One started the racing frenzy, the other is feeding our nostalgia.
When talking about racing anime, one title that always comes to the top in every conversation is Initial D. It's a staple, a show that popularized street racing, the show that gave birth to huge blockbuster franchises, both in Hollywood and in the video game industry. And MF Ghost, the show that started releasing this September, is following in its footsteps, but in a modern way.
Initial D was extremely popular both at home in Japan and in the West, despite the questionable localization. Its more realistic animation, attention to detail, and lack of competition in the genre of racing or generally car-related anime cemented its success. But one of the main selling points, aside from an interesting story, was the soundtrack.
Initial D featured a bunch of catchy Eurobeat songs that stayed in your head for hours after you finished watching an episode — and MF Ghost attempts to do the same. Its funky beats fit the smooth, engaging animation perfectly, hyping up the viewer and raising the tension just when it's needed.
MF Ghost can be considered a sequel-ish spin-off to Initial D in terms of the plot and the characters. The main character in MF Ghost is Kanata Rivington, a half-English half-Japanese racer who comes to Japan in search of his father. He believes that in order to find him he needs to make a name for himself and make himself visible, so he participates in a racing series called MFG. And that's where MF Ghost connects to the Initial D: Kanata was trained by Initial D's protagonist, Takumi Fujiwara, and MFG was founded by Ryosuke Takahashi, with whom Takumi has a friendly rivalry. Not only that, but Kanata drives a Toyota 86 GT — a car that was created with the AE86 that Takumi was using in mind. It's also adorned by the number 86 on its doors.
MF Ghost's manga release, however, was not as popular as Initial D.
The series started in 2017 when the hype for stories like that was lessening. The other thing that made it less thrilling is that it's centered around legal races and not illegal drifting competitions like Initial D which gave it a bit of a rebellious edge and a hint of danger. And the focus is shifted from the racing to pretty dull personal dramas that stall the storytelling.
But the anime can fix that. With two episodes out, the viewers already felt a proper racing thrill aided by fiery Eurobeat tracks. The animation is smooth and nice, you can feel the speed, and homage to the Initial D is quite prominent. Anime can fix some of the pacing issues of the original manga and take more time exploring the racing aspect, making the show more exciting. Now, however, it invokes the feeling of nostalgia for those who experienced the early Need For Speed games. And it's great.
One started the racing frenzy, the other is feeding our nostalgia.
When talking about racing anime, one title that always comes to the top in every conversation is Initial D. It's a staple, a show that popularized street racing, the show that gave birth to huge blockbuster franchises, both in Hollywood and in the video game industry. And MF Ghost, the show that started releasing this September, is following in its footsteps, but in a modern way.
Initial D was extremely popular both at home in Japan and in the West, despite the questionable localization. Its more realistic animation, attention to detail, and lack of competition in the genre of racing or generally car-related anime cemented its success. But one of the main selling points, aside from an interesting story, was the soundtrack.
Initial D featured a bunch of catchy Eurobeat songs that stayed in your head for hours after you finished watching an episode — and MF Ghost attempts to do the same. Its funky beats fit the smooth, engaging animation perfectly, hyping up the viewer and raising the tension just when it's needed.
MF Ghost can be considered a sequel-ish spin-off to Initial D in terms of the plot and the characters. The main character in MF Ghost is Kanata Rivington, a half-English half-Japanese racer who comes to Japan in search of his father. He believes that in order to find him he needs to make a name for himself and make himself visible, so he participates in a racing series called MFG. And that's where MF Ghost connects to the Initial D: Kanata was trained by Initial D's protagonist, Takumi Fujiwara, and MFG was founded by Ryosuke Takahashi, with whom Takumi has a friendly rivalry. Not only that, but Kanata drives a Toyota 86 GT — a car that was created with the AE86 that Takumi was using in mind. It's also adorned by the number 86 on its doors.
MF Ghost's manga release, however, was not as popular as Initial D.
The series started in 2017 when the hype for stories like that was lessening. The other thing that made it less thrilling is that it's centered around legal races and not illegal drifting competitions like Initial D which gave it a bit of a rebellious edge and a hint of danger. And the focus is shifted from the racing to pretty dull personal dramas that stall the storytelling.
But the anime can fix that. With two episodes out, the viewers already felt a proper racing thrill aided by fiery Eurobeat tracks. The animation is smooth and nice, you can feel the speed, and homage to the Initial D is quite prominent. Anime can fix some of the pacing issues of the original manga and take more time exploring the racing aspect, making the show more exciting. Now, however, it invokes the feeling of nostalgia for those who experienced the early Need For Speed games. And it's great.
