The Truth is the first of two stories in Scooby-Doo #3, by DC Comics. It was followed by Wax Attacks!
Premise[]
A synagogue is menaced during a wedding by Naamah, the demon queen.
Synopsis[]
Mystery Inc. attends a wedding at a synagogue, but the groom's father, Rabbi Harz, disapproves of the bride, Cyndy. Not only does the rabbi disapprove of his son, Meir Harz, marrying a Gentile, but Cyndy attempts to persuade the rabbi into selling the synagogue to the Rialto Firm. In the argument, Cyndy leaves in tears, but soon after the wedding guests are attacked by Naamah, the demon queen in Jewish tradition. Naamah warns the rabbi to abandon the synagogue.
After the attack, the rabbi permits Mystery Inc. to investigate the monster attack, while Meir Harz searches for Cyndy. Mystery Inc. splits up to search for evidence. Velma and Fred research the Rialto Firm looking to purchase the synagogue, and they discover that one of the wedding guests, engineer Levi Levy, owns the company.
Meanwhile, Daphne, Shaggy and Scooby examine an electric menorah created by the Rialto Firm. They discover a secret mechanism that fills the room with green smoke which Naamah would appear in. Suddenly, Naamah appears and chases them. While Daphne, Shaggy, and Scooby reunite with Fred and Velma, Naamah visits the rabbi in his study, who is attempting to summon the golem Yosef Sheda into existence to protect him. Mystery Inc., hearing the commotion, goes to the study to investigate.
It is revealed that the golem has appeared and captured Naamah, who is unmasked. The culprit turned out to be Levi Levy, who used the disguise in an attempt to scare the rabbi out of the synagogue so he could built a robotics factory on the site. He designed the electric menorah with hidden switches to control the smoke as well as the golem, which is revealed to be one of his robots. After Levi Levy is handed over to authorities, Rabbi Harz apologizes to Cyndy for condemning her and welcomes her to the family, though he genuinely believes the golem was the real Yosef Sheda.
Characters[]
Main characters:
Supporting characters:
- Meir Harz (only appearance)
- Cyndy (only appearance)
- Rabbi Harz (only appearance)
Villains:
- Levi Levy (only appearance)
- Naamah (only appearance)(Levi Levy's disguise)
- Golem (only appearance)(robot)
Other characters:
- Wedding guests (only appearance)(no lines)
- Meir Harz's Mama (mentioned)(deceased)
- Yosef Sheda (mentioned)
- Rabbi Loew (mentioned)
Locations[]
- United States
- Synagogue
- Accounting office
- Rabbi Harz's study
- Synagogue
- Prague (mentioned)
Objects[]
- Light bulb (destroyed)
- Menorah
- Candles
- Computer
Vehicles[]
- None
Suspects[]
| Suspect | Motive/reason |
|---|---|
| Cyndy | Rabbi Harz didn't appreciate her changes to their traditions, and she kept pushing the Rialto offer. She also disappeared before Naamah appeared. |
| Levi Levy | His name came up as the man in charge of the Rialto Firm when Velma cross-referenced all of the code names to purchases made with expense account credit cards. |
Culprits[]
| Culprit | Motive/reason |
|---|---|
| Levi Levy as Naamah | He wanted the synagogue site for a robot factory. He programmed one of his robots to resemble the golem. |
Full credits[]
The following credits try to match how they are displayed in the comic as much as possible:
- Story: Terrance Griep Jr.
- Pencil: Joe Staton
- Inks: Andrew Pepoy
- Colors: Patricia Mulvihill
- Letters: Albert de Guzman
- Edits: Bronwyn Taggart
- Special Thanks to: Bob Kahan
Notes/trivia[]
- The Mystery Machine is absent.
- This story has an unusually strong religious theme for Scooby-Doo.
- It is the first Jewish-themed story by DC Comics. The second would be "Fright One Candle".
- Following this second story, is a What's Up? article, subtitled The Golem: What's a Golem?, written by Bronwyn Taggart, in which she talks about the golem story.
Miscellaneous[]
- Disguises: None.
- Scooby Snacks bribe: 0.
- "Ruh-roh" count: 0.
- "Zoinks" count: 1 (by Daphne).
- "Jeepers" count: 0.
- "Jinkies" count: 1.
Cultural references[]
- The use of the golem and the mention of Rabbi Loew is derived from the classic Golem of Prague narrative in Jewish folklore. At the end of the comic book is an article summarizing the legend.
- NFTY (The North American Federation for Temple Youth), a Jewish youth movement, is mentioned on a poster in the computer room.
Reprints[]
- Scooby-Doo, Where Are You? #4 (February 2011).
Coloring mistakes[]
- None known.
Inconsistencies/continuity errors and/or goofs/oddities[]
- None known.