These 90s reboots came to an end in 1997, which also marked the 30th Anniversary of the anime that originally put Tatsunoko on the map: Mach Go Go Go.
For those unfamiliar, the original Mach Go Go Go debuted back in 1967 as Tatsunoko's first color anime (& second anime, overall), based on the racing manga of the same name by the studio's founder, Tatsuo Yoshida, that ran in Shueisha's Shonen Book, the precursor to Shonen Jump. While it wasn't an instant hit in Japan (though it averaged around 13.9% viewership, which is nothing to sneeze at), it became a mega hit abroad when Trans-Lux licensed it for North America, where it got dubbed into Speed Racer. While Speed Racer went on to receive its own "New" 13-episode continuation in 1993, Tatsunoko didn't actually do anything new with the property for decades, minus the occasional cameo here & there. Originally planned to run for 52 episodes, this new TV series of the same exact name, unofficially titled "Shin/New Mach Go Go Go" in Japan, wound up getting cancelled early, only lasting 34 episodes of a planned 52. Speed Racer Enterprises, which at the time owned the rights to anything "Speed Racer", produced an English dub pilot for this new series, titling it Speed Racer Y2K... because it was the end of the 90s. It never went anywhere and was almost "lost", if not for being included in at least one super-obscure release.
Then in 2002, DiC got a hold of the show, even getting it aired on Nickelodeon as Speed Racer X, before suing SRE over television & merchandising rights; it only adapted 13 episodes. After Tatsunoko got the complete rights back to everything Mach Go Go Go & Speed Racer following a lawsuit with SRE in 2013 (I swear that this is the last lawsuit I'll bring up), FUNimation licensed everything Tatsunoko produced in 2015. The end result of all of this came in the form of the Speed Racer Collector's Edition, released on November 7, 2017, which contains all of Speed Racer on DVD & Blu-Ray, all of the original Mach Go Go Go with English subtitles on DVD & Blu-Ray, & all of the 1997 reboot on sub-only DVD, now under the name Mach Go Go Go: Restart; don't worry about the latter not being in HD, as even Japan only has an SD-BD release. Unfortunately, this absurd release has all of the discs in fold-out sleeves that are housed within a horrifically life-sized bust of Speed's head (at least Dawn from the Anime Nostalgia Podcast found a use for it), and currently remains literally the only way to see either of the original Japanese versions; yes, FUNimation isn't even offering either Mach Go Go Go anime via streaming, which is ridiculous. At the very least, said Collector's Edition has been such a bomb of a release that Amazon is still selling it at just shy of $100, only 1/3 of the MSRP, which is actually a good deal for essentially three shows, two of which are on both Blu-Ray & DVD; you can just hide the bust in a closet, like I do.
So, for Review #250, let's see what there is to Mach Go Go Go: Restart... in all three of its forms.
It's the year 2000 (you know, the future), & Go Hibiki is a newcomer to the World Earth Grand Prix Association/WEGA, the battle car racing series where rough play comes with the territory. To help him throughout his races he drives the Mach 5, a specialized racecar designed by his father Daisuke, the head of Hibiki Motors, that was originally intended to be used by Go's big brother Kenichi, the only Japanese World Battle Car Champion. However, three years prior, Kenichi disappeared after a mysterious accident involving the Mach 5's prototype, with everyone thinking that he's dead. With the help of mechanical whiz Takumi Tateishi, though, the Mach 5 has been upgraded over the years with the Safety Seven, a series of tools which allows Go to get out of any situation he finds himself in. He'll need all the help he can get, too, whether it's dealing with other WEGA drivers on the course during the preliminaries for the Earth Grand Prix taking place at the start of 2001, all manner of situations outside of racing, or even putting a stop to the time-travelling machinations of the despot Handler.
While Mach Go Go Go: Restart is very much like its 60s predecessor in many ways (for the most part, at least... but we'll get to THAT later), it isn't simply a cut-&-paste reinterpretation, so it's worth starting with what this series changes from the original. The most obvious comes with the fact that Go has a completely different last name, going from Mifune to Hibiki (though Go's helmet still features an "M" on it, I guess now representing his car), and his family actually loses a child in the process. By that, I mean the little brother character of Kurio Mifune is now Wataru Kazami, the little brother to Mai Kazami, Restart's equivalent to Michi Shimura; in other words, "Spritle" becomes "Trixie's" brother, instead of "Speed's". Also, there is Rocky, the equivalent to primate mascot character Sanpei (a.k.a. Chim-Chim), but he's not introduced until Episode 20, after which Go & the gang adopt him, since he & Wataru instantly become friends. Beyond that, while Go, Daisuke, & Kenichi all keep their first names, mother Aya Mifune is now Misuzu Hibiki, love interest Michi Shimura becomes Mai Kazami, & mechanic Sabu becomes Takumi Tateishi. However, Kenichi's role remains the same as before, being the true identity of the "Masked Racer" that both competes against & helps out Go, though the reason why is vastly different. In the original, Kenichi simply ran away from home & returns to protect his little brother, while here it's more of an actual mystery revolving around the true potential of the Mach 5 itself.
