Many of us petrolheads here got our first taste of hentai anime from Initial D; indirectly force inducing a love for all things with wheels and engines into our souls. While the shenanigans surrounding the strips of asphalt around Mount Akina have retired, the spiritual successor to the beloved series; MF Ghost, will continue to crank up the Eurobeat and keep the spirit of driving going with its own anime adaptation.
Following leaks, Kodansha; the publisher of both series, has released a teaser for the anime. Having been published as a manga since 2017, the four years of weekly stories should serve up plenty of anime action for seasons to come.
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Of course seeing that modern animation techniques have improved by leaps and bounds, MF Ghost will serve up state-of-the-art animation and sound design. The very same people from Avex; the house behind the Initial D anime, will be bringing MF Ghost to motion. They’ve reassured us that the engine and exhaust notes were recorded from the actual cars for authenticity.
Unlike the illegal touge of its predecessor, MF Ghost takes a more professional approach. As autonomous cars have largely taken over the roads, the race series known as MFG remains as one of the last safe havens of human-driven cars.
Furthermore, the series spreads its wing internationally as the championship counts on participation from not just foreign drivers but foreign carmakers as well. We can definitely appreciate the latter.
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The protagonist here is a half Japanese, half British kid by the name of Kanata Livington (no, that’s not a typo). He’s the protégé of Takumi Fujiwara at the Royal Donington Racing School in the United Kingdom. Naturally, he drives the spiritual successor to Takumi’s Toyota AE86; the GT86.
That’s not the only direct link to Initial D. The MFG series itself was founded by Ryosuke Takahashi.
Nonetheless, as you’ll see in the teaser, none of these characters are shown. The real stars of the anime take front and centre.
We get a look at Kanata’s GT86, along with a very international sampling of machinery such as a Lamborghini Huracan, Ferrari 488 GTB, Lotus Exige, Alfa Romeo 4C, Alpine A110S and Porsche 718 Cayman and 911.
Listen closely and you’ll be able to tell that the actual engine and exhaust sounds are applied to the respective cars shown.
Now for some bad news, MF Ghost will only debut in 2023. Hopefully the world is still around by then.