>>723534504
Love this horse.

>>723534565
S1 toyed with the idea of doing noncanon stuff that didn't follow the real races, but in the end, following the real races is what gives the story it's strength, imo. Because it doesn't follow the expected character journeys.

>Teio has big dreams and she's working hard
>Oh she got crushed and lost her dream?
>Okay, she'll pick herself back up and now she's got a new dream
>Oh? She lost that too?
>Oh and she's injured *again*?

>Kitasan is an unstoppable Uma that's going to surpass Gold Ship's record and go race overseas?
>Oh? She suddenly seems like she can't keep up anymore?
>Suddenly we're in a depressing retirement arc?

Having to craft narratives around unpredictable real life rather than anime story arcs/tropes makes it a really unique story. Like, c'mon.

>Kitasan and Duramente are setup as rivals
>They're finally racing head to head, this is a big showdown!
>And... a random unknown girl wins it? Uh...?
>So the story has fun with it by having Kitasan and Duramente do the whole "I recognise your strength" type stuff, while the winner is in the background celebrating.

That shit was fucking hillarious and a million times more memorable than how that story usually plays out.