You know the drill. Who’d win?
And if you need to have these names explained, then y’all need to turn in your junior detective cards right now.
The Three Investigators. Without a doubt.
The Hardys have motorcycles, boats, planes, cars a crime lab, access to their Dad’s connections and girlfriends. They win.
Once Jupiter Jones pinches his lower lip, it’s all over. The Three Investigators in a landslide.
Meh. Snot-nosed rich kids. The Three Investigators EARN their access to people like Alfred Hitchcock and Hector Sebastian, and their use of Worthington’s limo. They don’t just get things handed to them because “Dad knows someone”.
Believe it or not, I’ve NEVER read a Hardy Boys book - I had to assume that “Frank and Joe” referred to them.
Obviously, the Three Investigators would prevail.
Joe
T3? without question. The Hardees “had adventures.” Jupe et al solved mysteries.
Bah! Frank and Joe always used their own money to buy things like a freaking Chinese junk! Smarmy Hollywood types and their hangers-on are dime a dozen.
Frank and Joe hands down, because along with them you also got Chet, Tony, Biff, Phil and occasionally, Jack Wayne, not to mention Fenton once in a while.
Frank and Joe. They insist on the facts, ma’am. Only the facts.
Plus they have a better theme song: DOM da dom dom!
The Hardly Boys got their clues handed to them on a silver platter.
As Grey pointed out, Frank and Joe had girlfriends. They also got to hang out with ladies such as Pamela Sue Martin. On the other hand, they were way too dependent on Chet Morton and his stupid hobbies that just happened to be helpful for whatever case they had on hand.
The Three Investigators for the win.
Even Brains Benton was better than The Three Investigators…
Yup. Hardy Boys take this in a squash. They’re older, stronger, and handy with fisticuffs.
And the Three Investigators didn’t need the fisticuffs. Plus they had a really cool headquarters.
Well in that case, here’s my JD card. Sorry about the weird stains on it and I don’t even know how a corner got slightly burnt off. :dubious:
Yeah, but have the Three Investigators ever been Governor General of New Zealand? 
The Hardy Boys often stumbled into the bad guys as if by accident. Seriously. ??? by a mile.
Note that while the giant brawl was going on, Encyclopedia Brown walked by, thought for a moment, asked a rhetorical question that got the bad guys to confess everything, then went home for a wild night with Sally and Nancy.
Hardly.