family, they learn his cousin resents his success. They also learn that his honorary Nana is very proud of him, especially the movie where he played a nice guy.

They look for the monster then are pursued by the monster. The chase scene includes a reference to M.C. Escher. After they lose the monster, an old friend of his grandfather comes to him to collect on a debt his grandfather's debt. He refuses the money then curses Steve.

The fire monster attacks them at a warehouse and sets the building on fire. At this point, I remembered the stories about Steve Buschemi, Fire Fighter. He was a fire fighter in New York before becoming an actor. He puts out the fire. The gang tries to help him but fail. He resolves to train them for everyone's safety.

The gang sets a trap for the fire monster. They use their newly earned fire fighting skills to trap and incapacitate the fire monster. The fire monster is unmasked to expose Nana. She did it to show everyone he's a hero.

There was a B-Plot about chipmunks and a running gag about the pronunciation of his surname.

It's a solid episode. It has nice messaging about fire fighters.

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - S01E18 - The New York Underground! - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - The New York Underground!

Season 1, Episode 18

Premiered July 2, 2020

Quickly

The gang pursues a mystery and an alligator monster underground in New York City.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang is in New York for a poetry slam. Scooby-Doo has entered Shaggy into the poetry slam and exposed his private poetry. He's pitted against Halsey. Shaggy is petrified. Lucky for him, an alligator monster attacks. Halsey jumps on the alligator monster, embracing the trope of the guest star being overconfident and fearless. I tend to find the fearful guests funnier. The alligator steals a key to the city.

They make a copy of the key from an impression left in one of Scooby's blintzes. The key leads them to the underground. There are poetry detours. There's a secret keyhole, an alligator attack and structural damage when the roof of the tunnel collapses.

Halsey brings them to an underground library and the knowledge keeper. She tells them about J. Jacob Ascot and informs them that his diaries were stolen from her collection. J. Jacob Ascot had a secret train station and car with a safe.

They are chased through the sewer. They reclaim the diaries and get the next clue (music in the diary). The clue leads them to the train car.

They catch and unmask the gator monster. It's the poetry slam promoter. He wanted the treasure. The treasure is a poem.

It's a fine episode. It's not a particularly funny episode.

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - S01E17 - Hollywood Knights! - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - Hollywood Knights!

Season 1, Episode 17

Premiered July 2, 2020

Quickly

The gang helps George Takei save a historical mansion.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

George Takei is giving a tour of the Darrington estate. He tells the group the estate is rumored to be haunted by the Doombringer. The Doombringer, of course, shows up. Just as I'm starting to think how odd it would be if they subverted expectations, they subvert expectations and the gang appears in cloaks with cameras. The Doombringer freezes and the empty armor collapses. George Takei invited them to the estate to investigate the Doombringer. They find a clue of a single blonde hair. George has been trying to get the mansion registered as a historical landmark but the Doombringer is confounding his efforts.

The private detective George hired to identify the owner of the house accuses Mystery Inc. of horning in on his case. The gardener working for George runs in and attacks an empty suit of armor then quits. "You're going to need a new gardener." "That one's broken"

Velma discovers another clue, their photos are distorted. There's a Doombringer hallway chase and it's so chaotic and nonsensical that Scooby doesn't realize when it has ended. Maybe it's my love of Yellow Submarine that makes me appreciate the nonsense.

Sam Shehan shows up and he's a land developer and there's not much else to say other than he drops a premature meddling kids. A crazy lady appears from a cupboard. George identifies her as the daughter of the owner of the house. They chase after her.

They find a forged deed and letters warning that the land will be auctioned off. The Doombringer chases. The crazy lady tries to kill them. George gets shirtless and fights the Doombringer. George is unabashed in the fact that he wants to show off his abs.

The knight steals the fake deed and the Mystery Machine. They're forced to chase him with Darrington's armor. They catch the knight and unmask him to reveal the gardener. There's handwavium about how the gardener got in and out of suits of armor. But anyway.

I love this episode. George has a beautiful voice to listen to. This episode had surprises and twists that I did not expect. And the last joke with George throwing glitter into the air made me laugh out loud. It was reference to the transporter in Star Trek. They achieved the look of the teleporter with glitter in water.

Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? - S01E16 - One Minute Mysteries

Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? - One Minute Mysteries!

Season 1, Episode 16

Premiered July 2, 2020

Quickly

The Flash ruins the gang's mystery solving fun.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

Scooby and Shaggy need to run out on dinner with their friend Barry Allen to solve a mystery. He decides to help the guys by solving the mysteries for them so they can get back to dinner. He makes sure they capture Miner Forty-Niner in record time. This makes it clear the episode is going to be cameos from historical villains while Flash steals all of the mysteries from the gang so Shaggy and Scooby will eat with him.

