I think we also need to look at how the showrunners handled the situation.
@Dorama summed up what went down nicely
Let's make it clear: she is not the problem here. She made a small mistake, an outburst of anger, frustation and desperation. She apologized and was forgiven. That should have been the end of it.
The entire production staff also witness both the conflict and the resolution here. Akane acted out from a bad place and Yuki understood and forgave her.
We're trying to be fed the idea that the show "isn't scripted", that the actors determine how the story goes, but just because there's no script or it's lightly scripted doesn't mean there's no editing/semi-written storylines/etc. That's not how reality TV works lol. We also know that this show's been around for a while, so the people involved have a pretty good understanding of how the internet responds to contestants they hate, especially if some nobody goes after the fan favorite. Failing to film the real reconciliation isn't the issue. Failing to either 1) make the call not to show the interaction or 2) show the interaction but also
recreate the reconciliation to protect Akane and accurately represent the real resolution, is the genuine problem here. They want ratings and viewer interaction, and having both those things mean Akane gets sacrificed to fan backlash.
This show they're on isn't the Bachelor. The audience isn't in on the artifice, they're actively lead to believe this show is "realistic". If someone gets the villain storyline on the Bachelor, everyone loves to hate them, but they don't think that's actually what the contestant is like irl.
Here's the thing. I love Oshi no Ko. I love the story. I love the characters. I love the content. But as of right now, in this particular arc in these chapters, the manga is trying to criticize unwarranted, hateful fan backlash (which, valid) while failing to address the selling of manufactured, fake "authenticity" by the studio. The show and the showrunners are ultimately the ones failing Akane here, and they aren't going to care until she gets hurt because that's when their bottom line starts being affected. If this series is trying to address genuine issues with the entertainment industry and what it's like to "really work in it", then the manga also needs to acknowledge the bigger picture as well. Fans can be nasty, awful people, but reality shows know this, and don't try to protect their actors either. Both are at fault.
I'm curious to see what happens in this arc, but I'm going to keep sitting with a feeling of frustration if this particular part of the issue remains unexamined lmao.
