Chapter 238
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 238
Chapter Title: The Final Curtain Call
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Thump!
Thump!
The post-credits scene ended, and the soundtrack for *Shadowman* began to play. White text appeared on the pitch-black screen.
[Ryan Will]
[Evan Block]
[Seojun Lee]
[Richelle Hill]
[Swalin Annum]
Even as the names of the director, actors, and staff faded one by one, the audience couldn't bring themselves to leave. The sound of sniffling could be heard here and there, and some closed their eyes to savor the lingering emotions, listening to the *Shadowman* OST. Their eyes were red as well.
Realizing they hadn't brought tissues, Im Miyon and Park Seongah wiped their tears.
“…Do you think there’s another post-credits scene?”
“Hmm. I don’t think so. Even if there is, I doubt it’ll have anything to do with the *Shadowman* series.”
“That’s true.”
Im Miyon and Park Seongah’s voices were heavy.
Once the credits finished rolling and the theater lights came on, the reality that the *Shadowman* series, which had been with them for so long, was truly over would sink in.
They loved the ending. So much so that they couldn’t imagine any other conclusion.
Though they were thoroughly satisfied, the end of the *Shadowman* series left them with a sense of sorrow. That was why they couldn't bring themselves to get up from their seats.
“I’ll watch it again, but for now, I’m staying until the very end.”
“Me too.”
Finally, as the last of the end credits rolled and the Marine Company logo appeared, the audience began to rise. A bittersweet expression lingered on everyone's face.
* * *
Those waiting for *Shadowman 3* eagerly anticipated the audience from the previous showing to emerge.
“We were in middle school when we first saw *Shadowman*, right? I never thought we’d still be watching this movie now. I wonder how it ended.”
“I don’t know. It’s a hero movie, so it’s probably a happy ending, right?”
“For whom?”
For Jin Natra? Or for Shadowman?
At his friend's question, Kim Soohan scratched his cheek.
“Both… would be nice, but that’s probably asking for too much, huh?”
As a hero and a villain, their goals were bound to clash. How would he have resolved the story? Kim Soohan, an aspiring film director, fell into thought.
“Oh. They’re coming out.”
Audience members began to appear from the theater, one by one. The eyes of everyone—the next audience, people who had to see other movies because it was sold out, and even the theater staff—were all fixed on one spot.
“…Is this another crying challenge?”
They weren’t bawling their eyes out like they did for *Shadowman 1*, but most were sniffling as they left the theater. Curiously, unlike the crying challenge where only about ten percent cried, nearly everyone’s eyes were red.
‘It doesn’t look like they’re crying from sadness.’
Kim Soohan, whose work made him sensitive to people's expressions, tilted his head. No, there seemed to be sadness, but also satisfaction and awe. People’s faces were a complex mix of emotions that couldn't be defined by a single word.
“Hey. Let’s go in.”
“Oh, right.”
Called by his friend, Kim Soohan, who had been observing the crowd, started walking. His friend said with a smile.
“Looks like the ending was good, though, right?”
“Yeah. No one looks angry.”
It was a relief that it didn't start with a bang only to end with a whimper.
* * *
[Shadowman 3 Pre-booking Rate Hits 97.7%!]
[Shadowman 3 Pre-sales Surpass 2.1 Million, Breaking Records!]
[Shadowman 3 Opens Today! What Will the Opening Score Be?]
[How Many Days Will It Take for Shadowman 3 to Reach 10 Million Viewers?]
-Whoa. Look at that pre-booking rate. Everyone must have been dying to see it… Me too, lol.
=I’m one of those 2.1 million. I’m so excited.
=Same here. So excited.
-Don’t get your hopes up too high, or you’ll be disappointed. Keep your expectations moderate.
=I can’t help it. T_T After rewatching from *Shadowman 1* in the rerelease, I can’t help but be excited.
-Just please don’t have a weak ending.
=I believe in you, Director Ryan!
-It opens today, but I couldn’t get tickets, so I’m seeing it tomorrow. T_T
=Me too. I was trying to pick a good seat, and it sold out.
-Guess I should stay off the internet for now. Have to be careful about spoilers since it’s the last one.
