Scooby Apocalypse by Keith Giffen, J.M. DeMatteis, and Howard Porter

Cover Art Courtesy of Goodreads

Jinkies, this comic is everything! What do you get when you mix gorgeous artwork with mystery, sci-fi, some meddling kids, and an adorable dog? Scooby Apocalypse!

Daphne and Fred are washed up TV has-beens. Velma is an advanced scientist at a top secret government research facility. Shaggy is a dog trainer at that same facility, responsible for the care and training of the genetically-enhanced dogs, including the failed experiment Scooby-Doo. After meeting by chance, they all have to team up to save the world from gene-changing nanites that threaten life as we know it before terrifying monsters destroy the human race.

I knew from the moment I first flipped through this bind up that I had to buy it, if just for the visuals alone. The artwork is absolutely stunning. The colors are more vivid than I've ever seen in a comic and the images just explode off the page. There is a ton of dialogue in this one compared to a lot of comics as well. 

I am absolutely a classic Scooby-Doo fan, but this comic takes some of the characters in a slightly different direction. Fred and Daphne have almost switched roles here. Daphne is strong, empowered, and fearless, with some very obvious anger issues. Fred is meeker and hangs on Daphne's every word, regularly professing his unreciprocated love for her. Velma is completely clueless about social norms and even more awkward than she is in the show, but she's still extremely intelligent. 

And Scooby and Shaggy, well they never change much do they? Except Scooby is now genetically modified and has killer fighting instincts that kick in when his friends are in danger. Their classic catch phrases still abound throughout the story even though some of their personality traits have changed. And of course Scrappy makes an appearance as well!

If you are a Scooby purist, I'm not sure that you would be happy with the character changes, but I still really loved the new spin they put on this.

Even though I've only read the first collected volume of this, I can tell that Scooby Apocalypse is something special. Can't wait to pick up more volumes and continue on this journey!

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars