it would be a shame if one has yet to watch speed racer, be it dubbed or subbed (i prefer the dubbed version (which is rare) because it was funny...in a good way). what's great about speed racer is that you're never too old to watch it. go red and yellow!! i first saw this when i was around seven and enjoyed hearing the catchy opening. it disappeared for some time then i saw it again a couple of months ago (i'm 19). imagine the feeling of nostalgia surging in, singing "here he comes, here comes speed racer! he's a demon on wheels~~~" over and over again. anyway, the concept of the mach 5 spawned so many 'ultra-multi-function-special-cars' but none were able to surpass its genius in construction. the other cars just seemed too much. and it wasn't just the races or battling different bosses that made it interesting for me. it was racer-x's mystery persona and how the world of speed racer pretty much 'happened' to revolve around it. they did some tweaking to some story lines from the manga, but it all turned out pretty well. though i can't remember if the show actually revealed how racer-x looked like, in the manga, they did.
29 Reviews
One of the Earlier Anime Franchises.
emasterslake2 February 2007
Speed Racer aka "Mahha go go go" has been a well known anime since the Vietnam War era.
It's about the adventures and life of a young man named Speed Racer, who's always dreamed in becoming a well known racer someday. He's knowledgeable about history & is a simple minded kind of guy who only uses violence for the last resort. Speed is also a good fighter.
His father Pops Racer has built and designed a custom made race car, called the Mach 5. The most unique racing vehicle of it's kind. Equipped with power jacks, cutting blades, emulating lights, bullet proof glass, underwater travel, and a BM radio. With this car, Speed can be able to accomplish the races and grand pixes that he competes in. The Mach 5 also makes a perfect getaway vehicle and a greater advantage in escaping dangers.
Throughout the series, Speed will be going through many challenging races and adventures. As well as making enemies with Conspiracies, Mafias, Assassins, Thieves, Burglars, Rivals, & Terriosts. With the Mach 5 to drive in, and a group of reliable friends, Speed will be able to get through many hardships.
Despite it being made 40 years ago. This Japanese animated cartoon really shows it's age. And it has one of the oldest dubs to date. Cool thing about the Dub is, it manages to be the first successful Anime franchise to hit the U.S. shores and all the characters are done by 4 voice actors. Which is less than the average number in today's management of voice choices.
The voice acting is good, but very dated for it's era of time. Since this aired back when Anime wasn't highly known as it is today. But since then it has been admired and inspired by many people. I never seen the original version, but hopefully one day I will to see what it was like unedited.
It's not for everyone, but I think it's a classic for a foreign made, American distributed anime. Due to it's sophisticated scenes, cartoon violence, and car crashes. I recommend it for 6 and up.
It's about the adventures and life of a young man named Speed Racer, who's always dreamed in becoming a well known racer someday. He's knowledgeable about history & is a simple minded kind of guy who only uses violence for the last resort. Speed is also a good fighter.
His father Pops Racer has built and designed a custom made race car, called the Mach 5. The most unique racing vehicle of it's kind. Equipped with power jacks, cutting blades, emulating lights, bullet proof glass, underwater travel, and a BM radio. With this car, Speed can be able to accomplish the races and grand pixes that he competes in. The Mach 5 also makes a perfect getaway vehicle and a greater advantage in escaping dangers.
Throughout the series, Speed will be going through many challenging races and adventures. As well as making enemies with Conspiracies, Mafias, Assassins, Thieves, Burglars, Rivals, & Terriosts. With the Mach 5 to drive in, and a group of reliable friends, Speed will be able to get through many hardships.
Despite it being made 40 years ago. This Japanese animated cartoon really shows it's age. And it has one of the oldest dubs to date. Cool thing about the Dub is, it manages to be the first successful Anime franchise to hit the U.S. shores and all the characters are done by 4 voice actors. Which is less than the average number in today's management of voice choices.
The voice acting is good, but very dated for it's era of time. Since this aired back when Anime wasn't highly known as it is today. But since then it has been admired and inspired by many people. I never seen the original version, but hopefully one day I will to see what it was like unedited.
It's not for everyone, but I think it's a classic for a foreign made, American distributed anime. Due to it's sophisticated scenes, cartoon violence, and car crashes. I recommend it for 6 and up.
Economics and race car driving drama together with animation
Global_Marketing_Pros1 October 2006
The role of economics in the industrialized North American market must have always been theorized in the homelands of the engines creation. Persons and industrialist such as Mercedes Benz and the Bavarian Motor Works (BMW) surely realized the opportunity of the North Ameircan market with the purchase of fuel and number of automobiles purchased per household. This type of economic phenomena sparked the concept of Speed Racer.
After the new constitution of Japan the industrialization of the isolated island nation of Japan must seek opportunity once again via economic partnerships with its global neighbors. This also helped spark the economic opportunities in the European and North American market if not the global market.
Speed is a young avid driver who without knowing any better is driven by his demanding father Pops Racer who has challenged himself his whole life to make a better machine better at winning races. It was in fact Pops Racer who drove his first son Rex Racer to the brink of destruction with his strategy of how to best use the technology he developed. As a mature Racer, Rex, finally realizes his own inherent values and becomes independent but still feels obligated to his younger bother Speed.
The exact relationship of Rex Racer to persons such as the Inspector are never really clear, but put into dramatization. Rex is eventually accused of being a type of agent for a country or organization due to his ability to be in places at times when there is no other explanation to how he would have known Speed was in trouble. Or the fact that the situations involved some types of illegal activity were his secretive knowledge is leveraged against an evil plot. This brings a level of cloak and dagger romance to Speed Racer.
The mixture of Speeds innocence with Trixy, Sprital, and Chim Chim brings a level of comic human nature. This concept is a good form of rhetoric to balance the themes and plots as they are played out from episode to episode. So, instead of a dry detective story the thrill of international race car driving, romance of cloak and dagger, and comedy of human nature is put into one story, Speed Racer.
After the new constitution of Japan the industrialization of the isolated island nation of Japan must seek opportunity once again via economic partnerships with its global neighbors. This also helped spark the economic opportunities in the European and North American market if not the global market.
Speed is a young avid driver who without knowing any better is driven by his demanding father Pops Racer who has challenged himself his whole life to make a better machine better at winning races. It was in fact Pops Racer who drove his first son Rex Racer to the brink of destruction with his strategy of how to best use the technology he developed. As a mature Racer, Rex, finally realizes his own inherent values and becomes independent but still feels obligated to his younger bother Speed.
The exact relationship of Rex Racer to persons such as the Inspector are never really clear, but put into dramatization. Rex is eventually accused of being a type of agent for a country or organization due to his ability to be in places at times when there is no other explanation to how he would have known Speed was in trouble. Or the fact that the situations involved some types of illegal activity were his secretive knowledge is leveraged against an evil plot. This brings a level of cloak and dagger romance to Speed Racer.
The mixture of Speeds innocence with Trixy, Sprital, and Chim Chim brings a level of comic human nature. This concept is a good form of rhetoric to balance the themes and plots as they are played out from episode to episode. So, instead of a dry detective story the thrill of international race car driving, romance of cloak and dagger, and comedy of human nature is put into one story, Speed Racer.
Action and adventure in early anime.
TomReed2 September 1999
One of the most complex early anime series to be dubbed for American audiences. Speed Racer is the teenaged son of a car designer, whose Mach 5 can jump, go underwater, clear a path of trees and do other tricks. Besides winning various races, Speed and his family (girlfriend Trixie, kid brother Spritle and pet monkey Chim-Chim) run into spies, saboteurs, criminals and other bad-guy types.
What raises the show above simple adventure is the family background. Speed's brother Rex, suffering dishonor and shame, adopts the identity of Racer X, secretly aiding his brother and goading him into becoming the world's best racer. The series has its dark moments, and the use of gunfire and explosives kept it off American TV for years ("too violent for kids").
