First off, I must start by saying that I may be a little biased when reviewing this anime because I'm totally a sports anime fan. And having watched quite a number of sports animes, Over Drive came as a refreshing change for me. _Story_ The protagonist of the story is your typical weak willed, unless, low self esteem guy in school. But what is different about his character to other similarly carved sports lead characters is that he has a sense of humor. Unlike other characters, he does not dwell on his uselessness much, which is definitely something i appreciate a lot, since these dwellings can dragon long and slow. Zzz. (Refer to Eyeshield21)

The race (there is only one) in the anime is surprisingly exciting and interesting. I just could not stop watching episodes after episodes of the race. I mean, a race of bicycles must be boring, right? NOT. Though it lacks special effects that other sports anime have, the scenes are realistic and appealing.

_Character_
Furthermore, character development is cleverly embedded into the series by means of flashbacks during the race. You can get more than a glimpse of each main characters during the short 26 episodes, which is quite satisfying already. From the flashbacks, you learn why they enter the sport and why they are so passionate about it. And throughout the race, you enter into the anime and star rooting for all the characters unconsciously because all the main characters are so likable! 

_Art_
The art is very simplistic in this anime, but easy on the eyes, and I came to like the art style a lot.

_Sound_
Not too sure about this, too absorbed in the story.

_Enjoyment_
Loved it! An anime that can capture my attention for almost all the episodes, and make me sit up and watch is certainly an anime I enjoyed much.

_Overall_
I would recommend all to watch this anime. It's comical at the right times, and touching at others. But I must say that the story borders on corny at times, but fret not, it doesn't happen often. And I am dissatisfied that the series is so short, I wished it continued on longer and showed us their journey through the Tour de France. Maybe in their next season?
      

        This anime is about a boy who finds out the joy and romance in riding a bicycle. From the time he first rides his bicycle to his first race. The story is unique in that its not everyday you have an anime about bicycle racing. What makes it so interesting is how they make bicycle racing sound so epic and how some unknown little loser can come out as one of the best. Like how they have different types of bicycle riders, climbers,sprinters,down-hil specialists,all rounders and so on.Although i felt that for an anime with romance as one of its genres it was quite a letdownas the romance was very suttle.

The artwork is good i guess,i dont really take into account the artwork so much but i feel that it was sufficient to bring out the action of the race.

The Opening song was very upbeat and i was quite taken in by the song though i can't say the same for the ending song. I think that if they had put inserts in the anime it might have enhanced the feelings or the mood.

The chracters were fabulous. In this anime, there are quite a lot of main characters, this is because many of teh characters has a fair share of showtime in the anime anf this makes it more realistic, instead of just focussing on one or two characters. Each of the main chracters is adequately expressed and their pasts help to enhance their feelings and justify their determination. I was particularly inspired by the main chracter's spirit in not giving up. the uspport characters do a good job in giving the respective chracters a feeling of reverence and respect and this is important in a show where people are constantly competing to be the best. So i feel the character development was especially evident for the main chracter and is one of the best i've seen.

The anime had its fair share of laughs and suspense which makes quite a good combination. I was quite enthraled by the anime for its comic relief as well as its constant cliff-hangers.Once you start watching its hard to stop especially when it come to the race.The story was quite realistic and this allows the audience to empathize with the chracters and this also drew me in and added to my enjoyment.

In my opinion, the anime is well worth watching and if you think you don't like it at the start try the later episodes about 10 or so when the race starts, you'll definitely be captivated.
      

        Ah, the puberty. A time in which we obsess over teen idols, or get angry about nothing, but above all, a time where we want to be acknowledged. So how does one get acknowledged? The best way, of course, is to prove anyone to be the best in something. After all, victors write history. But it’s losers like Shinozaki Mikoto who are history. Over Drive follows the protagonist and his journey on the bike, alongside the other members of the Sakura Bicycle Club. Their big dream is to participate in the Tour de France. But of course, it’s a long way until then – first, thereare 11 episodes about Shinozaki learning to ride a bike and swooning over his crush Fukuzawa Yuki, introducing Yamato as well as the captain and Yuki’s brother Yousuke. Needless to say, it’s too long, and in my opinion a chore to watch. Once we get to the race – which is pretty much the rest of the show – the pace picks up, very slightly so though, because not only that the race is dragged on, there are also flashbacks which make the race even longer. There’s even a meaningless filler which takes the entire second half of one episode, and that goes too far for me.

The race itself was pretty unrealistic in my eyes, especially when I take Shinozaki into regard. In the first two episodes, he wasn’t able to ride a bike, and twenty episodes later, he is suddenly able to win a checkpoint. What’s even worse is that it is mentioned in a flashback that Shinozaki used to ride a bike as child. That makes the whole beginning part illogical. And how was he able to evolve into such a good rider in such a short amount of time? There is only one thing I consider to be kind of realistic, and that is the way the race ends for him – but that’d be a spoiler.

