Casefiles crossovers with the Digests

[MacGyver]

I can't recall if I've mentioned this on here before or not, but I thought I'd point it out in any case.
I was looking through my collection of The Hardy Boys Digests series the other day and got reminded of something I'd noticed when I first read the last few Digests. Starting somewhere around #152 (Danger in the Extreme) or so, I pretty much just started getting every book as it first came out and that's primarily when I read those later titles. So it's been a while on some of these.
But somewhere after the last cover redesign the books had gotten (probably from #161 Training for Trouble onward, but definitely by the point of #171 The Test Case)- I've noticed that certain elements from The Hardy Boys Casefiles series slipped into the series.
Now, I know that folks have speculated that some of the books in the Digests may be reused Casefiles plotlines and I can see that- particularly with #150 The Crisscross Crime, as has been noted before. (And this makes sense as the book was released in mid-1998 or so, right after the Casefiles series was ended.) But I'm talking beyond even just similarities in danger, action and violence levels. Did anyone notice that Tony Prito is mentioned as working at Mr. Pizza in #171 The Test Case? And Liz Webling, who is mentioned as a reporter for The Beacon, The Bayport High School newspaper and the daughter of the owner of The Bayport Times, shows up in that book as well. I'm pretty sure she made a few other appearances in some of the Digests books too. I just thought it was neat that a Casefiles character was incorporated into the mainstream continuity as it were. And in The Test Case we also have a cameo (or at least I consider it to be) from Jerry Gilroy, who hadn't been seen since the original 58 books- so I like that the Original continuity blends in there as well (though technically that is the same continuity as the Digests.)
    Of course, the writers still had to maintain the Digests continuity going and so we still have Iola around and Callie and Chet make more appearances in these later books. And I also noticed that a good few of the later Digests took place in and around Bayport and some specifically at Bayport High School- and I thought that was a nice break from all the far-travelling stories (although I enjoy those too.) It's good to have a mix. And Hidden Mountain  was a pretty cool one- I liked the concept- and that one kinda reminded me some of The Network and those secret agent type cases of The Casefiles.
And of course, at least one aspect worked the other way too- The Hardy Boys originally got their police van in Revenge of the Desert Phantom and then it was later introduced in The Hardy Boys Casefiles at the end of Dead on Target. (Though I think it's a black van in the Casefiles and a blue van in the Digests. There are also two different accounts of how Frank and Joe got the van in both continuities.)
Anyway- just wanted to point those things out and hear any other thoughts on this.

[SDLagent]

Yeah, if it was for Iola and the lack of the Network and the Assassins in the Digests from the late 90s you'd think they were part of the Casefiles continuity. And having some of the Casefiles' plotlines recycled for the Digests isn't the only reason for these similarities - I'm sure some ghostwriters worked on both series.

[MacGyver]

Probably so. Just interesting to note. If Vanessa Bender had ever showed up in the Digests, that would have been really interesting.

[MacGyver]

By the way, I don't suppose anyone's noticed any similar scenarios with the Undercover Brothers series? (i.e. No Casefiles or other series connections or anything?) I still have a collection of those books and still have yet to read them - it's kinda sad but perhaps not considering all that I've heard about them. I will get around to some of them eventually. It would be neat if some of the classic characters were utilized again- Jack Wayne, Sam Radley, maybe even Oscar Smuff just for fun. Do Chief Collig and Con Riley even show up anymore?
That might be an interesting topic- how best would some of those older characters fit into the UB continuity?

[SDLagent]

Chief Collig and Riley do show-up in the UB. Chet has made a few appearances. Iola's been in a few but Callie's only shown-up in one novel and in two graphic novels.

For the most part the Original continuity and the Casefiles continuity work fairly well together. But the Undercover Brothers doesn't mesh as well.

[MacGyver]

Nice to know at least a few classic characters still show up sometimes. I suppose it's too much to hope for to see Tony, Phil and Biff, huh?

[tomswift2002]

Well, early on the Digests had WBPT appear in Danger On The Air, Spark of Suspicion & The Prime Time Crime and then the Casefiles Flesh and Blood had WBPT crossover into the Casefiles continuity, so I think that on some of those aspects S&S was okay with allowing the different companies to cross into the two stories to try and keep the universes close enough, just like in the Spider-Man comics you've got the Daily Bugle, but in each universe the logo might be different or it might be in a different building, etc.

[MacGyver]

That's true- some establishments like that should certainly be the same.

[SDLagent]

Nice to know at least a few classic characters still show up sometimes. I suppose it's too much to hope for to see Tony, Phil and Biff, huh?

Not in the novels. Scott Lobdell said once that he was planning to have the chums show-up in the graphic novels but he left the series before that ever happened. Maybe Conway will write them into a story, though...

[MacGyver]

I would love to see that happen.

[SDLagent]

We should write to Conway.

[Bigfootman]

Yeah, if it was for Iola and the lack of the Network and the Assassins in the Digests from the late 90s you'd think they were part of the Casefiles continuity. And having some of the Casefiles' plotlines recycled for the Digests isn't the only reason for these similarities - I'm sure some ghostwriters worked on both series.

Here's something interesting:
http://www.nancybush.net/books.cfm
At the bottom of the page, you will see that the author has written several books in the Nancy Drew Files series, however, she has also written one book in the Nancy Drew Digest series, "The Search for Cindy Austin". I read the "The Search for Cindy Austin" a few years ago, and one of the things I remember is that it was a lot like a Nancy Drew File.

Also, according to the book "Rediscovering Nancy Drew", one of the two ghostwriters for "Evil in Amsterdam" and one other SuperMystery also wrote the Nancy Drew Digest "The Secret At Seven Rocks" and 4 other digests. The other ghostwriter wrote several other Hardy Boys books.

[MacGyver]

Well, there we have it. Thanks for the confirmation, Dan.

[Bigfootman]

I forget to mention that Stephen D. Sullivan, who wrote The Viking's Revenge, also wrote Digests #160, 163, 165, 172, 173, 175, 176, 180, 183, 185, 188, and 190

[MacGyver]

Interesting to know- I particularly enjoy Digests #165, #175, #180, and #188 pretty well as well as The Viking's Revenge- I'd say he was one of the better ghostwriters. (Though as I've said before, I enjoy all the books to some degree.)