A PUP NAMED SCOOBY-DOO
(ABC, September 10, 1988-August 17, 1991)
Hanna-Barbera Productions, Wang Film Productions Company,
Cuckoo’s Nest Studios, Fil-Cartoons
MAIN CAST:
For the history of Scooby-Doo, check out the post
here.
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Character model sheet. |
Developed by
Tom Reugger,
A Pup Named Scooby-Doo is the eighth incarnation of the Scooby-Doo
franchise. It was a return to basics, with the full Mystery, Inc. gang (back
with the original moniker of The Scooby-Doo Detective Agency) together again to
solve supernatural mysteries they happened upon. However, this time there was a
twist: they were now in junior high. The series made full use of the
babyfication craze popularized by the success of
Muppet Babies as a
means to inject new life into the franchise. Reugger also did so by infusing
the program with a different type of humor, making it the most wacky and
comical entry of the franchise. This was especially evident by the wild
Tex Avery/
Bob Clampett-inspired
big-eyed surprise takes whenever a character encountered something frightening,
animated by overseas supervisor
Glen
Kennedy.
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Daphne bribes Scooby with Scooby Snacks. |
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Since they could no longer travel
around via Mystery Machine, the Scooby gang was based out of the fictional town
of Coolsville. Shaggy (Casey Kasem) and Scooby-Doo (Don Messick) remained
essentially the same and retained the same voice actors. Shaggy’s classic green
shirt returned after being replaced by a red one for the last few years. They
were given new heroes in the form of comic book characters Commander Cool and
Mellow Mutt, whom he and Scooby would often dress as. These heroes were
parodies of
Batman and
Superman, as well as
Krypto,
Robin and
Ace the Bat-Hound,
respectively. Scooby Snacks were heavily featured as an element in the show to
entice Scooby into acts of bravery (and sometimes Shaggy as well). Shaggy’s
sister, who first appeared as Maggie Rogers in the “Wedding Bell Boos” episode
of
The New Scooby and Scrappy-Doo Show,
appeared here named (or nicknamed) Sugie (pronounced “shoogy”).
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Freddy with a copy of The National Exaggerator, his favorite tabloid. |
The rest of the Scooby-Doo Detective Agency underwent some personality
changes to go with their new looks. Freddy (Carl Steven, marking the first time
Fred was not voiced by
Frank
Welker) was made an outspoken conspiracy nut whose mouth would run faster
than his brain. Freddy often jumped to the wrong conclusions, aided by his love
of scandal sheet
The National Exaggerator,
and tended to blame crimes on the neighborhood bully--the aptly named Red Herring
(Scott Menville). Red, created for the show, was only actually guilty one
time--the only time Freddy
didn’t accuse
him.
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Daphne has Jenkins properly dispose of Red Herring. |
Daphne (Kellie Martin) was made into
a bit of a spoiled rich girl who was often sarcastic and skeptical. She was an
incredibly vain fashionista with a love of pink. A running gag would involve
her calling her Butler, Jenkins (Messick), to perform some kind of task for her
in the middle of a situation, or to bring her a change of clothing if she got
so much as a small spot on what she was wearing. Velma (Christina Lange), while
always intelligent, was elevated to genius level and when she walked her feet
were shown as a rapid blur of movement. The biggest change to her character was
the addition of a super computer she carried around in a briefcase that often
helped her solve their mysteries and reveal what villain was inside the monster
costumes.
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Using an X-Ray to stave off the Chickenstein monster. |
Another familiar element restored to
the franchise was the musical chase sequences. 1950’s-esque rock and roll-styled
songs about the monster of the week played when said monster would be chasing
the kids around. In the fourth wall-breaking style of humor Reugger would
employ on his future series, the kids were often aware of the music; asking for
it to be played, playing it themselves, and even taking time out to dance along
to it with the monster (the kids’ dances were often done using stock footage).
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Shaggy and Scooby hiding their fear well. |
A Pup Named Scooby-Doo
debuted on
ABC on September 10, 1988 and was
also run as part of the weekly syndicated programming block
The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera. The show was written by
Reugger along with
Jim Ryan,
Charles M. Howell IV,
Mary Jo Ludin,
Bill Matheny,
Lane Raichert,
Laren Bright,
Kristina Mazzotti,
Wayne Kaatz,
Evelyn A-R Gabai,
Alan Swayze,
David Schwartz and
Scott Jeralds. Reugger
also wrote the theme song’s lyrics with music by series composer
John Debney.
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Velma takes the wheel on her motorized skateboard built for five. |
Following the first season, Reugger and much of
Hanna-Barbera’s production
staff left to help revive the
Warner
Bros. Animation Studio. The series lasted for two additional reduced
seasons.
ABC
Weekend Specials replaced the show for several weeks and pushed back
the last of the first-run episodes, resulting in its ending in August of 1991.
That break has resulted in the third season being considered two different
seasons. This series would be Messick’s last outing as Scooby-Doo, as giving up
smoking had reportedly robbed him of the rasp in his voice needed for the
character.
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The Pup crew makes a comeback on What's New, Scooby-Doo? |
Although direct-to-video movies,
video games and future series would restore the characters to their teenaged
selves, the character designs from this series were used (with some
modifications) in a flashback of “The Menacing Metallic Clown” episode of What’s New, Scooby-Doo? and
inspired the design of the puppets used in the direct-to-video movie Scooby-Doo! Adventures: The Mystery Map. Milton
Bradley produced two puzzles
based on the show in 1989, and Applause
released a stuffed
Scooby in 1990. Archie Comics’ Hanna-Barbera Presents #5 featured
two stories starring the Pup cast.