The other racers are very generic character for a sports anime. We have Yousuke, who’s an arrogant captain who thinks he doesn’t need a team, and of course he changes his ways over time. There’s Shinozaki’s friendly rival Yamato, who’s the usual cool and aloof character with, of course, the corresponding flashback.  There’s the inconsistently written crush Yuki as well as the antagonist Hyoudou, who’s also pretty generic. And then there’s Yousuke’s assistant Terao, who gets fleshed out and developed only in the very last part of the show, and it’s truly a shame because by the time he does get fleshed out, we see that he isn’t really a generic assistant. The whole cast and their interactions feel awkward, and by the time the cast is likeable, the show is over. At this point I can’t even determine what the worst part about Over Drive is, but the cast plays a big role in my low enjoyment.

The soundtrack is not very good either, mostly because no tracks quite fit to the mood, save the fiery guitar riffs that weren’t often played, sadly. The soundtrack sounds like it came straight from the 90s. 90s sound is generally not a bad thing, but if it’s a background music to something what’s supposed to be a fiery battle, then it is a bad choice. The opening is very good, the endings were alright as well, but what’s truly worth mentioning is something else. In Yamato’s flashback, he is supposed to be in France and have language problems. In France, people speak French, right? Not in Over Drive, because they were all talking Japanese. So it made it look like Yamato has trouble processing what he hears or him simply being deaf. Needless to say, it was ridiculous, very much so. The other aspect that had poor budget was the animation. It was from 2007 and the animation is aged, yes, but the CG still looks awkward and bad.

My enjoyment level was, as previously mentioned, not the highest. The first eleven epiosdes were plain boring to me. The race was a tad more enjoyable and I genuinely enjoyed the flashbacks between Yousuke and Terao. The theme of being the strongest and the desire to be acknowledged by friends and elders is not the most unique, not even to sports anime. The way it was presented was good at times, but not very much for the most part. 

Overall, Over Drive is a sports anime that sounds average in theory and sub par in practice. The characters are generic and average at best for the most part, some developments simply unrealistic, and the sound not very fitting. Its themes are nothing new and the CG animation bad.  There are very little redeeming values to this show, such as a tad more enjoyment in the race and some character development for one character only as well as a nice opening. Should you watch Over Drive? No. There are better anime out there, and certainly better shows in this genre. Because sadly, even though losers are history, there’s a reason why they’re forgotten.
      

        Story : Is a nice story, and tells a lot about real cycling. It mentions things from real cycling, and thats positive, well, is not exactly like real cycling, but its not soo far at all. However, sometimes is a bit boring, but still nice! art: nothing special, but not so bad to give less than a 7. sound: Well, sometimes it is a bit irritating, however i consider it not bad, so 7. Character: I considered then well develloped, the anime mentions a lot of things about the charathers and thats good. Well, i didnt like some characters (yeah it normal, there are the ones we like andthe ones we dont) but they are not really that bad, 8 sound nice.

Enjoyment:
I will be sincere. When i decided to watch this one, i told to myself...well i don´t think this will be a nice one, maybe for a 6 or something like that, but the fact is that when i watched the first episodes, well, i couldn´t stop watching till the end..i consider it a nice and entretaining show.

overall: Well, this anime really surprised me, i usually don´t watch sport related anime, but after seeing this one i might reconsider that option. Well, its not the best show i ever watched, but it was worth the time.. 8..
      

        Over Drive is the very definition of “underdog”. No one expects much from it, but it manages to defy expectations and come out victorious. It’s not as popular as other sports titles like Hajime no Ippo or Eyeshield 21, but it can easily go toe-to-toe with the best of the genre. It’s a sweet, exciting, sometimes funny and highly enjoyable title that manages to entertain from the get-go right up to the very end. This is my review. Contains Minor Spoilers Story The story of Over Drive centres around Shinozaki, a high school student who joins a cycling club upon discovering a love for the sportand with a lot of encouragement from his classmate, Fukazawa. As a member he strives and trains with the founders of the club, Yousuke and Kouichi, to become the greatest cyclist in Japan. Cycling is one of those sports that’s fun to participate in, but in my opinion, really boring to actually watch. However the story portrays the sport of cycling as something epic, as something more than just as a simple sport. It starts out pretty slow but gradually picks up the pace. There’s only one race in Over Drive and even though it’s long, Over Drive never lets up. Though there are no acts of violence in the show, the racing feels like an intense adrenaline fuelled battle between all the cyclists racing for the finish line.  

