Translator: Dreamscribe
Overall viewership rating 10.1%. It was the proud first broadcast rating of 'Produce That 100!'. As soon as he heard the rating, PD Woo Han-suk's eyes widened, then quickly turned into a smiling face.
"10.1%, okay."
As soon as he responded to the junior over the phone, the writers including Kim Se-hee cheered. No, it was a scream closer to a shriek.
"Kyaaaah!! Is it real?? 10.1%?!"
"Amazing!! Amazing!!!"
"What the heck! What's happening!! We surpassed 10% on the first broadcast??!!"
"...Pinch me, this doesn't feel real."
"Wow- it's my first time hitting a 10% rating!!"
Excited by the writers, the rest of the staff including those preparing for filming, sound, and lighting rushed over.
"What is it what is it?? Why!! What is it!"
"They said the rating surpassed 10%!!!"
"Whaaat???! Re, really?!!"
"Waaaaaah!! 10%!! 10%!!"
Soon, the hall with the stage turned into a total frenzy. The thrill spread in an instant. All the hundred or so staff inside the hall jumped up and down.
It was truly a super-large-scale festival atmosphere.
The hall echoed with the staff's wild screams.
At this point, PD Woo Han-suk, the head of "Produce That 100!", smiled faintly as he looked around at the staff with satisfaction.
'They're so hyped, these brats.'
PD Woo Han-suk, who had over ten years of experience, had of course seen ratings in the 10% range before. But that was a story from quite a while ago. In the current era, where there's plenty to watch besides TV like Youtube and OTT, 10% had a different level of impact.
Moreover, "Produce That 100!" aired on JTVM, a general programming cable channel.
A 10% rating on a general programming cable channel? That was the equivalent of hitting a 20% rating on public broadcasting. No, maybe even more. These days, whether it's public broadcasting or not, fewer people watch TV, and the market is struggling. Crises abound across variety shows, dramas, news, documentaries, and more.
To have broken through that and reached a 10% rating might have been called a moderate success in the past, but now it was a huge hit.
At that moment.
"Breaking news, breaking news!!"
Writer Kim Se-hee, who received a call from the broadcasting center, shouted with high tension.
"'Produce That 100!' ranked number one in ratings during its Friday time slot!! And not just variety shows, it beat out dramas too!"
The cheers of the hundred or so production staff doubled in volume. In the broadcasting industry, Friday 9 PM is called the golden time slot. So many stations place their killer programs at that time. Whether it's a variety show or drama. "Produce That 100!" had surpassed them all in ratings.
A result and figure more than worth savoring.
The staff of "Produce That 100!" felt catharsis as if all the hardships until now didn't exist. This is how the quality of a broadcast improves and reaches completion. But as if it wasn't enough, the writers threw in more exciting bait to boost the energy.
"But this is just the beginning! We ended the last cut of the first episode on a real high note yesterday, and today is Saturday with two episodes airing back-to-back! It's obvious the ratings will go even higher!!"
It was a valid point. Viewership ratings have a flow. A dying flow, a rising flow. "Produce That 100!" had clearly boarded a rising trend, and since today was a special back-to-back airing for the launch, the possibility of increased ratings was very high.
Then, PD Woo Han-suk gave instructions to the fired-up writers.
"Tell the center to pressure the reporters more, so we can double the number of articles from now!"
"Yes!!"
"And send out all the edited videos we've loaded for Youtube! Not just Youtube, hit every video platform, search site, everything!!"
As a veteran, PD Woo Han-suk had already prepared a ton of edited videos for Youtube and various video platforms and social media. And it seemed there was a pre-planned strategy, as the writers moved in perfect coordination.
"Oh, and also! Focus the edited clips mainly on 'Number 1'!"
PD Woo Han-suk gave additional instructions.
"Don't hold back the shorts or today's teaser, release it all!"
About 30 minutes later.
While the staff in the hall were still in a frenzy, Kang Rojun was calmly running in the park next to the contestants' dorm.
'Even if I feel like I'm floating, I can't miss a mission.'
Kang Rojun ran nonchalantly, his black hair swaying. But that didn't mean he was calm on the inside. He was excited too, just pretending to be indifferent. Getting too carried away could lead to mistakes.
The funny thing was.
"Huff-huff- kuh-huff-"
"Wait a sec, ugh! I-I give up!"
More and more participants started running near Rojun. Originally, only the residents of Room 105 were participating, but maybe due to the first broadcast effect or something, the number of people running had easily surpassed a dozen. Of course, most of them ended up collapsing to the ground in less than 30 minutes. The Room 105 members had already given up as well.
Currently, only Kang Rojun was still running.
