– Lee Yoo-joo is actually a fake main character, right?.jpg
– Wait, wasn’t it Lee Min-seo who stabbed someone at the end? But it was Lee Min-hyeok in disguise, wasn’t it??
└ Seriously, get your guesses straight, you crazy person.
< Sky Garden > Episode 12 aired, and unlike the calm reactions we’ve seen so far, an explosion of posts flooded in.
There were likely several reasons for this.
The buildup that started from Episode 10.
Plus, the attention gathered through < Masked Singer > recently.
The moment when binge-watchers suddenly paused was right at Episode 12.
Of course, various predictions were pouring out not just on communities but also on social media.
– So, did Lee Min-hyeok also kill Min-seo?
– No, no, no, I don’t think that’s right.
– I thought for sure Min-hyeok was the one who grabbed the murder weapon, but was it not???
– But what reason would Min-seo have to stab Yoo-joo??? I don’t get it;;
Those kinds of reactions popped up.
There were even comments about the plot going off the rails suddenly, but it definitely caught attention.
How the story will unfold from here is something nobody can predict, and that’s playing a big role.
And just like those intense reactions…
“Wow.”
The filming set staff stared in disbelief at the reactions to the drama that aired yesterday.
They were supposed to be gearing up for Episode 15, but it was hard to focus on shooting.
And no wonder.
“Eighteen percent?”
“Is that for real?”
It was something unbelievable.
It had been steadily climbing, and with high anticipation, it was expected that there would be a considerable reaction.
The ratings finally climbed to 14 percent.
But this week, it surged to a whopping 18 percent.
A full 4 percent increase.
The most important thing being…
“…We won?”
Though just by 1 percent, we clearly surpassed the ratings of Grand Game.
While < Grand Game > maintained similar ratings, < Sky Garden >’s continuous growth was astonishing.
“Writer Min Se-hee collapsed!”
“Did she ascend or something? She looks so peaceful.”
On filming days, Writer Min Se-hee would slyly show up; this time, she was collapsed in a corner with a serene expression.
I guess she didn’t expect such a reaction.
She must have received the news early, yet if she looked that stunned, you could imagine how she felt when she first heard it.
“Crazy.”
“Wow, really? I kept getting calls yesterday. Everyone’s dying to know what happens next.”
The young actors who came to the filming set all had excited faces.
In recent years, dramas with ratings over 18 percent were few and far between.
Just being part of this drama alone meant a definite boost in their recognition as actors.
It was only natural they had to put in effort to showcase themselves as much as possible.
This < Sky Garden > would surely become a portfolio that would follow them for the rest of their careers. Just like how Gil Soo-jin deeply wished for Lee Yoo-joo’s portfolio.
“Seriously, Seo-yeon. This is insane. How does every work you shoot turn out like this?”
Director Kim Il-soo approached Seo-yeon with a smiling face, thinking she must be over the moon as the protagonist while even supporting characters and extras were reacting this way.
Especially when thinking about how Seo-yeon usually acts.
She might be bouncing on her feet, shining her eyes, maybe even fishing for compliments.
So, with that mindset, he spoke to her.
“…What?”
Seo-yeon had a strangely subdued vibe.
For a moment, Director Kim Il-soo flinched.
“Um, is something wrong? Is something bad happening?”
“Oh, no. Just… a bit.”
Seo-yeon said that hurriedly, bowing her head.
She just had a few things to think about.
Of course, she felt really good that the drama was doing well.
It’s just that…
– My brother is part of the Sky Garden filming staff, and they said Seo-yeon really fell during filming. OMG!
“During filming, Joo Seo-yeon really rolled down! OMG!”
– “Huh?! Did she hurt herself in the valley?”
└ “??”
– “Nope, she’s fine apparently.”
– “Phew.”
– “Fact: Gorillas usually live in the mountains.”
– “Why are you mixing gorilla memes into our Seo-yeon?!”
After the last Magical Girl Harara shorts, the memes that had relatively decreased began to rear their heads again.
It seems that with the flood of fans pouring into Seo-yeon’s fan cafe from [Sky Garden], they are shoving old memes back into the mix.
Truly, they are beings that cannot be let down.
Of course, most of the responses were about how good Lee Yoo-joo’s acting was.
“But the so-called fans…”
Excluding the fan cafe, the animals mostly mentioned in the community were dogs. People say she runs around like a puppy on variety shows.
However, each time, discussions pop up in the fan cafe posing as a vs competition, almost making it hard to tell if it’s a fan cafe or an anti-fan cafe.
“Hey, it’s not that I dislike strong characters.”
That aside, what should I even call this? Is it pride?
