Aki Sora manga creator Masahiro Itosugi lamented in a May 16 post about being banned by Google. While uploading older works to Google Drive, Itosugi reported receiving a warning from the service. The creator reported appealing the warning only to receive the ban. Itosugi added that the ban is an issue as the artist uses a Google account for several other websites and services. Itosugi concluded, “It’s not an issue for good people, but be careful if you ponder, “Am I… a good person?”

As of press time, Itosugi’s post received 25,000 likes and 449 comments. Several commenters sympathized with the creator’s dilemma. One of the first replies asked Itosugi if the artist uploaded the files without compressing them into PSG or ZIP files. Itosugi indicated the files were uncompressed and mentioned not giving any thoughts at the time about being banned. Another commenter said Japanese parents should avoid uploading photos of their children taking baths, as Google is set to “Western standards.” Itosugi agreed with this sentiment and added Google does not allow people to change the standards according to the region they live in.

Itosugi debuted as an adult manga creator in 2004, and later transitioned to non-adult manga in 2007 with the short series Mono Kuro published under Akita Shoten‘s Champion RED Comics imprint. Itosugi has subsequently published and worked on several non-adult manga series. The artist is currently working on The Cuckolding Wizard’s Adventure under Akita Shoten‘s Champion RED Comics imprint.

The Tokyo Metropolitan Governmen revised its Youth Healthy Development Ordinance to expand the number of manga and anime that could be designated as “harmful publications” in 2011, and listed Aki Sora as one of the first six titles to be considered for restrictions. Itosugi then reported that the first and third Aki Sora manga volumes would no longer be printed. As the revised ordinance does not cover non-print distribution, the manga remained available in digital releases.

Sources: Masahiro Itosugi‘s X/Twitter account (link 2) via Otakomu

Entertainment industry news source Variety reported on Monday that Lionsgate has signed up director Jeymes Samuel (The Harder They Fall, The Book of Clarence) and writers Pat Casey and Josh Miller (live-action Sonic the Hedgehog films, Violent Night films) for the live-action film of Sega‘s Streets of Rage game.

John Wick franchise creator Derek Kolstad previously wrote a draft of the script and was set to produce, but Variety reports that Kolstad is no longer involved.

Toru Nakahara (live-action Sonic the Hedgehog film producer), Story Kitchen’s Dmitri M. Johnson, Michael Lawrence Goldberg, Timothy I. Stevenson, and dj2 Entertainment and Escape Artists will produce the film. dj2 Entertainment previously produced the live-action Sonic the Hedgehog films. Brady Fujikawa and Jon Humphrey are managing the project at Lionsgate with overseers Shuji Utsumi and Nakahara for Sega, Dmitri M. Johnson for dj2, and Tony Shaw for Escape Artists. Dj2’s Dan Jevons and Escape Artists’ Todd Black and Jason Blumenthal will also be producing.

Sega announced in 2023 it is developing a new entry in the Streets of Rage franchise, later revealed to be Streets of Rage: Revolution.

Sega released the first installment in the Streets of Rage series (Bare Knuckle in Japan) for the Sega Mega Drive and Sega Genesis in 1991. The Streets of Rage 2 sequel game released in 1992 and Streets of Rage 3 released in 1994. Paris-based developer and publisher Dotemu collaborated with Paris-based company Lizardcube and Montréal-based Guard Crush Games to release Streets of Rage 4 in April 2020.

Variety reported in 2016 that Sega was planning a film or television adaptation of the franchise. At the time the report stated the adaptation was a collaboration between Stories International — the joint venture of Sega Group and Hakuhodo DY Group for film and television projects — and production company Circle of Confusion. Deadline’s report from Monday stated Circle of Confusion is one of the companies that represents Kolstad.

Source: Variety (Jennifer Maas)