Alice et les Hardy Boys

This version of Nancy Drew was cancelled mid-season in 1995 due to declining ratings (mostly due to a poorly planned time slot outside of prime time) but is actually very enjoyable. Here Nancy Drew is a criminology student living in the big city in an apartment building named the. Callisto, which itself has a slightly mysterious air to it. Cousins George Fayne and Bess Marvin share an apartment above a shoe store and really add a lot of fun to the series. Bess is a columnist for a tabloid called The Rag and George works as a bike messenger and also is an amateur filmmaker; these jobs/pursuits often bring Nancy into mysteries that need solving. There are a couple fistfights that Nancy's boyfriend Ned gets pulled into and George sprains her ankle in one episode when she falls off her bike, but otherwise the mysteries are all very G rated but entertaining. This is an often forgotten chapter in the Nancy Drew universe but is very much worth seeing.

I actually found this series after discovering the Hardy Boys revival series that came out parallel to this one back in 1995. That series introduced the lead from this one assisting the boys in the final two episodes that were set in Paris. There are a lot of similarities between each show. They both have 20 minute long episodes. A complaint you see regarding the Hardy Boys is that twenty minutes doesn't leave much room a meaty and complex mystery that needs to be solved. This series seems a little better, but I enjoyed both immensely. Also, both series lasted for a total of 13 episodes as neither were picked up for renewal, which is a shame as both were very enjoyable. The final similarity that I'll point out is the running order. Both shows are presented out of order whether you order it on Amazon or watch it on YouTube. The first episode of Nancy Drew starts off with her solving a mystery at the Calisto Hotel, where she is a resident. The third episode has her just arriving in the city and looking for a place to stay. The episode title, "Welcome to the Calisto" is a dead giveaway. Other than that and the surface level mysteries, this show will take you back to the 90s, which honestly appeals to me more than anything else. It doesn't hurt that it's also a fantastic show, especially if you didn't grow up reading either series or catching reruns of, "The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew Mysteries" from the 70s growing up.