The publisher of the manga series “Sexy Tanaka-san” has criticized Nippon Television Network for its alleged “disingenuous” attitude towards the television drama adaptation of the manga.
A special investigative team from Shogakukan released a report on Monday following the death of manga author, Hinako Ashihara, in January.
The report states that Nippon TV may have failed to pass on the request of the screenwriter of the drama series Ashihara to the TV adaptation, broadcast between October and December last year, in order to stay true to the original manga series.
It noted that the Nippon TV side had taken an “insincere” attitude towards script revisions.
Ashihara grew increasingly suspicious of the screenwriter through her interactions with the Nippon TV side through Shogakukan and wrote the scripts for the final two episodes of the drama series herself.
She found herself in the middle of a social media firestorm after she refuted a social media post posted by the screenwriter expressing her bewilderment over her replacement. Ashihara was found dead shortly afterwards.
While it was said that the drama series ultimately incorporated Ashihara’s requests, the report stated, “We cannot say with certainty that the extreme mental tension that built up during the script-writing process did not influence (Ashihara’s behavior).”
The report also said Shogakukan could have offered to support Ashihara through comments on social media posts.
