'Scooby Doo and Guess Who' "A Fashion Nightmare" (2020)
Opening thoughts: My opinion of "A Fashion Nightmare" was a very high one, especially for Tim Gunn, the setting and the villain. It wasn't one of my favourite 'Scooby Doo and Guess Who' episodes on first watch, but it was one of the better faring ones of the first half of Season 2 (which on the whole was better and a lot more settled than the first). The Scooby Doo franchise visited the fashion world quite a number of times, and more often than not did it very well and never did it feel tired.
It certainly didn't feel tired here in "A Fashion Nightmare". To me, it is one of the better fashion-set Scooby Doo episodes. My very high opinion of it on first watch continued to be very high on later re-watches and is still a very good episode indeed. Actually like it even better now, due to finding more to like and noticing more things that actually made "A Fashion Nightmare" even more fun to watch and even easier to appreciate. Not quite one of my favourites of the show, but actually not too far off.
Bad things: There really actually is very little to criticise. The pacing of the mystery is a bit uneven, with a tendency to feel a little rushed later.
Good things: Otherwise, "A Fashion Nightmare" is very, very good and a long way from a nightmare. The setting is wonderfully colourful and also with a lot of atmosphere, the fashion is far from wasted. The villain is one of Season 2's creepiest and most uniquely designed and the reveal was surprising and didn't come over as confusing or too easy to figure out.
Gunn was clearly having fun in the guest star role and has great witty chemistry with the gang (all on top form, especially Shaggy and Scooby as endearingly goofy and funny as ever). He is also not underused and neither does he dominate too much, having seen both extremes in Season 1. There is some smart, genuinely funny humour that felt like the franchise returning to its classic roots while staying fresh with the modern spin. Loved the reference to Shaggy's red shirt that he wore in the 80s incarnations, and the final trap is one of the funniest and cleverest of the entire franchise in my view.
Furthermore, the animation has a lot of atmosphere, rich colour and even richer attention to detail. The music is dynamic and groovy, also loved the modern spin on the iconic classic theme tune for 'Scooby Doo Where are You', although it is too short. A vast majority of the voice acting is very good (excepting Kate Miccucci being too abrasive as Velma), with Matthew Lillard nailing it as Shaggy.
Concluding thoughts: Very good episode all in all.
8/10.
Opening thoughts: My opinion of "A Fashion Nightmare" was a very high one, especially for Tim Gunn, the setting and the villain. It wasn't one of my favourite 'Scooby Doo and Guess Who' episodes on first watch, but it was one of the better faring ones of the first half of Season 2 (which on the whole was better and a lot more settled than the first). The Scooby Doo franchise visited the fashion world quite a number of times, and more often than not did it very well and never did it feel tired.
It certainly didn't feel tired here in "A Fashion Nightmare". To me, it is one of the better fashion-set Scooby Doo episodes. My very high opinion of it on first watch continued to be very high on later re-watches and is still a very good episode indeed. Actually like it even better now, due to finding more to like and noticing more things that actually made "A Fashion Nightmare" even more fun to watch and even easier to appreciate. Not quite one of my favourites of the show, but actually not too far off.
Bad things: There really actually is very little to criticise. The pacing of the mystery is a bit uneven, with a tendency to feel a little rushed later.
Good things: Otherwise, "A Fashion Nightmare" is very, very good and a long way from a nightmare. The setting is wonderfully colourful and also with a lot of atmosphere, the fashion is far from wasted. The villain is one of Season 2's creepiest and most uniquely designed and the reveal was surprising and didn't come over as confusing or too easy to figure out.
Gunn was clearly having fun in the guest star role and has great witty chemistry with the gang (all on top form, especially Shaggy and Scooby as endearingly goofy and funny as ever). He is also not underused and neither does he dominate too much, having seen both extremes in Season 1. There is some smart, genuinely funny humour that felt like the franchise returning to its classic roots while staying fresh with the modern spin. Loved the reference to Shaggy's red shirt that he wore in the 80s incarnations, and the final trap is one of the funniest and cleverest of the entire franchise in my view.
Furthermore, the animation has a lot of atmosphere, rich colour and even richer attention to detail. The music is dynamic and groovy, also loved the modern spin on the iconic classic theme tune for 'Scooby Doo Where are You', although it is too short. A vast majority of the voice acting is very good (excepting Kate Miccucci being too abrasive as Velma), with Matthew Lillard nailing it as Shaggy.
Concluding thoughts: Very good episode all in all.
8/10.
