When you think of true cinematic art, storytelling in its purest form, hard-hitting works that surpass the label of mere entertainment, most will probably think of features like The Godfather, Schindler's List, Lost in Translation and Lady Bird. Me? I think of Scooby-Doo. That's right, you silly motherf*ckers — arguably the purest art form there is in today's pop culture comes in the form of a talking Great Dane who solves mysteries alongside his five eclectic (human) pals, just fumbling their way through life, like most of us, but unlike us, actually landing on their feet.
Today, I wanted — nay, needed — to make something clear: I am tired of the Scooby-Doo disrespect. My dog-boy needs a renaissance. Over twenty years ago, Mystery Inc. had two shots at the big screen, courtesy of director Raja Gosnell and writer James Gunn (yes, that James Gunn): 2002's Scooby-Doo and 2004's Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed. The movies were fairly strong box office hits — mind you, the first one much more than the second one — but they were panned critically. Like, hated. We're talking 32% and 22% RT scores, here.
It was a one-sided beatdown; the critical reception was Ivan Drago, and the Scooby-Doo duology was Apollo Creed, taking hits, one after another, refusing like a champ to throw in the towel. I, on the other hand, could not get enough of them. Fam, the transcendent experience I got from watching Scooby-Goddamn-Doo Ruh-Roh-ing his way through my TV in live-action... I simply can't do justice describing. Nonetheless, the films just didn't hit.
Thankfully, the Scooby-Doo franchise didn't die after those live-action outings. It kept going in its original medium of television, thriving with a multitude of shows like What's New, Scooby-Doo? (which released the same year as 2002's Scooby-Doo), Shaggy & Scooby-Doo Get a Clue, Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated, (a straight-up masterpiece), among others. The franchise also thrived in the direct-to-video market. Do you know how many animated Scooby-Doo films were released after the 2002 movie? I do. 32. 32 different adventures to enjoy from our beloved mystery solvers.
So... What's Wrong?
With all the projects I listed above, you might be thinking, "Bruh, what are you talking about? Scooby-Doo doesn't need a renaissance. The dog's already alive. He's been alive for the past two decades." If you're someone who's not well-versed in the gloriousness that is Scooby-Doo, I understand your confusion. But listen: My boy has kind of been at a low point for a while. Scooby-Doo stories keep coming in, yes (and most, if not all, of them are good), but the outcomes of certain projects have risked putting his reputation as a pop-culture mainstay into question.
The franchise made what was supposed to be a big cinematic comeback in 2020 with Scoob!. A CGI rendition of our bestest boy and his pals, the movie released theatrically during the pandemic in some countries, but was primarily an on-demand release, where it performed fairly well. Critically... well, let's just say it wasn't beloved, but as biased as I may be — given the fact I would, without question, give my life for Scooby-Doo and any of the four members of Mystery Inc. — I thought it was a pretty fun take on the franchise.
The film was slated to get a sequel/prequel, Scoob! Holiday Haunt, but it was canceled. If I were to tell you the disappointment I felt when I read the news... you would feel bad for me on such a level, you would question my identity as a functioning human. And you know what? I'd understand. Going back to the matter at hand, after that, Velma, a more mature series focused on everyone's favorite bespectacled mystery solver, arrived on HBO Max. Unfortunately, it didn't hit... at all, largely failing to resonate with Scooby-Doo fans, and ending up a smudge in the franchise's legacy.
As for the live-action side, Scooby's been... kind of forgotten. Two made-for-TV movies were released some time ago — Scooby-Doo! The Mystery Begins in 2009, and Scooby-Doo! Curse of the Lake Monster in 2010. Yes, you read that right: That was 15 years ago. The last live-action entry in the franchise was Daphne & Velma, a direct-to-video prequel (produced, by the way, by Sharpay freakin' Evans herself, Ashley Tisdale) released in 2018... 7 years ago. There is now, thankfully, a live-action Scooby-Doo show in the works at Netflix. Do I cry tears of joy in front of the mirror every morning knowing this is happening? Yes. Will the show's release date probably end up as one of the happiest days of my life? Also yes. And yet, I'm still not satisfied.
I want Scooby-Doo to hit big. I want an animated show with the same quality as Scooby-Doo! Mystey Incorporated or Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? that's able to become a cultural mainstay; a show that resonates with modern audiences the same way Phineas and Ferb and Bluey have. Most importantly, I want him to make it big on the big screen. But not in animated form; we've seen animated Scooby-Doo features for decades – we know (and love) what that looks like.
I want to see Scoob's adorable face in live-action. And after watching the film, I want to feel like I could run into a talking dog that would eat my food, talk to me, be my best friend, and hug me when I feel lonely or scared during a thunderstorm. Now, thankfully for me and all Scooby-Doo lovers out there, there's a perfect opportunity to make that exact thing happen in one of the coolest ways possible.
If you happen to be chronically online enough, you'll have noticed some Scooby-Doo faithfuls theorize about the possibility of DC Studios Co-CEO James Gunn bringing the Great Dane to live-action as part of the DCU. To the average person, putting Scooby-Doo — a franchise that's been built on the concept that, for the most part, mystical and ghostly creatures aren't real — in a universe as fantastical as the DCU does not sound like the best combination.
However, to someone as well-versed in the Scooby-Doo universe as I am (there are more Scooby-Doo diehards like me out there; dozens, in fact... dozens!), that idea doesn't only sound plausible, it brings tears of joy to my dry and tired eyes. After all, Scooby has crossed over with the DC Universe a few times, such as in Scooby-Doo Meets Batman, Scooby-Doo! & Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Scooby-Doo! and Krypto, Too! and even Teen Titans Go!. That's right. That is 100% real, go look it up.
Granted, the likelihood of Scooby-Doo being made part of the DC Universe is only slightly higher than hell freezing over, but darn (pun absolutely intended) it, to me and (perhaps) many others, it's there. Just imagine: A live-action Scooby-Do that also happens to be set in the DCU. No, it's not just you... angels did just start singing.
For anyone feeling such a possibility is too out-there, a version of my dream has already happened, courtesy of Creature Commandos. Episode 2 featured the brief appearance of the Food God himself, Norville "Shaggy" Rogers. To be completely transparent with whoever's still reading this, I will forever be grateful to that show for pulling off this surprise. Now, is that a sign that Scooby-Doo will indeed be brought into the DCU to exist in the same world as Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman? Probably not, but I can dream.
So, please, Scooby-Doo, make the major comeback so many of us want you to have. We need you, you beautiful, cowardly food maniac.