Scooby Doo Where Are You: Complete Third Season [DVD] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]

This is probably one of the most confusing seasons of Scooby-Doo released for television, and now on DVD. And based on alot of mis-information associated with this product, it's even more confusing. If you are easily bored with history lessons, then skip this review.

The 1978-1979 Saturday morning TV season saw the premiere of 16 new Scooby-Doo episodes. The ABC Saturday morning TV schedule for September 1978 was as follows:

.....08:00-08:30 AM EST Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!
.....08:30-09:00 AM EST Fangface
.....09:00-10:00 AM EST Challenge of the Super Friends
.....10:00-11:30 AM EST Scooby's All-Stars
.....11:30-12:00 PM EST The All-New Pink Panther Show

These new Scooby-Doo episodes began airing under the Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! show at 8:00 AM EST, using the original 1969 opening credits, just with all new shows. Yes, really! The 90 minute Scooby's All-Stars show was composed of a half hour of new and repeat episodes of the Laff-a-Lympics, a half hour of new and repeat episodes of Captain Caveman and the Teen Angels, and a half hour of repeat ONLY episodes of Scooby-Doo from the previous 1976-1977 and 1977-1978 seasons.

After only 9 weeks, the popular Challenge of the Super Friends show was expanded from 60 minutes to 90 minutes, adding an extra half hour of repeats from their 1977-1978 season. Thus, ABC shuffled it's Saturday morning TV schedule as follows:

.....08:00-09:30 AM EST Scooby's All-Stars
.....09:30-11:00 AM EST Challenge of the Super Friends
.....11:00-11:30 AM EST Fangface
.....11:30-12:00 PM EST The All-New Pink Panther Show

The remaining 7 new Scooby-Doo episodes then began airing during the half hour Scooby-Doo portion of the 90 minute Scooby's All-Stars show. This remained the status quo, and all 16 new Scooby-Doo episodes from this season were then repeated throughout the remainder of the season as part of Scooby's All-Stars.

What confuses everyone is that the 16 new episodes from this season, PLUS the 16 Scooby-Doo episodes from the 1976-1977 season of The Scooby-Doo/Dynomutt Hour, PLUS the 8 Scooby-Doo episodes from the 1977-1978 season of Scooby's All-Star Laff-a-Lympics (16 + 8 + 16 = 40 episodes in total) were re-packaged together as "The Scooby-Doo Show" for syndication repeats starting in 1980. So most folks only know these episodes from the syndication repeats airing on cable networks like Cartoon Network or Boomerang, and NOT from their original airings. It was NEVER called "The Scooby-Doo Show" during any of the original ABC Saturday morning airings.

Unfortunately, the DVD set is named and advertised as if it's the original airings of these 16 episodes. But they are NOT! The DVD set has the syndicated re-packaged versions with "The Scooby-Doo Show" opening and closing credits, and NOT the original Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! or Scooby's All-Stars opening and closing credits as they originally aired.

So, whether you think of these episodes as Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! Season 3, Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!: The Lost Episodes, Scooby's All-Stars, or even "The Scooby-Doo Show" Season 3, it is the COMPLETE, yes, COMPLETE 1978-1979 Saturday morning season of Scooby-Doo with the same 16 episodes, just with the syndicated re-packaged opening and closing credits. There are no missing episodes from this season set. If you are a fan of this late 70's era of Scooby-Doo, (just before the coming of Scrappy-Doo), you will greatly enjoy the 16 episodes on this set.

My only fear now is that when they get around to releasing the Hanna-Barbera animated DVD sets of, oh say, The Adventures of Gulliver, or even The Atom Ant Show, we're going to get the syndicated re-packaged version from "The Banana Splits and Friends Show"....

Review Forward: I know much of this has already been said, but I leave it in for consolidation purposes...

This is actually the third season of "The Scooby Doo Show" which ran from 1976-1978. This is NOT Season 3 of "Scooby Doo, Where Are You?", the original Scooby Doo series which initially aired for two seasons in 1969 and 1970. There never was a season 3 of "Scooby Doo, Where Are You" in 1970 or 1971.

