Wangan Midnight (湾岸ミッドナイト Wangan Middonaito) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Michiharu Kusunoki. It was first serialized in Shogakukan's Big Comic Spirits since 1990, but was later serialized in Kodansha's Young Magazine. In 1999, it won the Kodansha Manga Award for general manga. Years before Wangan Midnight was created, Michiharu Kusunoki worked on a similar series known as Shakotan Boogie.
- Japanese Release – 42 Volumes (1990–2008)
- C1 Runner Japanese Release – 12 Volumes (2008–2012)
- Taiwanese release – 38 Volumes
- Chuang Yi release – 42 Volumes
- C1 Runner Chuang Yi release – 11 volumes (ongoing)
- Shutoko SPL - Ginkai no Speedster - 7 volumes (2017- ongoing)
The first Wangan Midnight volume was released in Japan in 1990, and has never been translated into any other languages during its publication run, and the final volume was published in mid-2008. However, Taiwan-based Sharp Point Press has obtained license for translating the manga into Chinese, but this was stopped after volume 38 due to an expired license. There have been no announcements as to a new distributor in Taiwan for continuing or restarting the manga.
In Singapore, the main Wangan Midnight manga, along with C1 Runner volumes, has been translated by Chuang Yi into English for Singaporean readers. The C1 Runner arc has been translated into English by them as well.
Synopsis[]
The story resolves around street racing in Tokyo's Bayshore Route (湾岸, Wangan), as well as other roads on the Shuto Expressway network. The story begins with high school student Akio Asakura driving a red Nissan 300ZX Z31 with his best friend, Ma and other girls, encountering a black Porsche 911 Turbo nicknamed "Blackbird" on the Wangan whilst driving home. Akio attempts to give chase, but is unable to keep up with the Blackbird, which is driven by a medical doctor named Tatsuya Shima.
Determined to drive a faster car, Akio visits a local junkyard where he encounters a totaled, rusty old Nissan Fairlady Z S30Z with a highly tuned L28 engine. Previously having encountered it being originally driven by someone who has the same name to him, he learns that the car is supposedly "cursed," being extremely difficult to drive and having a history of multiple accidents, earning it the name "The Devil Z" (悪魔のZ, Akuma no Zetto). However, this does not dissuade him, and he restores the car back to its former glory. When racing with Blackbird, Akio tries to win, only to crash his Nissan multiple times. He also gets to meet Eriko Asakura, the sister of the original driver who shares the same name as the current Akio, who previously died in a car accident while racing with Blackbird.
As he develops his career as the infamous owner of the Devil Z, Akio meets many other tuners and racers along the way such as Reina Akikawa, a fashion model and TV co-host who drives a grey (later white) Nissan Skyline GT-R BNR32, and Jun Kitami, the original creator of the Devil Z and Blackbird. The central plot revolves around the rivalry between the Devil Z and Blackbird for Wangan superiority as Akio tries to maintain his loyalty with the car and control it from crashing, with other racers trying to compete against both of them who are also seeking to oust their record.