Pole Position (animation)

POLE PA-SHI-SHA-UNNNNNNNN!!!!!

Pole Position is a 1984 animated cartoon series produced by DiC Entertainment. Although the cartoon shares its name with the videogame Pole Position by Namco, there is no other connection between the two entities. The name Pole Position is copyright of Namco and used under license, and DIC apparently really wanted to use that name.

The show featured three young sibling crime fighters called the Darretts, two of which were stunt drivers and were part of a secret government operation under the guise of the "Pole Position Stunt Show" that was run by their uncle. Pole Position itself seemed to be a way to disguise and protect top-secret scientific research. The youths inherited the role after their parents died in an unfortunate car accident. The team is equipped with two high-tech talking vehicles named "Roadie" and "Wheels".

The vehicles featured numerous hidden gadgets like water skis and hover jets. The vehicles' computers themselves are portable and can be removed from the dashboards and carried around using handles, (thus they are often referred to as "the modules"). They are characters that appeared as computer-drawn faces displayed on video screens.

It's another of DiC's joint International Coproductions with a Japanese studio, although in this case it was MK Company, not TMS Entertainment. DiC also worked with MK on The Mysterious Cities of Gold.

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Tropes:

• Animesque: Very much so considering it was coproduced with a Japanese studio. It also aired in Japan in 1989.
• Cool Car: Roadie and Wheels.
• Hey, It's That Voice: The Japanese dub has some name voice actors, including Kojiro of Team Rocket as Dan and Sailor Jupiter as Tess.
• Idiosyncratic Episode Naming: Each episode has a Punny Name derived from an Alfred Hitchcock film.
• The Mentor: Dr. Zachary.
• Power Trio
  • Tess: The Hero and Action Girl
  • Dan: The Lancer and Idiot Hero
  • Daisy: Tagalong Kid
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: Roadie And Wheels - and their drivers. Tess is much more restrained and logical than her impulsive brother.
• Team Pet/Non-Human Sidekick: Kuma.