Tatsuya Shima (2024)

Tatsuya Shima, also known as the "The King of Wangan",andBlackbird to most people, is the secondary main character and deuteragonist in Wangan Midnight. He drives a 911 Turbo in the manga, anime, and Japanese versions of the Maximum Tune games including all localizations of WMMT4, and the 350Z in the English version of the games, sans Maximum Tune 4. Shima is Akio's rival and a respected surgeon, hence why he rarely appears with Akio.

In the Hanshin Expressway arc of the manga, he sensed that he is losing, caused him to lose the will to race. Jun Kitami instead invited him to Osaka, where Kitami says that there is a man that Shima must meet.

Biography[]

Tatsuya works as doctor and is a skilled surgeon. He comes from a wealthy background. He is in a relationship with Eriko Asakura, the sister of his deceased former rival, Akio Asakura.

He reveals that he puts most of his salary into modifying his 911 Turbo. Tatsuya is a quiet and often stoic young guy. Tatsuya is a serious driver behind and often does not allow his emotions to overcome him during a race. He witnessed the death of his rival and friend Asakura, who died in the Devil Z whilst battling the Blackbird two years before the events of the manga and anime.

Initially, he promises his girlfriend that he would have Devil Z scrapped as a sign of respect to his deceased rival. However, After meeting the young Akio Asakura driving the Z, his feelings towards the car change and becomes motivated to keep it alive and running. He then recants his promise when he stops Eriko from driving the Devil Z into the water.

Car[]

• Porsche 911 Turbo S (930) (Anime/Manga, WMMT6 onward, early)
• Porsche 911 Turbo 3.6 (964) (Anime/Manga/Movie, WMMT6 onward, late)
• Gemballa 3.8 RS/Nissan Fairlady Z (350Z) (WMMT1-WMMT3DX+)
• RUF CTR (WMMT4-WMMT5DX+, early)
• RUF RCT (WMMT4-WMMT5DX+, late)

Leitmotif[]

• Black Pain (Wangan Midnight anime)
• Blackbird's Theme (Wangan Midnight R)
• Destination Blackout (Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune/Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 2)
• Black Pressure (Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 3/3DX/3DX+)
• Get you Cornered (Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 3/3DX/3DX+)
• No Turning Back (Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 4)
• Live with You (Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 4)
• Black Zone (Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 4)
• The Final Countdown (Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 4)
• Give Up or Keep Trying Maxi5 (Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 5/5DX/5DX+)
• Fascination (Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 5/5DX/5DX+)
• Avatar of Speed (Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 5/5DX/5DX+)
• Black Phoenix (Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune 6)

Behind the Scenes[]

Portrayal[]

In the Wangan Midnight anime, Tatsuya Shima is voiced by Shinichiro Miki, who is also known as the voice of Takumi Fujiwara of Initial D, another Kodansha manga. In the live-action movie, he is portrayed by Kazuki Kato, who is also known as Daisuke Kazama/Kamen Rider Drake in Kamen Rider Kabuto.

Car[]

His car, dubbed the Blackbird in the anime/manga/game (Porsche 911 Turbo in anime/manga or Nissan 350Z in video game, in exception of Japanese releases of WMMT where he drives a Porsche 911-based Gemballa and a RUF CTR in the PS3 version of Wangan Midnight) is Devil Z's arch rival. The Porsche/RUF version of the Blackbird is tuned to 700hp, along with an aero kit. Since his car is called Blackbird, it is obvious that the vehicle is a black version of the RUF CTR Yellowbird.

A real-life version of the car actually exists, known as the Yoshida Specials 911, and is owned by a car salesman who aspired to be a doctor. It ran an uprated and stroked 3.6 liter Porsche flat-six engine from a later 911, which produced well over 700 hp. On one occasion, the real-life counterpart managed to maintain 350 km/h for 15 minutes on the Wangan. Michiharu Kusunoki, the creator of Wangan Midnight, once owned a black 911 (an older 930 instead of 964), which he gave away to be modified for use in the 1991 live-action film, only to found it to be a difficult car to drive once returned. He then sold it to a friend, who extensively modified the car and fitted a single turbo from a 1980s Formula 1, theoretically enabling it to reach 400 km/h on the right gearing.

Photos[]

Trivia[]

• In several Wangan Midnight Maximum Tune and Video games, Tatsuya's car, BlackBird was a Porsche 911 Turbo 3.6 (964). However the manufacturer is licensed exclusive deal by Electronic Arts at the time and not to appear in other racing games until Porsche and EA contract ended, which did so in 2016. Several Porsche model was replaced by Ruf Automobile (CTR) or Gemballa (3.8 RS). From WMMT 1 until 3DX+, the Gemballa was only exclusive and playable for Japanese version and replaced by Nissan Fairlady Z (350Z) for International edition due licensing issue. In WMMT 6, with the contract between EA and Porsche expired, the appearance of Porsche cars in the game enabled the Blackbird to be the 911 Turbo 3.6 (964) as is in the manga and anime.
• Most of his theme songs or leitmotif have the word "black", hence the name Blackbird.