Nugoeihuvi and Wiyrkomi Clash Over Comedy Holodrama

Maurasi, The Forge – The Caldari Business Tribunal is hearing a complaint from the Wiyrkomi megacorporation today, regarding a new comedy holodrama developed by Bakkomolu Productions, a subsidiary of rival Caldari megacorporation Nugoeihuvi (NOH).

Family Business, a new comedic entry into the popular Caldari genre of azelokaivatko holodramas, follows the fortunes and foibles of a fictional great family, the Rekotaa, as they preside over the Kurashinni megacorporation. With the series beginning its second season, many critics have commented on the parallels between the fictional Kurashinni and the Wiyrkomi megacorp. As the first season closed, the similarity of the Rekotaa family to Wiyrkomi's own Seituoda family became increasingly apparent, with the parodic nature of the drama attracting considerable comment across executive social media networks.

While Wiyrkomi had previously released statements condemning the series, the new legal action was triggered by the leak of a season two script that includes an implied incestuous relationship in the Rekotaa family. According to sources who have seen the leaked script, the relationship is played for comedic effect when the notoriously rigid patriarch of the family, Ytuulan Rekotaa, is oblivious to two of his family members engaging in a relationship right under his nose.

"Our makeup artists put an hour in everyday making sure Ytuulan's goatee is the exact right shade of Seituoda steel," said an anonymous source cited in the complaint filing. "The dyes are expensive but Director Kinnuva's a real stickler for authenticity." The CBT frequently hears complaints against Nugoeihuvi, which was the target of 21% of its investigations in YC118.

Wiyrkomi has filed suit in the CBT for damages to its reputation and businesses. "When people run a search on GalNet for the Wiyrkomi Corporation, the fictional Kurashinni comes up in the top results," Wiyrkomi Senior Executive Counsel Ikane Hadonei commented. "Searching the Seituoda name generates artwork of Rekotaa family members engaged in obscene acts. Even if the conflation wasn't intended, it is clearly happening, and it is hurting our bottom line and our reputation."

Bakkomolu Productions spokesperson Silla Iwi disputed the complaints and promised to fight them in the tribunal. "Viewers can see our disclaimer in the beginning of the show: any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. We only distribute the show to foreign audiences, which Wiyrkomi should have little concern about. The show has been a critical success among those audiences, so any confusion can only advance their prospects."

Also listed in the complaint are allegations that the NOH subsidiary has been cooperating with third-party distributors and criminal organizations to ensure that copies of the holoseries make it back across the State border and into the hands of Wiyrkomi employees. A first season copy of Family Business signed by a female cast member and addressed to a low level Wiyrkomi Peace Corps officer was submitted as evidence along with the complaint.

When asked to comment on the evidence, Iwi responded, "We can't be held responsible for the actions of smugglers and other criminals. Perhaps if Peace Corps employees were arresting them instead of making purchases from them it wouldn't be such a problem. It's understandable that the Seituoda family would be sensitive, given the no doubt baseless rumors about the nature of their familial relationships."

International audiences and reviewers have speculated about inappropriate relationships within the family for several years following the publication of an edition of NOH-MAG subtitled as the "Wiyr-Kiss-Me, Ty-U-Aul-Up" issue by NOH subsidiary Ettru Tsiiju Publishing. The edition's salacious contents and the subtitle's apparent play on the names of Wiyrkomi and the late Tyunaul Seituoda, the family patriarch who transformed Wiyrkomi into the powerhouse it is today, generated a notable scandal in YC113.

The CBT's consideration of the case is likely to take several weeks or even months.