Umamusume: Pretty Derby – Beginning of New Era Review

Since the release of Umamusume: Pretty Derby, the multimedia franchise has seen its popularity rise globally, attracting fans to its unique concept. Now, the franchise’s first feature film, Umamusume: Pretty Derby – Beginning of a New Era, which was released in Japan in 2024, finally reached North American theaters on February 27, 2026, where I was able to see it at my local cinema. As a fan of Umamusume since the game’s Japanese release in 2021 and now enjoying the global version, it felt surreal to see Umamusume on the big screen.

Umamusume: Pretty Derby – Beginning of a New Era, just like the other Umamusume anime series before it, follows a handful of Umamusume, or “horse girls,” as they race towards their goals. This time, the focus is on Jungle Pocket with Dantsu Flame, Manhattan Cafe, and Agnes Tachyon as her main rivals. The movie depicts the internal and external struggles the girls face as they train, race, and push beyond their limits on the tracks to become the greatest Umamusume of their generation.

Jungle Pocket’s Struggles and Overcoming Them

From the start of the movie to the end, the film did a great job in showcasing Jungle Pocket. I liked how well-written it was to show the depth of Jungle Pocket’s personality, charm, and the struggles she faced. I felt the pressure and expectations Jungle Pocket had put on herself, including how she felt inside, especially after losing to Agnes Tachyon. That struggle and how she overcame it were among my favorite scenes of the movie.

For example, Jungle Pocket was supposed to be competing against Agnes Tachyon in another G1 race, but she wasn’t even on the field. Even though Jungle Pocket won, she didn’t feel like a winner because she couldn’t race and beat Agnes Tachyon, which prevented her from winning her other races. It was one of my favorite scenes; I felt her confliction, and seeing her later beat T.M. Opera while also overcoming her insecurities was very satisfying.

Thrilling Races

We also can’t forget about the race scenes. They are the franchise’s major highlights, showcasing just how intense Umamusume can be when they push past their limits and reach the top. It is especially great seeing it on the big screen, from Agnes Tachyon running the speed of light to Jungle Pocket shining even brighter to win. In those moments, you can’t help but want to cheer them on, or what my friend calls “activating the sports brain,” when you find yourself cheering out loud and rooting for someone to win in the heat of the competition.

Jungle Pocket and Her Rivals

The main focus of the movie is, of course, Jungle Pocket, while Dantsu Flame, Manhattan Cafe, and Agnes Tachyon are the supporting cast and her rivals. While we see a bit of the other girls’ dilemmas and struggles and how they are trying to overcome them, they are not as in-depth as Jungle Pocket’s. This was a bit weird to me, especially after seeing the live concert ending scene. The live concert had all four Umamusume singing and dancing, but there wasn’t much plot-wise about them aside from being rivals in races, training for them, and serving as support characters. Story-wise, I would have expected something more from them as the stars of the live concert.

Lack of Winning Live Concerts

Speaking of live concerts, I was a bit disappointed by the lack of them. Originally, the top three to five winners usually get a live concert, or a Winning Live. I was expecting at least some kind of mention of the concert, as they did with past anime series. While I did not expect a full-blown concert, I yearned to see just something like training for a concert or even talks about it like the anime series before showing the actual live concert at the end. However, since this is a movie, I was hoping to see not only their reactions but also a few live concerts, rather than just the one at the end.

Character Highlights

Since Jungle Pocket is the main character of the movie, I naturally cheered for her the most. However, by the end of the movie, I still ended up liking all the Umamusume, with Jungle Pocket and Agnes Tachyon my favorites. I had not realized how much I actually liked Agnes Tachyon until I watched the movie. I knew she was an eccentric scientist, but the movie brought out a lot of her eccentricity through her expressions and actions. Seeing the Umamusume’s stories brought to life on screen allows fans to connect with the characters on a deeper level and see more of their charms and personalities, reminding us why we love the franchise in the first place.

We also can’t forget the cameos from other Umamusume. I noticed several cameos, such as Oguri Cap, the main protagonist of her own series, Umamusume: Cinderella Gray, Narita Top Road from Umamusume: Pretty Derby ROAD TO THE TOP, and more.

An Umamusume Movie Worth Watching

Umamusume: Pretty Derby – Beginning of a New Era is the first Umamusume movie of the franchise, and it is well worth watching. Aside from the lack of live concert mentions, the plot centers on Jungle Pocket’s growth and delivers a racing drama with strong character development. In addition, I could feel the tension in the races, which made me cheer for them, just like in the anime series.

This movie could have expanded on Jungle Pocket’s story as well as the other Umamusume’s stories a bit further, but I also understand that the production team may have wanted to faithfully adapt the real-life horses’ stories instead.

Thankfully, you don’t need to know anything about Umamusume to watch the movie. While prior knowledge might add to the experience, each installment only focuses on a handful of Umamusume, thus telling a different story about each unique Umamusume.

Umamusume: Pretty Derby – Beginning of New Era Review