Too Many Dummies! is the twentieth episode of season 1 of Scooby-Doo and Guess Who?
Premise[]
Mystery Inc. are asked to escort a possessed ventriloquist dummy for a competition, during which they meet two of the judges, Jeff Dunham and Darci Lynne Farmer.
Synopsis[]
Mystery Inc. assists Baz Bozzington in escorting a dummy, Crazy Karl, to the site of a ventriloquist competition, where the doll would be awarded to the winner. They successfully bring the doll to the pedestal. However, soon after their departure, the doll comes to life and attacks the security guard. After the guard is hospitalized, they return to the site the following day to check on the competition. They meet the judges for the competition, celebrity ventriloquists Jeff Dunham and Darci Lynne Farmer, as well as their respective puppets, Walter and Petunia. Bozzington explains that Crazy Karl is possessed by the spirit of an evil ventriloquist.
Shaggy and Scooby go to the banquet to eat, but they are almost immediately attacked by the doll. They run back to Mystery Inc., and Scooby buries the doll underground. At that point, they are confronted by a talent agent, who wants to sign both Dunham and Farmer as talents. After the talent agent threatens to attack their careers, Bozzington takes them to a motel to stay for the night.
At the dilapidated motel, they attempt to sleep, but the doll appears in Shaggy and Scooby's bedroom and attacks them. They run to Dunham's room, where Walter appears to move on his own. However, it is revealed that Dunham can control Walter via remote. However, Farmer appears and claims that Petunia has been stolen. So, they decide to search the nearby house. They discover that the motel owner, an eccentric old woman, has been stealing dolls like Petunia with her son to add to their collection. With Petunia, they run from the old woman and her son, getting away with the help of Bozzington.
The day of the competition, Mystery Inc., Dunham and Farmer return to the site for the competition. After the first three performances are botched, mediocre, or otherwise go wrong, Bozzington fears there will be no contestants competent enough to impress the crowd. Shaggy and Scooby decide to enter the competition, as the crowd is unaware that Scooby is a real talking dog. Pretending to control Scooby's speech, Shaggy amazes the crowd as a contestant.
However, Crazy Karl interrupts their performance and attacks them, chasing them onstage as the crowd watched. However, he falls into a trap prepared by Mystery Inc.; the stage lights are turned on, revealing a hidden puppeteer controlling Crazy Karl. The puppeteer is then captured in a net and unmasked.
The perpetrator behind Crazy Karl turned out to be Bozzington. Growing up in a Japanese puppet troupe as a kuroko (stagehand), Bozzington attempted without success to gain fame and stardom as a puppeteer. So, to prove his skills as a puppeteer, he set up a charity event with established celebrities Dunham and Farmer, using both a remote control and puppetry to "haunt" the competition as Crazy Karl. He also attacked the motel to prevent the old lady and her son from stealing Petunia or Walter. Bozzington succeeded in gaining the praise of both Dunham and Farmer, who declare him the winner of the competition. However, for the crimes he committed in the process, he is handed over to authorities. Dunham and Farmer also award second place to Shaggy, unaware that Scooby is a real talking dog.
Characters[]
Main characters:
Supporting characters:
- Jeff Dunham (only appearance)
- Darci Lynne Farmer (only appearance)
- Old lady (only appearance)
- Old lady's son (only appearance)
Villains:
- Crazy Karl (only appearance)(puppet)
- Baz Bozzington (only appearance)
Other characters:
- Security guard (only appearance)
- Talent agent (only appearance)
- Simone
- Little Sally (only appearance)
- Man with Monkey (only appearance)
Locations[]
- Ventriloquism competition site
- Motel
- Old lady's home
- Japan (mentioned)
Objects[]
Vehicles[]
Suspects[]
| Suspect | Motive/Reason |
|---|---|
| Talent agent | He'll do anything to get Jeff and Darci to sign. |
| Old lady and her son | They're creepy and like collecting dolls. |
Culprits[]
| Culprit | Motive/Reason |
|---|---|
| Baz Bozzington | To prove he is a great ventriloquist. |
Cast[]
Notes/Trivia[]
- Daphne announces the celebrity guests in the title card.
- The orangutan in this episode is identical to the one that attacks the mayor on the QTTT news in Quit Clowning!, even down to the diaper it wears.
Miscellaneous[]
- Disguises: None.
- Traps: The stage light is turned on to reveal the hidden puppeteer. A net then captures the culprit.
- Clues: Bazz had worked with puppets in Japan.
- "This mystery is starting to come together" count: 1
Cultural references[]
- The voice of Crazy Karl is reminiscent of actor Paul Lynde.
- The motel scene is largely inspired by the 1960 Alfred Hitchcock movie Psycho, particularly the shot with the old lady seen in silhouette staring out the window from her nearby house.
- Crazy Karl saying "I've got no strings" to the security guard is a reference to the song of the same name from the 1940 Disney film Pinocchio.
- Sally Field's "You like me" Oscar acceptance speech is parodied by Crazy Karl when Baz is awarded first prize.
Animation mistakes and/or technical glitches[]
- Simone can be seen from the back in the crowd outside the theater, but her coloring is different.
Inconsistencies/continuity errors and/or goofs/oddities[]
- Crazy Karl can somehow grab the ventriloquism trophy when nobody is controlling or touching him.
- Crazy Karl is able to attack Shaggy and Scooby while Bozzington is giving a tour of the theatre. This would not have been possible as Bozzington would have needed to either physically puppet Crazy Karl or actively control it via remote.
- Baz drives the Mystery Machine and rescues Mystery Inc., but Fred does not complain about it.
- Scooby only takes a single bite of Little Sally's apple, but in a following shot he returns her the apple with only the core remaining.
In other languages[]
| Language | Title | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Polish | Zakukłowani! | Prickly! |
| Turkish | Çok Fazla Kukla! | Too Many Puppets! |
Home media[]
Scooby-Doo! and Guess Who?: The Complete First Season DVD set released by Warner Home Video on January 19, 2021.- Scooby-Doo and Guess Who?: The Complete First Season DVD set released by Warner Home Video in January 18, 2021.
- Scooby-Doo! and Guess Who?: Season One DVD released by Warner Home Video on May 31, 2021.
Quotes[]
(the Gang delivers Crazy Karl to the theater) |
Petunia: (muffled) Help! I'm here, I'm here... |
Velma: Petunia's right... Oh, I can't believe I just said that. |
External links[]
| Previous episode: | Series: | Next episode: |
| Fear of the Fire Beast! | Scooby-Doo and Guess Who? (Season 1) |
Dance Matron of Mayhem! |