Review: Scooby-Doo Mystery Mates: Scooby and Shaggy

Lindsay and I don't see eye-to-eye when it comes to Scooby-Doo.  She's bothered by the property, because if you go back and watch pretty much any episode in the history of the series, it's cheesy, kind of stupid, and boring.  And, on top of that, rather than aging gracefully, Scooby-Doo has just kept churning out crappy attempts to relaunch or revitalize the franchise over the years, including numerous made-for-TV animated movies.

My thoughts on Scooby-Doo are a little different.  See... uh... give me a second.  Why do I keep defending this again?

Oh, yeah.  Scooby-Doo, the series may not hold up.  And I hear the movies aren't much to celebrate.  But Scooby-Doo the memory still makes me grin.  I remember liking the show when I was younger.  I don't remember why, but that's beside the point.
 

Anyway, I stumbled across a bunch of Super Hero Squad sized figures in the void between the toddler and pink sections in Toys R Us.  Hey, knowing your local toy store means venturing out of the action figure section from time to time.

And I'm glad I did.  These are really neat figures going for a reasonable price.  They're produced by Charter, Ltd. (a subsidiary of Character Options Ltd), whatever that means, and marketed towards children who probably care far less about Scooby-Doo than their parents.

Appearance and Construction: 7/10

The simplest description is good sculpts, weak paint.  Overall, Scooby is better than Shaggy, since the brown plastic does a better job emulating the look of the show.  In addition, Shaggy's whiskers clash with the rest of his face.

Both characters suffer from some imperfections where they came out of the molds.  Scooby's issues are more serious: there are some obvious and intrusive marks on both sides of his neck.  They're also stamped with the company's name, in black ink on their backs.

While Shaggy's skin could use some paint, I do like the coloring on his clothes, hair, and stack of burgers, all of which are vibrant and visually interesting.  I also like Scooby's magnifying glass, collar, and spots.

While I love Shaggy's pose, I'm torn on Scooby's.  On one hand, it's dynamic and well designed.  On the other, pointing him towards the ground means you really need to put the figure at eye level or higher to have it stand out.

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Packaging and Extras: ----

The packaging is more or less the same as what you get with similar offerings from Mattel and Hasbro.  Charter Ltd. clearly intends these to mirror the Super Hero Squad and Action League figures, and they've packaged them accordingly.  If Toys R Us had followed suit with their placement in the store, they'd probably sell more figures.

The back of the package contains pictures of the whole line.  Honestly, there are quite a few figures there I'd like to have.  Unfortunately, the fact they're stuffed in arbitrary two-packs makes me disinclined to rush out and start buying them.  The Scooby/Shaggy pack is the only one that's straightforward: the others are all kind of jumbled.

Play and Display: ----

Unlike the competition (Super Hero Squad, Action League, BPRD Buddies, etc.), there's not a single articulated joint between the two of them.  While I'd have liked to get some articulation, I don't really require it at this scale: so long as the figures can stand, I'm happy.  Still, it's a little disappointing they didn't make Scooby's legs move.

These are, fundamentally, very small statues.  Their biggest merit in this section is that they're more or less in scale with other toys, giving you some cool display options on the shelf.

Price Tag and Final Analysis: 7/10

These guys retail for $4.49 in the Times Square Toys R Us.  If you live outside a major city, you'll probably find them even cheaper.  Considering I'm used to paying $7 - $10 for a two-pack of figures in this scale, these feel like a pretty good deal.

That said, these aren't up to par with the articulated and better painted toys they're competing with.  Still, this price feels fair to me, though I wish they were sorted differently.

I do like having these with my other figures.  There's something great about Scooby and Shaggy on the trail of Hellboy or Ghost Rider.  Not sure what they'll do when they catch up, though.  Maybe Shaggy just wants those burgers warmed up.

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So.  Here we are.  You've finished reading the review, and you've got nothing to entertain you.  I, meanwhile, have some fiction and a movie/geek culture blog I want more people to check out.