Art
The art of Over Drive is fantastic. The character designs are drawn really well and realistically. The grassy and bright backgrounds look beautiful, complimenting the light nature of the show. The bikes look great and quite realistic with a lot of detail put into it, from the wheels to the chains to the handlebars, it all looks wonderful. There are quite a few models on display here and they look really great. Like a lot of comedies, Over Drive tends to go for the slapstick approach and gives the characters moments of exaggerated facial features and pretty silly expressions, but this doesn’t happen too often.

Sound
Over Drive has a great soundtrack. The opening is pretty upbeat and catchy. The second ED “Koi Suzumi” is one of my all time favourites. It’s really mellow and was a nice change of pace after the rush you get from watching the show. The voice acting was phenomenal. Everyone played their parts perfectly. Yuki Kaji did an excellent job portraying Shinozaki, making him someone that’s sympathetic instead of some whiny kid who you just want to slap.

Characters
Shinozaki is an incredible lead. He starts out as someone that’s picked on frequently with no self-confidence and who can’t ride a bike that evolves into someone that’s passionate and courageous who you want to root for throughout the entire show. All the other side characters were entertaining to watch. They were goofy, serious, caring and sometimes menacing. You manage to learn a lot about them through their thoughts as they race, about their past and their ambitions. 

Enjoyment
Over Drive is one of my favourite anime titles. It had a few moments of drama that were unintentionally funny, however this actually added to my enjoyment of the show. Over Drive managed to make cycling exciting to watch. It’s a slow start but after a few episodes, the show becomes a snowball that just keeps on rolling. With a simple yet very enjoyable story, beautiful art, a wonderful soundtrack and a cast of likeable characters, Over Drive manages to come out on top at the finish line.

9/10
      

        Overdrive, when you read the synopsis you might not feel very attracted to this anime, like lots of people aren't attracted to watching the sport cycling, a lot of people find it boring and uninteresting to watch, but that all depends on the person. When I heard there was an anime of it I was excited, but also a bit wary. Can this be interesting? Because the show would have to appeal to more than cyclist fans to be a bit successful. And the answer is: Yes!, with a big explanation mark, for a slow sport as cycling, they made it very interesting while stillkeeping a lot of realism, it surprised me, no super powers, the sport itself, comedy and drama made this in one hell of an anime.

The story closely follows our protagonist Shinozaki Mikoto, an unpopular and non-athletic student, who gets bullied by some guys from his school, this all ends when his love interest Fukazawa Yuki walks in the classroom and asks whether he wants to join the cycling club, he initially refuses, but later joins anyway. As a cycling fan myself, I was intrigued by the realism shown, it perfectly explained what kind of cyclist there are and in what part every character excels, while most cyclist don't especially are good in downhill, it didn't matter to me, those are the small details.

The story could be divided in two parts, the introduction and Mikoto finding himself in the cycling world and the second part, a single race, while most people would be surprised that there is only one contest, it is not all that weird, races usually take between the 4 and 6 hours depending on the course. The first part has lots of comedy and drama attached to it while Mikoto learns cycling and regrets not being strong enough. While the second part is pure action as far as cycling goes, which entertained me a lot, the characters within the race, all the sprints and the helping each other to finish and possible victory.

Lastly as a point of critique, this anime was set up to nicely for something long running, it had a good introduction, a slow build up towards the first race and the race was very nice itself, but just one race might be a bit low, not to cut the episodes for a race, but one was low and with that I want to say the dividing of episodes could have been better.

As far as sound goes, this part is very strong, a catchy opening song, the soundtrack within the anime isn't overpowering and is perfect on the moments where it gets serious. Voice actors are all fairly well known, including the recently very active Kaji Yuki.

Art is decent, the characters designs are nothing special and are good as they are. The animation is well done, although they could have done some more shots from scenery and not just looking at faces, but at the cyclists as a group, how they are cycling, could have been better.

While Overdrive has a small cast, which isn't very detailed in MAL's character database, they keep the character entertaining and lots of development has the room for it to occur. The character include a normal, energetic and somewhat comical protagonist, a violent bossy bad-ass leader, a helpful kind and caring one, the rival of the protagonist who is silent and to himself, but slightly perverted. And the main girl who the protagonist is in love with, a girl who would be typical for this age, done very realistic. And the guy who seems unbeatable, who the main team have to overcome to win the race.

Overall Overdrive was a very enjoyable anime, caused by its interesting characters and strong development of the protagonist, which left everybody with a smile when he accomplished something great.

Strong points:
- Realistic cycling made very enjoyable.
- Strong characters which develop in a entertaining way.
- A fitting soundtrack which matched the theme of the current situation.

Weak points:
- A story which might have had a too long introduction, 6 eps of introducing, 7 eps of the training and rival encountering, 12 eps of actual action and racing and 1 closing episode.
- Lazy animation, which could have been more entertaining if it would have focused on the whole body of a cyclist.

