Overtake! is hitting pretty much all the right notes for me. The marathon episode was kind of a placeholder, but apart from that every swing has connected. It confronts the emotional conflicts it raises directly and without a lot of fanfare, but doesn’t gloss over the seriousness of them. The only thing that would really level it up is if it were running fifty episodes, like it should be. So much is being teased out here that will only be resolved in the most abbreviated fashion in deference to the schedule, and that’s a real shame.
My read on that look from Ena-san at the end of last week’s episode was spot-on. And it makes sense – Belsorriso needs a driver, and Haruka is a damn good one. And young enough to mold in their preferred fashion. I described it as a very Capeta moment, and it is. Auto racing is a brutally expensive sport (F4 is about the upper limit of what a ragtag outfit like Komaki can do). When Capeta graduated from carting he joined a large race team (Formula Stella) because that was the only way for him to move up in the world. But for him it was a cleaner decision, because Ikari isn’t even involved in racing beyond carts.
This is assuredly the right decision for Haru in the long run, as Futoshi makes clear in no uncertain terms. F4 is as far as he can go with Komaki and he’ll have to leave eventually if he wants to keep racing. But still – it hurts. Futoshi and Koutarou are basically his family, and this feels like a betrayal even though it was in fact Koutarou’s idea (it was also his idea for Arisa to go talk to Satsuki in the hospital, it must be noted). It goes deeper than that, though. Haru’s goals with Komaki are simple – pass as many cars as you can. Belsorriso is a clinical, regimented operation. A team – and Haruka won’t be the leader of that team.
I like the fact that Overtake doesn’t make this into a good vs. evil scenario. Ena-san is a good guy – not only a friend of Haru’s dad, but someone who does care about his drivers. If Futoshi is going to hand his boy off to someone else I’m sure he’d prefer it be someone like Ena-san. But Tokumaru is a lot to take. His grudges have not disappeared, and he hasn’t seamlessly slipped into the role of #1 driver. The weight of responsibility that goes along with that role sits heavily on him, because he’s not at heart a guy who likes to put other people first. That practice session with the two of them drafting was extremely tense, and portends what I think could be a rocky race-day relationship. What Belsorriso needs is not something that comes easily to either of them.
As for Satsuki, he’s certainly feeling the pressure of being out of the picture. This is a business, and it can a cruel one – there’s no guarantee his place will be waiting for him when he comes back. Arisa urges him to think less like James Hunt and more like Hunt’s good friend Niki Lauda, who fought his way back from a rainy day crash that almost killed him and won multiple Formula One championships post-accident. It’s his place Haruka is basically taking, but with Tokumaru likely moving up to F3 after the season, who would Ena-san have in mind as his ace for the following year?
Not forgotten in all this is Kouya – not forgotten by Haru, anyway. In some fashion he’s clearly searching for himself, which he’s really been doing since the firestorm over the Touhoku photo. But Haru needs him now – he’s facing his own doubts about what’s right and wrong and what his own future should look like. The two of them have always been in a symbiotic relationship, giving the other exactly what they needed at this point on their respective journeys. Kouya has clearly lost his way again, but it might be in helping Haru find his that he gets back on track himself.
Raikou
November 21, 2023 at 10:06 amI reaaly like that Belsorriso isn,t depicted as antagonistic. This is more realistic.
My god, this anime is a gem.
Guardian Enzo
November 21, 2023 at 10:36 amIt’s very impressive, no question. I just wish it were going to be longer.
Joshua
November 21, 2023 at 12:38 pmI think I typed this up in the previous episode post, but I think with your sole complaint that it should’ve been longer, I think it might be of my interest to bring up my thoughts:
I kinda wonder if the reason this isn’t jiving with others, even though it’s very much jiving with me, is because there’s supposedly no “emotional catharsis” to be found here because the short length cannot let these moments breathe? A friend of mine said that this show utterly wasted its one payoff moment it had regarding Kouya on the photo he took after the marathon (where Futoshi is hugging Haru) and it completely undercut his whole character arc because he had promised that he’d take Haru’s photo on the podium (which to him meant that it would be the one big moment that defined the show and completed his arc). Which because of that, he has no reason to actually care about this show because Kouya’s whole plot revolving around that 3/11 photo is bringing the whole show down with him and his one moment was squandered in the marathon episode.
And yet, it seems like this show is going to address these issues he has regarding Kouya come next episode judging by the preview (since we see Haru and Kouya spending time together in Ofunato).
Guardian Enzo
November 21, 2023 at 1:17 pmI think the series is resonating an awful lot with some viewers – just not a huge amount of them and mostly not hardcore anime fans.
I did read your earlier comment, thanks for sharing it. Personally I feel it’s off-base, but that’s obviously subjective. The truth is in a 12-episode series that has enough depth and subtlety to be much longer, some of these resolutions are obviously going to happen faster than might be ideal. But as long as they’re handled believably I’m fine with that.
Nicc
November 21, 2023 at 2:33 pmYou called it, alright. Belsorriso is looking for a No. 2 driver and they didn’t have to look that far. I was thinking about this show while watching the Las Vegas GP last Saturday night. It was a late race to watch even for us in GMT -8 land, but appropriate for the city. That’s the dream for the lads, to be driving in circuits like this. It’ll be a while before they can start making plans to race in the streets of Sin City, Singapore or Monte Carlo, though.
Haruka is invited to try out for Belsorriso, which is a huge opportunity for him. Futoshi does tell Haruka plainly that this (F4) is their ceiling with their very limited resources and with a car with too many miles and years. We’ve already seen the huge difference in the operations between both teams and now Haruka gets a first-hand look. Komaki Motors is a two-person operation and there are lots of people at Belsorriso. Ena-san has got a car ready to go for Haruka to start driving immediately. Satsuki’s car is totaled, so they’re getting a new one. This sort of thing would be impossible for Komaki Motors.
I too like that team Belsorriso isn’t treated like an antagonist. Tokumaru is still getting used to being the lead driver. Haruka has been flying solo all this time and so he has to learn how to drive as a team as well. Ena-san is indeed a good guy and even gives Haruka a taste on what his life could be by taking him to a fancy restaurant with a Michelin star or two.
In the meantime, Satsuki is trying to rush his recovery, being fully aware that he’s replacable. His confidence seems to have crumbled and he doesn’t seem to be aware that Belsorriso may have found his replacement. Missing from this episode is Kouya, who has retreated to parts unknown. They do need each other right now and Haruka finds a clue on where Kouya might be at.