Flash keeps solving them and annoying the gang while a mystery figure looks on from very conveniently placed closed circuit cameras. The fact that they gang doesn't figure it out is even more ridiculous than Lois Lane not recognizing Superman is Clark Kent. 

At the Creeper mystery, they ask Flash to solve the mystery their way. It doesn't go great. But he means well and everyone recognizes that.

The way this episode unfolds it feels like the gang is living in one of those meta television worlds where they solve the same mysteries over and over until an outsider comes in and changes the way the story plays out like Pleasantville or The Final Girls.

At the end of the Creeper story, after Flash takes Scooby and Shaggy to Madrid, a giant teddy bear captures the gang. The gang is all tied up with teddy bear bombs. Shaggy and Scooby distracts the giant teddy bear while Flash eats Scooby Snacks then saves everyone from the bombs. 

There's a really good Mark Hamill joke. The teddy bear is the Trickster and he also has a joker mask on underneath. Mark Hamill has voiced both characters in DCAU projects.

I was very happy to see the Charlie the Robot in prison. I don't like robots.

Mark Hamill is the most frequent guest in this series. I would like to hear more of him. It would be cool for the show to reimagine Jeannie and Corey Anders. Jeannie was a one season cartoon from 1973 with Mark Hamill voicing the character of Corey Anders. He guested as Corey Anders in one episode of the New Scooby-Doo Movies.

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - S01E15 - The Sword, The Fox and the Scooby-Doo! - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - The Sword, The Fox and the Scooby-Doo!

Season 1, Episode 15

Premiered July 2, 2020

Quickly

A fox monster abducts Mark Hamill's high school drama teacher.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

Mark Hamill is at a high school reunion giving a speech. He's accused by a former classmate of ruining her acting career. He points out she never wanted to act. Then the reunion is attacked by a fox monster that looks like a sport mascot. The fox monster abducts the drama teacher (making the drama teacher a prime suspect in my book). 

The Mystery Machine crashes when the fox monster crosses the road. They are saved by Mark Hamill. He relates the story of the fox monster to the gang. They offer to help him. He tells them he knows who they are because of their recent adventure saving Alfred from the Joker. I know this is just a set up to have Mark do his Joker laugh (which I love) but this does reinforce that there is a continuity to this series and makes Batman seem more uninformed due to the fact that he didn't know about the gang.

The episode has fun with Mark Hamill with jokes and references to the original Star Wars films. In one scene, they hide in a recycling bin that looks like R2D2. It really pays to have a talented voice actor as the guest star. Scooby and Shaggy reveal that they apparently stalk Mark Hamill. They spend the episode asking Mark to do Jedi things and sign things for him.

The hallway gag in this series is just kind of insane and I love it. There's costumes. Overall this series uses it as an opportunity for surreal gags. Any description winds up being a list of things. I appreciate that.

They escape the fox in the restaurant and exit into a tunnel that's Mark believes is haunted by a Samurai ghost. They also find prints that lead them to a temple and a statue of a fox. Mark relates the legend of a sword. The fox attacks. Fred abuses a koi fish to spray water in the face of the fox monster.

They plan to use the sword to bait the Fox monster. Mark finds it inside of a broom. The sword being hidden inside a broom doesn't make sense to me because brooms are easily lost.

They trap the fox monster under a bell. The fox monster uses the sword to cut a hole in the floor to escape. Instead of fleeing with his valuable sword, the Fox monster decides to murder everyone. Mark jumps into the rescue to fight the fox monster and save Shaggy and Scooby. He defeats the fox monster in a sword fight. The fox monster knocks himself out.

They unmask the fox monster to reveal the coach. They find the drama teacher tied up. 

Shaggy and Scooby try to get Mark to sign a million dollar check (lame guys, lame). They don't get the check but they do get to fight Mark.

It's a solid episode, not a stand out episode. It's elevated by the presence of Mark Hamill's voice acting talent.

Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? - S01E14 - The Nightmare Ghost of Psychic U! - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? - The Nightmare of Psychic U!

Season 1, Episode 14

Premiered July 2, 2020

Quickly

The gang and Whoopi Goldberg investigate a ghost haunting a psychic university.

Thoughts

Whoopi Goldberg opens the episode. Seeing her as a psychic immediately made me immediately think of Ghost. I love references to movies from that era.

The "Crazy Nightmare Ghost" of the episode looks like a cross between the Ferryman from Annabelle Comes Home and the Crooked Man from the Conjuring 2 with a blue paint job.

