Tokyo: The evil god doesn't want to be the top star

After taking a look at the address sent by Director Nakano, Xia Fan set an alarm and fell asleep.

……

The next day, Edo-Tokyo Architectural Garden.

Coming out of Musashi Koganei Station and walking along the street, Xia Fan soon saw a row of compact and orderly Edo-style retro buildings.

The Edo-Tokyo Architectural Park is an open-air national museum located in Koganei City. It is dedicated to preserving, restoring and displaying historical buildings from the Edo period, ranging from ordinary farmhouses to the former residences of celebrities.

"It's worthy of what Director Nakano called a 'big job'. Was it filmed in such a professional place?"

Walking on the narrow streets, surrounded by retro buildings and tourists dressed in retro style to take photos, the strong atmosphere of the times made Xia Fan feel as if he was traveling through time and space.

Following the address provided by Nakano, he soon arrived in front of a small building.

"Look at the sign, this should be the right place."

After checking the sign at the door that read "The Chrysanthemum and the Sword Production Committee", Xia Fan walked in.

"Take that thing over there for debugging, put those things here first, and put everything that has nothing to do with the last episode back in the warehouse!"

Inside the house, Director Nakano was standing in the middle of a mess of costumes, props, scripts, blackboards, and photographic equipment, directing the staff to organize and sort things.

"Mr. Xia, you're here! Come on, come this way, come this way..."

Looking back and seeing Xia Fan coming in, Nakano trotted up to him and pulled him into his office affectionately.

"Sorry, I just took over the crew and the place is a mess. Come and have some tea!"

"Thanks……"

In the equally messy office, Nakano made a cup of matcha tea bag for Xia Fan.

"This drama is called "The Broken Chrysanthemum and the Sword", and it's an online TV series adapted from the popular female-oriented comic of the same name..."

After closing the door and drawing the blinds, Nakano lowered his voice and introduced the situation to Xia Fan.

"What, female-oriented, isn't that a BL drama?!"

"I'm sorry, it's hard for me to play a normal warrior, let alone one with special requirements..."

Xia Fan shuddered, grabbed his trouser waist with both hands, stood up and was about to leave.

Danmei, which means "indulging in beauty", originally refers to an artistic trend that indulges in pure beauty that has nothing to do with reality and transcends gender.

This trend of thought can be traced back to the samurai class culture called Wakajudo in District 11. Later, with the invasion of Western romanticism and social repression, it gradually degenerated from a noble artistic pursuit that was higher than reality to a means of making money by pleasing women.

Simply put, the story focuses on the bond between two innocent and beautiful boys.

"Xia Jun, don't be in a hurry to leave. Listen to me! "The Withered Chrysanthemum and the Sword" is just a girl's comic with a BL style. It's not what you think..."

"Believe me, this drama has a heroine! There really is a heroine!"

Nakano suddenly grabbed Xia Fan's pants and repeatedly emphasized the word "heroine".

"Then, let me hear you talk..."

Xia Fan tightened his hip muscles and sat back on the sofa with a vigilant look.

"The investor and broadcasting platform of "The Broken Chrysanthemum and the Knife" is the largest streaming media company in District 11, PPJ. Whether in terms of investment scale or crew configuration, it is also first-class in online dramas."

"Originally, even if the previous facial mask advertisement broke the circle and was a hit, with my qualifications, I am absolutely not qualified to take on such a popular IP web drama, let alone recommend you, Xia Jun, to audition for an important role..."

"But to be honest, the first eight episodes of this drama have already been aired, and due to poor casting, poor filming quality, and a huge difference between the content and the original novel, it has received a lot of negative reviews online."

"Although the previous director was very famous, he couldn't bear the pressure and postponed the filming due to a 'sudden illness'. As a result, the actor who played the 'super villain' who hadn't appeared yet was also scared and ran away..."

After comforting Xia Fan, Nakano continued to explain the situation.

"The Withered Chrysanthemum and the Sword" is a popular BL manga for females that has been serialized for many years. It tells the story of the heroine Chiyo, who is a "pure-blooded Rakshasa", and several samurai from the violent group "Shinsengumi" at the end of the Edo period. They unfold a magnificent story around a bloodthirsty monster called "Black Rakshasa" and the only few "magic swords" that can kill Rakshasa.

As the story progresses, Chiyo develops different emotional entanglements with the "beautiful swordsmen" in the Shinsengumi, as well as between "beautiful swordsmen and beautiful swordsmen", and gradually reveals the truth hidden in the darkness. The entire comic revolves around a variety of emotions such as love, friendship, and family affection, and also explores profound themes such as human nature, faith, and sacrifice.

