Mystery Incorporated

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Mystery Incorporated
Mystery Incorporated.png
Could any image suffice?
Also known as Mystery Inc.
Scooby-Doo Gang
Scooby Gang
Scooby-Doo Detective Agency
Location Mobile
Coolsville
Crystal Cove
Objective To solve mysteries
Leader Fred Jones
Mascot Scooby-Doo
Members Daphne Blake
Shaggy Rogers
Velma Dinkley
First appearance WAY: "What a Night for a Knight" (1969)
Mystery Inc. with Scrappy.png
Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo
WNSD Mystery Incorporated.png
What's New, Scooby-Doo?
GAC Mystery Incorporated.png
Shaggy & Scooby-Doo Get a Clue!
SDMI Mystery Incorporated.png
Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated
File:BCSD Mystery Incorporated.png
Be Cool, Scooby-Doo!
SDGW Mystery Incorporated.png
Scooby-Doo and Guess Who?
JS Mystery Incorporated.png
Jellystone!

Mystery Incorporated, often shortened to Mystery Inc., is a mystery/crime-solving team in the Scooby-Doo animated franchise. They are made up of four teenagers and their talking dog mascot, Scooby-Doo.

Members

Appearances

TV series

Movies

Specials

Shorts

Comics

Books

Video games

Stage performances

History

Those Original Mysteries

The Celebrity Guests

Back to Basics

In Comes Scrappy-Doo...

...Out Goes Freddy and the Girls

In the success of Scrappy's introduction, Fred, Daphne, and Velma were removed for three years, although oddly, they were still kept in each episode title card, albeit as silhouettes.

The All-New Scooby-Doo Detective Agency

Do the Old Flim-Flam

How It All Began

It's Terror Time Again!

What's New in the 21st Century?

Shaggy and Scooby-Doo Get a Clue!

GangnamTakamoto Style

Goodbye Coolsville, Hello Crystal Cove!

Lucky There's a Scooby-Doo Guy

More Celebrity Guests

Mystery Inc. Sells Out

The gang gets help from State Farm agent Lucy Rodas after the Mystery Machine gets knocked into a ditch by the Creeper.

Rob reads some text from Timmy, the Internet, finding a show to replace Rob's eternal nemesis Gumball that would be something akin to Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!, with a Great Dane and his "kooky friends" who solve mysteries in a van, but then the kids would have to switch to another channel to watch that.[1]

Looneyverse

In the Duck Dodgers episode "Surf the Stars," During the surfing montage where Duck Dodgers and the Crusher run by in various outfits, Mystery Inc. briefly run by the screen.

In the Warner Bros. Serververse in Space Jam: A New Legacy, the gang (based on their Scoob! designs) arrives at the basketball game between the Tune Squad and the Goon Squad in the Mystery Machine, then watch from outside the van. Mystery Inc., like all the other IPs, has no particular preference and just reacts to whatever is happening.

Titans Go!

Control Freak uses his special TV remote to zap Mystery Inc. into the world of the Teen Titans so they might beat them in a contest of Family Feud.[2]

Mystery Inc. are guests at Warner Bros.' 100th anniversary party at their Burbank studio, where the Teen Titans are acting as security.[3]

Mystery Inc. in the Funny Books

Behind the scenes

  • Initially when they first debuted, the group were referred to as just "the gang". Their proper name was first mentioned in the 1973 LP album Scooby-Doo and the Snowmen Mystery, where they were referred to as "Mystery Incorporated", and again in 1977 for the Peter Pan read-a-long books and Marvel comics. Despite this, the "Mystery Inc." name wouldn't be recognized in animated form until the DTV film Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island in 1998.
  • In the Space Ghost Coast to Coast episode "Zorak," Zorak paraphrases what villains say to the kids once being caught, which is "I would've gotten away with it if it wasn't for you meddling kids."