The half hour format is a little better than the New Scooby-Doo Movies hour format. They don't feel like they're running out of things to do. The episode moves quickly but it occasionally forgets to be a mystery. It spends a long time with Scooby, Shaggy and Whoopi practicing for her exam until it cuts back to Fred, Daphne and Velma finding clues. They quickly figure out the ghost is planning to turn the school into a ski resort. Then there's an attempt on their life with the most intense snow machine ever. The company that built it is probably facing a class action lawsuit because of the dangerous setting. The episode does a good job building suspense as it leaves Fred, Velma and Daphne in the room with the snow machine and we're only reminded when Whoopi has a vibe that they are in danger. Whoopi, Scooby and Shaggy wind up in a hedge maze where they also find a lost dog. Fred, Velma and Daphne freeze the ghost with the super powerful snow machines (seriously dangerous snow machines).

The sky is intense with the Aurora Borealis throughout the episode. It's pretty colors but...I don't know. It's weird and the art style doesn't really make it look artistic. It makes it all a bit distracting. Although it does make it visually interesting.

I have questions. Why are there snow machines? Why is there already promotional material sitting around to be found? Why was the head of the school so instantly ready to shutdown? Why do I think so much about this? I just do.

The lunch lady is an heir that wants the land and wanted the school shutdown so she could make a stilt ski resort. Not just a ski resort, a stilt ski resort. I watch these episodes on Boomerang because they are available and it's easy. It leaves me questioning my recollection and sanity when I see details like this in what I wrote.

Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? - S01E13 - What a Night for Dark Knight! - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? - What a Night for Dark Knight!

Season 1, Episode 13

Premiered September 19, 2019

Quickly

Daphne's honorary uncle is abducted.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang visits Gotham City to see Alfred Pennyworth, Daphne's honorary uncle. When they arrive at Wayne Manor, they find him missing. The gang searches Wayne Manor for clues and cause serious property damage. Despite the signs of a break in, they don't call the police. This kind of behavior makes sense when they see a ghost. But nothing about this justifies the gang not calling the police when there is evidence of a break in and possible abduction. At the very least look for Bruce Wayne.

A tube of lipstick leads the gang to an abandoned department store. At the department store, they find a laptop attempting to hack into Bruce Wayne's finances. Batman puts Velma on hold and visits Kurt Langstrom/Manbat. A second Manbat chases Velma, Shaggy and Scooby around the department store. Manbat abducts Velma. Daphne spends the whole time looting the department store with Fred's assistance (an interesting reversal of the usual dynamic of Shaggy and Scooby ditching the mystery for food). I understand the motivation but I question the legality of her behavior.

Fred comes up with a trap and uses Scooby as bait. The other Manbat attacks Scooby. The trap goes wrong but they get saved by a convenient appearance by Batman.

They unmask Manbat to see Langstrom then Alfred then the Joker. Joker wanted money to fund his crimes. Batman locates Alfred and Velma.

This episode doesn't seem to share cannon with previous Batman and Scooby-Doo crossovers. They mix together different details of Batman but draw the aesthetic from Batman the Animated Series. It's interesting to see the 66 Batmobile. It kind of bugs me that the gang seems to be very well known and familiar to many celebrities and has a connection to Alfred but Batman is completely ignorant. The lighter take on Batman is a good fit for the episode. The fact that there isn't an original monster is disappointing. 

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - S01E12 - Quit Clowning! - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - Quit Clowning!

Season 1, Episode 12

Premiered September 12, 2019

Quickly

A ghost clown threatens to shutdown a television station.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang accompany Kenan Thompson to QTTT, a local television station with financial difficulties. He's hosting a fundraiser to save the station. Shaggy and Scooby are there as his muses. They find out the television station has been haunted by Pazzo the Clown, the supposed ghost of an old network star. There's a gag with Fred locking the van to stop Shaggy and Scooby from fleeing and it's great. It builds off the modern characterization of Fred as having an intense attachment to the Mystery Machine and using it in creative ways. This is most present in Be Cool, Scooby-Doo but it's also present in this series. Kenan waxes nostalgic about his childhood watching Pazzo the clown. Simone, a former friend of Kenan's shows up, then leaves in anger when he rejects her involvement.

Shaggy and Scooby are chased by Pazzo around the studio. They're nearly murdered when he throws them from a catwalk. 

Shaggy and Scooby support Kenan as he warms up for the telethon. Pazzo attacks during his rehearsal. They run and somehow this is filmed and televised within the studio for the rest of the gang.