NOTE, however, that according to animation expert Earl Kress, these 1978 episodes were the unofficial "third season" of "Scooby Doo, Where Are You!" released MUCH later, and utilizing the Original Series' 1969 opening intro/title & credits. It supposedly aired as "Where Are You?" on the East Coast from September through December 1978 before being incorporated into the "Scooby's All-Stars" show. This 1978 broadcast was canceled after "Who Was That Cat Creature I Saw You With Last Night?", and the remaining seven third-season episodes were aired during the "Scooby's All-Stars" block and revamped to use "The Scooby Doo Show" title/intro & credits for its subsequent airings in syndication.

This Season 3 DVD uses "The Scooby Doo Show" intro which starts "He's got it all together for a brand new show, Scooby Doo is here and away we go".

TECHNICAL INFO:

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There are 2 discs in the box.

Disc 1 is a single-sided dual-layer disc utilizing approximately 6gb space.

Disc 2 is a double-sided "flipper" design with side A being single-layer and utilizing about 3.5gb space, and side B being dual-layer utilizing 6.7gb space.

Episodes:

DISC 1 -

1. Watch Out! The Willawaw! 9/9/78

2. A Creepy Tangle in the Bermuda Triangle 9/16/78

3. A Scary Night With a Snow Beast Fright 9/23/78

4. To Switch a Witch 9/30/78

5. The Tar Monster 10/7/78

6. A Highland Fling With a Monstrous Thing 10/14/78

DISC 2 Side A -

7. The Creepy Case Of Old Iron Face 10/21/78

8. Jeepers, It's the Jaguaro 10/28/78

9. Who Was That Cat Creature I Saw You With Last Night? 11/4/78

(a.k.a. Make A Beeline Away From That Feline)

10. The Creepy Creature of Vulture's Claw 11/11/78

11. The Diabolical Disc Demon 11/18/78

DISC 2 Side B -

12. Scooby's Chinese Fortune Kooky Caper 11/25/78

13. A Menace in Venice 12/2/78

14. Don't Go Near the Fortress of Fear 12/9/78

15. The Warlock of Wimbledon 12/16/78

16. The Beast is Awake in Bottomless Lake 12/23/78

Picture and Audio quality are good. Features were Ok but nothing to get too excited about.

We already have Season 1 & 2 of "Scooby Doo, Where Are You?", so hopefully Season 1 and Season 2 of "The Scooby Doo Show" (1976/1977) will be released too. That will round out the offerings nicely!

All right folks let's straighten this out once and for all. Season 3 of Scooby Doo, Where Are You will contain the final 16 episodes of SCOOBY DOO WHERE ARE YOU NOT THE SCOOBY-DYNOMUTT HOUR OR THAT SCOOBY OLYMPICS/ALL STAR SHOW THAT CAME OUT AFTER SEASON 3, NOR WILL IT CONTAIN ANY OF THE REMAINING 9 SCOOBY DOO MOVIES THAT WERE NOT ON THE GREATEST OF THE SCOOBY DOO MOVIES COLLECTION. Now that we got that straightened out, here's what you Scooby fans have to look forward to on season 3. Below is a list of eps. on the 2 disc in season 3. Personally, I think this season is just as good as the first 2. Excellent all around! Scooby Dooby Dooby Doo!!!!!

Update:Funny how someone(another reviewer) suddenly got the exact same episode list as I have listed here and is trying to take credit for it with a review that was not on there when I put my review up and somehow mysteriously got their review date stating it was before mine somehow. It was not on here when I reviewed this. I guess this person had a review up earlier and edited it like I'm doing now by adding this note. Be original people!

1. Watch Out! The Willawaw!
2. A Creepy Tangle in the Bermuda Triangle
3. A Scary Night With a Snow Beast Fright
4. To Switch a Witch
5. The Tar Monster
6. A Highland Fling With a Monstrous Thing
7. The Creepy Case Of Old Iron Face
8. Jeepers, It's the Jaguaro
9. Who Was That Cat Creature I Saw You With Last Night? (a.k.a. Make A Beeline Away From That Feline)
10. The Creepy Creature of Vulture's Claws
11. The Diabolical Disc Demon
12. Scooby's Chinese Fortune Kooky Caper
13. A Menace in Venice
14. Don't Go Near the Fortress of Fear
15. The Warlock of Wimbledon
16. The Beast is Awake in Bottomless Lake