Initial D: Third Stage Movie

We can feel blessed with the release of 3rd and 4th stage of INITIAL D, one of my favorite anime of all time.This OVA resolves so much of the conflicts that happened in 2nd stage and its an amazing prelude to 4th stage. The plot is all about the development of TAKUMI as a street racer, he is invited by RYOSUKE TAKAHASHI to form a special street racing team called PROJECT D, a scout team that will compete in every prefecture in Japan and set a new record for the track, all in less than one year; writing a new street racing legend all over Japan.TAKUMI still feels insecure about his abilities and decides to look for KYOUICHI SUDOU in Irohazaka pass, leader of the TEAM EMPEROR and the only driver that has beaten TAKUMI on a race. That race and a new challenge from the son of a former rival of TAKUMI's father, BUNTA; will set the pace of an incredible race.Also resolved are the problems between TAKUMI and NATSUKI, balancing the action with a little bit of drama and romance.The quality of the DVD is good, and the video is LETTERBOXED (4:3 aspect ratio with black bars to simulate widescreen), not true WIDESCREEN; something that i really disliked because the picture would looked great on my TV set.Even with this little detail, the DVD is worth its price.

This is the third stage to the Initial D series. It is a movie, not episodes. I wouldn't say it's awesome but you most definitely still must see if you are a die hard Initial D watcher. Like my other review, I'm just waiting for them to come out on Blu Ray.

This is finally the way Initial D should have been released initially. The voice actors are well chosen (with one or two exceptions) and the producers didn't take out the original music/try to "Americanize" it.Well worth the buy for any fan of the series. It's finally time to lift the boycott.

Initial D: 3rd stage is finally available on Region 1 DVD with subtitles. Story is great, but the picture quality is somewhat dissapointing; fine dust/hair particles are present every so often, the whole picture is a little too dark with muted colors, and the sharpness is not what it could be. I don't think I've ever seen a version of 3rd stage that was bright enough though. The audio was fine except for the English Dub which I did not care for it at all - could only stand 3 lines dubbed before stopping the movie and restarting in Japanese audio with English subtitles (which I've always watched Initial D in anyways, just was curious how the English dub was; ranks right along with ToykoPop's dubbing for 1st and 2nd stages...) There were a few errors in the subtitles (eg: I'm pretty sure the 20 valve 4-AGE in Takumi's AE-86 spins higher than "1,100 rpm") - doesn't seem the subtitling was proof checked thoroughly enough.I still enjoyed this Initial D: 3rd stage release very much even with the lackluster video quality...it still had a nice "movie" like presentation quality that is hard to describe, but worked.Lows: Video has quality issues (dark image, dust/hair visible, image sharpness - more like VHS quality) and English dubbing still not right for the seriesHighs: Story still really good, audio is very good, there is a nice "movie" feel to it.Recommended for Initial D fans, but realize the video quality is more like that of a VHS tape than DVD.

You must see this, I like the races in Irohazaka like the game!!!! this movie is really awesome!! defines many things... A must see

Great movie I absolutely loved it great show hope funimation dubs stage 5 and 6!

If you're an initialD purist you may not like this but it was a must have just for my collection

First, I want to start off by saying that I a huge fan of the series. Why the reason for the low score? Dont know if I got a bad copy of a DVD, but the picture suck!! I saw small lines going up and down the screen through out the entire movie!! That really piss me off cause I am seen the Jap. version and I don't remember all these lines in it. Secondly, they change the english voice actors. I am still trying to get use to them, but I feel that it not the same. The 86 driver voice, he doesn't put the same emotion or firer, like the old voice. I don't feel the connect to well. I also got the 4th Stage Eng. The picture it much cleaner and no lines, so I would rate that 4 out of 5.If you can get pass through two things, then it is really a good movie. Thats my honest feelings. I wish funumation would have done a better job in releasing this last piece of the series.

perfect. japanese audio with english subtitles. quick menu options and easy to navigate.