Velma, Daphne and Fred search the studio for clues. They find Simone in basement making herself up as a clown in glow in the dark makeup. Velma searches the video archives for information on Pazzo the clown. But all of the tapes are erased and as someone who has spent too many hours looking for old shows, it's so sad to see local programming masters erased. Velma finds one tape was missed. In it, she sees a clue. Before she can tell the others, Pazzo locks her up.

Kenan finds Velma while hiding from Pazzo. She explains she has a plan and he needs to go on the air.

The tape shows a little kid getting pied. It was referenced earlier in a comment by Kenan about how funny Pazzo was. They use the tape to terrorize ghost Pazzo. Simone shows up in clown gear. The gang and Kenan pursue Pazzo to the roof. Pazzo traps himself.

The clown is unmasked as the station attorney. It's further revealed he was blocking efforts to get the station declared a historical landmark. On top of that, their fundraising goal is reached. He wanted to destroy the station and memory of Pazzo because he was the pie kid.

The real Pazzo joins the telethon and reveals he's both alive and a pizza maker.

Solid episode. And real Pazzo was so cute.

Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? - S01E11 - Now You Sia, Now You Don't - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? - Now You Sia, Now You Don't

Season 1, Episode 11

Premiered September 5, 2019

Quickly

Sia has a demonic doppelganger.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang is visiting Daphne's friend, Sia, at her mansion. She called the gang because a monster that looks just like Sia is robbing jewelry stores. Shaggy and Scooby hang out with Sia in her super whimsical house while the rest of the gang goes to town to investigate the case. While Sia, Scooby and Shaggy are hanging out, they are attacked by the Sia doppelganger. The Sia doppelganger also robs the jewelry store.

The doppelganger is a great monster with a fascinating look but the actions aren't completely sensible. It acts a little like monster who's just really into tormenting them. It tries to murder them. But this isn't unique to this episode.

Sia reveals she paid for all of the stolen diamonds because she felt for the jewelry stores. But those stores did have insurance. She also bought all of the diamonds in a 100 mile radius which doesn't make any sense but makes good bait. She blows a bubble and pops it to cover all of them in gum which doesn't make any sense.

The monster is Sia's personal trainer. They ask her why she put the diamonds in the kitchen earlier in the episode and she was setting up Sia. Her plan was just bad. She didn't need to set up Sia to take the blame for stealing the diamonds. It just drew more attention to her crimes. A revenge motive would have made more sense there. Points for style, points off for poor planning.

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - S01E10 - Attack of the Weird Al-osaurus - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - Attack of the Weird Al-osaurus

Season 1, Episode 10

Premiere August 29, 2019

Quickly

Weird Al needs Mystery Inc's help to save his accordion camp.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang is driving to the accordion camp. Shaggy and Scooby are in the back practicing their accordions to the annoyance of the rest. They're run off the road by cars coming from the camp. The gang arrives and finds out the parents have been pulling their kids out of the camp. A dinosaur attacks and Weird Al provides chase music. Throughout the entire chase, Velma, Daphne and Fred stand still.

The monster design is simple in this episode. They're just dinosaurs. I appreciate that because it gives room for more Weird Al. He's enthusiastic and fun.

Weird Al gives Scooby and Shaggy a chance to play. Scooby struggles because he doesn't have fingers because he's a dog. Shaggy is a virtuoso. 

The gang meets all of the suspects, a local professor, a pair of students and Big Bob. The local professor discovered fossils, the students are wandering in the woods and Big Bob wants to frack.

A dinosaur attack interferes with Weird Al's attempts to teach Scooby. There are two consecutive Jurassic park references, the idea that the dinosaur can't see you if you don't move and the dinosaur in the rearview mirror. The dinosaur chomps down on Mystery Machine's bumper and loses part of a tooth. The tooth is discovered to be a fossil. They find the professor's tent torn up. They decide to investigate the cave that turns out to be a mine. Weird Al continues providing music. When his song unsettles Scooby, he switches to the theremin and I cheered hard at that. I love that the theremin exists.

In the mine, they find a priceless crystalized dinosaur egg.  The gang decides to use the egg to bait the dinosaur. Fred doesn't need to create a trap because there's already one set up. The camp keeps a trap set up to capture the parents that flee the accordion concerts.

A second dinosaur complicates the trap. The dinosaurs start fighting. Weird Al plans to lure the dinosaurs into position using them as the bait. The gang is safe in Weird Al's green floaty duck.

Weird Al's camp is saved.

This is one of the less interesting villains and better guest stars. Weird Al is fun to watch.

