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This spooky season has been surprisingly stacked with decent to honestly good media. We gotten some great movies such as Smile and Barbarian, the RE8 DLC coming out just in time for Halloween, and an all new Scooby-Doo movie with Velma finally officially coming out. And in celebration of Velma’s newfound sexual freedom, I wanted to take a look back at the Scooby-Doo franchise. Being around for literal generations, Scooby and the Gang has solved mysteries, busted ghosts and fought against the supernatural more times than I can count. And once you’ve done it all, you start to experiment.
Scooby has reinvented himself time after time to keep things fresh while staying true to itself. And sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn’t. Looking back, I think there is an underappreciated segment of Doo history that, for the most part, gets overlooked: an era of supernatural experimentation before the 2000s renaissance beginning with Zombie Island. That’s right, we are going to take a look back at Scooby-Doo Meets the Boo Brothers, Scooby-Doo and the Ghoul School, and Scooby-Doo! And the Reluctant Werewolf. These were the holy trinity of the 80s made for television movies.
Changing the Formula
I look back on this era of Scooby-Doo fondly. So when the idea to look back on these movies came up, I was super excited to dive back in because these were great Scooby-Doo movies right? Well, yes, yes they are…but there’s some caveats. The gang is not all here, Fred, Velma, and Daphne are noticeably absent as the movies focus on Shaggy and Scooby in their adventures apart from Mystery Inc. But you know who else is there? Scrappy-Doo.
Wait. WAIT! Don’t click off. I know, I know. You hear that name and you run for the hills, but I promise you, he’s actually toned down here and is sometimes used effectively. Hard to believe I know, but it’s true. It works well, and with each movie bringing in a different supernatural element, the side characters feel fresh and unique. (Though, a few are definitely products of the time these movies came out.) And the best examples of that is in the first movie, the Boo Brothers.
My Boo Brothas
Scooby-Doo Meets the Boo Brothers is probably the closest out of the three movies to the tried-and-true Scooby-Doo formula. It starts with Shaggy inheriting a house from his dead uncle, and low and behold, the place is haunted. Now, I must admit that young me did not remember this from so long ago, but it’s a southern plantation. Shaggy inherits a southern plantation from his uncle, Colonel Beauregard, who is very clearly, though not outright stated, a confederate soldier… I’m going to look at you a little sideways going forward Norville but ok. Anyways, upon arriving they are immediately accosted by some ghostly entity demanding they leave. Turns out, Colonel Beauregard not only left Shaggy the family estate, but the family fortune as well hidden somewhere on the property and an actual mystery is a foot to solve the riddles and find the family fortune. How’d your family amass their fortune on a plantation Shaggy???
It’s here where we meet are titular Boo Brothers. A trio of ghostly ghost hunters, Shaggy hires them to hunt down the ghost trying to drive them away from finding the treasure. Throw in a sheriff laying on the southern cop way to thick right down to calling Shaggy “boy” in that all too familiar way and you got yourselves a classic Scooby-Doo mystery right down to the unmasking. It really does feel like original Scooby mixed with the later supernatural addition. The Boo Brothers are that old Three Stooges archetype, but there’s a reason it stood the test of time. It’s funny and allows for some great physical comedy. And while the confederate plantation can be a little uncomfortable and they throw in a random gorilla that escaped from the zoo, (did I mention the random ass gorilla?) it’s a solid outing for the Scooby-Doo gang. But it’s the next movie most long-time fans will remember.
Ghoul School Puts a Spell on You
In this movie, Shaggy is taking a new job as a gym teacher at Miss Grimwood’s Finishing School for Girls (ghouls, get it?) The students themselves are the daughters of the universal monsters. There’s Winny, daughter of the Wolfman, Elsa Frankenteen, daughter of Frankenstein’s monster, Phantasma, daughter of a poltergeist, Tanis who’s the Mummy’s daughter, and the daughter of Dracula who you’ve certainly seen cosplay of, Sibella. The girls hope Shaggy can coach them to win a match of volleyball against the boys’ military school next door. And while at first Shaggy and Scooby are scared of the girls, they really come to care for them. He’s really sweet to the girls, and it’s a side of Shaggy we don’t get to explore very often.