A small trivia, on the date of this review the Tour de France ended, which isn't completely coincidental, I started this anime because the Tour got a bit boring for me when my country's riders all retired. Although I didn't plan it, I thought it was a nice date for it. 

So if you are a sports fan or an anime fan who likes the sports genre, this is a must watch.

Life lesson learnt: It is never too late to start doing something you want.
      

        Okey lets look from this point of view most of us think that sport animes are meh and etc. And we look at this anime called "OverDrive" which looks like another sport anime and about cycling! wow yeh? But Wait lets try and watch it because "Overdrive" takes sports anime to a whole new level ... you would like to ask why? Well imagine some one devoting himself to cycling that bicycle itself is their friend or even their whole world... For more Read review below. Story: "Overdrive" tells a story about a guy Shinozaki Mikoto who is lame at everything from his own life to thesports and girls ... hes being bullied and everything else like that then one day hes secret love Fukazawa asks him this question "Why don't you join our bicycle club?" and he agrees without thinking on how hard it could be ... especially when the club leader is such a savage ... after some time he gets used to the club and whole environment starts his cycling ... at first it isn't so easy because he doesn't know how to raid a bike but after some events happened he manages to start cycling and going to the top the road isn't as easy as it seems because Mikoto has to overcome many hard trials and along that road he meets many new faces and encounters many hard training. He shows his devotion as he said "I want to devote myself to bike riding." on his first true race in which he makes whole audience to turn their eyes from those "superstars" to him and to encourage him to go till the end. The story has painful , joyful , romantic , dramatic elements which shows whole devotion and love for what they are doing love for bicycles and what it means to them apparently its more then Bicycles for some of them Bicycle which seems so little to us For them it is Friend for others its what they love for others it is their whole world. The best aspect of this anime is devotion for cycling. And with that i end my story review.

Art: Its new age! whole cycling and the special effects when cycling and showing whole gear from 3d aspects show that this anime is in whole new level!.

Characters: Has alot of different types like coward , intelligent , thoes who are devoted and some savages also alongside there are rich people and everything whole development of characters and how they are devoted to what they are doing truly is a plus for this anime.
 
Enjoyment: I loved this anime even thought i didn't like sport animes until i saw this one ... it took sports animes to whole new level and it gave me alot to see from cycling to character development from that till whole understanding on what is cycling it truly gives something for everyone!.

Overall: Its a great anime which i suggest for every one to watch even if you don't like sports maybe you will fidn this interesting as i did ? its up to you !
      

        Before I share my review of Over Drive I would like to ask these following producers a question, XEBEC and Pony Canyon, WHERE THE HECK IS SEASON 2? Ok on to the review, now my style of reviewing is not about what anime has the best art and cute girls but how well the anime delivers it's content and the quality of the content. I DO not judge anime by overall perfection, but rather if I am satisfied, anime is an entertainment factor you enjoy, dislike or hate, it is not about perfection. So remember kids, in life whatever it is music or videos,it is all about enjoyment and not how perfect it is, that is precisely what we all desire from anime is it not? Sure we make sure we make no mistakes but in the end of the road, it is a matter of how we respond.

To be honest, when I imagined a cycling anime before I watched, I thought it was just riding a track in circles, looks like I am wrong.

The anime kicks off with a typical start, many of you should recognize this and what happens. A young boy named Sninozaki Mitoki is portrayed as young timid boy, who has no life goals and no special aspects in particular. His lack of enthusiasm, initiative and self-esteem leads to a miserable life with a development of a habit to adapt naturally to his ill environment. The lack of the slightest support or love given to him causes him to only run away when his obstacles becomes tough. So the story starts from here, a boy being bullied, having no friends, fallen into misery, adapting naturally to his environment and seeking no changes.

Lucky Shinozaki, one day was open to an opportunity to talk to the girl he likes, Yuki and from here his cycling journey begins. Shinozaki requested Yuki to be a model for his painting and the timid Shinozaki changed drastically, he was shown to be a boy holding a tremendously held back spirit and enthusiasm when he began to paint Yuki. Ninja I might add, leave this review and watch it and then you will understand.

