Cool McCool – The Complete Series
Picture:
B- Sound: C+ Extras: B Episodes: C+
The 1960s
had a variety of unusual animated series, but if nothing else each had their
own style and flare. New on DVD is Cool McCool: The Complete Series. Cool
McCool features a suave, trench coat wearing detective who is more of a
Maxwell Smart (Get Smart) than a
Sherlock Holmes. McCool is constantly
messing up, getting into trouble, and is by all means a dunce; but just like
Maxwell Smart he always manages to luck out and save the day. Capitalizing on America’s fascination with
superheroes and James bond, Bob Kane (Yes, the same man who brought the world Batman) created Cool McCool to be a bumbling, comically inept detective with all
the desire and none of the talent. Whereas
Cool McCool was definitely not the
most innovative series of the 1960’s it had a great deal of creativity in voice
acting department.
With Cool
McCool and his father Harry McCool being voiced by Bob McFadden the rest of the
voice acting on the series done by voice actor Chuck McCann, who provided most
of the show’s voices from villains to do-gooders. The series ran from 1966-1969 with 20 shows
in all with 2 episodes per show, making for a total of 40 classic
episodes. The series has an animation
style like that of Mr. Magoo with a
dash of Rocky and Bullwinkle and a
cast of villains that could have been torn from the pages of the Batman
comics. Where it is not always
captivating, the series is fun and stands the test of time.
The technicals
for this particular TV on DVD set are surprisingly good for the cartoon’s
age. The picture is presented in the
original 1.33 X 1 Full Screen and for the most part is clear and color
balanced. The problem with the picture,
however, is that it does have a degree of blurriness as well as some debris
that flies by the screen; this hardly detracts from the viewing experience and
is adequate seeing as how the animation is over 40 years old. The sound is presented in a simple Dolby
Digital 2.0 Stereo, boosting the original monophonic soundtrack.
The sound
is adequate for the aging cartoon series, but does sound muffled and distant at
times. The real surprise of this DVD set
is the extras. Extras include two
special audio commentaries, two interesting interviews, and one odd music video
entitled “The School of McCool.” The interviews are the real special part of
this set; as this reviewer has always said, get interviews while you still
can. Interviews include interesting
segments such as “McCann on McCool,”
a special interview with the voice of many Cool McCool characters, Chuck
McCann. Another interview also included,
“Chatting with Chuck,” centers on all
of the work the talented Chuck McCann has done over his long career. Overall, this set has very good extras and
adequate picture and sound.
In the
end, for such a classic set the choice is simple. So pull out your magnifying glass and gear up
for Cool McCool: The Complete Series! I can say these kinds of things because,
Danger is my business!
For more
on Bob Kane’s other non-Batman animation, Courageous
Cat & Minute Mouse is also out there on DVD from A&E. Kane’s creative output continues to be
grossly underrated, but sets like these shows show otherwise.
- Michael P Dougherty II