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - S01E09 - The Fastest Fast Food Fiend - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - The Fastest Fast Food Fiend

Season 1, Episode 9

Premiered August 22, 2019

Quickly

Shaggy, Scooby and Jim Gaffigan participate in a race to win a super disgusting burger.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang is at the Doc Tally anniversary celebration to participate in a race and eating contest. There's a Penelope Pitstop reference in the crowd and she's fantastic. Jim Gaffigan is also there to participate in the race. The prize is the most disgusting 70 year old cheeseburger ever. The race start is interrupted by the arrival of the Spectral Speedster. Penelope tells the story. I like this Penelope. She's fun.

Gaffigan keeps trolling the gang. He explains his car runs on natural gas and makes a joke indicating the car is running on his natural gas and I'm distressed by that idea. And I thought the 70 year old burger would be the grossest thing in this episode.

At the first stop, Fred, Velma and Daphne investigate a bad smell coming out of the kitchen. When they open the fridge, green goo and food flows out. There's so much gross in this episode.  The goo starts to move. An actor that appeared at the beginning emerges from the goo. He claims the fiend attacked him. Velma notices the freezer's panel was torn out.

Jim Gaffigan is run off the road then chased and nearly assaulted by the Speedster. The gang stops and picks up Jim Gaffigan.

Velma's research uncovers the Doc Tally burger chain has been nearly bankrupted multiple times. Despite the fact that Jim Gaffigan is now ostensibly racing with them, they continue arguing and competing. Their bickering abates when Shaggy and Scooby save him from drowning in ice cream.

The Speedster runs the other drivers off the road. Fred outruns the Speedster with a booster button. At the last Doc Tally, Jim slows down to ensure he and his new friends finish the race together. While this is going on Fred, Velma and Daphne are building a trap for the Speedster. The Speedster blows up the deep fryer and causes a rain of fries. Shaggy, Scooby and Jim tell the gang to pursue the fiend without them.

Fred tricks the fiend into driving into the water. Billy Tally is unmasked at the fiend. He was trying to destroy the restaurant to get revenge on his brother for inheriting the restaurant.

Jim, Scooby and Shaggy eat the 70 year old burger and I am grossed out.

The writing was fine in this episode. It was just a very gross episode.

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - S01E08 - When Urkel-Bots Go Bad! - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - When Urkel-Bots Go Bad!

Season 1, Episode 8

Premiered August 15, 2019

Quickly

Steve Urkel and Mystery Inc. investigate a mystery at a museum and cause massive property damage.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang is in Chicago to investigate a crazy robot. It doesn't take them long to find it. This is an episode with a fictional character as the guest star. Steve Urkel was a main character played by Jaleel White on Family Matters. The character made appearances on other shows like Full House. The Urkel-bot in the episode first appeared on Family Matters. Jaleel White originated the role 30 years ago.

An Urkel-bot chases The Mystery Machine and leads to the tragic loss of a barrel of super hot Scooby Snax. They meet Steve Urkel. He asks the gang to help him find his robot. They are hesitant. Clues lead them to the Museum of Future Sciences. Steve reveals he donated the robot to the museum.

The museum curator, museum security guard and the lunch lady all vow to get their revenge on Steve. They meet the first person that apparently likes Steve, the janitor. They find Urkelbot. He's damaged. Steve does a quick repair before they attacked by the Technomancer and robots from the exhibit.

A clue leads them to the coal mine exhibit and a metal smelting set up. The smelter has been used recently to smelt gold. Steve shares the legend of the gold submarine. They search the sub but find no clue to the gold. Scooby finds a pretty obvious clue to the gold from the janitor just outside the submarine. The exhibit has a diving suit in the same style as Captain Cutler's. It's destroyed in an accident by Steve.

They are pursued by robots. Velma uses an invention by Steve to behead a pair of robots. They discover part of the submarine is made of plastic.

Steve creates a secret weapon to use against the Technomancer. It's Urkelbot 2.0. The Urkelbot nerds so hard the robots flee. Velma uses the distraction to plant a disc on the Technomancer. The disc is a tracking device. They follow the fleeing Technomancer's truck. They stop the Technomancer and find the stolen gold from the submarine. It was the janitor.

The museum curator likes him now and doesn't care about the destruction because gold.

Steve blows up the Mystery Machine then flies off into the night.

This is a great episode. Steve Urkel is a fun presence in the show. Jaleel White easily slips back into the role.

