In truth, 'Another' was always the kind of show designed for early impact — full of shock value and novelty that grabs viewers right out of the gate. Its appeal lay in its bizarre setup, and it was able to quickly build a niche audience with just the first few episodes.
But this type of drama had a weakness: it lacked staying power.
Take the first episode, for instance — the class president is killed by a stab from an umbrella. That scene left viewers completely stunned.
Then, as the story progresses, a nurse dies, then a teacher, followed by classmates dropping one by one...
The freshness of it all gradually begins to fade.
So whether the show's ratings could maintain strong growth past that point depended on one thing beyond the bloody, grotesque setup —
It's mystery and plot twists.
And to be honest, from Jing Yu's perspective, 'Another's mystery elements weren't particularly sophisticated.
Of course, that depends on what you're comparing it to.
If you hold it up against genre-defining classics like 'Death Note', then 'Another' falls short in terms of logic, character development, pacing — the whole package. On a 10-point scale, Jing Yu would probably give it a 4.
But if you're judging by the standards of Great Zhou's domestic drama industry, it's already above average.
Which is why Jing Yu never expected this series to hit staggering ratings. As long as it could break the 4% mark, and in doing so stall 'Manual' — the flagship drama of Imperial Capital TV — from gaining momentum, it would've fulfilled its purpose.
Because Jing Yu's main focus had always been 'Steins;Gate'.
Sure, 'Steins;Gate' also served as a tool to hinder 'You, Under the Cliff's growth and help 'Hikaru no Go' Season 2 rise to the top —
But make no mistake, he never treated it as cannon fodder.
In Jing Yu's mind, 'Steins;Gate' stood on equal footing with 'Hikaru no Go'.
The only reason it seemed disadvantaged in the TV ratings war was due to its slow burn in the early episodes. If you look at the average rating across the entire run, it would inevitably lag behind the flagship dramas from the Big Three.
So, letting 'Steins;Gate' act as a support for 'Hikaru no Go' was simply a strategic compromise.
But when it came to peak episodes, accumulated fans, popularity, and highest single-episode ratings, Jing Yu believed 'Steins;Gate' could absolutely hold its own against the Big Three.
And so far, everything was playing out exactly as he expected.
As 'Another' continued airing, its rising viewership brought with it a wave of criticism from viewers.
After the shock value wore off, people began looking at the rest of the story more critically.
Some complained the pacing was sluggish. By episode four, the show still hadn't explained why all the bizarre events were happening in Class 3-3.
Others noted that since the protagonist was caught up in this mess, the goal shouldn't just be to survive — it should be to end the curse altogether, so it never happens again.
But… that was only what viewers assumed would happen.
In reality, 'Another' never explained the origins of the curse or how to eliminate it. All it gave was an outcome where the protagonist barely survives.
The ending felt incomplete — like a story that hadn't fully wrapped up.
Yet calling it a "bad ending" would be unfair — it remained entertaining from start to finish.
Still, it was clear the drama lacked depth, and that's what stopped it from being a true masterpiece.
Ultimately, episode four of 'Another' closed with an average rating of 4.03%.
Compared to episode three, the growth had clearly slowed down — but that was enough.
Because in the same time slot, 'Manual's ratings were clearly dragged down.
Hovering around 6% at launch, by the fourth week, it had only risen to 6.13%.
Each week, it gained a measly 0.03–0.05%.
A tragic trajectory.
And Imperial Capital TV?
No way they'd be okay with this result. 'Manual' had a 90 million yuan budget, only to be sabotaged by a 9-million-yuan series like 'Another'.
Who made a better return on investment was obvious.
A day passed. Sunday night arrived.
Episode four of 'Black Cat' and episode five of 'Hikaru no Go' Season 2 aired back-to-back.
'Black Cat', facing no strong competitors in its time slot, saw its ratings climb smoothly to 6.29%.
But 'Hikaru no Go' Season 2's fifth episode also surged, hitting 6.45%.
A key dynamic was now becoming apparent:
Fans of 'Hikaru no Go' were watching 'Another' and 'Steins;Gate' because they trusted Jing Yu's name.
