Kim Possible could become Kim Alias. All Kim Possible images © Disney Television Animation.

McCorkle stated in an early interview that Kim was not part of a secret spy organization and possessed no super powers. Ms. Possible, when not solving the typical dilemmas facing high school youth, faced off against a bevy of (occasionally competent) do-badders using her smarts, courage, acrobatic martial-arts skills and sundry cool gadgets. Kim, Ron and Rufus spring into action when alerted by Wade, a comrade of comparable age who somehow manipulates a computer surveillance system the Pentagon might envy. Plausible it may not be, but popular it surely is.

It wouldn’t take much redesigning to age Kim about, oh, six years or so. She could be a beautiful college student who is secretly a highly trained operative for... oh, wait a minute, isn’t there some live-action show with a storyline something like that? Well, if nothing else, that proves how possible (so to speak) the whole idea could be. OK, Kim doesn’t ever have to be part of the CIA or a secret spy organization. She and Ron can remain freestyle, independent world-savers. Of course, the evildoers would evolve from the petulant Dr. Drakken and sinister Shego to more complex villains. Kim could run across some other operatives from our own government, or those of our allies... or enemies. This adds plenty of opportunity for thrilling, tense adventures, romances and betrayals, high-level clandestine hijinks and all the sex a glamorous agent can grab on the run.

Some seasons could feature a slowly building, erotic tension between Kim and Ron (hey, it kept people guessing on that freaky live-action show about the aliens and those two agents). Or perhaps we could go the other way, and have Ron torn apart by his love for Kim, his duty and Kim’s attraction to other men. In later seasons Kim can play the dangerous game of double agent or clever mercenary since she operates independently. Here’s an adult animated series with all the danger, excitement and jaw-dropping plot twists espionage lovers adore. And it’s the same Kim Possible they grew up with, even more savvy, sexy and self-reliant. Note: Rufus may have to be replaced frequently. Naked mole rats are not especially noted for their longevity.

The romantic tension between Kim and Ron could be amped up in a series with older characters.

Let’s skip over to Nickelodeon, where we can use our imaginations on another ‘tweener series. Cartoon Network veteran Rob Renzetti (who did duty on Dexter’s Laboratory and The Powerpuff Girls) got a shot on Nick after his short, My Neighbor is a Teenage Robot, had a great tryout on Oh Yeah! Cartoons. When the series premiered in August of 2003, it was renamed My Life as a Teenage Robot, but the premise was the same: Mrs. Wakeman, an addled scientist, creates the penultimate cyborg defense system XJ9 (or Jenny, if you please).

This powerful arsenal comes in the form of an anime-flavored teenage girl, and it has a personality to match. Of course, there are obligatory subplots about the misfit at school, several buddies next door, mean kids, etc. Teenage Robot has much better writing and animation than the similar series Whatever Happened to Robot Jones, and you can understand the robot’s voice. I have yet to figure out why the critics have been kicking this sweet UPA-meets-Fleischer show, but it was renewed for another season and could become even better if it grows up over time.

In fact, there are some hints that Renzetti may be headed in that direction. Mrs. Wakeman has already experimented with human-like exo-skins and more advanced eyes for Jenny; reports of future episodes involve dream chips, artificial nerve endings, and possible dates and romances. One could easily see Jenny continuously redesigned by her creator as her artificial intelligence matures, leading to a sexy, increasingly complex cyberpunk series that redefines adult animated sci-fi once the series finds its way out of high school and adolescent misadventures.