In the weeks since Eon Productions heads Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson announced they were turning control of the James Bond franchise over to Amazon, the internet has been aflame with pitches for nightmare spin offs. Its not hard to imagine the streamer green-lighting a drama about the early days of M, a Penguin-style prestige origin show about Blofeld, or some sort of reality competition to choose the next Bond girl.One that hasnt come up is a kids cartoon that recasts the super spy as a handsome teen who battles outrageous versions of Bonds celebrated villains. And thats because it already happened.65 episodes of James Bond Jr. ran in 1991, an animated series about 007s nephew James Bond Jr., going on adventures with Qs grandson I.Q. and Felix Leiters son Gordo and facing off with classic baddies such as Dr. No and Jaws.James Bond Jr. is exactly as weird as it sounds, but it didnt come from Amazon or even Kevin McClory and Jack Whittingham, the duo responsible for the off-brand movie Never Say Never Again, at least not directly. No, James Bond Jr. is the brainchild of DIC Entertainment head Andy Heyward, producer Robby London, and Michael G. Wilson himself.James Bond Jr. reminds fans that the franchise wasnt exactly sacred under the previous leadership, and provides both a warning and best-case-scenario for future spin-offs. For Kids Eyes OnlyIn the opening scene of James Bond Jr.s pilot episode, we watch as a shadowy vehicle chases an Aston Martin down a twisting road. The Aston Martin fires rockets and other counter-measures, but the pursuer remains, soon joined by two assailants on motorbikes. That is, until the pursuers chase the Aston Martin off a cliff.With the press of a button, wings pop out from the sides of the car and a propeller extends from the front, converting the vehicle into a plane that soars across the sky.Sure, theres a soft-spoken teen behind the wheel instead of Connery, Moore, or Dalton. But the opening scene feels like a proper James Bond adventure. And thats the thing that truly stands out when watching the show. James Bond Jr. feels like a proper Bond entry and a standard cartoon show from the late 80s and early 90s. The series hits a sweet spot between the silliest aspects of the franchise and the heavy world-building (read: toy opportunities) of the eras cartoons, making something that isnt exactly good, but not quite as crazy as it sounds.James Bond Jr. takes place at elite private school Warfield Academy, where young Bond (Corey Burton) pals around with the nerdy I.Q. (Jeff Bennett), the mulletted Gordo (Jan Rabson), the headmasters daughter Tracy Milbanks (Mona Marshall), and her nerdy best friend Phoebe Farragut (Susan Silo).Each of the 65 episodes of James Bond Jr. hold to the same basic premise. Gym teacher Mr. Mitchell (Brian Stokes Mitchell) or another instructor tries to impart a lesson on the students, but James gets distracted by some mystery. The mystery brings him into contact with a beautiful young woman with whom he trades kid-friendly flirtations. In every case, the mystery is related to S.C.U.M., aka Saboteurs and Criminals United in Mayhem. With the help of Gordo, I.Q., and Tracy, James thwarts the S.C.U.M. agents, embarrasses snob Trevor Noseworthy IV (Simon Templeman), and gets back to school, just in time for a firm but respectful reprimand from headmaster Bradford Milbanks (Julian Holloway).The S.C.U.M. baddies feature some new creations for the series, including the generic-looking Scumlord (Jeff Bennett), who hides behind a fedora and glasses, the French mad scientist Dr. Derange (Julian Holloway), and his lacky Skullcap (Jan Rabson). Join our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!However, some characters from the main franchise make their way to the show, albeit in redesigned form. Jaws (Rabson) is beefier than Richard Kiel, but otherwise looks mostly the same. However, Oddjob (Bennett) gets refit as an 80s B-Boy, while Nick Nack (Bennett) from The Man With the Golden Gun becomes a slightly undersized white greaser. Goldfinger (Rabson) mostly matches his film counterpart, but he does gain a teen daughter called Goldie (Kath Soucie). Conversely, Dr. No (Holloway) gets made up with every ugly Yellow Peril stereotype, ensuring that the franchises signature racism stays intact.Strange as it all sounds, James Bond Jr. kind of makes sense. Its not very good, but its not nearly as outlandish as other cartoon series from the time, such as the Troma adaptation Toxic Crusaders or even the Rambo kids shows. Yet, given Eons strict standards for the Bond franchise, one has to wonder how does something like this even get made?Copyrights Are ForeverThose most at fault for the existence of James Bond Jr. are the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. No, the heroes in a half-shell never visit Warfield Academy, but the massive success of that show sent animation studios and toy makers on a wild search for the next big thing. So when Eon and DIC approached animation studio Murakami-Wolf-Swenson, the group also responsible for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, it seemed like a match made in heaven.But the origin of James Bond Jr. goes back further, long before ooze dripped its way onto four young turtles. In 1967, author R.D. Mascott published The Adventures of James Bond Junior 003, a spin off of the Ian Fleming series featuring Bonds nephew. (Charlie Higsons Young Bond novels, beginning with 2005s Silverfin, would follow decades later.) That book may have had something to do with Harry Saltzmans plans, reported in the New York Times in 1966, to make a movie about a ten-year-old who thwarts a SPECTRE plot. That connection may also explain talks to make 003 into a television series, shortly after the books release. Whatever the genesis, James Bond Jr. stayed on the shelf until the late 1980s, when the franchise stalled out. After Timothy Daltons two entries (including License to Kill, in which poor Gordo Leiters dad Felix gets partially fed to sharks) met with mixed reviews, Eon stepped back to change their approach.At the same time, writer Kevin McClory renewed his attempts to create a Bond franchise outside of Eon, building off the rights awarded him from a plagiarism case against Ian Fleming. In addition to planning another live-action Bond film in the style of Never Say Never Again, McClory began pitching an animated series called James Bond vs. SPECTRE.To help secure their control over every version of the character, Eon teamed up with Murakami-Wolf-Swenson and DIC Entertainment to make a proper kids cartoon based on the characters, complete with a full toy line from Mattel, a Marvel Comics series, and a couple of Nintendo games.James Bond Jr. Will Not ReturnJames Bond Jr. ended after one season and, outside of a couple VHS releases, has never been remastered or re-released, with pretty good reason. James Bond Jr. plays exactly like a low-rent version of the main thing, sanding off the edges and replacing them with mediocre television animation thrills. It was made to protect IP rights and make money and toy sales, and it shows.That said, James Bond Jr. isnt nearly as bad as it could be, and even served something of a purpose. If you were a kid whose parents didnt mind laser-gun violence but didnt let you see Bond bed various ladies, then James Bond Jr. scratched that itch for PG-friendly wacky gadgets, outlandish baddies, and cheesy quips until at least, Alex Rider came along.And in light of Amazons impending mining of the franchise, James Bond Jr. might be the best case scenario of 007 spinoffs.