Doom Service is the first half of the fifth episode of The New Scooby-Doo Mysteries. It was followed by A Code in the Nose.
Premise
The kids are summoned to the Overview Hotel by Jack Marsten, the owner, to rid it of the previous owner, who died 100 years before. It seems that some of the guest are not frightened though, like Sheldon Keats, the horror novelist and occultist, and Mrs. Van Loon and her invisible dog. Does it have anything to do with the Western Air Command Base down the street?
Synopsis
The gang are on route to the Overview Hotel to solve a mystery there, to get rid of the ghost that's haunting the place. On the way they passed by the Western Air Command Base, then they arrived at their destination, but finds the parking lot empty. They plan to get to the bottom of the case by going undercover as hotel help. Inside, Shaggy and Scooby meet the hotel owner who leaves, but will be right back. Daphne and Scrappy bump into the actual hotel owner Jack Marsten. He explains that the one Shaggy and Scooby saw was the ghost of Ebenezer Overview who passed away a hundred years ago. Shaggy and Scooby attempt to run away, but bump into Sheldon Keats. Daphne recognizes him as the famous horror novelist and occult expert. Jack explains that he's writing a novel about the hotel called "Secret Rooms". They also meet a woman named Mrs. Van Loon who seems to own an invisible dog named Max. Jack says that Mrs. Van Loon knows her way around the mountain quite well.
Jack puts the gang to work in the hotel, he puts Shaggy and the dogs in charge of the kitchen and has Daphne work as the chambermaid which gives her a chance to search the place.
The boys were making hoagies when Mrs. Van Loon comes in and asks them to feed Max. To humor her, Scooby gives Max his half, but Max eats it all, and they both leave. Scrappy gets a call from a man in room six, on the seventh floor, requesting a sandwich right away.
Scooby gets the numbers mixed up and goes to room seven on the sixth floor, runs into the ghost, and flees. Daphne hears his cries for help and Scooby informs the others through the phone. He runs back to room seven, where Sheldon finds him, and Scrappy mistakens him for the ghost. Scooby tells everyone that he saw the ghost, and Sheldon suggests holding a seance to try to communicate with Ebenezer's ghost, to which Jack agrees.
The gang looks around in room seven and find it in a mess, but Scooby accidentally finds a secret passageway into the mountain. Scrappy finds a torn page with the word "secret" on it, with Shaggy remembering that Keat's book is called "Secret Rooms".
At the seance, the ghost declares that he will never leave. Everyone decides to exit, thinking it's real, but Daphne wants to check out a hunch. Shaggy and Scooby attempt to leave, but are unable to because of a blizzard. Deciding to sleep in the Mystery Machine, Scooby was loading their stuff when the ghost shows up again, stealing a snowmobile with Scooby stowing away. Inside the hotel, Daphne and Scrappy find a recorder in an air vent. They hear Scooby's cries for help and head out to find him. They see Scooby and the ghost crashing into a pile of snow. Upon pulling them out, the ghost is revealed to be Mrs. Van Loon. Daphne finds top-secret papers hidden in the snowmobile that she was trying to escape with.
As she was taken away, the gang learned that she discovered the secret passage built into the mountain which led to the new air base. She wanted to steal secrets and sell them to the highest bidder. The page that the gang found with the word "secret" wasn't from Sheldon's book after all. Sheldon agrees and says that he's writing a new book about Scooby's adventures at the hotel, and will mention Scrappy as well. Scooby helps himself to some food, but Max eats it all again, with Shaggy mentioning he has an incredible appetite.
Characters
Main characters:
Supporting characters:
- Jack Marsten (only appearance)
- Sheldon Keats (only appearance)
Villains:
- Ghost of Ebenezer Overview (only appearance)(Mrs. Van Loon's disguise)
- Mrs. Van Loon (only appearance)
Other characters:
- Guard (only appearance)(no lines)
- Ebenezer Overview (only appearance)(portrait)(deceased)
- Max (only appearance)(no lines)
- Guards (only appearance)(no lines)
Locations
- Rocky Mountains
- Brazil (mentioned)
Objects
- Ghosts of the Rocky Mountains
- Portrait of Ebenezer Overiew
- Max's leash and collar
- Submarine sandwiches
- Sandwiches
Vehicles
Suspects
| Suspect | Motive/reason |
|---|---|
| Sheldon Keats | To give himself more to write about. |
| Mrs. Van Loon | She knew every inch of the hotel, and the ghost had a female voice. |
Culprits
| Culprit | Motive/reason |
|---|---|
| Mrs. Van Loon as the Ghost of Ebenezer Overview | To spy on an Air Force base. |
Cast
| Don Messick | Scooby-Doo Scrappy-Doo Max |
|---|---|
| Casey Kasem | Shaggy Rogers |
| Heather North | Daphne Blake |
| Hamilton Camp | Sheldon Keats |
| Louise Chamis | Mrs. Van Loon Ghost of Ebenezer Overview |
Notes/trivia
- The gang have a new set of winter clothing. In South Pole Vault, they are given yet another set of new winter clothing.
- Starting this episode, the show now uses digital ink and paint, an animation technique still in its infancy at this time.
Cultural references
- The Overview Hotel may be a parody of Overlook Hotel from the book and movie The Shining. Sheldon Keats' name is similar to Stephen King who wrote the book.
Animation mistakes and/or technical glitches
Inconsistencies/continuity errors and/or goofs/oddities
- None known.
In other languages
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Greek | Το Στοιχειωμένο Ξενοδοχείο Υπηρεσία Τρόμου |
The Haunted Hotel Service of Terror |
Home media
Scooby-Doo! 13 Spooky Tales: Ruh-Roh Robot! DVD set released by Warner Home Video on September 24, 2013.
Quotes
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