Speaking of the iconic car, it too sees some small changes beyond its design, namely in the form of the Safety Seven, though it still retains the "A through G" labeling style. The Aero Jack allows the Mach 5 to jump into the air, like the original's Auto Jack, but now wings expand out from the sides of the car to allow for limited flight. The Balloon Tire expands on the original Belt Tire by expanding the tires into monster truck territory, allowing not just off-road travel but also even rougher terrain. The Cutter Blade is a futuristic take on the original's Cutter, replacing physical saw blades with laser blades that can even be used in the water. The Defense Shield is probably the most similar to its original, in this case the Defender, as it's simply a bulletproof canopy that goes over the cockpit to protect the driver. In comparison, the Emergency Wire is absolutely nothing like the original's Evening Eye, replacing infrared vision with a twin-hook winch to allow for super-sharp turns & other uses. The Fish Diver, however, is exactly like the original's Frogger, as it turns the Mach 5 into a submersible to allow for underwater travel; to no surprise, it's the least seen of the Safety Seven. Finally, the Gallant is an aerial drone that allows Go to map out better routes while driving & can even engage enemies in long-range combat, just like the original's Gizmo.
On a minor note, I just want to point out that the "Mach 5" name itself isn't actually accurate to the original Japanese, as the kanji for "go" in the car's name is actually the one for a model # (think Tetsujin 28), not the number five itself. The "5" simply comes from the number on the car's side, like on any racecar. I bring this up mainly because the Gallant also has this kanji in Japanese, so the car's name is technically just "The Mach". After all, no one called Dale Earnhardt's car the "GM Goodwrench Chevrolet Monte Carlo 3"; they just called it "Car No. 3", because it never had a real name. I'm not complaining, though, since I also prefer the name "Mach 5"; it's just some fun trivia. All that being said, however, this 1997 reboot does implement some elements of what Speed Racer did back in the 60s, with the car's name now actually shown on-screen once or twice as the "Mach-5", even though everyone still just says "Mahha-go" (& not "Mahha Go-go", which is what "Mach 5" would be), while Kenichi now goes by the moniker of Masked Racer X, adding in that iconic singular letter that was originally an American addition.
With all of that out of the way, let's get into Mach Go Go Go: Restart itself, and what it does as its own series. Go Hibiki is more or less your standard hero for a series like this, dedicated to racing honorably & following the teachings of his brother & (occasionally) father, though he does manage to keep his composure more often than not; it's rare to see Go become an outright hothead. Mai differs from Michi Shimura in that she isn't immediately Go's girlfriend from the very beginning, instead first meeting him in the first episode, and even after that the two's relationship is more "friendly" than romantic, though there are subtle indications that the two care for each other, like Go being jealous when Mai focuses on only photographing X in one instance. Wataru is also a fun little side character, though he doesn't hide in the Mach 5's trunk & get into trouble constantly, like his 60s precursor Kurio Mifune always did. Takumi is given a fair amount of attention in this series in terms of the secondary cast, due to his expertise regarding the Mach 5's technical aspects & essentially being Go's best friend; just a really friendly character to watch. Finally, in terms of Go's immediate "family", father Daisuke is essentially a 90s version of the same character from the 60s. Misuzu, in comparison, is rarely seen & is nothing more than a caring mother character, though there is a fun gag where she essentially warns a villain that she'll kill him if he hurts Go. However, while the characters themselves are mostly standard, it's the banter between them that makes them feel more fleshed out; it's nothing major, but good & believable writing makes the cast memorable.
You'd think it'd be tricky for a show about racing to feature a blatant "villain", but Restart does indeed have one in the form of Team Exelion, lead by the rotund Mr. Borbore; I mean, come on, the first shot you really get of them has all of its grunts wearing villain masks! Exelion pretty much is willing to do anything it can in order to take out Go & the Mach 5, seemingly on order from the higher ups that Borbore himself works for, like laying traps on a course meant to kill Go or literally kidnapping a rival racer's family in order to force him to drive dirty & make Go lose. Seriously, even when Go suffers a loss in the Earth Grand Prix's preliminary stages & has to fight his way out of the double-elimination loser's bracket, Exelion is still trying to mess with him from the shadows. Amusingly enough, none of this applies to Exelion's own racer, Michale Howard, a former WEGA Champion who seemingly knows nothing of his team's villainy & just wants good competition. Exelion, though, does often hire the services of Cecile Hazuki, a racer who is willing to take advantage of Exelion's offers in order to give her an advantage, especially in terms getting information on her rivals. Then there's Jetson Miller, the current Battle Grand Prix Champion who like Go is another first-year rookie that wants to prove his worth in the sport, due to having come from money, quickly becoming a proper rival for Go. Finally, Episode 8 introduces Crusher Kid, a teenage Spanish prodigy who instantly crushes on Mai, & wants to beat Go so as to earn her appreciation.
