“Up a Crazy River” - Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo Shorts - S03E12C
Note: There is some conflicting sources on what short aired during what episode. I’m following Wikipedia’s listing, but I’m only viewing one short rather than the usual three that would make up a full episode because of this.
History: After the proven success of Scrappy Doo, Hanna-Barbera finally allowed themselves to cut ties completely to the original mystery formula and focus solely on Shaggy’s and Scooby’s antics. It’s a move that they evidently wanted to make for a while, but they hesitated because without a foil to force Scooby and Shaggy into the action, there would be no reason for their antics. Scrappy provided that foil without being tied so directly to the mystery solving aspects of old, like Fred and Velma are.
The shorts would be aired together in threes and then placed with a another show in order to create a one hour programming block. There were two blocks between 1980 and 1983, first was The Richie Rich/Scooby-Doo Show and the second was The Scooby & Scrappy-Doo/Puppy Hour. Nowadays all three seasons are collectively called the Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo Shorts.
The Show: The shorts are far more experimental in terms of plot than in previous shows. They run the gambit of everything from mundane everyday misadventures, to action adventure, to crime mysteries, to scifi, to westerns, to actual real supernatural elements and monsters. Anything and everything goes as long as the writers can get a gag out of it.
However along with the more flexible format came a more fluctuating quality in the writing. The jokes are very hit or miss, and while the set ups are unusual for the Scooby Doo franchise, they have been done previously in other better HB cartoons.
Most of the shorts feature Scooby, Shaggy, and Scrappy getting caught up in some sort of hi-jinks. However during the final season of the show a new spin-off was created solely for Scrappy. These shorts aired at the end of an episode and featured Scrappy as a deputy in the old west with his other uncle Yabba-Doo.
Shaggy Rogers (Casey Kasem) - Very little has changed personality wise. However during the show’s final season, he is hired by his uncle Fearless Shagaford to work for his detective agency, The Fearless Detective Agency. This gives Shaggy more motivation to actively solve mysteries rather then just stumbling upon adventures. As such he becomes something of a leader for the team despite his cowardly nature.
Scooby-Doo (Don Messick) - virtually unchanged, but with the decreased cast some of his more looked over personality traits are given more of a show case, such as his cleverness.
Scrappy-Doo (Don Messick) - His personality has been toned down somewhat, all of the usual traits, like his perchance for fighting, are still present but he’s allowed to contribute more to the on going story rather than just being a one note joke. Like wise there’s a better balance between him and the rest of the cast allowing everyone else a chance to contribute as well.
Yabba-Doo (Don Messick) - Scooby’s brother and Scrappy’s uncle, Yabba is a deputy of a small western town called Tumbleweed. He’s designed to be Scooby’s opposite in nearly every way. He’s brave, a natural leader, and often considered the brains of his little team. He’s not “book smart” like Velma, but he is very clever and the one to come up with all of plans to catch the bad guys. Biggest down fall is his mouth, which tends to get him and his friends in trouble more often than not.
Deputy Dusty (Frank Welker) - He’s like a less hungry, arguably sexier, version of Shaggy. Well meaning but cowardly, Dusty has to rely heavily on Yabba’s wit and Scrappy’s strength to save the day. But despite his lack of competence both dogs think the world of him. Probably because he’s just so gosh darn nice and polite.
The Episode: As stated above, I’m only reviewing one short rather than a whole multi-part episode, because the individual shorts would get shuffled around and aired together at different times. As such, this is likely the only Scooby-Doo related thing I’m going to review this month that doesn’t actually have Scooby-Doo in it.
Today’s short features river pirates looting the town. When confronted by the deputies the gang taunts Dusty by actually ripping all of his clothes off! O.O
I think Dusty is in need of an adult, ya’ll.
