Speed Racer: The Complete Classic Series Collection [DVD]

Now this is the series I grew up watching and loved! This made it's debut in the year I was born, 1967. It is one of the only things I remember watching from my childhood. I loved the racing and how utterly cool the cars looked. More than that, I think I was in love with Speed Racer himself. Now don't laugh, a child younger than 5 can have a crush on anyone she wants to right?But back to the story line and this set of DVDs. Action, adventure, mystery, fast cars and lots of humor. What little boy didn't want to be Steve Racer or little girl Trixie? Or the other way around, it doesn't matter. And I wanted a monkey too. Did I buy this to relive some weird childhood fantasy? Of course not, I bought it for my grandchildren who were 6 and 5 back then. Some of the cartoons they have these days can become a little monotonous after a while. So why not get them something that I would enjoy watching too? In fact, the whole family got into watching these episodes together. Every Saturday morning for the longest time we watched these, every single episode for I don't know how many months and then they were off again picking favorite episodes to watch over and over again.I knew with Speed Racer I didn't have to worry about any language, it was against Federal Broadcasting Regulations (or whatever it is called, lol) back then wasn't it? There isn't any awkward adult situations or comedy. There are fight scenes but I would much rather have those fight scenes than the things they portray in some children's animation today. Just some clean wholesome fun that we could all enjoy together. Kids want you to be fully engaged with them. They don't like it if you are not in the room with them or even if you are in the room but occupied with your smart phone or tablet. They want you watching, commenting, and laughing right along with them.One of the first realizations I made as a grandmother is that grandparents are here to show our grandchildren how to have fun, how to enjoy life, how to just be who you are. Parents don't have that luxury.They have to deal with everything under the sun, the good, the bad, and the ugly. Speed Racer is about having fun, enjoying life, following your dreams, being who you are.I actually bought this set several years ago but as I was going through some old Amazon purchases saw that I never took the time to review it. This set definitely deserves a review! I do, unfortunately, have to deduct one point for the fact that the DVD's didn't come packaged in a way that would protect them. It would have been nice if they each had a jewel case instead of an envelope. Just by looking at how much the price has increased since the time I purchased this, you can tell this is something that people are going to want to keep and collect. In four years, the price is 4x as much.I ordered this 5 Disc DVD Speed Racer: The Complete Classic Series on Amazon and paid full price for it. I was in no way obligated to write a review but have only done so because I enjoyed them so much. I enjoy sharing my experiences with other consumers in order to help them make more informed purchasing decisions. No one wants to buy something and realize they have made a mistake and wish someone would have warned them first. Likewise, everyone wants to find a great deal or bargain that they will enjoy.

as a cult classic, you gotta love Speed Racer. known for its super-fast speech, this one kind of reminds you of those martial arts films where the mouths don't match the words in the least in that you know it was originally in Japanese. and that fast talking is what it is known for to my friends and I who caught it on MTV at the time. so if it is compressed well imho that adds to that aspect. it also is telling in that there are so many words to get the idea across that for those of us who find it charming we find there is also stuff going on in these adventures. Speed hooks you like a soap opera in that many of its episodes have multiple parts. there is no bad language, but being it was really a Japanese cartoon the tone of the story was somewhat dark at times as compared to US animation from its time. however, speed is a race car driver who is the good guy who invests himself to save the day even though it involves a lot of danger and it isn't certainly isn't required of him to do anything. i find that he has to have a lot of virtue to do that. the humorous rate of speech and Speed's virtue are uplifting and while the show is dark in tone at times these things give it a reassuring feel as does the theme song in the beginning and end. the catchy theme song is also a part of its being a cult classic and is on the upbeat side and i find myself singing it. you should see the Japanese version of the opening theme on youtube after you watch the series. it's neat to see the contrast between the versions from the two cultures. you should also check out wikipedia's explanation of the play on the word "go" which is kind of interesting.a decent series and a cult phenomenon at that! Go Speed Racer go!