And then we get the Masked Racer X himself. The Africa Grand Prix Champion with a supposed jinx, as anyone who's ever raced him winds up crashing, the show really doesn't make much of an effort to hide X's true identity from a viewer perspective, with Cecile instantly calling X out on being Kenichi, as the two were a couple back in the day. Even early on, we're shown just enough of his face once or twice in shots to let the viewer know that it actually is Go's big brother, though admittedly the face shots feature some sort of masking, like a towel covering half his face or showing it in some sort of shadow; at least we don't get constantly told of his fact, which the original show's Speed Racer dub became infamous for. Still, this X is a cool character on his own, and very obviously was inspired by Batman in numerous ways. In fact, Masked Racer X winds up being the real "Anime Batman", as he predates Roger Smith from The Big O by two years; X even has his own badass butler, Old Joe! Beyond that, there are some minor recurring characters, like Cathy Stanley, a detective from the Interpol-like UNPO that Go helps out from time to time, & Prof. Denki Akihabara, a genius teacher/crook who wants to beat Go & the Mach 5 with his own tricked-out car, the Warp. Akihabara & his crew are also an homage to Tatsunoko's iconc & influential Time Bokan villain trios, namely Yatterman's Doronbo Gang, with the Prof. & his assistant Ichigaya essentially being Boyacky & Tonzra; they're even voiced by the same seiyuu.
As for the episodes themselves, Restart doesn't really rely on two-parters, like the '67 series often did. Instead, each episode is its own contained story, with about 2/3 of them being directly about Go competing in a race of some sort. As for the other 1/3, they're about Go having to deal with various non-racing situations via the use of the Mach 5, like helping Cathy stop some thieves a few times or even rescuing Jetson when he's kidnapped before a race, to prevent elimination; amusingly enough, that latter scenario is NOT a Team Exelion plot! The most enjoyable of these is honestly Episode 15, which actually focuses on Mai & her attempts to get a photo of X without his mask, not recognizing that X is being hunted after by a rival crew after their driver got into an accident while racing X. As for the racing episodes themselves, Restart also differs from the original series by focusing more on 1-on-1 races, rather than the giant multi-car spectacles of old. This is mainly because this later series aims to deliver more realistic races, with Go only having to rely on the Safety Seven in the most desperate of situations, like if an Exelion opponent tries to take him out during the race. Instead, we see more of a focus on racing psychology & smart driving, which is likely due to Tatsunoko bringing in Masahiro Hasemi, a multi-time racing champion, as "technical advisor". That's not to say that things aren't over-the-top, though, as the courses themselves still take place in areas like mountains, around the top of a volcano, or even spiral upwards into the sky, and some of the cars (especially those from Exelion) can even transform into alternate forms when needed. Sadly, the climactic race itself is done in a single episode & is really meant to be nothing more than Go taking on Exelion's final attempts to take him out (for good, seemingly); it's still a good episode, but temper expectations. You aren't even shown a decisive winner of the race, and while I understand the idea behind that (as the OP theme says, it's all about the "Pure Thrill of it All"), it is kind of wrong to hype up the Earth Grand Prix starting all the way back in Episode 5, only to handle it the way the show itself does.
And if you really want something more in line with the racing/adventure mix that the original series became iconic for, then there's the two-part Amazon Grand Prix, a "dry run" that happens in Brazil's Carajás Mountains region & includes Go, Jetson, Michale, & Kid. While racing, they wind up having to help a local village prevent Prof. Akihabara from stealing an ancient relic, as he entered the race in order to make his way into the region. While its style is completely different from everything before it, the Amazon Grand Prix is a cool homage to the original Mach Go Go Go, and a fun appetizer to the Earth Grand Prix finals itself two episodes later.
