Chapter 33
Chapter 33
After the introduction of a new system in Idol Inc. that allowed viewers to subtract votes from participants.
The internet turned into a chaotic mess.
Posts criticizing the production team and the program flooded every online community.
It was a natural reaction, but once the initial wave of outrage settled into the general sentiment, posts like this began to surface.
The evaluation of the participants had begun.
If things progressed further, slanderous posts against participants people didn't support would soon run rampant.
"Hmm."
I skimmed through the post, which had hit the "Best" board in just seven minutes.
As I scrolled down, I found the name I was looking for.
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[Park Moon-dae: Rank Drop Risk ★★]
: Whenever his name comes up, it turns into a dogfight over whether he’s getting "angel editing" or "evil editing." There are people who tear into him with obsessive intensity. He’ll likely lose a significant number of votes.
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Two stars. That’s manageable.
Honestly, I expected as much. The "Park Moon-dae" portrayed on the show was an extreme character that people either loved or hated.
The PR live and the editing for the first team match were well-done, so that probably made up for some of it.
Furthermore, the participants from "October 31" who gained traction during the first team match were latecomers at this stage. This meant they were bound to get hammered by the toxic fans of the already established top-tier participants.
Looking further down the list, everyone except Keun Se-jin was listed as being at risk of dropping.
Of course, I can't rely on this one post alone.
However, the fact that the post hadn't been ignored and had become a popular thread meant it aligned somewhat with the general public opinion.
Of course, the comment section was a total war zone.
Between those comments, I also saw people gossiping about the participants mentioned in the post.
They were mostly enjoying themselves by picking apart the participants expected to drop.
Naturally, there were also quite a few attempts to sway public opinion by questioning why certain people were listed as "safe."
They’re already laying the groundwork.
Of course, there was a fair amount of talk about Park Moon-dae as well.
This... I feel a bit bad.
Watching people suffer just because they chose to "buy" Park Moon-dae's stock left me speechless.
It wasn't like I could change the direction of the broadcast by performing better.
Actually... I already knew.
Because it had been so controversial, even back when I was a student studying for the civil service exam, I knew about the introduction of this minus vote system.
There were two or three times when Re-listing! Idol Inc. walked a tightrope between insane popularity and total failure, and this was the first major incident.
Based on the current trend, I didn't think I'd be eliminated even if I lost a fair amount of votes, so I hadn't worried much. But now that it was actually happening... I felt a bit concerned.
Concerned for the people supporting "Park Moon-dae."
I hope they don't get too stressed out.
After a moment of hesitation, I closed the window.
I had actually intended to check the reactions to the newly aired Episode 6, but there wasn't much because it was buried under the "minus vote" drama.
Besides, I didn't have much screen time in Episode 6 anyway.
My team's performance had been scheduled for the next episode.
Since the team formation and song selection scenes were only shown briefly, there wasn't much of a reaction.
Mostly, only these kinds of toxic fan reactions remained. Honestly, I wasn't even sure if they could be called fans.
...Wait, they're bashing Kim Rae-bin too?
I’d seen this type occasionally back when I was selling data.
I didn't understand why they claimed to be fans while hurling insults... but the important thing was that the negative reactions to being on a team with "Park Moon-dae" were more vocal than the positive ones.
Even viewers who viewed "Park Moon-dae" favorably were expressing regret that I wasn't with my teammates from the first team match.
"Hmm."
I crossed my arms and smirked. I was curious to see how public opinion would shift once Episode 7 aired.
The performance was definitely good, and there was only so much they could mess with that through editing.
Until then, I'll just clear the status window pop-ups and work on my practice achievements...
Vibrate.
While I was thinking, my phone buzzed.
It was probably that same-age group chat. I absentmindedly opened my phone.
Two messages arrived almost simultaneously, as if they had been copy-pasted.
[Kim Rae-bin: Hyung, are you doing well? This is participant Kim Rae-bin. The reason I am contacting you is that I have something to ask.]
[Kim Rae-bin: Cha Yu-jin and I are planning to go to Gangnam Station tomorrow to check out the advertisements the fans put up for us. I was wondering if you would like to come along to check your ads... (See More)]
"..."
Was there an ad for me at Gangnam Station too?
I searched and found a social media post saying it had started today. Impressive. This Kim Rae-bin kid is pretty good at searching, huh?
But the timing was bad.
"A system for picking the person you hate was just introduced; there's no need to stand out."
If a "happy sighting" post came out now, people would definitely start talking nonsense like, "Is Park Moon-dae that confident?"
Plus, going with Kim Rae-bin and Cha Yu-jin? I could already hear the insults in my head.
