"Surprising" might not be the correct word for this experience, because given the staff and the studio, I did have expectations from this anime. The word I would use to describe this anime would be - "Refreshing".
This is a very nice story that covers many different emotions such as trauma, regret, determination and moving on. While this anime is advertised as a racing anime, a racing fan might be just a bit disappointed. Because the other aspects of the show actually overshadow the racing part.
The second main character of this anime was Madoka Kouya, a photographer. And I'll remember this anime for his story. The photography aspect of the story completely steals it. I don't want to spoil you with anything, but the story covers a very impactful and thought-provoking aspect of photography and brings a lot of realism to it. And I loved the way they handled Kouya's emotions and the part that Haruka, our protagonist played in helping Kouya.
This is another aspect of this anime that's written well - the way both these characters coincidentally and unconsciously help each other get through an important phase of their life. They find a very nice little way to intertwine photography and racing and help these characters reach a common goal which'll be an important milestone in both their careers.
But the weaker aspect of the story is racing. Not that the racing scenes aren't brilliantly animated. It's just that I didn't feel that energy nor did I feel the stakes in the racing scenes, particularly during the finale. It could be because it's "F4", but I don't think it's just that. The racing aspect just isn't as well written as it could've been.
So yeah, in some ways this anime is imperfect, but overall it's a pretty good anime for sure. And there are some moments of this show where you're genuinely going to get emotional.
