The Gruesome Game of the Gator Ghoul

The Gruesome Game Of The Gator Ghoul is the third episode The Scooby-Doo/Dynomutt Hour, later repackaged as the third episode in the first season of The Scooby-Doo Show. It marks the first appearance of Scooby-Dum.

Premise
The gang is on their way to see Scooby-Dum, Scooby-Doo's cousin. They learn that his owners Ma and Pa Skillett used to be in the business of making a special drink called Fenokee Fizz, but business has been terrible because of a strange alligator creature haunting the swamps where they live.

Synopsis
Scooby, Shaggy, Fred, Velma and Daphne are driving into the swampy south to visit Ma and Pa Skillett, along with Scooby Doo's cousin, Scooby Dum. Ma and Pa Skillett own a showboat restaurant featuring a special drink called Fenokee Fizz. On the way, they are stalked by a strange, bipedal alligator creature that flashes yellow beams from its eyes. Scooby and the gang arrive at the showboat and meet Scooby's cousin, Scooby Dum. They also meet Ma and Pa Skillett, who tell the gang about the gator ghoul and how it has been scaring their customers and ruining their business. The old couple shows the gang to the machinery room where the gang starts looking for clues. In the process, they run into the gator ghoul who chases them briefly. Scooby Dum accidentally turns on the soda machine and the machine overflows with soda, fending off the alligator monster.

Shortly afterwards, the gang meets the Skillet's dishwasher and handyman, Simon, who is not very considerate. Mystery Inc. also meets the maid, Alice Dovely, who is a sweet and caring lady. The gang goes to search for clues, and suspicious of Simon's behavior, decide to search his empty cabin. All they find is a magazine titled Legend of the Swamp with a similar looking gator ghoul on the front cover. The gang splits up and searches the showboat, and Shaggy, Scooby Doo and Scooby Dum get into an altercation with the gator ghoul and they are chased out onto the water wheel. Scooby Dum unintentionally saves them and in the process finds a clue. It is an alligator suit with a motor inside. A label on the outside of the costume reveals that the costume is property of Beauregarde Film Company and the gang deduces the costume was made for a movie in this location a while ago.

Velma remembers they shot most of the movie inside an old shack in the swamp and the gang checks it out. Inside they find a piece of stationary from a rival soda company, Kookie Cola. They also find shredded pieces of paper, and the gang manages to piece together some of the paper, but it is still not understandable. The gang plans a trap. They spread sticky fritter batter along the floor and Scooby Dum, Shaggy and Scooby Doo cover themselves in flour so they won't stick to the batter, then they will lead the alligator to the batter and we will get stuck. Shaggy, Scooby and Scooby Dum walk around the showboat, eventually running into the Gator Ghoul. Shaggy, Scooby and Scooby Dum are chased into the kitchen, where the plan works sticking the Gator Ghoul right in his tracks.

Before unmasking the ghoul, Velma has put the shredded note completely together and now it reads: "Notice of termination from Kookie Cola Company to Alice Dovely." The gator is unmasked as Alice Dovely. Velma and Daphne explain that Alice used to work at Kookie Kola but she got fired, hence the notice of termination the gang found. Alice had confidential information that the owner of Kookie Kola was going to buy Fenokee Fizz. So she decided to ruin Kookie Cola and get revenge for them firing her, so she decided to ruin Ma and Pa Skillet's business, own Fenokee Fizz and sell it to Kookie Kola for a fortune. The beaming yellow eyes were powered with flashlight batteries, and Alice used the head from the alligator costume the film company left behind as part of her get-up. She was persumbly taken into custody and that was another mystery solved.

Villains

 * Gator Ghoul/Alice Dovely

Locations

 * Hokeyfenokee Swamp
 * Skillett Showboat
 * Swamp Shack
 * Simon Stingy's cabin

Notes/trivia

 * This is the first appearance of Scooby-Dum.
 * "Hokeyfenokee" is obviously a parody of "Okefenokee", a real wetland located on the Georgia-Florida border.
 * "Kookie Kola" is an obvious parody of "Coca-Cola".
 * A cyber version of the Gator Ghoul appears in Scooby-Doo and the Cyber Chase.

Animation mistakes/technical glitches

 * When Velma discovered the torn up pieces of paper, they were pretty small. But when they were put together, some of the pieces were much bigger.

Home media

 * The Scooby-Doo!/Dynomutt Hour: The Complete Series DVD set March 7, 2006.