It was nighttime in both Korea and Japan, but it was still early morning in LA. It was around six o'clock. Kang Woojin was, naturally, in the suite of a five-star hotel in Beverly Hills. His hair was still damp when he stepped out of the bathroom, since he had an early schedule, and in about an hour, he was supposed to begin an album recording session with Miley Kara.
"She wants ramen at dawn?"
Woojin muttered as if it were nothing, and at that moment, the phone lying on the wide table in the living room began to vibrate.
Bzzz.
When he checked it, it was a DM. The sender was Uramatsu Mifuyu, Japan's top actress. They had worked together on the drama The Stranger's Grim Sacrifice, and she had also appeared on Woojin's YouTube channel. The message was simple. It was a photo of her watching TV, followed by a short line of text.
(Photo)
I just started watching Boy Friend: Remake!*
After checking it, Woojin glanced at the time and murmured to himself.
"Ah, so it must have started."
That meant Boy Friend: Remake had finally aired. Woojin had known, of course, and he had been looking forward to it. But because of the time difference and the fact that he was in LA, there was no way for him to watch the live broadcast. All he could do was focus on his own work, check messages from people he knew, and watch the public reaction unfold.
"Tch, I am curious, but there's nothing I can do about it."
Woojin had not attended the preview screening for Boy Friend: Remake. In other words, he had not seen the finished version yet. Still, once it was uploaded to the Korean animation OTT platform, he would be able to watch it there.
'Looks like I just need to wait a few days.'
With that thought, Kang Woojin left the hotel. He needed to head straight to Miley Kara's recording studio. The preliminary meeting and all the planning had already wrapped up the day before, so today was effectively the official start of the album recording.
The music video shoot was scheduled for around the time the recording was nearly complete.
By the time Kang Woojin climbed into the van waiting in front of the hotel early that morning, it was nighttime in Japan, unlike in LA, and a number of people connected to him were already watching the animation. The first episode of Boy Friend: Remake was airing, and the people watching included the voice actors who had worked with him, the staff of A10 Studio, and even actors who had appeared in The Stranger's Grim Sacrifice.
In particular, Kosaku Mana, Ogimoto Yasutaro, and the other lead actors from The Stranger's Grim Sacrifice had gathered over dinner and were watching Boy Friend: Remake on a tablet.
"Oh! This is interesting, isn't it? Or is it just me?"
"No? I think it's interesting too! Even without Woojin's voice acting, it feels like this would've been a really well-made work anyway, right?"
"The animation direction is especially incredible. Is this really an A10 production? They even put careful detail into parts they easily could have glossed over."
"The original Korean work was a huge hit, and this version seems just as well-made. All the characters are so charming. But how is Kang Woojin also this good at voice acting?"
"...I heard Woojin even sang the opening song? Wow—the tone of his voice fits so well. It sounds like a veteran voice actor sang it!"
There were quite a few people in Japan who had crossed paths with Kang Woojin in the past. One example was the cast of Ametalk Show!, the only Japanese talk show Woojin had ever appeared on.
"What is this...? Woojin's voice acting quality is way too good. This isn't a level you can ever reach through practice alone."
"Ah, this is going to explode tomorrow. A lot of people were saying he only got cast because of his popularity… but… the acting is so good that the professional voice actors around him barely stand out."
"The animation quality is top-tier too. A10 must have gone all in on this project."
Far more people than usual were gathered in front of their TVs. And of course, it was not only people connected to Kang Woojin. Plenty of ordinary Japanese viewers were watching too. The point was simple. Far more people than usual had tuned in for the broadcast.
The runtime of Boy Friend: Remake was not especially long.
Including the opening and ending, it ran for around twenty-five minutes.
Depending on how you looked at it, that might have seemed long or short. But the impact it had on the Japanese animation industry was anything but small. The interest from the Japanese press and public, as well as the attention of countless animation studios, proved that.
In any case, episode one of Boy Friend: Remake ended at around 10:40 p.m.
From that exact moment, the Japanese social media sphere leaped into an uproar.
[@MU_iiii89]
[Boy Friend: Remake is seriously so fun!!?? It's not just a romantic comedy, there's music too! And the opening and ending are both so good!! And Kang Woojin's voice acting is seriously insane!??]
Posts about Boy Friend: Remake started pouring in.
──────────
Around the same time the first broadcast of Boy Friend: Remake wrapped up smoothly in Japan, all Kang Woojin could do in the early LA morning was check Japanese social media and the press. Even on the way to Miley Kara's recording studio, he stayed absorbed in the flood of search results.
Tap.
Of course, he had to be careful not to get caught. It was like extracting only the information he needed while keeping up his usual front. LA had a huge time difference from both Japan and Korea, but checking the news itself was not difficult.
The Japanese media was already in an uproar over Boy Friend: Remake.