Now, everything you've just read regarding Mach Go Go Go: Restart, and how it works as a racing anime? This only applies to the first 21 episodes, so what about those last 13? Well, they have to do with the last part of the synopsis at the beginning, i.e. "the time-travelling machinations of the despot Handler". Along with a time slot change from Thursdays at 7:00 pm to Wednesdays at 6:30 pm & even a change in directors, Restart experiences an abject change in concept, moving from being about Go Hibiki wanting to become the best racer in the world to now travelling through time via the Mach 5 in search of the four Ezekiel Wheels, which can supply infinite energy to the world, before King Handler, a malicious despot from the post-apocalyptic & energy-lacking year of 2555, & his minions lead by Clutch & Accela (because car puns!) get a hold of them. Now, to be fair, this actually isn't the first time this entire franchise even tackled time travel, as 1993's The New Adventures of Speed Racer had Speed travel through time for a few episodes during its short (& highly coincidental) 13-episode run. Understandably, this wild shift in concept instantly makes one wary of it, simply because the entire show could have easily been about the journey to the Earth Grand Prix, especially since Go's rivals don't really get much of anything to work with, in terms of development. Tatsunoko's staff could have expanded on the rivals, giving them their own focus episodes detailing with their qualifying races & other issues; Jetson's kidnapping is the closest we get to that, and his race isn't even shown, in the end. In fact, Michale suffers the most, as he gets absolutely nothing, which is a shame since him being the noble racer in Team Exelion would have given him a lot of potential for storytelling. As for why things changed so suddenly for the anime, it was mainly due to low ratings during the "Earth Grand Prix Arc", so Tatsunoko essentially threw a Hail Mary, hoping a radical shift in concept (plus a time slot change) would bring in new viewers; obviously, it did not, resulting in the anime ending 18 episodes earlier than planned. Still, I shouldn't hold my wishes for the show against the "Handler Arc", so how is it as its own thing?
Well, it admittedly doesn't exactly start off on the right foot, with Episode 22 seeing Go, Mai, Wataru, & Rocky accidentally travelling to the year 2555 while trying to escape a tornado. Turns out by going the absurdly high speed of 555 km/h (which certainly sounds cooler than 344.861 mph), the Mach 5 becomes a Delorean; it even leaves tracks when time traveling. After that, a ton of inexplicable coincidences allow the new status quo to come about, like the gang happening to come across the secret base of Dr. Geppetto, our Doc Brown equivalent (who also has the same voice as Yatterman villain Dokurobey) who just happens to have apparently been waiting for the day Go & the Mach 5 arrive at his door, so as to save the world from Handler, who has already sent forces across time in search of the Ezekiel Wheels. Go & the others also only find out that they've time traveled by seeing a photo of Geppetto that has the date on it... One in which he's posing with X, yet absolutely no one questions how the hell X apparently also time traveled to the year 2555, and neither do they actually bother to ask him directly when he helps them in a later episode; they just treat it like it's normal! No one really questions anything, and instead just simply accepts helping Geppetto in finding the Wheels before Handler's forces do. As you can tell, it's not really a solid foundation, though it's not like Go's entire supporting cast is thrown out, as after their first adventure they do return to their time period in between searches for the Ezekiel Wheels; I guess the show is using "all of time moves in sync with each other" logic. That said, it's just Takumi helping them decipher new times & locations to search, with Daisuke & Misuzu only getting a cameo appearance, and Go's racing rivals getting the penultimate episode for themselves; Cecile Hazuki, Mr. Borbore, Cathy Stanley, & Prof. Akihabara are nowhere to be seen in this arc.
Really, the biggest problem with this arc is that it's really formulaic, as each episode sees Go, Mai, Wataru, & Rocky time travel to a new place (Takumi literally has to force himself upon them eventually, as Wataru can't simply take turns with him), usually having to deal with Handler's forces & hired hands, as Go becomes a wanted man everywhere he goes, as per Handler's order across all of time. Sometimes they find an Ezekiel Wheel, sometimes they don't, but even when they come across one it always teleports itself away, with the show simply explaining that they don't want to be captured. Unlike obvious influence Back to the Future, though, Mach Go Go Go: Restart cares absolutely nothing about messing with the past & potentially harming the flow of time, as right from their first journey (to the Wild West) they immediately introduce a local town to the Mach 5 & exercise no caution whatsoever about letting people find out about technology a literal century+ away, though Handler literally gives ancient Egypt blaster rifles, a force field, & even a giant cobra mech, so it's a draw. Also, in true anime fashion, everyone can just speak the same language, regardless of location or time; maybe everyone was given a universal translator off-screen, since they do talk with Paleolithic humans in one episode.