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - S01E07 - The Cursed Cabinet of Professor Madds Markson! - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - The Cursed Cabinet of Professor Madds Markson

Season 1, Episode 7

Premiered August 8, 2019

Quickly

The gang joins Penn and Teller in investigating a haunted hotel on the verge of demolition.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

A couple of workers are setting charges in a building that's to be demolished the next day. They set a 12 hour timer on the charge. I don't know much about demolition but this feels like an insanely dangerous way to to this especially since people are scheduled to spend the night at the hotel. They are scared off by a ghost.

The gang is in Las Vegas to spend the night in the haunted hotel for a chance to win a million dollars. They meet Penn and Teller. They are all locked into the hotel. They watch a video by the owner of the hotel. Penn waxes poetic about the joy of being fooled and scared. They are scared out of the room by a ghost.

In one hallway, there's a painting referencing the "Indian witch doctor" from Decoy for a Dognapper from the first season of Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!.

They go to the theater to investigate. The stage is set for Professor Markson's show, the ghost that haunts the hotel. The cabinet on the stage transforms the ghost into a rabbit monster. The rabbit monster chases them. Penn and Velma trap the rabbit monster but he escapes.

The gang goes to the Penthouse to meet the hotel owner offering them a million dollars. He disappears amid screaming before they can meet him.

They gang and Penn and Teller contrive a plan to capture the ghost using a show as bait. The trap goes wrong when Teller is knocked into the magic box. He vanishes and the rabbit appears in his place.

Fred is thrown into the detonation timer (Not safe). The timer glitches and resets to one minute. Gee, golly gosh, who would think a timer would be dangerous. They all escape. The rabbit monster is unmasked to reveal Teller. 

Teller speaks his only lines at the end of the episode to explain that he did it all to trick Penn. Penn is amazed. He compliments Teller for his work. Fred refuses the million dollars because Teller was the last to leave the hotel. The rest of the gang is not happy.

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - S01E06 - The Scooby of a Thousand Faces! - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo! And Guess Who? - The Scooby of a Thousand Faces!

Season 1, Episode 6

Premiered August 1, 2019

Quickly

The gang stops Wonder Woman from murdering a masked thief.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang meets Wonder Woman after they're attacked by a minotaur in a museum of Grecian antiquities. She fights off the minotaur. Shaggy accidentally helps the Minotaur escape before she stabs the guy in a mask to death with her sword.

Daphne and Velma fangirl over Wonder Woman. She offers to train Velma and Daphne to fight. Shaggy and Scooby take Fred to look for clues to cheer him up. They're attacked by the minotaur. Wonder Woman shows up binds him in the lasso of truth. Daphne and Velma stop her from murdering the minotaur.

Fred realizes the map leads them to Delphi. Wonder Woman takes Scooby in her invisible jet.  They find signs of the Minotaur and a clue that leads them to Olympia where a golden head was buried. The minotaur collapses the cave. Wonder Woman frees them from the debris. Wonder Woman is about to leave to hunt and murder the Minotaur when Scooby convinces her to stay and work with the whole team.

Wonder Woman trains everyone. They go to find the head of Apollo. They set a trap. They need to hold Wonder Woman back from murdering the guy. They spring their trap using skills gained from training with Wonder Woman. Wonder Woman uses what she learned from the gang and captures the Minotaur by kicking his butt into the trap. 

They unmask the Minotaur to reveal the museum curator who apparently devoted his career and life to building up his reputation so he could eventually steal the gold head of Apollo, sell it and retire.

I prefer the real life celebrity episodes but this was fine. It continues in the tradition of Scooby-Doo meets Batman.

Scooby-doo! And Guess Who? - S01E05 - Ollie Ollie In-come Free! - Toonstalgia

Scooby-doo! And Guess Who? - Ollie Ollie In-come Free!

Season 1, Episode 5

Premiered July 25, 2019

Quickly

A cat mummy harasses Ricky Gervais.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The episode opens with Ricky Gervais performing a puppet show about a cat mummy for the gang. My brain goes straight to The Curious Creations of Christine McConnell and Rankle. After the brief show, they are attacked by a cat mummy. The mummy demands his statue. They flee and hide. Ricky Gervais tells them the mummy is after one of his cat's toys. Ricky Gervais uses aids to explain the mythology of Bast.

Ollie is driven insane by an attractive scent. They follow Ollie to the antique store where Ricky bought the antique statue for Ollie. They meet a woman with a jar of ancient catnip. The antique store owner expresses his suspicions of an employ and an old door. The old door leads to an abandoned wing of the British Museum.

Ricky Gervais goes into long bits through out the episode including a bit while they're walking through the British Museum wing about Scooby-Doo repeatedly saying his name as a catch phrase. Whether they're in the abandoned wing or not is ambiguous because there are a lot of antiques and they are nicely displayed. The cat mummy shows up again and chases them.

