Ruh-roh, there’s anotherScooby-Dooreboot on the way. This time, the titular canine and Mystery Inc. are headed toNetflix. This new reimagining will also be the first live-action series in the franchise. That simple fact, and the tease that this new show may be a “mature” version, could give some fans flashbacks toVelma.But this latest offering has a chance to tell a successful, mature story without making the same mistakes asVelma.
Most ofVelma’s hate came from its misunderstanding of the franchise and forced social commentary. It was mean-spirited and offensive just for the sake of being an “adult” show. However,Scooby-Doohas tackled heavier conceptsbefore without losing its heart. It’s even catered to an older audience.If this new series wants to avoid what doomedVelma, it must preserve whatScooby-Doois all about. Of course, this will never be enough to sway some fans who want the same show they grew up with. But taking risks and reinventing things isn’t a bad idea for a 55+ year-old property. It just has to get things right.
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Scooby-Doopossibly has the simplest premise in all of animation. Early episodes followed nearly the same structure. The gang visits some abandoned location, finds a monster, catches it, and reveals it’s somebody in a costume who wants to scare everyone away. Rinse and repeat. Different series have played with the concept over the years, but it’s remained the same at its core.
The new Netflix series seems to be an origin story for Mystery Inc., meaning this will be at least the sixth or seventh version of how they met. It opens with the gang celebrating their last summer at Camp Ruby-Spears — a clever nod tooriginalScooby-Doocreators Joe Ruby and Ken Spears. Friends Shaggy and Daphne find a lost Great Dane puppy that may have witnessed a murder. Hmm, who could the Great Dane be? They team up with Velma and the new kid, Fred, to get to the bottom of the case before all their secrets are revealed.
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It’s early, but this synopsis sounds promising, especially when you compare it toVelma, which tried to shoehorn social themes where they did not belong. It’s a mystery why a show that discussed the size of Fred’s you-know-what in detail was a flop. It made every character mean and unlikable, mocking theOGScooby-Doofans. Adding to the rage was the fact that a film likeScoob! Holiday Hauntwas scrapped, while this thing was given two seasons. It did everything poorly, butthat doesn’t mean a matureScooby-Doois an impossibility.
How ‘Scooby-Doo’ Does Mature Themes Right
The early 2010s showScooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporatedis often cited by fans as the best series since theOG 1969Scooby-Doo! Where Are You?.Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporatedhad both “monsters of the week” and an overarching series-long mystery. It covered heavy topics, like death, familial abandonment, the apocalypse, and ancient mythology, among many others. But it didn’t include those topics just for the sake of including them.
Each theme served the greater mystery, allowingScooby-Dooto tell a deeper, more complex story that still respected the audience and source material. Luckily, there was no talk of anyone’s “no-no parts” either. The live-action component of Netflix’s new offering may be a harder sell, as that’s not something the franchise has experience with. Of course, there werethose early 2000s moviesthat, although initially met with poor reviews, eventually found a cult following.
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A recent example of live-action success can be seen inthe 2022 seriesMystery Incorporated. Unrelated to the animated show, this take was a fan-made project that produced just one crowdfunded episode. After witnessing his parents murdered by a demon, Fred and Velma teamed up to get to the bottom of things. Shaggy and his non-talking dog were drug dealers, while Daphne was the popular girl who wanted to be prom queen.
More risqué than the cartoons, but also in line with what we’d expect from the characters. Everyone knows the urban legend of Shaggy being a stoner inWhere Are You?. Their personalities were the same; they just aged up.This fan project didn’t mock the original show or make everyone terrible humans. It found that balance between adult content and theScooby-Doowe all know and love. Fans have praised it for usingScooby-Doo’s established structure to tell a story that grew up alongside the original fans.
The Netflix show needs to get it right if it wants to succeed. We’ve seen thatScooby-Doocan tackle these heavy themes without losing sight of the franchise’s heart.Scooby-Doobuilt its premise on catching bad guys in scary costumes. Dialing that up to feature actual killers isn’t a reach. We don’t know if Netflix will go this route or stick to its supernatural roots. In any case,it can succeed if it preserves the core personalities of the characters we know and respects the source material. Keep an eye out for news from Netflix on their newestScooby-Dootake. And — not that any well-adjusted human would want to —Velmais still available to watch onMax.
