Scooby-Doo! & Kiss: Rock & Roll Mystery

Content: Super-Awesome. Other than 1 or 2 of the McFarlane action figures and a handful of the McFarlane comic books, I really have never owned any of KISS’s stuff. I neither loved nor hated their music, but admired their merchandising strategy and as someone who spent the 90′s working in a Heavy Metal record store, we made sure to order every crazy KISS item we could.But after watching this movie it is hard to not be a KISS fan. I found myself singing Rock N Roll All Night while cutting open the packaging. KISS songs are peppered throughout the movie and they all sound great. The cartoon versions of the band are thinner and younger than their real-life counterparts and possess super-powers. Everything the band does in this movie is mind-blowingly cool.The Scooby Doo end of this movie is spot on and done to perfection. And when Shaggy and Scooby take The Demon’s advice, I cheered very loud because it was super-cool. Fred and Daphne have some great stuff with 2 love triangles involving The Star Child and the scientist lady that makes Fred pull out his creepy evil smile at one point. Velma gets some one-on-one time with The Spaceman as she grips tightly to hold on to her skepticism.Only having read a few of the Psycho Circus comics, I am not sure what lore other comics created for KISS, but this movie expands the mythos surrounding the band in exciting, imaginative and fairly logical ways. The titles of Songs, Albums and more take on deeper meanings. The movie keeps pushing the boundaries on what you could possibly expect from it.Bruce Kulick did tweet a post about how this movie does give a shout out to past members of KISS. There is a screenshot and if you are familiar with the lore of KISS, it is right there.Special Features: Good. KISS Cut-Ups is just out takes of KISS doing some promotion for this movie. The finished version of which is not on this release. These bloopers are not really funny.Are You A Scooby or a Shaggy? is KISS, Abby from NCIS and Jay & Silent Bob saying if they relate more to Scooby or Shaggy. Points to Thayer for his out of the box answer, even if he can’t land on the exact name.Trailers: Nothing new. Opens with Legos: DC Heroes: Attack of the Legion of Doom. (first seen on Tom & Jerry vs Jonny Quest) and Tom & Jerry vs Jonny Quest. In the Special Features section trailers for Scooby Doo vs WWE and Lego Dimensions which may be a video game, but the trailer features Joel McHale. (Amazon has 2 different trailers, one feat. Christopher Lloyd as Doc Brown.) (BTW DC Lego movies have more action and less dumb comedy than Star Wars Lego movies.)Blu Ray special features also include 2 episodes from the 3rd season of Scooby Doo Where Are You (Part of the Scooby Doo/Dynomutt Hour) S03E04 To Switch A Witch and S03E11 The Diabolical Disc Demon.Buy/Don’t Buy: Yes. Buy. This movie does not disappoint in any way. I want more. This is a great format for KISS. Our passport to the KISS realm is the Scooby gang so KISS gets to be mysterious. I would love it if Warner Animation created a Hanna Barbera-style cartoon series for Cartoon Network with a group of Mystery Solving Teens who summon KISS whenever they find themselves in trouble. Like the Godzilla Power Hour with the trouble alert.

This film has everything that we love about a classic Scooby Doo mystery and seamlessly marries it with a totally rockin' KISS adventure! Right from the start we have design maverick, Robert Valley's eye popping opening credits which are playfully punctuated by title cards featuring graphics by Michael Doret, the original graphic designer of KISS's Rock and Roll Over. In fact, fans of the band will be blown away by how many homages there are to their unique and unparalleled brand of showmanship, design iconography and innovative self promotion.Producer/Director, Tony Cervone has taken Demon, Starchild, Catman and Spaceman and made wonderfully compelling, bigger than life characters that fit surprisingly well in the world of Scooby Doo. That said, these are more than just hand drawn renditions of the real band members. The film gives them a rich and complex backstory that begs for either a sequel or even better, their own spin-off series.That said, Scooby and the gang aren't playing second fiddle here. Though never losing sight of their classic relationships, the filmmakers give the foursome some fresh dynamics. Fred's jealousy of Daphne's school girl crush on Starchild offers a fun riff on classic teen romance and veteran voice talent Grey Griffen imbues Daphne's flirtation with just the right amount of girlish enthusiasm and feminine wile.There are also some notable guest stars including Kevin Smith and Jason Mewes, Jennifer Carpenter, Gary Marshall and Pauley Perette, but for me, the biggest surprise came when the Elder speaks with the voice of Penny Marshall. I didn't think there could be more bridges to the nostalgia of my youth but these filmmakers have made a Scooby movie that never ceases to amaze. Definitely check it out!!!

The digital version expired in 2018 which was the primary reason I purchased this version instead of the DVD version. I believe that should be removed from the format offers, just an fyi. Just a gripe that has nothing to do with Amazon, but I think if you buy the digital version of something it should not expire.

Scooby-Doo! & KISS: Rock & Roll Mystery is an awesome feature for both kids, parents, and older brothers who grew up with both. I grew up on Scooby-Doo cartoons, like everyone my age did as a kid, and to this day still watch the adventures of Mystery Inc. when I can. I also grew up on KISS as my Dad was a huge KISS fan back in the day. My first concert was KISS in 2004 and in 2009 my Dad, brother, cousin, and I got to meet them before my second big concert. Scooby-Doo and KISS have always been in my life.The Rock & Roll Mystery film is fun, entertaining, engaging, and just plain silly, but with enough "in-jokes" on both the Scooby and KISS side of things for parents and kids to be laughing along with the film. Plus, the music numbers are absolutely fantastic. I actually got this film on Blu-Ray because I was so excited about it's release, and boy was I not disappointed!I actually watched it with my Dad, longtime KISS fan, and my younger sister, longtime Scooby-Doo fan, and we all had a good time for a little over an hour on one summer afternoon. Definitely worth a watch, and the Blu-Ray/DVD Combo Set was great too with extra Scooby-Doo episodes as well as bonus material!Repent and believe in the Gospel, for it is the power to save for those who believe.

I loved this movie. I grew up on Scooby Doo and the original series was still the best in my opinion. This movie does a great job trying to capture all the fun from those original cartoons. The same set ups, Shaggy and Scooby becoming the bait, and lots of nods to the classic show. However, you have to be a Kiss fan to really enjoy this. The mystery and general plot is a nod to the cheesy movie Kiss Meets The Phantom of the Park. I love Kiss and enjoyed that movie as a kid so this new movie is all the things I loved rolled up in one. Is it over the top? Absolutely. There is a mystery to solve but you also get a wacky sci-fi and fantasy plot as well. The last few Scooby Doo movies have already incorporated plots like this before (ie the monsters and magic are real). That's here too. But it works. Kiss, like in their old movie, are super heroes in a sense. But it's a cartoon and it works. I won't give the rest away, but if you're willing to suspend some disbelief, (hey there's a talking dog after all), and view it as a kid or a kid at heart, I think you'll have a good time. There are three or four classic Kiss songs used in the chase scenes too. All in all, this was a blast!