Scooby-Doo and the Gourmet Ghost is a fun enough direct-to-video adventure from Mystery Inc. and even though the plot and culprit is as predictable as ever, still makes for a good way to spend an hour plus.
LEGO DC Comics Super Heroes: Aquaman: Rage of Atlantis is another fun entry in the direct-to-video line with a lot of the humor mostly working and some impressive animation for what it is.
Batman Ninja was certainly an interesting idea and the anime was generally great to look at, but inserting Batman and company into that world never quite worked and the finale was a bit too gonzo for my taste.
Scooby-Doo: Shaggy’s Showdown is one of the better animated movies I’ve seen from the series in quite a while, mainly because the last few didn’t do much for me especially the mash-up specials.
Scooby-Doo and WWE: Curse of the Speed Demon is a harmless film for the entire family though if you’re not into the WWE or its roster of superstars, there’s not much to appreciate considering seemingly half of the movie is devoted to them rather than Scooby and the gang.
LEGO DC Comics Super Heroes: Justice League: Cosmic Clash isn’t as good as its predecessors, and obviously a far cry from the LEGO feature films, but it’s a fun movie especially for younger viewers and at only 78-minutes (w/ credits), it at least flies by.
LEGO Super Heroes: Justice League: Attack of the Legion of Doom is another fun entry into the LEGO animated line with nice animation and good voice casting making for an all around entertaining flick serving as a good placeholder while we wait for LEGO Batman. The Blu-ray released by Warner Home Video offers solid video/audio transfers while the singular featurette is actually interesting.
As with Scooby-Doo, The Flintstones and WWE: Stone Age Smackdown is another way for the WWE to reach a new generation which is smart business but the end game for casual viewers is pretty weak, though again, not a fan of the original show anyway…
Scooby-Doo! Moon Monster Madness isn’t the strongest of the modern animated movie line but it still has some entertainment value and if you have kids, they’ll probably eat every bit of it up. The animation itself isn’t bad either and the voice casting once again is well done.
I actually found Scooby-Doo: Franken Creepy to be one of the better entries of the recent DTV movies. The animation is more or less the same but the humor is great, include some fun in-jokes and a strangely stylistic direction style seemingly inspired by Edgar Wright’s The World’s End (and a couple others that I can’t remember). The Blu-ray released by Warner Home Video has good video/audio transfers but, not surprisingly, the features are basically non-existent.
Scooby-Doo: Wrestle Mania Mystery isn’t the strongest or best outing of the recent array of Scooby adventures but it’s an enjoyable flick with more than a few laughs even if it’s an 80-minute promotional featurette on the WWE. The Blu-ray released by Warner provides for an adequate video, serviceable audio and a limited number of bonus materials.
Hanna-Barbera/Warner Animation has released another fun animated film with Scooby-Doo! Stage Fright. The story does have a “been there, done that” feel but the writers throw a loop in to keep the mystery going until the very end. The humor actually works most of the time and the side story of the Fred/Daphne relationship keeps their story moving forward.
Scooby-Doo!: Mask of the Blue Falcon is a wonderful entry into the long-running franchise. The voice casting is well done as always and the story for once holds at least a little mystery, albeit by the third act it’s pretty obvious who the culprit is. Unfortunately, the Blu-ray, while having nice video and audio transfers, is void of any substantive features.
Disney’s latest installment in the Tinker Bell Faries line, Secret of the Wings, is a nice little movie that the entire family can watch, though it is still geared towards younger children – and Disney fans of all ages. The Blu-ray set offers up solid audio/video transfers but falter in the features department.
Big Top Scooby-Doo is probably in the middle of the pack compared with the other recent direct-to-video Scooby releases. The voice talents are the highlights to go along with a story that at least didn’t telestrate who the villain(s) is/were. The Blu-ray has solid video/audio transfers but the features are disappointing with three episodes from previous “Scooby-Doo” television shows.
