Scooby-Doo!

Scooby-Doo! is a series of shows about a group of teenagers and their Great Dane dog, as they solve various mysteries. The show has been around seen 1969 with the first show "Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?" and since then there have been various incarnations, movies, and spinoffs of it. It's produced and released by Hanna-Barbara Productions and Warner Bros., respectively. Correction: NONE respectively. I don't know who the heck those folks are, and until I do, they don't deserve my respect.
==History==
'Tall started back in the last years of the 60s. Parents were angry that Saturday-morning cartoons were too violent and intense, most notably Hanna-Barbera shows. Scooby-Doo then came along, and that show had no violence in it, so those overactive parents had nothin' to say. They were dumbfounded. The show debuted on CBS that faithful September day. And the theme song which I'm sure everyone in the world has heard once or twice was written by David Mook and Ben Raleigh, as performed by Larry Marks.
Various spin-offs were followed, such as The New Scooby-Doo Movies, which included guest stars (Batman & Robin, the Harlem Globetrotters, Don Knotts, etc). Years later, the show moved to ABC, and featured Scrappy-Doo, Scooby's nephew. The show's ratings rocketed, as they were previously declining before. The show went into a brief hiatus, then resumed in 1980s with A Pup Named Scooby-Doo, of which Scrappy was nowhere to be found. Good riddance, ya looney!
Ahem, anyway, there was much debate over the rights of the show. Some random guy named Ted Turner was in charge of the Hanna-Barbera library at the time, so the show was broadcasted on his channels: Cartoon Network, TNT, and TBS. When TNT and TBS stopped showing it, Scooby and Cartoon Network have been a two-man band since. Scooby is also shown on CN's sister channel, Boomerang.
Starting in 1998, direct-to-video Scooby-Doo movies were released, such as Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island, Scooby-Doo and the Witch's Ghost, and whatnot. Due to the success of these movies, there was a new Scooby show on CN in 2002 called What's New Scooby-Doo, with the Mystery Inc. back in action, this time with technology. The show was replaced by Shaggy and Scooby Get a Clue! on Kids WB in 2006. It seemed that the gang had made a return to Saturady-morning cartoony, but the show was cancelled the next year. Nevertheless, a new show is set to be released in 2010 on CN called Scooby-Doo - Mystery Inc.
Scooby-Doo has had quite a history. Why, there's even a series of 3 live-action Scooby-Doo movies (the first one being released in 2002, second in 2004, and third in 2009). They've also had their own share of video games. But who am I to tell you this? I'm just a poor boy trying to find his place in this world.
==Plot ==
The first few shows and latter movies follow the formula of a "guy in a mask." Said formula goes something like this:
#At the beginning of the episode, the Mystery, Inc. gang bump into some type of evil ghost or monster, which they learn has been terrorizing the local populace and is the local 'ghost story'.
#The teens offer to help solve the mystery behind the creature, but while looking for clues and suspects, the gang splits up in two groups. In the first group are Fred, Daphne, and sometimes Velma. The second group is composed of Scooby, Shaggy and sometimes Velma.
#Scooby and Shaggy find food to eat, but run into the monster, who chases them. Scooby and Shaggy try to lose the monster.
#Meanwhile, Fred, Velma and Daphne investigate some places by themselves and find clues, but also run into the monster. Daphne often ends up being captured by the monster. Sometimes Daphne is rescued by Scooby and Shaggy, but usually she is rescued by Fred and Velma. Velma often ends up dropping her glasses and being unable to see anything until she finds them again.
#Scooby and Shaggy lose the monster and then are reunited with Fred, Velma and Daphne.
#However, after analyzing the clues they have found, the gang determines that this monster is actually a person in disguise. They capture the monster, often with the use of a contraption built by Fred or accidental clumsiness from Shaggy and Scooby, and bring him to the police.
#Upon learning the villain's true identity, either the only person they had met or someone they hadn't seen before, the fiendish plot is fully explained, and the apprehended criminal would utter the famous catch phrase, or a variation thereof: "And I would've gotten away with it, if it weren't for you meddling kids!"
#The gang finally gets to relax and have fun. Shaggy tries to eat something, but Scooby beats him to the punch. (snicker) Beats him to the punch. He didn't really beat him with a punch, it's just a figure of speech.
==Shows==
Over the years, Scooby-Doo has had many shows/spin-offs. Here they are!
*Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! (1969-1970)
*The New Scooby-Doo Movies (1972-1973)
*The Scooby-Doo Show (1976-1978)
*Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo (1979-1980)
*Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo: The Shorts (1980-1982)
*The All-New Scooby and Scrappy-Doo Show (1983-1984)
*The 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo (1985)
*A Pup Named Scooby-Doo (1988-1991)
*What's New, Scooby-Doo? (2002-2006)
*Shaggy and Scooby Get a Clue! (2006-2008)
*Scooby-Doo - Mystery Inc. (2010- )
And that's the shows in a nutshell!
==Movies==
===Direct-to-Video===
Since 1998, Hanna-Barbera/Warner Bros. have released Scooby-Doo "direct-to-video" films. Meaning they were released on VHS or DVD first before they were shown on TV. Here's... the list!:
*Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island (1998)
*Scooby-Doo and the Witch's Ghost (1999)
*Scooby-Doo and the Alien Invaders (2000)
*Scooby-Doo and the Cyber Chase (2001)
*Scooby-Doo and the Legend of the Vampire (2002)
*Scooby-Doo and the Monster of Mexico (2003)
*Scooby-Doo and the Loch Ness Monster (2004)
*Aloha, Scooby-Doo! (2005)
*Scooby-Doo in Where's My Mummy? (2005 also)
*Scooby-Doo! Pirates Ahoy! (2006)
*Chill Out, Scooby-Doo! (2007)
*Scooby-Doo and the Goblin King (2008)
*Scooby-Doo and the Samurai Sword (2009)
*Scooby-Doo! Abracadabra-Doo (2010)
===Live-Action===
These are the live-action films that most critics hated but kids and fans enjoyed:
*Scooby-Doo (June 14, 2002 - Rated PG)
*Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed (March 26, 2004 - Rated PG)
*Scooby-Doo! The Mystery Begins (September 13, 2009 - Rated TV-PG) * A prequel to the previous two, and with a different cast.
===Old Television Films===
These are some oldies that came out back when Scooby was just Saturday-morning cartoony.
*Scooby Goes Hollywood (1979)
*Scooby-Doo Meets the Boo Brothers (1987)
*Scooby-Doo and the Ghoul School (1988)
*Scooby-Doo and the Reluctant Werewolf (1988 also)
NOTE: Both "Cyber Chase" and "The Mystery Begins" had video game adaptations released after them.
==External Links==
Offical Scooby-Doo! Website
Offical Cartoon Network page
Scooby-Doo wiki
Category:Original Articles