I am – Hercules!!

Good news, everyone! You can save yourself a couple bucks by recording the 90-minute pilot “Speed Racer: The Next Generation” on Nicktoons Friday night. (If you miss it, it goes on sale Tuesday for $14.99.)

Set 40 years after the original (which aired 40 years ago), it deals with the son of the original Speed and a robot Chim-Chim.

The San Francisco Chronicle says:

… to answer the obvious question, no, "Speed Racer: The Next Generation" isn't nearly as good as the original series from the '60s. For starters, you can't beat the iconic look of the original. The new animation looks cheap. The new Speed looks like a skate punk. The new characters - loosely based on old characters and original ideas - lack much of the humor of the first (granted, that humor came after the fact, when we all realized it was funny because it was ridiculous). There's less soul in "The Next Generation." And, most important, the new version lacks both the milieu that made the original so cool and the surprising emotional depth that unfolded in the early episodes. …

UGO says:

… The result is a show that's still aimed at adolescents, but one that's actually fun to watch, even for die-hard old school fans who would be ready to hate any new series that dares to touch their favorite old classic. …

7 p.m. Friday. Nicktoons.