Yuki, a sister of a third grader male named Yosuke who is a cyclist with incredible talent, offered Mitoki a spot to be in the cycling club. This is the outset of Shinozaki's strive to change. Now from here, this is the main juice of the anime, Shinozaki a timid boy is exposed to the world of cycling, how does he cope? does he give up? does he drop out? Unfortunately, no, Shinozaki from here is shown to be able to achieve much great goals, goals that he never even thought for the slightest. No matter how hard the obstacles were for him, he always stood strong, even if it became tough, he kept going, even if the training as tough, he did not move backwards one step. But naturally he would be sucked into the world of doubt, but he would always be pulled back by realizing what he desired and support of his friends. His hard work of course paid off, he was able to ride along with his friends, meet friends become a rival with his friend Yamato or Kurosuke. Obviously his not superman nor is he a genius and needed actual training to succeed. This is what I like about well made sport anime no superman bullshit and no geniuses, hardwork in my opinion is much more better than just being a genius who does not do anything. It seems this has become common in anime and manga, I am shocked. Take prince of tennis for example, they have spiritual powers and geniuses as main characters, sigh. Oh where has hard work gone in this world?

Shinozaki gradually becomes a stronger member through his training and learns various abilities during his training sessions that he used up to prepare for one step of his goal. Shinozaki and his fellow cycling mates, Yoseki, Teraro and Kurosuke compete in a cycling competition which is Shinozaki's first race, a 186km path taking an expected time of 6 hours. This arc is the main attraction and shows a lot of past flashbacks that give them the courage and desire to win the race. Also a significant number of people who have deviated from the path that they desired, changes during this arc as they become more enthusiastic about cycling. During this race a Japanese champinion named Hyodou participates also other notable people in the cycling world. Now let me say this honestly, this was indeed a long arc, but was it worth watching? HELL YEA, DAMN EPIC

Now there is a lot of spoilers during this arc because of flashbacks and who wins, what awesome stunts each cyclist pulled off, so I will leave that for you to watch. It is best you do not know who wins, because during this arc you do not know who the hell wins and that is the best part of watching anime.

Throughout this race you just cannot help but be captivated by the epicness. There are times where the cyclists struggle and fall into sorrow and ultimately give up. But they kept going and going. A significant amount of character development is shown here and strong friendship. There is so much I want to spoil but I cannot but just let you capture the image. 

Although there is fluctuation between school and cycling throughout the series, I can safely say that the series never betrays me and delivers satisfying content consistently. 

Phew, so how is the soundtracks as you will probably be asking now? To be honest I do not give a damn. When I was watching the entire show with my earphones, I could just say in general the soundtrack did indeed fit in perfectly into each scene, at the correct time creating a great atmosphere. The opening was cool, it was used in various times and made the most epic scenes even more epic. Watch episode 18 to understand what I mean. Such an underrated song though, it had a nice tune to it. The ending song in contrast with the show is sad, feelings I mean. I never actually listened to it now that I think about it. Nothing is wrong with the art, I am happy about it and I thankful they did not focus on it as the style of art fits the anime. Anime these days are placing too much focus on art or other aspects and leaving out the main objective which is the overall content! 

Over Drive is a cycling anime, rare but well delivered. It even inspired me to to cycling just slightly. Comparing myself to my lazy self just makes me realize how I can still achieve much more. Over Drive is the epitome of what I think is a good anime and yet is underrated. No focus on ecchi and girls equal awesome on anime. If you think about it ecchi could have been easily implemented into an anime like this. Now do not misunderstand I enjoy that sort of genre if it IS an ecchi anime. This anime and manga (never forget the original) deserves more praise and my last words to all of you are, GIVE ME SEASON 2.

So my score? If you cannot even figure it out then read this review again. 10/10
      

        if u love sport animes then u gotta watch it becouse it just rocks well the story is a bit slow and i think they couldn't make all of it to an anime but well it was cool so i enjoyed it's about a boy who joins the school cycling team.sometimes u will get very excited and sometimes u will feel sorry for him. it includes: romace,sport,comedy
      

        The main plot of this anime revolves around the cycling universe which for those who like sports anime is a good choice. Personally I don't like sports anime that much, however lately I've benn attracted to this new world and I've enjoyed it. The story focuses only on one premise: the main character is a loser that's bullied by everyone and finds the only thing he may be good at, which is cycling. Of course he isn't working that hard because of this, but due to the fact that the girl he likes is the one that invited him to the cycling club. This teaches youthat anyone can try their best when the right motivation comes into work....jajaja

The art is good and consistent during the length of the anime, except for the few scenes that use the computer animation to show certain thing which looked pretty bad every time.

The sound is nothing out of the ordinary.

The characters are somewhat likable and Mikoto is very funny at the beginning of the series. He develops his self-confidence during the anime and becomes less of a stupid character. He shows such determination that the people around him begin to respect him.

Overall this is a good sports anime for those who are willing to give a cycling anime a chance.  My only complaint is that it ends abruptly without a proper ending (may be due to a second season planned).
      

