History Series / Wishbone

%%Joe is looking for a summer job and soon finds one at Rendezvous Books, a used-book store. While working there, he receives an old copy of ''The Haunted Bookshop'' by Christopher Morley, which had once belonged to his father, and soon uncovers parallels between it and the mysterious happenings in the bookstore -- in which it seems someone is breaking in, but rather than stealing, old and valuable books are suddenly ''appearing''.

[[folder:Episodes with their own pages]]

* See [[Recap/{{Wishbone}} here]].

[[folder:#40: "Picks of the Litter" (ClipShow)]]

* ClipShow: Wanda brings over a dog to keep Wishbone company, and Wishbone recounts to the dog all of his previous imaginary adventures.
* SuddenlySpeaking: Throughout the episode, the dog Penny has been silent, but at the very end, she startles Wishbone by saying "Thanks for telling me all those great stories! Call me sometime!"

[[folder:#50: "The Roamin' Nose" (''The Aeneid'' by Virgil)]]

* AdaptationalHeroism: Aeneas is more honest with Dido about why he has to leave her in Carthage, in that the Gods have sent him a message to depart and he would stay if he could. [[Literature/TheAeneid Aeneas]] was more of a {{Jerkass}} about it in the original source material, which led to Dido's suicide.
* {{Bowdlerize}}: The ''Literature/TheAeneid'' segments omit Dido's suicide, only showing Aeneas leaving her behind in Carthage.
* DivineChessboard: In "The Aeneid" segments the Gods use a diorama of the Mediterranean to decide the fate of mortals. Jupiter and Venus use it to help and guide Aeneas to his destiny; Juno uses it to make his and the lives of his fellow Trojans as miserable as possible.
* EveryoneWentToSchoolTogether: At one point, Joe's Mom, David's parents and Wanda reminisce about their high school years. They mention that Damont's Dad went to high school with them too.
* JerkassGods: In the "The Aeneid" segments, Juno makes life miserable for the Trojans because she can. (Apparently left out is the fact that she hated all Trojans because of Paris's preferring Venus over Juno and Minerva, but especially hated this particular group of Trojans because their descendants were destined to destroy her favorite city of Carthage, which was still being built at the time the story took place.)
* SparedByTheAdaptation: Dido in the "The Aeneid" segments doesn't commit suicide, as far as we know. This is because Aeneas is nicer here than in the original source, honestly telling her that the gods have ordered him to leave. He says that he would stay if he could and that Dido will always be in his heart. Their farewell is thus more civil if a GutPunch for the viewers.

[[folder:Film: ''Wishbone's Dog Days of the West'' (''Heart of the West'' by O. Henry)]]

%%One tie-in book was released -- ''The Super Adventures of Wishbone'' #1: ''Wishbone's Dog Days of the West'', a straight adaptation of the film.

* DarkerAndEdgier: Believe it or not, this film reveals some pretty seedy parts of Oakdale's past, namely how Wanda Gilmore inherited parts of Oakdale through back alley deals and horsetrading. And also features a decent shootout, despite the dog not being able to hold a gun.
* LastEpisodeNewCharacter: Hank Dutton, who makes his first (and only on-screen) appearance in this movie. He'd later appear in some of the ''The Wishbone Mysteries'' novels.
* TheMovie: One that serves as the GrandFinale to the series when PBS didn't renew it for another season.

[[folder:''The Adventures of Wishbone'' #4: ''Robinhound Crusoe'']]

%%''Robinhound Crusoe'' is book 4 of the spinoff ''The Adventures of Wishbone'' series, done in the parallel-plots style of the show.

%%When a lightning storm cuts the power and a car problem delays Joe's mom from getting home, Joe and Wishbone are left to make it to an important basketball game across town in time and on their own, dealing with various challenges along the way. Consequently, Wishbone is reminded of and imagines himself into another man's battle against the elements and other obstacles in his quest to return home in ''Literature/RobinsonCrusoe'' by Creator/DanielDefoe.

* CordonBleughChef: Wanda -- during a pretty much town wide blackout, she makes do with what she has, resulting in sandwiches that are peanut butter/sardine (which Joe tastes but doesn't finish) and egg salad/mint jelly. No one besides Wishbone is interested, including Wanda but she tries to make the best of things.

[[folder:''The Adventures of Wishbone'' #18: ''Gullifur's Travels'']]

%%''Gullifur's Travels'' is book 18 of the spinoff ''The Adventures of Wishbone'' series, done in the parallel-plots style of the show.

%%Joe's basketball team is preparing to face off against two other teams, one whose members are really short but skilled, while the other team's members are very tall, and are reminded that it's brains rather than size that will help them win. This reminds Wishbone of Lemuel Gulliver, who also found himself faced off against the tiny Lilliputians and the giant Brobdingngs in ''Literature/GulliversTravels'' by Creator/JonathanSwift.

