Audience reviews
20 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
chumchummaru
I recently watched an older racing anime called Capeta, and since I like racing anime—as evidenced by Initial D and MF Ghost—I decided to give Overtake a try as well. I’d known about it for a while, but I didn’t want to watch it because of its drama genre. I’m not a huge F1 fan, but I actually enjoyed it, and the racing itself was fun to watch. I like original anime because they have their own distinctive art style and, at least in this case, good animation quality. The CGI animation of the cars didn’t bother me at all; in fact, I’d say it couldn’t have turned out better, and in the end, they nailed it. As for the plot, that’s where things get a bit mixed. On one hand, I liked the racing itself and enjoyed it, but on the other hand, there’s what I’d call unnecessary drama surrounding one c…
Read at the sourcek-0da
This review is written by 2 people; my friend's review is up top, and mine (the owner of this account's) review is at the bottom.
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Much like my previous recommendation, I picked up overtake as an act of self harm. I expected a very low budget sports anime that glazed formula 4 way too much for its own good. Somehow it was worse than that. It was mid.
Unfortunately, I keep up with formula 1. And my vague interest in seeing cars go in circles makes me reach out for formula related animanga, like Capeta. Ever since I laid my eyes upon the overtake poster, I knew it wasn’t going to be very good, just look at those 3D cars. I expected a “baby’s first motorsport” anime, where the industry would be very coddled and we would be explained every single little racing term so the laymen could be,…
Read at the sourceunderyourcouch
This anime was a pleasant surprise in more ways than one. When I started watching Overtake!, I expected a lighthearted and slightly above-average sports anime at best—one that I would’ve forgotten about a week after watching. Oh, how wrong I was! In fact, this show is one of the best anime I have seen so far.
In real life, I have zero connection to or interest in racing, let alone specifically Formula 4 racing. Yet, this anime got me invested in a sport I didn’t even know existed before watching the show, teaching me things about it in the process.
As also mentioned in its listing on MAL, this is a drama set in a racing environment, not the other way around. There are quite a few races, and they are exciting, but the focus is on the characters, their relationships, and how they face th…
Read at the source13ad
There is always an opponent on the main straight who will overtake you on the turn. Never look back. Rely on driving skill, not luck. A pilot may not have a second chance. Really fast racers never make mistakes. Go too fast? You'll crash. Don't reach the limit? Your rivals will overtake you. You need to stay on the edge, not go beyond it - that's how you balance. These races, of course, are not of an international level, but the intensity sometimes goes beyond the limits of what is acceptable and expected. The title can be regarded as a good drama with friendly get-togethers, life's difficulties and the burdens of the past. The problem is solved when someone is nearby, not when the nature of the disaster comes to realization. Understand and let go. Move on, no matter what.
Naturally, ther…
Read at the sourceLeopardonn
Really enjoyed the similarities between two characters and Niki Lauda and James Hunt. The writer recreated their rivalry and the respect they had for eachother really well. The main character being outside of the sport is a great way to introduce viewers to the sport without bombarding them with information.
The characters don't feel shallow, though the main action revolves mainly around a few certain places it never feels boring or repeated. Every episode manages to deliver a nice experience for the viewer.
The anime is not perfect. There are many small issues like plot holes, exaggerations or various plot devices that make no sense.
Great watch even if you are not into any sort of motorsports.
Read at the sourceReviewholic
Half about a photographer's Japanese trauma, half about racing. Overtake! is pretty solid overall. There are some stretched interactions. Like why is the photographer uncle so obsessed with the racing boy? Kinda sus, no? Well, not every action is reasonable. So we will let the uncle pass this far.
While the anime does talk a lot of technical stuffs about racing, like tires, parts and money, it does lack the heat in music and action. It's one of those anime that sets its theme on something popular like music band and sports, but ultimately spends most of its time developing characters. One anime that I begrudge doing this is Beck. There's more talking than music. Like... you gotta have at least 15% of the run time with stuff you advertised, you know? I wanna hear the sounds of engine rumb…
Read at the sourcenaxaroo
For anyone that's into motorsports like f1, you will enjoy this anime.
the show (at least the first season) is grounded in reality for the most part, and gives some insight on what goes on in the paddock in something like f4. while there is a bit of skepticism of whether or not its actually possible to have a competitive car that can compete in f4, maybe the cost is significantly lower in japan. you still need a significant amount of capital that is required to be able to compete even in f4 that tiny local sponsorships and hard work just cant cover. unless those sponsorships are giving thousands or tens of thousands of dollars each.
but those details are ultimately irrelevant anyway in the end, and is just nitpicking at this point. the animation is done relatively well, and there's no r…
Read at the sourceVichy974
"Overtake" is definitely a unique experience and adds its own unique twist to the genre. It's vastly interesting to see things from different viewpoints and it has deep emotions rooted in it also.
