It would have been good if it wasn’t for those Meddling Kids.
Most of us fans hated the live-action “Scooby Doo” movies from two decades ago, because of how they made the Hanna-Barbara dog a CGI monster, and for tainting the spirit. They, at least, allowed Matthew Lillard to portray Shaggy, and give him voice roles in the new animated shows and direct-to-DVD movies.
Another aspect is how the live-action “Smurfs” movies had creepier CGI creatures, and they were rebooted with the all CGI-animated “Smurfs: The Lost Village.” Yes, it was more attractive then the live-action films, but I didn’t like how it was underwritten, how Rainn Wilson was miscast as Gargamel, and how the girl Smurfs were treated like cute movie characters, and not strong women.
The point is that “Scoob” is the next movie to become rebooted as a fully animated feature after the live-action “Scooby Doo” movies stunk. It was supposed to go to theaters, but because of the COVID-19 outbreak, and coming on the success of “Trolls: World Tour,” it managed to find various streaming websites for families and fans to watch on.
I think it would’ve been better if it just had Scooby and Shaggy, and not the Mystery Inc. gang. After all, they had a few TV movies with some help from Scrappy Doo, and they did alright. I don’t like how Fred, Daphne, and Velma are redesigned (especially Daphne looking like a lame version of Anna from “Frozen”), and their side of the movie drags things down. They look and act so annoying, that they basically prevented me from fully recommending the movie.
“Scoob” shows us how the Mystery Inc. met as kids, and began their mystery-solving career. They’re millennials at this point, which is typical, but at least they have the common courtesy to remake the “Scooby Doo Where Are You” intro. It also shows how they have to join forces with the Blue Falcon (actually his dimwitted and hotheaded son Brian), Dynomutt, and Dee Dee Sykes to battle the nefarious Dick Dastardly.
The all-star voice cast consists of Will Forte (as Shaggy), Mark Wahlberg (as Brian), Jason Isaacs (as Dick Dastardly), Zac Efron (as Fred), Gina Rodriguez (as Velma), Amanda Seyfried (as Daphne), Kiersey Clemons (as Dee Dee Sykes), Ken Jeong (as Dynomutt), Tracy Morgan (as Captain Caveman), Billy West (as Dastardly’s dog Muttley), and Frank Welker (honoring the late Don Messick as Scooby Doo). Most of them work, while others try too hard.
When Scooby and Shaggy are together on screen, they both offer a sweet touch. When we see Blue Falcon, Dynomutt, Dick Dastardly, Muttley, and a bunch of in-jokes about other Hanna-Barbara legends, it can be iconic, especially with how they’re designed close to their original designs. And when we see Dastardly’s robot henchmen, they can be whimsical. Because they pose as scorpions when they’re angry, and adorable machines when they’re happy. But when Fred, Daphne, and Velma appear along with some lame jokes and generic animation, it can get pretty exhausting.
“Scoob” has so many good ideas, but they just have to be upstaged by its attempts to cater to a new generation of “Scooby Doo” fans. Movies like “The Peanuts Movie” or “The Adventures of Tintin” don’t succumb to millennials; they provide the inspiration and heart that made them so iconic. This is more of a TV movie than an actual movie. In fact, this is going on TV and the internet. So that makes more sense.
Zoinks!
⭐️⭐️
Available on Amazon Prime, AppleTV, Vudo, Fandango Now, YouTube, and Google Play
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