* LoonyLaws: In this book's version of ''Gulliver's Travels'', Lilliput has made compromising of any sort illegal and punishable by death.
* SimpleSolutionWontWork: In a scene original to this version, Lemuel Gulliver suggests a simple solution that could end the war between Big-Endians and Little-Endians (those who prefer to break the big end of an egg and those who prefer to break the small end): TakeAThirdOption and crack the egg in the middle instead. Reldresal, principal secretary of Lilliput and friend of Gulliver, nervously tells him not to voice that idea where anyone else can hear him, because it would be considered a compromise -- and in Lilliput, compromisers are seen as disloyal and are put to death if caught.
* TakeAThirdOption: Suggested but averted in one of the segments that adapts the original story. In the original book, Gulliver does not offer an opinion on the cause of the war between Big-Endians and Little-Endians, merely promising to defend their country from invaders. In this version, while talking with Reldresal, Gulliver brings up the possibility of breaking eggs in the middle. Reldresal (who personally agrees that the reasoning for the war is silly) nervously tells him to keep that thought to himself, because compromisers are seen as being disloyal and put to death.

[[folder:''The Wishbone Mysteries'' #2: ''The Haunted Clubhouse'']]

%%''The Haunted Clubhouse'' is book 2 of the spinoff ''The Wishbone Mysteries'' series, in which Wishbone does ''not'' imagine himself into the classic story; instead, sub-plots are included in which Joe, and occasionally Sam or David, would read a mystery story that turns out to be related to the current events in their lives.

%%Joe wins a raffle drawing for an antique clubhouse, only for strange events to happen in it, leading he and his friends to think it might be haunted. Meanwhile, while searching in the attic, he and Wishbone uncover a box of his late father's favorite mystery books, inspiring Joe to start reading them. He starts with ''[[Literature/AndThenThereWereNone Ten Little Indians]]'' by Creator/AgathaChristie, and begins to notice parallels between it and the mystery of the clubhouse.

* AllForNothing: After winning the clubhouse and spending the events of the book finding out who was faking the hauntings in it, Joe's prize is destroyed when a tree falls on it during a massive storm before he can have it moved into his backyard.
* ChekhovsGun: When Joe and Wishbone find the box of Steve Talbot's books, one of the volumes named is ''Literature/TomSawyerDetective'', which Joe will later read in ''Literature/RiddleOfTheLostLake''. Subverted with another couple of books by Creator/RaymondChandler, which are mentioned but never become the subject of any books in the series.
* ContinuityNod: At one point, Joe visits the same antique store from "[[Recap/WishboneS1E35VivaWishbone ¡Viva Wishbone!]]", and remembers the music box he bought there.

[[folder:''The Wishbone Mysteries'' #3: ''Riddle of the Wayward Books'']]

%%''Riddle of the Wayward Books'' is book 3 of the spinoff ''The Wishbone Mysteries'' series, in which Wishbone does ''not'' imagine himself into the classic story; instead, sub-plots are included in which Joe, and occasionally Sam or David, would read a mystery story that turns out to be related to the current events in their lives.

%%Joe is looking for a summer job and soon finds one at Rendezvous Books, a used-book store. While working there, he receives an old copy of ''The Haunted Bookshop'' by Christopher Morley, which had once belonged to his father, and soon uncovers parallels between it and the mysterious happenings in the bookstore -- in which it seems someone is breaking in, but rather than stealing, old and valuable books are suddenly ''appearing''.

* TheAtoner: This turns out to be the motive of the mysterious thief at Rendezvous Books. Dr. Quentin Quarrel confesses that years ago, he stole some books from the college bookshop run by Mr. Gurney's father, who'd let him hang around the shop. Feeling guilty, he eventually concocted a scheme to pay Mr. Gurney -- who by now owned a used bookstore of his own -- back for the thefts with interest, first by offering to invest in the store (which was turned down) and later by having his grandson, a rare book dealer, ask Mr. Gurney to keep an eye out for some rare titles. The grandson would then smuggle those very books into the store and subsequently buy them back with his grandfather's money.
* BaitAndSwitch: When the mastermind behind the break-ins -- a good friend of Mr. Gurney's -- confesses to why they did what they did, Mr. Gurney sounds angry as he says that he's shocked -- utterly shocked -- at their actions. And so he's going to have to... ask the mastermind to live up to an earlier request and invest in the store, becoming Mr. Gurney's partner in the business.
* EasterEgg: On the cover, there are two copies of ''Riddle of the Wayward Books'' itself. And one of ''The Adventures of Wishbone'' #2: ''Salty Dog''.
* TheStakeout: Late in the book, Joe, Sam, David and Wishbone, along with Joe's mom, Sam's dad and Mr. Gurney, all have a stakeout in the bookstore to catch the criminals in the act.
* StrongFamilyResemblance: Dr. Quarrel and his grandson, Jack Brisco, look very much alike:
-->They stood side by side, young and old; two tall, lean, dark men with slicked-back hair and sharp noses. They smiled and their white teeth flashed. But that wasn't the real giveaway, not in Joe's opinion. The clincher was Dr. Quarrel's startling blue eyes staring back at them out of Jack Brisco's face.
* WriteWhatYouKnow: Referenced InUniverse. Joe's working in a used bookstore, which has a parrot -- Mr. Faulkner, who keeps squawking the trope name -- as a resident. His words help Joe to be GenreSavvy and solve the mystery, linking the current rash of strange events (the store is seemingly being burglarized, but the "thief" is actually ''leaving'' rare books for the owner to find, sell and profit off of) with the events of the book ''Literature/TheHauntedBookshop'' (in which the same book keeps getting stolen from and returned to a store), which Joe is currently reading.

