Takumi Fujiwara is a high school student who delivers tofu for his father's shop every morning in a Toyota AE86, and without realizing it he has become the fastest downhill driver on Mt. Akina. Racers from across Gunma come to challenge him, and later he joins Ryosuke Takahashi's expedition team, Project D, to take on rivals outside the prefecture.
Plus 7 optional extras and 3 more titles.
6 titles · 81 episodes + 1 movie · ~36.5 hours
Watch the six main entries in story order: First, Second and Third Stage, then Fourth, Fifth and Final Stage. Third Stage is a film, but it is part of the main story. The sequel series MF Ghost comes next. The Extra Stage and Battle Stage OVAs are optional, and the Legend movies are a separate reboot of the opening races.
Where the story starts: Takumi Fujiwara, a high school student who delivers tofu for his father's shop every morning, turns out to be the fastest downhill driver on Mt. Akina. 26 episodes, ending with his race against Ryosuke Takahashi.
13 episodes that pick up straight after First Stage and end with the race against Wataru Akiyama.
A 104-minute film and a required part of the main story: Takumi's rematch with Kyoichi Sudo of Emperor, his race against Kai Kogashiwa, his high school graduation and Ryosuke's invitation to join Project D. Fourth Stage starts after Project D has formed.
24 episodes. Takumi and Keisuke race for Project D, the expedition team Ryosuke runs, taking on teams outside Gunma.
14 episodes set in Kanagawa. It ends just after Takumi's final race against Shinji Inui begins, so go straight into Final Stage.
Four episodes that finish the race against Shinji Inui and adapt the manga's last chapters. This is the end of Takumi's story.
The sequel series, set more than a decade after Initial D, in 202X, with a new lead, Kanata. The MFG race series was founded by Ryosuke Takahashi, and Kanata learned to drive from Takumi in England. 12 episodes.
12 episodes that continue the MFG season from where Season 1 ends.
13 episodes (episodes 25-37) that aired from January to March 2026. A Final Season has been announced, with no date yet.
A two-part OVA based on the manga's side stories, starring Mako and Sayuki of Impact Blue. Takumi is not in it. It takes place between Second Stage and Third Stage.
A compilation of 17 races from First Stage through Third Stage, with the First Stage races redrawn in newer CG. It adds one race that is in neither the manga nor the TV series: Keisuke Takahashi vs. Kiyoji Iwaki. Fits after Third Stage.
A side-story OVA based on the manga, starring Iketani and Mako. It is set early in Fourth Stage, around Act 3.
A compilation of Fourth Stage races that also animates two of Keisuke's manga races that Fourth Stage skipped, against Smiley Sakai and Atsuro Kawai. Fits after Fourth Stage.
The first of three films that retell the opening races. Legend 1 runs up to Takumi's race against Keisuke Takahashi.
⚠ A reboot, not part of the TV continuity: new cast, new staff and a J-rock soundtrack instead of Eurobeat. The trilogy stops at the race against Ryosuke Takahashi and has no continuation.
Covers the races against Takeshi Nakazato and Shingo Shoji.
Ends with the race against Ryosuke Takahashi, the same point where First Stage ends. To keep going, switch to the TV series from Second Stage on, which has a different cast and soundtrack.
The six main entries form one continuous story, and each picks up where the previous one ends. First and Second Stage cover Takumi's races on home ground in Gunma. The Third Stage film closes the high school part of the story with his rematch against Kyoichi Sudo, his race against Kai Kogashiwa, his graduation and Ryosuke's offer to join Project D. Fourth Stage starts after Project D has formed, so the film cannot be skipped.
Fifth Stage ends just after Takumi's last race against Shinji Inui begins, and the four-episode Final Stage finishes it. Treat them as one season and watch them back to back. Final Stage adapts the manga's final chapters, so the story is complete there.
MF Ghost is set more than a decade later with a new lead, and it builds on what Ryosuke and Takumi did after Initial D, so it goes after the full original run.
The extras sit below that. Extra Stage and Extra Stage 2 are side stories about Mako, Sayuki and Iketani. Battle Stage and Battle Stage 2 are race compilations, each with races that were not in the TV series. None of them is needed to follow the story, and each note says where it fits if you want to slot it in.
The Legend trilogy is a 2014-2016 reboot of the opening races with a new cast and soundtrack. It covers roughly what First Stage covers and was never continued, so it works as an extra, not as a replacement for the TV series.
Initial D has 5 seasons and 1 film in the main run — 81 episodes altogether.
| Title | Type | Episodes | Aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial D First Stage | TV Series | 26 episodes | April 1998 |
| Initial D Second Stage | TV Series | 13 episodes | October 1999 |
| Initial D Third Stage | Movie | — | January 2001 |
| Initial D Fourth Stage | TV Series | 24 episodes | April 2004 |
| Initial D Fifth Stage | TV Series | 14 episodes | November 2012 |
| Initial D Final Stage | TV Series | 4 episodes | May 2014 |
| Title | Type | Episodes | Aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| MF GHOST | TV Series | 12 episodes | October 2023 |
| MF GHOST Season 2 | TV Series | 12 episodes | October 2024 |
| MF GHOST Season 3 | TV Series | 13 episodes | January 2026 |
| Title | Type | Episodes | Aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial D Extra Stage | OVA | 2 episodes | November 2000 |
| Initial D Battle Stage | OVA | 1 episode | May 2002 |
| Initial D Extra Stage 2 | OVA | 1 episode | October 2008 |
| Initial D Battle Stage 2 | OVA | 1 episode | May 2007 |
| Title | Type | Episodes | Aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial D Legend 1: Awakening | Movie | — | August 2014 |
| Initial D Legend 2: Racer | Movie | — | May 2015 |
| Initial D Legend 3: Dream | Movie | — | February 2016 |
6 titles · 81 episodes + 1 movie · ~36.5 hours
Where each part of the anime lines up with the source, so you know where to pick up reading.
