Biker Mice? Primer Who's Who Where...? Gadgets and Gizmos BM Voice Cast The types of transport in "Biker Mice" are wide and varied, although they all tend to be stylistically related to whichever characters are using them. For example, all the Biker Mice's bikes resemble their owners' personalities, while Plutarkian spaceships and vehicles are generally patterned after fish and other sea-life. Martian Motorcycles I Spaceships I Plutarkian Digging Equipment I Transporters Tri-Fighter I Plutarkian Tug Transformers I Sand Raider Stilt-Walkers I Dune Buggies MARTIAN MOTORCYCLES As Seen In: Biker Mice's bikes--every friggin' episode; Generic Freedom Fighter bikes--"Back to Mars" Parts One and Two, "Stalkers", "Caveat Mentor", "Once Upon a Time on Mars" Parts One through Three These are possibly the most important gizmos of the entire show. After all, it'd be just "Mice from Mars" without them, now wouldn't it? As it turns out, motorcycles are a very practical means of transportation for a planet like Mars. They tend to be very fuel efficient, fast, and light, making them ideal for long expanses of desert. At least, I think so. I heard it somewhere, it sounded good, so I'm going with it. Martian motorcycles don't differ radically from their Earthian counterparts in some ways, particularly in terms of designs. Throttle's bike, for example, looks like a classic Harley Davidson, Modo's like a Fatboy, and Vinnie's like a racing bike. This may be due to the Martian population monitoring Earth and copying bike designs. Or maybe Harley Davidson is secretly shipping their cycles to Mars. Or maybe it's a big coincidence. You decide. And, also like Earth's bikes, Martian motorcycles run on gasoline. But there are also huge differences between them. First and foremost, all Martian motorcycles are equipped with Artificial Intelligence (AI). In effect, they are thinking machines. Most of the time, this is not apparent. In most situations, the motorcycle behaves as would one without AI. But the bikes are aware, and able to react to changing situations. They recognize their riders, can grow very attached to them, come when called, and can communicate with their owners in a rudimentary fashion through honking/beeping, flashing lights, or other means. Martian motorcycles can also complete tasks of some complexity, ranging from simple movements to true independent action. For example, during "Road Ravens", Throttle jumps off his bike onto a truck, and tells his bike to stay with him. The bike rides along side him as he moves to the truck's rear, and is waiting for him there when he jumps off. More striking is a bike doing something without being told to do it. The most striking example occurred in "Stone Broke", when, after the Biker Mice were knocked out, Throttle's bike coordinated an attack for the three motorcycles to keep a group of Limburger's goons away from their unconscious riders. The degree of AI a motorcycle has more likely than not varies, and some may exhibit greater degrees of independence and personality than others. Modo's bike, Lil' Hoss, is the best example of a Martian bike that most definitely can and does think for itself. The very question of the bikes having AI does bring up an interesting conundrum--if the bike can think for itself, to a degree, just how large a scale decision can it make? If the bike was being neglected by its owner, for example, might it leave in search of greener pastures? Can the bike pick and choose among prospective owners? Or is the AI only activated after the bike has been bought and paid for, to eliminate the complication of a choosy motorcycle? If the rider were to abuse the bike--yeah, I know, it sounds odd--would the bike respond in self-defense? If its rider dies, does the bike grieve? We know these are intelligent machines--the real question is, just how deep do their emotions run? The second major difference between Martian motorcycles and those of Earth is that the former are equipped with a huge number of features that you just can't get on your standard Harley Softail. In addition to the aforementioned AI, there's also the matter of the small jet rockets, Martian bike wings, grappling lines, video monitors, and of course, the weaponry. The typical Martian bike is equipped with more guns than the average aircraft carrier. This is probably because most of the motorcycles we've seen were involved in a major war, in which case bike-mounted lasers and missile systems would be necessary. The weaponry probably is not a standard feature. This makes sense, as the more drivers have these armaments, the greater the possibility that the next World War will begin in rush hour traffic. Of the Martian bikes we've seen, there are four principal designs: three custom and one generic. The three custom jobs are the bikes belonging to Throttle, Modo, and Vinnie (Stoker and Harley also had their own distinctive rides, but these bikes only appeared in three episodes, in which they were also destroyed, so I'm not counting them). Each of the