[[folder:''The Wishbone Mysteries'' #9: ''Case of the On-Line Alien'']]

%%''Case of the On-Line Alien'' is book 9 of the spinoff ''The Wishbone Mysteries'' series, in which Wishbone does ''not'' imagine himself into the classic story; instead, sub-plots are included in which Joe, and occasionally Sam or David, would read a mystery story that turns out to be related to the current events in their lives.

%%A UFO has been seen over Oakdale, and David is disbelieving that it's real, even after the extraterrestrials make contact with him over the internet. Meanwhile, the sighting prompts him to borrow and read Joe's copy of ''Literature/TheWarOfTheWorlds1898'' by Creator/HGWells, and also to appear on a classmate's radio show to discuss the matter.

* AliensStealCable: {{Invoked}} -- there's been a UFO sighting in Oakdale, and David is trying to unmask a hoaxer pretending to be an alien over IRC by asking him what his favorite human TV show was in an attempt to catch him violating the speed of light. The hoaxer doesn't fall for it; he responds with ''Series/ILoveLucy''.

[[folder:''The Wishbone Mysteries'' #12: ''Forgotten Heroes'']]

%%''Forgotten Heroes'' is book 12 of the spinoff ''The Wishbone Mysteries'' series, in which Wishbone does ''not'' imagine himself into the classic story; instead, sub-plots are included in which Joe, and occasionally Sam or David, would read a mystery story that turns out to be related to the current events in their lives.

%%When Joe purchases a set of old baseball cards, he discovers Oakdale once had a Negro Baseball League team, who won the 1933 national championship. However, all evidence of them within the town's records seems to have disappeared, leaving he, Sam and David to try and uncover the truth behind who did this and why. Meanwhile, the evidence reminds Joe of ''The Adventure of the Norwood Builder'' from his copy of ''The Return of Literature/SherlockHolmes'' by Creator/ArthurConanDoyle.

* GottaCatchThemAll: A self-imposed version -- the plot kicks off when Joe goes to a yard sale and finds a set of old baseball cards. When questioned by the owner, he explains that he'd inherited his late father's own cards and wanted to keep adding to the collection, including filling in some of the gaps in his father's favorite teams.
* SinsOfOurFathers: Variant -- at one point, Joe has a daydream where he shows up at a Negro League game to find every single person glaring at him, not because of his family's actions but simply because he's white and therefore a member of the race that's caused so much trouble for their people. He's noticeably rattled by it when he snaps out of it.

[[/folder]]

[[folder:''The Wishbone Mysteries'' #13: ''Case of the Unsolved Case'']]

%%''Case of the Unsolved Case'' is book 13 of the spinoff ''The Wishbone Mysteries'' series, in which Wishbone does ''not'' imagine himself into the classic story; instead, sub-plots are included in which Joe, and occasionally Sam or David, would read a mystery story that turns out to be related to the current events in their lives.

%%Joe, Sam and David have been assigned to read and discuss ''Literature/TheMysteryOfEdwinDrood'' by Creator/CharlesDickens as a school project. Meanwhile, Joe accidentally loses a ring that belonged to his father, and David mysteriously disappears while searching for it, paralleling the disappearance of Edwin Drood himself.

* AccidentalHero: Joe and Sam become worried when David doesn't turn up for a study group and leaves no message as to why he isn't coming. After they find David [[spoiler:(he was locked in a equipment shed near town; long story)]], they ask why he didn't leave a message and he very confusedly responds that he did. The humans dismiss it as a coincidence but Wishbone realizes that earlier he had knocked over the answering machine at the Talbots' and erased the message by accident, leading to Joe and Sam not getting it, getting worried and going out to find and, ultimately, rescue David. Wishbone at first considers admitting this and apologizing but then realizes that if the message ''hadn't'' been erased, David would have been trapped even longer than he was. [[FridgeHorror And since the story was set as fall changes into winter...]]