        Yeah this anime is about bikes, no it isn't great, but no it isn't terrible. What I'm trying to say is this anime has great humor and some great dramatic moments, but once they start that whole bike race thing YUCK! Sure it's very dramatic, BUT YOU ONLY THINK THAT FOR THE FIRST FIVE EPISODES OF THE RACE. After that, you realize that this is going to be HELLA boring. The story sticks to the bike race and makes it even worse as they make tiny sub-stories about the characters' pasts for over 15 episodes! Let me break this down. -The little comedy in here 10/10 -Action 7/10,drags on way too long.
-Romance is 6/10, mostly because the chick is a jackass after the race, and feelings are never really affirmed.

Overall 6/10, don't expect much.
      

        Over drive is a story about determination, patience, maturity and friendship as well as some hints of romance?! The anime starts off with mikoto a clumsy 15 year old boy with no ambition and nothing!? A girl frm his class fuzukawara introduces him to he world of cycling!? Slowly within a month he changes and all of he surrounding people change too!? This anime is particularly amazing almost each episode there will be a shift between he present time and the past where the creators wnt to introduce the other charactrs lives, personalities qnd how they all got invloved in cycling!? This story really moved me!? Theanimation, art, characters, storyline, visuals and sound are all amazing!? You need to watch it to knw how profound his anime is!? It has the prefect balance of evrythin: romance, drama, parody, comedy!? You will experince so many different emotions!?

I hope u enjoy this anime as much as i enjoyed it!? And i hope i was useful about the review
      

        Tired of seeing the same anime story ????. Give this one a try. I really enjoyed this one as the sport they pick was not the most common for any anime sport show. The show teach you about the sport and show the difference between type of racers. The main character is a "broken" character (kind of remind me of Shinji on Evangelion) which put his best effort to get his goal. Art is good. Music is above average I would say. And we have a background romantic story where a loser character will give everything for the girl he loves.
      

        The Characters are what makes Overdrive different and really enjoyable. All of them has plenty of energy and when your finished with the anime it is sad to separate from the characters. The only problam i really had was the ending which was just a summary. There is also a little love story and it kinda sucks that they didn't finish it and left it untouch. Besides that Overdrive was enjoyable, so try it out. Happy Anime watching
      

        Imma just quickly jump to it. The main character is highly autistic. This anime is only going to impress and encourage you to watch it if you can relate with the main character (the only good quality he posses is his extreme determination) Story: Asocial and extremely awkward, huge loser and good for nothing main character, he develops a crush on a popular girl at school. Pretty typical shit? She soon introduces him to bicycling and talks about some other deep shit that hits our main character pretty deep. He becomes obsessed with cycling and then enrolls in some local bicycling tournament. In one instance where theleader of the bicycling club (who is his crush's big brother) tells him to look for more members to join. He puts up his crush's sexual photo as an advertisement, though no big deal is made out of it. For an anime attempting to make itself seem realistic, that was just a 'the fuck?' moment.


Art: Absolutely trash. Even for being an old anime the art is despicable. No facial features, background is awful too. 

Sound: As bad as the art. Probably hired the wrong voice actors for this shit

Character: This one I rate highly because of the character development over time they showed which was pretty flawless. They focus on each of the characters and often show how they came up to be the person they are. What are their inspirations, their motivations, yadda yadda. You get it by now

Overall: Pretty realistic anime to be completely honest with you. The main character has a burning passion for cycling and he puts it as his number one priority list, the story starts in a very attention grabbing manner, as in, you see the main character winning the race and then you go into his story. Which is all sorts of sad, happy, bla bla emotions.
      

        The sports genre seems to be the most underrated genre in anime. I would scroll down the top anime list and see really highly rated sports anime like Hajime no Ippo, Kuroko no Basket, Slam Dunk, Major etc. but it would seem that at most, a sports anime would only have around ±15000 members. Which is a real shame because I find it to be the most entertaining genre of anime so far. Granted I have only seen 3(busy with the 4th) but it always seems to bring something unique to the table. Whether it be boxing, baseball or cycling, the show always seems tomake a statement: you don't have to play, watch or enjoy this sport to enjoy this show. It can make you laugh, cry, frustrated and root for an animated character. Over Drive did this and more. 

I watched Over Drive last year and ever since I always felt I had to share my experiences watching this show but I never really knew how to put it in writing so I'll try my best.(SOME SPOILERS FOLLOW) 

Over Drive is about Shinozaki, a high school student that just goes to school, gets picked on and hangs around by himself at recess. He meets Fukazawa and through a series of events, he falls inlove with cycling and enters a local cycling tournament. The idea for Over Drive is what made me want to see it. Watching a cycling match is like watching a really slow toaster. But the idea of an anime revolving around cycling just enticed me. The series starts off slow but I assure you as soon as the race starts you'll be on the edge of your seat. The backstories, rivalries and intensity of the racers is just a joy to watch. A strong point of sports anime- simple yet gripping story.

