Fred. Daphne. Velma. Shaggy. Scooby-Doo. Roaming the globe in their lime-green Mystery Machine, they’ve solved countless crimes and debunked dozens of sketchy supernatural shenanigans.
But what if the horror was real?
Something terrible has transformed our world, turning millions of people into mindless zombie hordes. And only five people–well, four people and one mangy mutt–have the smarts, the skills and the sheer crazy courage to stare down doomsday.
Can these pesky kids and their canine companion–using every incredible contraption in their arsenal–defeat the evil that has overwhelmed planet Earth? We’ve got only one thing to say about that: ZOINKS!
From comics mastermind Jim Lee and the superstar creative team of Keith Giffen (JUSTICE LEAGUE 3001), J.M. DeMatteis (JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK) and Howard Porter (JLA) comes SCOOBY APOCALYPSE, a whole new spin on the most beloved paranormal investigators in history. Get ready to give Scooby Snacks a whole new meaning! SCOOBY APOCALYPSE VOLUME 1 collects issues #1-6.
The Meta Details:
Source: Netgalley
Format: eBook
Length: 200 pages
Genre: Sequential Art, Comics, Graphic Novels
Content Level: Teenager
Pearl Clutching Content: I didn’t like this title enough to come up with something witty
Trigger Warnings: Ruination of your childhood via walking Scrappy Doo
Featuring: Hipster Shaggy. Because apparently Shaggy has always been a hipster and we just didn’t know it…
Scorecard:
Recommended for: I didn’t like this title enough to come up with something witty
Rating:
Ginny Lurcock’s Thoughts: If you’re going to rely heavily on nostalgia to sell your reboot, it’s generally considered wise to ensure your new product bears at least a passing resemblance to the original.
This… does not.
Don’t get me wrong, there are some very Scooby feels. Shaggy has remained true to himself. (And who would’ve thought that 70s stoner translates to 2017 hipster stoner… But here we are.) Scooby has strong feelings about pizza. Velma is still wicked smart. They all use their catch phrases at least once.
But it’s not enough unless the new material is strong enough to stand up on its own.
And this was not.
They pinned all their hopes on making Daphne and Velma the focal point of the story. Now I have no complaints about this in theory but in execution…
For starters, they attempted to make Daphne stronger by taking away from Fred. Instead of being the leader of our motley crew, he’s basically an idiot obsessed with Daphne and following her around like a sad lost puppy.
Secondly, they attempted to give Daphne depth by making her angry. So very, very angry. Who hurt you, Daphne?
And finally, Daphne’s voice isn’t linear. She goes from being enraged, feeling lost, feeling remorse, killing all sons of bitches like a sociopath, being supportive of Velma, back to enraged with every flip of the page.
I get it, it’s the end of the world, but you can’t make a character be all over the place without acknowledging that fact and owning it.
There’s a difference between a well-executed plot device and lazy writing.
(and this qualifies as lazy af)
By the time I got to the deep dark secret Velma’s been hiding I no longer cared. It was sloppy, poorly executed, felt like it was trying to be feminist by giving women the lead, but when you create piss poor female leads you to harm the feminist cause.
so thanks for that…
And this is without me mentioning Scrappy Doo. Listen, I hated Scrappy growing up. Hated him. And I now I feel bad for the abomination of the character he has become.
I just, I cannot. He gives me nightmares. I’m going to block him from my memory and try to pretend that last panel of him walking never happened.
A complimentary copy of this book was provided in exchange for a fair and honest review via Netgalley.
Ginny Lurcock 