The Room 105 members, now huddled together, were all busy looking at their phones. Number 19, who was scrawny, and Number 37, who had a tanned skin tone, were showing excessive combativeness.
"Whoa shit!! New articles are popping up every second!"
"That's what I'm saying! Every time I refresh 'Neriver', new articles are coming up!!"
"This is crazy, seriously!!"
In reality, the entertainment media was flooding with breaking news related to 'Produce That 100!'.
"Anticipated storm 'Produce That 100!' starts gloriously with 10.1% ratings, viewer reactions at furnace levels"
"Storm Expected: 'Produce That 100!' Starts Strong With 10.1% Rating, Viewer Reactions Like a Furnace"
"All Communities Now Flooded With 'Produce That 100!' / Photos"
While there were plenty of positive responses, there were also quite a few negative articles.
"How Long Will the Self-Cloning of Survival Audition Variety Shows Like 'Produce That 100!' Continue?"
""It's Boring, Why the Fuss?" Viewers Slam 'Produce That 100!'"
Whichever side it was, it was still attention. The entertainment section of major search sites was pretty much dominated by 'Produce That 100!'.
"That 10% rating really was insane. I didn't expect it to blow up like this."
"This isn't just a big hit, it's a super super super super hit. Even SNS and communities are going nuts."
Even at this very moment, countless people somewhere were probably furiously typing on their keyboards about 'Produce That 100!'. The Room 105 members couldn't let go of their phones out of sheer amazement. Rojun also wanted to join them badly, but he somehow finished all the workout missions.
About an hour passed?
Rojun and the Room 105 members, having finished exercising, moved back toward the dorm.
"Number 1-nim! Did you see your face all over Instakilo right now??"
"Yeah, it's being shared like crazy. Even in the communities."
Yeah, of course he saw it. In fact, Kang Rojun was extremely tired right now.
'What time did I go to sleep last night... Shit, I couldn't help it and kept looking it up.'
He had barely slept, spending the dawn obsessively searching and searching.
'But I have no regrets.'
It was a thrill or ecstasy enough to make him give up sleep. Who could possibly endure such an unimaginable event unfolding before their eyes?
"Yes, I saw it too."
"Feels amazing, doesn't it??!! Ha- so jealous, seriously."
"When Number 1-nim sings 'Farewell' in episode 2 today, it's gonna be even crazier, right??"
"Facts. I saw some comments saying Number 1-nim looks god-tier but probably sings like a tone-deaf."
Number 19 and Number 37 were talking non-stop in excitement, while Number 88, the reaction robot, kept nodding repeatedly. At that moment, Number 58, with a baby perm and who had been quiet the whole time, chimed in softly.
"...Let's all watch episode 2 together tonight."
"Yeah! They said we wouldn't be gathering like for the first broadcast, so we'll have to watch in the room!"
After that, including Kang Rojun, the Room 105 members showered and headed to the dining hall. However, Rojun.
"I'm going to the bathroom for a bit."
He made an excuse and slipped away. The bathroom he arrived at wasn't on the same floor but on a different one. A place he had previously scoped out for its lack of people. As expected, there was no one in the bathroom, and Kang Rojun settled into one of the stalls and let out a breath.
"Phew- this is crazy."
He steadied his excited heart and pulled out his phone. First, he checked the "AI Simulation" app.
-[User: Kang Rojun/ Age: 24/ Height: 182.8 cm/ Desired Occupation: Idol/ Coins Owned: 416 coins]
Including today's mission, the total number of coins had somehow reached 416. After briefly checking his coins, Rojun spent them on stat enhancement as per his routine.
'Today, I'll boost Singing Ability and let's raise Dance too.'
He used a total of 20 coins. Since he had earned a decent amount from recent Hidden Missions, he went ahead with the investment. The status change occurred immediately.
-[Appearance (100/100)│Singing Ability (8.7/100)│Rap (1.7/100)]
[Dance (6.4/100)│Eloquence (6.5/100)│Acting (3.8/100)]
Singing Ability would soon hit 10. Dance had risen quite a bit too. The other stats had also seen some change. Rubbing his jaw, Rojun loosened his throat and quietly sang a tune. Of course, it wasn't Farewell.
-♬♪
He stopped quickly and tilted his head.
"Hm?"
Getting up, he shook his body this time. He was dancing. He tried mimicking something he remembered another participant doing. Once again, he stopped after a few dozen seconds and muttered to himself.
"Can you really call this tone-deaf and rhythm-deaf?"
There were still some remnants, but his skill had clearly improved. Scanning through his status stats again, Kang Rojun reached one conclusion.
"...10 isn't a small number."
It was his own judgment, but a stat of 10 probably meant just slightly below average for a normal person.
'Raise it by just 20 more and it'd probably be considered decent among regular people.'