In popular culture

WARNING: The following section contains content that may be seen as mature or offensive to some readers. Reader discretion is advised.
Main article: List of pop culture references to Scooby-Doo
  • In the Mighty Mouse: The New Adventures episode "Don't Touch That Dial," Mighty Mouse gets caught in a cartoon apparently called Ring-A-Ding, Where Are You! The gang is made up of characters with different cultural and ethnic backgrounds. They confuse Mighty Mouse for the Rat Monster of Gruesome Gulch, with a chase ensuing in a haunted mansion. This was written by Tom Minton, who later did a similar skit for Animaniacs, mentioned below.
  • In The Super Mario Bros. Show episode "20,000 Koopas Under the Sea," in true Mystery Inc. fashion, Mario and his friends discover that the sea monster is mechanical and being driven by Koopa Nemo, who was trying to scare the citizens of Happy Harbor into making them their king. Having failed, Koopa says, "And it would have worked if you 'buttinskis' hadn't messed things up!"
  • In Judge Dredd: The Megazine #13-#15, the "Red Razors" arc, Chief Judge Ricky sends a group of Sov-Block freelance enforcers who call themselves the Spooky-Doo Gang to retrieve the corpse of Elvis Presley. They drive the Mystery Machine, but the van is blue and some of the letters are flipped. By the last issue, Shabby/Shaggy and Barbara/Velma have been killed by mutant judges, leaving Spooky/Scooby, Freddy/Freddy, and Hannah/Daphne to successfully find Elvis's corpse. In Issue #14, one of the mutant judge that Freddy kills says about the gang, "If it wasn't for you darn kids."
  • In the Garfield and Friends episode "The Automated, Animated Adventure," Jon takes his idea for a cartoon based on Garfield to the Sprocket Animation Company, where Mr. Sprocket has his own ideas that are just to redo what others have already done such as suggesting that Garfield should expose phony ghosts with three kids every week, with Mr. Sprocket's computer displaying how it would look, with Garfield and the kids outside a spooky mansion, with Garfield in the shaky arms of a Shaggy doppelganger beside a Fred doppelganger, and one black girl with character traits of both Daphne and Velma.
  • In the Darkwing Duck episode "Clash Reunion," when Megavolt captures Launchpad, Gosalyn, Ham, and and Preena in his life-size lightbulb, he proclaims, "At last! At last, I'll be rid of those meddling kids and their nosy dog! Whoa. Wrong cartoon."
  • In the Bonkers episode "Weather or Not," the Weather Toons staged their own disappearance and framed the TV station crew because they didn't need their help, but having been exposed, Toony Tornado cries, "Our scam woulda worked if those meddling cops hadn't stepped in!"
  • In the Saved by the Bell: The New Class episode "The Principal's Principles," when Tommy D becomes Bayside's new principal for a week, he immediately slacks off and turns the principal's office into his private pad, where he plans on watching a Scooby-Doo marathon because he "loves those meddling kids."
  • In Disney's Doug episode "Doug's Bloody Buddy," Doug and his friends are dressed as Mystery Inc. for a spooky teaser.
  • In the video game Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble!, when Dixie and Kiddy defeat KAOS, Baron K. Roolenstein reveals himself from behind the curtain (ala the Wizard from The Wizard of Oz), and states the line, "KAOS was my ticket to world domination, and I'd have gotten away with it if it wasn't for you meddling kids."
  • In the Animaniacs segment "Back in Style," the Warner Siblings were loaned off to other cartoon studios by a young Plotz as last-ditch efforts to save Warner Bros., including one run by Phil and Shmoe (parodies of Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera). One of the shows parodied is a spoof of Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!, titled Uhuru, Where Are You! The sound effects are there and the Warners do an impromptu rock song. Due to the Warners' interference, it's inevitably one of several HB-like shows that fail in the ratings. Frank Welker provided the voice for the Fred and Scooby stand-ins.
  • In the Casper episode "Scaredy Boo, Where Have You Got To?," a gang of mystery solvers, driving the Enigma Mobile, investigate Whipstaff Manor.
  • In the Dawson's Creek episode "Escape from Witch Island," the boat guy warns the kids that they should not get so caught up in their "Scooby-Doo adventure," they stay on the island past dark.
  • In the Rugrats episode "Runaway Reptar," Angelica's plan is thwarted when her robotic Reptar's synthetic skin peels off, so she declares, "I would have gotten away with it if it wasn't for those meddling babies."
  • In the Arthur segment "The Rat Who Came to Dinner," the gang is anthropomorphized as animals, with a kangaroo mascot called Spooky-Poo, in Mr. Ratburn's favorite old show Spooky-Poo.
  • In the Recess episode "The Barnaby Boys," the caught janitor says, "And I'd have gotten away with it, too, if it hadn't been for them meddling kids."
  • In That 70s Show episode "Afterglow," Fez watches the end of an episode of "the Scooby-Doo," with a villain saying, "And I would've gotten away with it, too, if it wasn't for those darn kids." Later, the guys get high, with Fez treating Kelso's sudden support of Eric as a mystery, "one suitable for Scooby-Doo and his gang of cartoon teenagers!" He then goes on to say how he wishes they were cartoon characters, with Fez imagining them in Hanna-Barbera's Scooby-Doo-esque designs with Scooby-Doo-esque music playing as they talk to each other. Fez, the first one to talk, after the transformation, sarcastically says, "Zoinks. That'd be super, Fez."
  • In the Timon and Pumbaa episode "Werehog of London," a fortune teller warns Timon and Pumbaa that no one is safe from the curse of the werehog, not even "those meddling teens and their pesky dog." Then the camera reveals an orange and blue van resembling the Mystery Machine that has been abandoned after it was knocked into a lamp post.
  • In Archie's Weird Mysteries #6, Archie and his friends become parodies of Mystery Inc. while solving a mystery.
  • In the Daria episode "I Loathe a Parade," the lion mascot who was harassing Daria and Tom collapses from wearing the suit for too long causing him to suffocate. They unmask him to reveal that the mascot is their teacher Mr. O'Neill. Tom snidely remarks, "And he would have gotten away with it if it weren't for us meddling kids."
  • In the Digimon: Digital Monsters episode "Iron Vegiemon," the Digimon Emperor reacts to the DigiDestined destroying a control spire by saying, "What?! A spire was destroyed? Must be those meddling kids."
  • In the House of Mouse episode "Donald's Pumbaa Prank," Donald saves the club from another one of Pete's schemes to get the club closed, which makes Pete say, "And I would've done it, too, if it weren't for that meddling duck!"
  • In the film Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Jay and Silent Bob aren't doing so well in getting hitchhiked, with Jay complaining that it works for other people while they get treated like they're in a cartoon, which is when a familiar looking van pulls up. Inside, they meet two guys, a pair of girls, and their dog, who are trying to find the hitchhiking ghouls, with Jay and Silent Bob matching the description. The gang ends up bickering, so Jay introduces them to "doobie snacks," leading to them acting wild. In reality, it is Jay and Silent Bob who have only got high and have fallen asleep. The gang wonders what to do with them when the Shaggy doppelganger suggests harvesting their kidneys and leaving putting them in a tub of ice at a seedy motel, which turns out to also be a dream of Jay's.
  • In The Weekenders episode "Crushin' Roulette," Tish is so desperate to fall in love with someone she stares at Mr. Higginbotham, until he will love her back, but this just gets him nervous and causes him to reveal he is an international spy. By the end of the episode, . This makes Mr. Higginbotham so nervous, he eventually reveals he is an international spy. By the end of the episode, he is being taken away by the National Security Agency, while he declares, "And I would have gotten away with it, if it had not been for those darned meddling kids!", even though he is quite happy to get it off his chest.
  • In the Kim Possible episode "Tick-Tick-Tick," Kim mocked Wade's haunted island info by saying "Keep out meddling kids."
  • The Time Squad episode "White House Weirdness" is an homage to Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!, by using the musical cues of Ted Nichols and sound effects from the series. The Time Squad goes back in time to 1911 to make sure Woodrow Wilson beats Howard William Taft in the presidential election, which may not have happened if he had become a musician instead. But this is difficult when they discover that The White House looks like a haunted house that is being haunted by the deceased former Presidents of America, who have taken on the form of monsters, which includes Zachary Taylor as a zombie, Benjamin Harrison as a vampire, and James Buchanan as Frankenstein's monster. When all three are found, the Time Squad and the monsters run through the "Scooby-Dooby-doors." In the end, all of the monsters are captured with a single chandelier, and the Time Squad reveal that they are just the disguises of then-current President William Howard Taft, Vice President James S. Sherman, and Secretary of State Philander C. Knox, who were working together to make sure Taft continued to be President unchallenged. Defeated, Taft says his own take on the immortal line, "And we would've gotten away with it, too, if it wasn't for you meddling Time Squaders." Also, when the cop thanks the Time Squad for their work, he refers to them as the "gang."
  • In the Hey Arnold! The Movie, the main villain Scheck is arrested after Arnold and his friends uncover his scheme, leading him to utter the words, "I would've gotten away with it, if it wasn't for that meddling football head, the kid with the weird stack of hair, and that brat with one eyebrow!"
  • In the Codename: Kids Next Door episode "Operation T.E.E.T.H.," Chester is defeated and angrily says, "And I would have gotten away with it, too, if it hadn't been for you meddling skunk!"
