Biker Mice from Mars

Throttle, Modo and Vinnie are three warrior mice from Mars, fighting the Plutarkians - an alien race that seeks to exploit the resources of other planets.

After the war on Mars the trio arrive on Earth and land in Chicago.

There they meet Charley Davidson, a skilled mechanic who becomes their friend and partner and helps repair and upgrade their motorcycles.

The Biker Mice soon discover that the Plutarkians have reached Earth too. Lawrence Limburger, a Plutarkian hiding behind a human businessman façade, operates from Chicago and tries to exploit Earth's resources for his species.

He is aided by the mad scientist Dr. Karbunkle and Greasepit, his not-very-bright thug.

Their schemes repeatedly end in clashes with the Biker Mice, and often in another spectacular destruction of Limburger's headquarters.

The fight on Earth is not separate from the war on Mars.

Throughout the series the Biker Mice return to their homeland and to friends who remained there, including Stoker, Carbine and Rimfire.

The Biker Mice

Throttle - leader and strategist of the trio.

He wears green sunglasses behind which are bionic eyes, following injuries from the war. Throttle is usually the most level-headed and responsible of the three.

Modo - the largest and strongest of the Biker Mice.

He has a bionic arm and a retinal implant over one eye. Despite his imposing appearance and strength, Modo is sensitive, loyal and protective.

Rimfire is his nephew.

Vinnie - the white, wild mouse of the group.

Part of his face is covered by a metal mask.

Vinnie loves speed, stunts and showing off and often acts before he thinks.

The three Biker Mice are identified not only with their motorcycles but also with their love of hot dogs and «beer». In the American original this is root beer, a non-alcoholic soft drink; in the Hebrew dub the drink is simply called «beer».

Allies

Charley Davidson - a Chicago mechanic and the Biker Mice's close human friend.

She repairs and upgrades their bikes and actively joins their adventures.

Her name is a pun on Harley-Davidson.

Stoker - a veteran fighter and leader of the mice's struggle on Mars.

He serves as commander and mentor to the Martian freedom fighters.

Carbine - a warrior and leader in the fight against Plutarkians on Mars.

She is especially close to Throttle and is his love interest.

Rimfire - Modo's nephew and a young Martian fighter.

Enemies

Lawrence Limburger - the Biker Mice's main enemy on Earth.

A Plutarkian posing as a human businessman, working to exploit Earth's resources.

Dr. Karbunkle - a mad scientist working for Limburger, responsible for inventions, experiments and creatures used against the Biker Mice.

Greasepit - Limburger's thug.

Strong but not especially smart, he is often sent to carry out the boss's plans.

Lord Camembert - a senior Plutarkian and another figure in Plutarkian leadership.

Napoleon Brie - a Plutarkian and another rival of Limburger.

Fred - a mutant tied to Dr. Karbunkle's experiments and one of the Biker Mice's foes.

The motorcycles are an inseparable part of Throttle, Modo and Vinnie's identity.

Each has a bike associated with him, equipped with special abilities and weapons, used in battles and stunts throughout the series.

Charley, as the mechanic, is often responsible for repairing and upgrading the motorcycles.

Biker Mice from Mars was dubbed into Hebrew and first aired in Israel on Channel 1 in 1994-1995.

Morning children's programming aired the series in an unusual way: an original episode was split into several short segments broadcast across multiple mornings.

Before each new segment, a recap of events from previous parts was shown.

On Thursday afternoons the full original episode aired as part of «Zap to Channel 1». At the start of the broadcast period there was a link between the episode split during the week and the full episode on Thursday.

Later, after some Thursday broadcasts were cancelled, the morning segments moved ahead relative to the full Thursday episode sequence.

The series later received additional Israeli broadcasts, including on Channel 2 and Jetix in 2007-2008.

The Hebrew version was produced at ZSound Studios Ltd. in Tel Aviv.

Original 1994 credits list Yasmin Gamiel as voice director.

Hebrew version production

Studio: ZSound Studios Ltd. Tel Aviv
Voice direction: Yasmin Gamiel
Translation: Michal Spiegler, Alex Polshenberg, David Simon
Translation production: Michal Spiegler
Language editor: Devora Ben Israel
Opening theme - lyrics and vocals: Yasmin Gamiel
Recording and mix engineer: Haim Eden, Lior Ben Shahar
Voice QC: Ziv Sidi
Video editing: Ronit Polak
Production management: Sharon Malmed Elqana

The 1994 original credits list Micha Morin, Yasmin Gamiel, Nir Friedman, Dror Nahum, Giora Kenneth, Yoel Lerner and Mummy Levy.

Additional dubbers joined over the run and some lead roles were recast between dub periods.

The Hebrew version received an original Hebrew opening theme.

Yasmin Gamiel wrote the Hebrew lyrics and performed the song, in addition to her work as voice director and cast member.

The song, especially the line «האופנוברים ממאדים» (the Biker Mice from Mars), became one of the signature elements of the Hebrew version.

Biker Mice from Mars was created by Rick Ungar and began airing in the United States in syndication in 1993. The original series had 65 episodes across three seasons and aired until 1996.

The series was created at a time when animated shows combining action, anthropomorphic characters and toy lines were very popular.

The motorcycles, the unique design of the three heroes and the mix of science fiction and humor became central to its identity.

Alongside the TV series, an extensive toy line was produced, including characters, motorcycles and other vehicles and accessories.

Marvel Comics published a short comic series based on Biker Mice from Mars in 1993-1994. Three issues were released.

The series also received a video game for Super Nintendo.

Unlike a typical action game based on a TV show, the game focused on racing and featured characters and vehicles from the series.

In 2006 Throttle, Modo and Vinnie returned in a new Biker Mice from Mars series with 28 episodes.

The series was not a reboot but a continuation of the original's world and characters, set several years later.

Rick Ungar, creator of the original, was involved in the new production, and the three original American voice actors of the Biker Mice returned to their roles.

In this series Mars faces a new crisis, and Stoker and the Biker Mice must deal with new enemies alongside familiar characters and foes from the original series.