[[/folder]]

[[folder:''The Wishbone Mysteries'' #14: ''Disoriented Express'']]

%%''Disoriented Express'' is book 14 of the spinoff ''The Wishbone Mysteries'' series, in which Wishbone does ''not'' imagine himself into the classic story; instead, sub-plots are included in which Joe, and occasionally Sam or David, would read a mystery story that turns out to be related to the current events in their lives.

%%Joe and his friends are taking a train trip as part of Oakdale College's weekend fundraiser, and soon find out that in addition to the fake mystery being staged, a real one is also happening... one whose events parallel the trail of evidence in ''Literature/MurderOnTheOrientExpress'' by Creator/AgathaChristie.

* SheCleansUpNicely: Sam gets this, and not for the first time, when the core trio, Ellen, Wishbone [[RememberTheNewGuy and the son of a friend of Ellen's]] end up on a role-playing mystery train; Sam is cast as a lovely young heiress and as such, spends a good portion of the book in the appropriate garb. She's in much better humor about it than she was about the above incident, likely because it is something she volunteered for and is for acting purposes.

[[/folder]]

%%[[folder:#46: "War of the Noses" (''The Black Arrow'' by Robert Louis Stevenson)]]
%%[[/folder]]
%%
[[folder:#47: "Moonbone" (''The Moonstone'' by Wilkie Collins)]]

* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: In the "The Moonstone" segments, Rachel has this reaction when the investigator recreates what happened the night of the theft and gives Franklin a draught to help with that. It turns out Franklin was sleepwalking that night, and he does it again, taking out the case with the diamond while mumbling about giving it to Rachel. Rachel says she saw him do it and was angry at him for loving a diamond more than her. She apologizes to his sleeping form for having misjudged him. The inspector deems that Franklin is innocent because logically if he was collapsed, the Moonstone should have remained with him when he woke up. Someone else took it from him.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: The inspector in the "The Moonstone" segments. He points out that everyone in the house the night of the theft is a suspect, but doesn't move to make accusations while analyzing Rosanna or Godfrey's possible motivations. Instead, he gathers the evidence such as that the suspect must have smudged drying paint; when Franklin shows him his own nightgown stained with paint but says he doesn't know what happened that night, the inspector helps recreate the events with a sleeping draught. This ends up clearing Franklin's name since he was sleepwalking when he removed the Moonstone from the cabinet, and the inspector points out that someone must have taken it from him after Franklin collapsed on the floor.
* SparedByTheAdaptation: In the ''Literature/TheMoonstone'' segments, Rosanna doesn't commit suicide after hiding the evidence that Franklin is the most likely suspect for the crime. Instead, she goes away, and her DearJohnLetter is a mere AnguishedDeclarationOfLove.
* WhamShot: A photograph reveals that Wishbone stole an athlete's ring. [[spoiler: The full moon compels him to bury things, apparently.]]
* WhatTheHellHero: Joe ends up scolding Wishbone for taking an athlete's ring and burying it, causing a great deal of trouble. Wishbone says, "I feel so guilty. And dirty."

[[/folder]]

%%[[folder:#43: "The Prince of Wags" (''Henry IV, Part 1'' by William Shakespeare)]]

%%[[folder:#46: "War of the Noses" (''The Black Arrow'' by Robert Louis Stevenson)]]
%%[[/folder]]
%%

* {{Disneyfication}}: Noticeably ''averted'' for the most part: though most of the stories are shortened at times to fit the 30-minute time frame and PBS budgets, they rarely make any major alterations to the story. {{Downer Ending}}s stay that way and violent

* {{Disneyfication}}: Noticeably ''averted'' for the most part, though most of the stories are shortened at times, usually only to fit the 30-minute time frame.

* JerkJock:
** Damont Jones, even when he and Joe are playing for the same team.
** Though averted with Joe who's a jock too (they seem to have a similar amount of talent) but nice.