  • In the fourth level, "Chinless Blunder," in the video game The Fairly OddParents: Breakin' Da Rules, when Country Boy is put in jail, he moans, "Yeah, and it woulda worked, too, if it weren't for that ding, dang, darn Cleft!"
  • In the video game Final Fantasy X-2, Prophet, who is a pastiche of Shaggy, is one of the potential culprits depending on what path you go on in the Mi'ihen Highroad Mystery subquest. When caught, he says, "That's right. Like, it was me. And I would've gotten away with it, too, if it hadn't been for you meddling kids!"
  • In the Danny Phantom episode "The Million Dollar Ghost," the Groovy Gang and their tiger mascot try to catch Danny Phantom. They also owned a van with a similar paint scheme to the Mystery Machine.
  • In the Power Rangers S.P.D. episode "A-Bridged," the Power Rangers defeat and capture T-Top after they believe him to be a bank robber but he was really an undercover bounty hunter trying to catch the real bank robber. When T-Top complains about their interference, he says, "And if it wasn't for your meddling, I would've caught her, too."
  • In the House MD episode "Humpty Dumpty," House refers to his team as the Scooby Gang when looking for Alfredo since he could be at a warehouse or factory.
  • In the video game Crash Tag Team Racing, when Willie Wumpa Cheeks confesses to the crimes of stealing the Power Gems from on Clutch's MotorWorld, he adds, "And I would've succeeded, too, if it wasn't for you meddling Bandicoots!"
  • In the Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide episode "Guide to: Secrets and School Car Wash," the characters run around whimsically, Simon uses technology to make Ned look like a ghost to make Loomer confess to Suzie he kissed Missy, which leads to a chase between the two main boys and the bully (which includes them bumping into the bespectacled Lisa suddenly dressed like Velma), set to an ironically cheery pop song, and Suzie unmasking herself from the boy she was disguising herself as, saying, "And he would've gotten away with it if it weren't for you meddling kids."
  • In the Yu-Gi-Oh! GX episode "Mr. Stein's Duel: Part II," when Viper sees Alexis's friends save her from drowning, Viper remarks, "I would have gotten away with it, if it weren't for those meddling kids."
  • In the Class of 300 episode "Prank Yankers," after Sunny reveals that Kaylie and Mackenzie are in fact not popular school girls, but intentional chalk thieves Gunther and Inga Gabinstad, Inga angrily announces, "Yah! And we would have, like, gotten away with it, too, if it wasn't for these meddling kids!"
  • In the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Fast Forward episode "Turtle X-Tinction," the Turtles have the exosuit thief who they're about to unmask, which Mikey gets carried away with and believes it's "the crooked developer who wanted to scare everyone away so he could build a shopping center. And he would have gotten away with it too, if it weren't for us meddling turtles." Disappointedly, Raphael tells him he watches too many cartoons.
  • In the Stargate SG-1 episode "Bounty," after the team foils Odai Ventrell's plans, Daniel throws in, "And you might have gotten away with it, too, if it wasn't for us meddling kids."
  • In the Wild Grinders episode "Shark Attack," Officer Lackowski pretended to be a ghost called Pirate Brody, assisted by Stubford, to scare the Wild Grinders away from finding the sunken treasure. When Lil' Rob pulls off Lackowski's mask, Lackowski whines, "And we would've gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for you meddling kids and that drooly dog [Meaty]."
  • In the My Spy Family episode "The Batley's Got Talent Affair," when Des reveals that Spike has stolen his self-morphing mask and vocal unit, so he could pretend to be his mother, by ripping off his mask, Spike says, "And I would've gotten away with it too, if it wasn't for those pesky primary and secondary systems failing."
  • In the film The Butterfly Effect 3: Revelations, Jenna reveals herself to be the killer to her brother, Sam, which makes her giddily reflect, "This is so Scooby-Doo isn't it? 'I would've gotten away with it if it wasn't for those meddling kids."
  • In "The Once and Future Ben" story of Cartoon Network Action Pack! #27, Jonah begins to say, "And I would'a got away with it, too--," after Ben and Gwen catch him, but Ben cuts him off by responding, "Yeah, yeah -- if it wasn't for us pesky kids..."
  • In case five, "Turnabout Ablaze," in the video game Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth, a defeated Alba says, "And I would've gotten away with it, too, if it wasn't for you meddling prosecutors!"
  • In The Cleveland Show episode "The Curious Case of Jr. Working at the Stool," Cleveland and his friends frantically hover above the ground as they run scared of Dick Clark.
  • In the Aqua Teen Hunger Force episode "One Hundred," realizing that their series has reached a hundred episodes, Master Shake demands the network put his team's show in syndication. But this leads to Hundred, a monster shaped like the number 100, on the warpath. In their escape, Master Shake takes the Aqua Teen Hunger Force to a place to hide that's a parody of the Scooby-Doo series called Aqua Unit Patrol Squad with the pilot called "The Bayou Boo-Ya!," which in reality, is what actor Dana Snyder is pitching to the network. They also appear as a band as the intention in the original premise.
  • In the Big Time Rush episode "Big Time Terror," the boys go on a ghost chase and run comically as Mystery Incorporated does with a ghost, and when Stephanie is exposed as the culprit, she says, "And I would've gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for you meddling, cute, hot guys."
  • In the film Toy Story 3, Mr. Potato Head says "meddling toys" in the way a villain would say "meddling kids."
  • In the Sonny with a Chance episode "Sonny with a Secret," Penelope is revealed to be the culprit, who says, "I would've gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for these comfortable shoes."
  • In the Ben 10: Ultimate Alien episode "The Mother of All Vreedles," Ma Vreedle has been betrayed and turned in by her own sons, to which she says, "And I would have gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for my meddling kids!"
  • In the New Teen Titans short "Turn Back the Clock," Mad Mod turns back time altering the appearances of the Teen Titans with each passing decade, with the 70s making them look like Mystery Inc.
  • In the film Dark Shadows, the vampire called Barnabas Collins watches the Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! episode "Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Werewolf" on Victoria's TV during his treatment, calling it a "very silly play." The scene in question is of all the gang being alarmed by their realization of there being a werewolf on the loose.
  • In the Horrible Histories sports special, South African Fika Motsoeneg cheated in his country's ultra-marathon by switching with his twin brother, Sergio. Fika blamed his brother for their failure, saying, "We would have got away with it, too, if idiot, here, hadn't worn his watch on the wrong wrist."
  • In the film ParaNorman, the Babcocks drive Sheriff Hooper back into town, who complains, "Would've been a quiet night, too, if it hadn't been for those meddling kids," referring to the trouble the Babcocks' son, Norman, and his friends have caused. Then immediately after, she cries, "Sweet baby jinkies," when she sees civilians firing at other citizens until Deputy Dwayne informs her that they are shooting at the undead.
  • In the Suburgatory episode "The Witch of East Chatswin," on a Halloween night, Tessa and Lisa dress as Daphne and Velma, respectively, while Malik and Ryan both go as Fred, which causes an argument between the two, with Malik feeling offended that Ryan expects him to go as Shaggy, unless he was expected to go as Scooby. Despite the trouble, Malik does change his costume to Shaggy.
  • In Cracked's parody called "Scooby Don't," the Mystery Squad is told off by the police after they tie up an innocent homeless old man at an abandoned carnival.
  • In the Archer episode "Archer Vice Call," when Archer rotates the pantry wall to keep When Krieger, Cyril, and Lana can't figure out how to get into inside the revolving wall, Archer frustratingly responds, "Jesus Christ, have you people never even heard of Scooby-Doo?" and pulls on the trick lamp on the wall. Krieger, Cyril, and Lana stay inside with Pam and Cheryl who have discovered the cocaine, while Archer remains on the outside with the words, "Goodspeed, you meddling kids." Cheryl is also wearing an orange sweater similar to Velma's.
  • In the name of the Ben 10: Omniverse episode "Mystery, Incorporeal," in which there are several references to the franchise in general.
  • The series is parodied in the Austin & Ally episode "Mysteries & Meddling Kids," when while at a disco party, Dez and his friends dress up as his favorite characters from a 70s cartoon called Groovy Goat and the Mystery Bunch. While there, Ally's songbook is stolen and an investigation ensues just like an episode of Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!, with the old librarian being unmasked to reveal Ally's rival in disguise, who yells in defeat, "And I would've gotten away with it, too, if it wasn't for you meddling kids...and your goat!"
  • In the online comic Girl Genius #15, Du Quay begins to say, "-And I would've got away with it, too, if it hadn't been for-", before he's told to shut up.
  • In the film Characterz, once the park director's scheme of setting up the mascots has been discovered, he says, "And I would have gotten away with it, if it hadn't been for you meddling kids."
  • In the Grojband episode "A Knight to Remember," the band jumps in the air with their legs stuck frantically spinning before they get away the second time they see Smasheus.
  • Independent game developer Alexander Mahan has been developing his online game Yandere Simulator for the public since 2014, which has only become available to play in demo mode. In the story, a group of kids called the Photography Club eventually resembled Mystery Incorporated through several tweaks. They also have Japanese names based on their English ones.