The show is far better than the 1994 version, a simple licensing of the character for a "kid-friendly" racing show. However, a new anime version (under the Japanese title "Mach A Go Go") has been made; it may surface in a well-dubbed English version in a few years.
What raises the show above simple adventure is the family background. Speed's brother Rex, suffering dishonor and shame, adopts the identity of Racer X, secretly aiding his brother and goading him into becoming the world's best racer. The series has its dark moments, and the use of gunfire and explosives kept it off American TV for years ("too violent for kids").
The show is far better than the 1994 version, a simple licensing of the character for a "kid-friendly" racing show. However, a new anime version (under the Japanese title "Mach A Go Go") has been made; it may surface in a well-dubbed English version in a few years.
The Races Are Only The Icing on the Cake.
tonymph1 April 2012
Warning: Spoilers
Speed Racer in my opinion, is the best anime series I've ever seen. I first saw the show on DVD from a very young age with my dad. At the time, I didn't care much about the story, and was mostly in it for the races. But just today I watched them again for the first time in 6 years, and realized that the races were just the icing on the cake.
It's always easy to get into the story, and the end races are enjoyable as hell too. So far, I have two personal favorite episodes: The World's Most Dangerous Race, and the Mammoth Car. The Mammoth Car in particular fascinated me so much, it was the only one I'd watch. As a kid, it was surreal seeing something as huge as that, and to this day it still looks impressive.
Coming from the late 1960s, some might call the animation weak by today's standards, but given the time and technology (and maybe some budget issues too), it's understandable that some footage was replayed or that the sprites look a bit off at times. Just like the Spiderman 1960s cartoon, I appreciate that. However reused sprites are used a lot less here than the Spiderman cartoon. As for soundtrack, it's really, really good. Sometimes I actually wish they'd release the soundtrack on a CD, because if they did, I'd be first in line to buy it. With the show, I also appreciate the running gag of Speed's brother and his chimp friend sneaking in the trunk of the Mach 5, Speed's car name. It's funny because as a kid, sometimes I wished I could do the exact same thing.
So as a whole, I find pretty much no negative things to say about this show. The dubbing may not be at its best at times, but I can name a hundred and one shows where its worse. Speed Racer will always have a place in my heart, and I have a permanent cult following towards it.
10/10.
It's always easy to get into the story, and the end races are enjoyable as hell too. So far, I have two personal favorite episodes: The World's Most Dangerous Race, and the Mammoth Car. The Mammoth Car in particular fascinated me so much, it was the only one I'd watch. As a kid, it was surreal seeing something as huge as that, and to this day it still looks impressive.
Coming from the late 1960s, some might call the animation weak by today's standards, but given the time and technology (and maybe some budget issues too), it's understandable that some footage was replayed or that the sprites look a bit off at times. Just like the Spiderman 1960s cartoon, I appreciate that. However reused sprites are used a lot less here than the Spiderman cartoon. As for soundtrack, it's really, really good. Sometimes I actually wish they'd release the soundtrack on a CD, because if they did, I'd be first in line to buy it. With the show, I also appreciate the running gag of Speed's brother and his chimp friend sneaking in the trunk of the Mach 5, Speed's car name. It's funny because as a kid, sometimes I wished I could do the exact same thing.
So as a whole, I find pretty much no negative things to say about this show. The dubbing may not be at its best at times, but I can name a hundred and one shows where its worse. Speed Racer will always have a place in my heart, and I have a permanent cult following towards it.
10/10.
It's OK
fooddish101-655-8894486 February 2010
I watched this show as a little kid. It's just alright, for me.
I'm not saying that the show isn't legendary, I just think it's pretty cheesy. It's not a bad show, it's certainly better than the crap kid's shows are today, but I'm missing something. Maybe it's supposed to have a deeper meaning that I'm just not picking up, but from what I'm getting, it's just a harmless cartoon.
The main character, Speed Racer (ingenious naming. Almost as creative as "Bob".) is incredibly bland. Seriously, what is up with this guy? He's just a good guy, but he's an annoying good guy. As a little kid, I couldn't stand him; I watched everybody else.
The supporting cast, thankfully, has a little bit of personality. Trixie, Speed's girlfriend, was always fun to watch. She's a stereotyped girl, but she knew how to stand up for herself, which is a great change of pace from shows today where all girls do is fix their hair and smile to the camera.
Sparky, Speed's mechanic, was hilarious when I was a kid, but now, he's just annoying. I don't mind this character, I just wish he didn't have as much screen time. (He's only in about 10 of the episodes, but even that's to many.)
Spritle and Chim Chim... good lord, I've always found them annoying. Unlike Sparky, however, they are in EVERY episode and take up at least 10% of the screen time.
And how could anybody forget Racer X? My God, this guy was cool! He was a bad guy and a good guy at the same time! He had (arguably) the best car in the show, and his voice... that voice. It's almost robotic, but it's just so awesome! Everything about this guy is bad-ass, to say the least. If anything else, watch this show to see him!
The rest of the cast is hit and miss. Pops is just hilarious, even to this day. I realize that he's supposed to be a minor character, but he's just so entertaining to watch that it's impossible to watch a scene with him and not laugh. Mom (who was in two episodes and had ten lines in the entire series run) was bland to. But Speed had to get it from somewhere.
The car races were painfully long to me. They never held my attention as a kid, and they don't hold my attention now. I fast forward through them to this day. The violence is just awesome! There's guns, there's explosions, there's car crashes, it's just cool! Kid's shows today couldn't think of getting away with having people shot or racing off cliffs, but not Speed Racer!
But by far, the most memorable thing about this show was the theme song. Who dosn't love the theme song? As a kid, that's what I would look forward to the most. I would dance to the theme song, and sleep through the episode. It's still catchy now, but I couldn't say that I would ever download it on my Ipod.
The show dosn't hold up as much now as it did then. But maybe that's how it's supposed to be. This show was made for people under the age of 12, and nobody else. Speed Racer has always been just another show to me, and nothing more. Racer X was cool, the explosions were awesome, and the theme song was one of the catchiest in history, but even with all that, it very rarely held my attention for the entire show.
I'm not saying that the show isn't legendary, I just think it's pretty cheesy. It's not a bad show, it's certainly better than the crap kid's shows are today, but I'm missing something. Maybe it's supposed to have a deeper meaning that I'm just not picking up, but from what I'm getting, it's just a harmless cartoon.
The main character, Speed Racer (ingenious naming. Almost as creative as "Bob".) is incredibly bland. Seriously, what is up with this guy? He's just a good guy, but he's an annoying good guy. As a little kid, I couldn't stand him; I watched everybody else.
The supporting cast, thankfully, has a little bit of personality. Trixie, Speed's girlfriend, was always fun to watch. She's a stereotyped girl, but she knew how to stand up for herself, which is a great change of pace from shows today where all girls do is fix their hair and smile to the camera.
Sparky, Speed's mechanic, was hilarious when I was a kid, but now, he's just annoying. I don't mind this character, I just wish he didn't have as much screen time. (He's only in about 10 of the episodes, but even that's to many.)
Spritle and Chim Chim... good lord, I've always found them annoying. Unlike Sparky, however, they are in EVERY episode and take up at least 10% of the screen time.
And how could anybody forget Racer X? My God, this guy was cool! He was a bad guy and a good guy at the same time! He had (arguably) the best car in the show, and his voice... that voice. It's almost robotic, but it's just so awesome! Everything about this guy is bad-ass, to say the least. If anything else, watch this show to see him!
