Appare-Ranman!

In late-19th-century Japan, Appare Sorano is a brilliant but socially awkward inventor from a quiet rural town. Inspired since childhood by the promise of steamships that could bridge vast distances, he’s taught himself engineering from scientific texts and dreams of pushing past the horizon—across the sea, beyond the sky, and even toward the moon.

A twist of fate leaves Appare adrift on a tiny steam-powered craft, with the capable yet timid samurai Kosame Ishikki—assigned to rein in Appare’s eccentricities—floating nearby. Rescued by a passing steamship, the pair end up in Los Angeles with neither money nor a plan, and set their sights on the Trans-America Wild Race. Entering the competition lets Appare build an automobile of his own, while Kosame chases the prize money that could send him back to Japan, all while rival racers and unpredictable dangers in the wilderness test how far their journey can go.