Scooby-Doo Where Are You!: Don't Fool with a Phantom (1970)

 

The original Scooby series ends on a very high note. 

In this episode the gang is on Johnny Sands' dance game show. However, when the show is interrupted by a wax phantom, the gang has another mystery on their hands.

Everything about this episode is simply wonderful. There is a wonderfully creepy atmosphere throughout this episode. There are tons of wonderfully spooky set pieces here that are so much fun. Mr. Grisby's house is the perfect example of this and a great example of what this franchise does best. It is creepy and atmospheric, but every creepy moment is offset by a cartoony gag. The wax museum is another wonderfully creepy environment. These great set pieces help make this an especially memorable episode. And once again these environments are helped by some truly wonderful background art and a great use of lighting. The wax phantom is also a wonderful Scooby villain. His design and voice are quite memorable, and he has a really creepy feel to him. The mystery is also very good here with some great twists and misdirection. The slapstick comedy here is also fantastic. 

The chase song here is Pretty Mary Sunlight. This song was written by Danny Janssen and George A. Robertson Jr. George A. Robertson also preforms the song. This song would later appear in an episode of The New Scooby-Doo Movies entitled The Phantom of the Country Music Hall (1972). In that episode special guest star country singer Jerry Reed sings the song. 

This marks the last episode of the original series, and it is a fantastic way to close this wonderful show. Appropriately this final episode aired on Halloween day of 1970.