Hardy Boys Review and Hardy Boys Discussion Questions written by the Ent on /21. This post contains affiliate links, you can find out more on our policies page or in the disclaimer at the bottom of the blog.
Know Before You Watch
Show: Hardy Boys (Based on the Hardy Boys Book Series)
Rating: TV-PG
Genre: Mystery Adventure
Age suggested: 8 and up
Release Date: December 4th, 2020
Episodes/length: 13 forty five minute episodes
Streaming Service: Hulu
Themes: Grief, Persistence, Family Secrets, Trust
Warnings: Mild violence, death of parent, and intense scenes
Quick Summary of Hardy Boys
The Hardy Boys are back in this modern spin on a literary classic! We join Frank and Joe as they are thrust into a world of family secrets, secret societies, and murderous spies! This series is exciting and intense, while also staying innocent and light enough for a younger audience.
Hardy Boys Review: (Contain Light Spoilers)
-Is The Hardy Boys appropriate?-
This Hardy Boys retelling is great because it does a good job at staying true to the original stories, but putting it in a slightly more modern world (set in the 1980s). With this, it stays relatively innocent with only some mildly scary imagery, death of characters, and some teenage relationships (kissing, but nothing further). Overall, we say 8 and up simply because the plot can be a little slow and may lose younger viewers and some of the heavier topics of death and mystery.
-Plot/Story-
The story for the Hardy boys kicks off when their mother dies in a car accident early on in the series. This causes the boys to jump into a world of secret societies, grand mysteries, and family secrets that they may not have been prepare for. Watching the brothers work together to piece together little clues in order to unveil such a grand conspiracy is really fun.
A majority of the fun of this show is trying to figure out who you can and cannot trust. The only downside is that the show could have been condensed a bit because it definitely seems to drag at times. Altogether, even though the plot is relatively straight forward, it does send the viewer down some fun trails that are exciting and enjoyable to decipher along with the brothers.
Continue reading for more of the Hardy Boys review
-Characters-
One of the most fun dynamics of this version of the Hardy boys is the chemistry between Frank and Joe. A big difference between these characters and those of the book series is the age difference. In the show, Frank is about 17 while Joe is around 12. This age gap plays into their relationship really interestingly because Frank is constantly belittling Joe, despite the fact that Joe is a genius when it comes to sleuthing. By the end, this relationship develops in a lovely way as they have to solve a mystery while also grieving the loss of their mother.
Another strong aspect to this series are the secondary characters. Joe’s friend Biff plays such an important role as being the person to always help him while also keeping him tethered to earth. Frank’s friend group adds a great dynamic as it must balance the general dramas of high school (crushes, dating, college applications, etc) while also trying to work together to discover a town secret.
The last characters that have to be pointed out are the villains. To prevent major spoilers, I won’t name any of them, but they add such a charismatic evil into the series that it is impossible not to get engrossed in their stories and motivations.
–Why Watch The Hardy Boys-
If you or anyone in your family likes the mystery genre, this is a great family series to toss on. It is rife with opportunity to discuss what you think is happening and who can or can’t be trusted. Also, it is one of the only intense mystery series out there, that also manages to keep a TV-PG rating.
Continue reading for our Hardy Boys discussion questions
Hardy Boys Discussion Questions
- Have you read the book series? If yes, then how did the show compare? If no, then are you now interested in reading them?
- Did the show manage to get you to trust anyone that you shouldn’t have? If so, who?
- When you first started the series, who did you think was the villain? Did that change for you at any point? Did you see the end coming?
- Which character did you most relate to and why?
- If you were to go on a large mysterious adventure, which friends and family members would you want to be with you?
- What do you think could await in a Hardy Boys season 2?
Thanks for checking out our Hardy Boys Review. Before you go, check out these other posts:
-Other Family Friendly Hulu Suggestions: From Movies to TV shows, we’ve got family-friendly suggestions for you
–3 Mysteries for any Age: No matter the age of your kid, we have some mysteries that will be sure-fire winners
-Enola Holmes Review and Curriculum: The little sister of Sherlock steps out of his shadow as she goes on an adventure to find her mother.
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