Fifth stage is another low point of the series. The races and their outcomes were some of Initial D's the least interesting ever. There's hardly any racing anymore, it's this pull away style that generally concludes with someone making a mistake and/or spinning out. The drama was hard to take serious, particularly Ryosuke's arc. This tragic romantic aspect of him felt forced, out of place, and out of character. Takumi's friend's continue to undevelop as characters. Their hardly even his cheerleaders anymore; they're just dudes who work at a gas station and wallow in their singleness. Natsuki is non-existent at this point; they just introduce a new love interest instead.
The art and cgi mostly the same as it was in fourth stage, maybe slightly improved. It's some of the best visuals so far, but it looks outdated compared to other anime released at the time. The music and voice-acting is still solid as expected.
I found this season to be one of the least enjoyable of the series. Season 3 or 4 would have been fine stopping, now it just feels like the show is dragging on for no reason, tarnishing what good points it had.