Granted, this episodic format does allow for a wide variety of time periods to visit, like medieval Europe, a steam-operated future (though still before Handler's time), meeting the dinosaurs, or even visiting legendary places like Atlantis, which is nice. Also, there are still a fair number of fun moments to be found here, like Go fighting a giant robo-mammoth, Takumi getting a chance to shine here & there, & the second half is an admitted improvement, even if only slightly. Unfortunately, while this entire arc was an attempt to keep the show running on television, it feels kind of lazy in execution, with subpar animation, a stronger emphasis on comedy & jokes that just makes me wish I watching something like Time Bokan 24 instead, a complete absence of any development for Handler, Clutch, Accela, or Geppetto, & a lack of internal logic that keeps resulting in me asking myself questions. For a general example, if Handler has made Go a wanted man in just about every single time period he goes to, then why is he safe in the year 2001? Couldn't Handler figure out when Go came from, find a corrupt individual with power there (like maybe Team Exelion?), and force Go & his friends to constantly be on the run & after the Ezekiel Wheels, since it's no longer safe in their home time period? For an episode-specific example, while in ancient Egypt Mai gets confused for a princess who's run off, as they look alike, which in concept sounds fine for some comedy. Unfortunately, Princess Clea has long hair, while Mai has short hair, so why in the hell would Clea's handmaids confuse Mai for Clea? The gag only works if Clea had short hair, which the show could have easily done, & simply explained away as her trying to prevent being identified by the populace! This arc is filled with inconsistent logic holes, which doesn't do it any favors. Also, due to the earlier-than-planned ending, we never actually find out the truth behind X! Instead, we get a moment at the end of Episode 29 when, after helping Go free the Ezekiel Wheels from Handler's control (how he got all four, when only one was ever shown to be captured, is never explained), X simply remarks to himself at how proud he is of his "little brother"; yes, the entire mystery is ruined with a simple throwaway line. My only guess is that Kenichi's accident in the prototype Mach 5 accidentally time traveled him to Handler's time, and he somehow managed to find his way back years later with the help of Geppetto, hence why X looks like a much older Kenichi, and his entire purpose in the racing portion was to effectively prepare Go for the battle with Handler later on; this would also explain why Geppetto was waiting for Go's arrival, in the first place.
If you couldn't tell... I'm not exactly big on the Handler Arc, and it only made me wish for more racing. However, there is one episode that I unequivocally recommend watching: Episode 32, "Temptation from the Afterlife--Love-Starved Memories". Dealing with Go getting caught in the rapture of the ghost of a female racer who died on a haunted course alongside her rivals, this episode not only delivers a unique visual feel that no other episode utilizes (giving almost a dreamlike feel), alongside much improved animation, but it also returns the focus to the racing, with the Ezekiel Wheel (though mentioned as the cause) not making a single appearance; also, it gives one last push in strengthening the feelings Go & Mai have for one another. Just a really good episode that brings things back to how it used to operate.
As for the character designs, it was a dual effort, with Tatsunoko co-founder Toyoharu Yoshida, a.k.a. Ippei Kuri, doing the initial conception of the characters, while the venerable Masami Suda did the actual visual designing. The end result is a very appealing look & style for the characters, one that matches the 90s as much as the original series matched the 60s, while also being unique in & of themselves; there's no way you'd mistake the Restart cast for their original counterparts. Finally, the mechanical/car designs by the duo of Hiroshi Ogawa (Zillion) & Toshiyuki Horii (Harlock Saga) are all really sleek & cool, with a nice variety of theoretically futuristic race cars for the drivers, while the Mach 5 itself sees a fitting redesign, while still keeping its instantly identifiable visual style; honestly, I actually prefer this version over the original. Ogawa & Horii would even reunite multiple times to do designs for Gunparade Orchestra, Koutetsushin Jeeg, Mazinkaiser SKL, & Cyborg 009 vs. Devilman. Restart also marks some of the earliest professional work for Roberto Ferrari, an Italian Tatsunoko superfan who managed to get hired by the studio in the late 90s. Alongside the occasional bit of animation he got credited for in this series, Ferrari also drew promotional artwork, including the one used in the menus for all of FUNimation's DVDs. Today, Roberto Ferrari works at Square-Enix, where he most recently handled the character designs for Final Fantasy VII Remake.