And viewers who discovered Jing Yu through 'Another' or 'Steins;Gate' — these newcomer fans — naturally turned around and checked out 'Hikaru no Go' as well.
There was heavy audience overlap across Jing Yu's three dramas.
And even those who didn't overlap at first were rapidly being converted.
So ironically, the shows that were supposed to compete with 'Hikaru no Go' were having less effect on its ratings than 'Another' and Steins;Gate, which were actually helping it grow.
Still, many in the industry agreed:
If not for the Big Six's barrage of "filler dramas," 'Hikaru no Go' Season 2 might have already caught up to 'You, Under the Cliff'.
Jing Yu set down the newspaper in his hands.
The struggles 'Hikaru no Go' Season 1 faced from coordinated attacks,
The heat 'Manual' is feeling now,
And the pressure is closing in on 'You, Under the Cliff'…
It's all starting to even out.
He did enjoy fair competition — but unfortunately, the Big Six didn't give him that chance.
Right now, he had to admit:
"Honestly, the satisfaction from 'Hikaru no Go's rising ratings doesn't compare to the sheer joy I'm getting from watching 'Another' and Steins;Gate slow down the other two flagships, don't you think?"
Cheng Lie strolled over to Jing Yu and echoed his thoughts out loud:
"I'm seriously loving this. Remember how 'Hikaru no Go' Season 1 got wrecked last quarter by the Big Three's coordinated sniping?
Now Huanshi TV and Imperial Capital TV are finally tasting their own medicine.
Hahaha!"
His voice was so loud that it drifted out of the office.
The crew shooting outside politely pretended not to hear.
"Too bad we didn't push for a fourth drama this season.
Otherwise, even the 'Black Cat' crew next door could've felt a little heat from our 'Cheng-Jing' squad.
Honestly, I almost feel bad for Huanshi TV and Imperial Capital TV.
Last season, it was all three networks working together to shut us down — this season, we only hit two of them. That's just… unfair."
"Oh, please." Jing Yu didn't hold back.
"You were the one who opposed me doing a fourth drama this season. Said it would impact my writing quality.
And now you're acting like we should've done it?"
"Was I?" Cheng Lie scratched his head and laughed awkwardly.
"Well... guess I was being shortsighted!"
Suddenly, Cheng Lie asked a strange question:
"Jing Yu… you'll stay with Yunteng TV, right?"
"Where'd that come from?" Jing Yu raised an eyebrow.
"I know how the Big Six operate.
Over the next few days, you're gonna get bombarded — calls, texts, visits.
Even top-tier headhunters from across Great Zhou are probably lining up to poach you."
Cheng Lie said it casually, but inside, he was nervous as hell.
Jing Yu thought for a moment, then answered honestly:
"Right now, I'm happy at Yunteng TV.
Unless one of the Big Six offers something far better than what I've got now,
I have no plans to leave."
He didn't shut the door completely.
If one of them threw an absurd amount of money at him — enough that he couldn't justify staying even to himself — well, he's only human. He'd take it.
But that'd have to be a lot of money.
"Then I can relax." Cheng Lie exhaled deeply.
"Those performance-based contracts we signed with you?
The Big Six might consider offering them, but they'll never match what we gave.
No way they can pull that off."
Because if they did, the entire screenwriting department at those stations would explode.
Rewarding top talent is easy.
But balancing everyone else's pay — that's the real nightmare.
That's why most companies would rather let a star walk than give them a raise.
Raise one person, and everyone else at their level wants the same — or riots.
"Three dramas…" Cheng Lie grinned.
"Jing Yu, what do you think? Could all three of our shows make it into the Top 10 by the end of the summer season?"
Jing Yu chuckled.
"You're only thinking about that now?"
"I've been aiming for that since the start.
I'm not 100% confident about 'Another',
But 'Steins;Gate'? That one's guaranteed to make it."
Sure enough, in the days that followed, Jing Yu's phone was hit by a tsunami of unknown calls — all trying to poach him.
Some people even showed up in person at the film base to talk.
But Jing Yu ignored them all. He wasn't some flighty job-hopper.
Time flew by, and before long, it was Friday again.
Time for the next episode of 'Steins;Gate' to air.