We also get to see some great character design out of these monsters. The daughters are all reminiscent of their fathers but with a unique spin. The military scouts are all varied with their own personalities and fashion choices. And even the fathers are interesting versions of themselves. They are very sweet towards their daughters, but they make sure to lay down the law, telling Shaggy, “Don’t get it twisted, we still Universal Monsters.” And these monsters, invite challenge. Revolta, our villain, wants to brainwash the girls to be evil and use them to control their dads or get their powers or something? It’s not very clear and honestly not even needed. She’s what you’d expect from a by the numbers villain and is really just there to give the girls an obstacle to overcome.
Overall, it’s a great Scooby-Doo outing with one very VERY bad aspect, and that’s its ending rap. Yes, because this is the 80s it has a very horrible rap done by Scrappy of all characters. Like, so bad you may fall out your chair laughing. Ghoul School has the best and worst of the 80s Scooby-Doo era and is still worth a watch for long time fans and even newbies alike. But our last film is definitely the most experimental.
Howl at the Reluctant Moon
Scooby-Doo! And the Reluctant Werewolf shakes up the formula while pulling from other Hannah Barbara properties such as the Wacky Races. The monsters, different from the ones in Ghoul School but still those archetypes, gather at Dracula’s castle to discuss their upcoming yearly monster road race. Since Wolfman is enjoying his retirement in Florida, they decide to create a new wolf man to replace him. And guess who they decide on? Meanwhile, Shaggy is doing quite well for himself in this film and has gone full domestic. He is holding down a steady job as an expert car racer and even has a girlfriend named Googie. Once turned, the monsters convince Shaggy to race in order to be turned back to normal if he wins and of course hilarity ensues.
It takes a little while to get to the meat and potatoes of the actual race, but it’s a really fun and dynamic race they create here: an anything goes race where all the monsters have specific cars with contraptions and cheats to give themselves an edge. It’s like Mario Kart with the Universal Monsters and that always makes properties better. In fact, we need more Wacky Races in other properties. Imagine if Craig of the Creek had an episode with a Wacky Races focus. *Chef’s Kiss* This is also a Shaggy who, while still a chicken heart, is a lot more hands on and overall…WAY more confident in himself. A constant throughout all three movies is that Shag and Scoob always feel like the originals but are allowed to be a little different. Scrappy is still Scrappy, just a little toned down. And their interactions with all these varying characters allow for a better characterization of our mains. Will Shaggy win or will he be stuck as a horrible werewolf forever? You’ll just have to watch and find out yourself.
Wrap it Up Scoo-B
Scooby-Doo Meets the Boo Brothers, Scooby-Doo and the Ghoul School, and Scooby-Doo! And the Reluctant Werewolf are a trifecta of 80s animation that is well worth your time. Whether as a trip down nostalgia lane, introducing a younger generation, or just curiosity if you happened to miss this growing up, you can’t go wrong. And with each one being about 90 minutes in length you are definitely getting more bank for your buck. And “buck” unfortunately because these are available to rent on Amazon Prime for $2.99 (seriously Prime, what happened to you? You used to be cool) or free if you have a Boomerang subscription. So if you’re itching to add more to your Halloween watchlist, these three movies are worth a viewing.
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The post Is 80s Scooby the Best Scooby? appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.
This spooky season has been surprisingly stacked with decent to honestly good media. We gotten some great movies such as Smile and Barbarian, the RE8 DLC coming out just in time for Halloween, and an all new Scooby-Doo movie with Velma finally officially coming out. And in celebration of Velma’s newfound sexual freedom, I wanted to take a look back at the Scooby-Doo franchise. Being around for literal generations, Scooby and the Gang has solved mysteries, busted ghosts and fought against the supernatural more times than I can count. And once you’ve done it all, you start to experiment.
