"The Ghouliest Show on Earth" was not a standout episode of 'The 13 Ghosts of Scooby Doo' (which to me has always been an interesting change of pace and much better than given credit for) on first watch and didn't stick in the mind as much as other storylines conceptually. Still quite liked it though on first watch, thanks to the villain, the setting and the ending, despite not always being excited by the story and disliking Flim Flam.
Although not one of the best episodes of 'The 13 Ghosts of Scooby Doo', "The Ghouliest Show on Earth" is not a bad episode at all (the opposite) and is one of the ones that fares better as a young adult than a child that had just reached double digits. Of the second half of the show, so after "A Spooky Little Ghoul Like You", it is one of the better episodes and third behind "It's a Wonderful Scoob" and "Scooby in Kwackyland". That's saying a good deal as the other three comprising the inferior second half have always left me a little cold.
Will get the not so good things out of the way. Have never for Flim Flam as a character, apart from two episodes where they toned him down, and "The Ghouliest Show on Earth" does nothing to change my mind. In fact it reinforces it. He is very annoying here, not cute or funny and actually more bratty than usual. His conning and befriending of supporting characters always came over as over-arrogant and too pushy, and this is the worst case (except Professor Phantasmo handles it a lot better than most ghosts, namely because he has those traits too but unlike Flim Flam they are not exaggerated).
Bogol and Weerd struck me as completely unnecessary for most of the episode, and only in the final third do they contribute to the plot (except thankfully they don't bungle things as much). The episode is slightly draggy too going into the final third and the train carnage scene while well animated and well choreographed goes on for a little too long.
However, "The Ghouliest Show on Earth" has so much done right. The animation is well done, inside the truly freaky true forms of the circus people and the character animation of Phantasmo in the climax (which creeped me out as a child and still has that vibe). The music is also well used and firs the atmosphere very well, one won't look at calliope music in the same way again after hearing the purposefully hypnotic but also quite unsettling calliope theme, especially when it is revealed what its purpose is. The theme tune and titles sequence are still memorable and have never grated..
Furthermore, the voice acting is on point. Vincent Price was nearly always excellent throughout his career, and was born for voicing Vincent Van Ghoul, while Alan Oppenheimer was clearly having a ball as Phantasmo. A character that is charismatic and charming at first but very creepy and dangerous later when his true intentions are revealed. There is some nice dialogue throughout, especially between Phantasmo, Bogol and Weerd, Bogol acting on what he thinks is an instruction was one of his funnier moments. Shaggy and Scooby have some endearing and amusing comedy. The story is generally quite strong, with the highlights being when the truth is discovered in a very freaky scene and the creepy and entertaining climax. Phantasmo is also one of the better antagonists of the second half of the show.
Overall, good but not great. 7/10.
Although not one of the best episodes of 'The 13 Ghosts of Scooby Doo', "The Ghouliest Show on Earth" is not a bad episode at all (the opposite) and is one of the ones that fares better as a young adult than a child that had just reached double digits. Of the second half of the show, so after "A Spooky Little Ghoul Like You", it is one of the better episodes and third behind "It's a Wonderful Scoob" and "Scooby in Kwackyland". That's saying a good deal as the other three comprising the inferior second half have always left me a little cold.
Will get the not so good things out of the way. Have never for Flim Flam as a character, apart from two episodes where they toned him down, and "The Ghouliest Show on Earth" does nothing to change my mind. In fact it reinforces it. He is very annoying here, not cute or funny and actually more bratty than usual. His conning and befriending of supporting characters always came over as over-arrogant and too pushy, and this is the worst case (except Professor Phantasmo handles it a lot better than most ghosts, namely because he has those traits too but unlike Flim Flam they are not exaggerated).
Bogol and Weerd struck me as completely unnecessary for most of the episode, and only in the final third do they contribute to the plot (except thankfully they don't bungle things as much). The episode is slightly draggy too going into the final third and the train carnage scene while well animated and well choreographed goes on for a little too long.
However, "The Ghouliest Show on Earth" has so much done right. The animation is well done, inside the truly freaky true forms of the circus people and the character animation of Phantasmo in the climax (which creeped me out as a child and still has that vibe). The music is also well used and firs the atmosphere very well, one won't look at calliope music in the same way again after hearing the purposefully hypnotic but also quite unsettling calliope theme, especially when it is revealed what its purpose is. The theme tune and titles sequence are still memorable and have never grated..
Furthermore, the voice acting is on point. Vincent Price was nearly always excellent throughout his career, and was born for voicing Vincent Van Ghoul, while Alan Oppenheimer was clearly having a ball as Phantasmo. A character that is charismatic and charming at first but very creepy and dangerous later when his true intentions are revealed. There is some nice dialogue throughout, especially between Phantasmo, Bogol and Weerd, Bogol acting on what he thinks is an instruction was one of his funnier moments. Shaggy and Scooby have some endearing and amusing comedy. The story is generally quite strong, with the highlights being when the truth is discovered in a very freaky scene and the creepy and entertaining climax. Phantasmo is also one of the better antagonists of the second half of the show.
Overall, good but not great. 7/10.
