Be Cool, Scooby-Doo! is an upcoming American animated television series created for Cartoon Network from Warner Bros. Animation. In the show, the Scooby-Doo gang decide to travel in their last summer break together, encountering havoc-wreaking monsters along the way. It was announced in March 2014, along with other reboots of Warner Bros. classics such as The Tom and Jerry Show and Wabbit., and is slated for a 2015 release.
The twelfth series in the Scooby-Doo franchise, the show was previewed in an article from a Comic-Con edition of TV Guide suggesting that it would be less grim than its previous incarnation, Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated. Co-producer Zac Moncrief referred to it as “a more comedic ensemble”, with character traits extracted from the original 1969 series. This decision nulled the romantic subplots present in Mystery Incorporated. Scooby-Doo will also have limited dialogue; meanwhile, Fred will have upgraded the Mystery Machine.
In addition, the series employs redesigned characters models for the cast (retaining their original clothes). Moncrief described this as “simplistic, edgy design to match the comedic styling”, and likened their fashion to the hipster subculture. However, he denied it as “a campy or meta version” of Scooby-Doo.
Plot teaser:
After finishing high school, the Scooby-Doo gang decide to travel in the Mystery Machine, seeking fun and adventure in their last summer break together. However, havoc-wreaking monsters prevent them from completing their journey…
Comment:
Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated reinvented the franchise in a clever, darkly humourous and self-referential way, albeit with some unnecessary tweaks to the character’s design, however this appears to be a retrograde dumbing down (what next? Scrappy-Doo returns?) and the characters’ are re-drawn as a mockery of themselves. Cool!!? Only in the minds of clueless TV execs…
Adrian J Smith
