Extremely Global MBS (8)
"It really seems evenly matched."
"……?"
Kim Ho-jin blinked vacantly.
Did I hear that wrong?
His opponent was Kang Min.
The Kang Min who could ramble for thirty minutes about the degree of glottal closure needed for the 'gurk' sound when getting stabbed in the throat under strobe lighting.
And that same Kang Min was saying he hadn't noticed the slightest deviation in the direction Kim Ho-jin had fallen while facing off against a Giganotosaurus-level maniac who could exude that much killing intent just from imagining the fight?
No way in hell!
But apparently, Kim Ho-jin was the only one thinking that.
The staff were all nodding in agreement, murmuring among themselves.
"Well, if even Actor Kang is saying that..."
"This is tricky."
"Mr. White's eyes are far sharper than ours. The difference between them must really be negligible."
"Hmm, so what do we do..."
What the hell are you idiots saying?!
Kim Ho-jin felt like he was going insane.
Just moments ago, Harry Gordon had fallen naturally in the direction of the force, landing his head perfectly—but Kim Ho-jin had been off by a whole 5.5 degrees! It was a clear win or loss!
They couldn't possibly have missed that difference!
Kim Ho-jin hurriedly jumped in to tackle the atmosphere that felt half-decided already.
"Just give us one more chance!"
"Hmm..."
"Gordon and I want a clear winner! Right?!"
Fortunately, the desperation in his plea seemed to land.
Han Ye-seul whispered something in his ear, and Kang Min nodded as if there was no helping it.
"Alright. Let's do a few more takes."
"Thank you!!"
"Then, moving on to scene 154."
Hah, that one's easy!
Kim Ho-jin regained his courage.
A sudden chokehold leading to gurgling and collapse. A scene demanding the highest level of acting skill, of course.
One tiny slip in vocal tone, and it would naturally look like a loss—
"Evenly matched."
"……."
Kim Ho-jin gritted his teeth.
No, my fall was perfect! The expression and angle when the foot slips were only off by a hair!
"Evenly matched."
Yes! If he fell the complete opposite way, no one could miss it!
"Evenly matched."
Th—
"Evenly matched."
"……."
Five more minutes passed.
Kim Ho-jin sat slumped, staring blankly at the sky.
A clear blue expanse floated with clouds shaped like the tricolor flag of freedom.
He closed his eyes with a smile.
I'm screwed...
No matter what he did, he couldn't win...
Kim Ho-jin was unlucky.
But his valiant struggle(?) had an incredibly positive impact on the entire Must Die to Live production team.
Like land hardening after rain, the weeks-long feud between the S&W and MBS staff began to mend in the simplest way.
"Oh, sorry for underestimating you all. The Fencing Man really is an impressive actor. I never imagined the gap would be that small."
"No, Harry Gordon, you're the impressive one! Who knew an actor just handed the script could adapt that quickly...!"
Like true professionals, they admired each other's judgment and apologized for their rudeness.
The atmosphere grew heartwarmingly positive—everyone except one person, that is.
Even the stubborn Kebab Director was deeply moved, going so far as to say:
"I, uh, don't know if I should say this, but is there any reason to pick just one?"
"Pardon?"
"Why not use both? We're switching genres anyway—might as well give the other side some play too!"
"Ho ho."
"That's..."
Kim Ho-jin freaked out upon hearing the news, but he never had the choice to begin with. Justin Gilbreth and the 19 other beefcakes were already cheering and clapping at the brilliant idea.
Kang Min, of course, smiled contentedly upon hearing the proposal.
"Just as planned, PD Han."
"Yes, Writer Yoo Ji-min is all fired up about how it'll make for a much better script... And honestly, I've gained a new respect for Actor Kim Ho-jin too."
"Haha, what did I tell you! Kim Ho-jin is the kind of actor who gets misunderstood, but he's truly excellent!"
"Eh..."
Naturally, Section Chief Kim Kang-hyun was thrilled with the situation. A united front of East and West harmony painted a far better picture than a divided team at each other's throats.
Harry Gordon's scheme, Kang Min's endorsement, and MBS's political needs thus propelled a sudden wave of post-Cold War thaw.
In other words, in this atmosphere brimming with unity, Harry Gordon extended a hand to Kim Ho-jin with a gentle smile.
"Truth be told, I lost. Thanks for going easy on me."
"……."
"Let's do great together from now on. Mr. Fencing Man."
Kim Ho-jin grabbed the hand with the face of Gorbachev hearing about the August Coup—half-dazed, that is.
Kang Min, who had mediated it all, smiled warmly, and the reporters captured the perfect trio in photos.
It was the epitome of heartwarming.
And as that conclusion wrapped up, Aislinn Lewis—who had been watching and clapping—turned her head with a gentle smile.
"Looks like it ended well."
