This week's new issue of Weekly Shonen Jump contained the final issue of Act-age following the manga writer's arrest for inappropriate contact with a minor. 29-year-old Act-Age author Tatsuya Matsuki apparently admitted to sneaking up on a middle-school Japanese girl and touching her inappropriately as she rode past on a bicycle. Tokyo police investigated the incident and discovered that Matsuki apparently committed a similar act with another underage minor a few blocks away.
Weekly Shonen Jump took swift action once the incident came to light (which actually occurred back in June). Act-Age was swiftly canceled and there seems to be indication that the final collected volume will not be released for quite some time (if ever). On the flip side, Shonen Jump promised to support Act-Age's artist, Shiro Usazaki who suddenly finds herself without a job.
Now, Viz Media, who holds the English-language license for Act-Age has announced that they will not be releasing the final chapter of the series. In addition, it seems all of the previous English-translated volumes for the series are no longer listed for sale. These actions by Viz and Shuiesha are being taken so that they don't financially support an admitted child predator. An upcoming stage play adaptation of Act-Age has also been canceled.
Currenlty, you can still find a few volumes of the series on Amazon. Prices on eBay appear to be creeping up as listings currently range from $40 to $180 per volume.
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Is there a method to Kei Yonagi’s madness when it comes to acting? The young actor has a family of siblings to feed, but she finds herself struggling with her psychological demons when playing a role. Her desperate acting catches the eye of a famous director, Sumiji Kuroyama, who’s looking for raw talent to mold. Can he help Yonagi navigate the cutthroat world of acting without losing her sanity?