In the British Museum, they find the woman with the catnip taped up and trapped in a sarcophagus. The woman's presence is the final clue they need to solve the mystery. They leave her there.  Ricky creates a trap and it almost works. They improvise to stop the mummy from getting away. They drop the super catnip on the mummy to prompt a hundred random cats to show up. 

They mummy is the antique dealer. He's a fake antique dealer. He's actually a jewelry thief. He was using the door to rob the museum. Why did he show them the door to the museum?

Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? - S01E04 - Elementary, My Dear Shaggy? - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? - Elementary, My Dear Shaggy?

Season 1, Episode 4

Premiered July 18, 2019

Quickly

The gang teams up with a fake Sherlock to solve a real mystery.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang are taking a self guided tour of haunted London when they are forced to crash by screaming skulls. The screaming skulls idea is inspired by real ghost stories.  Their tour makes me wonder, did Fred really transport the Mystery Machine to London for their vacation? 

A Sherlock looking fellow turns up then disappears. Then somehow they're arrested for this. They're released after their bail is posted. The police have had many reports yearly of the skulls but they still don't believe this is worth examining. Denialism strikes again. It doesn't make sense. Even if you don't believe in ghosts, you should believe that people are seeing things and look for the cause. It doesn't matter if you believe in ghosts. People are seeing something and the something almost got a van of teens killed.

The "Crackpot Sherlock" posted the bail. They join him in investigating the mystery. They find a fake wall that leads them to the underground. We learn Daphne can speak 76 languages including rhyming slang. They look for clues then get chased out. They go to Sherlock's lab. The man demonstrates strong delusional behavior but he does seem to turn up clues. Their clues lead them to the Tower of London. Coincidentally, the first Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo mystery had the gang in a fake Tower of London with a robot Sherlock Holmes and the real crown jewels.

The gang works with "Crackpot Sherlock" to form a trap for the Screaming Skulls. In frustration, Shaggy tries to explain to Sherlock that he's not Sherlock. The trap goes a bit wrong. Shaggy and Scooby are nearly killed on the London Bridge. Fred traps the Screaming Skulls. The bad guys are a security guard and a guard from the Tower of London. They failed to steal the crown jewels not because they didn't get in. The crown jewels weren't the crown jewels. The Tower of London displayed decoys while the real jewels were stored for safekeeping.

I found the art rather underwhelming in this episode. It could just be me. I always like the old stuff better.

Scooby-Doo! and Guess Who? - S01E03 - Peebles' Pet Shop of Terrible Terrors! - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo! and Guess Who? - Peebles' Pet Shop of Terrible Terrors! 

Season 1, Episode 3

Premiered July 11, 2019

Quickly

The gang and Wanda Sykes investigate a monster at a pet shop.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

Wanda Sykes and Mr. Peebles, a pet shop owner, are attacked by a monstrous lanternfish.

Scooby is starving for Scooby Snacks. The shape of the Scooby Snacks in this series are irregularly shaped ovals or circles. The gang stops in Peebles' Pet shop to fulfill Scooby's desire. They rescue Wanda Sykes from beneath a collapsed shelf. Wanda and Scooby greet each other warmly. They recount their meeting at a dog show. How did Scooby get to the dog show? He can't drive.

They immediately get to work investigating. They find a giant egg that appears to have hatched.

Arnie, the bookkeeper shows up and throws the gang out of the shop just as Velma discovers discrepancies in the books. They reenter through a window. It's unlocked by someone inside. There's a lot of chasing in this episode. The fun kind of chasing with detours and jokes.

I like the monster design better than the Swamp Monster. It has a little more visual interest.

Wanda is abducted by the fish monster. They find the book keeper stuck to the wall with green goo. Scooby is motivated to hunt the monster to save his friend. Scooby and Shaggy find Wanda stuck to the wall.

Fred's trap fails. The board over the quicksand kitty litter fish tank breaks and traps Scooby, Shaggy and Wanda. They're saved by Magilla Gorilla. Magilla traps the lanternfish monster.

They unmask the monster to find Mr. Peebles. He blames Magilla. Arnie isn't actually a bad guy. He takes over the pet shop. Wanda adopts Magilla and a cat.

Magilla's special appearance is one done right. I haven't seen the Magilla Gorilla Show recently so I didn't remember Mr. Peebles. I did not anticipate Magilla and when he appeared it made me laugh.

