***THIS REVIEW WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON THE NERD BLITZ PATREON***
If you read the Scooby essay in Doomed (which you all should have! -.-) you know how important this issue was to a wee little Doom.
Due to a series of unfortunate events my original 1999 copy has been destroyed, but fear not, my good Knights, for a good man of Fitz hath swooped in in this most difficult hour and found a reasonably priced replacement.
The past has been saved and, in turn, ensured a future of fun for us all in the form of a nostalgia infused love fest of a review.
But wait!
I haven’t read this issue in at least 15 years.
That’s a decade and a half I’ve had to build this legend in my head, of the seed that was planted and grew into a tree that sustained my love and fandom of Scooby month after month for many many years to come.
What happens if I read this and, Randy Orton like, it becomes a Legend Killer and torpedoes my love for this issue?
While I doubt it will be that dramatic, the time has come to figure it all out, gang, so let’s split up and look for clues…or maybe just dive in and see what lies in these much lauded pages.
This is your official 24 year old ***SPOILER ALERT***, my good people.
Cover by Joe Staton: For me, this is, simply put, an iconic cover.
Not to be too much of a whore, but take a read of this excerpt from my Scooby-Doo essay in Doomed...
“For years I would hear people talk about having the image of the cover of their first comic seared into their memory forever. I never really understood it because comics were always there and there was no way in hell I’d ever remember the very first one.
However, I gained some understanding when I thought about some of the very first Scooby comics I remember seeing. It was essentially the same experience I’d heard people describe for all of those years. A visceral, warm and fuzzy feeling, full of detail and life.”
This cover is so seared into my brain and, after thinking about it so much for the last few months after writing that piece, I think I like it even more than I originally thought because there is something so simplistic and iconically Scooby about it.
First of all, Freddie doing his best Sherlock Holmes impression is just plain cool, not to mention a great tip of the hat from one legendary mystery solver to another.
But what I love most about it is the dichotomy between the foreground and background action.
I’m more used to a comedic take on this, for want of a better word, trope, but I love when you have a serious conversation going on in the foreground and wacky comedy happening in the background.
Sure the room is kind of blank, but it makes sense in the context of a museum.
Without a doubt, whenever I hear the words “Scooby-Doo” this is one of the first 5 images that pops into my head.
With my whole heart, soul, and being, I love this cover.
Art by Joe Staton & Vincent Deporter: On the first story, Staton draws the gang a bit thicker and squishier than you’d expect.
It’s always made his style stand out in my brain.
Fred has a chin akin to Mystery Incorporated, but roughly 10 years earlier, as well as a barrel of a body.
Velma is dowdier than normal, Shaggy has a more slovenly look about him, Daphne has hair straight out of ’80s New Jersey and looks like ginger Wonder Woman, Scooby looks like the jowlly pooch that Don was always trying to convey, not to mention Scooby’s dogtag is almost always pitch perfect.
And everybody, except Daphne of course, has their clothes hanging off of them in a way that almost makes them feel like they’re playing dress up with mom and dad’s clothes.
But, having said all of that, it also makes them all feel cozy and warm, it’s comforting to slip back in and see the gang look like this.
He also draws some of the best and most interesting day player characters and monsters.
Now Deporter on the other hand used thick, bold outlines and added a zany edge through Pup-esque over the top expressions and movements.
His renderings of the gang are also severely on model, with the exception of the slightly messier hair for everybody.
He injects a great energy and vitality, he gives a tremendous sense of movement to the characters that almost makes each panel feel like a frame of film rather than a unique drawing because with his details on hair and clothing the gang feel like they were just moving and didn’t stop to make themselves look “presentable” the way some artists would.
Both of these artists are among the top 5 most memorable for me, but I would definitely say that Vincent Deporter is without a doubt my favorite Scooby-Doo artist, his bold outlines alone made his work stand out.
And, sadly, I must report that in doing research for this review I found that Mr. Deporter died in September of 2022 at the age of 63, making this revisit of my introduction to his work a bit bittersweet.
Some of his covers definitely fall into the iconic category and should damn well be posters by now.