%%[[folder:#32: "Shakespaw" (''The Tempest'' by William Shakespeare)]]

[[folder:#39: "Rushin' to the Bone" (''The Inspector General'' by Nikolai Gogol)]]

* AcquiredSituationalNarcissism: Averted with Wishbone winning the part for Mr. [=MacPooch=], but justified in that Wishbone wanted to BeYourself and only did his best at the audition to show off and make Joe happy. He chokes his performance during filming because of [[SelfParody the costume he's wearing and his "voice actor".]]
* ActorAllusion: When Wishbone auditions for a dog biscuit commercial, the actor doing the narrating for him is played by Larry Brantley, his actual voice actor in the show.
* EmbarrassinglyDresslikeOutfit: Wishbone auditions to be the new "Mr. [=McPooch=]", the ostensibly Scottish mascot for his brand of kibble. He is extremely miffed at having to wear a kilt for the role, repeatedly calling it "a dress".
* NeverWorkWithChildrenOrAnimals: Invoked -- Wishbone shows he's a tough actor to work with, being a house dog who [[SelfParody has never worn an outfit or having a voice actor]]. Joe realizes this more quickly than the director does and takes Wishbone home, though it means Wishbone is no longer the Mr. [=MacPooch=] mascot.
* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: When Wishbone wins the part of Mr. [=MacPooch=], a mascot for a food brand, NeverWorkWithChildrenOrAnimals is invoked in full force. He takes offense at having to wear a dress (actually a kilt) and at having a voice actor and thus ignores the stage directions.

[[/folder]]

[[folder:#40: "Picks of the Litter" (ClipShow)]]

* ClipShow: Wanda brings over a dog to keep Wishbone company, and Wishbone recounts to the dog all of his previous imaginary adventures.
* SuddenlySpeaking: Throughout the episode, the dog Penny has been silent, but at the very end, she startles Wishbone by saying "Thanks for telling me all those great stories! Call me sometime!"

[[/folder]]

%%[[folder:#43: "The Prince of Wags" (''Henry IV, Part 1'' by William Shakespeare)]]

%%[[folder:#46: "War of the Noses" (''The Black Arrow'' by Robert Louis Stevenson)]]
%%[[/folder]]
%%

[[folder:#27: "The Count's Account" (''The Count of Monte Cristo'' by Alexandre Dumas)]]

* ApologyGift: As an apology for accidentally getting Wishbone covered in pink dye (long story), David makes him a personalized vending machine that gives him a treat every time he presses the lever. Wishbone takes to it.
* {{Bowdlerize}}: In the ''Literature/TheCountOfMonteCristo'' segments, Fernand isn't DrivenToSuicide by his reputation being slandered.
* CompressedAdaptation: The episode spends a bit too much time on the story's setup, forcing Danglars and Caderrouse to become a case of WhatHappenedToTheMouse as Dantes' revenge is directed entirely against Fernand. This is even after removing Villefort entirely.
* HoistByTheirOwnPetard: Damont uses David's snow machine to frame him for ruining Wanda's flowers. [[spoiler:Then David returns the favor by filling the machine with food coloring instead of water, so that when Damont takes the VillainBall and tries to frame him ''again'', he gets covered in dye.]]

[[/folder]]

[[folder:#21: "The Canine Cure" (''The Imaginary Invalid'' by Molière)]]

* MoralGuardians: They were even on this show's case. According to IMDB, the episode "The Canine Cure" was banned from some syndication because it somehow encouraged the {{Aesop}} that kids should challenge authority figures, apparently ignoring the fact that the overprotectiveness of some parents that was portrayed in this episode is, in fact, TruthInTelevision.

[[/folder]]

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Joe nearly ruins his friendship with David and Sam on two separate occasions, due to either his selfishness or unwillingness to speak up for his friends.

* CharacterDevelopment: Wanda, Wishbone and Mr. Prewett go through this in their various relationships.
** Wishbone and Wanda are a SitcomArchnemesis duo where he keeps digging up things in her garden and Wanda yells at him for it; after he ends up locked in her house, they come to an understanding where he tries to stay out of her way and she tries to be more patient with him since he's a dog. This is shown most prominently wherein "[[Recap/WishboneS2E04GroomedForGreatness Groomed for Greatness]]", she tries to advise her cousin on how to get Wishbone to behave for posing -- give him a snack as a reward -- and eventually carves the statue that Renee bails on doing.
** Mr. Prewett is a ReasonableAuthorityFigure but also a bit of a ShrinkingViolet when it comes to women. He starts dating Wanda in "Cyranose" after he wants to publish a poem she wrote, but is worried he is too boring for her. Wanda gets seduced [[spoiler:by his rock and roll Elvis persona in "Mixed Breeds"]] and seems to prove his worries valid, until [[spoiler:she finds out he is the impersonator and tells him she likes him JustTheWayYouAre]].

* DramaticIrony: In the ''Wishbone: The Early Years'' books, puppy!Wishbone's CatchPhrase is "They'll listen to me when I'm a big dog." Anyone who watched or read anything else in the franchise knows that they will not.

* LiteraryAllusionTitle[=/=]PunBasedTitle: Most episodes use a pun combining a reference to the book of the week and something to do with dogs, e.g. "The Pawloined Paper" for Creator/EdgarAllanPoe's "The Purloined Letter".

