# The Mystery Files of Shelby Woo

The Mystery Files of Shelby Woo is a children's mystery television series that ran on Nickelodeon between 1996 and 1999. A total of 41 episodes of 30 minutes each were produced. Episodes from the first three seasons were taped at Nickelodeon Studios at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida, and was one of the few single-camera productions there, while the final season's episodes were shot in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

## History

The series first aired in March 1996 as a six-episode test run, since Nickelodeon usually produced one major new series at a time and they were already producing Space Cases. The success of the test run prompted Nickelodeon to re-introduce the series on SNICK in January 1997, along with seven new episodes. During the show's third season, production stopped after eight of a proposed thirteen episodes were filmed due to a crew strike, as the show's budget did not cover the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees's demands, partly due to the decision to shoot film instead of videotape. Production resumed in Montreal in February 1998, after Cinar agreed to co-produce the series. As a result, the show's setting changed from Cocoa Beach, Florida, to Boston, Massachusetts.

## Premise

Starring Irene Ng as the title character, Shelby Woo, the series revolves around the adventures of a Chinese American teenage girl who lives with her innkeeper grandfather and works as a non-sworn intern at the local police department where she helps out with odds and ends around the office. Occasionally an intriguing case comes to Shelby's attention, prompting her to apply her unique insight and enlist the help of her friends to solve it. Her supervisors, however, do not appreciate her help, as she is only a teenager. Her grandfather also does not want her getting involved in cases, often reminding her "We are not detectives with warrant badges, we are innkeepers with brooms." Many of the stories, with three clear suspects, keep the audience guessing until the truth is ultimately explained.

## Cast
### Primary characters

* Shelby Woo (Irene Ng): Main protagonist of the show, who solves mysteries and is an overachiever. She lives in Cocoa Beach, Florida in Seasons 1-3 and moved to Boston with her grandfather in Season 4. Despite Shelby being portrayed as a teenager, in reality, Ng was 21 when the series began and was close to 25 by the end of the series. Shelby's parents are not seen though are mentioned in episode "Hot Seats" to be in China after Shelby receives a package from them.
* Michael "Mike" Woo (Pat Morita): Shelby's loving grandfather and legal guardian who is looking after Shelby while her parents are in China. He is a practical retired detective with the San Francisco PD. Mike does not want Shelby to solve mysteries because he is afraid that she will get hurt.
* Cindy Ornette (Preslaysa Edwards): Shelby's perky best friend in Cocoa Beach; like Shelby, she likes getting involved in cases. Cindy is close to her cousin Wayne.
* Noah Allen (Adam Busch): Shelby's other best friend in Cocoa Beach; he does not like getting involved in cases. Noah wants to be an actor.
* Detective Whit Hineline (Steve Purnick): Works at the Cocoa Beach PD; he is Shelby's sarcastic former boss and does not like her interfering in his investigations. Detective Hineline does care about Shelby's well-being.
* Detective Sharon Delancey (Ellen David): Works at the Boston PD, and is Shelby's new boss. While she is not thrilled with Shelby's help, she is more accepting of it than Detective Hineline was.
* Angela "Angie" Burns (Eleanor Noble): Shelby's new best friend from Boston who replaces Cindy; very good at science and applies that knowledge in certain cases.
* Vincent "Vince" Rosania (Noah Klar): Shelby's other new best friend from Boston who replaces Noah; originally a suspect in one of Shelby's first cases in Boston. He becomes Shelby's love interest.

### Recurring characters

* Detective Muldoon (Angelo Tsarouchas): heavy set detective who assists Shelby in a few cases in Detective Delancey's absence; does needlepoint.
* Will (Joshua Harto): works at CJ's burger joint where Shelby and her friends hang out in Cocoa Beach; known for breaking things or coming up with poorly-thought-out ideas.
* Christie Sayers (Jennifer Finnigan): Shelby's nemesis who is determined to solve a case before she does and fails each time; only appears in season 4.

## Episodes
### Series overview

| Season | Episodes | Episodes | Originally released | Originally released |
| Season | Episodes | Episodes | First released | Last released |
| 1 | 6 | 6 | March 16, 1996 (1996-3-16) | April 21, 1996 (1996-4-21) |
| 2 | 7 | 7 | January 4, 1997 (1997-1-4) | February 22, 1997 (1997-2-22) |
| 3 | 8 | 8 | September 28, 1997 (1997-9-28) | August 27, 1998 (1998-8-27) |
| 4 | 20 | 20 | September 6, 1998 (1998-9-6) | April 4, 1999 (1999-4-4) |

