Turning Down the Temptation
People might not know it, but Zero-Rating Algorithm and Gongbeomche were just a scripted WWE match.
To be precise, it started as a serious UFC fight, but then Han Sung-hoon struck a deal with the SBX drama head and pivoted to WWE.
Maybe "WWE laced with real grudges" is more accurate.
This was possible because it worked out fine for SBX too.
The initial backlash stung, but now drama buzz was exploding like crazy, right?
KBX and MBY were dropping like flies, and no matter how hard you squinted, Gongbeomche didn't look like real competition.
So, they hashed out a gentleman's agreement.
Let's trash-talk each other honorably and pump up the buzz.
But that was just surface-level peace.
A safeguard to keep it from escalating into a full broadcaster vs. Tvic war. Underneath, though? Not so much.
CPs leaked stories without running them by the head, and actor agencies pulled their own media stunts.
But the one burning with the most rage was...
"Do Hyun-woo, you son of a bitch!"
Oh Ji-tae, the main PD on Zero-Rating Algorithm.
I'd heard rumors he wanted me dead plenty of times.
Apparently, he once planned a mock execution with a doll bearing my name, but his colleagues talked him out of it.
Of course, I felt wronged.
I couldn't just take beatings from Manager Jang without pushing back, could I?
But setting my grievances aside, I could understand Oh Ji-tae's fury.
The problem was how that fury twisted into irrational stubbornness.
"Fuck. You think I didn't do a thriller because I can't?!"
After Gongbeomche's knockout in episode 4, Oh Ji-tae PD started ripping apart his script.
OTT shoots everything upfront like movies, but broadcast TV doesn't.
They deliberately overlap late-stage filming and airing.
That way, they can tweak based on viewer reactions.
There was a bit of superstition too.
Pre-produced dramas tanked in ratings—or so the data suggested.
In that environment, Oh Ji-tae PD overhauled episode 7.
I learned late, but he even reshot scenes already filmed from scratch.
And so...
A thriller element got shoehorned into Zero-Rating Algorithm at 0%.
"Gongbeomche grabbed mass appeal too? Fine, we'll grab artistic depth!"
No, don't do that...
Just hold out till episode 8...
Zero-Rating Algorithm was plenty fun already...
How do you stage an AI committing murder with intent?
It's not The Algorithm at 0% Ratings anymore!
I'm not mocking—I'm genuinely bummed.
It felt like our fault, and I felt sorry.
After episode 7 aired, the internet lost its mind.
Zero-Rating Algorithm stories even outnumbered articles about Gongbeomche's finale preview.
Then, amid the chaos, someone dropped the hammer.
Seo Jae-yeon's SNS post turned the internet upside down.
Even folks who knew about Gongbeomche but had zero interest started flooding in.
The entire demographic that avoided dark thrillers got swept up.
As the internet went feral hunting for Seo Jae-yeon...
"Are you insane? How could you lie like that?!"
I freaked and tracked her down.
"A bang at the end? What the hell is that?"
I'd never heard that term. I knew clueless charm, though.
"Post a correction on SNS right now."
Seo Jae-yeon giggled at Do Hyun-woo's rage over the line.
Most people might secretly enjoy this, but not him.
He was genuinely pissed.
Oh well. Nothing to do but soothe him.
"Don't be mad. I really did appear."
—You appeared?
"Yeah."
—As what? When?
"First love Yeon-hee."
—Hey! You trashed that because I said no!
"We shot it after. With Chae Seo-hee CE's help, on the sly."
Do Hyun-woo went silent on the other end.
Probably replaying memories or the drama beats.
Sure enough, a scream exploded.
—That shoulder and back silhouette was you?!
"Took you long enough? Disappointing—I thought my shoulder line was recognizable."
It was a secret even from the Gongbeomche cast.
No frames with other actors, just insert shots of shoulder and back.
Her condition for the cameo was "Do Hyun-woo can't know," so Jung Hee-soo and the DP kept it locked tight.
—Why reveal it now of all...
"Surpriiise~?"
—Sigh...
Seo Jae-yeon teased the speechless Do Hyun-woo awhile longer, then—as always—said her piece and hung up abruptly.
"Heh, that was fun."
She rolled around on the bed, then fired off a message on her smartphone.
Recipient: Kim Ra-un.
She typed, 'Should've been nicer to your senior, huh.' but hesitated and deleted it all.
Humming lightly, she set the phone down.
"What'd Seo Jae-yeon say? Why claim she was in a drama she wasn't even in...?"
"She was in it."
"What?"
"Did a cameo. Without telling me."
"What?"
As I explained while exiting the M2M office in Bangbae-dong, Ko Sang-wook Team Leader's jaw dropped.
I'd bolted mid-meeting with the M2M CEO after Sung Tae-hyung's call.
By the time I wrapped up in the hall, Ko Team Leader finished too.
"That girl's a tentpole Chungmuro star who won't touch anything but dual leads or prime slots. A no-face cameo? Come on."
"Who knows."
"If you don't, who does?"
"Even her parents—her mom, at least—probably don't know her mind."
Ko Team Leader shook his head in resignation.