* TheRival: Damont for Joe, particularly in basketball. One episode indicates that he's jealous of David too (for the attention he gets for his scientific accomplishments).

[[folder:#48: "Barking at Buddha" (''Journey to the West'' by Wu Cheng'en)]]

* AdaptationalHeroism: Sun Wukong immediately humbles himself before the Buddha when he realizes that he is not more powerful after failing to leave the palm of his hand. In the source material, he took a longer time to mellow.
* AngerBornOfWorry: The scene where Jimmy and Marcus accidentally start a fire at Pepper Pete's. They run away as the fire alarm starts, with Jimmy saying they probably burned the whole building down. Travis then comes to find the boys before they can run away or hide in the park forever, with Marcus apologizing. It turns out his uncle was both worried that he and Jimmy had gotten hurt and disappointed that they did something so irresponsible.
* {{Bowdlerize}}: In the original story of ''Literature/JourneyToTheWest'', Sun Wukong [[ToiletHumor urinates on the Buddha's finger]]. In this version, he merely leaves a paw-print on the Buddha's finger.
* HeroicDog: InUniverse, Wishbone wishes that he were one in this episode.

[[/folder]]

%%[[folder:#35: "¡Viva Wishbone!" (the story of Juan Diego and Our Lady of Guadalupe)]]
%%[[/folder]]
%%
%%[[folder:#38: "Dances with Dogs" (Native American Mythology -- "The Story of the Deathless Voice")]]
%%[[/folder]]
%%

* BaitAndSwitch: When the burglar, [[spoiler: a good friend of Mr. Gurney's]], confesses to why they did what they did, Mr. Gurney sounds angry as he says that he's shocked -- utterly shocked -- at their actions. And so he's going to have to... ask the burglar to live up to an earlier request and invest in the store, becoming Mr. Gurney's partner in the business.

* WriteWhatYouKnow: Referenced InUniverse. Joe's working in a used bookstore, which has a parrot -- Mr. Faulkner, who keeps squawking the trope name -- as a resident. His words help Joe to be GenreSavvy and solve the mystery, linking the current rash of strange events (the store is seemingly being burglarized, but the "thief" is actually ''leaving'' rare books for the owner to find, sell and profit off of) with the events of the book ''The Haunted Bookshop'' (in which the same book keeps getting stolen from and returned to a store), which Joe is currently reading.

* ApologyGift: As an apology for accidentally getting Wishbone covered in pink dye (long story), David makes him a personalized vending machine that goes him a treat every time he presses the lever. Wishbone takes to it.

* HoistByTheirOwnPetard: Damont uses David's snow machine to frame him for ruining Wanda's flowers. [[spoiler:Then David returns the favor by filling the machine with food coloring instead of water, so that when Damont takes the VillainBall and tries to frame him ''again,'' he gets covered in dye.]]

* ActorAllusion: When Wishbone auditions for a dog biscuit commercial, the actor doing the narrating for him is played by his actual voice actor in the show.

* NeverWorkWithChildrenOrAnimals: Invoked -- Wishbone shows he's a tough actor to work with, being a house dog who [[SelfParody has never worn an outfit or having a voice actor]]. Joe realizes this more quickly than the director does and takes Wishbone home, though it means Wishbone is no longer the Mister [=MacPooch=] mascot.

* ClipShow: Wanda brings over a dog to keep Wishbone company in the season 1 finale "Picks of the Litter", and Wishbone recounts to the dog all his previous imaginary adventures.

* {{Bowdlerize}}: The ''Literature/{{Aeneid}}'' segments omit Dido's suicide, only showing Aeneas leaving her behind in Carthage.

[[folder:#19: "One Thousand and One Tails" (''Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves'' from the Arabian Nights)]]

* OpenSesame: As usual, this is the password to get into and out of the cave of the Forty Thieves. And as usual, Ali Baba's brother forgets it while inside, trying "Open Barley", before muttering to himself that he knows it's ''some'' type of grain and trying again with "Open Oats".
* SequelHook: A variant InUniverse -- after Scheherazade finishes the story of Ali Baba, she and her sister mention she knows many more tales, naming a few (such as ''Aladdin'', ''The Enchanted Horse'' and ''Sinbad'')... and the Sultan, who's intrigued and wants to hear them, can't think of a way to fit her execution onto the schedule. Ultimately, he just cancels it and asks her to start telling her next story.
* SparedByTheAdaptation: In this version, rather than being killed by the Forty Thieves, Ali Baba's brother is rescued when Ali Baba himself arrives at the cave just ahead of the Thieves.

[[/folder]]

* ActorAllusion: One episode has Wishbone audition for a dog biscuit commercial, with the actor doing the narrating for him played by his actual voice actor in the show.