This was a cartoon that I watched in the mornings in the '80s as a kid. This cartoon was featured alongside Voltron and RoboTech on the old WPTT-22 UHF station. Little did I know that such programming was planting the seeds for my alter ego. ;-)It's not the best animated cartoon and it can be very kitschy (the '60s influence does date the cartoon). In regards to interesting mechanical designs this alongside the other two cartoons made me appreciate how seriously animators took their work. And let's not forget the toys. Although, sadly, I never did see any Speed Racer toys alongside the Voltron, RoboTech and Transformers gear. But I was a kid and didn't know much about shopping at the time.Still, it's a nice little cartoon. The version I received was packaged in a plastic dual-disc DVD case with two extra holders added to hold the extra discs (one in the front and back cover and one disc on each side of the extra holders). I'm glad I didn't get the collectible "car". That would've taken up too much room! ;-)All the episodes of the cartoon are here along with "The History of Speed Racer" featurette, the making of "Speed Racer: The Next Generation" and an episode of that aforementioned series. Fortunately no mention is made of The Wachowski Brothers' movie.

This old animated classic from Japan is far better than the modern attempt to remake and recapture the past success of Speed Racer. The artwork is excellent and the stories are exciting and dramatic without being overly violent. Even though the animation is somewhat outdated when compared to other anime series from Japan, this older original version of Speed Racer has a more compelling feel to it and a more detailed character construction than the modern series does. It's simply far, far better. Speed Racer is a tough character , he never backs down from a challenge despite some "very" crazy races that most sane drivers would never think of getting involved in..., like racing through an active volcano for example..., but Speed Racer also has a sensitive and heroic side. It's a great series and can be enjoyed by both children and adults. The DVD's worked perfectly, audio and video were perfect.- Mike Silverman

Good special features and a digital transfer that leaves others in the dust. Good clear picture and sound.

A great package. Well presented in a plastic case with carton sleeve. Colorful and lively! I'm over 40 years old but this brings me back to a time when I was too young to understand it. The opening theme is catchy - very 60's. The Mach 5 is everything I remembered and more - a definite Jaguar D-Type infuence in the design. Watching the adventures of Speed Racer in cartoon form makes the live-action movie from 2007 more understandable - several key elements of the cartoon series being well reproduced in the live version. A great way to animate a cold Sunday winter morning for any car buff, young or old. Have your kids discover it, or like me rediscover this great classic that even adults can appreciate. Watch for the red Jaguar E-Type in the end generic - beautiful!

As a kid in the USA in the 1970s I saw a couple episodes of this and always thought it was super-special. When I finally had a kid of my own, I got this and watched it all 2-3 times through with my son. English isn't his first language (we live in Japan) so it helped that the stories are so interesting. Very little of it seems dated now, either.

４５年前のアナログアニメで、アメリカでも放送された作品ですが、どのエピソードもみんなテレビで見たのと全く同じきれいな映像で、保存状態のよさ、ディスクの仕上がりのよさ、そして作品内容からディスクケースにいたるまで素晴らしく、大いに気に入り、４つ星を付けました。リージョンコードが1ですから、我が家ではパソコンで見ています。セリフはみな英語ですが、映像を見るだけでも楽しめますので、アナログアニメ好きな方はコレクションにもいいのでは？中学生のお小遣いでも買える安さで、しかも品質がよいのですから、言語の関係なく、映像を眺めるのが好きな方など本当にお買い得。タツノコプロの、「マッハGOGOGO」の英語版ですが、こちらの方が、日本語版より大人びて見えるのが興味深い。また、英語を勉強している方など、アニメでヒアリングや耳慣れをするのに映像を見ながら聞き流すのもこれまた楽しい。特に、家庭での会話、友人たちとの楽しいやりとり、娯楽の場面などが英語のヒアリングにいいようです。英語版アニメを楽しみたい、という方にもおすすめできる作品だと思います。映像を見ると、ええっ、これ、ほんとうに４５年も前に、日本が制作したの？！と、思わず疑いたくなるほどアメリカナイズした、映像のきれいな作品ですよ。