The story is great and rather straightforward we follow the path of a photographer who happens to discover motor racing and wants to help the team and pilot. It's very refreshing and while you still get some good racing it's definitely not the focus here. The characters and interactions between them are really what's the most important thing here.
The art is clean and the animation is decent. It's not the best for sure but racing is just one way for the author to convey his message. The animators still did a great job and we come across some good races and some nice moments. There are no flash…
Read at the sourceTheEtherea
In the end Overtake ended up not what I originally expected it to be and ironically it was for the best.
We have only just got an MF Ghost anime that clearly showed that cars go vroom without an idea isn't interesting to follow (where as in Initial D there was always an idea). Overtake takes an entirely different approach. It tells a story from an outsider's perspective who learns of F4 by chance and how both Main Characters each with his own problems came together to overcome their own ghosts (pun intended) and come on top each in their own regard.
Kouya a professional photographer who gets interested in F4 by chance is dealing with ghosts of his past that haunt him preventing him from escaping the personal trauma he has. The whole sequence of his background when actually explained and s…
Read at the sourceOneFaintingRobin
I'm a big fan of motorsports. In this coming year, I intend to follow, to some degree of commitment or another, at least seven different racing championships. I'm a little bit obsessed. So, hearing that one of my favourite studios, Troyca, and a director as respected as Ei Aoki, were making a series based around the Formula 4 junior category, I was pretty excited. I didn't really care what the show ended up being; I barely even cared if it was good. A proper anime about single-seater racing, sign me up.
I was expecting something a bit shouneny, to be honest. Big personalities, loud, dramatic, in-your-face action, a bit of quite abstract direction. Big and exciting and a little over-the-top. Something that attempted to capture a similar feeling to Netflix's Drive To Survive F1 series. What…
Read at the sourceWDUNE
"I've been fighting against myself the whole time"
Overtake! is a beautiful experience to have, whether you're a fan of Formula and racing in general or not. I won't tell you you'll have the enjoyment of your life watching it nor you'll regret it, but it's a decent anime full of emotions, ear-pleasing SFX, and dramatic competitiveness.
The anime takes a wild turn after 6-8 episodes and elevates on the dramatic side of the character building and writing which will explain things you've been wondering about since the first episode, and I enjoyed it a lot.
Although I didn't like certain things, I still loved and enjoyed the experience. I absolutely recommend it.
Ratings:
Plot 7/10: The plot of Overtake! is solid, even though you need 6-8 episodesto reach the full dramatic depth to charac…
Read at the sourceMrKessler
Barring Frieren, this is, by far, the most surprising show of autumn 2023, maybe even 2023 as a whole.
I came into this expecting just a fun show about Formula 4, which is something i'm not super into, but I wanted to give it a shot. And I'm glad I did because what I DID NOT expect was a fun show about formula 4 that is an expertly directed story that explores deep themes of PTSD, disasters, survivors guilt and how to move forward.
This show was directed by Ei Aoki, who directed Re:Creators, another HIGHLY underrated anime just like this one. And he does a phenomenal job. The entire production here is really good but I have to give special props to the direction. Those races utilize the cgi to their advantage to create super dynamic camera angles that make the races really exciting to wa…
Read at the sourceGreekie
Frankly my favorite seasonal of Fall 2023, by a mile. And that's saying something considering how great a show like Frieren is in Fall.
I feel like prefacing this by saying this completely clear, yet somehow still ignored, fact.
Overtake is NOT Initial D/MF Ghost, nor is it trying to be, and thus, it's not fair to compare them with each other, as both shows are completely different.
How, you ask? Well, here are some examples I can list off of the top of my head:
-Overtake's story is character driven, Initial D/MF Ghost's story is narrative driven, a very poor narrative, but a narrative nonetheless.
-Characters in Overtake have nuance and a dynamic relationship between others, as well as inhibiting well written themes that are relevant to the story. Initial D/MF Ghost...has none of that,…
Read at the sourceMargs7
Whew boy. This was a ride. Haha, get it?
A great show. I found this on MAL before it was released and slapped it onto my PTW list not thinking much of it—thought it’d just be some short, sweet, but nothing special anime I would watch as the episodes came out—but oh man was I wrong.
