'Scooby-Doo! The Sword and the Scoob' Has One of the Most Notably Ludicrous Plots in the Franchise

After finishing a trilogy, the Scooby-Doo! direct-to-video franchise returns to a standalone adventure with Scooby-Doo! The Sword and the Scoob.  The silly logistical plot device this time is Shaggy turning out to be the rightful heir to Camelot based on an obscure chapter of Arthurian legend involving his ancestor.  This sends the Scooby Gang to a village in England named Norville der Morgana, which is suspected to be the modern location of Camelot.  There, they encounter the antagonist of Arthurian legend Morgan Le Fay, who casts a spell that sends them back to the past during the time of Camelot, Merlin, King Arthur, Excalibur, and the Knights of the Round Table.

Apart from a Batman Supervillain and a Decent Car Chase Sequence, There's Nothing Else of Note in 'Happy Halloween, Scooby-Doo!'

Happy Halloween, Scooby-Doo! is the 31^st direct-to-video Scooby-Doo! animated movie, and also completes a trilogy with the last two movies – Scooby-Doo! and the Curse of the 13^th Ghost and Scooby-Doo! Return to Zombie Island.  Set during Halloween (duh), the movie kicks off with the Scooby Gang clashing with and defeating Jonathan Crane a.k.a. the Scarecrow – yep, the Batman supervillain (note: Scooby-Doo! & Batman: The Brave and the Bold established a share universe).  However, as it turns out, their night’s work is only beginning.  Before long, flying zombie jack-o-lanterns, arising from the nearby pumpkin patch, attack the town.  With the help of Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, and Bill Nye the Science Guy, the Scooby Gang must figure out a way to stop their terror spree.

'Scoob!' Is Disappointingly Messy and Mediocre

The Scooby-Doo! franchise has been regularly producing movies for a while now (and I’ve been watching each new one), but the latest one, Scoob!, is different from the usual.  While the standard Scooby-Doo! movie is for the direct-to-video/VOD market, Scoob! is intended to be a contemporary animated blockbuster.  That means: a.) its animation is 3D instead of 2D; b.) its characters are voiced by recognizable Hollywood stars instead of professional voice actors; c.) it was marketed extensively; and d.) it was meant to have a wide theatrical release.

However, due to the corona virus pandemic, that last one didn’t happen.  Instead, the studio decided to release Scoob! on digital.  And it might as well be.  As it turns out, it’s pretty mediocre.  Honestly, there are better direct-to-video Scooby-Doo! movies than it.

'Scooby-Doo! Return to Zombie Island' Is an Unwarranted Sequel to a Classic

Scooby-Doo! Return to Zombie Island is a sequel to both Scooby-Doo! and the Curse of the 13th Ghost, which is the most recent Scooby-Doo! direct-to-video movie prior to this, and Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island, which is the very first Scooby-Doo! direct-to-video movie.  In it, Shaggy wins an all-expenses-paid vacation in a tropical island, and he’s allowed to bring with him three friends and a pet – i.e. Fred, Velma, Daphne, and Scooby.  It’s obviously a sham, and as they learn later, the “tropical island” turns out being Zombie Island – the setting of a past case they had which involved zombies and immortal, life-force-sucking cat people (see Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island).  Apparently, somebody wants the Scooby Gang back in it.

'Scooby-Doo! and the Curse of the 13th Ghost' Ends a 34-Year Hiatus

The latest Scooby-Doo film is a followup on The 13^th Ghosts of Scooby-Doo, the 1985 incarnation of the Scooby-Doo TV program. Titled Scooby-Doo! and the Curse of the 13th Ghost, it sees Vincent Van Ghoul contacting Scooby, Shaggy, and Daphne about finally finishing their ghost capturing mission.  After the three fill an astonished Fred and a sceptical Velma in about their past in hunting real ghosts, the Mystery Inc. gang meets up with Vincent to capture the thirteenth and final ghost that escaped from the Chest of Demons.

'Scooby-Doo! and the Gourmet Ghost' Would Have Been Infinitely Better If It Had Been a Crossover With Gordon Ramsay

After crossing over with Batman: The Brave and the Bold and Supernatural earlier this year, Scooby-Doo and the gang’s next team-up is with real-life celebrity chefs Bobby Flay, Giada De Laurentiis, and Marcus Samuelsson (with supermodel wife Maya Haile).  Now, Scooby-Doo! has always been about weird, unlikely crossovers.  But this most recent one baffles me.  I mean, what’s the point?  Is there are market or a niche for this?  Did anyone ask for this?

'Supernatural'/Scooby-Doo' Crossover Is Brilliant

I don’t watch Supernatural.  Well, I saw some episodes a couple of seasons back.  But since it’s now on its 13^th season, that was already years ago.  And even then, I had not tuned in on an entire season.  So, technically, I don’t watch Supernatural.

However, I decided to check on its recent episode.  It’s because it’s a weird crossover with Scooby-Doo.  Even though, again, I don’t regularly follow Supernatural, I had seen enough episodes back then to understand what it’s about, so I just knew such crossover was going to be sensible – even brilliant.  And indeed it is.

In 'Scooby-Doo! & Batman: The Brave and the Bold', the Scooby Gang Helps Batman Tackle a New Villain and an Unsolved Case

The first movie of 2018 that I’ve watched is Scooby-Doo! & Batman: The Brave and the Bold.  It sees Batman recruiting the Scooby Gang into the “Mystery Analysts of Gotham”, a prestigious club of detective superheroes.  Subsequently, a mysterious new super villain arrives in Gotham going by the name of “Crimson Cloak”, who seemingly has ties to Batman’s one and only unsolved case.  Thus, Mystery Inc., Batman, and the other heroes must now collaborate to unmask this new threat.

