Television Review: Biker Mice from Mars
What Parents Should Know
Parents need to know that despite this show's silly title
and a certain sense of irreverence, it's not a spoof. The
titular Martian mice are involved in a violent battle for the
one thing that will save their planet, and every episode
includes lots of hand-to-hand and ray/laser-gun combat. Thanks
to glowing red eyes and dripping werewolf teeth on heroes and
villains alike, it's all just a little bit scarier than what
kids will see in adventure shows like
Power
Rangers
and
Teenage
Mutant Ninja Turtles
.
Families can talk about what makes this show different from
other cartoons. Why do you think the people who make the show
want it to stand out from other series? Kids: Do you find
certain parts of the show funny (the good guys' wisecracks, the
sound effects that accompany things like bad guys crashing on
the ground)? Does that make any of the action less scary?
BIKER MICE FROM MARS follows the adventures of a group of rodent Martian refugees. When the series began in 1993, the main trio -- Throttle (voiced by Rob Paulsen), Modo ( Dorian Harewood), and Vinnie ( Ian Ziering) -- were working to prevent Earth from having all of its resources sucked away -- which is what happened to their home planet. A 2006 revival/continuation found the mice trying to save their own planet after it was rejuvenated via the Regenerator, a magical, resource-returning machine much desired by the mice's enemies, the Catatonians.
Biker Miceattempts to be both funny and serious -- a la Iron Man -- and from the point of view of the average 9-year-old, it succeeds fairly well. (Though, from a parent's perspective, it's not as enjoyable as other shows in the genre.) Every episode offers the banter and quirky villainy we've all grown to expect from the action genre. The bad guys' ongoing attempts to get the Regenerator may be momentarily foiled in each episode -- which means the installments can be enjoyed singly -- but the story is clearly meant to be followed as a whole.
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