There’s a slight sense of crisis here, as there’s hardly any recognition of her as an actress. Comments all say she’s pretty, but just pretty gorilla or something like that. There’s a lot of that vibe, which is a blow to her pride…
“Hmph, once I show them what I’m made of, they’ll change their minds quickly!”
Seo-yeon squinted her eyes and left a comment underneath the post she was just reading. How many backup accounts did she make for times like this?
“Anyway.”
Seo-yeon let out a sigh. The countless roads she’s walked to improve her image.
It seems like she’ll have no choice but to ultimately choose the one that got the best response.
*
“Are you okay to shoot? We can push it back a little if needed,” Jo Seo-hee said as she sat next to her.
Of course, despite her words, her face was all smiles.
Seo-hee loved amusement parks and this was her first time going with friends, especially another actress of the same age. Since she shared a similar experience as Seo-yeon, Seo-hee’s mood was at least five times better than usual.
Plus, today wasn’t just Seo-yeon.
“Seo-hee unnie, can I really ride all the rides?”
“Of course, of course!”
“Wow!!”
Joo Su-yeon, Seo-yeon’s younger sister, was also there today.
‘Genetics are scary.’
Seo-hee thought. Seo-yeon was incredibly beautiful, but Su-yeon was astonishingly cute. She had to suppress the urge to hug Su-yeon right then and there.
“But is it really okay to just go out of the blue like this?”
Seo-yeon asked Seo-hee, considering that they hadn’t done any promotion at all.
“It’ll be great if we go for a surprise event vibe.”
“Really?”
“Anyway, once we’re out, everyone will film and upload it online, which makes it more effective than just pure corporate promotion.”
Seo-hee’s words made Seo-yeon nod. Speaking of views, had her Harara shorts reached over 5 million? She hadn’t checked since then, so who knows, maybe it hit 10 million.
It’s about time not just Koreans but foreigners’ comments started showing. She was just terrified at how far the Magical Girl shorts had spread.
‘Thanks to that, it’s clear I’ve gained some image points.’
Seo-yeon loved compliments, but she rarely looked at the Harara shorts lately because they were flooded with comments saying she was cute.
She shrugged off comments saying she was strong, but the avalanche of cute comments made her heart flutter so much she couldn’t bear to read them anymore.
“Alright, we’ve arrived.”
While thinking that, Seo-yeon certainly appreciated a nice car. Maybe when she collects enough money, she’ll get one for Dad too.
She lifted her head and…
“……”
“What’s wrong?”
“No way, I just thought of the Daejeon Zoo and O World.”
“Huh? It’s a zoo, but does it have rides too?”
“Are you dissing Daejeon’s famous spots right now?”
Seo-yeon spoke with wide eyes, and Jo Seo-hee was flustered.
Wasn’t she from Seoul?
Why was she suddenly investing in the Daejeon Zoo?
Honestly, today was the first time Seo-hee even knew such a place existed.
Isn’t Daejeon known for its bakery city?
“Ah, anyway, so what?”
“…Honestly, I was surprised.”
Seo-yeon looked around the amusement park site with genuine admiration.
Honestly, the only amusement parks she knew besides O World were maybe two of the most famous ones.
That’s all she’d ever been to.
Still, compared to those, the park right in front of her was just as impressive.
Even the rides were all shiny and new.
Naturally, Seo-yeon’s younger sister, Joo Su-yeon, was raising her arms in joy.
“Sis, it’s amazing, amazing!”
“…I’ve been thinking, where did you learn to say ‘amazing’?”
“Dad uses it a lot!”
So it really was a weird trait she picked up from Dad.
Seo-yeon shot a sharp glance at Young-bin, who was back home.
She hoped he hadn’t passed on any weird sayings to Su-yeon for no reason.
“First, we can ride the rides after the event… so shall we go?”
She had already seen some videos in advance to understand how to act.
Of course, Seo-yeon’s acting wasn’t something grand.
But she had to sync up with the other actors, which was why they arrived so early.
“Sis, are you going to be a magical girl again today?”
“…I guess it’ll be similar?”
Personally, she wanted to become Zero-ro who Su-yeon liked.
It suited her image pretty well.
“Actually, I think Jo Seo-hee would be better off playing the villain.”
Seo-yeon glanced at Seo-hee beside her.
Though she herself had a pretty sharp look, she thought she appeared gentler than Seo-hee.
At least she looked nicer than that girl.
“Seo-yeon will probably play Zero-ro, right?”
Seo-hee had a rough idea of what Seo-yeon was thinking.
Since Su-yeon liked Zero-ro, from an older sister’s perspective, she would want to play Zero-ro.
Even if Zero-ro wasn’t as popular as Harara, it was still a well-known character.