Amid Its Mediocrity, Lego Charm Keeps 'Lego Scooby-Doo! Blowout Beach Bash' Endearing and Vivacious Somewhat

As what was proven in last year’s Lego Scooby-Doo! Haunted Hollywood, Lego-izing Scooby-Doo! yields delightful results.  I’m glad that they did it again this year with Lego Scooby-Doo! Blowout Beach Bash.

In 'Scooby-Doo! Shaggy’s Showdown', Shaggy Discovers His Wild West Roots

I never seem to grow out of my fondness for Scooby-Doo that I just have to watch any new direct-to-video movie despite understanding from the get-go that it isn’t going to be great.

This latest one, Scooby-Doo! Shaggy’s Showdown, sees the Mystery Inc. quintet getting invited by Shaggy’s distant cousin to visit her Crazy Q Dude Ranch.  There, they learn that the place is apparently haunted by the ghost of Shaggy’s ancestor, Dapper Jack, a ruthless outlaw during the Wild West.  This sets up the Scooby Gang for another mystery-solving adventure.

'Scooby-Doo! and WWE: Curse of the Speed Demon' Is as Goofy as It Suggests

Scooby-Doo! crossing over with the WWE isn’t quite that peculiar.  Such thing isn’t unprecedented.  Just last year, it crossed over with KISS.  And back in the 70’s, there was a Scooby-Doo show called The New Scooby-Doo Movies (which I was able to watch as a kid because Cartoon Network re-ran it), which featured the Scooby Gang teaming up with real-life celebrities (e.g. The Harlem Globetrotters, The Three Stooges) or fictional characters (e.g. Batman and Robin, The Addams Family).  Heck, this isn’t even the first time the cartoon collaborated with WWE; they made the movie Scooby-Doo! Wrestlemania Mystery back in 2014.

However, though the concept of a Scooby-Doo!/WWE crossover isn’t really bizarre, Scooby-Doo! and WWE: Curse of the Speed Demon is pretty ridiculous nonetheless.  (Some mild spoilers ahead.)

'Lego Scooby-Doo! Haunted Hollywood' Makes the Case That Lego-Ization Delightfully Works on Any Property

After making a series of terrific direct-to-video animated films featuring a Lego-ized Justice League, Warner Bros. Animation gives the Lego treatment to another beloved Warner Bros.-owned property with Lego Scooby-Doo! Haunted Hollywood.  Though it’s not as great as the Lego Justice League films, it’s still delightfully fun.

The plot of the movie is a standard Scooby Gang adventure: they win a trip to a visit an old movie studio, which happens to be haunted by classic horror movie monsters, while at the same time, is being threatened by bankruptcy.  With that, the movie unfolds as you would expect.  Mystery-solving.  Jokes.  Snacks.  Traps.  Chase scenes.  Criminals in monster costumes.  “And I would have gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for you meddling kids!”  All the classic elements of the Scooby-Doo cartoon.  But with the narrative playing out in a world constructed in Lego and which functions in the absurd logic and physics of its nature, it gives a fresh spin to the whole thing, like the delivery of gags only possible in a Lego world.

'Scooby Doo! And KISS: Rock and Roll Mystery' Feels Like an Episode of 'The New Scooby Doo Movies'

Scooby Doo is an icon, and beloved through generations.  A consistent stream of modern cartoons as well as re-runs of old ones ensure that.  But the surprise to me is that producers apparently find KISS still relevant or appealing enough to warrant a crossover with Scooby Doo.  Seriously, is KISS really the kind of thing you want to introduce to a younger audience?

Anyway, in the direct-to-video animated movie Scooby Doo! and KISS: Rock and Roll Mystery, the Scooby Gang goes to visit a KISS theme park on which the hard rock band is set to have a Halloween concert.  At arrival, they learn that the theme park is under attack by the mysterious Crimson Witch, and this put the concert at risk of being cancelled.  The Scooby Gang has to team up with KISS in order to get to the bottom of the mystery and save the day.

KISS members Starchild, Demon, Spaceman, and Catman are basically real-life cartoon characters anyway, so the transition to cartoons isn’t that big of a leap.  However, they are depicted to have superpowers in this movie.  It’s not really that absurd of a concept to someone who is familiar with the supernatural representation of KISS in the comics, and just treats this incarnation of the band as based on the comics’ version rather than the real-life band.

KISS’ songs are understandably featured in this movie.  But it’s not that inappropriate as it seems to be.  If you know KISS, you would know that despite their outlandish and hardcore appearances and theatrics, their music per se is really not that heavy nor has that dark vibes.  Their music is tamer than what their image implies.  And though I’m not a fan of KISS’ music, I don’t hate it either.  So I tolerated its presence in the movie.

The movie is as dumb, ridiculous, and weird as you would expect.  But that isn’t necessarily a bad thing.  As what it’s trying to be – a good form of kids’ entertainment – it hits its mark.  The voice work is good and the animation has appeal.  There is kids-level fun in it.

Scooby Doo used to have a show called The New Scooby Doo Movies wherein real-life celebrities or popular animated characters would guest star.  And I was reminded of it while watching this.  If Scooby Doo! and KISS: Rock and Roll Mystery had been an episode of that show, it would have been a pretty solid one.  Of course, if it was up to me, I would prefer seeing the Scooby Gang team up with Batman & Robin, Josie & the Pussycats, or the Addams Family (my most favorite The New Scooby Doo Movies guest stars) again instead of KISS.