They made a brief return to the printed page for the franchise’s 50th
anniversary in DC Comics’ Scooby-Doo
Team-Up #50, which featured a collection of the different Scooby
character incarnations, and were featured in a flashback tale in The
Batman & Scooby-Doo Mysteries #6
in 2021.
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Crisis of infinite Scoobies from Scooby-Doo Team-Up #50. |
Between 2005 and 2007, Warner
Home Video released the series to DVD across
seven volumes. In 2010, the first three volumes were rereleased
in a single collection, and the following year the first
four were rereleased together. In 2008, the complete
first season was released, followed by season
2-4 in 2009. Four episodes were released as special features between the
compilation DVDs For
the Love of Snack and Surf’s
Up, Scooby-Doo! and the direct-to-video film, WrestleMania
Mystery. The first two seasons were made available for streaming
in the iTunes
store and the complete series on Amazon
Prime Video.
EPISODE GUIDE:
Season 1:
“A Bicycle Built for Boo!” (9/10/88) – A green ghost steals Shaggy’s
bike and the gang takes his case.
“The Sludge Monster From Earth’s Core” (9/17/88) – The gang
investigate why a monster is haunting Scooby’s doghouse.
“The Schnook Who Took My Comic Book” (9/24/88) – Dr, Croaker steals
the first edition of Shaggy’s favorite comic that he was planning to buy.
“Wanted Cheddar Alive” (10/1/88) – A cheese monster puts the Scooby
Snacks factory out of business, making solving this case personal for Scooby.
“For Letter or Worse” (10/8/88) – Shaggy and Scooby’s debut on their
favorite game show is interrupted by the ghost of gangster Al Cabone.
“The Babysitter from Beyond” (10/15/88) – The gang deliver Shuggy to
her babysitter, but discover the babysitter’s house is the old lair of a master
criminal who escaped from jail.
“Now Museum, Now You Don’t” (10/22/88) – Shaggy and Scooby are blamed
for the theft of cursed samurai swords taken by a samurai ghost.
“Snow Place Like Home” (10/29/88) – The gang heads to a ski lodge
facing bankruptcy where they encounter the Ice Demon.
“Scooby Dude” (11/5/88) – A day at the beach turns into a mystery when
a headless skateboarder turns out to be connected to some missing dolphins from
the local aquarium.
“Guess Who’s
Coming to Dinner” (11/12/88) – Halloween night leads the gang to a real haunted
house, which they must save in order for the Ghost of Boobeard the Pirate to
survive.
“The Story Stick” (11/19/88) – An Indian reservation ends up being
haunted by a living totem pole monster.
“Robopup” (12/3/88) – Chef Pierre’s ghost returns to the Blake
family’s mansion to steal Daphne’s belongings.
“Lights…Camera…Monster” (12/10/88) – Stinkweed emerges from his movie
and terrorizes the Coolsville Mall.
Season 2:
“Curse of the Collar” (9/9/89) – Scooby is forced to wear a hideous
bejeweled collar on his birthday, which attracts the ghost of sadistic dog
catcher Buster McMuttmauler.
“The Return of
Commander Cool” (9/16/89) – A bump on the head has Shaggy believing he’s Commander
Cool while the gang investigates an alien slug.
“The Spirit of Rock and Roll” (9/23/89) – A new rock star, Buddy
Chillner comes under fire from the ghost of Coolsville’s former #1 rocker,
Purvis Parker.
“Chickenstein Lives!” (9/30/89) – A giant chicken haunts Freddy’s
favorite newspaper, the National
Exaggerator.
“Night of the Living Burger” (10/14/89) – Mr. O’Greasy hires the gang
to save his restaurants from a giant burger, but trouble brews when Shaggy and
Scooby have a falling out.
“The Computer Walks Among Us” (10/21/89) – The gang seeks to help
Velma’s suspension from school be reversed when her invention comes to life and
causes havoc.
“Dog Gone Scooby” (10/28/89) – Scooby runs away from home and ends up
in the clutches of Paula P. Casso who desperately wants his head.
“Terror, They Name is Zombo” (11/4/89) – The gang’s favorite amusement
park is haunted by Zombo, the Phantom Clown.
Season 3:
“Night of the Boogey Biker / Dawn of the Spooky Shuttle Scare”
(9/8/90) – Daphne bets Freddy can’t go 24 hours without accusing Red while
Red’s aunt hires them to find her bike. / A ghost spoils Velma’s chance to have
her latest invention sent to space.
“Horror of the Haunted Hairpiece” (10/6/90) – Bigwig, the haunted
hairpiece, attacks the video arcade where Daphne begins working.
“Wrestle Maniacs” (11/3/90) – The Hooded Heifer, a disgraced wrestler,
returns to haunt the Coolsville Wrestling Federation.
“The Were-Doo of Doo Manor” (8/3/91) – An old curse haunts the Doo
family.
“The Wrath of Waitro / Catcher on the Sly / The Ghost of Mrs. Shusham”
(8/10/91) – Shaggy and Scooby imagine themselves as Commander Cool and Mellow
Mutt to take on a snooty waiter. / Baxter McMuttmauler wants revenge on Scooby
and his family. / The ghost of a librarian haunts Shaggy over an overdue book.
“Mayhem of the Moving Mollusk” (8/17/91) – The gang heads to New York
to battle a snail monster and save Critter Getters from closing.
Originally posted in 2015. Updated in 2021.
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