"...Yeah."
"So, Producer, mind telling me? What role are you planning for me?"
"……."
Han Ye-seul fell silent at the flawless smile.
Discomfort—of course there was.
Aislinn was supposed to just observe today without doing anything, and that's what happened.
But even that level of presence was enough to shake the entire set, even amid the heated Harry Gordon debate.
Writer Yoo Ji-min had been the prime example, zoning out just moments ago.
—Hello, looking forward to working with you starting today.
—Uh? Oh... uh....
—I hear writers have a lot of power in Korea? Hope you give me a good role.
—Th-that's....
—Hehe, just kidding.
When the figure he'd only seen on the big screen smiled at him, the 23-year-old had no idea how to react, his face flushing red.
His sister Yoo Ji-yu silently smoothed things over, but even her eyes were darting around. The staff? Forget it. It was ecosystem-destroying levels of influence.
What irked Han Ye-seul most was that Aislinn seemed fully aware of it.
"I was a bit worried, but looks like I'm somewhat known in Korea too? Relieved."
"...You must've known you wouldn't be."
"No, really, Producer."
A light eye-smile returned.
"Well, it's a good thing anyway."
"……."
Her face brimmed with confidence that Han Ye-seul couldn't possibly give her a minor role—and she was right.
Harry Gordon might draw some chatter, but Aislinn's fame was on another level. MBS higher-ups had only one directive from the start.
Give her the most overwhelmingly spotlight-grabbing role possible...
Han Ye-seul bit her lip lightly.
It was rational.
Ratings would soar.
Not bad for her career either.
But.
Your intentions are crystal clear.
Han Ye-seul snorted inwardly.
Faking an awkward expression upon arriving to draw Kang Min over? A setup.
The subtle touches after,
Intentional slip-ups,
Carefully managed discomfort in unfamiliar surroundings—
All of it screamed ulterior motives so obvious it was infuriating.
No interest in the sutras, just the rice?
This woman had zero interest in Must Die to Live itself. She just needed a spark to reignite her fading scandal buzz.
Regardless of feelings, as the show's PD, Han Ye-seul had no reason to like such games.
She defined her emotions roughly as such.
"Hahaha, what great news for Actor Kim Ho-jin! Even the great Harry Gordon acknowledges him as an equal!"
"Congrats, Ho-jin!"
"Congratulations!"
"Congratulations!"
"Congratulations!!"
"……."
Amid the fervent cheers, Han Ye-seul watched one young man's face turn pitch black.
And calmly reached a conclusion.
In other words, as long as it was topical, substantial, and positively impacted the drama, right?
"Don't worry, Actor Lewis. I'll take care of it."
"Oh, thank you."
"No trouble at all."
It wasn't hard.
The actress and producer faced each other, smiling gently.
In truth, public opinion on Harry Gordon and Aislinn Lewis joining Must Die to Live had been split down the middle.
But not your average split.
The pro side's cheers bordered on frenzy, for one.
They framed the multinational shift with S&W, UTA, and others as desperate corporate courtship for Kang Min.
MBS Acting Awards nominee.
Baeksang Arts Awards TV co-Best Actor.
Above all, Prime Time Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series—
Kang Min was a debut-less-than-a-year monster with an absurd career, so the hype was natural.
Especially in this era of K-pop shaking the world and Korean films winning Oscars, an Asian—Korean—actor landing a Hollywood lead was still a pipe dream.
The more they lamented that, the more they saw Kang Min as the white knight to shatter it first, shoehorning facts to fit.
But the detractors dismissing them as 'delusional birds' fired back just as hard.
These two extremes couldn't mix or compromise, and they didn't. The massive backlash to Kang Min's US trip just weeks ago amplified the conflict.
Even drama communities split in half, and shockingly, Kang Min's fan cafe MinIsLove fractured into infighting.
Koreans' weakness to 'international' buzz made the '9-month Emmy' title trigger full immune response.
Thankfully, fan cafe manager OlivePenguin declared martial law, and some member proved their humanity to miraculously stabilize things. But elsewhere, no such luck.
Proponents prioritized international appeal; opponents, Korean roots.
MBS's report on Harry Gordon and Kim Ho-jin's dramatic reconciliation was dismissed as 'paid PR.'
No compromise between the irreconcilable views.
A tense tug-of-war.
Section Chief Kim Kang-hyun's receding hairline—
The conflict seemed set to drag on for months.
But genius Han Ye-seul, mocking even the heavens, found a groundbreaking way to perfectly fuse international and Korean elements amid the strife.
She found it.
"…?"
Five days later on set,
Aislinn Lewis blinked in bewilderment.
The dumbest expression of her 25 years.
"...Pr-Produce. What's this?"
"Kimchi."
"No, I know. Obviously... but what am I supposed to do with it?"
"Slap your cheek with it."
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