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| Yes, that it indeed "Speed Racer & His Friends" wielding futuristic blaster rifles. The Handler Arc does have its moments. |
And then there's the music by the legendary Michiru Oshima, which stays true to her legacy of excellent soundtracks. While utilizing an orchestra like she usually does, Oshima goes for a strong jazz influence here, plus some electric guitar mixed in, with a focus on generally upbeat songs to help sell the excitement of the races or the spirit raising excellence of Go's driving & the Mach 5's abilities; there are some serious songs as well, but overall it's a fun & cool soundtrack. I only wish the official OST release was easier to get a hold of, because it's definitely one that I'd love to have in my collection. As for the theme songs, both OP themes are sung by Kentaro Hayami, best known for his various Choriki Sentai Ohranger songs, while both ED themes are sung by Yoko Kubota, a freelance rock singer who's performed with the likes of Saber Tiger, Providence, Punish, Masaaki Endoh, & Eikichi Yazawa. First OP theme "Junpaku no Energy" is a simply outstanding song, one that carries the fun feel of the iconic original 60s theme song, but is otherwise its own beast entirely, one that fits the racing episodes perfectly. In comparison, second OP "Mach Go Go Go 1997" is a simple updated cover of the original '67 anime theme song, with new arrangement by Michiru Oshima, and while it's no doubt a cool cover sung by Hayami, it honestly feels kind of lacking by having to follow up that amazing first OP; the fact that it doesn't really match the time travelling concept at all doesn't help, either. As for Kubota's ED themes, neither are bad, but neither do they really match her rock pedigree. Both "Fly to the Dream" & "Eien no Densetsu" are slower ballads that technically work well as a way to calm young viewers down after the action shown in their respective featured episodes, but neither actually fit the generally upbeat mood of Mach Go Go Go: Restart in any way; the latter in particular feels like it belongs more in a grand epic, not a comedic time travel adventure. Also, the footage in each ED sequence is exactly the same, instantly dated CG produced by TD2 Studio, a division of Tomy, which produced toys for the anime.
As for the Japanese voice cast, it is a solid collection of veteran seiyuu, who all put in good to great performances. Kouichi Toochika (Neji in Naruto) leads everyone with a reliable Go, sounding heroic without sounding too much like a superhero, and handling comedy about as well as the writing allows him; appropriately enough, he also shouts a fitting "GO!!!!". Kazusa Murai (Nemu in Haibane Renmei) plays Mai, and she's similarly strong, more than hitting every moment with honestly perfect delivery; she might actually be my favorite performance. Following them is Motoko Kumai (Syaoran Li in Cardcaptor Sakura) as Wataru, and she delivers her usual, iconic young boy style of performance, so no complaints there. For Takumi we have Akira Ishida in one of his earlier roles, and he does a fun job as a computer nerd-esque character; I actually first thought it was Hiro Yuuki, since it sounded somewhat similar to him. For Go's rivals we have Nobuyuki Hiyama as Jetson, Atsuko Tanaka as Cecile, Tohru Furusawa as Michale, & Nozomu Sasaki as Crusher Kid, and they're all fine & fitting voices; just a shame we get so little of them at times. Toshiyuki Morikawa voices Kenichi/X, and his deep voice does well for the character, though he honestly only differentiates between present-day X & flashback Kenichi so much. Finally, for notable roles, the late Kaneto Shiozawa played Handler, and while the character gets absolutely nothing to really work with (he's simply evil for evil's sake), Shiozawa at least hams it up with his performance, making it memorable, nonetheless; Masako Katsuki & Kiyoyuki Yanada back him up as Accela & Clutch, respectively. Rounding out the cast are Osamu Kobayashi (Borbore), Minoru Inaba (Daisuke), Yoko Soumi (Misuzu), Yumi Touma (Cathy), Nobuaki Fukuda (Old Joe), & Shinya Ohtaki (the racing announcer), plus the previously mentioned legacy performances by Jouji Yanami, Kazuya Tatekabe, & the late Junpei Takiguchi as Prof. Akihabara, Ichigaya, & Dr. Geppetto, respectively. There are also way too many single-episode performances by other veteran seiyuu to count, especially from the Handler Arc.
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| Again, this was a pilot, so I'm sure little money was spent. |
Finally, there are the two English dubs for this series, so let's just go in chronological order. First up is Speed Racer Y2K, produced by Speed Racer Enterprises, which was apparently produced in 1998 & was only a pilot production meant to advertise the show to networks; obviously, it never got picked up. Because of this it only adapts Episode 3, "Ghost Lurking on the Highway", under the title "The Silver Phantom". Surprisingly enough, though, SRE really didn't change all that much, with the only removals being a handful of seconds-short clips, mainly for time but also in an attempt to hide the Japanese origins, like removing a shot of the Hibiki Motors sign... Only for literally the next shot to show the team's transport truck being washed, which says "Team Hibiki" on the side, not to mention the end of the episode just showing the Hibiki Motors sign anyway; oops. Then there's the fact that our lead is named "Speed Racer", only for a magazine article Speed's looking at to very visibly show "Go Hibiki", or how Mai Kazami became "Trixie Fontaine", even though her car & jacket still both say "Mai" on them; I'm actually amazed at how (relatively) uncut this is, considering the changes. Beyond that, and reorganizing the OP sequence so that it better fit the use of a cover of "Go, Speed Racer, Go" by Sponge, it's actually pretty accurate to the original show, even maintaining Michiru Oshima's score, though there is no ED sequence; the only notable plot change is stating that Rex's mysterious accident took place during a race, rather than a test drive. As for the cast, though none are officially credited in the pilot itself, it later has been identified as an Ocean Studios production, while Paul & Michael Dobson have been identified as the voices of Speed & Pops Racer, respectively. Overall, it's a decent dub for its time, with both Dobsons putting in probably the best performances, while the likes of Mom Racer & Spritle are easily the worst, with Mom's performance sounding like nothing more than a dry line read. As a proof of concept it does its job, and it's cool to see that it's mostly uncut & retains the original score, even if the name changes clash heavily with what's actually shown on screen.