  • In the Annoying Orange web short "Ask Orange #19: Christmas T-N-Tree:" Marshmallow demands a zillion doll hairs or he will destroy the kitchen. Annoying Orange notices that Marshmallow is acting out of character before seeing a zipper on Marshmallow's body, who then reveals that it's really Grapefruit. Defeated, Grapefruit exclaims, "And I would've gotten away with it, too, if it hadn't been for you, you meddling orange!"
  • In the Wander Over Yonder episode "The Cartoon," Dominator watches a cartoon called The Mystery Kids Mysteries (narrated by Frank Welker), which is a crossover between Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! and Gravity Falls, set in the world of The Jetsons. Mavis and Skipper are driven by an old man in The Mystery Ship, who resemble Mabel, Dipper, and Grunkle Stan, respectively. When Mavis discovers her sweater is haunted, their green, talking dog, Soosy Du, pops up behind them. Soosy Du is a parody of Soos Ramirez, Dipper, and Mabel's friend. The animation used for The Mystery Kids Mysteries matches the design and budget of Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!, and the outfits and Googie architecture are based on The Jetsons.
  • In the Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" episode "Kimmy Sees a Sunset!," Dr. Bayden says to Kimmy, "And I would have gotten away with it, too," after she reveals that Kimmy stopped her plans to go to a laser show due to getting drunk while on the job.
  • In The Goldbergs episode "Big Orange," Adam is desperate for him and his sister to solve one last case as the Goldberg Gang together, so he makes a suspect list of 36 people, even one of a seemingly abandoned chair, which apparently has a ghost sitting in it, ala a "classic Scooby-Doo villain." When Beverly is discovered to be the culprit, she says, "I would've gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for you meddling kids.
  • In the Regular Show episode "The Dream Warrior," Mordecai and Rigby try to settle Pops from his nightmare by watching Funkie Wunky and the Groovy Gang, which features parodies of Mystery Inc. called the Groovy Gang, Groovies for short, who own a dog called Funkie Wunky. They capture Old Crotchety Elmer, the lighthouse keeper, who was pretending to be a ghost haunting a pirate ship in Bluemont Cove. They stopped him from stealing the gold there and making millions. This makes Pops feel better, who has a dream replaying the episode with the characters being played by people he knows, but it once again turns into a nightmare.
  • In the final scene of the video game Cartoon Network: Battle Crashers, the heroes gather around the masked villain they have captured, and after several unmaskings, discover it is Uncle Grandpa who is the culprit, despite the fact that Uncle Grandpa is also among the good guys. The bad Uncle Grandpa moans, "And I would've gotten away with it, too, if it hadn't been for you meddling heroes." The good Uncle Grandpa responds joyously by declaring, "Another mystery solved. Great work, gang!"
  • In AOK's parody called "Scooby-Doo, Who Are You?," the gang accidentally tore off a bad guy's real face. They run off but a cop pops up and they do the same to him. The gang becomes hysterical and then proceeds to tear off each other's faces (except for Scooby's).
  • In the Puppy Dog Pals episode "Bob Loves Mona," the old man who stole Mona Lisa is thwarted by Bingo and Rolly, making him say, "I would've gotten away with it, too, if it hadn't been for those meddling puppies."
  • The horror-comedy book Meddling Kids refers to what the villains are prone to call Mystery Inc., about four teenagers and their dog who solve mysteries.
  • In the RWBY Chibi episode "The Mystery Bunch," Sun and Neptune of Team SSSN/The Junior Detectives discover Team JNPR/The Mystery Bunch (imitating Mystery Inc.) muscling in on their territory. The Mystery Bunch joyfully talk about how finding a mystery soon that they will inevitably find by accident, when a Grimm monster appears and chases them through several doors, as the Junior Detectives just watch. The Grimm is caught and discovered to be Old Man Shopkeep, who mumbles in annoyance, "And I would have gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for you meddling kids." Sun and Neptune are confused by what has happened, so eat their Zwei Snacks to get to their level. The Mystery Bunch are parodies of the following:
    • Ren = Fred.
    • Pyrrha = Daphne.
    • Nora = Velma.
    • Jaune = Shaggy.
    • Zwei = Scooby.
  • In "Wanderers v Pedagogues," an episode of the BBC Two quiz show Only Connect, host Victoria Coren Mitchell begins by saying, "Good evening. Much of the key work debunking supernatural myths was carried out in the 1970s by American paranormalogists Norville Rogers, Frederick Jones, Daphne Blake, and Velma Dinkley. And if you didn't get that reference, then shame on you, Only Connect fans. You probably preferred the ones with Scooby-Dum and Scrappy-Doo."
  • In the Ben 10 reboot episode "Scared Silly," Carl says, "And I would've, too, if it wasn't for that kid turning into aliens", after his plan of trying to scare the Tennysons out of the hotel has failed.
  • In "The Spooky Badge," an episode of the preschool series Hey Duggee, the Squirrels play dress up as Mystery Inc., and right in time to earn their Spooky Badge from Duggee after seeing a ghost. During the mystery, there is a chase between the ghost and the Squirrels which is accompanied by an upbeat jingle. The ghost ends up being a sheep that accidentally got a sheet caught on top of it.
  • In the DC Super Hero Girls web short "Haunted Harley," Harley Quinn reads a spooky book during detention but she isn't scared because "those meddling kids will get to the bottom of it."
  • In the Big Bang Theory episode "The Laureate Accumulation," Professor Siebert makes fun of Leonard and his friends by calling them the Scooby Gang, after Leonard shows his support of Sheldon and Amy.
  • In the Talking Tom and Friends episode "The Mystery of the Pyramid," Tom and his friends go to a concert in Egypt, where they get involved in a mystery involving a mummy kidnapping the host and the MC, which causes Tom to tell everyone to split up, and Hank and Angela to say "Zoinks" and "Jeepers," respectively, as well as the villain's defeated finale line, "And I would have gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for you meddling people who I specifically invited here!"
  • In the Fuller House episode "Five Dates with Kimmy Gibbler," Ethan uses the "meddling kids" line after Max, Steve, and Ramona have discovered that he and Rocki were hiding that they used to be Dungeon and Dragons nerds.
  • In the Hawaii Five-0 episode "A'ohe Mea 'Imi a Ka Maka," Noelani dresses up as Velma for a costume party, but has to convince an unsure Jerry by acting like she's lost her glasses and says, "Jinkies," after he thinks she's Sadness from the Pixar film Inside Out, and then Barb from Netflix's TV series Stranger Things. He blames it on her headlights by saying, "And I would've gotten it, too, if it wasn't for your meddling headlights."
  • In the Close Enough episode "Logan's Run'd," the Logan's bartender is discovered to be in his 50s instead of his 20s, so he says, "And I would have gotten away with it, if it weren't for you nosy thirty-five year olds!"
  • In the ninth and final episode of Son-In-Lockdown, Kevin Smith, his wife, and daughter catch his daughter's boyfriend, Austin, getting supplies from two people wearing black cloaks with hoods suppliers during the COVID-19 lockdown, who are actually Kevin's inlaws, who share the line of "And we would've gotten away with it, too, if it wasn't for you meddling kids."
  • In Empyre Fallout: Fantastic Four #1, Quoi says, "Everything would've gone perfectly if not for you annoying animals and your interfering little cubs."
  • In the Total Dramarama episode "Duncan Carving," it is Halloween, and Duncan dresses up as Carvin' Marvin (the Headless Horseman) to steal the other kids' candy. He is eventually caught in candy corn and unmasked, with everyone surprised to see him, including Owen's face suddenly resembling Scooby's. Duncan responds with the usual, "And I would've gotten away with it, too, if it wasn't for you meddling classmates."
  • In the Lego Ninjago episode "The Tooth of Wojira," when Ronin is imprisoned, he says, "And I would have gotten away with it if it weren't for you ninja and your pesky friend," which Cole had a feeling he would say.
  • "One of Us Is Dead:" The first part of Netflix's description says "The 'Scooby-Doo' shenanigans—and dangerous games—carry on."* In the That Girl Lay Lay' episode "Ha-Lay-Lay-Ween," when Principal Willingham (assisted by Ms. Calloway) is caught by the students to be faking it as the ghost of Old Man Packer to keep them from TP'ing the school on Halloween, she declares, "And we would've gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for you meddling kids."
  • In the opening of the Villainous episode "Boo!-Lidozing," teens resembling Fred, Shaggy, and Velma vandalise the Van Der House, particularly the Fred doppelganger, who spray paints, "This Dump Sucks," which is rearranged by Emilia the ghost into, "I'll Thump You Kids." The Shaggy and Velma-looking kids run away, while the Fred doppelganger is punished by Emilia by being plunged into the ground and reappearing at the end of the episode in the painting The Scream. Interestingly, while Daphne doesn't appear, the Velma doppelganger says, "Jeepers," instead of "Jinkies."
  • In the film Spider-Man: No Way Home (in both the original and extended cuts), Doctor Strange tells Peter and his friends to "Scooby-Doo this shit," when Peter needs the help of the latter in finding the Green Goblin.
  • In the Disney+ film Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers, when Dale wants to call Gadget and Zipper to help him and Chip find Monterey, he says not to as "[they]'re as much real detectives as the Scooby-Doo gang."
  • In the film The Flash, young Barry wears a t-shirt of Mystery Incorporated riding the Mystery Machine.
  • In the video game Mortal Kombat 1, Shang blames Johnny and the other Earthrealmers for foiling his plans, Johnny retorts, "Just like a bunch of meddling kids."

