Wangan Midnight
湾岸ミッドナイト (Wangan Middonaito)
Demographic	Seinen
Genre	Action, Racing, Drama
Manga
Authored by	Michiharu Kusunoki
Publisher	Kodansha
Serialized in	Young Magazine
Original run	1992 – present
No. of volumes	35
TV anime
Directed by
Studio	OB Planning
Network	Animax
Original run	June 8, 2007 –
No. of episodes	26

Wangan Midnight (湾岸ミッドナイト, Wangan Middonaito^?) is an ongoing seinen racing manga series created by Michiharu Kusunoki that has been serialized in Kodansha's Young Magazine since 1992. In 1999, it won the Kodansha Manga Award for general manga. Image File history File links Midnightvol1. ... Seinen not to be confused with adult )) is a subset of manga that is generally targeted at an 18–30 year old male audience, but the audience can be much older with some comics aimed at businessmen well into their 40s. ... Look up Action film in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... A race is a competition of speed. ... A drama film is a film that depends mostly on in-depth character development, interaction, and highly emotional themes. ... This article is about the comics published in East Asian countries. ... The head office of Kodansha Kodansha Limited ) is the largest Japanese publisher of literature and manga, headquartered in (Bunkyo), Tokyo. ... Young Magazine (ヤングマガジン yangumagazin) is a Japanese manga magazine published weekly by Kodansha. ... Tankōbon ) is the Japanese term for a compilation volume of a particular series (such as a manga or a novel series, magazine articles, essays, craft patterns, etc. ... “TV” redirects here. ... “Animé” redirects here. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Japan. ... Animax ) is a Japanese anime satellite television network, established and owned by Sony Corporation, and dedicated to broadcasting anime programming. ... is the 159th day of the year (160th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... Seinen not to be confused with adult )) is a subset of manga that is generally targeted at an 18–30 year old male audience, but the audience can be much older with some comics aimed at businessmen well into their 40s. ... A race is a competition of speed. ... This article is about the comics published in East Asian countries. ... The head office of Kodansha Kodansha Limited ) is the largest Japanese publisher of literature and manga, headquartered in (Bunkyo), Tokyo. ... Young Magazine (ヤングマガジン yangumagazin) is a Japanese manga magazine published weekly by Kodansha. ... Year 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar). ... The Kodansha Manga Award is an annual award for serialized manga published in the previous year. ...

The series has been adapted into several live action feature films, video games, and an anime television series. The anime began airing in Japan on June 8, 2007 on the anime satellite television network Animax, produced by OB Planning.^[1] “Animé” redirects here. ... is the 159th day of the year (160th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... Animax ) is a Japanese anime satellite television network, established and owned by Sony Corporation, and dedicated to broadcasting anime programming. ...

Story

The story gets its roots from the actual street racing that occurs on Tokyo's Shuto Expressway, one stretch of which is known as the "Wangan", literally meaning "bay side" (although it is generally used to refer to the freeway), the longest, straightest road in the entire country. Of course, there's also lots of traffic to contend with, including a fair number of heavy trucks. Because of this, the action is inherently hazardous, and wrecks are common. Blown engines are also a frequent hazard, especially with the extreme-high power engines. A map of the Expressway Shuto Expressway , lit. ...

One day, Akio Asakura, a third year high school student, is driving his Fairlady Z (Z31) and is challenged by Tatsuya Shima, a doctor, in his black Gemballa 3.8 RS(Porsche 927) Turbo (nicknamed the "BlackBird"). With a friend in the passenger seat and two girls in the back, Akio pitifully tries to win, but is defeated. Determined to become faster, he goes to the junkyard to buy parts for his car, when he sees a pristine, unscratched midnight blue Fairlady Z (S30) in the junkyard. Intrigued as to why such a machine is about to be junked, he buys it. He soon finds that the car is unnaturally fast due to a tuned L28 engine, bored and stroked to 3.1 liters combined with twin turbos, which produces 620bhp. He also finds that all of the car's previous owners had the same exact name as Akio and they've been in unfortunate accidents in it, starting with the first owner's death. All but one of the Z's subsequent owners have died as a result of trying to control its power. The manga follows Akio's various encounters, though the central plot revolves around his constant battle with the BlackBird for superiority. Akio Asakura is the main character of the main character of the racing manga Wangan Midnight Background An ambitious racer who started when he was very young, Akio is in his final year of high school as the story begins. ... The Nissan 300ZX, also known as the Nissan Fairlady Z, is a sports car that was produced by Nissan. ... Tatsuya Shima is the primary antagonist of the manga Wangan Midnight. ... 1970 Nissan Fairlady Z (S30) The S30 Nissan/Datsun 240Z (known in Japan as the Fairlady Z and later in other markets as the 260Z and 280Z) are sports cars produced by Nissan Motors, Ltd. ...

