NIS Agent Reincarnated as a Genius Actor - Chapter 300

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 300. Cliché

Yeon-woo doesn’t usually have a big appetite, and since he always manages his diet, he rarely eats chicken.

 

‘Hmm, if I do eat chicken, it’s probably when friends come over to my place? Or when I go down to my parents’ house and So-hyeon says she wants some.’

 

He couldn’t remember ever ordering chicken for himself throughout this entire lifetime.

 

‘But now Seong-sik and Jun-su have gone to the military, and it’s been quite a while since I went down to the family home…’

 

Naturally, there was no occasion to eat chicken. So this was chicken he was eating for the first time in months, and today it tasted particularly delicious.

 

When he returned to Seoul, he thought he might order some even when he was alone at home.

 

The crispy fried coating that brought out the crunchy texture, topped with sweet and spicy seasoning mixed together.

 

If even Yeon-woo, who had no appetite for food, felt this way, the other members’ eyes were practically rolling back.

 

“Wow, why is this so delicious?”

“I know, right. When this airs later, viewers are probably going to say we’re being too obvious about the PPL…”

“No, we’re not forcing ourselves to act – it’s genuinely delicious.”

 

When you watch videos of celebrities having parties on broadcasts, there’s a common pattern.

 

Even though they’re clearly talking to each other, laughing and chatting for a long time, the amount of food on the table barely decreases and stays the same.

 

But the chicken in front of the Gaeyado Island members wasn’t like that.

 

They had brought four chickens, but they began disappearing in an instant, like snow melting away.

 

Yeon-woo smiled slightly as he watched this scene.

 

‘We skipped breakfast, and for lunch we shared one small octopus among six people, so they must be hungry. They burned calories all morning trying to catch chickens.’

 

Yeon-woo looked at the members tearing into their chicken, then turned his gaze to the production crew.

 

Among the production crew, Yeon-woo glanced at PD Joo Hyeon-seok for a moment and fell into thought.

 

‘Seeing how he managed to insert a PPL in such a short time, it doesn’t seem like it was planned from the beginning – he probably contacted the company. He’s good at improvising and quick at assessing situations.’

 

As they would increasingly film more original content like this variety show in the future, if he could build a good long-term relationship with PD Joo Hyeon-seok, it seemed like the synergy effect would grow stronger over time.

 

Meanwhile, PD Joo Hyeon-seok was also looking at Yeon-woo among the cast members eating chicken.

 

‘Honestly, I didn’t think the PPL I requested on the spot would actually work out… This must be because of that young actor.’

 

Of course, the background for a contract being quickly finalized even with a sudden PPL request was partly due to the presence of other actors besides Ryu Yeon-woo.

 

Han So-hyeon, Son Jin-wook, and Jin Yu-han were all figures that any advertiser would covet.

 

But since all those actors belonged to Saebyeol, and Ryu Yeon-woo was essentially the one who moved Saebyeol, no further explanation was needed.

 

PD Joo Hyeon-seok began seriously considering a partnership with Saebyeol Media.

 

While handling “Saebyeol Family” and this “Summer’s Table Season 2,” there had been no interference with production whatsoever.

 

Saebyeol simply let him freely create the variety show he wanted to make while acting as a reliable supporter from behind.

 

This was essentially the ideal that all producers dream of.

 

‘If Saebyeol has another project coming up, I’d like to take that on too…’

 

***

 

After finishing three days of filming on Gaeyado Island, the members returned to Seoul via Gunsan Port.

 

Without time to rest, Yeon-woo stopped by the salon with Son Jin-wook and Jin Yu-han, then headed straight to a studio in Gangnam.

 

Only after finishing a YouTube-based interview shoot that had been scheduled for “Parabola” promotion could he finally catch his breath.

 

“Phew, I had adapted to island life and almost forgot, but today is already the second week’s broadcast.”

 

Jin Yu-han nodded at Son Jin-wook’s words.

 

“Netflix is really pushing it hard. I wonder if the ratings will go up…”

“Oh, this is the first time I’ve seen you worry about ratings, Yu-han?”

 

Jin Yu-han had never really thought much about ratings or box office success while filming projects until now.

 

It wasn’t because everything he filmed became a hit, of course.

Since he had filmed many projects, some of them had failed.

 

He simply found joy in acting itself, and thought that the results afterward were already beyond his control, so he believed in not getting too caught up in success or failure.

 

But it had been different since joining Saebyeol.

 

Actually, experiencing “Saebyeol Theater Troupe” with Ryu Yeon-woo before the current Saebyeol Entertainment and Saebyeol Media had given him a sense of responsibility and belonging.

 

If before it felt like he was simply cast in projects, now it felt like he had become part of Saebyeol and was building something together.

 

“Ratings don’t determine victory or defeat, but honestly, I hope we beat ‘Daytona.'”

 

Son Jin-wook grinned at Jin Yu-han’s words.

 

“Heh. I feel the same way, man.”

 

Then Yeon-woo, who had gone to the restroom, came out shaking water droplets from his hands.

 

“Since today is episode 3’s broadcast, tomorrow is episode 4.”

 

Son Jin-wook tilted his head at the obvious statement that came from Yeon-woo’s mouth.

 

“Huh? Today is Wednesday, so tomorrow is Thursday… isn’t that the same thing…?”

 

But Jin Yu-han seemed to understand and nodded his head.

 

“I see. Episode 4 is coming out.”

“Why? Is there something special about episode 4 airing…? Ah!”

 

Son Jin-wook also seemed to realize and clapped his hands.

 

“That’s coming out? The friendly match we filmed in advance!”

“Yes. The full version is scheduled to be released after episode 4 airs tomorrow. The preview alone got quite a good response, so it should be worth looking forward to.”