Big City Greens

  • "Times Circle:" The Croblins are unmasked by the superhero street performers to be a couple of teenagers and an old man, with the man responding with the line, "And I would've gotten away with it if it weren't for that meddling kid!"
  • "Gloria's Café:" Officer Keys uncovers Gloria's secret café because the ghosts that were supposed to have been haunting the place didn't say, "Boo," and adds, "And you would've gotten away with it, too, Gloria, if it hadn't been for a meddling Keys! And his partner, Officer Cuffy."

Comic Book Men

  • "Ghostbusting in the Stash:" Kevin Smith ends the show with "They would've gotten away with it, too."
  • "Bats Ahoy!:" Walt proposes the question of Mystery Inc. being better detectives than Batman, which Ming doesn't agree with.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

  • "What's My Line? Part One:" Buffy and her friends' exploits in fighting monsters eventually led Xander to officially coin them as the Scooby Gang.
  • "Beauty and the Beasts:" Willow packs her forensic tools in a King-Seeley lunch box that shows off the side with the gang riding the Mystery Machine.
  • "The I in Team:" Willow calls her friends the "Scooby Corps."
  • "This Year's Girl:" Spike calls Buffy and her friends the "Scooby Club."
  • "Who Are You?:" Faith calls Buffy and her friends the "Scooby Gang."
  • "Fool for Love:" Spike calls Buffy and her friends the "Scoobies."
  • "Entropy:" Spike calls Buffy and her friends the "Scoobies."
  • The cover of Dark Horse Comics' Buffy the Vampire Slayer Omnibus: Volume 3 features the Scooby Gang looking forward while huddled around a book in an homage to when our Scooby Gang did the same thing at the library in "What a Night for a Knight."
  • In the children's reboot by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, the new incarnation of Buffy's team is also called the Scooby Gang.

Dead Ringers (radio)

  • "Episode Three" (series 1): Shaggy, Scooby, and Velma solve a confusing mystery at a deserted fairground involving a haunting by the Headless Horseman. Velma believed it was old Mr. Jamison, the caretaker, but since he was brutally murdered, she had to rethink who the culprit could be. Mohamed Al-Fayed then shows up and tells them it was Prince Philip and the CIA. "And I would've gotten away with it, too, if it wasn't for those pesky Fayeds."
  • "Episode Four" (series 2): When Charlotte Green reveals that Brian Perkins has been ending other BBC Radio 4 shows, he says, "And I would've gotten away with it, too, if it hadn't been for your pesky meddling." Then in another sketch, Alistar Stewart presents a preview of the next Police Crash Bang Wallop (a parody of Police Camera Action!), in which a "brightly covered camper van," is chased by the Headless Horseman on the motorway. Shaggy screams, "Zoinks! Scoob, if Freddy doesn't get us off the M-25, we're doomed!" with a questionable whimper from Scooby.
  • "Episode Five" (series 2): On The Jerry Springer Show, Shaggy is one of the guests because his friends think he is in love with Scooby. Velma says that when they split up, she and Daphne go with Fred, but Shaggy goes with Scooby. Springer also refers to the van, making their situation even more questionable. Scooby gives a couple of affirmative grunts. He wraps it up quickly with a final thought that Shaggy would've gotten away with it, too, if it wasn't for his pesky friends.
  • "Episode Six" (series 2): Prime Minister Tony Blair hires the kids (Shaggy and Velma with Scooby) to investigate who has been leaking his private memos from his office. Velma deduces that the suspect could be Mo Mowlam, Gordon Brown, Robin Cook, or Alistair Campbell, who all work in his cabinet. But after hearing all the suspects, he writes in his press release that the caretaker disguised as a pirate was trying to scare him away from the gold mine at the disused fairground.
  • "Episode Two" (series 3): Shaggy, Scooby, and Velma capture the Headless Horseman, who they believe to be the old caretaker, Mr. Jamison, but when they unmask the monster it is really Carol Smillie, host of Changing Rooms. Shaggy then thinks he's seen another apparition, but Smilie points out that it is designer Linda Barker. They were making a haunted mansion motif, which included a hidden treasure buried in the basement, and they used the Headless Horseman to scare them away. Having failed, though, Barker complains, "And we'd have got away with it, too, if it wasn't for you really, really pesky kids." Velma asks the two if they were also responsible for the wailing from the Edwardian ghost, but Carol confirms it's just another designer Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen.
  • "Episode One" (series 5): Shaggy, Velma, and Scooby are investigating the Conservative Campaign Headquarters. Shaggy doesn't like being there because of his hippy lifestyle and their stance on cannabis, which he hides under the fake floorboards of the Mystery Machine. Scooby also partakes in Shaggy's drug use when the former says, "Scooby Scooby stoned." They find Iain Duncan Smith, who Shaggy calls the Hairless Horseman, and remove his ghastly features to discover it is really William Hague, who is out for vengeance against the Tories after not getting elected Prime Minister in the 2001 elections. Hague laments, "And I would've gotten away with it if it wasn't for those pesky voters!"
  • "Episode Three" (series 5): In response to Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within using cartoon characters instead of real actors, Hollywood actors have taken to do the same, such as Russell Crowe and John Gielgud having taken on the roles of Shaggy and Scooby, respectively, in a case at an abandoned fairground haunted by Mr. Johnson to keep people away from the gold mine. Despite playing Shaggy, Crowe still has shaken his previous role of Maximus Decimus Meridius from Gladiator (a recurring gag on Dead Ringers), and when he responds to Velma, he paraphrases Maximus's famous quote, "My name is Maximus Decimus Shaggimus. Owner of a cowardly dog [Scooby], friend to a suspiciously gay-looking man [Fred]. And I would've had my vengeance, but I was, like, really scared. Zoinks!" He then wants to celebrate with Scooby, saying, "This, like, calls for Scooby Snacks. Scooby, at my signal, unleash your tongue and wrap it around a very tall sandwich." Scooby just says, "Scooby Scooby Dooby. Scooby Dooby Dooby, Raggy."
  • "Episode Three" (series 7): Velma reads to Shaggy the violations of the new Cartoon Animal Bill of Rights for unnecessary and prolonged exposure to haunted houses, spooky fairgrounds, and white-haired caretakers called Mr. Jameson, as well as health grounds as for the past 30 years, Shaggy has only been feeding Scooby Snacks to Scooby, and mental cruelty for inflicting Scrappy-Doo. Zoinks! Shaggy's been "Scooby Scooby sued!"
  • "Episode Three" (series 9): Shaggy is afraid of their London route in the Mystery Machine, but Velma tries to reassure him it's safe, until they are informed of a £5 congestion fee for entering Central London, which makes Shaggy scream "Zoinks." at this eerie man from the funfair, but Shaggy is corrected on both accounts, as the eerie man is Mayor Livingstone, and the "funfair" is the London Eye. Velma is suspicious it's not Livingstone and his face is really a mask hiding Tony Blair, who was pretending to be Livingstone to make London more unpopular. Defeated, he groans, "And I would've gotten away with it, too, if it wasn't for you pesky young voters." Scooby cheers by saying, "Scooby-Dooby-Doo!"
  • "Episode Four" (series 9): Reporter Kirsty Wark reveals that the politicians (including Iain Duncan Smith and Ann Widdecombe) are falsely trying to turn the public against cartoon characters "sneaking" into the UK through "the channel" Nickelodeon had summoned all of the reporters at a spooky, abandoned fairground while dressed as ghosts. Defeated, Widdencomb moans, "Curses! Curses! Failed again. And I would've got away with it, too, if it wasn't for you pesky Newsnight presenters!" Happy, Wark says something similar to "Scooby-Dooby-Doo!"
  • "Episode Two" (series 15): Mystery Incorporated (namely, Shaggy, Scooby, Fred, and Velma) investigates a murder at the Britain's Got Talent studio, which Shaggy says is scarier than the abandoned fun fair, abandoned haunted house, and disused slaughterhouse combined. Shaggy gets terrified by Amanda Holden, who he describes as a "creature with a totally expressionless face." Fred says at this point in the adventure, they'd meet a kindly, old janitor. Just then, Simon Cowell pops up. Fred uses this as an opportunity to ask Cowell about how tricking Britain into voting for Matisse, the Border Collie, when the best tricks were done by a stunt double, but Cowell retorts that it was easy when Britain has got nothing better to do on a Saturday night. Revealed as the evil genius that he is, Cowell responds with the classic line, "And I would've gotten away with it too, if it wasn't for you pesky kids, and Ofcom." Not quite done, Cowell reveals that Scooby being a talking dog is a trick by him, too. Shaggy had never questioned it being always as stoned as he was.