First off, it just oozes good vibes, and the animation is actually pretty well done. Not a single moment I can think of where the animation dropped in quality. It’s an overall positive and lighthearted narrative compared to numerous others. There’s no crazy superpowers, no insane special moves that the characters do in order to win—just a good, classic underdog story.
The sport is secondary to the drama and emotional journeys of the characters, something that I am totally fine with. It actually got me crying…
Read at the sourceIlTossico
I'll be short. This isn't a racing anime. There is no motosport or racing moment.
This anime is categorized as Racing Anime, but there is no race in this story, the point is: someone that generally want to watch a racing anime, is because he/she is a car lover, and want to see real or fantasy racing, depend on the theme of the anime, but generally want to hear stuff related to motosport, engine or driving technique and skill. Take Initial D for example, for sure there is love and other things involve, to create more emphasis, but 9 episodes on 10, are people racing on the street, with different animation of people driving, and a lot of talking about engine technicalities or about driver's skill.
This isn't a Racing Anime, this is a Drama anime, a good one, no doubt; the story is actually…
Read at the sourceknd944
Man... I'm glad to have watched this anime. It is funny, great, and, most importantly, the story is amazing! It is, and I think, will be a great anime for a long time. I really loved it.
The comedy aspects of the anime hits. You'll probably laugh at some jokes and scenes. I sure did!
The characters are 10/10. Definitely. Some needed more story, but for now, it's 10. The characters are lovable (apart from that ONE episode...).
The art is unique. I didn't really like it THAT much, but it was unique, and I applaud them for trying something unique. I appreciate it very much.
I really liked this anime, maybe a season 2? I hope so.
Read at the sourcePanzerIV-J
"Did I ever tell you what the definition of insanity is? "
"Insanity is doing the exact... same f#cking thing... over and over again expecting... sh!t to change..."
"The first time somebody told me that, I thought they were bullsh!tting me, so, I shot him. The thing is... He was right"
"And then I started seeing it, everywhere I looked, people doing the exact same f#cking thing... over and over again, all thinking 'this time is gonna be different" - Vaas (FarCry 3 Video Game) [Slightly Shortened & Cleaned]
This is the epitome of this show, it does the exact same thing over and over again, expecting it to change. But... much like Far Cry 3... it's story is magnificent, it does everything correct for a story driven plot. Even though Overtake's theme is F4 automotive racing, it really does…
Read at the sourceNogueraB
Overtake your greatest enemy, that's you and your own fears and trauma.
Overtake have an very different and unique, F4 racing, TROYCA this time choosed to use a lot of real life contents, on Re:Creators they use a lot of real life places, without using an alternative and generic name to them, and this feature made the anime get some incredible immersion and create something that could be a real life story.
The narrative is very consistent, the middle of the show works a lot with the moral of the characters and the society judging them about certain past events from one of the protagonists.
The background is very interesting with good explanations that can help people that don't know so much about F racings and cars, at same time can bring a good explanation to someone that know about th…
Read at the sourceMarinate1016
I have to hand it to them, I thought Troyca were dead in the water. After the disappointment that was Shinobi no ittoki, I thought they lost some of their magic. I’ve never been happier to be wrong. Overtake! is not just one of their best works, it’s one of the best anime originals of the year and a great underdog story of perseverance and determination.
Racing fans ate good this season. Both Overtake!! And MF Ghost aired on the same day, but for me it was Overtake! as the best one from the start. I was instantly hooked by Kouya’s story and all the members of the Komachi motorsports family. As someone who plays racing games, but wasn’t familiar with the ins and outs of being on a racing team, maintaining cars, just how expensive it is to be a team, etc., I found this to be equal parts edu…
Read at the sourceKANLen09
Overtake!...it's not about overtaking in the literate sense, but rather about overcoming the difficulties in life, with some real-life situations thrown in for some realism.
Truth be told, after Studio TROYCA's last offering, which was the rather cumbersome Shinobi no Ittoki from last Fall, the fault doesn't square on the studio itself but rather on the people involved in creating the original series itself, which is, quite frankly, a mess. And if you have ANY reason to doubt the studio's offerings, look no further than the in-house studio chief director Ei Aoki, which this show is his 3rd directorial series after both Summer 2014's Aldnoah.Zero and Spring 2017's Re:Creators, which shows you that Ei Aoki is still the best man to represent the rather small studio that's still flowing with…
Read at the source