The rest of the cast is hit and miss. Pops is just hilarious, even to this day. I realize that he's supposed to be a minor character, but he's just so entertaining to watch that it's impossible to watch a scene with him and not laugh. Mom (who was in two episodes and had ten lines in the entire series run) was bland to. But Speed had to get it from somewhere.
The car races were painfully long to me. They never held my attention as a kid, and they don't hold my attention now. I fast forward through them to this day. The violence is just awesome! There's guns, there's explosions, there's car crashes, it's just cool! Kid's shows today couldn't think of getting away with having people shot or racing off cliffs, but not Speed Racer!
But by far, the most memorable thing about this show was the theme song. Who dosn't love the theme song? As a kid, that's what I would look forward to the most. I would dance to the theme song, and sleep through the episode. It's still catchy now, but I couldn't say that I would ever download it on my Ipod.
The show dosn't hold up as much now as it did then. But maybe that's how it's supposed to be. This show was made for people under the age of 12, and nobody else. Speed Racer has always been just another show to me, and nothing more. Racer X was cool, the explosions were awesome, and the theme song was one of the catchiest in history, but even with all that, it very rarely held my attention for the entire show.
This anime series sure is the demon on wheels!
gavin-thelordofthefu-48-46029713 August 2012
Before I begin this review, I just want to say that I never heard or watch this anime series because I was more of a 90s kid before other anime shows came out from the late 90s to the early 00s, but my dad told me that he used to watch that show when he was a younger kid and he as born at the 1960s when this came out. He had loved it very much and as a teenager, I totally agree with him. When my little brother had a DVD copy of the first few episodes of that show, I watched along with him and liked it. Three months later, I got a six-disc collection of all 52 episodes of Speed Racer and watched some of it during Christmas time at my mom's house (To those who read my Speed Racer movie review this review has the same stuff I said about the anime) and boy was I speechless I couldn't even believe my eyes.
I totally agree with some of the users on this website that this is indeed a great anime cartoon from a few great decades ago and I officially love it as much as anyone else in today's world. The animation is the epitome of excellence. It has fluid backgrounds and solid colors which makes it much easier to look at, but the strongest aspect is the visuals and the racing sequences throughout each episode. The characters are likable. Speed Racer is a great protagonist and I like his attempts to become a professional racer while protecting his friends and family from the forces of evil. His family, including Spritle and Chim Chim are enjoyable and the interactions between them and Speed are flawless. Rex Racer (Racer X) is also a great character and the villains are excellent and creative in each episode. In fact all of the episodes are great I can't decide which ones I like the most.
The music is what makes this show stand out the most. It has some dramatic melodic rhythms in every episode, but the theme song is what I like the most about the music in the show. It's catchy and memorable to listen to you will end up humming every time you remember it. The voice acting may not be the best in this show, but when it comes to voices in animated shows and movies for kids as of today, the voice acting in this show is great while containing some fast and witty dialog (not to mention some great one-liners) that you'll never forget once you start and finish watching this show.
Overall, Speed Racer is by no means a classic TV show from the classic 60s and the live-action movie adaptation, although not excellent, is a criminally underrated movie that reminded those who grew up with the show. This deserves a solid thumbs up from me!
I totally agree with some of the users on this website that this is indeed a great anime cartoon from a few great decades ago and I officially love it as much as anyone else in today's world. The animation is the epitome of excellence. It has fluid backgrounds and solid colors which makes it much easier to look at, but the strongest aspect is the visuals and the racing sequences throughout each episode. The characters are likable. Speed Racer is a great protagonist and I like his attempts to become a professional racer while protecting his friends and family from the forces of evil. His family, including Spritle and Chim Chim are enjoyable and the interactions between them and Speed are flawless. Rex Racer (Racer X) is also a great character and the villains are excellent and creative in each episode. In fact all of the episodes are great I can't decide which ones I like the most.
The music is what makes this show stand out the most. It has some dramatic melodic rhythms in every episode, but the theme song is what I like the most about the music in the show. It's catchy and memorable to listen to you will end up humming every time you remember it. The voice acting may not be the best in this show, but when it comes to voices in animated shows and movies for kids as of today, the voice acting in this show is great while containing some fast and witty dialog (not to mention some great one-liners) that you'll never forget once you start and finish watching this show.
Overall, Speed Racer is by no means a classic TV show from the classic 60s and the live-action movie adaptation, although not excellent, is a criminally underrated movie that reminded those who grew up with the show. This deserves a solid thumbs up from me!
Entertaining Vintage Japanese Cartoon Series
strong-122-47888512 March 2018
Vroom! Vroom!.... Get ready! - Get set! - Now! - "Go! Go! Go!" with Speed Racer!!
Written and produced by Japanese cartoonist, Tatsuo Yoshida - Speed Racer (from 1967) is actually a very enjoyable pre-CG Anime series from Tokyo, Japan.
This 6-disc set presents (for your viewing pleasure) all 52, full-colour episodes from this fast and furious TV program which was specifically aimed for the amusement of the young (and the young-at-heart).
With the action always set in high-gear - Speed Racer is the name of a car-crazy 18-year-old boy who dreams of driving his beloved, super-powered, white Mach-5 in professional races all around the world.
When the going gets tough and the menacing villains strive to keep Speed from the finish line - You can be sure - Our youthful hero always finds a way to make it through to the end.
*Note* - In 1977 - (cartoonist) Tatsuo Yoshida (45 at the time) died of liver cancer.
Written and produced by Japanese cartoonist, Tatsuo Yoshida - Speed Racer (from 1967) is actually a very enjoyable pre-CG Anime series from Tokyo, Japan.
This 6-disc set presents (for your viewing pleasure) all 52, full-colour episodes from this fast and furious TV program which was specifically aimed for the amusement of the young (and the young-at-heart).
With the action always set in high-gear - Speed Racer is the name of a car-crazy 18-year-old boy who dreams of driving his beloved, super-powered, white Mach-5 in professional races all around the world.
When the going gets tough and the menacing villains strive to keep Speed from the finish line - You can be sure - Our youthful hero always finds a way to make it through to the end.
*Note* - In 1977 - (cartoonist) Tatsuo Yoshida (45 at the time) died of liver cancer.
Top Speed Adventures
hellraiser726 November 2020
This is another one of my favorite animated/anime shows of all time. This is also another childhood favorite of mine, when I was about ten, I was really fascinated with Japanese Anime which at the time was an underground thing.
Once I saw the show "Macross" I wanted more and wondered if there was more, of course I soon came across this show of course which turned out to be another one of them, so I rented a lot of episodes of the show on VHS at my local video store "AV Video/Video Update" (good gravy I really miss those stores) as well as reruns on Cartoon Network. After seeing the show in the words of Maverick from "Top Gun" "I feel the need for Speed".
Speed Racer was a cult phenomenon at the time as it really was one of the ones that help start up the gearhead subgenre in the action genre. In car shows there's actually a real-life replica of the Mach 5 in display that does have those actual functions from the car. There were some video games, three of them are actually good from the PSone and the game based on the live action film; but my absolute favorite in the arcade game from Namco which is awesome and one of my favorite but underrated racing/licensed video games.
There was as I mention before a live action film which I really like, and I feel is an under the radar gem but that's a story for another time. This show was also was a partial inspiration to the TV show "Knight Rider" as well as other shows that featured amazing super cars.
Looking back on the show now I still really love it. It's true like with most retro relic it's not without certain kincks, from some of the plotlines of the show are really outlandish, out there, far fetched and any other fancy terms you can think of. Nor is there a great amount of character depth and drama, dialog at times isn't so great. Like a lot of those pulp hero and adventure stories they were never concerned about logic, character drama and realism, in fact they just shelved it and focused on what really mattered action, adventure and fun, and that to me is the charm of the show.