"First Broadcast of Boy Friend: Remake, Which Had Drawn Heavy Concern, Airs Successfully — Kang Woojin's Voice Acting Shines"
Naturally, there were many articles centered on Kang Woojin, the so-called Lee Sang-man. But there were also plenty of mentions of the sheer quality of Boy Friend: Remake itself.
"Kang Woojin's Boy Friend: Remake Excels in Everything from Animation to Music to Direction!"
Woojin, his face blank, recalled the Boy Friend: Remake footage he had seen during the voice recording sessions.
"Mm, right. The animation? I guess it really was pretty impressive."
He was not someone who watched a lot of animation, but the artwork in Boy Friend: Remake was, how should he put it, astonishingly delicate and complete. Everything was perfect, from the movement of the characters to the backgrounds. Even Kang Woojin, who was no animation expert, had found it striking, which meant Japanese viewers, with far deeper familiarity, would likely be even more impressed.
Next, Woojin went into Japanese social media and online communities.
Finding posts related to Boy Friend: Remake was, again, not difficult. All he had to do was type in the title, and related posts flooded the screen. Most of them had been written within the last thirty minutes, and even now, new ones were constantly appearing.
[Wasn't it way better than expected? I started watching with doubts, but before I knew it, I was completely hooked.]
[Isn't this something you can judge just by whether Kang Woojin's voice acting is good or bad? I think it was more fun because Kang Woojin was in it.]
[It was so fun!!]
[Seriously!! But!! How does Kang Woojin even know how to do voice acting too!!??]
[The art and the music were both the best this season. I thought it would just be some standard romantic comedy anime, but the story had way more depth than I expected.]
[I watched it planning to criticize it, but I ended up getting completely immersed. Am I the only one?]
[Right! I also started watching because I wanted to dislike Kang Woojin's voice acting, but then I ended up going, "Wow!" the whole time. Doesn't that mean the ratings are going to be even higher?]
It was very likely that a lot of people who were not Kang Woojin fans had started watching specifically to criticize it.
[Same here… I thought it would be bad at first, but now I'm really looking forward to episode two…]
.
.
.
.
Everything was buzzing with excitement. After looking through social media and online communities for about ten minutes, Kang Woojin lowered his phone. His expression did not change much. He had already heard plenty of opinions from A10 Studio and Choi Sunggeon. With how hot the topic was, it was obvious there would also be many people in Japan who held negative opinions.
'That's only natural.'
Woojin was not especially worried. Whether people liked it or hated it, as long as the ratings were good, that was what mattered. His mind did not waver. After all, even the Japanese public that had originally intended to criticize it had already begun to shift.
Right at that moment—
Rumble!
The large van carrying Kang Woojin came to a stop. They had arrived at Miley Kara's recording studio, about an hour away from the hotel. It was still early, but Kara was already there waiting inside the spacious studio. Her long blonde hair was down, and she wore a cap.
Among the dozen or so staff members, Kara's expression was cool, though her tone was soft.
"Oh, Woojin. You got here early."
"It just worked out that way."
"Like I said in yesterday's meeting, today is the official start of recording. Before we begin, should we grab a cup of coffee?"
"Sounds good."
And so, Kang Woojin and Miley Kara's album project officially began.
Twelve hours.
That was how long Kang Woojin spent inside the recording studio. From early morning until the afternoon, he threw himself completely into the recording work with Kara. Meanwhile, in Korea, the night passed and morning arrived.
At around 10 a.m. on the 13th.
A change appeared on a Korean OTT platform specializing in popular Japanese animation. Episode one of Boy Friend: Remake, which had aired in Japan the day before, had been updated. The series, which had been heavily promoted for days, was now available for viewing in Korea as well.
"Boy Friend: Remake Rises to No. 1 on OTT Platform Immediately After Korean Release! Is This Kang Woojin's Power?"
In an instant, the series shot to the top of the platform rankings. That was proof enough that a huge number of Korean viewers were already watching Boy Friend: Remake. Comments began pouring into the platform.
[I honestly didn't expect much because there's way too much competition this quarter lol but wow, this is seriously amazing lol]
[Agreed! Even setting national pride aside, the OST is incredible and the direction is really unique lol]
[The animation is seriously amazing.]
[Why is everyone making such a fuss? It was way too boring.]
[Honestly, Kang Woojin's voice acting was seriously good lol there was absolutely nothing to criticize.]
[Personally, the camera angles and sound were incredible, and the opening song completely overwhelms every other program this season.]
[Lol calm down lol wow, this place is overflowing with national pride lol]
[Did Kang Woojin really sing the opening song?]
[↑ Yes, he did.]
[No way… wow… the original song is seriously amazing… it might even have a shot at entering the Oricon charts.]
[The opening video for Boy Friend: Remake is already exploding in popularity on Japanese YouTube.]