Characters

See also: List of recurring Wangan Midnight characters

• Akio Asakura (朝倉濱, Asakura Akio^?) is the main protagonist of Wangan Midnight.

An ambitious racer who started when he was very young, Akio is in his final year of high school as the story begins. Drove a red Nissan 300ZX (Z31) until, after a humiliating loss to Tatsuya Shima, he discovered the "Midnight Blue Devil Z", a Nissan Fairlady Z S30Z (known as the Datsun 240Z in certain markets) which is supernaturally fast and extremely hard to drive. Regarded as a legend on the Wangan, though he is actually a humble young man. Still, despite his gentle demeanor, he's dead serious about racing. In fact, he is so serious that he skips school (to the point of repeating a grade) to drive the Devil Z. Like virtually everyone else in the manga, he has trouble forming intimate relationships, although he has made some slight inroads with Reina Akikawa. His day job is a waiter for a fancy restaurant, but then got fired for showing up late too often due to late night racing. He's regularly exposed to the active social scene at the heart of Tokyo. He was already a pretty accomplished racer with his old car, but behind the Devil Z, he's nearly invincible. He also has tremendous adaptive ability and can learn to drive virtually anything.

Voice actor: Shun Oguri

• Reina Akikawa (秋川零奈, Akikawa Reina^?) is the primary love interest of Akio Asakura.

A fashion model by day and a street racer by night. She finds Akio on the Wangan and becomes obsessed with him and the Devil Z, driving her to tune her car and even steal the Devil Z. After getting her own Nissan Skyline GT-R R32, she discovers a previously unknown aptitude for street battling, something that does not sit very well with her manager. She's very sociable, and has lots of acquaintances, but has no real boyfriend. While she is an idol, she is quite modestly dressed. Like most of the women, she's very sensitive and bursts into tears easily, although she calms down considerably in later volumes.

Voice actor: Reiko Suhou

• Tatsuya Shima (島達也, Shima Tatsuya^?)

He is the main rival of Akio Asakura, as Akio is the only one who regularly gives him a challenge. He drives a heavily tuned Porsche 911(964) Turbo that is known as the "BlackBird" (depicted as a Nissan 350Z in the English version of the arcade racing games). He's an extraordinarily skilled driver and has only been in one wreck during the course of the manga. He knows the limits of his vehicle and will never risk disaster by pushing it beyond its safe limits. This actually cost him a couple of battles, but he always learns from his failures and comes back even tougher. He's a doctor by day, but his exact practice is never revealed.

Voice actor: Shinichiro Miki

Wangan Midnight characters. ... The Nissan 300ZX, also known as the Nissan Fairlady Z, is a sports car that was produced by Nissan. ... Tatsuya Shima is the primary antagonist of the manga Wangan Midnight. ... The S30 Nissan/Datsun 240Z (known in Japan as the Fairlady Z and later in other markets as the 260Z and 280Z) are sports cars from Nissan of the 1970s. ... Reina Akikawa is a recurring character and the primary love interest of Akio Asakura in the manga Wangan Midnight. ... Shun Oguri , born December 26, 1982 in Tokyo, Japan) is a Japanese actor, having most recently starred in the hit TV drama, Hana Yori Dango, and its sequel. ... The Nissan Skyline GT-R is an iconic Japanese sports coupé in the Nissan Skyline range. ... Image File history File links BB964. ... The Porsche 964, spoken simply as nine-six-four or nine-sixty-four, is the companys internal name for the version of the Porsche 911 model sold between 1989 and 1993. ... The Nissan 350Z is a sports car manufactured by Nissan Motor Co, LTD. The 350Z is the fifth (and current) generation of Nissans Z-car line, originally introduced in 1970 as the Datsun 240Z. The 350Z entered production in late 2002 and was sold and marketed as a 2003... Shinichiro Miki ) is a seiyū who was born on March 18, 1968; in the city of Tokyo. ...

