Wangan Midnight | |
Cover of the first volume of the manga
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湾岸ミッドナイト (Wangan Middonaito) |
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Genre | Action, Racing, Drama, car tuning |
Manga | |
Written by | Michiharu Kusunoki |
Published by | Kodansha |
Demographic | Seinen |
Magazine | Young Magazine |
Original run | 1990 – 2008 |
Volumes | 42 |
Manga | |
Wangan Midnight: C1 Runner | |
Written by | Michiharu Kusunoki |
Published by | Kodansha |
Demographic | Seinen |
Magazine | Young Magazine |
Original run | 2009 – 2012 |
Volumes | 12 |
Manga | |
Ginkai no Speed Star | |
Written by | Michiharu Kusunoki |
Published by | Shogakukan |
Demographic | Seinen |
Magazine | Big Comic Spirits |
Original run | 2014 – 2015 |
Volumes | 2 |
Anime television series | |
Directed by | Tsuneo Tominaga |
Produced by | Keiichi Tsuchiya |
Studio | A.C.G.T |
Original network | Animax |
Original run | June 8, 2007 – September 13, 2008 |
Episodes | 26 |
Wangan Midnight (Japanese: 湾岸ミッドナイト Hepburn: 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 which Initial D is also serialized. 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.
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.
The Wangan Midnight manga ended with volume 42 but has been followed with a new arc called Wangan Midnight: C1 Runner (湾岸ミッドナイト C1ランナー) with another 12 volumes. It ended in July 2012.
The third arc started in 2014, but due to the change of publisher no longer went under the Wangan Midnight name and was renamed to Ginkai no Speed Star (銀灰のスピードスター).
The story gets its roots from the street racing that occurs on Tokyo's Shuto Expressway Bayshore Route. 'Wangan' (literally bayshore in Japanese) is the endonym of this longest, straightest road in the entire country. There is also road 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 extremely high power engines.