My feelings as a child on "Scared a Lot in Camelot" were mostly positive, even if it was one of my most re-visited episodes at this point. The setting was effectively creepy, Shaggy and Scooby had not lost any of their fun or endearment, the mystery was fun and atmospheric and the villains were memorable (Merlin himself features prominently in the opening credits). The final solution came over to me as a child as quite clever, but also struck me as somewhat convoluted on the first few viewings.
Those mostly positive feelings on "Scared a Lot in Camelot" have held up. Actually like it more today as a young adult than as a child. While not everything works, things that weren't really that noticeable when younger, there are also things that work better now. It is still a lot of fun and creepy, the villains make more of an impression on me now, Shaggy and Scooby are still classic Shaggy and Scooby and the denoument has grown on me actually.
"Scared a Lot in Camelot" is not without faults in my view. Not all the animation is great, some of the facial expressions in particular look like they were drawn in a rush. Something that wasn't that noticeable to me when younger but, even as someone that doesn't try to nit-pick, is fairly glaring now.
Did think too that the episode slightly loses momentum towards the end, once Uncle Shagworthy is found the atmosphere dilutes a little bit and the mystery runs out of gas and descends into being chased around.
However, the castle (both interiors and exteriors) looks very atmospheric in a somewhat freaky way and is one of the show's most memorable locations. The Black Knight also looks cool, the backgrounds are lovingly detailed (especially the interiors of the castle) and there are some vibrant and unsettling-looking colours. The music doesn't jar tonally or stylistically, true in style to the original incarnation while with touches of its own. The theme song sticks in the head. The writing intrigues and contains a fair share of laugh out loud funny moments in an endearingly goofy way.
Moreover, the mystery is engrossing on the whole, it's not simplistic and the denouement is easier to understand now. There is a genuinely creepy atmosphere too in some parts without it being too dark, a prime example being the opening. The denouement is a very interesting and clever one, despite the motivation not being delved upon enough, and a lot less convoluted now due to paying more attention to the dialogue. The who aspect of it is not a surprise, this was a it could only have been them scenario, but the how things are done aspect is fairly creative. The Camelot roundtable ghosts was a nice touch as was the inventive and early 'Scooby Doo Where Are You'-like trap.
It is helped by that the villains are very strong ones. Merlin's impact is elevated by his booming intimidating voice, but the Black Knight made the bigger impression. A fine example of how to strike fear into people without uttering a word and his freakiness is not lost. There is some classic Shaggy and Scooby interaction and their chemistry with Merlin in the latter parts of the episode and their methods of trickery is great fun. The voice acting is fine, Casey Kasem and Don Messick have never been bettered as Shaggy and Scooby and John Stephenson, while very recognisable as he often voiced the villains in the original show and this incarnation at similar intonation, sounds effectively intimidating as Merlin.
Overall, very enjoyable. 8/10
Those mostly positive feelings on "Scared a Lot in Camelot" have held up. Actually like it more today as a young adult than as a child. While not everything works, things that weren't really that noticeable when younger, there are also things that work better now. It is still a lot of fun and creepy, the villains make more of an impression on me now, Shaggy and Scooby are still classic Shaggy and Scooby and the denoument has grown on me actually.
"Scared a Lot in Camelot" is not without faults in my view. Not all the animation is great, some of the facial expressions in particular look like they were drawn in a rush. Something that wasn't that noticeable to me when younger but, even as someone that doesn't try to nit-pick, is fairly glaring now.
Did think too that the episode slightly loses momentum towards the end, once Uncle Shagworthy is found the atmosphere dilutes a little bit and the mystery runs out of gas and descends into being chased around.
However, the castle (both interiors and exteriors) looks very atmospheric in a somewhat freaky way and is one of the show's most memorable locations. The Black Knight also looks cool, the backgrounds are lovingly detailed (especially the interiors of the castle) and there are some vibrant and unsettling-looking colours. The music doesn't jar tonally or stylistically, true in style to the original incarnation while with touches of its own. The theme song sticks in the head. The writing intrigues and contains a fair share of laugh out loud funny moments in an endearingly goofy way.
Moreover, the mystery is engrossing on the whole, it's not simplistic and the denouement is easier to understand now. There is a genuinely creepy atmosphere too in some parts without it being too dark, a prime example being the opening. The denouement is a very interesting and clever one, despite the motivation not being delved upon enough, and a lot less convoluted now due to paying more attention to the dialogue. The who aspect of it is not a surprise, this was a it could only have been them scenario, but the how things are done aspect is fairly creative. The Camelot roundtable ghosts was a nice touch as was the inventive and early 'Scooby Doo Where Are You'-like trap.
It is helped by that the villains are very strong ones. Merlin's impact is elevated by his booming intimidating voice, but the Black Knight made the bigger impression. A fine example of how to strike fear into people without uttering a word and his freakiness is not lost. There is some classic Shaggy and Scooby interaction and their chemistry with Merlin in the latter parts of the episode and their methods of trickery is great fun. The voice acting is fine, Casey Kasem and Don Messick have never been bettered as Shaggy and Scooby and John Stephenson, while very recognisable as he often voiced the villains in the original show and this incarnation at similar intonation, sounds effectively intimidating as Merlin.
Overall, very enjoyable. 8/10