The characters are typical shonen types but their personalities grow as the show progresses. You have your likeble goofy lead, two best friends, one straight and one silly,a love interest, the mysterious dude and a villian. The main characters consisting of the cycling team aiming for the win have an interesting bond on and off the road and watching them on their bicycles is really just fun. There's no other way to describe it. Fukazawa can come off as really unlikeable to some viewers. There was a point to her attitude but she really turned me off by the end of the show.

The art is the highlight of Over Drive. It's lush and beautiful. The bicycles, grassy backdrops, tar, cycling uniforms, sky and characters themselves are wonderfully illustrated. What always turns me off about anime is the way the art style changes to illustrate slapstick comedy, but here the animation stays the same.

Sound is another highlight. Shinozaki doesn't come off as annoying thanks to excellent VO work by Kaji Yuki and everyone else sounds believable and as if they are one with their character. The OP isn't all that great, reading the subtitles I still couldn't understand what it was about. The 2 EDs were not that bad. The first was so-so but Koi Suzumi was excellent. Really mellow and the perfect touch to give you a lump in your throat after the series ends.

Overall Over Drive came as a surprise. The story was good, the melodrama involving the bicycles were heartfelt and at times so cheesy it was hilarious and the race is so good it makes you wonder why Lance Armstrong risked losing a world like that. The characters are all believable and they make the show shine(sports anime is not really about the story anyways, more about the characters). The sound is top notch(I really can't stop raving about Koi Suzumi) and the art gives the show it's feel good vibe. Over Drive may not be the best anime out there, but please give it a try, it could convince to see what else the genre has to offer. Who knows, maybe you'll even take up cycling after finishing it.

Feedback(positive or negative) on this review will be greatly appreciated.
      

        I just want to say this anime is enjoyable tell a certain point in which it will make you wish it was over, overall a good enjoyable Sports anime, Needs a season 2. And needs to have more character development. I personally rated 7/10 for Plot it's self. I will say one thing this anime would have gotten at least 9/10 from me but you will understand when you watch it :) Have a great 12hours watching this anime it was exciting and pleasure to watch :)
      

        I love CYCLING, travelling to different places. :D OVER DRIVE is a show based on Professional CYCLING. What happens when a fundamentally coward, weak guy gets involved with something simply because of a person he has a crush on? His only motivation is his dream to ride with her on a bicycle in the near future. Let's see if he has enough guts to move forward. "The first step is the hardest" they say. LET'S CHEER HIM UP ON HIS JOURNEY TO GET HIS DREAM GIRL. Even if our friend doesn't get his desired girl, he may at least get something of equal importance, atleast a motivation to move on. 


STORY (9) : 
A guy decides something & dedicates his being to change himself just to be liked by the girl he has crush on. His path to become number one is not an easier one & he is not the first one to start either. Yet he will do every possible thing & there are partners who will follow the same path with him. 
The Anime has no Romance element, but Manga has Romance element in it. Though, it doesn't really feel like it lacks romance. 

ART (9) : 
Character Expressions of SHINOZAKI are the highlights of this Animation. His "character animation" as a "dull guy" is very well executed. He is the most adorable character you will see in the anime. 
YUKI is beautifully animated as a mature girl. Her Flustered expressions when she is thinking about SHINOZAKI are very good. YUKI in SHINOZAKI's fantasies is really Erotic. 
Every other characters are well drawn with good art and expressions. 
The animation during racing is also satisfying. 

SOUND (8) : 
SHINOZAKI is voiced by YUKI KAJI as a childish and adorable character. His lines are comedic & is my favorite VA from this Anime. It's something to brag about. 
YUKI is voiced cute by KAORI NAZUKA. You just kinda like their voices. 
The OP song is what gives the Sports feel than the ED, but it is not to my liking. The ED song is loud, but i personally really like it. 

CHARACTER (10) : 
I give 9 to MIKOTO as a character, just for his resolve and dedication to the subject (YUKI as a woman & CYCLING as a sport). Him undergoing change for his good is what i like in his character. 
Despite his careless personality, his naughty personality is what i like the most. 
MIKOTO really made me laugh the whole time. 
I don't really care much about the personality of side characters ; not that they aren't good. I just want the protagonist to be mentally strong. 

ENJOYMENT (9) : 
OVER DRIVE was really an entertaining journey to me & i was done with the anime quickly. I am now gonna try reading the manga. 

OVERALL (10) : 
This is really special to me. I was hesitant, whether to give it 9 or 10, because i am really into the ideal stuff. So, as an exception i gave it 10, because its just that special to me. 
This Anime is blessed with Adorable Characters, Dedicated Main Guy & Spirited Main Guys. 
I wouldn't argue with the fact that this is Underrated, despite being a good anime. But that might just be me. 
There are Moments and special Scenes in every episodes that are Hilarious & sometimes erotic to watch. So, don't drop this Anime if you like the mentioned stuff. 