### Season 1 (1996)

| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | Prod. code |
| 1 | 1 | "Fool's Gold" | Chuck Vinson | James Ponti & Paul Stubenrauch | March 16, 1996 (1996-3-16) | 104 |
| A priceless gold coin is stolen from a local surf shop. |||||||
| 2 | 2 | "The Missing Dolphin" | Chuck Vinson | Eric Weiner | March 24, 1996 (1996-3-24) | 105 |
| A popular dolphin vanishes from a research facility in Cocoa Beach. |||||||
| 3 | 3 | "Wipeout" | Maggie Greenwald | Joyce Wadler | March 31, 1996 (1996-3-31) | 103 |
| When a local surf champ is poisoned, his rival is blamed. Shelby must prove the man's innocence. |||||||
| 4 | 4 | "The Missing Astronaut" | Chuck Vinson | Carin Greenberg Baker | April 7, 1996 (1996-4-7) | 106 |
| A NASA astronaut is kidnapped during a party held in his honor at Shelby's own house. |||||||
| 5 | 5 | "Hot Seats" | Maggie Greenwald | Alan Goodman | April 14, 1996 (1996-4-14) | 101 |
| Shelby must clear a scalper's name when he's framed for giving out counterfeit concert tickets. |||||||
| 6 | 6 | "Hot Seats: Part 2" | Maggie Greenwald | Alan Goodman | April 21, 1996 (1996-4-21) | 102 |
| Conclusion. The mystery tightens when the young man accused of selling fake tickets vanishes. |||||||

### Season 2 (1997)

| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | Prod. code |
| 7 | 1 | "The Alligator Mystery" | Chuck Vinson | Suzanne Collins | January 4, 1997 (1997-1-4) | 207 |
| A gambling addict goes missing in an alligator park. |||||||
| 8 | 2 | "The Alley Cat" | Chuck Vinson | Alan Goodman | January 11, 1997 (1997-1-11) | 209 |
| A criminal who eluded Shelby's grandfather resurfaces. |||||||
| 9 | 3 | "Tag, Not It" | Chuck Vinson | James Ponti | January 18, 1997 (1997-1-18) | 211 |
| Shelby, Cindi, and Noah must clear Cindi's cousin's name when he's framed for graffiti. |||||||
| 10 | 4 | "The Smoke Screen Case" | Allison Liddi | Suzanne Collins | January 25, 1997 (1997-1-25) | 210 |
| Shelby investigates an arson that covered up the disappearances of animals. |||||||
| 11 | 5 | "Two Faced" | Allison Liddi | Marty Stevens-Heebner | February 1, 1997 (1997-2-1) | 213 |
| It is a case of mistaken identity when Noah is kidnapped due to his resemblance to a son of a scientist. |||||||
| 12 | 6 | "Eye of the Storm" | Maggie Greenwald | James Ponti | February 15, 1997 (1997-2-15) | 208 |
| During a hurricane, a valuable watch is stolen from its safe. |||||||
| 13 | 7 | "The Case of the Knockout Gas" | Maggie Greenwald | Susan Kim | February 22, 1997 (1997-2-22) | 212 |
| Cashiers at local mini-marts are being knocked unconscious by gas seeping through air vents. Who is responsible? |||||||

### Season 3 (1997–98)

| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | Prod. code |
| 14 | 1 | "The Macbeth Mystery" | Maggie Greenwald | Susan Kim | September 28, 1997 (1997-9-28) | 320 |
| Accidents begin to plague a play. |||||||
| 15 | 2 | "The Hit and Run Case" | Allison Liddi | Suzanne Collins | October 5, 1997 (1997-10-5) | 314 |
| Detective Hineline is framed for a hit and run. |||||||
| 16 | 3 | "Mystery in the Wilderness" | Allison Liddi | Alan Goodman | October 12, 1997 (1997-10-12) | 316 |
| A thief steals a computer chip during Shelby, Cindi, and Noah's nature trip. |||||||
| 17 | 4 | "The Mascot Mystery" | Maggie Greenwald | James Ponti | October 26, 1997 (1997-10-26) | 317 |
| The school mascot assaults the soccer champ. |||||||
| 18 | 5 | "The Hot Dog Mystery" | Allison Liddi | Bobby Bowman | November 2, 1997 (1997-11-2) | 319 |
| Students get sick from eating the school's hot dogs. |||||||
| 19 | 6 | "The Shell Game Mystery" | Allison Liddi | James Ponti | January 4, 1998 (1998-1-4) | 315 |
| Someone takes advantage of a campaign to help sea turtles to commit robberies. |||||||
| 20 | 7 | "The John Doe Mystery" | Directed by: Maggie Greenwald Additional scenes: Adam Weissman | James Ponti | August 25, 1998 (1998-8-25) | TBA |
| An amnesiac man may play a role in the search for a missing satellite |||||||
| 21 | 8 | "The Seminole Mystery" | Directed by: Maggie Greenwald Additional scenes: Adam Weissman | Suzanne Collins | August 27, 1998 (1998-8-27) | TBA |
| An authentic Seminole weapon is stolen. |||||||