There was no need to create such noise. I should try to protect the sanity of the people supporting Park Moon-dae as much as possible.
It would be better to wait and see until Episode 7 aired.
I immediately typed a reply.
[Park Moon-dae: I have something to do, so it'll be difficult. Let's meet next time.]
[Kim Rae-bin: Yes... Then I will contact you again.]
I guess I'll see him at the next filming.
With that thought, I began stretching before starting my workout.
I might as well build up my stamina.
At that time, I had no idea that Kim Rae-bin would send me a greeting every single day until the next filming.
And they weren't just regular greetings; they were those colorful, gaudy greeting images that elderly people like to make.
[Kim Rae-bin: (A smile^^ brings good fortune~ Let's make today a happy one with a pleasant morning~)]
"...?"
Is it because they're in the arts? Every teenager I've met lately has such a unique sensibility.
And finally, Friday evening arrived.
[Kim Rae-bin: (Have a happy Friday @-> --- Putting my heart into a rose^^ sharing happiness and health)]
"..."
Somehow, these "boomer" memes of his were getting upgraded. This one even had a sparkling effect.
[Park Moon-dae: Yeah, you take care too.]
[Kim Rae-bin: Thank you.]
Anyway, for it to be a "happy and healthy" Friday like the text in Kim Rae-bin's image file suggested, Episode 7 would have to turn out well.
I started watching Episode 7 while drinking a beer.
My screen time would likely be toward the end of the episode.
The production team would have definitely pushed the team with the highest average rank to the very end of the broadcast.
As expected, other teams appeared one after another. I wasn't particularly interested, but I watched closely to see if there were any potential dark horses.
Nothing special.
There wasn't any particularly favorable or hostile editing. It was just the usual storyline of part-related conflicts and struggling with a lack of skill before overcoming it.
Then, in the latter half, the team Choi Won-gil had picked appeared.
It was a team packed with participants from the previous first team match, including Seon A-hyun and Keun Se-jin.
The editing potential exploded here.
[Choi Won-gil: I don't know why you're only doing this to me...]
[Ha Il-jun: What...?]
The scene cut between an interview of a crying Choi Won-gil and the bewildered faces of his teammates.
[Choi Won-gil: (Glaring) Moon-dae hyung, aren't you being a bit much?]
Choi Won-gil’s reputation completely tanked.
"Wow..."
They really sent him off like that.
The production team had saved up Choi Won-gil's uncooperative attitude from the first round and let it all out here.
Honestly, he had been quite a nuisance during the first round, but I didn't expect it to build up like a "Spirit Bomb" and explode like this.
But I wasn't the only one he had built up this "karma stack" with.
[Kwon Hee-seung: ...Because he won't even listen to me.]
It seemed Gold 2 had also suffered quite a bit since the first round. Apparently, Won-gil wouldn't even talk to him when the cameras were off.
[Kwon Hee-seung: Is it because I'm the youngest... and have the lowest (rank)?]
Of course, the production team members were also monsters for capturing that on a fixed cam and broadcasting it. They were throwing another participant under the bus just to boost the ratings.
[Keun Se-jin: Now, now! Won-gil. I understand how you feel. Why don't you sit down here?]
Just as I had heard from Seon A-hyun, the broadcast showed the conflict being resolved by Keun Se-jin stepping in.
[Choi Won-gil: It's true that I was being a bit emotional.]
The segment ended on a heartwarming note with that interview and the team showing a good performance after practicing hard, but everyone knew it was just a superficial fix.
The internet was already being plastered with insults.
Hmm, it’s troublesome if Park Moon-dae gets brought up.
People would praise my personality as they pleased, but then if something suspicious cropped up, the backlash would be twice as bad.
Fortunately, because that team's performance was decent, the focus shifted toward the stage, pushing the talk about Choi Won-gil aside a bit.
When the topic came up again, it would likely be focused solely on criticizing Choi Won-gil.
His mental state didn't look great; he’s going to have a rough time.
I clicked off the comment page with a click of my tongue.
Now there were two teams left. It was almost time for my segment.
Assuming... someone else didn't hog all the screen time.
There are just so many high-ranking guys on this team.
I lowered my expectations and continued watching.
And then, I was shocked.
Dun-dun!
On the screen, Kim Rae-bin's interview was being reconstructed with grand background music.
Along with captions that looked like an homage to something... flashing in brilliant gold.
[<Kim Rae-bin’s Quest to Gather Teammates>]
[Kim Rae-bin: First, I plan to recruit participant Park Moon-dae.]
"Cough!"
I spat out the beer I was drinking.