The anime adapts the manga all the way to its final chapter, 719, so there is no point to pick up from. Per-volume boundaries for each Stage could not be confirmed, so the table goes by story arc. First Stage reorders some early races and ends on the race against Ryosuke, and Fourth Stage moves Keisuke's race against Hoshino earlier than in the manga. Battle Stage 2 adds two of Keisuke's manga races that Fourth Stage skipped (against Smiley Sakai and Atsuro Kawai). The only anime-only race is Keisuke vs. Kiyoji Iwaki in Battle Stage.
Initial D First Stage (1998, 26 episodes), Second Stage (13 episodes), the Third Stage film (2001), Fourth Stage (24 episodes), Fifth Stage (14 episodes) and Final Stage (4 episodes). Those six tell the whole story in order, and Fifth Stage leads straight into Final Stage. After that comes the sequel series MF Ghost. The Extra Stage and Battle Stage OVAs are optional, and the Legend movies are a separate retelling of the beginning.
Start with Initial D First Stage, the 1998 TV series. The Legend movies (2014-2016) also start at the beginning, but they are a reboot with a different cast and soundtrack, they stop at the race against Ryosuke Takahashi, and they were never continued. To follow the story to the end, you need the original TV series.
Yes. Third Stage is a 104-minute film, but it is part of the main story: Takumi's rematch with Kyoichi Sudo, his race against Kai Kogashiwa, his high school graduation and Ryosuke's offer to join Project D. Fourth Stage begins after Project D has formed, so skipping the film leaves a gap. Watch it after Second Stage.
No. Extra Stage (Mako and Sayuki) and Extra Stage 2 (Iketani and Mako) are side stories based on the manga's extra chapters, and Takumi is not the focus. Battle Stage and Battle Stage 2 are race compilations, but each adds new races: Keisuke vs. Kiyoji Iwaki in Battle Stage, a race that is not in the manga, and two of Keisuke's manga races that Fourth Stage skipped in Battle Stage 2. Battle Stage 3 (2021) compiles Fifth and Final Stage with no new races, and Project D e Mukete is a recap special, so neither is in the order.
The TV series. New Initial D the Movie (Legend 1: Awakening, Legend 2: Racer, Legend 3: Dream) is a 2014-2016 reboot of the opening races, from the race against Keisuke to the race against Ryosuke, with a new cast, new staff and a J-rock soundtrack instead of Eurobeat. It covers roughly what First Stage covers and was never continued. Watch it as an extra if you want the early races in newer animation. Battle Digest (2022) is a compilation of the three films, so it is not in the order.
No. Fifth Stage ends just after Takumi's final race against Shinji Inui begins, and the four-episode Final Stage (2014) finishes that race and the story. Watch the two back to back.
Yes. MF Ghost is set more than a decade after Initial D, in 202X, and follows a new lead, Kanata. The MFG race series was founded by Ryosuke Takahashi, and Kanata was taught to drive by Takumi in England. It has three seasons so far (12, 12 and 13 episodes, the third airing from January to March 2026), and a Final Season was announced on March 26, 2026, with no date yet. Finish Initial D first so those connections land.
Yes. The manga ran in Kodansha's Weekly Young Magazine from 1995 to 2013 and ended at 48 volumes (719 chapters). The anime ended with Final Stage in June 2014, which adapts the manga's final chapters, so the Initial D anime is complete. The story continues in the sequel series MF Ghost.
For part of the series. Tokyopop dubbed First Stage, Second Stage and Extra Stage in the early 2000s, renaming characters (Takumi became Tak) and replacing the Eurobeat with new music. Funimation later dubbed First through Fourth Stage, the Third Stage film and Extra Stage uncut with the original music, with Joel McDonald as Takumi, so Takumi's voice depends on which dub you watch (Dave Wittenberg voiced him for Tokyopop). We could not find any English release of Fifth Stage or Final Stage, so they have no dub. Sentai Filmworks dubbed the Legend movies, and Crunchyroll dubs MF Ghost.
No filler episodes are listed for Initial D. First Stage reorders some early races, and Fourth Stage moves Keisuke's race against Hoshino earlier than in the manga, but the TV series does not add anime-original arcs. The only anime-only race is Keisuke vs. Kiyoji Iwaki in the Battle Stage OVA.
As of October 2026, JustWatch lists no US streaming, rental or purchase option for the Initial D TV series, the Third Stage film or Legend 1. The series was on Crunchyroll from 2022 but is no longer there. MF Ghost streams on Crunchyroll. Availability differs by region.
It does not leave off: Final Stage adapts the manga to its last chapter, 719, so there is nothing left to pick up. First through Third Stage cover the high school arc, and Fourth through Final Stage cover the Project D arc, which starts at chapter 191. In English, Tokyopop's print run stopped at volume 33, but Kodansha USA's digital edition has all 48 volumes, and a new omnibus print edition is in progress.
About 36.5 hours for the six main entries (81 TV episodes plus the Third Stage film). The two Extra Stage and two Battle Stage OVAs add about 4 hours, the Legend movies about 3 hours, and MF Ghost's three seasons about 15 hours.
