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Takashi Sano's Kimi ga Kemono ni Naru Mae ni Manga Gets Live-Action Series in April

TV Tokyo announced on Friday that it is producing a live-action series adaptation of Takashi Sano's Kimi ga Kemono ni Naru Mae ni (Before You Turn Into a Beast) manga that will premiere on April 5. Hiromitsu Kitayama (seen below) plays protagonist Hajime Kanzaki.

The manga's story centers on Hajime Kanzaki, a 31-year-old proprietor of a funeral parlor. One night, he coincidentally mets an old childhood friend, the now-famous 26-year-old actress Kotone Kidō, and they end up spending the night together. When they part, Kotone leaves him with the cryptic remark: "You were the only one who could have stopped me." Later that night, a terrorist gas attack occurs at a train station in the city, claiming 666 lives. Through footage of the attack, Hajime recognizes the gas-masked perpetrator as Kotone when she takes off her mask and dies as well. Hajime then becomes embroiled in the investigation surrounding the tragedy.

Sano launched the manga in Kodansha's Weekly Young Magazine in October 2021, and ended the manga in March 2023. Kodansha published the manga's eighth and final volume in May 2023.

Sano previously drew the Back When You Called Us Devils (Kimi ga Bokura wo Akuma to Yonda Koro) manga. The manga launched in Kodansha's Magazine Pocket app in 2017, and ended with its 14th volume in October 2020.

Kodansha USA Publishing is releasing the manga in English, and released the manga's 14th volume in June 2022.

Sources: TV Tokyo, Comic Natalie