Pole Position (1984–1985) User Reviews

OK, but a little repetitive

[CecigiPeugeot · 7/10 · 4 December 2016]

Now, here's a short-lived cartoon that has a cult following to this day - Pole Position. I would like to thank my older brother for getting me the DVD when it came out in 2008.

Named after the 1982 Namco arcade racing game of the same name, Pole Position was an 1984 cartoon about a family of three siblings called the Darretts, who, after their parents disappear in an unexplained explosion during a stunt race, run a stunt driving show as well as work for a secret government run by their uncle Zachary Darrett. With their sentient automobiles Roadie and Wheels, and their squeaky pet Kuma, teenagers Dan and Tess, and their younger sister Daisy, travel all over the United States of America catching bad guys and solving mysteries about ancient artefacts.

Now, the show was pretty much cool whenever the Darretts chased after the bad guys in their cars. Unfortunately, there wasn't that much of a plot, because the formula for all the Pole Position episodes just went basically like this:

1.The Darrett siblings drive their truck and/or do a stunt show.

2.Uncle Zachary radios in and briefs the Darrett siblings about their mission to either protect an ancient artefact or an important person, whether it be a human or an animal, from a random bad guy.

3.Kuma shows off some of his special acrobatic tricks, as Daisy looks on.

4.The Darrett siblings investigate the scene of the crime.

5.Daisy and/or Kuma get kidnapped by the bad guy, then get later rescued.

6.Dan goes out of his way to be a hero, almost getting himself killed in the process, only to be saved by either Roadie or Tess.

7.The Darrett siblings, riding Roadie and Wheels, chase after and catch the bad guy in a high-speed chase.

8.Uncle Zachary explains the whole story behind the artefact/person, solving the mystery.

9.Kuma does something silly, causing the Darrett siblings to laugh. The End.

10.Repeat next episode.

See what I mean? Now, according to co-story editor Michael Reaves, the original story arc for Pole Position was to have the Darrett siblings travel around the world, looking for clues about their parents' past as spies. But however, the deal fell through somehow. Now, considering the show has a thing for surprise twists (such as finding out in "Shadow of a Trout" that Dr. Zachary is wheelchair-bound), it's probably no surprise that the Darrett parents are still alive.

And now, my final thoughts: Since Inspector Gadget has made a comeback with his 2015 CGI cartoon, I would love to see the same treatment given to C.O.P.S., M.A.S.K., and Pole Position.

If a new Pole Position cartoon ever gets made, it should involve the Darrett siblings travelling all over the world, looking for clues to finding their parents, and here's the many cities of the world that the Darretts would visit: Paris, Toyko, Moscow, Hong Kong, Amsterdam, Hungary, London, Turkey, and so many more! The new Pole Position cartoon could also involve the Darretts actually fighting bad guys with their fists and feet, just like Speed Racer.

Also, here's who the voice-cast should be:

Bumper Robinson as Dan Darrett (just in case David Coburn isn't available)

Kath Soucie as Tess Darrett (since Lisa Lindgren died from cancer in 2005)

Tara Strong as Daisy Darrett (well, Kaleena Kiff is nowadays a director and a mom)

Jeff Bennett as Uncle Zachary Darrett (only if Jack Angel's far too old to reprise his role)

David Kaye as Roadie (I know Daryl Hickman is still alive, but he's probably retired by now)

Kevin Michael Richardson as Wheels (due to Mel Franklin passing away in 1995)

Frank Welker as Kuma (how can you go wrong with the Man of a Thousand Animal Voices?)

So there you have it, my thoughts on Pole Position.

Spy Racers

[hellraiser7 · 8/10 · 11 October 2019]

This is another cartoon that has speed under the radar. Most video game to cartoon adaptations either make it to the finish line or don't, this one fortunately does. I was a kid from the 80's and I remember playing the "Pole Position" games when I was about six years old as they were one of the first video games, I've every played, they were so much fun. I remember running into this animated show on the "USA Cartoon Express" early morning and it really blew me away, I honestly never knew there was an animated series adaptation based on this game let alone possible.

This show to me is not just fun but also one of the better examples of doing a video game to visual medium adaptation right. It's true that making this into a pulp spy thriller is a radical difference but you have to understand that back then this was a time when adaptations on just about any to every other medium had rules, and with a game that was simply about racing it was opportunity to do about anything.

The show is sort of like with anime series "Speed Racer" which features some spy episodes, but also another show in the 80's "Knight Rider", you can say this show is almost more of an animated adaptation of that show as both formats are similar, what I like about both shows and this were that it was just a beautiful combination of two genres that doubled the fun and thrills of both sports and spy thriller.

The main characters Tess and Dan are solid both are teens or young adults I'm not sure which, yeah I know people their age as spies is far fetched but it's an 80's animated show you just roll with it. Anyway, Tess and Dan, they both have a good back and forth, there is some personality like Dan whom is more of a daredevil on the aggressive side of things more. Tess is the older sister which makes her a little more mature, levelheaded making sure Dan and things don't drive off course. But also, she has some spunk and is energetic.