Thank You :)
      

        So, I haven't done a review on MAL and I feel like I should have done this a while back after how many times I have put animes I completed after I watched them. I just felt like doing this one because this was to be fair, my friend recommended this to me for months and I thought it'd be alright, and well... actually it was pretty bad. Overall, the story in the least spoiler way possible but telling you the basic ways of it works is, the main character is the typical shounen anime character (especially in certain sports animes) who isnt particularly good atanything, but can cling to one thing. and thats biking. The main character, Mikoto, has a crush on the girl Yuki, and ends up riding the bike because he was persuaded into joining a club so she could get some money. The whole show is a pretty big jumbled mess. 

For starters, the beginning of the show wasn't actually bad, it has some very good comedical essences and especially good for its time that it was made. Although after the race starts the show actually drags out. The race took place from around episodes 13 till the end of the series and from that point of the series you're in for flashback mania to go in depth with the characters and their experiences and even about characters that have little to NO impact on the story whatsoever.

The goal of the "Tour de France" was made apparent at Episode 1 but in reality was never hashed onto for the rest of the show which also makes the purpose of the show kinda bad and was never followed through.


Art wise, the character designs in my own opinion, were actually pretty good. However, the animation and bike scenes were pretty bad overall and considering when the anime was made there is actually a lot more that could have been done to make it more visually appealing, but then again, that didn't happen.


The audio in the show was probably the only thing that I didn't really mind, I kinda somewhat liked the opening, and the ending was okay also but as for the actual sounds from voice actors, and some of the music in the anime was just garbage. Very overused music, the voice acting for some of the characters just made you sick of the characters themselves (the main character)

The characters actually were in my own opinion, the worst part of the whole show. The story was a good premise, plot idea, etc. but quite frankly the characters actually ruined the show for me. The main character was as I said earlier, the typical shounen character, and its the same for the rest of the characters. The worst character in the show was probably the main female lead, who the MC has a crush on. She leaves a very crappy impression at the start and actually almost makes up on it somewhat during the race and a bit prior, but seriously, way to go and ruin every bit of buildup at the end, much applause. 

and whats sad is, even the characters that made a GOOD impression, had the same downfall, and I ended up just honestly hating myself for admitting but the main protagonist is actually the only good character in the series and he isn't even a very good character. 


Overall enjoyment level would be a LOT LOT higher, but because of the horrendous last couple episodes (the race episodes) that ruined everything that I liked about the show and made it dragged on and boring and made me skip half the episode and go onto the next episode only to do the same thing because it was a constant occurrence every episode of flashbacks that have absolutely NOTHING that benefits the story in anyway possible.

The manga is very slow to update, and the anime came out a bit after the manga ended if I recall, and the time spent FLASHBACKING useless characters, could be used to fill the series with stuff that would catch the series up because my enjoyment level plummeted especially near the END and BECAUSE of the lackluster ending. I would have definitely enjoyed this series a lot more if that was the case because the ending was by far one of its weakest points. 

Overall, I think the anime isn't THAT bad, and I have friends and met other people who like this series, but it just wasn't my cup of tea. There was quite a bunch of things that in my opinion would be good if changed but overall the anime can be enjoyed if you can ignore some certain things. I definitely would try to watch the series, because its a very mixed opinion, but then again it wouldnt be a bad idea skipping past it either
      

        There will be a little Bias in this review, because after watching about 2-3 episodes of this show, i fell in love with it. This story is one of the biggest underdog stories in the anime world, i'd say even more so than Hajime no Ippo and EyeShield 21. In those 2 shows, the respective characters had strengths in their respective fields right from the beginning (Ippo=Great Power for Boxing, Sena=Great Speed for Football). But our MC here doesn't have any of that from the get go. He has to learn about his strengths and weaknesses and tries his absolute best to try to change.He doesn't want to live in a world where he is a weak individual. He wants to grow, and that's what defines him as our MC. They made cycling the most exciting thing for me, which by itself deserves a high score. I consider one moment in episode 18 to be the greatest moment in all of anime for me and you can see my list to see what else i've watched. There is only 1 race in this show and as many times as i watch, i get chills over my body. I recommend this to EVERYONE. It's slow for the first few episodes but i loved even those because it showed us more and more about our main characters. Their interactions with each other, their thoughts were all very interesting to watch. The only thing that might annoy some people would be the flashbacks during the race. That bothered me a little at the beginning but then it helped to understand how much each character grew from just one race so i was okay with it. I consider this to be my favorite anime, for the reasons listed above.