=Please…!
-I bet it’ll hit ten million in just a few days.
=The current record is 14 days.
=Even if a million people see it a day, that’s 10 days, haha.
* * *
“Hello. This is the Moviegoer.”
-Hey Moviegoer!
-Go Moviegoer!
“Today’s review is on the final installment of the *Shadowman* series, which took a whopping 10 years to conclude.”
-10 years. That’s incredible.
-I think I was 20 when I saw *Shadowman 1*, haha. Now I’m already 30… ha.
-Time flies. It feels like just yesterday that the Davis Garrett accident happened. Thinking about the chaos back then, lol.
“Yes. It was absolute chaos. I was really looking forward to it, too, so I was a bit disappointed when they announced that *Shadowman* and *Green Wing* would be released instead.”
-Especially *Shadowman*. *Green Wing* was pretty popular, but *Shadowman* was a complete unknown.
-I didn’t even know it existed.
-Well, the comic was out of print, too.
-I heard there’s talk of the comic being re-released.
-Oh! Really?
The Moviegoer reined in his viewers, who were already getting sidetracked, and continued.
“And now, that same *Shadowman* has filmed three movies and has finally come to a close. Has everyone seen it?”
-Yep. Saw it as soon as it came out.
-Me too!
-It’s been two weeks, lol. Who hasn’t seen it?
“Then let’s start from the beginning.”
The Moviegoer displayed a scene from the post-credits scene on his monitor. It was the moment Jin Natra’s shadow enveloped Tul Natra.
“The movie began with the forced succession scene that we saw in the post-credits. The post-credits scene was amazing, but the sheer power of the shadow in the movie was even more incredible, wasn't it?”
-The CG team must have been grinding.
-The post-credits scene wasn’t bad, though, lol.
“There’s an interview about the shadow CG.”
-I saw that too, lol.
-Demon 2, lol.
An interview with the CG team and staff appeared on the monitor with translated subtitles.
“After watching *Shadowman 3*, there have been testimonies from all over about seeing a real, moving shadow. Director Ryan said he saw it too. Some were reportedly horrified when they saw the movie, as the shadow moved exactly as they remembered seeing it during filming.”
-I can’t believe the demon spirit followed Seojun all the way to America.
-Lee Seojun’s popularity, lol.
-Isn’t it just an American ghost that latched onto Seojun?
-Yeah. Gold and black. The colors are different, too.
-…Whatever it is, that’s creepy.
“Yes. It’s a scary story no matter what… but perhaps it’s true that movies with ghosts in them become blockbusters, because *Shadowman 3* was a huge hit.”
-I can’t believe it surpassed 10 million in 12 days.
“Yes. It surpassed 10 million viewers in just 12 days since its release. The opening score was also incredible. 1.5 million! It broke the opening score record as well!”
-That’s another 10-million-viewer movie for Seojun.
-It’d be faster to find one of his movies that *didn’t* hit 10 million.
-Demon? Lol.
“Its international performance is just as impressive. Marine Company is predicting that it might become their highest-grossing hero film. I’m excited to see just how much profit it will rake in.”
-I think I spent a ton on it.
-Same here. I’ve seen it 8 times!!
-I’m on my 6th viewing!
“I’ve seen it 11 times.”
The Moviegoer said with a laugh, joining the impromptu rewatch battle, and continued his review.
“Next up are the action scenes. The CG was great, but the stunt actors’ performances were so realistic, right? And of course, actor Lee Seojun was phenomenal. I heard he’s athletic, and perhaps because he has the fundamentals, he did an amazing job despite only learning for about a month, from his departure in October to the crank-in in November.”
-Whatever he learns, he becomes national team level… lol.
-Someone I know said Lee Seojun is an amazing athlete, ha.
-He’s too good at acting, so it’s hard to poach him. T_T
-Jin Natra was so terrifying, I felt nervous even though I hadn’t done anything wrong, lol.
-Same. I couldn’t even breathe. I was worried my breathing would bother him.
-Why the formal language? Lol.
-Are the knights okay?
-Lol, I was worried about that too when the knights went flying.
