Pick a random stranger off the street, and chances are they can name the characters of Scooby-Doo. Same goes for The Flintstones. The characters might not dominate the airwaves like they used to, but they are ingrained in popular culture to such an extent that they don't have to be on TV to remain popular.
At least, that's what DC Comics is banking on with its upcoming comic lineup of reimagined Hanna-Barbera cartoons. Announced today via Entertainment Weekly, new adventures of Scooby-Doo, Jonny Quest, The Flintstones and Wacky Races are all coming this May, with some serious talent behind each book.
The cream of the crop is DC Comics co-publisher and artist Jim Lee, who will be helping bring the new adventures of Scooby Doo to life with his artwork.
"I'm a huge Scooby-Doo fan, as I think most people are," Lee tells EW. "I mean, look at these iconic series and they were cultural touchstones for everyone. All my kids know of Scooby Doo from the various cartoons and live-action movies, and we're in a period where you have people my age that are spending their days thinking about cartoon and sci-fi action movies. It's a multigenerational obsession at this point, and we just thought it would just be really interesting to take the cartoon version of these characters and see where they would be if we took what existed in the very first iteration of the cartoon and moved it into this day and age."
So what would Scooby-Doo look like if it was created today? Shaggy, of course, is a hipster. Velma is a gamer. And it looks like Fred has a new tattoo. DC co-publisher Dan DiDio had this to say about the new take on classic characters:
"We didn't want to just repeat what people saw in the past," DiDio says. "It's really important for this to resonate with folks who have never even heard of the characters. If this is the first they're seeing it, we want them to be enjoying the material. So from our standpoint, our goal is to make this exciting and accessible to all generations, whether they're fans of the material and the characters or not."
Other creators coming to the Hanna-Barbera lineup include Jeff Parker (Aquaman), Howard Porter (Superman), Amanda Conner (Harley Quinn). Joining the comic book creators will be Mark Sexton, one of the designers from Mad Max: Fury Road. He'll be delivering his own take on Wacky Races in Wacky Raceland. Judging from the cover of the first issue, you can definitely see his handiwork.
If all goes according to plan, more Hanna-Barbera classics could get the comic book treatment. But for now, fans who remember the days of crowding in front of the television on Saturday morning will want to check out these comics when they arrive.