The only way this dub pilot has survived was by being a part of Speed Racer: The Ultimate Interactive Companion, a Windows PC program released on CD in 1999 that included all sorts of Speed Racer information & videos, like commercials; there's word that it was also included as an extra in one of the (many) DVD releases, but I can't verify that. I bought the CD for this review, solely so that I could copy the dub's (320x240) video file onto my computer, & match it to a better-quality raw of Restart's Episode 3 that I found online, recreating the edits to the best of abilities; it ain't perfect (the middle desyncs by about 0.5 seconds for a short bit), but it's pretty dang close. If you're curious, you can actually still watch it on YouTube via my channel; after four months it still hasn't been claimed, so it might actually survive.
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| That being said, this logo doesn't feel that much less lazy... |
And then there's Speed Racer X, DiC's localization from 2002 that ran as the lead show for Nickelodeon's SLAM! block, which only survived from August 2002 to March 2003, where it was followed up by re-runs of Invader Zim, and during the middle part of SLAM!'s run, Speed Racer X even aired twice, book-ending the block; it later saw re-runs on Nick GAS in 2003 & 2004. Even though it aired over the course of 30 weeks, however, DiC only ever dubbed 13 episodes, due to the lawsuit mentioned at the very beginning, and with the twin-airings across about three months, it becomes very easy to see why SLAM! died the way it did. Unlike Speed Racer Y2K, though, Speed Racer X is a much more curious beast, as it's simultaneously more edited than SRE's pilot, yet more accurate to the original in some ways. For example, DiC doesn't bother to mask the name of the Hibiki family's company, with Pops Racer stating that he's the owner of Hibiki Motors... Which then only makes you wonder why it was decided to change the family's name to "Racer"; sure, they never blatantly say it as such, but it's also obviously not "Hibiki". Yeah, I know it's likely because SRE wanted to re-use the names it used in the Y2K pilot, but Nickelodeon actually made a big deal about this being an "anime" on the network, so DiC & SRE could have easily maintained most (if not all) of the Japanese names, while still keeping the changes. Daisuke could have simply become "Pops Hibiki" (FUNi's subs even translate "Oyaji" as "Pops", keeping the name), while "Speed Racer" could simply be Go's nickname, rather than his real name. And, yes, "Go Hibiki" & "Mai" are indeed shown on-screen at various points, as well as a "Takumi" in one shot, making the name changes incongruous. It's especially awkward right from the first episode, as Trixie Fontaine shows off her press badge to her little brother Spritle... A press badge that blatantly says "Mai Kazami". DiC would learn its lesson somewhat, though, as Knights of the Zodiac would debut only a few months after SLAM!'s end, with only a handful of major name changes... Excuse me for a moment.
(screams into the infinite void because he just reminded himself of DiC's Knights of the Zodiac)
Moving on, the wildest change in Speed Racer X is that while 13 episodes were adapted, it did so by skipping Episodes 4, 9, 12, & 16, so it technically ends with what should be Episode 17. In short, most of the non-WEGA episodes got axed, minus The Silver Phantom, Prof. Akihabara's intro, & Mai tailing X. Not only that, but the dub also heavily re-organized stuff in some ways. For example, Episode 1 starts with the flashback from Episode 3 showing how Rex disappeared after his road test (which I can understand), while footage from the excised Episode 4 is actually still shown, only reworked to make absolutely no sense or even have a point at the beginning of X's Episodes 3 & 4; this happens with footage from other excised episodes, too. In a TV world that had long stopped reworking anime dubs to this extent, it's a completely unneeded way to do things, & I can't even logic a reason this was done. Finally, the main cast aren't the only ones who saw some name changes, as while Michale & Team Exelion stayed true, the same cannot be said for most of the supporting cast. Jetson Miller became "Jettison Sterling", Cecile Hazuki became "Sonya Broda" (I get changing the last name, but why the first?), Cathy Stanley became "Cathy Sanders" (I guess "Stanley" was TOO English of a last name?), Prof. Akihabara became Prof. Klutzki (subtle...), Ichigaya became "Botch" (though "Klutzki" still randomly screams out "Ichigaya!" at points), Crusher Kid became "Crasher Kid" (close enough), & Mr. Borbore became "Mr. Balboa" (also barely close enough).
