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brendalaI didn’t expect much from this collection of old Scooby comics published by Gold Key in the 1970s (here's the Amazon link). Comics from that era - especially kiddie comics - tended to be pretty bad. But, surprisingly, the characterization was spot on and, at times, even surpassed the original TV show! The art was even decent; even if it did make some odd color choices…
A PINK MYSTERY MACHINE!? WTF!?
I love how they handled “Scooby Speak” in this comic. Most of Scooby’s opinions are expressed to the reader via thought bubbles and he rarely actually “talks”. He acts a lot more like a normal dog who is confused and exasperated by his human friends.
He’s a lot braver, too and he even has a tendency to attack the crooks who threaten the gang!
It’s a really fun take on his character and I kinda wish more of the modern incarnations would go back to it. I love brave/silent Scooby. However, I wouldn’t mind if Sexist Scooby stayed in the 1970s where he belongs…
….mainly because Sexist Scooby is a bad influence on Shaggy…
I think THIS comment is why Shaggy didn’t get any canon nookie from Velma for another 40 years!
Despite the sexist comments, I still think this version of Shaggy is less of a douchebag than the one in Mystery Incorporated.
Unlike a certain other version of the character, the Scooby in these comics is also chivalrous…
…and opts to protect the girls when they have their little “sleepovers”
Presumably, Scooby’s there to chase off perverts who try to sneak in and watch the girls fool around. ~_^
Velma and Scooby also have a strong friendship in this comic…
…instead of behaving like a pair of FREAKING OOC ASSHATS!
Seriously Mystery Incorporated, SCREW YOU!!!!
Many of these comics are adaptations of Scooby Doo: Where Are You episodes. One adaptation in particular (Bedlam in the Big Top) actually wrote a really awesome alternate ending! In the original cartoon, Shaggy is the one who saves the day. But in this comic adaptation, Velma is the one who defeats the evil clown! Way to go Womens’ Lib!
Speaking of Velma, she’s a lot of fun in these books. She’s smart. But she’s also silly and a bit of a drama queen. I wish a certain other Scooby series had taken notes from these books on how to write her.
And I like how the girls occasionally just walk off and say, “well, we don’t feel like getting killed tonight. But you boys have fun trapping the blood-thirsty psychopath”. Some might say it’s sexist. But who among us wouldn’t do the exact same thing? Especially after Shaggy’s sexist jackassery!
One of the many “only in the 70s” aspects about these books is the way the villains casually whip out guns and threaten the gang with them! The modern comics and cartoons sure as hell couldn’t get away with that! But I think the casual use of guns is one of the clues that maybe this series wasn’t meant for little kids after all (I’ll get to the other clues later)
JINKIES! Insurance Agents were bad ass back in the 1970s!!! O_o
This comic even had gun-toting date rapists! I doubt we'll see THAT in any modern Scooby incarnations! O_o
And check out this order form for all the other Gold Key comics available at the time. It’s interesting to note that Scooby Doo and the Disney titles are the only ones still being published today!
----
The vintage ads are, by far, the BEST part of these old comics! Seeing these old ads alone was well worth the money I paid for this CD-rom! For example:
If any of you can tell me what the hell a “snurf” is, I’ll give you a present! My theory is that the artist behind this ad was supposed to do an advertisement for an ordinary skateboard. But he got really stoned (it WAS the 70s) and made this instead.
Believe it or not, back in the 1970s, you could read your Scooby Doo comics and order your first rifle at the same time! Why wasn’t I born in that decade!? It was amazing!!
And, if you felt like being a walking contradiction, you could buy a confederate flag patch AND a “Black is Beautiful” patch and sew them to your jacket! Right next to the “Budweiser Power” patch!
And check out these other groovy patches
Seriously, these ads make me wonder if the target audience for this comic was actually adults. How many 10-year-olds would be interested in these ads for military rings?
There were actually quite a few different ads for military rings in these books. I guess Scooby was popular with soldiers back in the 70s or something.
The comic ads also sold such wholesome items as… a Raquel Welsh body pillow!?!?
....well, this was the age before internet pornography. I suppose this pillow was the only scandalous thing boys entering puberty could get their hands on if they didn’t have a dad, big brother, or creepy uncle to steal Playboys from.
Speaking of Playboy, you could also order Playboy bunny patches from Scooby Doo comics back in the 70s!
I was surprised to find ads for stuff I’ve actually owned in these early 1970s books. I guess they were hand-me-downs from my older cousins or something because I wasn’t even born until the mid 1980s!
And check out these creepy freaking dolls! If this Blythe doll were in my room, I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night! >_<
And Gabbigale makes me feel uneasy, too. But I give her props for at least including little black girls in her twisted game of “get your little brother in trouble”
And here’s an ad for some…disturbing paintings that you could order via these comics. Real oil paintings of cutesy little girls adorned with butterfly corpses. Was this kind of crap really in style back then!? I know everyone was stoned back in the 1970s but still….jeez!
