Initial D (1998)
Source of Images
Production: avex mode
Episodes: 26
By Keith "JC" Hayward

Introduction

I have a deep dark secret. I'm 26, and I never got my driver's license. It's not because I failed the test or was ever a bad driver. It's just that I never really cared, or felt that driving need of the 16 year old to become his own man by earning a driver's license. Cars never fascinated me and I never really cared about the difference between them. As long as it had four wheels and went, that seemed like a good enough car to me. Who cared about its shape? Soon, I went to college in a town where an automobile is more hindrance than luxury and decided to live here.

That was all before I entered the world of Initial D.

Suddenly I can't help but check out every car I see, looking at tires and even registering the sound an engine as it rolls past me! I care about shape, design, color, trim and the works now! I'm dying to have a set of wheels to call my own, to be able to roam wherever I please and when I please.

All this because of an anime based around something that I found to be about one of the most uninteresting things in the world, next to tennis. Now I can't get enough of cars and am on the fast track to getting my license and a car of my own. Next thing you know, I'll be signing up for tennis lessons!

I'd recently started picking up these excellently designed and well packaged manga books being released by TokyoPop. I was intrigued by their choice to go with the original "backward" format and received added satisfaction of getting a full book for 10 bucks; as opposed to the usual 15-20 dollars one spent on a volume this size. What also intrigued me were the subjects these mangas were about. I was used to mainly super heroes and science fiction in my comic book and manga reading. Battle Angel Alita, Green Lantern, Transformers, and Astro City were the comics I was used to reading. Then I saw one based around a young punk turned school teacher called, GTO that I am huge fan of now. Another about a kid trying to get into college called, Love Hina, which I also fell in love with(Motoko in particular ^_^). Lastly there was a manga whose anime I'd heard quite a lot of buzz about and wouldn't ya know it, that final manga was called, Initial D.

This was an odd trio of stories for me to be picking up in comic book form: teachers, school kids, and cars. Three of my least favorite subjects, yet in the hands of these master storytellers and artists, they've become some of my most cherished graphic reads of all time.

After several phenomenal, teeth gritting, corner hugging, and tense gear shifting volumes of the Initial D manga, I headed straight for the anime to see if it could live up to its predecessor. Not only did it live up to the manga, it surpassed it in almost everyway.

Despite all this anime's inherent greatness TokyoPop still somehow managed to mak one of the biggest and most basic blunders in bringing over manga and anime to the States.

Changing names.

Look, I'm talking to you TokyoPop. GTO was nothing short of phenomenal and amazing and Love Hina won you guys awards. And both these did it without changing Onizuka's name to "Oscar" or changing Keitaro's name to "Eric." You know the biz and since the end of the mid-90's this has become a basic rule. So, yes, reading my cherished Initial D manga with names like "Tak", "Cole", "Zack" and ferkin "Natalie" are extremely grating!!! The names don't need to be Americanized. What casual non-anime fan is going to pick up a "backward" book in the first place? If they're of open enough mind to embrace that format, the art within and the scattered kanji I think they'll be okay with just reading the characters' real names like Takumi, Iketani, Nakazato, and Natsuki. TokyoPop, the manga still kicks ass, since the action and adventure remain intact, but I want you to go sit in the corner now, and think about what you've done.

Story

Initial D is truly the heir to the Speed Racer throne and is one the greatest racing anime of all time. Instead of super race cars, tricked out with James Bond weaponry and gadgets, this anime focuses on a boy named Takumi Fujiwara and his dad's old beater of a Toyota Trueno '86. Takumi couldn't care less about driving cars, and even less about racing them. He had about as much interest in cars, as say... tennis. For him, it's always been about early morning driving, delivering tofu and not spilling any of it, when he'd much rather be sleeping. Every single day he'd make his way up and race down the winding twists and turns of Mt. Akina making sure he was both there in thirty minutes or less; and had spilled as little of the soup as possible. To ensure a smooth ride, his father would fill up a cup of water, and place it next to Takumi in the drink holder. Keeping one eye on the cup and the other on the road, he perfected his cornering, acceleration, and drifting (skidding out to make a turn) technique to the point of perfection, so that he cleared turns faster, spilled none of the tofu and could get home and sleep as soon as possible. Every single day for five years he did this, and without even knowing it had honed his technique and driving skills to the absolute perfect edge.