[[folder:#34: "Hercules Unleashed" (the story of Hercules and the golden apples from Classical Mythology)]]

* CompressedAdaptation: The episode only covers one of the twelve labors, the one with the golden apples. King Eurystheus makes a passing reference to the previous labor (the one with Geryon's cattle), but we see nothing of it.
* JerkassGods: It's mentioned that Zeus chained up Prometheus for giving fire to mortals. Despite the fact that Zeus is his father, Hercules frees Prometheus in a case of ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight.

[[/folder]]

[[folder:#31: "A Terrified Terrier" (''The Red Badge of Courage'' by Stephen Crane)]]

%%One tie-in book was released -- ''Wishbone Classics'' #10: ''The Red Badge of Courage'', featuring a less compressed adaptation of the original story with comments by Wishbone rather than the modern-day segments.

* AcquiredSituationalNarcissism: Joe has a spell of this when some cool kids see his jump shots and invite him to hang out with them, albeit in the YouGetMeCoffee situation. He ends up ignoring Wishbone, Robin, Sam, and David.
* BloodlessCarnage: Averted slightly in the ''Literature/TheRedBadgeOfCourage'' segments, wherein Wishbone plays protagonist Henry Fleming. He's said to get grazed with a bullet; what we see is a bandage with a red smear.
* KickTheMoralityPet: Joe does this to Wishbone, Sam, David and Robin when he hangs out with a bunch of cool kids. His mother even calls him out for this. Said kids make fun of Sam and David for doing homework at a pizza parlor, saying their birdsong recordings are "geek mating calls". Joe doesn't laugh, and the next day he ditches the "cool kids" to chase after Sam and David to apologize.
* SleevesAreForWimps: Joe starts cutting all the sleeves off his shirts in an ill-considered attempt to join a group of "cool" kids. Wishbone asks "So, why don't we like sleeves anymore?"

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Wishbone was a real dog (his actual name was Soccer) whose thoughts were expressed as a [[{{Narrator}} running voice-over]], while all of the other characters in the stories being dramatized are humans. For instance, kids would get to see an otherwise dead-serious dramatization of ''Literature/PrideAndPrejudice'' (the episode is "[[Recap/WishboneS1E25FurstImpressions Furst Impressions]]") in which Mr. Darcy is [[FurryConfusion a cute little dog in a suit]] and everyone else is human. And ''everyone'' acts as if the fact that Mr. Darcy [[LionsAndTigersAndHumansOhMy is a talking dog]] is absolutely [[UnusuallyUninterestingSight nothing at all out of the ordinary]]. Then again said dog is the one re-telling the stories and placing himself as certain characters.

%%[[folder:#49: "Pup Fiction" (''Northanger Abbey'' by Jane Austen)]]
%%[[/folder]]
%%

* ContinuityNod: At one point, Joe visits the same antique store from #35: "¡Viva Wishbone!", and remembers the music box he bought there.

[[folder:#29: "Little Big Dog" (the story of David and Goliath from The Bible)]]

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: David takes his mother's new car out for a joyride despite being underage, which leads to him knocking off the rearview mirror.
* TerribleIntervieweesMontage: The musicians auditioning for King Saul to help cure his headache. They subvert GiftedlyBad, but the horns, flutes and bass instruments are inappropriate for the soothing melody he wants. One duo ''nearly'' wins the audition, but their melody is a BrokenRecord that gets annoying after a while.
* WatchThePaintJob: David's father gives his mother a brand new convertible. David proceeds to test-drive it despite being underage and breaks off the side-view mirror while backing it out of the driveway.
* YouAreGrounded: David's parents tell him this after he confesses to damaging his mother's new car on an impulse. With that said, they do tell him they're SoProudOfYou for coming clean about it instead of letting his father blame it on the dealership.

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[[folder:#18: "Hot Diggity Dawg" (''Journey to the Center of the Earth'' by Jules Verne)]]

%%Two tie-in books were released -- ''Wishbone Classics'' #9: ''A Journey to the Center of the Earth'', featuring a less compressed adaptation of the original story with comments by Wishbone rather than the modern-day segments; and ''The Adventures of Wishbone'' #17: ''Digging to the Center of the Earth'', a straight adaptation of the episode.

* AdaptationTitleChange: While the episode is titled "Hot Diggity Dawg", the novelization (from the ''The Adventures of Wishbone'' book series) is instead titled "Digging to the Center of the Earth".

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** Wishbone and Wanda are a SitcomArchnemesis duo where he keeps digging up things in her garden and Wanda yells at him for it; after he ends up locked in her house, they come to an understanding where he tries to stay out of her way and she tries to be more patient with him since he's a dog. This is shown most prominently wherein "Groomed for Greatness", she tries to advise her cousin on how to get Wishbone to behave for posing -- give him a snack as a reward -- and eventually carves the statue that Renee bails on doing.