 

Son Jin-wook nodded at Yeon-woo’s words.

 

“That’s right. These days, for a drama to be successful, it needs some kind of definitive clip.”

 

As Son Jin-wook said, whether it’s NeTube shorts or short clips that go viral through other social media, something needs to blow up to create a sudden influx of viewers.

 

In that sense, the synergy between the first friendly match in the drama that would appear in episode 4 and the actual friendly match with the celebrity basketball team ‘Fast’ was worth anticipating.

 

Jin Yu-han recalled the moment when Yeon-woo dribbled the ball forward, raised four fingers high, and shouted ‘Episode 4 Pattern’.

 

He never knew that moment would come back as a promotional marketing tool like this.

 

“Don’t tell me you planned it for promotion from that time…?”

 

Then Yeon-woo chuckled and shook his head.

 

“No way. Back then I was just burning with competitive spirit, thinking about how to win the game.”

 

Then Son Jin-wook stretched and rubbed his neck.

 

“Yawn, anyway, you both worked hard. I’ve been sleeping outside for days and fatigue has built up, making me stiff. Let’s go in and rest well.”

“Yes. Thank you for your hard work.”

 

After finishing their greetings, Yeon-woo got into Kim Min-su’s waiting car.

 

“Today marks the start of the second week’s broadcast.”

 

Yeon-woo nodded at Kim Min-su’s words from the driver’s seat.

 

“We were just talking about that earlier.”

“Ah, I see. By the way, ‘Daytona’ has been pushing their promotion really hard, will we be okay?”

 

Hearing Kim Min-su’s worried voice, Yeon-woo smiled slightly.

 

Not just Kim Min-su, but everyone seemed interested in the competitive structure between ‘Daytona’ and ‘Parabola’.

 

Media outlets also focused on their viewership competition when publishing articles.

It made perfect sense since both premiered on the same day at the same time.

 

And for ‘Parabola’, whose production budget was less than half of ‘Daytona’s’, such a competitive structure was actually welcome.

 

Every time they spent expensive money on promotion, ‘Parabola’ got free publicity alongside them due to articles about the viewership competition.

 

“Pulling on rice stalks doesn’t make the rice grow faster.”

 

‘Daytona’, which was behind in the 2049 viewership ratings, wouldn’t see dramatic increases just by sticking to the classic marketing approach of simply pouring money into it.

 

Kim Min-su nodded after hearing Yeon-woo’s words.

 

“Oh, that’s a cool saying. Rice stalks…”

“It’s something Master Yi Hwang said.”

“Ah, the one on the 5000 won bill…? He really was a great person.”

 

At Kim Min-su’s words, Yeon-woo scratched his head.

 

‘Hmm, the 5000 won bill is Yi I… No, whatever. What matters is that the meaning gets across.’

 

Yeon-woo quietly nodded and let it slide.

 

***

 

As Yeon-woo predicted, the reaction exploded.

 

Episode 3’s content was about Ryu Yeon-woo gradually becoming interested in basketball, with the tsundere Jin Yu-han and the passionate neighborhood big brother type Son Jin-wook taking turns giving him personal lessons.

 

In the drama, Ryu Yeon-woo only played basketball because his splitting headaches miraculously disappeared when he did, but his skills were so poor he didn’t even know the basic rules of basketball.

 

– Yu-han, the former player, should teach him. Shouldn’t an expert systematically teach a basketball beginner?

– No, why should I bother.

– Because you’re a former player.

– Sigh, it seems like it’ll be really bothersome, but I’ll specially teach you a little. I’m a former player, you know.

– Th, thank you… But why are you speaking informally…?

 

As his skills gradually improved, Ryu Yeon-woo soon made such rapid progress that his teammates called him a basketball genius.

 

It was natural.

 

To Ryu Yeon-woo’s eyes, everyone’s movements seemed slow as if in slow motion.

 

Cutting off pass routes and breaking through defenders with fake motions were easy tasks for him.

 

That’s how a friendly match was arranged with the basketball team that was supposedly the best in that neighborhood, which was the content up to episode 3.

 

And the long-awaited episode 4 was the first episode where a proper basketball game would take place.

 

At first, since it was their first time playing in a proper indoor basketball court with referees, even though they were amateurs, they were helplessly pushed back by their opponents.

 

But as the game progressed, the true value of their teamwork, which had grown closer through practicing together, began to show.

As if they could understand each other just by looking into each other’s eyes, their perfectly synchronized movements gradually began to close the score gap with their opponents.

 

It was a clichéd progression typical of sports dramas.

 

While cliché refers to hackneyed content or stereotypes that seem cookie-cutter, conversely, the fact that something becomes so clichéd means it has been used so much because it’s a ‘proven development’ that people love, refined through countless trials and errors.

 

‘Since there have been almost no sports dramas recently, it has become a semi-forcibly fresh genre, but I thought that twisting the development too much would actually backfire.’

 

Considering that point, he filled the parts that needed emphasis with what’s called a ‘familiar taste.’

 

After all, even if it was a clichéd progression in the sports shows that flooded the 80s and 90s, wouldn’t it be a ‘fresh taste’ for the young generation experiencing ‘sports drama’ for the first time through 「Parabola」?

 

At the same time, a 45-minute full-version variety show was uploaded to NeTube.

 

– [Pre-release] TVM Variety 「Parabola-Training Camp」 Ep.0 Saebyeol Vs. Fast Explosive Friendly Match

 

When the briefly edited preview was released last time, heated debates unfolded in the comments section with arguments like ‘It’s staged Vs. It’s not’ and ‘They just changed the order through editing and probably lost in the end Vs. It’s a thrilling comeback victory.’

 

This time, the main episode of that friendly match was uploaded in its entirety.

 

The Internet began to buzz because of the 45-minute pre-release variety show.

 

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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