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Dance of the Undead is the eighteenth episode of the second season of Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated, and the forty-fourth overall.
Premise[]
A ska group named Rude Boy and the Ska-Tastics come back from the dead and turn people into zombies and make them dance forever!
Synopsis[]
Krissy Kristy, a TV music news reporter, is broadcasting live from the spot where music group Rude Boy and the Ska-Tastics died in a plane crash 30 years prior. She began interviewing former Ska-Tastics' manager Ian Hope, prompting him to say that the band had been cursed to die in the plane crash. Not far into the interview, Rude Boy and the Ska-Tastics, back from the dead as zombies, attack them. Shaggy and Scooby, watching at home, freak out when they see the broadcast signal cut out during the attack.
The gang decide to investigate and go to Grooves from the Grave to search for information about the band. Shop owner Martha Quinn introduces them to the band's lone album and only hit song, "Graveyard Ska Inc." Martha used a slideshow about the band to explain that Rude Boy turned to voodoo magic to further his career: he would cast love spells on the audience, curse other bands, and even put an enchantment of never-ending pain on a synthesizer. More ominously, Martha states that Rude Boy always said that he'd eventually return from the grave.
Rude Boy and the Ska-Tastics attack the Tiki Tub and force everyone there to unwittingly dance to their new tune. The zombie band depart just as Sheriff Bronson Stone and his deputies arrive, but the victims cannot stop dancing and are transported to Crystal Cove Hospital. As the gang arrives at the hospital, Scooby decides to visit Nova again but is soon summoned over the intercom by Shaggy. Daphne identifies the victims' dancing as "skanking," which is the proper way to dance to ska music. One of the doctors informs the gang that if a cure can't be found and administered within 24 hours, all the victims will enter a permanent cataleptic state and become zombies.
The gang go to the cemetery where Rude Boy and the band were buried to look for clues. Shaggy accidentally falls into Rude Boy's grave, finding Ian Hope bound within. Shortly after, the gang and Hope are attacked the zombified band, who use dirt bikes to chase them across the graveyard and throughout town.
With the zombies out of sight, the gang return to Grooves from the Grave to speak with Ian, who insists the band has come back from the dead to make ska popular again. Martha recounts a similar occurrence of a dancing plague that happened in France in 1818, possibly caused by cursed music. Hearing ska music coming from outside, they all exit the store and discover that Rude Boy and the Ska-Tastics are performing on the City Hall roof. Despite their best efforts, Fred, Daphne, Velma, Ian, and Martha fall victim to the music and start dancing. Shaggy, who is tone deaf, and Scooby, who is a dog and can't hear music properly, are spared and seek out the Hex Girls. The pair don disguises to sneak onto a yacht where the Hex Girls are playing for a private party. They make contact with the Luna, Thorn, and Dusk, who agree to confront the Ska-Tactics in a magical-musical battle of the bands. Luna observes that only the "ultimate power chord" can repel the magic contained in the Ska-tastics song. The Hex Girls appear on a rooftop across from City Hall and begin playing their own song. Despite initially struggling against Rude Boy, the Hex Girls are victorious with Shaggy and Scooby's help.
Sheriff Stone arrests the zombies, and the gang quickly reveal that Rude Boy and the Ska-Tastics faked their own deaths. Rude Boy explained that they had intended to make a surprise comeback the year after their supposed deaths with a new hit, but writing the perfect song took far longer than they expected. By the time it was ready, ska's popularity had died out, so they decided to reappear as zombies and use an enharmonic chord with special frequencies in the music to make people dance.
At Shaggy's home, the Hex Girls discover musical notes on the Planispheric Disk, believing it to be a music score. Velma quickly points out that those notes weren't there before and that the Planispheric disk has changed. The Hex Girls hum the notes, causing the disk's pieces to spin; Velma holds a lamp up, reflecting another set of coordinates onto the floor. Fred insists the gang see where the coordinates lead them, though Scooby decides to go visit Nova again, instead. The coordinates lead Fred, Daphne, Velma, and Shaggy to the Clam Cabin, where they find Skipper Shelton wearing a peculiar helmet. Skipper reveals that he got the helmet in a trade with Handsome Jimmy and confirms that it says "S. Llave" on the bottom. Concluding that it means "Susan Llave" and that Velma must be its rightful owner, Shelton gives it to her and leaves. Velma quickly realizes that the helmet is the second key and the writing stands for Segundo Llave.
Meanwhile, Scooby is at the hospital talking with Nova when she appears to flatline, to Scooby's concern. Nova suddenly opens her eyes and sits straight up. "Nibiru," she says, "Nibiru is coming." She then collapses again.
Characters[]
Main characters:
Supporting characters:
- Ian Hope (only appearance)
- Martha Quinn (only appearance)
- Sheriff Bronson Stone
- Mayor Janet Nettles
- Hex Girls (final appearance)
Villains:
- Rude Boy and the Ska-Tastics (zombies) (only appearance)(Rude Boy and the Ska-Tastics' disguises)
- Rude Boy and the Ska-Tastics (only appearance)
- Rude Boy (only appearance)
Other characters:
- Krissy Kristy (only appearance)
- Scritti Politti (only appearance)(photograph)
- Trini Lee (final appearance)
- Crystal Cove citizen (Cass Elliot lookalike)
- Crystal Cove Community Center auctioneer
- Photographer
- Nova
- Skipper Shelton
- Handsome Jimmy (mentioned)
Locations[]
- Crystal Cove
- Strasbourg, France (picture)
Objects[]
Vehicles[]
Suspects[]
| Suspect | Motive/reason |
|---|---|
| Ian Hope | Although he was the manager of the Ska-Tastics, he was not with them in the plane when it crashed and he was very nervous when the gang talked with him about that. |
Culprits[]
| Culprit | Motive/reason |
|---|---|
| Rude Boy and the Ska-Tastics as the zombies | Turning the townspeople into "ska-zombies", forcing them to listen to their music and become famous again. |
Cast[]
Songs[]
| Song | Credits | Performed by |
|---|---|---|
| "Good Bad Girls" | Written and produced by Dave Wakeling | Kimberly Brooks, Jennifer Hale and Jane Wiedlin |
| "Yer Dead Right, Mate" | Dave Wakeling | |
| "Who Do Voodoo" | Written by Jane Wiedlin | Jane Wiedlin |
| "The Words Get Stuck in My Throat" | Written by H.B. Barnum Produced by Joey Levine |
Fran Southworth |
Continuity[]
- Shaggy and Scooby (and the rest of the gang) got to know the Hex Girls in In Fear of the Phantom.