V-Cinema

The series was adapted into a series of direct-to-video movies following in 1994, 1997 and again in 2000. They accurately depict the manga, with the exception of Akio being in his 30's. Many Japanese viewers hold the films in high regard for their realistic portrayal of the racing with the cars having the speed they have in the manga. Japanese V-Cinema is the industry of Direct-to-video that appeared in Japan in the 1980s. ...

• Wangan Midnight (湾岸MidNight), 1991
• Wangan Midnight II (湾岸ミッドナイトII), 1993
• Wangan Midnight III (湾岸ミッドナイトIII), 1993
• Wangan Midnight 4 (湾岸ミッドナイト4), 1993
• Wangan Midnight Special Director's Cut Complete Edition (湾岸ミッドナイトスペシャル ディレクターズカット完全版), 1994
• Wangan Midnight Final: GT-R Legend - Act 1 (湾岸ミッドナイト FINAL ~GT-R伝説 ACT1~), 1994
• Wangan Midnight Final: GT-R Legend - Act 2 (湾岸ミッドナイト FINAL ~GT-R伝説 ACT2~), 1994
• Devil GT-R Full Tuning (魔王GT-R チューニングのすべて), 1994
• Showdown! Devil GT-R (対決！魔王GT-R), 1994
• Wangan Midnight S30 vs. Gold GT-R - Part I (新湾岸ミッドナイト S30vsゴールドGT-R Part I), 1998
• Wangan Midnight S30 vs. Gold GT-R - Part II (新湾岸ミッドナイト S30vsゴールドGT-R Part II), 1998
• Wangan Midnight Return (湾岸ミッドナイト リターン), 2001

Video games

Main article: Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune

The series has been adapted into a series of video games, developed by Namco, first released in 2001. A PS2 version of Wangan Midnight was released later in 2002. A complete re-imagining of the game series, Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune, was released in 2004 to arcades only, followed by another sequel, Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 2, in 2005. Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 3 will be released in 2007 in the arcade, with a sequel to the original game following on the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable platforms. Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune is an arcade racing game based on a manga entitled Wangan Midnight, which follows street racing on Tokyos freeways. ... Namco Ltd ) is a amusement company based in Japan, best known overseas for video games development. ... Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune is an arcade racing game based on a manga entitled Wangan Midnight, which follows street racing on Tokyos freeways. ... The PlayStation 3 , trademarked PLAYSTATION®3,[3] commonly abbreviated PS3) is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment; successor to the PlayStation 2. ... The PlayStation Portable , officially abbreviated as PSP) is a handheld game console released and currently manufactured by Sony Computer Entertainment. ...

The original Wangan Midnight game was also the inspiration for many of the later titles in Genki's Shutokou Battle series, since the original WM game was co-developed by Genki and Namco. Genki (元気) is a Japanese developer of computer and video games. ... Shutokou Battle (首都高バトル), aka Syutokoh Battle, is an arcade oriented driving game series created by Genki in 1994. ... Genki (元気) is a Japanese developer of computer and video games. ... Namco Ltd ) is a amusement company based in Japan, best known overseas for video games development. ...

Anime

The series has been adapted into an anime series, which premiered in Japan on the anime satellite television network Animax. The series is produced by OB Planning, the same studio behind the production of the Initial D anime series.^[1] Keiichi Tsuchiya (土屋圭市) is responsible for editorial supervision on this series as well. “Animé” redirects here. ... Satellite television is television delivered by way of communications satellites, as compared to conventional terrestrial television and cable television. ... Animax ) is a Japanese anime satellite television network, established and owned by Sony Corporation, and dedicated to broadcasting anime programming. ... For other uses, see Initial D (disambiguation). ... Keiichi Tsuchiya , born January 30, 1956, Nagano, Japan) is a professional racing driver. ...

References

Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... is the 83rd day of the year (84th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

• Ride The Line
• Wangan Midnight Expressway
• Anime News Service
• Anime News Network
• [1]

See also

• Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune
• Initial D