The music is also completely redone by Michael Turner (no, not the late comic artist), which isn't terrible but does feel rather generic. It's a mix of different styles, but overall aims to sound "cool" & electronic, which in turns makes it sound bland. Of course, "Go, Speed Racer, Go" is heard in various instrumental forms as a leitmotif, though the actual song is only used as a short 30-second cover for the intro & end credits. Compared to Y2K, though, this dub produced at Media Concepts (Geneon's Lupin dubs, Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo) & directed by David Criden (Galerians: Rion, Street Fighter Alpha: Generations) actually does credit its cast, and is filled with notable anime voice actors, some of which performing multiple roles. Leading everyone is Dave Wittenberg (as David Lelyveld) as Speed, who does a good job with the role, and he even voices Jettison. Then there's Dan Woren (as Jackson Daniels) voicing Pops & Michelle Ruff as Mom, and they both deliver fine performances. Joshua Seth (under his own name) is even in this dub as Sparky (cracking his voice to sound more geeky), but he also plays various other minor roles, like pro racers Red, Alfred Hyman, & Klaus, Old Joe (though Seth's voice doesn't do "old man" well), & the Silver Phantom. Probably the weirdest multi-role performance comes from Tifanie Christun (as Chris Chaney), who voices both Trixie & Spritle, but at least she does well in making them sound different. Finally, we have the legendary Richard Epcar voicing Racer X, Mr. Balboa, & even the commentator heard during races.
Overall, Speed Racer X is this bizarre mix of anime dubbing eras. Its wild reworking of footage at points, various name changes, brand new music, often hokey dialogue, & outright skipping of episodes all feel like a relic of how dubs were done by companies like DiC or Nelvana back in the 90s; see: Sailor Moon or Cardcaptors. At the same time, though, its reliance on notable anime voice actors, highly accurate translation of the original Japanese dialog (hokey additions & notable changes notwithstanding), & maintaining of a few original Japanese elements (like "Hibiki Motors") shows that there was some concerted effort to have it compete with the kind of stuff that was airing on Cartoon Network's Toonami block. The end result isn't a terrible dub from a performance perspective, but feels really out of touch with the times because of its draconian (& nonsensical) editing choices. If you're curious, the entire 13-episode run was uploaded to YouTube back in 2017, taken from someone's recording off of Nickelodeon, and it's in more-than-decent quality.
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| Since FUNimation's release is so basic, I'll just go with the image it uses for its "cover". |
As the finale to Tatsunoko's series of reboots for some of its iconic franchises during the 90s, Mach Go Go Go: Restart is actually very emblematic of the endeavor, as a whole. Aside from the successful Tekkaman Blade & the purposefully short Time Bokan: Royal Revival, all of Tatsunoko's 90s reboots were very obviously cut short, resulting in them having loads of potential that was never fully realized, and the same is true for this reboot. It's a shame, too, because the racing portion of Restart is a ton of fun & well worth watching, though you do have to accept that it's solely about Go & his experiences, with his rivals being sadly underdeveloped because the staff went in an utterly different direction due to low ratings. Said different direction, the Handler Arc, does have its moments, but otherwise is a big disappointment; I can accept it becoming effectively a completely different show, but not when it's done as lazily as this. As for the two English dubs, Speed Racer Y2K is decent enough as a pilot production (it was never really intended to be anything great, after all), while Speed Racer X is kind of a weird bridge between the old, heavily edited TV anime dubs of the 90s & the more accurate dubs that had become the norm at the time; with just a few changes, it could have easily been more like the latter, while still paying homage to the past.
Unfortunately, as of this review, the only possible way to watch Mach Go Go Go: Restart (or even the original 1967 anime) with English subtitles is to buy FUNimation's ridiculous Collector's Edition release; maybe Tatsunoko forced both Japanese versions alongside Speed Racer, & this was FUNi's concession. Should this anime ever receive a more widely accessible release, whether it's a boxset of its own or simply via streaming, then I fully recommend watching Episodes 1 to 21, and then simply jumping ahead to Episode 32 (because its just that damn good). Beyond that, I say avoid the rest of the episodes, for your own sanity.
At the very least, this sure was a good pick for Review #250.
Anime © Tatsunoko Production・TV Tokyo
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