- "Blackbird! I'm going to chase it, Ma! "
- ―Akio Asakura
The impromptu battle between Akio Asakura and Tatsuya Shima is the first battle in Wangan Midnight.
Prior to the battle[]
Akio and his friend Ma, alongside two girls are seen cruising down the Wangan Line. Ma tries to impress both girls by lying to them saying that him and Akio are college students. Akio, oblivious to what Ma said, questions him if they're really college students, with Ma whispering to him to play along and not break their cover as Akio disagrees and tells him that he just wants to go home. Both girls question them what university they go to, in which Ma answers Waseda University.
As Ma and the girls are chatting, Akio checks his mirror and sees a Black Porsche 911 Turbo appearing behind him. The Porsche flashes its headlights behind Akio's Z before overtaking them, leaving Akio, Ma, and the girls shocked. Ma questions what just happened as Akio recognizes the Porsche as the famous "Blackbird" before chasing it. Akio, now behind the Blackbird, flashes his Z's headlights in which Blackbird does not give a sign but appears to accept the race.
During the battle[]
Both cars engage in a high-speed race with Akio pushing his Z31 into higher speeds. As Akio's Z31 catches up with the Blackbird, both cars start to go side-by-side with each other. As the Z31 aligns with the Blackbird, the Z slowly moves ahead but not before the Blackbird shifts a gear and effortlessly leaves the Z with immense speeds, making Akio and the others flabbergasted by it.
After the battle[]
Next day, Akio talks to his friend's brother, Ko-Chan about Blackbird and his recent battle with it as Ko-Chan tells Akio that it was impossible to win against the Ominous Porsche. Ma goes down the stairs and tells Akio to not talk with his brother too much as he is just an car addict, offending Ko-Chan, followed up with an short argument before Ma sits on his scooter alongside Akio.
Before Akio and Ma goes to school, Ko-Chan reminds Akio of a wrecked Z31 with good parts located in a scrapyard. Akio decides to skip class and goes to the scrapyard, worrying Ma. Both of them wander the scrapyard before Akio spots an first generation Nissan Fairlady Z (S30) in good condition.
Music[]
Anime[]
- feedback landing - A-bee
- Rollin' - Atsushi Umebori
- SPEED ADDICTION - Shiyu Yanagida
- Like Hell - Atsushi Umebori
Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 3[]
- Get Down To The Drive - Yuzo Koshiro
Trivia[]
- Eriko Asakura is not seen in the anime during the battle, as she was introduced in Act 2.
Differences in Media[]
- In Maximum Tune 3 until 3DX+, the race is set in Daytime instead of Nighttime. Due to the reworked Story mode introduced in Maximum Tune 4, this race is omitted.
- The Girls does not appears in any Maximum Tune games, unlike in the manga and anime.
- In 2009 live-action Wangan Midnight film, Akio drives a Z32 instead of a Z31.