Scooby has reinvented himself time after time to keep things fresh while staying true to itself. And sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn’t. Looking back, I think there is an underappreciated segment of Doo history that, for the most part, gets overlooked: an era of supernatural experimentation before the 2000s renaissance beginning with Zombie Island. That’s right, we are going to take a look back at Scooby-Doo Meets the Boo Brothers, Scooby-Doo and the Ghoul School, and Scooby-Doo! And the Reluctant Werewolf. These were the holy trinity of the 80s made for television movies.
Changing the Formula
I look back on this era of Scooby-Doo fondly. So when the idea to look back on these movies came up, I was super excited to dive back in because these were great Scooby-Doo movies right? Well, yes, yes they are…but there’s some caveats. The gang is not all here, Fred, Velma, and Daphne are noticeably absent as the movies focus on Shaggy and Scooby in their adventures apart from Mystery Inc. But you know who else is there? Scrappy-Doo.
Wait. WAIT! Don’t click off. I know, I know. You hear that name and you run for the hills, but I promise you, he’s actually toned down here and is sometimes used effectively. Hard to believe I know, but it’s true. It works well, and with each movie bringing in a different supernatural element, the side characters feel fresh and unique. (Though, a few are definitely products of the time these movies came out.) And the best examples of that is in the first movie, the Boo Brothers.
My Boo Brothas
Scooby-Doo Meets the Boo Brothers is probably the closest out of the three movies to the tried-and-true Scooby-Doo formula. It starts with Shaggy inheriting a house from his dead uncle, and low and behold, the place is haunted. Now, I must admit that young me did not remember this from so long ago, but it’s a southern plantation. Shaggy inherits a southern plantation from his uncle, Colonel Beauregard, who is very clearly, though not outright stated, a confederate soldier… I’m going to look at you a little sideways going forward Norville but ok. Anyways, upon arriving they are immediately accosted by some ghostly entity demanding they leave. Turns out, Colonel Beauregard not only left Shaggy the family estate, but the family fortune as well hidden somewhere on the property and an actual mystery is a foot to solve the riddles and find the family fortune. How’d your family amass their fortune on a plantation Shaggy???
It’s here where we meet are titular Boo Brothers. A trio of ghostly ghost hunters, Shaggy hires them to hunt down the ghost trying to drive them away from finding the treasure. Throw in a sheriff laying on the southern cop way to thick right down to calling Shaggy “boy” in that all too familiar way and you got yourselves a classic Scooby-Doo mystery right down to the unmasking. It really does feel like original Scooby mixed with the later supernatural addition. The Boo Brothers are that old Three Stooges archetype, but there’s a reason it stood the test of time. It’s funny and allows for some great physical comedy. And while the confederate plantation can be a little uncomfortable and they throw in a random gorilla that escaped from the zoo, (did I mention the random ass gorilla?) it’s a solid outing for the Scooby-Doo gang. But it’s the next movie most long-time fans will remember.
Ghoul School Puts a Spell on You
In this movie, Shaggy is taking a new job as a gym teacher at Miss Grimwood’s Finishing School for Girls (ghouls, get it?) The students themselves are the daughters of the universal monsters. There’s Winny, daughter of the Wolfman, Elsa Frankenteen, daughter of Frankenstein’s monster, Phantasma, daughter of a poltergeist, Tanis who’s the Mummy’s daughter, and the daughter of Dracula who you’ve certainly seen cosplay of, Sibella. The girls hope Shaggy can coach them to win a match of volleyball against the boys’ military school next door. And while at first Shaggy and Scooby are scared of the girls, they really come to care for them. He’s really sweet to the girls, and it’s a side of Shaggy we don’t get to explore very often.
We also get to see some great character design out of these monsters. The daughters are all reminiscent of their fathers but with a unique spin. The military scouts are all varied with their own personalities and fashion choices. And even the fathers are interesting versions of themselves. They are very sweet towards their daughters, but they make sure to lay down the law, telling Shaggy, “Don’t get it twisted, we still Universal Monsters.” And these monsters, invite challenge. Revolta, our villain, wants to brainwash the girls to be evil and use them to control their dads or get their powers or something? It’s not very clear and honestly not even needed. She’s what you’d expect from a by the numbers villain and is really just there to give the girls an obstacle to overcome.
