Chapter 61
Chapter 61
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 61
Chapter Title: Was It a Bit Too Much?
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Was it a bit too much?
Despite its long history, the Masked Hero series has notoriously poor treatment of its female characters.
Even the depictions of romance were rare, meaning there were hardly any characters who could be called heroines to begin with.
And even when they did appear, they were most likely to end up dead or with a breakup ending.
Beyond just heroines, even female allies or enemies had minuscule roles.
When they showed up, they were often portrayed in the series' signature bizarre monster designs, only to die quickly or fade into the background.
In that sense, the unfolding story of the new Masked Hero installment, Black Moon, could only be described as utterly groundbreaking from episode 1. 💬 Comments — User123 Childhood friend was actually a girl... or something? — FanboyX No, beyond girl—she's basically the final boss Queen. — HeroFan88 Has a female character ever been a boss before? — MonsterHunter ↳ Reply Twice, but... honestly, they were more like female beasts than women. Yeah, the final boss from around three years ago was technically a woman too—just shaped like a giant mosquito. — BeautyRanker Does that make Asakura the hottest boss babe in Masked Hero history...? — EveLover Hey... don't sleep on our ultimate waifu boss, Lady Eblis. ⭐ Top Comment — PoetWarrior Beautiful maiden, why do you weep? — MemeLord Beautiful maiden lol — RageQuitter Shut up with that crap. — SanityCheck Your SAN check okay? — NormieView By human standards, Asakura takes the cake as top beauty boss. Agreed. The massive backstab reveal right from episode 1.
Yet, despite the groundbreaking developments in various ways, the viewers' reactions were overwhelmingly positive.
It was still early in the series, so there were no real plot holes or inconsistencies.
And above all, no man hates a beautiful woman.
Plus, that overwhelming presence she showed in the final moments
made it crystal clear to everyone just what kind of being Asakura—
Black Star's Queen 'Kaguya'—truly was.
Starting from episode 2, which aired the next day, her exploits began to shine in earnest.
Kaguya's maneuvers to seduce the protagonist Makado, awaken the true power of Black Moon within him, and seize it for herself.
And Makado, oblivious to everything, overusing Black Moon's power more and more to protect his friend and the people.
While the viewers were openly shown all this info about the mastermind behind the scenes, the protagonist and those around him remained completely in the dark, maintaining a precarious balance on the verge of collapse. This tension only made things more thrilling for the audience.
The anticipation of when and how Kaguya would reveal her true identity.
The curiosity about how the protagonist would react.
And even though it was the same actress, her seamless shifts—like flipping the back of her hand—
between the pure, friendly country girl Asakura that everyone wishes they had as a friend,
and the Dark Queen Kaguya, whose aura could make you drop to your knees and lick her boots in real life.
As this riveting plot unfolded day by day, viewers' happiness levels soared,
and the fandom communities lit up in response.
Then, belatedly, a certain piece of info reached the Masked Hero fandom. 💬 Comments — SurpriseFan Wait, Kaguya-sama isn't Japanese? — AlienLogic She's not even from Earth to begin with. — ClarifyPlz No no, not that... — VidHunter I saw it too. Kaguya-sama is actually Korean. Here's the video. It's from that hit historical drama in Korea recently. No wonder she looked familiar... A short video uploaded to the community.
In it was someone they could instantly recognize as their familiar "Kaguya-sama."
Dressed in black hanbok, speaking with dignified authority. "I am the Queen Dowager." Aside from the clear Korean language, she exuded a charisma that rivaled Kaguya's.
Not just her face, but her pure acting alone made it obvious who she was. This dropped a massive plot hook for the Masked Hero fandom once more. 💬 Comments — KaguyaSpotter Kaguya-sama was here too. — TimeTraveler She's been alive from then until now...? — LoreMaster Indeed. Korea was actually Black Star all along. lol — HarshWorld "Harsh environment" had that double meaning. — DetectiveMode Hold up. How did no one notice until now? — LanguagePro Her Japanese is that good? Yeah, gotta admit that. — NewbieMistake I thought she was a rookie like Makado-kun... Heard a Korean actor was involved, but who knew it'd be the Queen herself. No wonder the credits skipped her intro at the end... The late revelation that she was the rumored Korean actress stunned people once again.
And rightly so—there wasn't a hint of awkwardness in her Japanese acting.
