One very quiet night, I have the compulsive desire to revive this blog, as I get great joy from writing my little reviews. Another thought hit me at that exact moment: I need to rank every theme song from Scooby-Doo TV series that I know. When those two thoughts combined, I arrived here. This is by no means a definitive list; I believe there are a couple of series that I have skipped out on, but it is fairly close. Without further ado, I will provide my embarrassingly well-considered ranking of every single Scooby-Doo theme song, from worst to best.
12. Be Cool Scooby-Doo! (2015-2018)
While the programme itself certainly left a lot to be desired, the theme song is far more egregious than any of the content. Looking back, the show itself was fine (especially considering the embarrassment that is Velma). The theme song, however, feels incredibly lacklustre. It does not have the catchy lyrics of so many of its predecessors and totally fails to create any sense of what to expect. Ultimately, it just gives the feeling of a generic children’s programme, seriously missing the spooky or fun energy of other entries on this list.
11. Shaggy and Scooby-Doo Get a Clue! (2006-2008)
Right. Let me ask a question here. What the hell is this show about just based on the intro? If I were watching it for the first time, I would have no idea what the actual premise is. It does nothing to explain itself to new viewers, and it has nothing nostalgia fans could take comfort from. It’s not the format we’re used to and we can see that from the outset, but the theme song does nothing to explain what it actually is. Or maybe it does, I’m not sure, because the lyrics are so poorly enunciated I can’t get an idea of what the vocalist is meant to be saying.
10. The New Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo Show (1983)
Like all self-respecting Scooby-Doo fans, I don’t like Scrappy-Doo. He’s really blooming annoying. That is not, however, the reason I do not like this theme song. That is because it isn’t really anything. It’s not an ear-worm like so many of the other theme songs, and it’s not so bad that I enjoy complaining about it. A nothing theme song for a nothing show, in my opinion.
9. Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo (1979-1982)
Is anyone really all that surprised that I, a self-proclaimed Scrappy-Doo hater, does not rate the theme song from the original Scooby and Scrappy series? This theme song, once again, has nothing to it. I’m not excited to watch the show, I’m mostly just irritated at all the screen time being given to an overzealous puppy. It’s far to relaxed to be an opening to a fun little children’s mystery show, It gets ranked above the later series only because I like the train and the lightening at the beginning; it’s all downhill from there.
8. The New Scooby-Doo Mysteries (1984)
For a show intended for a young, contemporary audience, there is something about this theme song that feels extremely dated. As said by my friend El “it’s giving mum’s choir”. I can’t say I disagree. Like with many of these mid-tier theme songs, I’m not mad at it, I’m just extremely disappointed. There’s truly very little else to say.
7. A Pup Named Scooby-Doo (1988-1991)
Truthfully, the biggest problem with this theme song is that it is not some of the others that make up this list. It’s jolly, it’s sweet, but it’s simply not iconic enough to make it further up on the list. There’s also no real build to it, and even for a one minute theme song it feels just slightly too long.
6. The New Scooby-Doo Movies (1972-1973)
This is the theme song that starts to be what I want from a theme song. It has the sense of foreboding to begin with, those evil eyes on the purple background, then goes in to the fun, upbeat tune that we would expect. It’s a theme song that feels dynamic and interesting to listen to, and the title sequence is edited in a way that gives it real movement.
5. The 13 Ghosts of Scooby-Doo (1985)
This is one of the only theme songs on the list that is genuinely slightly creepy. That’s what a Vincent Price voiceover will do to you, I suppose. It has a very different vibe from so many of its predecessors, presumably because it is the first Scooby-Doo series to follow some kind of multi-episode arc. On the whole, it’s very good fun and really reflects a different kind of Scooby-Doo to what we have seen in the past.
4. Scooby-Doo: Mystery Incorporated (2010-2013)
Speaking of different kind of Scooby-Doo, this theme song is one that truly encompasses the vibe of the show. It demonstrates the older-child targeted audience of this particular series and the over-arching mystery elements. As a child, this was probably one of my earliest introductions to more complex storytelling, and the futuristic yet upbeat music encapsulates the darker aspects that would be seen in the series.
3. The Scooby-Doo Show (1976-1978)
Everything about this theme song is quintessentially classic Scooby-Doo. It demonstrates their recurring gags, it shows some of the fun and frightening monsters and those opening seconds just transport me straight back to being a child. I simply adore these opening titles, though that may be a little bit because this series is also one of my favourite iterations of the show. What can I say? I’m only human, and humans have our biases. This is mine.
2. Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! (1969-1978)
The opening titles to the original Scooby-Doo series are truly iconic. The spooky opening juxtaposed with the upbeat nature of the music is just so perfect in marrying the mystery and comedy elements of the programme. I also have to point out that so many of the monsters in this series I found genuinely frightening, and a few of them are featured in the title sequence. As a child, I found this incredibly frightening, but as an adult I am obsessed.
1. What’s New Scooby-Doo? (2002-2006)
Every single 2000s kid adores this iteration of Scooby-Doo (especially the theme song), myself included. The beginning of the titles mirrors that of the original series, with the spooky house and the bats, and it goes on to the coolest pop-punk vibes, courtesy of Simple Plan. I find these titles completely faultless: they’re fun; they give all the characters a little moment; the animation style is lovely to look at; and the music, as I have mentioned, is amazing to listen to. There’s nothing else I can say other than it absolutely slaps.
With that, my list is complete. If anybody asks what I have been doing with my time, I probably should not say that it was this, but I will anyway. I have spent far too much time on this one. Still, I hope you appreciate my efforts; if you disagree with any of my thoughts, please do let me know.
~ Caelum
Caelum Reviews 