Overall, it’s a great Scooby-Doo outing with one very VERY bad aspect, and that’s its ending rap. Yes, because this is the 80s it has a very horrible rap done by Scrappy of all characters. Like, so bad you may fall out your chair laughing. Ghoul School has the best and worst of the 80s Scooby-Doo era and is still worth a watch for long time fans and even newbies alike. But our last film is definitely the most experimental.
Howl at the Reluctant Moon
Scooby-Doo! And the Reluctant Werewolf shakes up the formula while pulling from other Hannah Barbara properties such as the Wacky Races. The monsters, different from the ones in Ghoul School but still those archetypes, gather at Dracula’s castle to discuss their upcoming yearly monster road race. Since Wolfman is enjoying his retirement in Florida, they decide to create a new wolf man to replace him. And guess who they decide on? Meanwhile, Shaggy is doing quite well for himself in this film and has gone full domestic. He is holding down a steady job as an expert car racer and even has a girlfriend named Googie. Once turned, the monsters convince Shaggy to race in order to be turned back to normal if he wins and of course hilarity ensues.
It takes a little while to get to the meat and potatoes of the actual race, but it’s a really fun and dynamic race they create here: an anything goes race where all the monsters have specific cars with contraptions and cheats to give themselves an edge. It’s like Mario Kart with the Universal Monsters and that always makes properties better. In fact, we need more Wacky Races in other properties. Imagine if Craig of the Creek had an episode with a Wacky Races focus. *Chef’s Kiss* This is also a Shaggy who, while still a chicken heart, is a lot more hands on and overall…WAY more confident in himself. A constant throughout all three movies is that Shag and Scoob always feel like the originals but are allowed to be a little different. Scrappy is still Scrappy, just a little toned down. And their interactions with all these varying characters allow for a better characterization of our mains. Will Shaggy win or will he be stuck as a horrible werewolf forever? You’ll just have to watch and find out yourself.
Wrap it Up Scoo-B
Scooby-Doo Meets the Boo Brothers, Scooby-Doo and the Ghoul School, and Scooby-Doo! And the Reluctant Werewolf are a trifecta of 80s animation that is well worth your time. Whether as a trip down nostalgia lane, introducing a younger generation, or just curiosity if you happened to miss this growing up, you can’t go wrong. And with each one being about 90 minutes in length you are definitely getting more bank for your buck. And “buck” unfortunately because these are available to rent on Amazon Prime for $2.99 (seriously Prime, what happened to you? You used to be cool) or free if you have a Boomerang subscription. So if you’re itching to add more to your Halloween watchlist, these three movies are worth a viewing.
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The post Is 80s Scooby the Best Scooby? appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.
We all previously thought that the Infinity Saga was the most complex cinematic culmination of all the various MCU films and franchises that began and ended with a snap. Well, the unfolding Multiverse Saga has proven us wrong. It is expanding further on the MCU by officially canonizing its television shows and other cinematic and television releases. The latest of such releases, Marvel’s Werewolf by Night, has just gone into a side of Marvel Comics many fans aren’t actually familiar with — its horror subgenre.
In fact, Marvel is known for its massive variety of characters that belong to different comic subgenres. The Avengers are world-saving heroes, and Howard the Duck is absurdly comedic. Ghost Rider, Blade (who is supposed to get his own film), and Werewolf by Night represents Marvel’s horrors.
The latter was released as a TV Special that aired on October 7, 2022. It has opened the door of the MCU universe to a whole slew of different mythical creatures made popular by folklore and classical horror cinematography. But who is the eponymous Werewolf?
Well, the Werewolf by Night comic book is perhaps the most obscure piece of graphic literature to join the MCU thus far. The original comics, first released in 1972, followed Jack Russell, who is cursed with lycanthropy. He joins forces with Marvel’s more prominent heroes, like the Hulk, Iron Man, Doctor Strange, Moon Knight, and Captain America. Considering that it was the 70s, it’s quite possible that he even collaborated with Isaiah Bradley’s iteration of Captain America.