Animation presentation is solid, it's true it looks a little dated and not so amazing. But you have to realize back then Japanese Animation wasn't a common thing back them, let alone this was also one of the stepping stones in the evolution of its animation in that region. And it was one big, good step; when you take a step back into the mindset of yesteryear it's easy to see why people were blown away by this animation.
From the human character designs which wasn't a common thing at the time as there weren't many animated shows back then that featured humans as characters. But some of the human characters designs are unique as there are some that look comical but other looks striking human Speed, Trixie, Racer X and some others. Seeing them along with the action going on at times it was easy to forget you were watching an animated show.
Even background animation was pretty good, though it's mainly in the automotive and effects pieces where it excels. I really like how the show really created the illusion of speed, it's true it's now a rather primitive effect now but again you have to understand that there wasn't anything like this at the time and to this day I still think it looks good, you really felt like those cars were really moving at top speed.
The cars were pretty cool, I really like how in each episode there were sometimes some really unique and creative cars, though a little absurd in their physics but hey it's pulp adventure you roll with it. In one episode there were assassin cars that looked like bats.
The GRX which was the fastest but most deadly car in the world which is true as it looks so sinister with those headlights that look like evil eyes. Acrobatic cars which look like any race cars except they can to a bunch of acrobatic tricks.
The Mammoth Car which looks more like a freight train, was really intimidating from its gigantic size and how much space it can occupy, racing against it is literally a David vs Goliath battle. But of course, the main automotive star is the Mach 5 which I'll talk about latter.
Characters are pretty good even though their two dimensional and not the most well rounded, but hey this was anime/animated shows in the long-gone era what are you going to do. But their all unique and have some personalities to make them slightly stand out.
Racer X he's was really cool he's sort of the gear head version of "The Lone Ranger" as he's always has that really cool mask on. He was sort of the guardian angel element as he's the mysterious stranger helping the main protagonist in times of need or when things get too harry for the protagonist; much like Tuxedo Mask is for "Sailor Moon".
I really like there is this sense of enigma to him despite knowing his real identity we really know nothing about most of his life like why did he really leave his family, what secret agent organization he's affiliated with, why does he still have to keep his identity a secret from Speed (seriously wouldn't opening up to people you trust increase their protection and gain more allies)? Sadly due to the depth never paid much attention to, well never really know.
Trixie who of course is Speed significant other, she's another honorable mention in favorite animated females. I remember as a kid (I said I was a kid) I really had a crush on this character as she not just was pretty but presented strong character. What I like about her is how she's not a stereotypical damsel in distress, even though she does get in some bind but hey when you in the realm of action/adventure crap happens to everyone.
Anyway, I really love how she's actually shows some strength as she's able to hold her own against danger, is useful as she's able to ride the Mach 5 and help Speed out anyway she can, but also it's not just Speed that saves her life every time but even Trixie gets to sometimes which I feel is what any good girlfriend as well as boyfriend should do. I also like some of her personality as she's smart, energetic, and has a lot of spunk.
Speed Racer he's sort of an honorable mention in my personal favorite pulp heroes. But anyway, he's part of a pantheon of pulp heroes like "Dick Tracy", "Doc Savage", "MacGyver", "Doctor Who" and many more. Speed I always though was cool with that retro 60's racing outfit blue T shirt and red scarf, though it was really the racing helmet I like it made him look a bit like a jet fighter pilot but actually was very useful, from what he goes though it's a good thing he keeps it on. Yeah, his persona may come off as a bit bland but in a good way.
I think what I really like about him is he's sort of that wishfulment hero as well as a bit of an underdog. From the fact he's a young teen full of energy, that get to do one of the things he does best in life racing as well as go on adventures and kick some ass; that's the kind of thing a lot of young boys and girl dream of being able to drive fast cars but go wherever we want to go and have adventures. I really like that this guy is one with a dream of simply being the best in racing but at the same time just to simply be a good person willing to do the right thing.
Of course, this show we're all in it for the action and that beautiful automotive the Mach 5. Each of the adventures are always something different you never really know what the next adventure or what kind of adventure or opponents Speed had to deal with. The action was always top notch, okay not quite as the choreography can look a little choppy sometimes, though that's mainly because of animation techniques not very well advanced and hardware limitations at the time.
But still from what they were able to do they did well, and what I like was how surprising violent it really was as you do see people die in this show. Personally I like that because it gave the show the jeopardy element which made me all the more care about Speed and Trixie's lives. It really showed that the race of life and death is not a game, there is no second or third place; it's a race Speed, Trixie and company better place first because they won't get another chance.
I really love the episodes arc which was another thing that made the show unique for it's time, the episode would end on a cliffhanger. Much like with "Batman 66" Speed and Trixie would sometimes get themselves into some jams and death traps and I remember having to wait till either next week or tomorrow. Both felt like an eternity for me as I just always held on to that delayed suspenseful tension always wonder how the heck Speed and Trixie were going to get out of this.
The Mach 5 is one of my favorite automotives in the visual medium of all time up there with the "Batmoble", James Bond's Aston Martin, Barracuda from "Phantasm" and plenty of others. Really like the design of it which was unique and still is as it had that futuristic look to it, though now it's retro futuristic.
The Mach 5 wasn't just a fast car but was like a swiss army knife on wheels as it had a bunch of buttons to give the car some nifty and handy tricks. Two of my favorites are the buzzsaw blades that can cut away at tree lines to make a pathway for the car but also useful at cutting off the enemies tires. Of course my absolute favorite are the Jacks which not just prop up the car to be fixed but can make the car jump which I though was really cool, also love the sound of them which is just music to my ears.
Speed Racer is a vintage classic that has plenty of millage for fun.
Rating: 4 stars
Once I saw the show "Macross" I wanted more and wondered if there was more, of course I soon came across this show of course which turned out to be another one of them, so I rented a lot of episodes of the show on VHS at my local video store "AV Video/Video Update" (good gravy I really miss those stores) as well as reruns on Cartoon Network. After seeing the show in the words of Maverick from "Top Gun" "I feel the need for Speed".
Speed Racer was a cult phenomenon at the time as it really was one of the ones that help start up the gearhead subgenre in the action genre. In car shows there's actually a real-life replica of the Mach 5 in display that does have those actual functions from the car. There were some video games, three of them are actually good from the PSone and the game based on the live action film; but my absolute favorite in the arcade game from Namco which is awesome and one of my favorite but underrated racing/licensed video games.
There was as I mention before a live action film which I really like, and I feel is an under the radar gem but that's a story for another time. This show was also was a partial inspiration to the TV show "Knight Rider" as well as other shows that featured amazing super cars.
Looking back on the show now I still really love it. It's true like with most retro relic it's not without certain kincks, from some of the plotlines of the show are really outlandish, out there, far fetched and any other fancy terms you can think of. Nor is there a great amount of character depth and drama, dialog at times isn't so great. Like a lot of those pulp hero and adventure stories they were never concerned about logic, character drama and realism, in fact they just shelved it and focused on what really mattered action, adventure and fun, and that to me is the charm of the show.
Animation presentation is solid, it's true it looks a little dated and not so amazing. But you have to realize back then Japanese Animation wasn't a common thing back them, let alone this was also one of the stepping stones in the evolution of its animation in that region. And it was one big, good step; when you take a step back into the mindset of yesteryear it's easy to see why people were blown away by this animation.
From the human character designs which wasn't a common thing at the time as there weren't many animated shows back then that featured humans as characters. But some of the human characters designs are unique as there are some that look comical but other looks striking human Speed, Trixie, Racer X and some others. Seeing them along with the action going on at times it was easy to forget you were watching an animated show.
Even background animation was pretty good, though it's mainly in the automotive and effects pieces where it excels. I really like how the show really created the illusion of speed, it's true it's now a rather primitive effect now but again you have to understand that there wasn't anything like this at the time and to this day I still think it looks good, you really felt like those cars were really moving at top speed.