Since the sales of the single-volume edition of "The Withered Chrysanthemum and the Sword" have long topped the list of similar comics, it has attracted large streaming media companies such as PPJ to invest heavily in creating the IP and invited famous directors to adapt it into a live-action web drama.

However, live-action adaptations of comics are often secretly called "original work crushers."

During the actual filming process, this famous director inevitably made several common mistakes in live-action adaptations of comics.

The first thing is casting.

Because "The Withered Chrysanthemum and the Sword" is a BL manga aimed at females, for the purpose of serving women, except for the heroine used in the "first-person substitution", all the other characters are based on real people from the late Edo period, and all kinds of styles, fetishes and sizes can be satisfied. In addition to the "beautiful young swordsman" who has an ambiguous relationship with the heroine, they also often compete with each other in swordplay and discussion.

Therefore, the director used "handsomeness" as the only criterion for male casting, and boldly used several popular young models who had no experience in TV drama shooting. Of course, this was also mixed with the selfish desire of the investors to take the opportunity to make a few handsome male artists famous.

The second is the screenwriter.

Since "The Withered Chrysanthemum and the Sword" has been serialized for four or five years and the plot span is not short, it is simply an "impossible task" to condense it all into a ten-episode web drama.

Therefore, the director and screenwriter "boldly" cut out many plots that they considered "insignificant".

Even though the scenes were real, the costumes and props were top-notch, and the filming was first-rate, the "bold decisions" in the above two aspects quickly led to a strong backlash in the "shoot one episode and broadcast one episode" online drama model...

Chapter 81 The Foundation Has Bent

2024-07-13

Originally, in the static makeup photos of each character in "The Chrysanthemum and the Sword", all the "beautiful young swordsmen" were extremely handsome, and their costumes, shapes and temperaments were also very close to the original. Not only did the female fans of the original novel look forward to the fencing scenes, but it also attracted many passers-by.

However, due to the actors' lack of experience in TV drama shooting and the hasty start of filming, they did not have enough time to read the original work in depth and understand the characters. Although the storyboards, shooting, and editing were all top-notch in the industry, the actual broadcast footage was a "shoddy product" with stiff body movements, distorted expressions, and poorly read lines.

In the first few episodes that were aired, this "eye-catching" acting was fiercely criticized by the audience who came to watch the show. Only the die-hard fans of the original novel who said "it's enough to be handsome" and "when will the fencing start?" were still holding on.

However, the protagonists of this drama are the tragic group "Shinsengumi" which is known as the "last bushido" and disappeared from the stage of history along with the shogunate...

According to the historical context and plot development, those important and popular characters will sacrifice tragically one by one.

Originally, this kind of scene where a character dies heroically and the survivors bear the sorrow and continue to swing their swords forward is a "memory killer" in BL dramas, a "tear gas" that the majority of female audiences cannot stop watching.

However, due to the massive deletions in the plot, many characters were directly "killed by the plot" in the absence of "important bond plots", resulting in the original heroic stories becoming hasty deaths.

Therefore, fans of the original novel gradually began to turn against the show, believing that the characters they supported were being "bullied by roles" and refusing to acknowledge the relationship between the show and the original comic.

The former director could not stand the pressure and ran away, which was the last straw that broke the camel's back and completely triggered the negative reputation of the drama. Many female fans began to indiscriminately attack the actors, the distribution platform and the comic author.

Under such circumstances, the investor adhered to the principle of "starting and ending" and found the "outstanding young director" Nakano to continue filming the remaining two episodes into one.

After all, it is impossible for a well-known director in the industry to take over such a mess.

"I see. So Director Nakano actually came to save the day and brought me along?"

After listening for a while, Xia Fan finally understood the general situation.

"But, I only have one video commercial shooting experience, and I am no different from the previous models and actors in the drama, so why did you call me?"

He opened the online drama "The Broken Chrysanthemum and the Sword" and quickly glanced at the first episode which was available for free trial.

"Sure enough, the acting was over the top, and the comments were even more over the top..."

The stiff dialogues between the several "male protagonists", the fake cross-eyed expressions, and the clumsy action scenes that are just fancy moves are too painful to watch.

The violent comments and vicious photoshopped pictures in the comment section made him close the app as if he was running for his life.

"In short, my job is just to finish filming the last episode carefully. After all, the foundation has been bent, and no one can straighten it out."

"I'd like to take this opportunity to let this big media platform owe me a favor, so I won't be afraid of not having dramas to shoot in the future."

"But for you, Xia Jun, it's completely different..."

Nakano blinked brightly.