The fated day came when a cute girl had asked him out on a date and he needed to use the car more than life itself. That same night when Takumi approached his father with this request a friend, Iketani, had been challenged by the local hot shot looking to brand his name on Mt. Akina's neighborhood. Iketani was the local best racer and although he knew he didn't stand a chance against the legendary, Keisuke Takahashi, he was at the time their only chance. until he got into an accident, which took both him and his Nissan S-13 out of action. He approached Takumi's father having heard the legends that he was the world's greatest driver once upon a time. Takumi's father declined, but that night when his son asked to use the car, he told his son that he could borrow the car only if he were to go to the top of Mt. Akina in his stead and defend the honor of his friends. With no other choice, Takumi reluctantly answered the call and went to the top of the mountain to help his friends. Nobody knew that Takumi could drive, much less race so nobody's hopes were high that the modest Trueno had any chance against Keisuke's Skyline GT-R.

When the pedal went down and Takumi punched his car into gear, everyone felt the true power of the Trueno '86. Simply seeing this average hatchback fly by was enough for the most seasoned of driver to know that there was more to the car and driver than met the eye.

The race awakens the racer inside of Takumi so that with each new challenge he arose even faster than before and less reluctant to take on other racers in "battles." Each race is against more skilled and more ruthless drivers with even better cars than the last. Once you step into the world of Initial D, you won't be able to step back out as you're left with the cliffhanger of the Trueno screeching around a curve or blasting by in a flash of headlights.

Review

It's been said before, but this anime/manga is addicting. The way the races play out with the racers or own lookers pretty much explaining to the viewer what was going on in the racer's head or in the engine of the car is simply captivating. You'll find yourself listening to every detail of how a rotary engine works when you didn't eve know what one was or care in the first place! The battles play out with the speed, thought and skill of a seasoned martial artist, looking for that single opening in their enemy's defenses to shoot through with the finishing blow.

To say that this is the "Fast and the Furious" of anime is. somewhat correct. Where as Fast and the Furious was pretty much a whole lot of nitro-boosting, neon colored, hyper-testosterone thrill ride, Initial D would be more "the thinking man's Fast and the Furious." Initial D is the Zen Master Bruce Lee, to Fast and the Furious' oh so prêt-tay, Sugar Ray Leonard.

The animation is actually nothing spectacular, surprisingly enough. The final product is such an incredible production that you really don't make too much a note of the sum of the parts being what they are. The character design isn't particularly endearing. I found the characters faces in the manga to be downright ugly. And some of the male characters look a little too similar to each other. Same goes for the anime. There were times when I actually confused Takumi with other characters. The CGI used for the car races won't even try to fool you into believing they're real. But it's how these elements are wielded that when put together, you wouldn't want to see it any other way and the end product is on par with any of anime's very best.

The music also stands out. I'm no music buff, but a select few soundtracks that have stood out enough to me to want to own them such as, Cowboy Bebop, Fooly Cooly and now. Initial D. For lack of a better comparison, the soundtrack sounds like some kind a Japanese "Ace of Base" or that upbeat techno-dance stuff they play at nightclubs that clear the dance floor and I simply detest. YET, somehow. I don't know how, but somehow this genre of music was composed in a way to fit this anime perfectly and make me absolutely adore it. It kicks ass and is one of the anime's shining aspects. When the race kicks in, so does the music and you'll find yourself gripping your seat all the tighter as the music shoots ahead and swings around curves with the dueling cars on your screen. I don't own it yet, but much like the FLCL soundtrack, I will as soon as I can.

All the elements come together in a package that out of nowhere has made me a die hard fan of both the series and now cars in general. Watching Initial D was like watching my first kung fu flick to realize how awesome martial arts were or seeing my very first brilliant anime to see the full potential of animation. Seeing the way Initial D takes you into the world of cars and racing from the absolute bottom up, so that going in you don't have to know a damn thing about cars or even care about them, but afterwards you'll be thirsting for more knowledge and to get behind a wheel to plot your own legend and destiny, be it as your own local racing legend or even as simple as the joy of going cruising with a friend.

Conclusion

I'll say the obligatory, "Initial D isn't for everybody." Cuz it's not. There are some out there who're such sticklers for CGI animation that if it looks anything less than real, they're immediately turned off before they can see what's done with that animation. Others will simply be appalled at the idea of getting into an anime at all that's about a concept as simple as driving a car. But for those of you out there with the eye for the brilliant and the others who're looking to see what other stories can be told in the realm of anime outside of drop kicks, titanic battles for the sake of reality itself, cyber-punking, and giant city smashing robots, Initial D has answered your call to show you that the possibilities for awesome stories told in anime are endless. From reading/watching the story of a young teacher, to a boy trying to get into college, to tennis and all the way to revving your engine to prove you're the best of the best. If you feel you're ready, hop into the driver's seat, put your car in gear and take off to your nearest comic shop or video store to check out this anime. You're in for the ride of a lifetime.

I don't want to be the passenger anymore, I want to be the driver. Holding the steering wheel myself, I don't want to have to listen to anyone and I can drive anywhere I want. -Kazumi, Initial D

Keith "JC" Hayward