Doctor Who

  • In the book The Crooked World, there was a place called Zanytown on the planet Crooked World, where there lived the Skeleton Crew, with members Mike Leader (Fred), Harmony Looker (Daphne), Thelma Brains (Velma), Tim Coward (Shaggy), and Fearless (Scooby).
  • In the episode "The Age of Steel," Disappointed by who the Preachers really are, Pete calls them, "Scooby-Doo and his gang," while also adding, "They've even got the van."
  • In Doctor Who Magazine #489, the thirteenth segment of the ongoing The Daft Dimension, depicted a parallel universe where a Doctor who loosely resembled both the Twelfth Doctor and Shaggy traveled around with his companions who also mirrored the other members of Mystery Inc. (K9/Scooby, Strax/Velma, Vastra/Daphne, Jenny Flint/Fred) in The Mystery Time Machine, which resembled a police box which could travel through space and time. They unmask a crook, who in this reality, is a crooked alien named Mr. Scaroth who disguised himself as a human man. When caught, he uttered the line, "Bah! I'd have gotten away with it, if it hadn't been for you pesky time travellers!"

Drawn Together

Main article: Drawn Together
  • "Hot Tub:" A deleted scene that introduced who Foxxy Love was before joining the housemates, had her as the lead singer of the Foxxy 5 who solved mysteries on the side.
  • "The One Wherein There's a Big Twist Part Two:" When Strawberry Sweetcake's plan is revealed, she yells "And I would've gotten away with it if it wasn't for that meddling schvoogie" referring to Foxxy, who exposed her plan to everyone else.

The Fairly OddParents

Main article: The Fairly OddParents
  • "Twistory:" The Founding Fathers are all astonished to discover that Benedict Arnold was disguising himself as George Washington, which is uncovered by Timmy, eliciting Benedict's angry remark, "And I would have gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for that meddling kid."
  • Channel Chasers (part 2): Timmy, Cosmo, and Wanda travel into a parody of Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! called Snooper Dawg and the Clue Crew. The Clue Crew arrive in their Clue Cruiser right after Timmy and the fairies enter, with the fairies going from parodies of Mystery Incorporated like Timmy to parodies of Scooby. Several tropes and conventions are followed, such as Snooper the dog's Shaggy-like friend jumping into his arms after they all spot a monster, and run into the nearby spooky mansion which has bats flying out of it. Inside, they participate in the Scooby-Dooby-doors (with an accompanying pop song), Snooper and his friend eat, and the Velma doppelganger loses her glasses. They catch the monster and unmask it. There seem to be references to Goober and the Ghost Chasers, too, as the dog is somewhat similar to Goober and the kids are made of five, instead of four.
  • "Dread 'n' Breakfast:" During Crocker, Tootie, and Dark Laser stay at the Turner Bed and Breakfast, they are out to get Timmy, who at one point asks Dark Laser what one of his buttons does which he says turns on his 70s chase music, which begins a Scooby-Dooby-doors chase. In the middle of the chase, parodies of Shaggy and Scooby appear, being chased by the Headless Horseman; the Shaggy parody says "Zinkies, Doob! Like, keep running man!"
  • "The Wand That Got Away:" While on the search for Cosmo's wand, the gang gets into Spark's "groovy" van (resembling the Mystery Machine) he won from a 1970s game show. This gives Cosmo the idea, with Wanda's wand, to turn them into Mystery Inc. When they track it down to Crocker's house, they split up and run into monsters (and Crocker's mother). Crocker thinks the wand is fake when he wishes to be a zillionaire, causing an oil spill outside, which he doesn't see as helpful, but when he realizes it was real he says to himself, "And I would've gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for those meddling kids." When the gang is back at Timmy's, Wanda is relieved they won't have to solve any more mysteries, which is followed by Sparky crying, "Rooby-Rooby-Roo!" But Sparky insists he says this right before seeing a giant pigeon smack into a window, such as the one Mr. Turner transformed into is about to do. Mr. Turner reacts by saying, "Zoinks! I broke my jinkies!"
  • "Let Sleeper Dogs Lie:" Sparky kept a DVD of his previous owners, which included a group of kids resembling Mystery Incorporated who solved mysteries. Thanks to the Mystery Mobile, they escaped from a castle haunted by a cloaked ghost. The Shaggy doppelganger commentated in fear, "Zoinks, Sparky."

Family Guy

Main article: Family Guy
  • "Chitty Chitty Death Bang:" With the television transmitter cut, Peter wonders what the Scooby gang is up to, with the scene then cutting to an adult spin-off spoof called The Scooby-Doo Murder Files, where Mystery Incorporated investigates and describes in detail how someone was killed, as well being able to curse, as Fred demonstrates by saying, "Son of a bitch." There's also a van with the words "Murder Machine" written on the side as a reference to The Mystery Machine.
  • "Family Guy Viewer Mail:" A segment parodies the Little Rascals with the adults as kids, which includes a portion of time at a spooky mansion, where the regressed boys also copy the hallway chase gag, featuring Mystery Incorporated in a cameo also running out of one door and into another.
  • "Deep Throats:" In a DVD-exclusive scene, when Brian and Stewie sneak into the town hall, they run into Mystery Incorporated, but Stewie gets rid of them by humming their own walk music against them.
  • "Excellence in Broadcasting:" John McCain and Rush Limbaugh, joined by a Scooby-like dog called Hot Dog, are tipped off by the groundskeeper of a mummy burning the American flag at the swamp, but after investigating they don't find what they're looking for. They set some crazy trap involving a pig, which catches the mummy, who they unmask to be "Old Man" Barney Frank, who yells, "And I would've gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for you meddling Republicans!" McCain then suddenly turns to celebrity guests, the Harlem Globetrotters, for the help (just like an episode of The New Scooby-Doo Movies). One of them tries to give McCain a high five, but McCain being the racist he is, turns him down.
  • "Dog Bites Bear:" Stewie tells Brian that his stuffed bear, Rupert, called Brian "Scooby Don't."