“From what I’ve gathered, it was an incredible shoot with fewer injuries than any other film. If you look up the American interviews, it seems a new jinx called ‘gosa’ might be forming among the stuntmen. A photo from the *Shadowman 3* gosa ceremony has also been uploaded.”
The Moviegoer displayed a series of photos on the monitor: Seojun, the director, the actors, and the stuntmen, all bowing to the gosa table.
-Gosa, lol.
-Last time, Seojun was promoting the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, lol. This time, it’s gosa, lol.
-Oh, is that Korean man Jin Natra’s stunt double?
“Yes. That is Kim Jaeyeon, Jin Natra’s stuntman. He filmed all the scenes where Jin Natra was attacked.”
-Whoa. Really?
-I thought I’d be able to tell Lee Seojun and his double apart.
-Same. Lee Seojun has this unique aura.
“Yes. Honestly, I thought so too. I think I know what you mean by that unique aura. You’re not talking about ‘Lee Seojun’s’ aura, but the aura of the ‘character,’ right?”
-Yeah. A sense of evil, maybe. Jin Natra’s unique vibe. There’s something like that.
-That’s why I was worried when I heard about the stuntman… but it was a needless worry!
The Moviegoer nodded.
“It was almost impossible to tell where the double was used. Throughout the entire movie, there wasn't a single moment when he wasn't 'Jin Natra.' I would strongly recommend that Mr. Kim Jaeyeon try his hand at acting.”
-I agree. I think he’d be a good actor.
-If you can act out that kind of aura, you’d definitely succeed.
After briefly discussing Kim Jaeyeon, the Moviegoer returned to his review.
-Why didn’t he go straight to the underground temple after the forced succession?
“He probably needed time to fully make Tul Natra’s shadow his own. If he had moved rashly, he might have self-destructed before his plan was complete. And thanks to that long wait, Jin Natra was able to make an incredibly formidable entrance.”
-He was on another level from the moment he walked down the stairs.
-A true villain, lol.
-Even just seeing his shoes was terrifying.
-But I couldn't look away. I just kept staring.
“A villain who’s bad but charming, perhaps. I couldn’t stop staring either. So, what did everyone think when Korea appeared?”
As Korea became the topic, the chat exploded. Everyone poured out their overwhelming feelings about seeing their country on screen. The Moviegoer quickly read through the rapidly scrolling chat.
-I cheered the moment the subtitles appeared on screen! In my head, of course, lol.
-You have no idea how excited I was when it was marked on the map!!
-It was awesome, lol. My company building got destroyed, lol.
-Ugh. Me too, lol. I go to work every day wishing it would collapse, and it actually got destroyed.
-But it was a close call when the spaceship was falling.
“Ah. I know what you mean. I was on the edge of my seat, worried it would fall on the statue of King Sejong the Great or Admiral Yi Sun-sin.”
-I clenched my fists when it crashed next to King Sejong, lol.
-Same. My heart dropped.
-It seems like they don’t destroy important buildings in movies.
-Yeah, Gwanghwamun Gate, right at the front, was fine too.
-The rank stones were swept away and the walls collapsed, but Geunjeongjeon Hall was also mostly intact.
“Even though the plot is about an alien invasion, it feels like Marine Company toned it down for the Korean audience. Considering how New York was destroyed in *Redbone 2*…”
The Moviegoer and the viewers shook their heads, recalling the devastation of New York.
“It would have been heartbreaking if Gwanghwamun and Geunjeongjeon had been destroyed.”
-But it was kind of funny that the spaceship crashed next to King Sejong.
-Why??
The Moviegoer blinked, waiting for the next comment.
-King Sejong encouraged research in science and astronomy, right? Aren’t you curious what he would have said if he saw a spaceship? Lol.
-He might have extracted the alien technology.
-He would have published a ton of books, too.
-??? : Welcome↗ to the palaces→ of Joseon↘, stranger↘.
-??? : Oh-ho. Is this that Natura ship?
-Natura, hahaha.
-It’s amazing how different it feels just by changing one vowel, hahaha.
The Moviegoer and the viewers burst out laughing at ‘Natura.’
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