Remember The Funky Phantom?
Hanna-Barbera sure gave it their best shot in trying to capture the magic of Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!. Unfortunately, many of the shows they produced in an attempt to replicate Scooby's success ended up falling short, unable to match the charm of Scooby and the gang. Now, that's not to say that these shows aren't worth checking out. While they might come across as somewhat derivative, they could still provide a refreshing change of pace.
One of these "didn't quite make it" shows was The Funky Phantom. Much like Scooby-Doo, this show featured a group of teenagers – three this time instead of the usual four. There was Skip, April, and Augie, accompanied by their trusty canine companion, Elmo.
Just like Scooby-Doo, The Funky Phantom centered around the theme of solving mysteries. But there was a twist. While Scooby-Doo had the gang hunting down ghosts and consistently proving them to be fake, The Funky Phantom took a different route. The team enlisted the help of a ghost from the Revolutionary War era named Jonathan Wellington Muddlemore, also known as Muddy. And let's not forget his feline friend, Boo. These two spectral companions had been hiding within a clock to evade some not-so-friendly Redcoats, and they tragically met their end trapped inside that very clock. It's a pretty grim backstory if you ask me. Nevertheless, they managed to transcend their slow and haunting starvation to become friendly ghostly allies.
As the teenagers embarked on their mystery-solving adventures, Muddy and Boo were always there to lend a spectral hand. So, while the show has its merits, it's true that the intro might not pack the same punch as Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!. But hey, sometimes it's the journey itself that counts.
If you have exhausted your Scooby supply and are looking for a show of this era to supplement your spooky cartoon collection, The Funky Phantom is available on DVD. So why not check it out?
