|
||||||||
| Written By Rick
Ellis, Tuesday, May 20th, 2008 Even if you're a devoted fan of Scooby Doo, you might not be familiar with "The Richie Rich/Scooby Doo Show," which premiered as part of ABC Saturday morning lineup in 1980. The hour-long series was memorable for a couple of reasons. It was the first time that Scooby Doo didn't get top billing in a show. And the short seven minute segments broke up the Mystery Inc. team, since they featured only Scooby, Shaggy and Scrappy as "The Fearless Detective Agency." But the real question is...are the episodes any good? Surprisingly, they're not bad. Hanna Barbera was definately cutting corners by 1980, but this show is a good example of what can be done on the cheap. The animation might not match the level of the early Scooby Doo shows, but it's not the worst example from Hanna Barbera, either. This set includes seven episodes on two single-sided discs. The Richie Rich segments are a pretty good example of early 1980s animation. Rich seems to be a bit older than he was in the comic books, and each episode features him using a lot of technology. Which was pretty hip for 1980. But fans of the comics might be disappointed by this show, which spends as much time on Rich's dog and other side characters as it does on the young gazzillionaire. Rich was voiced by Sparky Marcus, who rabid TV fans might remember for his memorable appearance on "WKRP In Cincinnati" as "Arthur Carlson Jr." Rich's girlfriend Gloria was voiced by Nancy Cartwright, who of course is best known for being the voice of Bart Simpson. So with that talent to work with, it's not surprising that the episodes are funnier than you might expect for a kid's show. As far as the Scooby Doo segments are concerned....well, if you have young kids, this is a great package. The stripped down stories contain more slapstick action than mystery. And while Scrappy Doo isn't as annoying as he is in later incarnations, he still manages to be the Jar Jar Binks of the Scooby Doo legacy. There is one extra in the set. "The Story of Richie Rich" features interviews with people associated with the comic book series as well as the TV show. It's interesting to hear some of the reasoning behind the creation of the show, and how the animators decided on the overall look of the series. It's not the type of feature you would watch more than once, but I appreciate the fact the producers put in the extra effort to assemble the feature. It's inclusion definately gives the set a bit more value. Overall, the set is probably best suited for extreme animation fans and those with younger kids. Given the modest list price, it would be a nice gift for someone under ten or so. While that might not sound like a recommendation, it is. There's nothing wrong with animated DVD's aimed at a younger audience, and this is a good example of the genre. "The Richie Rich/Scooby Doo Show: The Complete Series, Volume One" hitt stores on Tuesday, May 20th, 2008. |
||||||||
