"Scooby-Dooby-Doo!!!"

Now here is a line of toys I totally missed when they came out in the early 2000's. I remember seeing Scooby and all his pals and villains at Toys R Us and everywhere else and wondering why I would never buy them. They were great figures and the sculpts were incredible for an animated line at the time. But, I was too busy with my Playmates Simpsons collection and my Toy Biz Lord of the Rings figures, so I didn't have any time for Shaggy or Daphne or Velma. Anyways, years later I run into a friend of mine who also happens to be a huge toy nerd himself and we reminisce about the old Scooby Doo line by Equity Marketing and he opens a whole new toy world for me. Come to find out...this line is alive and well in the UK and has now been taken over and revamped by the great toy company Character Options. They went crazy and made a Mystery Mansion Playset and extra villains for Scooby and the gang to fight! How could I resist??? I mean I love this cartoon and I am a sucker for any good toy line with a playset. So...here we are... hundreds of dollars later and half way into my Scooby Doo Collection.

So here is a peek at my new obsession......Scooby-Dooby-Doo!!!

The Mystery Mansion Playset

This is a UK Exclusive and very difficult to come by in the States. Be prepared for a hefty shipping charge when you look for this baby on Ebay. At 1st glance the playset is spectacular. A perfect scary mansion that looks just like all of the ones from Scooby Doo that I remember.

In the classic fashion, the playset opens up to reveal a detailed interior with many play features. Another great job by Character Options.

Now on second glance....hmm...wait a minute....the Mansion seems to be a tad too small for the figures to fit comfortably in. Oh...CRAP!! This playset is about an inch too small on all sides. Don't get me wrong...the figures look great in it....but they don't really fit upstairs, except for Velma. Also, the playset is fairly delicate. I wouldn't let my 4 year old nephew get a hold of this. It is fantastic for display, but not so great for kids. The action features are well sculpted and look great, but are a bit lame and dated for such a promising toy company.

The figures from the UK are not as articulated as their American cousins, but are perfectly sculpted and add great depth to this collection.

Next up for me...

The Mystery Machine. Man is that thing collectable and expensive.