I will always remember grabbing each new issue and seeing if his name was inside and, if it was, thinking this was gonna be a good looking one.
Requiescat in pace, good sir.
Stories by Terrance Griep Jr. & Chuck Kim: In “Spring-Heeled Jack”, Dr. Quail hires the gang to bust the legendary figure of folklore, Spring-Heeled Jack, who has the staff on edge and museum goers gone.
But when a bonk on the noggin makes Fred believe he actually is his idol, the iconic Sherlock Holmes, Shaggy, Scooby, and Dr. Quail all have to humor him while they wait for Freddie to return.
Meanwhile, Velma and Daphne have an encounter with the bouncy man of the hour that leads to a crashing conclusion.
This story is interesting to me because it’s been a while since I’ve read it so I forgot that it includes one of the things I always loved in the comics, it reveals something we never knew but fits so perfectly with what has been established about the characters, e.g., Fred is a huge fan of Sherlock Holmes.
Something else I loved is that, despite the goofy head wound amnesia, this was before WB decided Fred was a complete fuckin’ dipshit so he still feels like an actual competent leader.
And in that same vein, I liked seeing the rare grouping of Fred, Shaggy, and Scoob.
Something that I feel is often forgotten in this franchise is that these 5 are all actual friends.
It’s not, as normally presented, that Fred, Daphne, and Velma are friends and, much like the OG Texas Chainsaw, they have to take along these two dumbass annoyances that are so afraid of their own shadows that they don’t know which way is up.
It adds so much to see Fred hanging with our star twosome, treating them like equals, and them actually excelling along side him.
And, alternatively, it’s nice to see Daphne and Velma, in a strong bonding moment for them, get some understanding of the hell Shaggy and Scooby are routinely put through as bait.
Overall, the cover story is damn great.
Terrance Griep brings a lot of new colors to the palette of the gang and shines a great light on their relationships in just 12 short pages.
Impressive work.
Now onto story 2!
In “Dog Gone Ghost” Velma goes to visit her dog training Aunt, Selma, and find the school has closed due to a coyote ghost.
Seeing Scooby, Aunt Selma decides to whip him into shape while the rest of the gang investigates the ghost that’s trying to ruin Selma’s livelihood.
This is more of an art driven story, but, even so, I like that it’s pretty straight forward.
It’s great that Shag & Scoob actually have something to do with some actual drive as opposed to the usual of being left to their own devices to stumble into some comedic shenanigans.
I like when there’s more of a point to their comedic fumbling than just Fred, Daphne, and Velma are off being smart so let’s be dippy bastards to break the tension and kill a few minutes.
Overall, this is definitely one of the more memorable issues of a Scooby-Doo comic I’ve ever read.
This isn’t just a set of cookie cutter Scooby-Doo stories, they take some swings and try putting a few new spins on classic tropes of the franchise.
In this era they were really crankin’ out the quality stories and, man, I miss it.
I really wish the Scooby comics felt like this more often, if they did I’m sure folks would have a higher opinion of these, or at least not brush them off as filler for kids.
Both stories are solid, but the second story having less dialogue and playing up the zany art let’s them both feel distinct and stand out, making for a well rounded issue.
I can’t think of many issues that deliver so completely and satisfyingly.
If you can find a copy, definitely pick it up and see why I fell in love, and continue to do so, with these characters in this medium.
Let us know what you think of this review in the comments below or share this post on Twitter with the Hashtag #TNBBookReview, or tweet with us @NerdBlitzPod.
Be sure to support the site and all we do by checking out our books!
The Camping Trip And Other Stories and Doomed: The Collected Essays And Reviews Volume 1 are both avaliable in Ebook and Trade Paperback!
Hungry for more of that great Nerd Blitz content, head over to Patreon.com/NerdBlitzPod and join at the $5 level to get instant access to numerous Podcasts, Reviews, Audio Dramas, and so much more!
And finally, given the state of the world, do what you can to leave it a little bit better than you found it.
As difficult as that may be currently, it can have an impact far greater than you know.
Until next time, stay safe out there, gang.