Speaking of bizarre stoner art…
Margaret Keane, eat your heart out!
I’m not sure what this ad is selling. I think they’re vitamins. But acid tablets would be a good guess, too.
Why wasn’t my Easy Bake oven this stylish? And I wonder who won that contest...
And what kid wouldn’t be interested in this ad. I mean, those stamps are ALMOST RARE! OMG!!11!!1!
Dig these literal kick ass boots!
I don’t get fantasy baseball. Why would I pay for this stupid kit when I could just play the game myself or watch it on TV?
And what’s up with this mini-comic under the binocular ad? Did she dump him because he’s dorky or because he looks too similar to her to be unrelated?
Food ads!!
And you could even order fishing rods...
...and Israeli money, too. Cause what young Scooby fan wouldn’t want cash directly from the Holy Land. Go Israel!
Horsey paintings! Thankfully, pieces of dead horses don’t appear to be affixed to these canvases!
Naturally, you can buy tons of hippie crap from these 1970s Scooby books
Time for toy ads!
This “Whittle Away” ad just slays me. A PLASTIC whittling knife!? What is that kid carving? A giant block of butter!? What little boy would be interested in this wussy toy when an order form for a freakin’ RIFLE is just a page turn away?
Kenner toys!
Music ads! And most of those bands are still known today!
That Snoopy toothbrush motor is adorable! And I love the projector ad's tagline "someday you'll be able to watch cassette shows at home". Looks like some marketing dude was ahead of his time, huh?
And you could even mail-order a new career while getting your Scooby Doo fix! Gee whiz, the 70s comic book audience sure was efficient!
You could also buy pets. Creepy, creepy pets.
And….sexy incense!?
And check out the reader-submitted art. These are actually pretty good; but I can’t help wondering why they drew random animals instead of the Scooby cast. Was fanart not invented yet at that point?
---
Well, to make a LONG freakin’ nostalgia trip short, this CD-rom collection of old Scooby Doo comics is worth WAY more than it’s dirt cheap price! This massive pic-spam of a review didn’t even scratch the surface of all the funny and/or weird stuff contained in this CD-rom! Head to Amazon and buy it now! Even if you’re not a Scooby fan, all the old ads and the non-Scooby comics that occasionally pop up are fun to read. And reading it feels a bit like picking up a time capsule.
It's available at Amazon.com for only $2.99. And it's an absolute steal at that price! Go get it now!
A PINK MYSTERY MACHINE!? WTF!?
I love how they handled “Scooby Speak” in this comic. Most of Scooby’s opinions are expressed to the reader via thought bubbles and he rarely actually “talks”. He acts a lot more like a normal dog who is confused and exasperated by his human friends.
He’s a lot braver, too and he even has a tendency to attack the crooks who threaten the gang!
It’s a really fun take on his character and I kinda wish more of the modern incarnations would go back to it. I love brave/silent Scooby. However, I wouldn’t mind if Sexist Scooby stayed in the 1970s where he belongs…
….mainly because Sexist Scooby is a bad influence on Shaggy…
I think THIS comment is why Shaggy didn’t get any canon nookie from Velma for another 40 years!
Despite the sexist comments, I still think this version of Shaggy is less of a douchebag than the one in Mystery Incorporated.
Unlike a certain other version of the character, the Scooby in these comics is also chivalrous…
…and opts to protect the girls when they have their little “sleepovers”
Presumably, Scooby’s there to chase off perverts who try to sneak in and watch the girls fool around. ~_^
Velma and Scooby also have a strong friendship in this comic…
…instead of behaving like a pair of FREAKING OOC ASSHATS!
Seriously Mystery Incorporated, SCREW YOU!!!!
Many of these comics are adaptations of Scooby Doo: Where Are You episodes. One adaptation in particular (Bedlam in the Big Top) actually wrote a really awesome alternate ending! In the original cartoon, Shaggy is the one who saves the day. But in this comic adaptation, Velma is the one who defeats the evil clown! Way to go Womens’ Lib!
Speaking of Velma, she’s a lot of fun in these books. She’s smart. But she’s also silly and a bit of a drama queen. I wish a certain other Scooby series had taken notes from these books on how to write her.
And I like how the girls occasionally just walk off and say, “well, we don’t feel like getting killed tonight. But you boys have fun trapping the blood-thirsty psychopath”. Some might say it’s sexist. But who among us wouldn’t do the exact same thing? Especially after Shaggy’s sexist jackassery!
One of the many “only in the 70s” aspects about these books is the way the villains casually whip out guns and threaten the gang with them! The modern comics and cartoons sure as hell couldn’t get away with that! But I think the casual use of guns is one of the clues that maybe this series wasn’t meant for little kids after all (I’ll get to the other clues later)
JINKIES! Insurance Agents were bad ass back in the 1970s!!! O_o
This comic even had gun-toting date rapists! I doubt we'll see THAT in any modern Scooby incarnations! O_o
And check out this order form for all the other Gold Key comics available at the time. It’s interesting to note that Scooby Doo and the Disney titles are the only ones still being published today!