"Although this is just a web drama that has been filmed badly before. But this drama is broadcast on a top platform, the original comic has a huge audience base, and the super villain can barely be considered the third male lead, which is a position that other amateurs would have tried their best to get a chance to play."

"If you have the experience of filming this drama, Xia Jun, you will also be a young actor qualified to perform in the credits in the future."

"As long as you perform normally as you did in the previous commercials, there will be no problem at all. Besides, the villain was originally planned to appear in the last two episodes, but now that two episodes have been cut into one, the two million yen reward has not been reduced. This is something I specifically fought for you!"

Fearing that Xia Fan would refuse, Nakano told him all his painstaking efforts.

The general idea is that the drama was ruined by the people in front of him, and it has nothing to do with the people behind him. He and Xia Fan just take advantage of the situation and try to sell as many favors as possible, get as much traffic as possible, and earn as much money as possible.

"Two, two million... It's not impossible to give it a try. I'll ask my agent first."

Hearing the "keywords", Xia Fan couldn't help but be tempted and dialed Dong Ye's number.

"Go ahead and shoot. Why wouldn't you shoot something you found for free?"

"I know the drama "The Broken Chrysanthemum and the Knife". Although it has a bad reputation, it is still popular! For a drama of this level, it is a 'first drama' for a role like the third male villain, which has few things to do, a lot of money and a lot of scenes. Other amateur male actors can't find such a role even if they use ten Ma Yinglongs."

"Send the contract to me for review. If there are no problems, you can join the team immediately!"

"By the way, Director Nakano is such a good guy. He actually thought of you when he had such a good thing. I must treat him to a drink when I get back!"

On the other end of the phone, Higashino Yoshihide heard the whole story and agreed without hesitation.

[God has sent down an oracle: Show your face to people and fool them. After completing the task, you will receive God's blessing.]

The moment he hung up the phone, Xia Fan received a new oracle.

"After hearing 'there is faith to be believed', even the God of Heaven wants to get involved?"

"Director Nakano, thank you for your kindness. I will give this role a try."

Xia Fan sighed and confirmed with Nakano.

"Great! I knew you would understand my intentions, Xia Jun. I will arrange an audition for you right now."

"Hey, come here, there's an audition here..."

Nakano excitedly stuck his head out of the door and called the makeup artist.

"Director Nakano, the one who took over midway, is that you?"

But a thin middle-aged woman blocked Nakano at the door.

"Um, who are you?"

"I am Airi Kawasaki, the original author of the manga "The Withered Chrysanthemum and the Sword"."

Under Nakano's puzzled gaze, the middle-aged woman introduced herself expressionlessly.

"I heard that the investor arranged a new director, so I took the liberty to come here today."

There was a hint of suppressed anger in her eyes, and it was obvious that she had no good intentions.

"It's Mr. Kawasaki. I've heard of your name for a long time. Please come sit in my office..."

"Um, Xia Jun, go try on your makeup first, I have something else to do here."

Nakano invited the other party into the office with a wry smile, and secretly waved his hand to let the makeup artist take Xia Fan away.

"Teacher Kawasaki, can I have some green tea? I just came here to take over today, and I'm not fully prepared yet..."

Asking Kawasaki Airi to sit down, Nakano picked up the kettle and started making tea.

"No need for tea. What I want to discuss with you today is the termination of the filming of "The Broken Chrysanthemum and the Knife"."

Kawasaki Airi politely declined the hot tea offered by Nakano.

"What? Stop filming? Hiss, hot, hot, hot..."

Hearing this shocking statement, Nakano froze in the spot where he was handing the tea until he was awakened by the scalding heat of the teacup.

Chapter 82 Termination of Filming Discussion Meeting

2024-07-13

"Has the meeting started yet? Sorry, I'm late."

Just as the two were talking, a slender girl with golden twin ponytails walked into the room gracefully.

She was a little over 1.6 meters tall, wearing a neat little dress, and light white tights that left marks on her legs. Her whole body perfectly blended the two auras of coldness and coquettishness.

"Ah, it's okay. You're not the only one who's late, Shirakawa-senpai."

Then, a long-haired young man with beautiful features and a gloomy temperament walked in right behind him.

"Ms. Shirakawa, Mr. Sakamoto?! As I recall, there is no work for you two today..."

The arrival of these two people made Nakano slightly stunned.

"Sorry, I invited these two to come. After all, they are the only two remaining main actors in the last episode of this drama..."

"… Mr. Sakamoto, who plays the role of 'Hijikata Toshizo', and Ms. Shirakawa Rika, who plays the heroine 'Chiyo'."