Big Top Scooby-Doo! Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.0

Big Top Scooby-Doo! Blu-ray Movie Review

Full moon troubles? Jinkies!

The eighteenth Scooby-Doo! original animated movie has a rip-roaring good time in eighty blazin' minutes, and lives up to the historically up-and-down series' newly restored reputation. It's certainly better than the Tom and Jerry duds being cranked out by the dozen. The Scooby-Doo! team really seems to get the appeal of the Mystery Inc. gang and to understand exactly what makes the shows and movies click. Between a solid mystery involving a pack of werewolves terrorizing a circus, terrific chemistry between the voice cast members, an entertaining script, and a number of classic, laugh-out-loud gags, Big Top Scooby-Doo! delivers on its promises. No, the jokes don't always connect. No, the villain isn't all that hard to unmask from your couch early in the mystery. And no, Big Top isn't exactly the greatest Scooby show on Earth. But it doesn't balk or back down either. When a joke falls flat, another is already waiting in the wings. When the premise wears thin, a few jabs at the franchise's familiar tropes provide some deep belly laughs. When the third act devolves into one long chase scene, clever twists and turns keep things fresh. Obviously, young viewers will enjoy Big Top the most, but don't count yourself out. Adults are allowed to enjoy a good cartoon too. You don't even have to apologize for it.

Big Top Scooby-Doo! Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

As is par for the Scooby-Doo! direct-to-Blu course, Big Top Scooby-Doo! is backed by a vibrant 1080p/AVC-encoded video presentation that's more than prepared for the AV task at hand. Colors are bright and punchy, primaries go big and never go home, black levels are rich and inky, and contrast is a stunner. Detail delivers too, with clean, sharp-as-a-tightrope edge definition and precisely resolved background textures. Sadly, those same backgrounds are prone to all too frequent banding and stair-stepping. It all traces back to the digitally animated source -- as is the case with every Doo movie that suffers the same problem -- but it's a distraction nonetheless. Thankfully, the rest of the presentation is striking enough to make up for the banding that appears, and the Mystery Inc. gang rarely suffer its wrath.

Big Top Scooby-Doo! Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Warner's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track is a light, fun-filled circus all its own, with plenty of tricks up its sleeve and surprises in its bag. LFE output isn't subtle, but it is eager to please, with plenty of low-end oomph devoted to Scoob and Shaggy's shenanigans. (Say that one five times fast.) The rear speakers are bursting with activity too, even though directional effects shoot wide and cross-channel pans are a tad heavy-handed. Better still, dynamics are strong for a direct-to-video animated production, the soundfield is quite involving (despite some front-heavy stretches), and dialogue is clean, clear and perfectly centered. All told, I don't really have any serious complaints or disappointment to report.

Big Top Scooby-Doo! Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The only extras to be had are three circus-centric episodes of Scooby-Doo!: "Bedlam in the Big Top," "The Ghouliest Show on Earth" and "Menace of the Manticore."

Big Top Scooby-Doo! Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Big Top Scooby-Doo! is the best of the recent Scooby-Doo! direct-to-video original animated movies, but it is a whole lotta fun, so long as you're willing to forgive its hit-or-miss humor and pop culture references. Warner's Blu-ray release is an even more reliable blast, with a show-stopping video presentation and a choice DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track. Like its predecessors, it lacks notable special features, but fans should be accustomed to such oversights by now. Ultimately, if you love Scooby-Doo!, you'll dig the gang's Big Top adventure. Enjoy.