Ya know, I envy those shows that can pivot on a dime in order to stay “topical”, as we are not that show! It’s doesn’t mean we don’t try, though. Episode 31 was 2 different shows before it became the show we’re discussing today. The first pick was scrapped the day before recording, because it was a garbage show, with no meat on the bone. The second pick was strong, but when the news of the developments with the 007 franchise was making the rounds, we changed yet again, and decided to try to “ride the wave”…two weeks ago. Well, we tried…
For those not “in the know”, the 007/James Bond franchise was one of the last family-owned franchises, controlled by the children of film producer Albert “Cubby” Broccoli. That all changed recently, though, as Amazon/MGM gained full creative control of the franchise, with the Broccolis relinquishing their producer roles. Though they’ve tried to be stewards of the brand, the rights have been a mess over the past 50 years, which is why things like Never Say Never Again managed to get made. Due to a lawsuit over the rights to Thunderball, Jack Schwartzman was able to release his own adaptation of that novel, which was the maligned final appearance of Sean Connery in the role. It’s this rights loophole that also inspired the creation of today’s show. See, that screenwriter, Kevin McClory, was reportedly developing a Bond cartoon at the end of the 80s, called James Bond vs. S.P.E.C.T.R.E. The Broccoli family was like “Oh, no you don’t!”, and began work on their own cartoon, which would be James Bond Jr. Though developed by DIC, the show would eventually end up at Murakami-Wolf-Swenson, who’d had recent success with the hit Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon.
James Bond Jr. followed the superspy’s nephew (?!), as he attended the exclusive and preppy Warfield Academy. His fellow classmates were the children/grandchildren of other Bond franchise mainstays, like Felix Leiter and Q. Instead of fighting S.P.E.C.T.R.E., Jr fought against the organization known as Saboteurs and Criminals United in Mayhem, or S.C.U.M. Like most syndicated animated series of the era, the show consisted of 65 episodes, aired five days a week between September and December 1991. It also had an accompanying toyline from Hasbro, which was a mainstay in the Kay-Bee clearance aisle of the era.
Anyway, Adam and I get into all of this and more, so be sure to check out the full episode here or wherever you get your podcasts!
