Yowamushi Pedal (Yowapeda) is one of my favorite (if not my #1) sports anime. I find it completely engrossing and many of the characters are endearing. I'm always hesitant to look at live actions not based on a slice of life because I think they tend to be awful This was not the case with Yowapeda. I really enjoyed it. So much so that I finished the all too short drama in 1 sitting. The story revolves around Onoda Sakamichi, a freshman at Sohoku High School, who in his quest to revive the anime club and make friends realizes the joy of cycling and road racing. The one thing the Japanese excel at is storytelling. What other countries take 16-25+ episodes to tell, the Japanese tell in less than 12. It's no different here. The anime sometimes draws out some of the competition. The drama does not. It is very succinct. Yes, there are things missing, but you really don't need them. The story is very well told. Obviously, and I don't think this is a spoiler, they could not have covered the Inter High in 7 episodes. That's for season 2 (cross fingers). The cast is good. Many of the characters never looked like high schoolers so it's no surprise that the majority of the actors look like HS is a decade or 2 (maybe 3) behind them. One thing that infuriates me with live actions is when the actors don't look like the characters they're playing. The character's hair is blonde or pink but the actor's hair is jet black. Huh? Not so with Yowapeda. I was pleasantly surprised to see that Makashima even had green hair with highlights. Naruko's hair is really red. Not only did they get the looks right, the voices were eerily like the seiyuu's for many of the characters, especially Naruko. I even compared the cast list to see if any of the actors were the same. That being said the acting itself was solid. No one will win an award but you know who they're playing and they do a good job. The music is forgettable. I was really saddened that the "Hime" song Onoda sings is not in the live action for some reason. He has a song but it doesn't resonate or embarrass like Hime. If there is a second season, I would probably rewatch this season and go straight into the new one. Overally the live action of Yowapeda is solid. It's fun to watch and slightly addictive.