Like in other works of scary fiction, our titular hero is very much human during the day, going by the name Jack Russell — just like the dog breed. However, under the moonlight, Russell transforms into a powerful man-wolf hybrid (not to be confused with Johan Jameson III, aka the Man-Wolf).
As expected, his transformation grants him enhanced human abilities, including superhuman strength, speed, stamina, reflexes, and heightened senses, among other gifts/curses. To complement these abilities, he also sports very sharp fangs and claws capable of rendering through softer metals.
He’s virtually impossible to kill in his werewolf form, as he resists all conventional, non-fatal injury by healing ten times faster than regular humans. However, this doesn’t mean he’s unbeatable; the Werewolf is susceptible to magical attacks and assaults containing silver due to the metal’s mystical purity. Interestingly enough, science still hasn’t discovered a way to produce 100% pure silver.
In the comic, Russell inherited the curse from his ancestors — the first was infected with lycanthropy in the 18th century while fighting Dracula. As such, he’s seemingly able to transmit that curse to anyone he bites or scratches. However, there were instances in which people wounded by him weren’t infected and haven’t transformed into werewolves. So, he may have some control over lycanthropy transmission.
Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for his humanity. Initially, Jack turned into a werewolf under the full moon, attaining the most bestial and savage form with the barest human emotions and desires. In other circumstances, he could control his werewolf form. However, he would always revert to the most savage persona under the full moon’s light. Over time, he eventually merges with his werewolf form, much like Bruce Banner did in the MCU, allowing Smart Hulk to emerge.
In his merged form, Russell has the best of both worlds. He can transform at will, retain his human consciousness, and gain all the perks associated with being a werewolf. However, the beast’s savage nature often takes over during full moons, prompting Jack’s allies to douse themselves in wolf pheromones, allowing Jack to recognize them as friendlies. Interestingly enough, the newly merged yet savage version of the Werewolf retains Jack’s full human intelligence.
Now that we’ve covered who our hero is, let’s discuss the potential impact his introduction might have on the broader MCU. Werewolf by Night is a unique MCU release since it isn’t exactly a silver screen cinematic experience, nor a television show, but rather a TV Special.
It sounds like a one-time adventure within the MCU. But it’s not like Marvel to introduce a character, even if they’re the third- or fourth-row hero, and then devoid it of any future within the cinematic universe. Even the Abomination got a second chance, and he isn’t even a hero.
Well, as it turns out, the Werewolf is well connected to other Marvel heroes, including Morbius the Living Vampire and Moon Knight — who actually made his comic book debut in Werewolf by Night #32 — where he was hired to take down Jack Russel. In addition, Jared Leto recently portrayed Morbius in the same-name cinematic release, and Moon Knight made his MCU debut in his own TV series. So, introducing a character such as the Werewolf was a logical choice.
So, where’s the logic? The MCU already adopted Netflix’s Matt Murdock as Daredevil, and its spin-off, The Punisher, and acknowledged them within its continuity. The same can be said for the aforementioned Moon Knight and Morbius, as well as Iron Fist, Doctor Strange, and Ghost Rider from Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD.
Now, with Jack Russel from Werewolf by Night, we have most of the current or former team members of Marvel’s Midnight Sons. We are only missing Mahershala Ali’s Blade, but the production of that particular film is currently paused due to Marvel’s shifting schedules.
With all these releases already out there, the inclusion of Werewolf by Night, the eventual release of Blade, and another rumored appearance of the Ghost Rider could all lead to the formation of The Midnight Sons. We already had something similar happen in 2012 when The Avengers first assembled to stop Loki, so who’s to say that the Midnight Sons won’t receive similar treatment from the MCU? We’re due for another team-up, so perhaps they’ll join the major league and help them stop Doctor Doom or Kang the Conqueror.
Of course, whether or not Werewolf by Night is part of the current MCU remains to be seen, but it could lead to some bigger, canonical releases, especially those tied to Midnight Sons. For now, it remains a fantastic homage to classic horror films of the 70s and proof that Marvel’s Comics Universe encompasses more than billionaire playboys, Robin Hood wannabes, and Nordic deities. Werewolf by Night is available for streaming on Disney+.