The cars were pretty cool, I really like how in each episode there were sometimes some really unique and creative cars, though a little absurd in their physics but hey it's pulp adventure you roll with it. In one episode there were assassin cars that looked like bats.
The GRX which was the fastest but most deadly car in the world which is true as it looks so sinister with those headlights that look like evil eyes. Acrobatic cars which look like any race cars except they can to a bunch of acrobatic tricks.
The Mammoth Car which looks more like a freight train, was really intimidating from its gigantic size and how much space it can occupy, racing against it is literally a David vs Goliath battle. But of course, the main automotive star is the Mach 5 which I'll talk about latter.
Characters are pretty good even though their two dimensional and not the most well rounded, but hey this was anime/animated shows in the long-gone era what are you going to do. But their all unique and have some personalities to make them slightly stand out.
Racer X he's was really cool he's sort of the gear head version of "The Lone Ranger" as he's always has that really cool mask on. He was sort of the guardian angel element as he's the mysterious stranger helping the main protagonist in times of need or when things get too harry for the protagonist; much like Tuxedo Mask is for "Sailor Moon".
I really like there is this sense of enigma to him despite knowing his real identity we really know nothing about most of his life like why did he really leave his family, what secret agent organization he's affiliated with, why does he still have to keep his identity a secret from Speed (seriously wouldn't opening up to people you trust increase their protection and gain more allies)? Sadly due to the depth never paid much attention to, well never really know.
Trixie who of course is Speed significant other, she's another honorable mention in favorite animated females. I remember as a kid (I said I was a kid) I really had a crush on this character as she not just was pretty but presented strong character. What I like about her is how she's not a stereotypical damsel in distress, even though she does get in some bind but hey when you in the realm of action/adventure crap happens to everyone.
Anyway, I really love how she's actually shows some strength as she's able to hold her own against danger, is useful as she's able to ride the Mach 5 and help Speed out anyway she can, but also it's not just Speed that saves her life every time but even Trixie gets to sometimes which I feel is what any good girlfriend as well as boyfriend should do. I also like some of her personality as she's smart, energetic, and has a lot of spunk.
Speed Racer he's sort of an honorable mention in my personal favorite pulp heroes. But anyway, he's part of a pantheon of pulp heroes like "Dick Tracy", "Doc Savage", "MacGyver", "Doctor Who" and many more. Speed I always though was cool with that retro 60's racing outfit blue T shirt and red scarf, though it was really the racing helmet I like it made him look a bit like a jet fighter pilot but actually was very useful, from what he goes though it's a good thing he keeps it on. Yeah, his persona may come off as a bit bland but in a good way.
I think what I really like about him is he's sort of that wishfulment hero as well as a bit of an underdog. From the fact he's a young teen full of energy, that get to do one of the things he does best in life racing as well as go on adventures and kick some ass; that's the kind of thing a lot of young boys and girl dream of being able to drive fast cars but go wherever we want to go and have adventures. I really like that this guy is one with a dream of simply being the best in racing but at the same time just to simply be a good person willing to do the right thing.
Of course, this show we're all in it for the action and that beautiful automotive the Mach 5. Each of the adventures are always something different you never really know what the next adventure or what kind of adventure or opponents Speed had to deal with. The action was always top notch, okay not quite as the choreography can look a little choppy sometimes, though that's mainly because of animation techniques not very well advanced and hardware limitations at the time.
But still from what they were able to do they did well, and what I like was how surprising violent it really was as you do see people die in this show. Personally I like that because it gave the show the jeopardy element which made me all the more care about Speed and Trixie's lives. It really showed that the race of life and death is not a game, there is no second or third place; it's a race Speed, Trixie and company better place first because they won't get another chance.
I really love the episodes arc which was another thing that made the show unique for it's time, the episode would end on a cliffhanger. Much like with "Batman 66" Speed and Trixie would sometimes get themselves into some jams and death traps and I remember having to wait till either next week or tomorrow. Both felt like an eternity for me as I just always held on to that delayed suspenseful tension always wonder how the heck Speed and Trixie were going to get out of this.
The Mach 5 is one of my favorite automotives in the visual medium of all time up there with the "Batmoble", James Bond's Aston Martin, Barracuda from "Phantasm" and plenty of others. Really like the design of it which was unique and still is as it had that futuristic look to it, though now it's retro futuristic.
The Mach 5 wasn't just a fast car but was like a swiss army knife on wheels as it had a bunch of buttons to give the car some nifty and handy tricks. Two of my favorites are the buzzsaw blades that can cut away at tree lines to make a pathway for the car but also useful at cutting off the enemies tires. Of course my absolute favorite are the Jacks which not just prop up the car to be fixed but can make the car jump which I though was really cool, also love the sound of them which is just music to my ears.
Speed Racer is a vintage classic that has plenty of millage for fun.
Rating: 4 stars
this rating ONLY applies to the US version of this show
planktonrules17 June 2006
As a kid, I never understood WHY anyone would watch this very crappy show. It was pretty stupid and I always wanted Spridle and Jim-Jim to get in some sort of fatal accident (they were THAT annoying).
Now, almost 40 years later, I have a new attitude about the cartoon. While I still think it was complete crap, this is only in regard to the American version of the show. That's because I was reading a book about anime and found out that the shows we watched growing up were completely different from those originally shown in Japan. You see, the idiots in charge of syndicating the series thought it was too violent so they cut this out of the episodes. That's bad enough, but what else they did is beyond belief--they actually chopped the episodes apart and spliced them together to create shows that were NOTHING like the originals! For example, one episode might be made up of parts of episodes 3, 6, 18 and 27! As a result, I really don't know if the original show really was bad--it might have been brilliant. But who can tell considering all we have to watch is this Americanized mess!?
Now, almost 40 years later, I have a new attitude about the cartoon. While I still think it was complete crap, this is only in regard to the American version of the show. That's because I was reading a book about anime and found out that the shows we watched growing up were completely different from those originally shown in Japan. You see, the idiots in charge of syndicating the series thought it was too violent so they cut this out of the episodes. That's bad enough, but what else they did is beyond belief--they actually chopped the episodes apart and spliced them together to create shows that were NOTHING like the originals! For example, one episode might be made up of parts of episodes 3, 6, 18 and 27! As a result, I really don't know if the original show really was bad--it might have been brilliant. But who can tell considering all we have to watch is this Americanized mess!?
A Great Show To Watch in Childhood!
ShelbyTMItchell23 March 2013
Warning: Spoilers
Really a great show to watch in childhood. As it shows a teenage race car driver named of course, Speed Racer as he strives to be the best racer while fighting crime on the side. Not only he is a great racer but a martial artists.
His girlfriend Trixie does the same thing a martial artist and also a tough girl herself. But she is also indicates she is a rich girl with her own helicopter and Mercedes.
Rest of the cast rounds out with younger brother troublemaker and pet that comes out in the end, to help him, Speed, and family are Spritle and Chim Chim, his pet monkey.
Ace mechanic Sparky, matriarch Ma Racer, and head of the Racer clan and enterprises, Pops Racer heart of gold despite bad temper.
Still it is a great show if you loved the show as a kid like I did and still do.
His girlfriend Trixie does the same thing a martial artist and also a tough girl herself. But she is also indicates she is a rich girl with her own helicopter and Mercedes.
Rest of the cast rounds out with younger brother troublemaker and pet that comes out in the end, to help him, Speed, and family are Spritle and Chim Chim, his pet monkey.
Ace mechanic Sparky, matriarch Ma Racer, and head of the Racer clan and enterprises, Pops Racer heart of gold despite bad temper.
Still it is a great show if you loved the show as a kid like I did and still do.