Biker Mice's bikes is suited to their personality and tastes, in that mouse's signature colors. Throttle's bike is black, and calls to mind the classic Harley Davidson--the wheels of the quintessential biker. Modo's is a bit closer to a Fatboy, and by design requires the rider to lean back slightly--reflecting his generally laid-back personality (and yes, it's purple, so let's not tell Jerry Falwell!). Finally, Vinnie's bike is obviously styled after and intended to be a racing bike, built for speed, and bright red--a perfect match for its wild, uninhibited rider. The generic Martian motorcycle I mentioned is the basic issue Freedom Fighter bike. It is pale brown with slightly darker accents, and somewhat similar in design to Vinnie's--very swept back, low to the ground, and aerodynamic. These do not seem to have all the features of the Biker Mice's bikes, but are heavily armed (again, they were used in war and are still utilized for that purpose). Rimfire usually uses a bike of this sort--when he isn't being taken prisoner by someone, which seems to occur roughly ever fifteen minutes…Given the sheer number of these mass-produced bikes, it seems that they might actually be Army surplus. SPACESHIPS As Seen In: Biker Mice's ship--"Rock & Ride!"; Plutarkian spaceships--"Rock & Ride!", "The Reeking Reign of Head Cheese Part Two", "Where No Mouse Has Gone Before", many others; Stalker Ship--"Stalkers", "Seeds of Victory" Because most of the major characters are extraterrestrial in origin, it makes sense that "Biker Mice" would have spaceships among its many gizmos, and indeed, it does. There are two major classifications of the spaceships we see: Martian and Plutarkian (which makes sense, as these are the two major groups of aliens we see). Both types are styled in such a way that it you can tell instantly into which category it falls. Martian ships bear a resemblance to a motorcycle. Curiously, as if to again showcase the difference between the motorcycles the two groups use, the Biker Mice's ship (called a "Cyclodrone Thunderpipe") is very flashy and stylish, while the Freedom Fighters' ship (from "Caveat Mentor") is brown, smaller, and much plainer. That there are any Martian spaceships at all is amazing--according to Limburger in "Back to Mars Part Three", all of them were destroyed during the Plutarkian War. But I digress. Plutarkian ships, in keeping with the motif, tend to look like giant, purple, very fearsome fish. They're usually a great deal larger than Martian ships. And, perhaps not surprisingly, there are a greater number of these than of the other sort. The weaponry of Plutarkian ships is apparent from their first appearance--they're heavily armed with laser cannons, which they aren't afraid to use. Those of Martian ships are a bit less obvious. When we first see the Thunderpipe--the only time we actually see it flying around throughout the cosmos--it's being fired upon from the rear, and has suffered some damage. There was no time for the Biker Mice to return fire. And Rimfire's ship, mentioned earlier, had been captured while on the ground, meaning we never get to see it use whatever weapons systems it has. So we don't know the offensive capabilities of these star cruisers. But we do know a little about the armor of the Thunderpipe. As revealed in "What Smells Worse Than a Plutarkian Lawyer?", when a trio of special suits were crafted for the Biker Mice from it, the plates covering the outside of the ship are bullet, bomb, and radiation-proof (makes one wonder why it had such a hard time with the Plutarkian lasers in the first episode…). They can also make it unscathed through massive impacts. A third ship fitting into neither category but worthy of note is the single Stalker ship employed by the Freedom Fighters. After the Biker Mice captured the bounty-hunting aliens, Rimfire took their ship with him back to Mars, and the Freedom Fighters claimed it for their own. It was seen again during "Seeds of Victory", when Carbine piloted the ship to Earth--and, perhaps more amazing than anything, she didn't crash it into the Quigley Field Scoreboard. Maybe it's just a problem male Martian mice have. In any case, the Stalker ship is medium-sized, bluish-green in color, with maroon accents. It is speedy, extremely maneuverable, and equipped with its own laser and missile systems. PLUTARKIAN DIGGING EQUIPMENT As Seen In: "Rock & Ride!", "A Mouse and His Motorcycle", "Biker Knights of the Round Table Part One", many others We all know that the Plutarkian modus operandi is to buy up a planet, then dig up its soil and other precious resources for shipment to their home planet. To do this, the fish-faces use large, specially-equipped digging machines. Generally, they are large, maroon in color, with several large, spidery legs emanating from the cab, which is several feet off the ground. Attached to the front are a pair of large arms, on which are giant clamping buckets. The spider-like design and multiple legs are very logical from a design point of view. Legs