Just like when I first saw High & Low the movie, I had no idea what this was all about going into it, other than it's originally a manga. All I knew is Murayama and Yamato are in it. So, this is from the perspective of a non-manga reader. So, with that said,
I really liked this!
The way the 3 main characters - Takemichi, Mikey, and Draken - interact was really enjoyable. I especially liked Draken, particularly in the hospital scene. He's extremely loyal to Mikey, but at the same time stays true to his own principles. Very cool. Mikey is pretty chill and kicks some serious ass. The biggest surprise was Takemichi. I thought it was pretty funny/interesting having a MC who is basically useless in terms of fighting except when it comes to taking a beating.
The fights in this are pretty good, although not quite up to H&L standards. There's a pretty big brawl later on that is quite reminiscent of those films, just not quite to the same scale.
At the end of this I found myself wanting more. Is that really it? This certainly doesn't feel like enough. More like an episode in the life of. I want to see where this story goes. So, I guess I'll have to check out the anime and see where that takes me.