Well, he'd find out with time. Kang Rojun decided that once Singing Ability reached 10, he'd invest next in Dance, then Rap, Acting, and Eloquence in that order. Soon his gaze moved. To the last section of his stats.
-[Lyrics Writing (0.4/100)]│[Composition (0/100)│Arrangement (0/100)]
Compared to the other stats, there had been practically no growth in these areas.
'Hmm- feels like I'll need these eventually too.'
Around lunchtime.
The domestic broadcasting industry, including public broadcasters, general programming, and cable, was in an uproar. The reason? The sudden explosive popularity of "Produce That 100!"
"Damn- 'Produce That 100!' got a 10% rating?? Shit, that's sickening!"
"Our director's breathing down our necks like we're just twiddling our thumbs."
"Jin-sung's show got its ratings stolen by 'Produce That 100!', no wonder he's pissed."
"But seriously, what's up with 'Number 1'?? His visual could eat up most actors alive."
Station directors, high-ranking execs, CPs, PDs, assistant directors, and writers across networks were all talking. Of course, the same went for both variety and drama departments. It was the same at SBC, where PD Jung Soo-ryeong worked. Perhaps because it was a drama department, they talked less about the show itself and more about the "Number 1" contestant who shook viewers with just the first broadcast.
Watching the edited clips on Youtube, they were in awe.
"The more I see Number 1's face, the more amazed I get... Like, where the hell did Woo Han-suk even find this kind of gem??"
PD Jung Soo-ryeong, who had her frizzy hair tied up, glanced over and answered inwardly.
'That Number 1 was the grand prize winner in our One-Act Drama Contest and is the writer I'm supposed to work on a project with.'
When another PD chimed in while reading an article.
"On top of that, isn't Number 1 supposedly not even wearing makeup in this? And he still looks like that? Damn- this guy should've been an actor!!"
PD Jung Soo-ryeong cleared her throat and again responded in her mind.
'He's planning to appear in the One-Act he wrote himself. He even had a meeting here at SBC!'
Aside from the "Produce That 100!" team, PD Jung Soo-ryeong was currently the only person in the domestic scene who had made direct contact with Kang Rojun. The project had even progressed quite a bit. PD Jung Soo-ryeong was dying to spill the beans. Of course, even she had been dumbfounded when she watched "Produce That 100!" last night. She had assumed Kang Rojun was just a typical idol trainee from a mid-tier agency.
But then.
'Who knew he'd drop a nuclear bomb like this.'
Soon, the male PD sitting two seats over from her muttered.
"Number 1 completely hooked the viewers with just a face reveal."
True. PD Jung Soo-ryeong knew that better than anyone. She was the one who had cursed out loud at his insane visuals the moment she first saw Rojun.
'Writer Kang Chul-soo no, that Number 1's gonna blow up even if he's tone-deaf and can't sing.'
There was no way the production team of "Produce That 100!" or PD Woo Han-suk would just sit on a character with that kind of value. From now on, Kang Rojun would be the viewership magnet of "Produce That 100!"
'It's only episode 2 next, and it's already like this. A few more episodes and it'll be a full-blown storm.'
PD Jung Soo-ryeong, seated by the window, looked at an article open on her laptop. The article featured Kang Rojun's face in a large, prominent photo. Even PD Jung Soo-ryeong, who had seen countless actors, found it absurd, imagine how the general public must be reacting. At that moment, a fellow PD passed behind her and spoke.
"PD Jung, you're looking at 'Number 1' too? Isn't he insane? That face would make even Hollywood fall over in shock, right??"
"..."
Without responding, PD Jung Soo-ryeong stared again at the image of Kang Rojun in the article. Until just a few days ago, she had only thought of him casually.
'The situation has changed.'
There's a big difference between launching the One-Act first and then having Kang Rojun rise to fame afterward, and Kang Rojun becoming explosively popular first, followed by the One-Act's release. With just a single episode of "Produce That 100!", writer Kang Chul-soo had drawn massive attention. At this rate, not only would he have pulling power, but it was clear he'd soon carry the title of hot rising star.
'If it gets out in the media and public opinion that the hyped-up Number 1 is actually a writer and that he's appearing in a One-Act he wrote himself-'
Mixing Number 1 and "Produce That 100!" into a joint marketing campaign? PD Jung Soo-ryeong was practically salivating.
'This could mean "Rental Lover" ends up a ratings jackpot, right??'
If that was the case, she needed to revise the plans she had set for 'Rental Lover'.
'Looks like... I'm gonna have to expand the scale a bit.'
*****
If you enjoy this novel, please review and rate it at Novelupdates. Thanks! 😊
To receive the latest update notifications or report mistakes, join our Discord server linked below.