can more easily traverse and adapt to difficult, uneven landscapes than can treads or wheels (I suppose this is why there are no creatures in nature that routinely need their tires changed). Other digging equipment tends to more closely resemble Earthian construction equipment, from simple trucks for hauling dirt to large cutting machines. TRANSPORTERS As Seen In: "The Reeking Reign of Head Cheese Part One", "Back to Mars Part One", many others The most practical way to get things from point A to point B in the world of "Biker Mice" is through the Transporter system, which is basically just teleportation on a grand scale. Anyone or anything can be sent through this method, making it an extremely versatile method of transport. It is most frequently used throughout the show by Limburger to import a supervillain. Karbunkle merely has to type in the coordinates--or zap them in with a Rolodex-like device, and it's off to the races! Plutarkians also use Transporters to move the vast quantities of materials they steal to their home planet, or to a Space Holding Bin. The actual machinery used varies from task to task. For personal teleportation, the Transporter Booth, as seen in Karbunkle's lab at Limburger Tower, is favored. For resources, small units mounted on tripods can be set up which emit a Transporter beam that will teleport whatever comes into its range. Despite the simplicity of Transportation, the system is not without its risks. There is a certain amount of risk that goes along with having every single atom in your body separated from all the rest and beamed halfway across the galaxy, after all, especially if the Transporter unit has suffered some damage. TRI-FIGHTER As Seen In: "Die Fleidermice," "Below the Horizon" The saying goes, "fish gotta swim and birds gotta fly", but sometimes, Biker Mice have to fly, too. When Limburger used a flying fortress to try and steal all the wheat and grains in Kansas, our furry heroes found that they needed to become airborne in a big way. Their Martian bike wings, recently re-installed by Charley, just weren't cutting it. They took too much damage from Limburger's cannons. So, using scrap metal from a nearby junkyard, the always-industrious Charley whipped up a solution: the Tri-Fighter. This large, triangular-shaped craft accomodates all three of the mice's bikes, and can propel them upwards with greater speed, armor, and firepower than their bikes alone. Unfortunately, it's very hard on gas, meaning that during the first run, the Biker Mice only had a few minutes to stop Limburger--which they of course did. Afterward, the mice again the Tri-Fighter on one other occasion--to travel to Antarctica, where our favorite villainous fish-face was trying to recover a downed sattelite. Between uses, the Tri-Fighter is disassembled for easy storage (of course, that makes it a pain in the ass to put together again in a hurry). PLUTARKIAN TUG TRANSFORMER As Seen In: "Once Upon a Time On Mars" Parts One through Three As Vinnie once put it, "the Ultimate Earth-Mover." The Plutarkian Tug Transformer is the last word in resource-stealing. Essentially a giant rocket, when attached to a planet, it can actually move said planet from its own orbit into one around Plutark. Once the planet is "Plutark's newest moon," it becomes much simpler for them to mine whatever additional resources they want out of a planet that has virtually been stripped dry. This measure seems to be implemented whenever the usual methods of land acquisition become a hassle. Both Mars and Earth have had Tug Transformers installed in them. There is, however, a tiny little "design flaw": the Transformer is held in place by just three huge anchor bolts. As the Biker Mice have proven twice, it's a simple matter to loosen the machine's grip on the planet and send it flying alone back to Plutark. SAND RAIDER STILT-WALKERS As Seen In: "Back to Mars" Parts One and Two, "Stalkers", "Once Upon a Time On Mars" Parts One and Three As I mentioned earlier, legged vehicles can often amble through difficult terrain more easily than a wheeled one can. So, in light of the carved up surface of modern-day Mars, the Sand Raiders' Stilt-Walkers (my name for them) are a logical method of transit. These appear to be between fifteen and twenty feet tall. The legs make up most of this height, with a small platform at the top for the driver. Stilt-Walkers are equipped with laser weaponry. As a sidenote, the Sand Raiders have also been known to use dune buggies like the ones Brie's Dune Rangers and Limburger's goons use. DUNE BUGGIES As Seen In: "Rock & Ride!", "Steelfinger", "Once Upon a Time On Mars" Parts One through Three, many others These are the vehicles commonly used by the goons in the series--by which I mean not only Limburger's thugs, but also Napoleon Brie's and the Sand Raiders or Mars. These four-wheeled ATV's appear to have laser cannons, but no other special additions. Their exact design varies according to who uses them. Main basic information episodes in-depth fun MAIN