Chip 'n' Dale Rescue Rangers

Though essentially a children's program, Chip N' Dale's Rescue Rangers possesses that wonderful quality which makes it enjoyable to both young and old alike. The story follows four noble-minded rodents and a house fly who solve mysteries and generally help people, and others, in need. The villains are often hysterical and their diabolical schemes hilariously absurd. There is physical comedy aplenty and enough action to keep the wee ones interested. Meanwhile, the not-so-wee ones will be recognizing referenes to everything from Rocky and Bullwinkle to The Fly. The voice acting is clever, and the charaters are easy and likeable.

Of the five main charaters, Chip is the sharp-witted, responsible one. That of course means he often has to play the unfortunate straight man to the others' hijinks. Dale is the silly, fun-loving one who likes to play jokes (usually on Chip) and basically have a good time. Monterey Jack's the affable, adventurous Aussie wth a nose for trouble and even more so for cheese. Monterey's "little pally" Zipper the housefly courageosly performs feats above and beyond the call of duty of a "household pest." Gadget is the MacGyver of the group. She's an absent minded, though unquestionably brilliant, engineer who can make just about anything out of practically nothing.

It's fun. It's funny. It's the Rescue Rangers. Enjoy!

In brief, this is a cartoon show about a gang of animals--two chipmunks, two mice, and a common housefly--who live together in a tree and solve crimes and have various adventures together. But it's so much better than it sounds from that simple description. The writing is witty with sharp, consistent characterizations, both of the Rescue Rangers themselves and of all the various villains and minor characters. The background music is catchy and the plots are inventive, random, silly and at the same time serious, without being preachy or heavy-handed in giving "morals" at all.

As for the basics of the show, the Rescue Rangers are composed of Chip--intelligent and determined with a streak of mischief that only occasionally surfaces; Dale--goofy and often trying to prove himself, and also to bring out Chip's goofy side; Monterey Jack--worldly and generally in control of the situation, except of course when it comes to cheese; Gadget--brilliant and absent-minded and sometimes startlingly wise; and Zipper--plucky and enthusiastic and loyal. But all of that can be found in any summary of the show; it doesn't capture what is so great about the show. None of the characters are even close to one-dimensional, and their interactions are complex, witty and fascinating, and can't even be summarized briefly.

Just as interesting are the "bad guys"--the main recurring ones are Fat Cat and his gang, and Professor Nimnul, a self-proclaimed unappreciated genius. The villains are witty, entertaining, ironic, outrageous, and just plain funny. And in general the show avoids the issue of "good vs. evil" directly; the plots typically revolve around the Rescue Rangers thwarting some scheme of a villain to gain power or wealth in unlawful ways (although some episodes don't even have an identifiable villain), but you're not made to hate the villains at all, only to disapprove of their selfishness or greed. In terms of subtle moral messages, I would say that this show shows (not preaches) the value of teamwork, the idea that everyone deserves help, and that selfishness and greed will get you nowhere in the end.

But the moral messages are not the main reason to watch this show, although they're important to the charm of the show. I started watching it when I was about four, and it's stuck with me throughout my life, becoming a central part of our family culture even when we go years without actually watching an episode. If a show can be judged by how often it gets quoted or referenced in everyday life, then Rescue Rangers has been the best and most important show in my life. So many of the lines and references have worked their way into my regular vocabulary, lines that are witty or clever or insightful or just plain funny. So often my dad and I find ourselves making analogies to RR episodes while having serious discussions. On the surface the plots may seem entertaining but not "deep" in a traditional dramatic sense, but believe me, the wit of the plots and characters and dialogue seeps into your thoughts in ways that will surprise you. It's fun and entertaining, and in a subtle way, very meaningful.

Overall, I wouldn't be who I am now without this show. I find that it's written with a depth of cleverness, references, wit, and character development that isn't quite matched in any of the other Disney Afternoon shows (with Gummi Bears coming closest). It's funny, entertaining, and deep, and I'd recommend it to anyone of any age who's willing not to be cynical about watching a show about crime-solving rodents. It's more than worth it.

Disney reigns the animated television series king in 1989 with "Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers," a cartoon about Chip, Dale, Gadget, Monterey Jack, and Zipper, all having lots of fearless adventures and having lots of fun!!!!!

They all live in a tree, ala the Keebler elves, and they have things like a big screen TV with Christmas Lights and a round sofa, an "R/R" flag, a tire/Tinker Toy slide, dominoes for stairs, a mailbox garage, a kitchen, and just about everything that you could find in their home/ headquarters!!!!!

As a child of the early 90s, I've watched this on the Disney Afternoon, and played the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) game from Capcom, like what everyone else always did back in the day!!!!! Man, both were so much fun! I wish times like this were here again! Oh well; guess I'll have to invest in a time machine!!!!! LOL

"Rescue Rangers" is a wonderful show; fun for the whole family!!!!!

10 stars!

This is one of my favourite Disney cartoons along with Darkwing Duck, Talespin and Ducktales,and I am flabbergasted that Disney don't show this anymore. everything about it is amazing, though if I had a minor criticism I just wished it lasted longer. The animation is superb, the character movements are sharp,and the colours fluid and solid-looking. The theme tune is delightfully catchy, and never fails to make me want to sing along. And what about the characters? A real delight. Chipand Dale are hilarious, with their fast talking and irresistible personalities,and Gadget and Monteroy Jack are great characters that add a lot to the show. And where would we be without the villains? My favourites were FatCat and Professor Nimmel. The voice acting from Corey Burton, Tress MacNeille and Jim Cummings is of high calibre, the stories are outstanding and there are plenty of laugh-out-loud-funny moments. All in all, I just wish it lasted longer,otherwise brilliant and a must-see! 9/10 Bethany Cox

Chip and Dale's Rescue Rangers was pretty good, with nifty vehicles made of old toys and garbage, quality animation and good voice acting. However, it could have stood a few more episodes. The balance of characters was strong enough to carry out another season's worth of plots without any slowdown.

There was Gadget, unaware of her genius and beauty, Monteray Jack, tough guy with a cheese fetish, Zipper, a fly who frequently acted as a parachute for the various rangers, and Chip 'n Dale, constantly bickering and talking incredibly fast.

Disney did occasionally add new episodes to their animated shows, Gargoyles for example. I've seen Chip 'n Dale and I've seen Gargoyles. And I think Chip 'n Dale could have produced more episodes than Gargoyles.