In a recent interview with Bunshun, Gosho Aoyama revealed that he almost broke up Detective Conan manga due to persistent interference from the editorial department.

This revelation comes on the heels of Aoyama's recent appearance in the NHK documentary Professional: Shigoto no Ryuugiwhich highlighted his creative process.

Aoyama has shared this before Detective Conan transitioned to a feature-length animated film in 1997, it was about to abandon serialization in Weekly Shonen Sunday.

The intense pressure to present new cases weekly and the constant demands from his editorial superiors pushed him to the limit.

“It's pretty hard to come up with new cases every week, isn't it? Plus, the higher-ups in the editorial department were constantly telling me to do this or that, which I really hated. So I decided to take a break with my assistants and we all went to Las Vegas.“

Aoyama firmly decided to end the serialization upon returning from the trip.

However, a crucial phone call from the editorial department while he was still in Las Vegas changed everything. The call informed him that the animated film adaptation of Detective Conan had been approved.

This development rekindled Aoyama's passion and commitment to the series, as he had always had a strong passion for films, particularly animated films.

This was not the first time Aoyama spoke out about editorial interference and pressure.

In Gosho Aoyama's 30th anniversary book, published in 2017, Aoyama recounted a particularly disheartening incident during the serialization of Yaiba (1988-1993).

When an editor criticized a character's facial expression, Aoyama asked the editor to demonstrate the desired look. In response, the editor crumpled up the storyboard paper, set it on fire, and threw it at Aoyama.

Aoyama made his debut as a manga artist with Chotto Mattewhich was published in Weekly Shonen Sunday magazine in the winter of 1987. Shortly after, he began Magic Kaito in the same magazine. Magic Kaito the protagonist Kaito Kuroba later appeared in Case closed.

Between 1988 and 1993, Aoyama created the series Yaiba, which lasted 24 volumes. He would later release other manga series in single volumes, such as Third Baseman No.4 and Gosho Aoyama's Collection of Short Stories.

Aoyama also designed the characters for the Twilight of Edo Japan chapter of the 1994 video game Live A Live.

Aoyama began serializing Case closed in Weekly Shōnen Sunday on January 19, 1994.

Source: Bunshun