The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries "The Mystery of King Tut's Tomb" #2.3 (1977) (TV)

Joe and Frank go to Egypt, 2 September 2007

On their way to meet their dad, Frank and Joe Hardy (Parker Stevenson and Shaun Cassidy) stop off in Egypt for a little sight-seeing. Before you know it, the boys are mixed up in stolen antiquities and a pretty American girl who has been kidnapped. Can the boys put the pieces together to solve The Mystery of King Tut's Tomb? More importantly, can they clear their own names and get their passports from the local police?

I admit, The Mystery of King Tut's Tomb isn't earth shattering in its originality, but I had a good time re-watching it for the first time in about 30 years. To begin with, the mystery elements are reasonably good. It's a fairly complicated story (okay, complicated for a Hardy Boys mystery – it's all relative) that takes a bit of time to unfold. And secondly, who doesn't enjoy a bit of mysterious ancient Egypt mixed into a mystery? I'm a sucker for this kind of stuff.

My biggest complaint has more to do with the start of Season 2 than it does this particular episode. First it was Transylvania and Dracula – now it's Egypt and King Tut. What happened to the more homegrown believable mysteries? Were the producers that desperate for ratings? While I don't necessarily think any of the first three episodes in Season 2 are particularly bad, none can compete with the majority of episodes from Season 1.

6/10