There were all kinds of opinions, but in the end, everyone's curiosity was the same.
Had it been well received in Japan?
What they wanted to know was the official rating for Boy Friend: Remake.
[It hasn't even been released yet lol the competition is so fierce that even 5% would already be doing really well lol]
At that same time, in Tokyo, Japan—
In one of the meeting rooms at A10 Studio, the production company behind Boy Friend: Remake, a group of familiar faces had gathered. The director was there, along with the production staff and executives.
More than twenty people were present.
"..."
"..."
Everyone's expression was tense. Interestingly, every gaze in the room was fixed on one person. It was the female team leader from the planning department, the one who had overseen the entire production of Boy Friend: Remake. She stood at the very front of the room, pacing anxiously while repeatedly glancing at the screen of her phone.
Right at that moment—
-Swish
Sakuichi Mahiro, the director of Boy Friend: Remake, swallowed dryly and asked in a strained voice,
"Has it still not been announced?"
The female team leader shook her head.
"No, not yet."
A few executives from A10 Studio let out small sighs and joined the conversation.
"This is driving me insane. Why is today's announcement taking so long?"
"...What was the highest rating so far again?"
"Magic Revolution was the highest at 9.1%, and after that, Strongest Spy recorded 8.8%."
The titles considered the third-quarter competitors of Boy Friend: Remake had all finished airing the previous week. The director picked up the ratings chart lying on the table.
-Ratings
1. Magic Revolution / Fuji ETV / 9.1%
2. Strongest Spy / Tokyo ETV / 8.8%
3. Detective Conan / NHM / 6.2%
.
.
.
.
Those two titles, which had drawn major expectations this quarter, had already secured the first and second spots. Neither had crossed 10%, but both had recorded respectable ratings in the 9% range and had received praise from the press. Below third place, the ratings ranged from 5% down to 1%.
"Mm, I'm not even hoping for 10%. If we can just make it into the upper ranks—around 5%—I think that'll be enough."
"It's hard to hit 10% these days, but we should at least expect over 5%. The anticipation was very high."
"...If we can beat Detective Conan and take third place, that would be the most ideal result."
At that exact moment—
♬♪
The female team leader's phone rang. In an instant, everyone in the room turned toward her. Looking tense, she swallowed, her hand trembling slightly as she raised the phone to her ear.
"Yes, this is me. Please go ahead."
Then her eyes suddenly flew wide open at whatever she heard from the other end.
"W-what did you just say?!"
Everyone was startled by her reaction, but no one spoke. A moment later, the female team leader ended the call and slowly lowered her phone. Wearing a dazed expression, she quietly muttered in Japanese to the people gathered in the meeting room.
"...There's been a problem."
──────────
Meanwhile, in Los Angeles—
It was morning in Korea, but LA was moving into night. After recording all day, Kang Woojin climbed into Miley Kara's large van, wearing a hoodie.
Thud!
Woojin, Kara, and the rest of the team were on their way to dinner after finishing the day's work. Naturally, Kara had chosen the restaurant, which meant it was bound to be somewhere luxurious. In any case, the three large vans set off together. Woojin sat in the front van, taking a seat across from Kara.
Kara, having taken off her cap and brushed her blonde hair back, spoke first.
"Aren't you tired?"
In his usual cold voice and detached manner, Kang Woojin answered,
"Not particularly."
"...I don't think I've ever seen you look tired. It was the same when I went to Korea last time, and it was the same today."
"Really?"
"Do you just naturally have good stamina? Or do you maintain it through exercise?"
Woojin could not exactly tell her it was because of his void space, so he deflected the question appropriately.
"I have my own way."
"What kind?"
"It's hard to explain. It's a special kind of experience that belongs only to me."
"Oh, that's the first time I've heard an answer like that."
"It's the first time I've ever said it."
Kara, who had already gotten a sense of his personality, let out a small laugh.
"So then, what happened with that Japanese animation?"
Kara already knew about Boy Friend: Remake, and Woojin answered calmly.
"Who knows. I still haven't heard anything yet."
Right then—
Buzz.
Woojin's phone vibrated briefly. It was a text message, and the sender was Choi Sunggeon, who was riding in the van behind them. The contents were simple. It was a ratings chart. But it was not a Korean ratings chart.
It was a Japanese one.
-Ratings
1. Boy Friend: Remake / TBE / 14.8%
2. Magic Revolution / Fuji ETV / 9.1%
3. Strongest Spy / Tokyo ETV / 8.8%
4. Detective Conan / NHM / 6.2%
.
.
.
.
Woojin absentmindedly glanced over the ratings chart he had just received, then lifted his head. After that, he murmured something to blonde-haired Kara, who sat across from him, as if it were nothing at all.
"We got first place."
His tone was calm, revealing no strong emotion at all.