Bucking the trend, I know
VetteRanger25 February 2023
Yep, I'm bucking the trend. Lots of people who were fans of this cartoon as kids remember, it seems, a bit too fondly. Like many, I watched the show in syndication ... in my area on Sunday mornings, as the local stations which licensed the syndication didn't want to go directly against the Saturday morning network cartoons.
The truth is the animation is VERY basic and highly repetitive. The plots are ridiculous, and the voice acting is among the worst I've ever seen ... well ... make that heard.
For current viewing, it could really do with a redub of the wooden, stilted dialogue delivery. It's terrible.
The truth is the animation is VERY basic and highly repetitive. The plots are ridiculous, and the voice acting is among the worst I've ever seen ... well ... make that heard.
For current viewing, it could really do with a redub of the wooden, stilted dialogue delivery. It's terrible.
Speed Racer The Ultimate Anime Race
stp4329 July 2003
Arguably the greatest of all anime shows, Speed Racer is by far the best combination of the varied qualities of anime - goofy humor, nerve-packed action, and superior character interplay. Many fans' introduction to anime was in viewing of this show in 1970s syndication.
The original version, titled Mach Go! Go! Go!, reflects the greater violence of Japanese anime, violence toned down for the US broadcast of the show but still at times unnerving. Peter Fernandez and Trans-Lux were given the task of "Anglicanizing" Mach Go! Go! Go! and succeeded perhaps beyond their own expectations; the show remains fresh and engaging even as the passage of time has displayed some of the anarchic racing practices portrayed in each episode.
The show betrays some of the Gerry Anderson influences common to anime, influences even better shown by Battle Of The Planets' Thunderbirds-meets-Captain-Scarlet copycatting. The presence of the chimp Chim-Chim as pet for Spritle is a direct copy of the chimp used in Anderson's first Supermarionation show, Supercar, which served as something of a template for Speed Racer overall.
The Racer family is as tightly knit as any family, headed by patriarch, ace motorsports engineer Lionel "Pops" Racer, his loving wife - never named in the show beyond Mom - and his two sons, Greg James "Speed" Racer and toddler Spridle. Pops, however, has an older son, Kenneth Rexford Racer, known as Rex. Years earlier Rex was entered in a major race against Pops' wishes and crashed heavily in winning; a furious Pops refused to let Rex race until he was older, but Rex refused to be pigeonholed and ran out on the family to become a racing champion; he has never been seen again by the family.
This estrangement of Rex from his family, while not part of the show's pilot two-part episode, is nonetheless the real starting point for the series. Pops fears that his second-eldest son Speed will meet the same fate as Rex, but Speed is determined to race, and Pops reluctantly acquiesced to his son's passion. Speed is a special racer, and this draws the wrath of unscrupulous types determined to see that he never becomes a champion. The intervention of these unscrupulous types brings to the fore the mysterious Racer X, aka The Masked Racer - in reality Rex, in disguise, fearing that knowledge of his identity will bring the wrath of his enemies to his family and especially the gifted younger brother he's never known. There is a special chemistry between Racer X and Speed, a chemistry driven by Speed's budding curiousity about Racer X's true identity, and budding suspicion that Racer X is his long-lost brother.
The show gets off to a good start in the first two cliffhanger episodes as well as the two-part "The Secret Engine," but by far the most popular and best episodes are the two that reach the show to its apex - the rousing Mob/racing actioner "Race Against The Mammoth Car" and the show's only three-part episode, the genuinely scary "The Most Dangerous Race."
The Mammoth Car, highlighted by a sharply distinctive echoing whine as well as unforgettable music cue, is a 600-foot-long train-like monster owned by an infamous mobster who is suspected of stealing millions of bars of gold, a theft that Speed and his spunky girlfriend Patricia "Trixie" Shimura get swept into in the course of racing the Mammoth Car.
The Most Dangerous Race is the Great Alpine Race, a race through mountains that becomes even more dangerous when heavy rains collapse weak overhangs and force racers to try a dangerous jump over chasms. Spritle has given Speed a small Mexican doll as a good luck charm, and this leads to the most genuinely terrifying moment of animation - when Speed slides into the chasm, the soundtrack fades into an echo, and we see nothing but tire marks, some debris from destroyed racecars, and finally the small good luck charm half-buried in the mud, seemingly dead - and Speed nowhere to be found. Never has a cliffhanger more effectively frightened a viewer more than this indelible image.
Though the show could never reach the emotional height of these two episodes, excellent stories followed in the harrowing revenge tale "Race For Revenge," and follow-up stories; as the show proceeded stories switched to one-part episodes instead of the two-part cliffhangers used most often but never lost their punch of superb character interplay ("Man On The Lam," "The Car Hater," and "Most Dangerous Race's" one-part late-series sequel are the best of the one-parters), goofy charm (most of the villain names are straight out of Dick Tracy central casting), and the revved-up power of the show's signature mode of transportation, the Mach Five, which went from the enriching Bimmer-esque hum of the first 11 episodes to a pre-1995 NASCAR-flavored growl for "Race For Revenge" to the unsatisfying mixture of high-pitched whine and cheesy growl of the show's balance.
It is this combination that makes Speed Racer a race winner and champion of all time in anime.
The original version, titled Mach Go! Go! Go!, reflects the greater violence of Japanese anime, violence toned down for the US broadcast of the show but still at times unnerving. Peter Fernandez and Trans-Lux were given the task of "Anglicanizing" Mach Go! Go! Go! and succeeded perhaps beyond their own expectations; the show remains fresh and engaging even as the passage of time has displayed some of the anarchic racing practices portrayed in each episode.
The show betrays some of the Gerry Anderson influences common to anime, influences even better shown by Battle Of The Planets' Thunderbirds-meets-Captain-Scarlet copycatting. The presence of the chimp Chim-Chim as pet for Spritle is a direct copy of the chimp used in Anderson's first Supermarionation show, Supercar, which served as something of a template for Speed Racer overall.
The Racer family is as tightly knit as any family, headed by patriarch, ace motorsports engineer Lionel "Pops" Racer, his loving wife - never named in the show beyond Mom - and his two sons, Greg James "Speed" Racer and toddler Spridle. Pops, however, has an older son, Kenneth Rexford Racer, known as Rex. Years earlier Rex was entered in a major race against Pops' wishes and crashed heavily in winning; a furious Pops refused to let Rex race until he was older, but Rex refused to be pigeonholed and ran out on the family to become a racing champion; he has never been seen again by the family.
This estrangement of Rex from his family, while not part of the show's pilot two-part episode, is nonetheless the real starting point for the series. Pops fears that his second-eldest son Speed will meet the same fate as Rex, but Speed is determined to race, and Pops reluctantly acquiesced to his son's passion. Speed is a special racer, and this draws the wrath of unscrupulous types determined to see that he never becomes a champion. The intervention of these unscrupulous types brings to the fore the mysterious Racer X, aka The Masked Racer - in reality Rex, in disguise, fearing that knowledge of his identity will bring the wrath of his enemies to his family and especially the gifted younger brother he's never known. There is a special chemistry between Racer X and Speed, a chemistry driven by Speed's budding curiousity about Racer X's true identity, and budding suspicion that Racer X is his long-lost brother.
The show gets off to a good start in the first two cliffhanger episodes as well as the two-part "The Secret Engine," but by far the most popular and best episodes are the two that reach the show to its apex - the rousing Mob/racing actioner "Race Against The Mammoth Car" and the show's only three-part episode, the genuinely scary "The Most Dangerous Race."
The Mammoth Car, highlighted by a sharply distinctive echoing whine as well as unforgettable music cue, is a 600-foot-long train-like monster owned by an infamous mobster who is suspected of stealing millions of bars of gold, a theft that Speed and his spunky girlfriend Patricia "Trixie" Shimura get swept into in the course of racing the Mammoth Car.