- Nova was critically injured in the previous episode.
Notes/trivia[]
- This episode was aired in Latin America and Brazil on March 1, 2013.
- Fred announces the "previously on..." recap.
- HB News is also a news program in the regular continuity as shown in the DTV Scooby-Doo! Mask of the Blue Falcon.
- Shaggy gives Scooby's name as "Scoobert Dooby-Doo" over the hospital intercom, a reference to his original incarnation's mother frequently addressing him as Scoobert in the TV series A Pup Named Scooby-Doo.
- The Hex Girls wear the costumes their original counterparts did in the DTV Scooby-Doo! and the Witch's Ghost. This is explained as a retcon to the former incarnation's new outfits in In Fear of the Phantom technically being their second, with a public demand to go back their "original" ones. They also wear two other outfits: the second is skull-like outfits they wear to take on the zombified Rude Boy and the Ska-Tastics, and the last is more casual outfits; they also have different hairstyles for both.
- The music notes that the Planispheric Disk play that the Hex Girls also hum to is based on the series main title music.
- The Cass Elliot lookalike can be seen in the first dance mob scene on the right side.
- The song, "Who Do Voodoo", was originally sung by the Hex Girls in the direct-to-video movie Scooby-Doo! and the Legend of the Vampire.
- The two new songs in this episode, "Yer Dead Right, Mate" and "Good Bad Girls" were written by Dave Wakeling, the vocalist of the British band The Beat.
Miscellaneous[]
- Disguises: Shaggy and Scooby as belly dancers.
- "Zoinks" count: 2.
- "Jinkies" count: 1.
Cultural references[]
- While in the Grooves from the Grave, one can see albums looking strikingly like indie rock band Phoenix's album, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, and New Wave band Blondie's third album, Parallel Lines.
- The scooters the Ska-Tastics ride during the chase in the graveyard reference the culture of the mod revival where ska was a popular music genre.
- The way the Ska-tastics walk to the police car references British Band Madness' album cover for One Step Beyond...
- While in Shaggy's room, inspecting the coordinates from the Planispheric Disk, Fred can be seen holding a record that bears a close resemblance to The Clash's album, London Calling.
Animation mistakes and/or technical glitches[]
- Right before Velma, Daphne and Fred become dancing zombies, Scooby, as Velma tells him and Shaggy to save the town, has no spots.
- The ring of Scooby's dog tag is fully shown over his collar, as he and Shaggy smash their guitars to the ground after the band battle is over.
- The guitarist from Rude Boy and the Ska-Tastics gains a little weight immediately after getting unmasked.
Inconsistencies/continuity errors and/or goofs/oddities[]
Erroneous music notes.
- The notes on the Planispheric Disk don't match with the main title music, the notes are: B D G B B G C A G; the actual notes are: B G F# E F# G B.
- How could the Hex Girls hum the song, if they are not seeing the correct notes?
- In the previous episode, the Horrible Herd destroys most of Crystal Cove, yet in this episode, everything looks untouched.
- Shaggy stated he is unaffected by The Ska-tastics song because he is tone deaf, but soon after he is playing an electric guitar like a pro.
- During the band battle with The Hex Girls a saxophone can be heard playing continuously during "Yer Dead Right, Mate", but Rude Boy was not playing it while singing, as well as at other times. It's possible, though, that a backup sax has been preprogrammed on a backing track.
- The Ska-Tastics' keyboardist suddenly switches to guitar after the Hex Girls enter the music battle.
- Whilst Rude Boy and the Ska-Tastics are wearing their zombie outfits during their unmasking, after the flashback, they are shown wearing their original ones.
- The credits for "Hex Girl" and "Earth, Wind, Fire, and Air" are given to "Who Do Voodoo".
In other languages[]
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Brazilian Portuguese | A Dança dos Mortos | The Dance of the Dead |
| French | La Danse des Zombies | Dance of the Zombies |
| Greek | Ο Χορός των Ζόμπι | The Dance of the Zombies |
| Hungarian | Zombik tánca | Dance of the Zombies |
| Italian | Ballo Con Gli Zombie | Dance with Zombies |
| Spanish (Latin America) | La Danza de los No Muertos | Dance of the Undead |
Home media[]
Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated: Season Two, Part 2 - Spooky Stampede DVD set released by Warner Home Video on June 18, 2013.- Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated: Season Two, Volume 3 DVD released by Warner Home Video on April 4, 2014.
- Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated: The Complete Season 2 DVD set released by Warner Home Video on October 7, 2014.
- Scooby-Doo! Mystères associés: L'intégrale de la saison 2 (Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated: The entirety of season 2) DVD set released by Warner Home Video on September 10, 2013.
Quotes[]
Shaggy: Like they're losing Scoob. What are we gonna do? |
External links[]
- TBA
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| The Horrible Herd | Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated Season 2 |
The Devouring |