#1 is here

We wanted to differentiate it from “The Kindaichi Case Files” and “Detective Conan.”

–In #1, you mentioned that the manga “Gaslight Stray Dog Detectives” (hereafter “Gaslight”), which you wrote the original story for, was influenced by “Liar Game,” and while it is a mystery, it also places emphasis on action elements.
In that respect, teaming up with Toshimitsu Matsubara, who is known for hits such as the boxing manga “Rikudou,” seems like an ideal fit. Did you make any requests?

Yugo Aosaki (hereinafter, the same)My request to the editor in charge was that the mystery-like directing skills were secondary, and I wanted someone who could draw action and had an analog taste that was close to my image. The setting is old London, so I thought that if the drawings were too CG-like, it wouldn’t suit.

At that time, I never imagined that a big name like Professor Matsubara would agree to take on the project.

— “Mysterious directing abilityis secondary“Is this because it is something that can be driven by the scenario?

That’s one reason, but I also felt that I needed to differentiate myself from the great mystery mangas “The Kindaichi Case Files” and “Detective Conan.” In “Gaslight,” rather than the so-called full-scale mystery technique of “an incident occurs and the culprit is found among the suspects,” I aimed for a more lively, hard-boiled style.

I had an image of a story unfolding in which the protagonist runs around searching for evidence, and the composition of the case changes rapidly. So I thought it would be good to have a manga artist who can express a sense of speed.

–I see. It may be a cliché, but the action scenes drawn by Mr. Matsubara are really cool. Isn’t it a bit of a pressure to give such detailed frame-by-frame instructions to Mr. Matsubara?

That’s also a pressure (laughs). I think that Mr. Matsubara has depicted the “clash of souls” in his previous works. On the other hand, mystery writers are logical, so there may be some opposite aspects. I hope that a good chemical reaction will occur there.

–What do you think when you actually see this “manuscript filled with soul”?

It’s just amazing. If you add a comment to the scenario like “This is the highlight of this character,” they’ll include an image that exceeds your expectations. You can really trust them.