Synopsis:
In the near future, cars are no longer driven by people but are controlled via AI (Artificial Intelligence). Ever so often, a car's AI malfunctions and causes it to go out of control... which is where a special unit called eX-Driver comes in. eX-Driver goes after the uncontrollable car, stops it, and saves the passengers. What's more, with the exception of Souichi, all of the ex-Drivers are pretty and leggy young ladies...

Review:
The first thought that struck me when I started watching eX-Driver was how similar it was to "You're Under Arrest". In You're Under Arrest, we have two young female traffic officers who are about as opposite as night and day. Most of their adventures consist of high speed chases and no case is ever really all that serious. It's almost the same for ex-Driver. Two girls who possess very different personalities make up the main eX-Driver unit, albeit they are later joined by a young boy named Souichi. Lisa is the feisty, tomboyish, and headstrong type while Lorna is the more demure and soft-spoken one. eX-Driver goes after out-of-control cars in order to ensure public safety.

There was nothing really special about eX-Driver. I felt like I was watching a repetitive magical girl anime, only instead of having a monster-of-the-day, there was a car-of-the-day. eX-Driver would come in to save the day, cars speeding and guns popping. The guns spew goo that covers the GPS sensors of the affected car, causing it to stop. eX-Driver goes after a different car-gone-haywire until the fifth episode, when a seemingly malicious group of street racers start making trouble for them. It's only then that we see some semblance of a moving plot, but in the end it's still all just one shallow case blown out of proportion. The same drill just got stale for me all too fast and for the life of me I just couldn't muster up the excitement that every other anime reviewer seems to possess for this series.

The art and animation are good, if just a tad inconsistent during the in-between jobs. In general almost every scene was characterized by beautiful character designs, exciting chase sequences, and vibrant backgrounds. The music was quite catchy as well. There's no doubt that eX-Driver will provide a fine audio-visual experience for viewers.

eX-Driver is an option if you want something straightforward and pleasing to the eye. There's nothing else to expect beyond that. Personally I found it to be redundant and uninvolving, but hey... that's just me. Reasonably entertaining at best, more so if you're into fast cars and pretty girls. Of course, if you're seriously a car enthusiast you're probably better off with "Initial D".

Miscellanies:
eX-Driver is made up of 6 episodes and was created by Kousuke Fujishima, the same person behind "Oh My Goddess" and "You're Under Arrest".

Screenshots

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