### Season 4 (1998–99)

| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | Prod. code |
| 22 | 1 | "The Paul Revere Mystery" | Adam Weissman | Alan Goodman | September 6, 1998 (1998-9-6) | TBA |
| Shelby is a suspect when someone steals a silver bowl made by Paul Revere. |||||||
| 23 | 2 | "The Spare Parts Mystery" | Adam Weissman | Suzanne Collins | September 13, 1998 (1998-9-13) | TBA |
| Shelby has to find who has been stealing parts from cars being worked on at the school's auto shop. |||||||
| TBA | TBA | "The Toy Store Mystery" | Allison Liddi | Beth Stewart | TBA | TBA |
| A popular doll and its accessories begin to malfunction. |||||||
| TBA | TBA | "The Skin Deep Mystery" | Lorette Leblanc | Steve Purnick & Danno Sullivan | TBA | TBA |
| Shelby goes undercover at a beauty pageant where mysterious accidents are occurring. |||||||
| TBA | TBA | "The UFO Mystery" | Lorette Leblanc | Susan Kim | TBA | TBA |
| Shelby sets out to disprove a UFO sighting. |||||||
| TBA | TBA | "The Robot Mystery" | Jim Donovan | David Hoffman | TBA | TBA |
| A brilliant inventor has been attacked, and some of his blueprints have been stolen. |||||||
| TBA | TBA | "The Haunted House Mystery" | Lorette Leblanc | Robert Bowman | TBA | TBA |
| Shelby helps a woman who believes her house is being haunted. |||||||
| TBA | TBA | "The Big Cheese Mystery" | Jim Donovan | Carin Greenberg Baker | TBA | TBA |
| A bank robber wears a cheese costume from a popular children's show while committing the crime. |||||||
| TBA | TBA | "The Racetrack Mystery" | Adam Weissman | Matthew Salsberg | November 15, 1998 (1998-11-15) | TBA |
| A race horse about to retire goes missing. |||||||
| TBA | TBA | "The Art Attack Mystery" | Jean-Marie Comeau | Heather Conkie | TBA | TBA |
| A new outdoor art exhibit has been trashed and the artist disappears shortly thereafter. |||||||
| TBA | TBA | "The Mystery of The Mice That Roared" | Allison Liddi | John Boni | December 20, 1998 (1998-12-20) | TBA |
| Someone is playing pranks on the diners at a new restaurant. |||||||
| TBA | TBA | "The Jinxed Campaign Mystery" | Jean-Marie Comeau | Susan Kim | January 3, 1999 (1999-1-3) | TBA |
| Shelby gets involved with politics when someone tries to get a mayor candidate to drop from the race. |||||||
| TBA | TBA | "The Moon Rock Mystery" | Adam Weissman | James Ponti | TBA | TBA |
| A rock from the Moon is stolen from an exhibit at a space camp. |||||||
| TBA | TBA | "The Itchy Shorts Mystery" | Adam Weissman | Susin Nielsen | TBA | TBA |
| Someone has stolen the basketball team's money and put itching powder in their uniforms. |||||||
| TBA | TBA | "The Baseball Fan Mystery" | Adam Weissman | Peter Bakalian | January 31, 1999 (1999-1-31) | TBA |
| Shelby investigates the disappearance of four valuable baseball cards. |||||||
| TBA | TBA | "The Movie Star Mystery" | Lorette Leblanc | Dennise Fordham | February 7, 1999 (1999-2-7) | TBA |
| When a detective movie is being filmed in town, one of the stars goes missing, and Shelby is on the case. |||||||
| TBA | TBA | "The Mystery Under Our Noses" | Adam Weissman | Alan Goodman | February 21, 1999 (1999-2-21) | TBA |
| When the President of the United States is planning a visit, the itinerary is stolen from the police station. |||||||
| TBA | TBA | "The Train Mystery" | Lorette Leblanc | John Boni | February 28, 1999 (1999-2-28) | TBA |
| An architect is thrown off of a train on a trip from Boston to Washington DC. |||||||
| TBA | TBA | "The Yearbook Mystery" | Lorette Leblanc | David Preston & Edith Rey | TBA | TBA |
| Shelby and her friends investigate why page 86 is missing from most of the yearbooks. |||||||
| TBA | TBA | "The Egg Mystery" | Adam Weissman | Suzanne Collins & James Ponti | April 4, 1999 (1999-4-4) | TBA |
| In 1926, a priceless Faberge egg vanished from what later became the Easterly Breeze. 70 years later, Shelby's grandfather attempts to reenact the crime. |||||||

## Broadcast

On December 28, 2011, TeenNick aired the episode "The Smoke Screen Case" on The '90s Are All That block. The series began airing on a more permanent basis in late October 2015 on The '90s Are All That's successor block, The Splat.

## Home media

All 12 episodes from seasons 1 and 2 are available for purchase on the iTunes Store and Amazon Video. Season 2 is available for purchase on Vudu.
On November 24, 2014, the entire series was released on DVD exclusive to Amazon.com in region 1.