Plus, in the story, she was a comically clumsy villainess, which would implant a good impression on the public.
“And Seo-yeon does have a face that fits the role of a villain better.”
Seo-hee was aware that she usually fit the role of a high-class villainess.
But honestly, compared to the lasting impression Seo-yeon gave as a villain, her own face seemed more innocent.
She was pondering this way.
And deep down, Seo-hee quite liked Harara.
She was cute.
Of course, she couldn’t outright say she liked Harara.
She just convinced her dad to sneak this event into the amusement park.
From the company’s perspective, putting on a children’s play featuring the recently popular Harara was a win-win situation.
While she was lost in thought like this, her younger sister Su-yeon looked at Seo-hee with sparkling eyes.
“Sis, are you participating in the play too?”
“Huh? And?”
“Really? I want to see you act!”
“Is that so?”
Seo-hee felt her lips loosen at Su-yeon’s reaction.
Her sister was adorable.
But this was something she couldn’t convince her dad to let her do, which was a bit disappointing.
After all, she was the youngest.
“Yup, Su-yeon loves watching Sis act.”
At those words, Seo-hee was about to smile again when she felt a chill run down her spine and looked up.
Then she saw Seo-yeon, standing quietly behind Su-yeon, staring at her intently.
“Why not?”
Did I do something wrong?
While thinking that, Seo-hee trembled.
“Hmph.”
Seo-yeon puffed her cheeks.
“I’ve heard that a few times from Su-yeon too.”
Most of what she heard was something like, “You’re always playing the villain!! Bad sister!!!”
Not that she particularly wanted to only play villains.
Yoo-joo was definitely not a villain but the protagonist.
It was so unfair.
“Today, I’ll make sure my sister gets noticed again.”
Seo-yeon motivated herself.
To make others say that Seo-hee’s acting is amazing!
*
Mirilnae Park.
It’s a theme park built by New Like Group two years ago.
Its scale might not be the largest in Korea, but the space is quite broad.
Above all, it has all the latest designed rides!
They heavily promoted it by hiring multiple celebrities.
They succeeded in raising their recognition significantly over the last two years.
Especially in the cultural industry that New Like branches were attracting.
Since there are many theme parks related to movies and dramas, the demand was pretty steady.
Among them, it’s also the largest investor in ‘Loop Entertainment,’ which recently gained massive popularity with Magical Girl Harara.
They regularly hold children’s plays at the theme park.
Of course, considering how ambitiously it was prepared, it hadn’t yet met expectations.
Thus, there were talks about involving celebrities for promotions this time.
“I heard that much.”
The actor Park Dong-hwan, who was part of the magical girl Harara play, swallowed nervously as he looked at the two actresses in front of him.
Joo Seo-yeon and Jo Seo-hee.
Was there anyone who didn’t know these two among the young actors?
They were that recognizable!
In the case of Joo Seo-yeon, she had only been around for a year, but she left a big impression as a child actor in “The Moon That Hid the Sun.”
She was the busiest actress in this past year.
One movie, two dramas.
Plus, she appeared in various variety shows, becoming familiar to the public.
So why were such stars in a children’s play?
“That rumor seems to be true.”
“What rumor?”
“There’s talk that Jo Seo-hee is the daughter of the New Like group.”
Daughter of a noble family, huh? That’s a hard thing to hear.
In short, it means she’s a precious daughter from a wealthy family.
“Why is such a precious daughter doing the entertainment thing?”
It piqued his curiosity.
Thinking about it, the chairwoman was a famous actress.
If she hadn’t passed away early, she might have been even more famous.
She was once rumored to be a genius actress, and there were significant reports about her back then.
As he was pondering those thoughts, it seemed Seo-yeon and Seo-hee finished their conversation elsewhere and approached him.
“Oh, which of you is Harara, and which one is Zero-ro?”
He knew the actors for today’s play were going to take on Zero-ro and Harara roles.
So, he asked.
“…I’m Harara.”
Seo-yeon said, glaring at Seo-hee with a pouty look.
Of course, Seo-hee felt it was unfair.
She clearly wanted to play Harara.
But then…
“Sis has to be Harara!! She’s the good magical girl!!”
“No, sis could also be Zero-ro…”
“Sis is cool, so I like Harara!”
Who would’ve thought Su-yeon would throw a tantrum there?
Even though she liked Zero-ro herself!!
…Though it wasn’t completely bad since she said her sister was cool.
Still!
Seo-yeon poked Seo-hee’s side with her finger.
It was a cute action, but the pain felt from the poke was definitely not cute at all.
Jo Seo-hee hunched over, clutching her side.
“Seriously, this is so unfair.”
It was only natural for Jo Seo-hee to look like she was about to cry.
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