Story and Plot: 7/10
High school student and main character Tatsumi knows nothing about cars and racing but has hiddent skills and technique thanks to his fathers training, which opens his path to the world of street racing. This simple pemise unfolds into tatsumis skills being tested by all kinds of foes, while also developing his skills and learning about his faults and weaknesses. Besides the racing, you get a view into his personal life and how it is affected by racing, though the highschool theme is mere background and aside from his relationship to a few characters doesnt play a huge role in the story, the main focus lies in racing, tasumis workplace, being the place to get new challenges and talk with his best friends. What is kinda lacking is the absence of any polive or authoritarian force against the street races, which would normally be considered illegal and dangerous for the traffic, this and other similar things would have added more depth to the series, had they been implemented.
Characters: 7/10
The main cast is mainly consisted by tatsumis friends and his rivals. Side characters mostly just appear again to be commentators of events and some rivals turn to side characters along the way. The protagonist gets a fair share of development and an insight in his thoughtprocess during races and his fears fleshes him out. His best friend also gets a good development from annoying to less annoying and more understanding of tatsumi. Others also get an ok amount of screen time, although they dont get that much development or focus to call them more than 2d characters for the most part ( there are exceptions, but their devlopment only bears fruit in later seasons ). All in all the characters all fit well into the setting and racing environmet of that era and time.
Art and Sound: 9
While the art is decent for the time it was released, even the cgi was to my liking, the soundtrack is really what makes initial d stand out. The sound always catches the situation and the osts are on saved on my playlists as some of the best. They are for the most part fast eurobeats that heat you op and make you feel like you really are watching an epic race or even taking part in it, it may also make you wanna drive fast yourself.
Enjoyment: 10/10 My major enjoyment comes from the eurobeats, amazing drifts and retro cars as well as the nostalgic air this series has
Summary: 8,5/10
Initial D first stage has made me a fan of eurobeats and made me marathon all seasons in a flash, it is fitted to everyone: Girls and Boys, Sport Hater and Lover or just car lovers, even haters might gain a new perspektive.