The Most Dangerous Race is the Great Alpine Race, a race through mountains that becomes even more dangerous when heavy rains collapse weak overhangs and force racers to try a dangerous jump over chasms. Spritle has given Speed a small Mexican doll as a good luck charm, and this leads to the most genuinely terrifying moment of animation - when Speed slides into the chasm, the soundtrack fades into an echo, and we see nothing but tire marks, some debris from destroyed racecars, and finally the small good luck charm half-buried in the mud, seemingly dead - and Speed nowhere to be found. Never has a cliffhanger more effectively frightened a viewer more than this indelible image.
Though the show could never reach the emotional height of these two episodes, excellent stories followed in the harrowing revenge tale "Race For Revenge," and follow-up stories; as the show proceeded stories switched to one-part episodes instead of the two-part cliffhangers used most often but never lost their punch of superb character interplay ("Man On The Lam," "The Car Hater," and "Most Dangerous Race's" one-part late-series sequel are the best of the one-parters), goofy charm (most of the villain names are straight out of Dick Tracy central casting), and the revved-up power of the show's signature mode of transportation, the Mach Five, which went from the enriching Bimmer-esque hum of the first 11 episodes to a pre-1995 NASCAR-flavored growl for "Race For Revenge" to the unsatisfying mixture of high-pitched whine and cheesy growl of the show's balance.
It is this combination that makes Speed Racer a race winner and champion of all time in anime.
It's MACHA!
vawlkee_200011 May 2008
It seems everyone wants to jump on the bandwagon and say "Maha Go Go Go"....The word is MACHA........Like "Mach".....Pronounced maa - ka"...
I grew up with this series in the early 70's here in LA on the late and VERY lamented channel 56...Before that there was Tetsuwan Atomu (Astro Boy), dating from 1963 on ol' KHJ TV. Astro Boy was the first TV example of anime we got here in the states...I was into anime as a kid and followed it until the late 80's when, by then it'd become a series of badly animated "talking heads", a phenomenon which has only gotten worse. 'Nuff said.
As for "Speed Racer", I really enjoyed the basics there, the POV shots, the cinematic aspects of live action skillfully adopted to animation...That was fairly typical of most Japanese anime back then...Graphics graphics graphics! Take note sometime how obviously the series was inspired by Stanley Kramer's film "Grand Prix" (1966), especially the redone American credits....
Oh yeah, I have the original comics from which the series is based, so I know of which I speak.
What were we doing animation-wise besides crap like Johnny Quest?.....Th' same ol' stuff we'd been doin' since the 20's....Ho-hum!
I guess the real problem I had/have with the way anime was/is shown on American TV is the hatchet job done on the scripts, credits, etc to "sanitize" them for American audiences...I won't go into other programs as we're talking' Speed here.
Look at clowns like Peter Fernandez as one of the culprits here, as he was 99% responsible for the re-writes of the series...Not to mention the voice of Speed, Racer X and others...Between him and the goofs at Trans/Lux ( Think Felix the Cat and the Mighty Hercules - oy vey!) they took a slick, very sophisticated show and dropped it down to the level of Sesame Street. Think "Cruncher Bloch", The "Forthebird Company", "Skull Duggery"...If I go on I'll puke.
This series dates from 40-odd years ago but I, at the time, was keen enough to feel insulted by the dumbing down of this and other Japanese programs...I mean it's obvious when someone's getting' killed but they either remove it or gloss it over........Pleeeeeze!
Good show - originally. Sadly all the more recent incarnations of the series have that CRAPPY "made in Korea" look, not to mention being nauseatingly "pc" in content. Even the Japanese outsource their animation now..
Try watchin' the original Japanese opening on YouTube sometime...It sends chills up my spine.....If only......Oh well. Robert
I grew up with this series in the early 70's here in LA on the late and VERY lamented channel 56...Before that there was Tetsuwan Atomu (Astro Boy), dating from 1963 on ol' KHJ TV. Astro Boy was the first TV example of anime we got here in the states...I was into anime as a kid and followed it until the late 80's when, by then it'd become a series of badly animated "talking heads", a phenomenon which has only gotten worse. 'Nuff said.
As for "Speed Racer", I really enjoyed the basics there, the POV shots, the cinematic aspects of live action skillfully adopted to animation...That was fairly typical of most Japanese anime back then...Graphics graphics graphics! Take note sometime how obviously the series was inspired by Stanley Kramer's film "Grand Prix" (1966), especially the redone American credits....
Oh yeah, I have the original comics from which the series is based, so I know of which I speak.
What were we doing animation-wise besides crap like Johnny Quest?.....Th' same ol' stuff we'd been doin' since the 20's....Ho-hum!
I guess the real problem I had/have with the way anime was/is shown on American TV is the hatchet job done on the scripts, credits, etc to "sanitize" them for American audiences...I won't go into other programs as we're talking' Speed here.
Look at clowns like Peter Fernandez as one of the culprits here, as he was 99% responsible for the re-writes of the series...Not to mention the voice of Speed, Racer X and others...Between him and the goofs at Trans/Lux ( Think Felix the Cat and the Mighty Hercules - oy vey!) they took a slick, very sophisticated show and dropped it down to the level of Sesame Street. Think "Cruncher Bloch", The "Forthebird Company", "Skull Duggery"...If I go on I'll puke.
This series dates from 40-odd years ago but I, at the time, was keen enough to feel insulted by the dumbing down of this and other Japanese programs...I mean it's obvious when someone's getting' killed but they either remove it or gloss it over........Pleeeeeze!
Good show - originally. Sadly all the more recent incarnations of the series have that CRAPPY "made in Korea" look, not to mention being nauseatingly "pc" in content. Even the Japanese outsource their animation now..
Try watchin' the original Japanese opening on YouTube sometime...It sends chills up my spine.....If only......Oh well. Robert
GREAT ADVENTURES ABOARD THE FABULOUS MARCH 5
asalerno1029 August 2022
A young car racer wants to be the world champion, his father has designed him a great car with special features, he can run under water, he has two front zippers to cut any object, he can jump and he even has a robot carrier pigeon. He and his team live exciting and dangerous adventures around the world not only in dangerous competitions but also facing criminal organizations, mad scientists and all kinds of enemies with diabolical plans. A strong point of this series, in addition to the arguments that were quite elaborate, was the excellent incidental music that generated great suspense in the moments of action. For some, the series was a bit violent for children, but it always had a final lesson and elements that developed human feelings.
Speed Ahead: A Nostalgic Journey Through Racing
PredRodrigo8 February 2023
"Speed Racer: The Complete Series" from 1967-1968 is a classic anime that follows the adventures of Speed, a young racing driver. Accompanied by his family, his girlfriend Trixie, his little brother Spritle and his pet monkey Chim-Chim, Speed competes in exciting and dangerous races, while battling those who seek to harm him and his team. With vibrant and detailed animation, this series captures the thrill of competition and family loyalty.
It is a complex series for its time and has been perfectly dubbed for American audiences. With a plot full of twists and turns, "Speed Racer: The Complete Series" is a nostalgic experience for those who grew up watching it and a revelation for new viewers. With a rating of 8 out of 10, this series is a true masterpiece of classic anime.
It is a complex series for its time and has been perfectly dubbed for American audiences. With a plot full of twists and turns, "Speed Racer: The Complete Series" is a nostalgic experience for those who grew up watching it and a revelation for new viewers. With a rating of 8 out of 10, this series is a true masterpiece of classic anime.
Just a tad bit better to me than actual racing.