Futurama

Main article: Futurama
  • "I Dated a Robot:" After Leela, Amy, and Bender escape with Lucy Liu's head, Clyde Smith says that Nappster.com will be exposed for being cyber criminals and they would've gotten away with it if it weren't for those "meddling adults".
  • "Fry Am the Egg Man:" The crew catches Mr. Peppy, the bone vampire, only to discover it is Angus McZongo in disguise. Shocked by the deceit, Amy cries out, "Jinkies, he Scooby-Doo'ed us!"
  • "Saturday Morning Fun Pit:" The Planet Express crew is reimagined as Mystery Inc. and drive around in a hovering van shaped like the Planet Express spaceship, but now called the Mystery Express and painted in a similar color scheme to the Mystery Machine. During the mystery, George Takei the Harlem Globetrotters, and Larry Bird show up. Takei ends up being both the Spooky Kabuki and a dragon, who scared everyone because according to himself, he is mentally ill, which is why he says, "And I would never have gotten away with it, regardless of you meddling kids." Leela also unmasks Zoidberg, but goes too far and tears off his head.

Harley Quinn (comic)

  • Issue #1: In one panel, there is a cameo of the gang (sans Scooby) chasing a crook, but they are in alternate colors of skin tones and clothes.
  • Issue #64: In a comic book Harley Quinn is reading to her mother, she inserts herself into a mystery the Justice League Dark are solving, where they have taken on the roles of Mystery Inc. in an homage to "A Clue for Scooby-Doo."

Johnny Test

  • "Johnny Dukey Doo:" The episode is a parody of the tropes and formula of Scooby-Doo, with Johnny, Dukey, Susan, Mary, and Gil teaming up and filling the roles of Mystery Inc. when they investigate an abandoned haunted mansion; Gil in particular also wears an outfit similar to Fred. At three points in the episode, Johnny asks Dukey, "Where have I seen this before?" The first time is when the group plans to separate; a second time is when they run away from the ghosts in a hallway of doors; and lastly when the culprits are revealed, with Johnny recognizing that he has "seen this before." Johnny and Dukey disguise themselves as waiters to fool the ghosts, and there is an upbeat tempo when they get caught in a Scooby-Dooby-doors moment. One of the six ghosts is a glowing scuba diver similar to the Ghost of Captain Cutler, while four of them are based on the Green Ghosts.
  • "Johnny Bee Good:" When Johnny, Dukey, Susan, and Mary foil the Beekeeper's evil plan to steal all the candy in Porkbelly, Johnny reveals his identity as Doc Beebles by unmasking him. In return, Beebles says, "I would have gotten away with it, if it wasn't for the flaming-headed kid in the bee suit, and those girls, and the hairy kid."

¡Mucha Lucha!

  • "Timmy of a Thousand Masks:" To reveal Timmy as the culprit, the kids take off many of his masks, with the kids announcing all those that they see in the same manner as Mystery Inc. does.
  • ¡Mucha Lucha!: The Return of El Maléfico: The way everyone announces the name of the culprit after unmasking El Maléfico is the same as what Mystery Inc. would do after unmasking a monster.

Looney Tunes

Main article: Looney Tunes
  • DC Comics' Looney Tunes #74 has a story entitled "Tazzy-Doo, Where Are You?," in which several Looney Tunes stars have come together, dubbing themselves the Condundrum Co., to solve a mystery at the Acme Mask Factory. Once it is discovered that it was only Pussyfoot, the kitten, scaring employees away so she could get some sleep, Tazzy-Doo responded, "Kitty wanted nap. Kitty get one, too--in spite of meddling kids!"
  • For the 100th anniversary of Warner Bros., they had partnered with Funko in producing a range of Looney Tunes characters depicted as Mystery Inc., which was then translated into cartoon form for a special mashup short.

Riverdale

  • "Chapter Six: Faster, Pussycats! Kill! Kill!:" In response to all the kids wanting to investigate Sisters of Quiet Mercy, Jughead warned them, "If we go in there with the entire Scooby Gang, forget it, we're compromised."
  • "Chapter Thirteen: The Sweet Hereafter:" In response to uncovering Clifford Blossom's scheme, Jughead types on his laptop, "And he would have gotten away with it, too, if it wasn't for a group of pesky kids, who uncovered the truth."

Robot Chicken

Main article: Robot Chicken
  • "Operation Rich in Spirit:" In the last skit, "A Scooby Friday," Mystery Inc. goes sleuthing at Camp Crystal Lake where they all get killed by Jason Voorhies, except for Velma, as she is a virgin. Jason Voorhies, who's really an old man, rectifies this by sleeping with Velma. The voices of Mystery Inc. are provided by those who starred in the first two live-action movies, except for Dave Coulier as Scooby.
  • "Help Me:"
  • "Malcolm X: Fully Loaded:" Zune Man breaks the CD on CD's chest, responding with a mocking, "Ruh-roh."
  • "Punctured Jugular:"
  • "Cheese Puff Mountain:"
  • "Scoot to the Gute:"
  • "Jew #1 Opens a Treasure Chest:"
  • "Snoopy Camino Lindo in: Quick and Dirty Squirrel Shot:"
  • "May Cause the Need for Speed:"

Saturday Night Live

Main article: Saturday Night Live
  • "Rob Lowe/Eminem:" In a skit about a fictional Crime TV program called Pros & Cons, it reports on Mr. Montgomery, a jailed felon, who allegedly dressed up as a ghost to scare people away from a run-down amusement park that had pirate treasure underneath. He was stopped by a group of "amateur detectives," who according to Warren "Shaggy" Shagowski, decided while in a malt shop that the law had gone soft and it was time to do something about it, especially after "dirtbags who get their jollies dressing as ape men or glowing deep sea divers." Mr. Montgomery's lawyer argues that their prior criminal activities for "meddling" on several occasions meant that they were looking for trouble and implicated that Mr. Montgomery was innocent. Shaggy simply counters with his patriotic American right to have the freedom to stop bad guys. The lawyer admires Shaggy's ethics, then bribes him to think differently with a box of Scooby Snacks.
  • "Margot Robbie/The Weeknd:" There is a segment called The Hunch Bunch, where the cast is dressed like characters resembling Fred, Shaggy, Daphne, and Velma. They investigate a spooky castle haunted by a monster who is really Coggins, the groundskeeper.
  • "Jake Gyllenhaal/Sabrina Carpenter:" In a skit called "Scooby-Doo! and the Mystery of the Shadow Phantom," Mystery Incorporated investigates the Shadow Phantom at a haunted mansion. They catch the ghost and take off the mask to reveal Old Man Franklin underneath, then Fred takes it further by ripping off the man's real face believing that to be fake as well to horrifying results. Chaos then ensues by their reactions, which includes Shaggy losing an arm, Velma losing her head, Fred shooting Daphne, and Scooby shooting Fred. In reality, this is just a commercial for Apple's new Face ID.

The Simpsons

Main article: The Simpsons
  • "Krusty Gets Busted:" When Bart and Lisa expose Sideshow Bob, he says, "And I would've gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for those meddling kids."
  • "Black Widower:" Bart explains how he figured out Sideshow Bob's plot in the same manner that Mystery Inc. explains a villain's plot. He also says he doesn't want to tell Chief Wiggum how to do his job, but Chief Wiggum wants Bart to as it's the only way he'll learn. After Sideshow Bob is taken, Bart tells the family they should leave the hallway because of the natural gas pouring through, making them laugh in the same corny manner Mystery Inc. would at the end of a case.
  • "A Milhouse Divided:" Marge, unfulfilled by the lack of conversation at dinner, asks Homer if their married life has turned out the way he expected, with Homer responding, "Yeah, pretty much. Except we drove around in a van solving mysteries."
  • In Simpsons Comics #242 - "Scooby Don't!:" Bart and his friends have taken on the roles of each member of Mystery Inc. (wearing similar clothes and stylized eyes like them, too), including Ralph Wiggum in a Scooby-like costume. They get free passes to Krustyland, but find out it is closed due to apparently being haunted by a ghost. When they reveal the faux ghost to be a rich Texan, he gets away with it, informing the kids, "And I got away with it, too! Because you're just kids and I can afford a lawyer!"

