Wangan Midnight - Ep 21-23

Just as expected, I really shouldn’t review an anime until I finish the whole series. These three episodes was on a whole new level.
Eiji reconsiders his life as a racer or something else, clearing his doubts and finally having no regrets anymore. Eiji really shows that Wangan Midnight can actually bring depth to their characters rather than being just a blunt anime about cars, speed and who the fastest is.
Akio gets another reality check of his devoted Z after a race with BlackBird and Eiji’s Evo. And later seeks out Rikako, a newly introduced tuner character in the anime, to take his Z to even greater heights.
There isn’t anything much on Blackbird this few episodes except that he now knows what it feels like to drive with instincts rather than logic a.k.a. Akio style.
And FINALLY! Reina admitted that she does have a thing towards Akio, but it’s not like nobody suspected it. At least viewers can finally confirm it from her... in an indirect sort of way... I guess.
Putting all these together, this 3 episodes or rather the Eiji story arch is definitely the peak of the series so far. Let’s hope the performance will last till the final few episodes. For once the spotlight was not focused on the Z or Blackbird or their drivers.

Wangan Midnight

Asakura Akio is a young student and street racer who has a beloved car – a first generation S30 Nissan Fairlady 240 Z. Immediately upon discovering it in a scrap yard he's attracted to it, an attraction that later grows into an obsession. After restoring the car to its former glory, he takes it down a stretch of highway known as Wangan where most street racers challenge one another to be the Wangan Champ. Source: Anime-planet.com



Instead of an anime about cars and it’s technical side. Wangan Midnight actually focuses more on the psychological point of view from the racers and tuners.

Wangan Midnight seemed to have used a double edged strategy. On one side it probably attracted more mature viewers as the content and script does actually feels mature; on another side it probably lost viewers who are into it hoping to feel some excitement.


The cars are actually well designed. The CG looks good. Not super but there’s no denying that the cars look sweet! (I do have a passion for cars in case you were wondering, and no, my rating is not biased by it) Unfortunately, the races are actually rather dull, even with all the nice looking cars.


Initially, I could only bring myself to give Wangan Midnight a doubted 3-Star. Being an anime of a specific genre, it already limits its fans. And not having much exciting scenes will limit its fans even more. But that doesn’t mean that it isn’t a good watch.


However, as it nears the end of the series, things really pick up and you realize that Wangan Midnight really does have something to show for after all. Especially from episode 21 onwards. Successful in bringing depth to certain characters and introducing more than just cars. This title makes a comeback to a 4-Stars title.

Wangan Midnight
Rating: 4-Stars
Torrents: Animesuki

If it fails to inspire you viewers, might I try to suggest saving several episodes to watch in one go. Rather than watching one episode and having to wait a week or two for another, which to me kills the suspense dreadfully. This advise actually applies to all animes. :p