Scooby-Doo! Pirates Ahoy!: Original Movie

Okay, I will completely admit that even as I approach the ripe, ol' age of 33, I've never let the little kid in me grow up. I'm still a huge Scooby fan who has every Scooby DVD out there and I still watch Scooby and the gang on a regular basis. So I was really stoked to hear that a new movie was coming out and scooped up a copy over the weekend.

Now that I've watched it, I can honestly say it's a pretty good Scooby flick, however adults who can't enjoy kid-friendly entertainment shouldn't apply. Pirates Ahoy sticks to the 'old' Scooby format of finding clues, setting traps and unmasking villains.

It was nice to see Fred's parents folded into the story line. Other than A Pup Named Scooby Doo, I don't ever remember seeing them in the regular shows. There aren't very many plot twists in Pirates Ahoy and the ones that do occur seem a little odd...like when the Billionaire with the Jet Pack lands on the ship...however none of them really detract from the story. Besides, you don't watch a Scooby cartoon expecting realism.

The movie is completely kid-friendly, no need to worry about adult themes, subjects, or even real monsters. If your little tyke loves Scooby, he/she will certainly love this film as well.

Scooby-Doo in Pirates Ahoy! is the silliest of the ten animated Scooby movies that I'm aware of since 1999. They're all pretty silly...deliberately...but they are usually quite entertaining--if not captivating--to children 3+...okay, and me too.

In an unofficial poll taken of my own kids ages 3 through 7, the results are in and Pirates is at the bottom. Here's the list, according to the experts, of the Scooby Doo animated movies that we...I mean...THEY liked the best:

1-Scooby-Doo and the Witch's Ghost (1999)
2-Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island (1998)
3-Scooby-Doo and the Alien Invaders (2000)
4-Scooby-Doo and the Cyber Chase (2001)
5-Scooby-Doo and the Legend of the Vampire (2003)
6-Scooby-Doo and the Monster of Mexico (2003)
7-Aloha, Scooby-Doo (2005)
8-Scooby-Doo and the Loch Ness Monster (2004)
9-Scooby Doo in Where's My Mummy? (2005)
10-Scooby-Doo in Pirates Ahoy! (2006)

With the exceptions being switches of #1 & #2 and #7 & #8, the kids pretty much liked 'em best in the order that they came out. So let's hope that the pattern breaks in 2007! But for now, if your kids haven't seen any (or all) of the releases prior to Pirates, you might want to grab one to go along with, or in place of, this one.

Side note: Warner apparently got so many parent complaints about the first 4 films including "real monsters" (respectively: a real ghost, real zombies, real aliens and a computer virus that comes life) instead of villains in masks that starting in 2003 they abandoned the "real" idea.

I am 34 and still love watching Scooby Doo. I love this one. It is definetly a keeper. It was nice to see Freddie's parents. The mystery cruise was a good idea. Scoopy and Shaggy thought they were getting a vacation. Once again no-way. I recommend any Scooby Doo fan to buy this movie. It is one I will watch over and over again. The graphics are great and the story line is fun.