[[folder:#44: "Groomed for Greatness" (''Great Expectations'' by Charles Dickens)]]

* AcquiredSituationalNarcissism: David gets this when working with Wanda's cousin, an artist, and adopting her arrogant attitude briefly. He grows out of it when the artist leaves town without building the statue she was commissioned to do, and Wanda does it instead.

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[[folder:#26: "The Prince and the Pooch" (''The Prince and the Pauper'' by Mark Twain)]]

%%One tie-in book was released -- ''The Adventures of Wishbone'' #3: ''The Prince and the Pooch'', a straight adaptation of the episode.

* SignificantDoubleCasting: In the "The Prince and the Pauper" segments, Soccer the dog plays both Tom Canty and Prince Edward Tutor, appearing twice in the same scene via split-screen technology.

[[/folder]]

Wishbone was a real dog (his actual name was Soccer) whose thoughts were expressed as a [[{{Narrator}} running voice-over]], while all of the other characters in the stories being dramatized are humans. For instance, kids would get to see an otherwise dead-serious dramatization of ''Literature/PrideAndPrejudice'' in which Mr. Darcy is [[FurryConfusion a cute little dog in a suit]] and everyone else is human. And ''everyone'' acts as if the fact that Mr. Darcy [[LionsAndTigersAndHumansOhMy is a talking dog]] is absolutely [[UnusuallyUninterestingSight nothing at all out of the ordinary]]. Then again said dog is the one re-telling the stories and placing himself as certain characters.

[[folder:#25: "Furst Impressions" (''Pride and Prejudice'' by Jane Austen)]]

* SpitTake: Sam does a rather spectacular one after it is pointed out to Joe that his dress shirt is both on inside out and on backwards. Wishbone even comments "EW! It went up her nose!"

[[/folder]]

[[folder:#16: "A Tail of Two Sitters" (''A Tale of Two Cities'' by Charles Dickens)]]

%%One tie-in book was released -- ''The Adventures of Wishbone'' #9: ''A Tail of Two Sitters'', a straight adaptation of the episode.

* AdaptationalContextChange: Sydney Carton utters his famous line "It's a far, far better thing..." to the prison guard as he switches places with Charles Darnay. In the book, it is spoken as part of a monologue when he is taken to the guillotine.
* AdaptedOut: Sydney and Charles being {{Identical Stranger}}s, since Wishbone plays Charles and Sydney is played by a human actor. Thus in the switcheroo Sydney only says he will die in Charles's place.
* {{Bowdlerize}}: They didn't show the beheadings in the ''Literature/ATaleOfTwoCities'' segments, but they did show [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything a cabbage being cut in half by the guillotine]], with several of the characters in the background staring at it in horror.
* CompressedAdaptation: ''Literature/ATaleOfTwoCities'' is divided into three "books". The ''Wishbone'' version, naturally, focuses almost entirely on "Book the Third: The Track of a Storm", which contains the most iconic parts of the story. Ernest Defarge and the Vengeance are AdaptedOut, effectively making Madame Defarge a CompositeCharacter of all the revolutionary characters. Well, maybe. After Darnay is sentenced to the guillotine, Madame Defarge is seen sharing a hug with an unnamed male revolutionary, so it's possible he's meant to be Ernest. Dr. Manette is only identified as Lucie's father with no mention made of his imprisonment in the Bastille, leaving him so DemotedToExtra that there appears to be no reason he's still in the story at all.

[[/folder]]

* MatchCut: The show often employs these when switching between the literary story and the present-day story. For example, in "Golden Retrieved", a man taking a dinner plate off a table cuts to a man putting dog food on the ground for Wishbone.

[[folder:#15: "Golden Retrieved" (''Silas Marner'' by George Eliot)]]

* GrumpyOldMan: Hubert starts out as this, but taking care of the lost Wishbone helps him to grow out of it.
* KickTheMoralityPet: Joe is obsessed with a new bike and ties Wishbone to a tree while testing it out since Wishbone can't keep up. Wishbone escapes to play with a Golden Retriever, leaving behind his tags in the process. Joe notably looks regretful while putting up "Lost Dog" signs the next day.
* TakeAThirdOption: Joe wants to test out a new bike, but Wishbone can't keep up, there's no basket for him to ride, and leaving him tied to a tree leads to Wishbone slipping out of his collar and getting lost. When Joe finds out that an old man named Hubert saved his dog, he allows Wishbone to hang out with Hubert so that Hubert gets the companionship he needs and Joe can safely test his bike without worrying about Wishbone disappearing.

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