Aaron13754 November 2009
It had its moments, but overall when I watched this cartoon as a child I was bored out of my mind. The only thing that kept me watching was the fact that it was a cartoon, probably my first exposure to anime. It is also one of my least favorite anime's, I remember others one involving a giant ship in space that made no sense, but was more enjoyable because they were in space. I also remember one with these people dressed like birds that was a bit strange, but more entertaining. I do not really like car racing though at all, did not then and still do not so that is probably one of the reasons I did not care for this show even though today I am an avid anime fan. The characters were a bit goofy too, and then there was the horrible scenes where virtually no action was taking place that was probably used to cut down on animation costs and to pad the show. The gadgets in the cars were cool though and provided some entertainment for me back then. Overall, I find this show to be rather unwatchable compared to newer animes and some from the same era, but this is just a personal opinion I am sure many other reviewers love the show which is cool.
Bad Pets
specterman1 August 2018
I know everyone loves Spritle and his pet chimpanzee Chim-Chim but what they don't know how that is the worse and most dangerous pet you can give your children. They look so cute when their young but when they get older they becomes several times stronger then a human and even more aggressive.
There have many stories about pet chimpanzees tearing apart their owners who raised them and loved them as if they were their own children.
Go speed go!
drjykll27 May 1999
Who hasn't seen Speed Racer? One of my all time favorite cartoon shows from when i was growing up...great characters all around. Racer X, Spridal his pet Chim-Chim and Pops Racer all add up to an exciting half hour. The show centers around Speed Racer and his quest to be the fastest racer in the world, with his high tech personalized Mach 5, he saves the world from evil terrorists while still finding time to race in the circuit and see his girlfriend Trixie. Old Japanese animation at its best.
A wholesome classic anime
elonmusk-is_a_moron9 July 2022
Warning: Spoilers
This show is way underrated.
I enjoyed a lot watching it back then, and despite being a 90s kid, I still think it was a wonderful series.
In many ways, its sense of adventure and tension reminded me a bit of Jonny Quest, another 60s classic.
The intro and closing song were pretty awesome, and many aspects from this show were way ahead of its time, having a more "cinematic" feel than most anime shows and cartoons from the same era.
I enjoyed a lot watching it back then, and despite being a 90s kid, I still think it was a wonderful series.
In many ways, its sense of adventure and tension reminded me a bit of Jonny Quest, another 60s classic.
The intro and closing song were pretty awesome, and many aspects from this show were way ahead of its time, having a more "cinematic" feel than most anime shows and cartoons from the same era.
Fifty Two Episodes
shelbythuylinh27 November 2021
Warning: Spoilers
Speed Racer wants to be the best racer at 18 and that he has the help of his girlfriend Trixie, younger irrepressible brother Sprittle, grouchy but lovable Pops Racer, loving Mom Racer, and best friend and mechanic Sparky.
Racer also is a detective of sorts with martial artist and at times due to having a conscience there. He at times will lose a race intentionally to help a fellow racer more in need.
While his estranged brother on purpose, spy Rex Racer aka Racer X watches over his younger brother. As Rex got into an argument with Pops there. After he lost a race and his car blew up. It has a cult like hit. Loved It as a kid!
Racer also is a detective of sorts with martial artist and at times due to having a conscience there. He at times will lose a race intentionally to help a fellow racer more in need.
While his estranged brother on purpose, spy Rex Racer aka Racer X watches over his younger brother. As Rex got into an argument with Pops there. After he lost a race and his car blew up. It has a cult like hit. Loved It as a kid!
One of the greatest shows of all time!
TheStarblazingsomethingorother25 July 2023
I love this show so much! It is amazing and fun for everybody! Okay, the animation is kinda cheap, but it makes the show hilarious and hey, it's an anime from the 60s, what did you expect? Of course, we all love the iconic theme song, possibly the greatest theme song in the history of television, and we all love Speed and the Mach 5! And of course, the villains are super cool and the action is awesome. And it has the best animated racing scenes of all time! Wow, I could go on and on about how much I love this show! It's so PERFECT! Best show ever, it gets INFINITY stars! I recommend this to everyone in the whole world! Don't watch those reboots though, they are trash.
The Beginning of The Anime Revolution
Sargebri12 March 2003
When I was a kid, Speed Racer was the show I would never miss when I came home from school. Sure it was violent, but the action was what made this show what it was. Also, the variety of villians gave the show some color that was lacking from the American cartoons that came out at the same time. The action and the characters of Speed, Trixie, Sparky, Sprytle and Chim Chim that made this show a classic.
Mmmmm . . . That's Good Cheese!!!
tzer031 March 2004
Speed Racer "Mahha Go Go Go" (1967) is arguably the seminal anime of all time. The only thing in the states that predates it, aside from a feature film like, Alakazam The Great "Saiyu-Ki" (1960-61)and other Peter Fenadez efforts like Asto Boy, Marine Boy, Gigantor etc . . . is a series called 8-MAN "Eitoman" (1963). It was an excellent series about an android, who looks strangely similar to Racer X, that "powers-up" by reaching behind the 8 into his chest and smoking a "Power Cigarette". You can see why that series didn't make it out of the 60's. Speed Racer, however, is and remains a timeless classic. Everything is so over the top, on has to wonder if Peter Fenandez and crew even had a proper translation to work from. Maybe they didn't, but it doesn't matter. The have one of the coolest cars in the world! Right up there with the Batmobile, The Green Hornet's Black Beauty and Mad Max's Interceptor is the Mach 5. You can's drive it and not look cool in doing it, especially with Trixie by your side, not to mention Spridle and Chim Chim hiding in the trunk.
But Speed is impetuous. Always trying to win the race by leaping before he looks. But, luckily for him Kabala of Ka-pe-ta-pek (You have to say it that way or it's just not funny) is really Racer X, who is really Speed'solderbrotherRexwhoranawayfromhomeyearsago. (You have to say it that way too. In fact the stilted and slurred together English as the voice actors try to match the story elements to the Japanese lip movements is part of it's charm. That and the fact that the Mach 5 can drive straight up the side of a mountain with little or no problem at all.
And you can never get enough of all the "Joke Names", like Snake Oiler of the Car Acrobatic Team. Speed Racer maybe one of the few anime that's actually better than the original Japanese. As well as the most violent cartoons since the original Johnny Quest (1964). But only the baddies get killed in them. So there's always that rewarding sense of poetic justice, so it's okay. Sure, The Malange or anything equipped with the GR-X engine may be faster, but they're just too dangerous to drive. So strap yourself into the Mach 5 and hold on! OOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!
But Speed is impetuous. Always trying to win the race by leaping before he looks. But, luckily for him Kabala of Ka-pe-ta-pek (You have to say it that way or it's just not funny) is really Racer X, who is really Speed'solderbrotherRexwhoranawayfromhomeyearsago. (You have to say it that way too. In fact the stilted and slurred together English as the voice actors try to match the story elements to the Japanese lip movements is part of it's charm. That and the fact that the Mach 5 can drive straight up the side of a mountain with little or no problem at all.
And you can never get enough of all the "Joke Names", like Snake Oiler of the Car Acrobatic Team. Speed Racer maybe one of the few anime that's actually better than the original Japanese. As well as the most violent cartoons since the original Johnny Quest (1964). But only the baddies get killed in them. So there's always that rewarding sense of poetic justice, so it's okay. Sure, The Malange or anything equipped with the GR-X engine may be faster, but they're just too dangerous to drive. So strap yourself into the Mach 5 and hold on! OOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!
Speed Racer: The best cartoon ever!!!!
shaneyfex30 August 2003
I watched this cartoon as a kid and it was one of my favorites. It was aired right after Johnny Sokko & his Flying Robot 4:00pm after school on channel 41 in 1969-79(Kansas City local tv market). Great opening credits and great show A to Z. I like the Alpine Race and the Challenge race with the skull head driver. Snake Oiler is my favorite bad driver & racer X is the coolest of the bunch, even over Speed to a degree, Enjoy....
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