Even like the Ai Car characters Wheels and Roddie whom both are pretty much like KITT on "Knight Rider" or even "Jarvis" from Iron Man. Both have personalities, with Roddie he's a bit on the brainy side and Wheels whom is on the cool side, like the voice which sounds like something from a 70's blaxploitation film.

Their boss is Uncle Zachary whom they never meet in person as he's always on a video screen, much like how Charlie in "Charlies Angels" is always on speaker, which I thought was a nice touch giving it a little mystery. In a way this sort of makes the show a bit of a wish fulfillment fantasy because as kids some of us dreamed of driving race car and maybe even being a spy and kicking some butt.

But of course, this show were in it for the vehicular action which it has plenty of. Really love the design of the cars where one is a red sports corvette that's Tess's car, and the other Dan's looks futuristic, and all the neat features they have which come in handy, as a kid I wanted to drive those.

The chases are cool really like how the show creates the illusion of speed. Just seeing how fast they pass the environments by and what ever features from the cars they need to employ to clear a path. I remember being on the edge of my seat as a kid sometime imitating the turns and movements the cars were making. Even like there's the sports aspect they kept where we both engage in some stunt shows, really like the design of the tracks which are unique. As well as races which happened in an episode or two.

Of course the other highlight is the theme song which is awesome, it's one of my favorite theme songs of all time. It has such a catch beat but it's a song that just sings fast racing action.

The only real speed bump on the road is it was sort of formulaic which made the show rather predictable, it really would of benefited more with plotlines that differentiated more like infiltrated some shadow organization or even have Tess and Dan do a little more away from the cars.

I wouldn't mind a revival of this animated show which would not just bring in new fans of this show but the classic video game franchise that helped start the racing subgenre in video games.

For animation I'd say a combo of both CGI and regular hand drawn animation or plain hand drawn animation, whichever preferred just to make sure it looks good. We can have a little more depth, like the origin of how the cars were made. What's happened to Tess and Dan's parents where that could be an ongoing plotline where they are either kidnapped or killed during a mission both were on and this could be an ongoing plotline where both Tess and Dan have to find them or find out the truth about their demise. Maybe latter on have some other characters which would me other cars with different designs, features, as well as different personalities for the cars.

Or maybe even a live action TV show adaptation from Justin Lin and any other director that did the "Fast and Furious" movies, heck those films are a lot like the cartoon series. Well all thought worth a test run anyway.

Pole Position has enough mileage for fun.

Rating: 3 stars

He's got my command code. There's nothing I can do.

[dysprod1975 · 26 September 2002]

Man this was a great saturday morning toon. Wheels from Pole Position I and Roady from Pole Position II teaming up with the Darret family to combat crime. Great music, nice animation, good plot, and memorable moments.

The one episodes I remember well is "The Code". Where Greg DuMont went undercover as a spy to take down a cyber crimelord and cracked wheels' code, sending Dan, Tess, and Roady out on a chase through the desert and San Francisco.

I'd love to remake this show myself. They don't make adventure ike this anymore. I'll sit back and watch them role anytime.

I'm Getting Too Old For This..........NOT!

[blackarachnia2 · 10/10 · 3 February 2008]

It was one of the highlights from my youth to get up early on Saturday mornings and watch television. But that's a thing of the past given how crappy things have gotten since network cartoons were given the ax in favor of more adult things. Not that I really care or anything like that it's just that I would like to see weekday afternoons dedicated to cartoon blocks instead of the garbage that's on now. My Wife and Kids?! What the hell is that?

I used to love this show and to think that people tell me that I should "grow up" is ridiculous. Lord knows I hear enough of it from my family. But still Pole Position was one of my all time favorites no question. It just seems that it didn't last long enough for the characters to develop very well.

Superb musical score

[dz1 · 9/10 · 19 May 2019]

The fantastic intro song and music throughout the cartoon is what really stood out for me. It has the best music I have ever heard in any cartoon.

There is very little violence but it still has lots of action. Some of the stories do not make much sense but that is typical of kids' cartoons.

Such a Cool Show

[RestlessRust · 15 October 2004]

I absolutely LOVED this show! It was one of my favorite Saturday morning shows and by far the best show based on a video game. It was very short-lived, and the reason is obvious: it was constantly pre-empted by sports. 12:00 p.m. (EST)--what were they thinking?! I can't tell you how many times I sat down to watch Pole Position only to find myself staring at an NBA pregame show. So not only was this show on for only one season, for half that time they never even showed an episode! It's a shame, too, because this was the most mature, thoughtful cartoon on Saturday morning at the time. Heaven forbid we encourage kids to think.

Well, at least we have the memories...

A Great Cartoon That Was Sadly Short Lived!

[Disco-J · 10 February 1999]

I can vaguely remember Pole Position as a child! But, I distinctly remember the theme song: POLE POSITIOOON, WHOA,WHOA,WHOA,WHOA,WHOA! It was an exciting cartoon that was based on the classic Atari Game by Namco. Dan Darret with the help of Wheels and the gang would receive guidance and missions from Dr. Zachary & Teacher and fight off the baddies, but always make it in time to qualify for the next race! Great early eighties cartoon. It's not manufactured anymore, but you might be able to trade with someone over the internet! If you're a fan of the Animated genre and racing/adventure, check out Pole Position!!