Scooby-Doo! and Guess Who? - S01E02 - A Mystery Solving Gang Divided! - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo! and Guess Who? - A Mystery Solving Gang Divided

Season 1, Episode 2

Premiered July 2, 2019

Quickly

The Funky Phantom Crew irritates me and Mystery Inc.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

The gang visits Gettysburg to investigate photos of zombie ghosts. Velma's tablet is invaded by the Funky Phantom then our Scooby-Doo episode is invaded by the Funky Phantom Crew. The obnoxious is powerful with the Funky Phantom crew. Velma denies the existence of ghosts despite talking to a ghost. The Funky Phantom Crew snottily tells off the gang. The characterization is over the top unpleasant. They are all driven away by the reemergence of the zombie soldier ghosts.

This is annoying. The writing on the Funky Phantom crew is unnecessarily annoying. I'll try to ignore it. I'll try to ignore Velma rejecting the existence of ghosts despite talking to the ghost. At this point, I'm just hoping they split everyone up to save the animation so I get a break from the Funky Phantom crew being rude to the gang. It's really annoying to see the childish bickering. If I wanted to watch children bicker, I could watch the people bickering around me. Although, I do adore Abraham Lincoln looking on in annoyance. He gives Scooby a snack. Scooby spits out the ghost snack.

They finally split up. Yay! The Funky Phantom Crew isn't exactly annoying. It's just the bickering. After a little separate investigating, they determine someone is looking for a lost payroll of gold. Abe Lincoln insists they find the gold and return it to the ghosts so they can rest in piece.

The teams work together to trap the ghosts. The trap goes wrong and they have to chase the ghost. This scene stands out to me as having a particularly modern aesthetic. They have a chase scene like a car chase from an action film. In the older series, a chase like this would have been used for a series of jokes. But it's played straight here. The only jokes come from the Funky Phantom and cat.

They unmask the ghost and find he's one of the antique store owners. The other antique store owner was trying to protect the gold from his brother. Lincoln is unmasked as Funky Phantom. He used the disguise to get the gangs to work together. So the special guest isn't in the episode.

After the mystery is all wrapped up, the Speed Buggy crew shows up.

There's a passing reference by Shaggy to a burger car.

Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? - S01E01 - Revenge of the Swamp Monster! - Toonstalgia

Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? - Revenge of the Swamp Monster!

Season 1, Episode 1

Premiered June 27, 2019

Quickly

The gang hunts a golfer abducting Swamp Monster.

Thoughts, Details and Recap

Growing up, I didn't differentiate the New Scooby-Doo movies from the Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! or Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo. It was just some episodes had celebrities that I didn't recognize. This series starts off on the same foot with Chris Paul. I don't know anything about sports but I can quickly grasp that Chris Paul is a basketball player. 

The gang is unmasking the Bee Man of Alcatraz when Shaggy gets a call. The person on the other side of the call sends a helicopter to pick up the gang Mystery Machine and all to bring them to a golf course in Florida. Velma remembers news reports about a Swamp Monster making golfers disappear. Chris Paul reveals himself to be an old friend of Shaggy's. He asks Shaggy to caddy for him at a charity golf tournament. The golf tournament supports an art school and Chris Paul wants to teach kids to bowl...outside. The gang almost falls into a sink hole.

The golf tournament continues with the remaining golfers. Chris Paul get a confidence boost from some wise words from Shaggy. The Swamp monster scares off the announcer. Scooby takes over. The Swamp monster attacks the tournament. The gang and Chris Paul get to work investigating. 

The gang follow a clue into the water trap. They wear scuba gear referencing the gear from A Clue from Scooby-Doo from the original series. They are chased out of the water by the Swamp monster. They come out near the Art School. Chris Paul, Shaggy and Scooby distract and disorient the monster with an art class. After the monster retreats, they find a prismatic compass, a geologist and land surveyor tool.

They return to the tournament the next day. Shaggy meets a caddy who warns him away. Shaggy is ready to flee. Chris Paul calls him out by reminding him that he saved Shaggy's life. Shaggy tells the story of how Chris Paul shared his pizza with him. As the Swamp Monster picks away at the golfers, Shaggy, Scooby and Chris Paul play their way through the course. The Swamp Monster pursues them all the way to the 18th hole.

The monster is captured by the critters that Scooby had been fighting throughout the episode using the gang's trap. It's the caddy that tried to warn Shaggy away. This episode gives an explanation to the "monster's" excessive strength by saying he's built muscles as a caddy. They don't touch on the fact that he abducted multiple people and held them captive for at least a day or two and what was his plan? They do say that the golfers were rescued which confirms that he did abduct them.

Overall the art is pretty clean. It's keeping with the traditional look of the gang. It's an okay start to a new series. The design of the Swamp Monster isn't as good as the bee in the beginning. It's kind of a bulky and shapeless.