"Seo Jae-yeon was so sweet and demure as a rookie. Now? Uncontrollable runaway train since superstardom."
"She's most charming when she's intimidated."
"One year intimidated, six years flying high?"
We shared a laugh, eyeing each other—not at the story, but the shared memories.
"At least M2M wrapped up smoothly."
Shifting topics, I glanced up at the modest building.
We'd just settled Eum Sung-hyun's contract termination with the M2M CEO.
I was the witness, detailing the Pangyo event point by point. He shut up fast.
Not a total loss for them, though.
Penalty fees covered remaining activity and ad revenue settlements to M2M.
D.P didn't need to go that far, but it was Ko Team Leader's call.
He hated seeing a talented actor wasted by a trash agency.
That's why I like Ko Team Leader.
One of the last endangered romanticists in this industry.
Even if he's hopeless at his own love life.
"What's that sly look?"
"What look?"
Anyway, D.P now had all of Gongbeomche's leads under one roof.
Lightning-fast, like stir-frying beans in thunder.
"Hyun-woo."
Ko Team Leader clapped my shoulder with a beaming smile.
Wait, I know that grin.
The one for producers and investors.
"We've been family since Mapo-gu days, right?"
"Yep."
"Now Gongbeomche actors and me too?"
"Sure."
"So you and the actors are family? What's family? Nothing's off-limits!"
"Spit it out."
"Next project casting... I can look forward to it?"
"Tricky. Next one's a high school drama."
"Perfect. Our actors cover teen to 50s faces."
What, like insurance coverage?
From teens to 50s.
I laughed in disbelief; he chuckled back.
"Thanks for today anyway. Made it easy."
"No biggie. Obvious move."
A favor from the heart, but it helped me too.
Producers thrive on networks.
These moments pay off big someday.
We parted laughing. Half-day off, time to head in.
Light steps to the office.
"Do CE. See me a sec."
Joo Young-hoon senior was waiting.
Door shut, thick script thumped on the table.
"Do this for your next."
"...Pardon?"
"You know Hong Hee-young writer?"
"Yes."
Of course.
She nails characters.
Even in flops, everyone quoted the leads' iconic lines.
Obsessed with supporting dialogue too—actors loved her.
"Hard-won new script from Hong Hee-young. Checked your work, so talk to Kang CE—full authority. Make it good."
Honestly, caught off guard.
Unless it's a "Hong Hee-young? More like Hong Eat-Shit" prank, this is real goodwill.
As I blinked, Joo Young-hoon lowered his voice.
Not his usual prickliness—earnest, calm.
"Giving you a shot."
"A shot?"
"To not go to Team 4."
"..."
"Think the CEO's sending you to Team 4 for no reason?"
"What do you mean?"
He rubbed his chin.
"You proved it with Gongbeomche. You shine from scratch. That's why Team 4—total void. Team 3's not enough for Tvic independence."
"..."
"Bet he dangled sweet rewards... But Team 4 flops? No homecoming. No guarantee of another homer like Gongbeomche."
Ex-actor here—I see through acting.
His "concern" was fake as hell.
But intriguing: he believed Team 4 was bad for me.
True or not, that's his truth.
Would've been confusing if it stopped there.
It didn't.
"And that Kim Seong-tae you trust blindly. Never struck you as off?"
"What?"
"If he valued you that much, why hand you Gongbeomche? Homer in hindsight, but 99% flop odds. You beat the 1%."
He stared straight.
"World's full of user types. I'm one—using you for Team 3 stats. So team up with honest users like me. Skip the sneaky bastards."
"..."
Ah, so Kim Seong-tae hyung's the sneaky one, and he's "honest"?
Ridiculous.
Maddening.
Maybe Joo Young-hoon's life was all users, but not mine.
Kim Seong-tae hyung poured years into no-name me.
Knew I was broke, came over for meals.
"Oops, hit ten lunchboxes by mistake."
Two years actor-manager. Six as brothers.
Normally, I'd nod and bow out.
Not today.
"Appreciate the offer, but I'll handle my career."
"...What?"
His brow twitched.
"Mad 'cause I dissed Kim Seong-tae?"
"Total Director."
"What?"
"Kim Seong-tae Total Director. Tvic Korea's exclusive SSK supplier."
"So? Hate me for touching him, so off to Team 4? No project?"
"Got one."
"That volleyball thing you obsess over?"
How'd he know?
Creepy level of interest.
"Yes."
"Protesting? Don't wanna work with me?"
Nailed it.
But not just rebellion.
Recent scripts clarified something.
At Your Fingertips.
Corny? Sure.
But a corny gem, polished.
Shed the corniness, and it'd outshine anything.
Still no "answer," but no doubt it needed one.
"Dunno if protest, but yeah—my next project."
His reaction? Unexpected.
Looked at me like trash, laughed.
"Fine. Gonna regret it? Can't stop you."
We'll see who regrets.
Next day.
Rumor spread company-wide: I ditched Joo Young-hoon's Hong Hee-young script for At Your Fingertips.
Curious folks checked the script. One reaction.
"He's nuts, right?"