South Park

Main article: South Park
  • "Weight Gain 4000:" When Barbrady arrests Mr Hat, the latter says, "Well, I would've gotten away with it if it weren't for those meddling kids."
  • "Korn's Groovy Pirate Ghost Mystery:" In a parody of Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!, Father Maxi wanted to get rid of Halloween by trying to scare everyone with ghost pirates, just as nu metal band Korn rolls into town in their van resembling the Mystery Machine. They solve the mystery as if they were Mystery Incorporated. When the kids greet them, they treat Korn as if they're guests out of The New Scooby-Doo Movies. Korn, Korn's van, the pirate ghosts, and their ship are modeled to resemble Hanna-Barbera's "cheap" designs, along with corny jokes to boot.
  • "Child Abduction is Not Funny:" When the police turn up to stop Frederick Johnson, disguised as the trusting Ghost of Human Kindness, from abducting Tweek, he moans, "And I would've gotten away with it again if it weren't for you meddling policemen!"

Spicks and Specks

  • "Episode 5" (series 9): The host Adam Hills welcomes Michala Banas with the following introduction, "Alan's second team member is an actor who once had a small role in the movie Scooby-Doo and totally stole the scene. And she would have gotten away with it too if it wasn't for those meddling kids! Please welcome Michala Banas."
  • "Episode 9" (series 9): The host Adam Hills welcomes Jess Harris with the following introduction, "Alan's second team member is a comedian and proud owner of a 1972 orange pop-top Kombi. All she needs now is a stoned hippy friend and a talking Great Dane and she's ready to go out and solve some mysteries! Please welcome Jess Harris." The first part is a reference to the Mystery Machine, and likely Daphne, since Harris has orange hair.

Sugar and Toys

Main article: Sugar and Toys
  • "Cribfest:" In a segment called "The Scoobidy-Doobidy Basketball Variety Mystery Show," Lakers couch Luke Walton has hired the Scoobidy Gang to find LeBron James's missing hairline, which he claims the Barber Fairy took after a story that Kobe Bryant told him when joining the Lakers. After a short investigation, the gang discover that the Barber Fairy is really Kobe who didn't want LeBron to play better than him. Scooby and Shaggy's doppelgangers are called Scoobidy and Shaky, respectively.
  • "Burning Scouts:" In a segment called "Cartoon BFFs, See Each Other Naked for the First Time," Shaggy and Fred disrobe in the shower to see each other naked. Shaky is surprised to see an ascot on Fred's penis, too. Unlike the first episode, Shaky says, "Zoinkers," instead of "Zoinks." Fred also talks about sharing Deedee (Daphne), which may be a reference to when Shaggy and Daphne solved mysteries together with Scooby and Scrappy for three seasons in the 80s.
  • "Make Room for Roomie:" The gang investigate the disappearance of Shaky, and ask Scoobidy several questions until he confesses that he killed Shaky because Shaky kept on eating his Scoobidy Snacks and threatened to neuter him. Scoobidy then cut all of him up and turned him into "Shaky Snacks" to hide the body, which he the fed to the rest of his friends, who threw up after they discover the truth. Scoobidy winks at the camera.
  • "Revenge of the Nerfs:" In a segment called "The Scoobidy-Doobidy Cancel Culture Variety Mystery Show," the Scoobidy Gang (the first time they are called that) investigate Chris Brown's house to see why he is back in the spotlight again despite being "cancelled." Velma, in particular, is seething with hatred at the idea of Chris being popular again. Scoobidy drives the Mystery Machine. Fred mentions how he had a lot of fun the other night with Deedee and Velma. Velma and Shaky use their catchphrases.
  • "Love in the Time of Pandademic:" The Scoobidy Gang catch DJ Khaled disguised as a ghost chicken at a KFC-type restaurant. DJ Khaled was stealing the lemon pepper off Rick Ross's chicken wings.

Supernatural

  • "All Dogs Go to Heaven:" Dean wants to know from Lucky where the rest of the skinwalkers are, referring to them as his "little Scooby gang".
  • "Form and Void:" Crowley tells Dean to stop calling out to Jenna to get Amara's attention, to which Dean says, "Listen, Velma, this isn't the Scooby Gang." Although Crowley thinks he's "way more of a Daphne."
  • "Lotus:" While Dean and Sam investigate a monastery, Dean warns Sam that if they do in fact find Lucifer, they'll call the rest of their allies, who he refers to as the Scooby Gang.
  • "Peace of Mind:" In Charming Acres, there is a matinee showing the first live-action with a poster on the wall, the one with Scooby in Shaggy's arms.

Teen Titans Go!

Main article: Teen Titans Go!
  • "Costume Contest:" Robin draws the Teen Titans as Mystery Inc. in potential Halloween costumes for them.
  • Cartoon Network Edition: NBA All-Star Slam Dunk Contest 2023: Scooby-Doo and Velma were on the side reporters, but Velma kept on turning it into a mystery. She eventually found a basketball with a face on it which she tried to unmask, and although it seemed unlikely at first, the basketball was unmasked to reveal Raven. When caught, she says, "And I would have gotten away with it, if it hadn't been for you meddling kids and your dumb dog." Starfire is bemused by this comment.

VeggieTales

  • "Sheerluck Holmes and the Golden Ruler:" When one of the guards is discovered to be hiding the Golden Ruler under his bearskin hat, he cries out, "And I would have gotten away with it, too, but for my irresponsible love of Brie cheese and baguette bread.
  • "Esther: The Girl Who Became Queen:" When the Peaoni brothers' plans of crushing Xerxes with a grand piano are thwarted, Teresh Peaoni says, "And we could've taken over the kingdom, if it wasn't for that meddling queen," referring to Esther who warned Xerxes before it was too late.

The Venture Bros.

Main article: The Venture Bros.
  • "¡Viva los Muertos!:" The gang is reenvisioned as middle-aged serial killers and radical figures: Fred is Ted (Ted Bundy), Shaggy is Sonny (David "Son of Sam" Berkowitz), Daphne is Patty (Patty Hearst), Velma is Val (Valerie Solanas), and Scooby is Groovy (Harvey, Berkowitz's neighbor's dog), who are collectively known as the Groovy Gang who drive in the Groovy Van. Ted bribes Sonny to get out of the van with pills called "groovy treats," which makes Sonny run toward them in a comical effect.
  • "The Lepidopterists:" The Monarch was criticized for using the word "retard," but he wasn't going to say "bungling boobs" or "meddling kids."

Young Justice (TV series)

  • "Independence Day:" Guardian tells Desmond that the Team is not "your typical meddling kids."
  • "First Impression:" There is a Newsgirl Legion who are parodies of Fred (genderbent as a girl), Daphne, and Velma who live in a town that is similar to Crystal Cove, along with a Mayor Jones and Sheriff Stone of its own. When Intergang is caught pretending to be aliens, member Whisper utters the line, "And we would've scored big time, if you heroes hadn't gotten in our way!" referring to the Outsiders.

Footnotes

References

  1. ^ The Amazing World of Gumball: "The Spinoffs," season 6, episode 21 (2019).
  2. ^ Teen Titans Go!: "Cartoon Feud," season 5, episode 47 (2019).
  3. ^ Teen Titans Go!: "Warner Bros. 100th Anniversary," season 8, episode 24 (2023).