----
The vintage ads are, by far, the BEST part of these old comics! Seeing these old ads alone was well worth the money I paid for this CD-rom! For example:
If any of you can tell me what the hell a “snurf” is, I’ll give you a present! My theory is that the artist behind this ad was supposed to do an advertisement for an ordinary skateboard. But he got really stoned (it WAS the 70s) and made this instead.
Believe it or not, back in the 1970s, you could read your Scooby Doo comics and order your first rifle at the same time! Why wasn’t I born in that decade!? It was amazing!!
And, if you felt like being a walking contradiction, you could buy a confederate flag patch AND a “Black is Beautiful” patch and sew them to your jacket! Right next to the “Budweiser Power” patch!
And check out these other groovy patches
Seriously, these ads make me wonder if the target audience for this comic was actually adults. How many 10-year-olds would be interested in these ads for military rings?
There were actually quite a few different ads for military rings in these books. I guess Scooby was popular with soldiers back in the 70s or something.
The comic ads also sold such wholesome items as… a Raquel Welsh body pillow!?!?
....well, this was the age before internet pornography. I suppose this pillow was the only scandalous thing boys entering puberty could get their hands on if they didn’t have a dad, big brother, or creepy uncle to steal Playboys from.
Speaking of Playboy, you could also order Playboy bunny patches from Scooby Doo comics back in the 70s!
I was surprised to find ads for stuff I’ve actually owned in these early 1970s books. I guess they were hand-me-downs from my older cousins or something because I wasn’t even born until the mid 1980s!
And check out these creepy freaking dolls! If this Blythe doll were in my room, I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night! >_<
And Gabbigale makes me feel uneasy, too. But I give her props for at least including little black girls in her twisted game of “get your little brother in trouble”
And here’s an ad for some…disturbing paintings that you could order via these comics. Real oil paintings of cutesy little girls adorned with butterfly corpses. Was this kind of crap really in style back then!? I know everyone was stoned back in the 1970s but still….jeez!
Speaking of bizarre stoner art…
Margaret Keane, eat your heart out!
I’m not sure what this ad is selling. I think they’re vitamins. But acid tablets would be a good guess, too.
Why wasn’t my Easy Bake oven this stylish? And I wonder who won that contest...
And what kid wouldn’t be interested in this ad. I mean, those stamps are ALMOST RARE! OMG!!11!!1!
Dig these literal kick ass boots!
I don’t get fantasy baseball. Why would I pay for this stupid kit when I could just play the game myself or watch it on TV?
And what’s up with this mini-comic under the binocular ad? Did she dump him because he’s dorky or because he looks too similar to her to be unrelated?
Food ads!!
And you could even order fishing rods...
...and Israeli money, too. Cause what young Scooby fan wouldn’t want cash directly from the Holy Land. Go Israel!
Horsey paintings! Thankfully, pieces of dead horses don’t appear to be affixed to these canvases!
Naturally, you can buy tons of hippie crap from these 1970s Scooby books
Time for toy ads!
This “Whittle Away” ad just slays me. A PLASTIC whittling knife!? What is that kid carving? A giant block of butter!? What little boy would be interested in this wussy toy when an order form for a freakin’ RIFLE is just a page turn away?
Kenner toys!
Music ads! And most of those bands are still known today!
That Snoopy toothbrush motor is adorable! And I love the projector ad's tagline "someday you'll be able to watch cassette shows at home". Looks like some marketing dude was ahead of his time, huh?
And you could even mail-order a new career while getting your Scooby Doo fix! Gee whiz, the 70s comic book audience sure was efficient!
You could also buy pets. Creepy, creepy pets.
And….sexy incense!?
And check out the reader-submitted art. These are actually pretty good; but I can’t help wondering why they drew random animals instead of the Scooby cast. Was fanart not invented yet at that point?
---
Well, to make a LONG freakin’ nostalgia trip short, this CD-rom collection of old Scooby Doo comics is worth WAY more than it’s dirt cheap price! This massive pic-spam of a review didn’t even scratch the surface of all the funny and/or weird stuff contained in this CD-rom! Head to Amazon and buy it now! Even if you’re not a Scooby fan, all the old ads and the non-Scooby comics that occasionally pop up are fun to read. And reading it feels a bit like picking up a time capsule.
It's available at Amazon.com for only $2.99. And it's an absolute steal at that price! Go get it now!
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no subject
Date: 2011-02-27 03:21 am (UTC)Seriously those made me laugh, thank you
(no subject)
From:no subject
Date: 2011-02-27 05:22 am (UTC)(no subject)
From:no subject
Date: 2011-02-27 10:57 am (UTC)I had at least half of those toys, AND the Snoopy toothbrush. B JELUS!