Her lines weren't sparse either;
as a lead, she bantered with Makado, issued commands to her subordinates, and so on—probably top three in screen time among the characters.
Yet her Japanese was flawless, no stumbles or stiffness, conveying raw emotion so vividly that you could forget she wasn't Japanese just from the performance.
Plus, it wasn't the early episodes anymore; Kaguya was already cemented as an iconic character for them.
Her acting prowess, combined with zero awkwardness in Japanese, was more than enough to dispel any nationality-based reservations.
Having a foreign actor smash through the language barrier with perfect delivery instinctively bred familiarity—and even a touch of gratitude.
Rather, the rarity of seeing a Korean on Japanese TV etched one name sharply into viewers' minds.
The name of Korean actress Chae Soo-jeong. ◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "The reactions are... better than expected."
"Y... yeah. Honestly, I was a bit worried when I first heard about it."
The reactions to my acting on my phone.
More precisely, seeing the so-called "" () responses from Korea's Masked Hero fandom brought me a mix of relief and bewilderment. 💬 Korean Fandom Comments ⭐ Top Comment — QueenFanKR Hail the Queen! — BlackStar4Ever Black Star forever! — SiegKaguya Heil Kaguya-sama! — OverlordWannabe Charisma! Aura! Black Moon! Foolish humans, I shall dominate you! Kneel before Kaguya-sama's power and wisdom! Even I had to admit, I'd gone all out channeling Kaguya's intensity.
Back then, it was partly acting, but mostly to overpower the Japanese cast with sheer presence.
As a result, Director Oda praised me nonstop, and the other actors' attitudes warmed up—a definite win.
But I never expected that fervor to spark reactions like this.
...Was it a bit too much?
The Japanese viewers' responses felt a tad dangerously enthusiastic, almost cult-like in their praise.
It made me think that if Black Star were real, they could probably take Japan with ease.
And there was even a parody mashup of Hitler and Kaguya.
Oh, and one more thing.
Alongside the fervent Japanese reactions,
Korea's Masked Hero fans weren't slacking either... no, they were even more intense. 💬 Korean Invasion Vibes — ConquerorKR Finally, Korea's invasion of Japan is here. — OooQueen Ooooh, Your Majesty... — DowagerDejaVu Our Queen Dowager Majesty strikes again. "I am the Black Star's Queen Mother." — ConquestMode Queen Dowager of Joseon attempting full Japan conquest. Queen, take Japan then go for world domination! — FreshFriend But what's with the fresh, fluffy vibe when she was the male lead's friend? The Korean viewers showed twisted national pride mixed with fervent hype.
Compared to when I first checked for acting references, the communities seemed several times more buzzing.
That was understandable... but the problem was that over 80% of the chatter was about me. 💬 Meme Central — MemeMachine Kaguya meme incoming. — VsDebate Queen Dowager vs Kaguya—who wins? ↳ Reply Kaguya crushes with raw power, right? ↳ Reply Nah, hey—disrespecting Joseon's top sword? — SoccerThrowback Chae Soo-jeong's soccer girl pic... yeah, she was plotting Earth invasion back then. ↳ Reply Those glowing eyes confirm it. ↳ Reply Is she really an alien? lol ↳ Reply As expected of Black Star's Queen. There were plenty of posts that felt oddly complimentary,
but in any case, Korea's Masked Hero community had basically turned into the Chae Soo-jeong fan hub.
A Korean starring in my favorite foreign show? Yeah, even I'd lose it...
But honestly, this level of hype surpassed even reactions to The Queen Dowager, The Queen Dowager, Sovereign of Deception, or Reply 1988, leaving me pretty flustered.
"I knew Korea had a solid tokusatsu hardcore fanbase, but not to this extent."
"I... I think most are just here for Chae Soo-jeong. I didn't watch tokusatsu either, but..."
"Hmm..."
Ha Yu-ra spoke with a hint of embarrassment.
Anyway, figuring good is good, I pocketed my phone and asked with a more serious expression.
"Alright, time to move. Leaving now should get us there right on time."
"Ah... yes."
With that, the two of us stood up.
Unlike moments ago, now filled with grim determination,
I stepped forward, feeling an uncharacteristic tension.
If it were my own gig, I wouldn't be this nervous.
But today's star wasn't me.
She has to do well... our daughter...
My slightly trembling hand and the single bead of cold sweat trickling down my forehead.
Today was that fateful broadcast.
The day of the child star's first audition.