No.2872[Reply]
I'm a bit surprised there isn't a thread for this one already. I've read the first omnibus of the Kodansha translations for this one so far (that is, right before the Phantom GT-R race.) I have to say that I actually appreciate this not being entirely a racing series. At least to this point, it seems more so focused on drama - the playing of what a character wants and their ability to obtain what they want, what a character knows and what a character is capable of and how those two shape reactions. It's not particularly deep in execution, but it does what it does pretty well anyway. All of the characters seem to be jerks, but they don't seem to just be mean for no reason; they rage, they swoon, they mourn, they have real opinions of other things in the world, and all of these things make them the jerks they are. Takumi is the only one who isn't a jerk, but that has more to do with his discipline and how he was raised than it does with racing or passion. The growth that is being set up for him may challenge that. I can look past the very generic "the MC is so much different and special" aspect of the series because the mangaka gives the characters good characterization around this premise, including Takumi. The racing scenes are very well done too. I'm not educated on racin, but it seems authentic. I believe Shigeno consulted a top-level touge racer for this series, and I can tell. The humor in this series is a bit weird, though. I wasn't expecting so many 4th wall breaks. This is an old series, so I'm sure you guys have better things to say on it than my newness can. How is the anime, too?
No.2905
This was surprisingly compelling even though I hate cars.
No.3340
I love cars and motorsports but the beginning is the best because it has more focus on the characters. Once it settles into its routine it becomes just that.