Give Me Back My Emotional Moment!

This achievement is something others can only look up to, but the Lead Actor in this drama series is Takuya Kimura!

It's Takuya Kimura, the emperor of Japan dramas!

For Takuya Kimura, a viewership rating below 30% is a failure!

The neighboring Fate series was able to calmly accept a 28% viewership rating and even hold a thank-you event.

Johnny & Associates is no good, Takuya Kimura is even less so!

Their past achievements made it impossible for them to accept this result calmly.

Don't use the overall decline in Japan drama ratings as an excuse. UBW next door still averages over 30% in viewership.

The phenomenal ratings of UBW were also one of the reasons why Johnny Kitagawa was in a bad mood.

Just a few days later, the fifth episode of UBW achieved a viewership rating of 34.7%, almost 10% higher than the first episode of <Engine>.

Actually, 34.7% is just the average viewership rating; this episode's peak viewership rating once reached 38%.

Because the content of the fifth episode is almost entirely a solo show for the Cater group, first they steal Saber, then they attack the church, and then Archer betrays them and joins the Cater group.

After one episode, viewers realized that the Caster team had won so many times that they had acquired four Heroic Spirit plus a super-powerful People's Teacher.

Faced with such a powerful lineup, Fate fans are speculating about how the main characters will be able to break through and win the Holy Grail War.

Johnny Kitagawa is getting old and doesn't understand the specific plot of Fate, but he does understand the audience's opinions on the TV series.

With such positive discussion, UBW's ratings will certainly not fall below 30% again.

Compared to the booming UBW, <Engine> is in a rather dire situation.

Aside from the ordinary plot, another aspect of <Engine> that viewers keep mentioning is Takuya Kimura's template-like confident performance, which seems out of place with the character he plays.

Many viewers said they wouldn't have watched <Engine> if it weren't for Takuya Kimura's face.

If Johnny Kitagawa could console himself with the poor ratings of "Engine" by blaming it on bad drama selection, then the continuous decline in sales of merchandise featuring the show's stars was something that truly troubled him.

Merchandise sales are the lifeblood of Johnny & Associates Johnny & Associates and the cornerstone that allows them to outperform all other agencies in Japan.

This is not only because selling merchandise can bring Johnny & Associates substantial profits, but also because it is the most direct way for Johnny & Associates & Associates' stars to demonstrate their commercial value.

The decline in sales of Johnny & Associates's merchandise over the past two years is not due to internal issues; the quality of their artists has not changed significantly.

The real reason is external pressure—someone is taking away the market that originally belonged to Johnny & Associates's.

As mentioned before, Japan's entertainment market is a highly competitive market. Consumers have limited funds; if they buy your products, they won't have the budget to buy anything from other brands.

There are two forces competing with Johnny & Associates & Associates for market share: one is the influx of K-pop stars from abroad, and the other is the emerging domestic Type-Moon Company.

In terms of sales performance, the Korean wave has clearly captured a larger market share.

But Johnny Kitagawa didn't seem to care much about the seemingly overwhelming Korean wave.

These foreigners are essentially rootless in Japan; their rise to prominence is due to the support of Fuji TV.

Fuji TV's decision to promote the Korean Wave is simply an attempt to curry favor with the "Emperor" of the Japan entertainment industry Dentsu President Narita Yutaka.

The Dentsu President was born in South Korea and has a deep affection for the country. He is a proponent of the integration of Japanese and Korean entertainment and actively promotes the smooth entry of the Korean Wave into the Japan entertainment industry.

Fuji TV played no more than a eunuch serving the emperor in ancient China.

But I must say, Fuji TV was really dedicated to flattering President Cheng Tianfeng—no, I mean promoting the Korean Wave.

Fuji TV provided various resources to promote Korean artists, and there were even instances where Korean artists appeared on every program throughout the entire day.

Even Johnny Kitagawa, couldn't find a good solution to this situation where the GM himself was taking sides.

After all, the Korean Wave is backed by the "Emperor," while Kitagawa is at most a daimyo.

The good news is that there is only one Emperor behind the Korean Wave.

Narita Yutaka is already very old, practically with one foot in the grave, and doesn't have many years left to live.

Once Narita Yutaka dies, the Korean Wave will naturally be forced out of the Japan market.

Johnny Kitagawa believed he would see this day; he was confident in his robust health.

Compared to the Korean Wave, Johnny Kitagawa believed that Type-Moon was the real threat.

Don't be fooled by the fact that all the male stars in Type-Moon are foreigners; both their agencies and the works they star in are Japan.

Generally speaking, it is difficult for celebrities born in other countries to succeed in other countries—except for the United States, that fertile ground for talent.

The stars of Type-Moon have managed to do something that outsiders cannot, and the reason is simple—these male stars are just too handsome, so handsome that audiences can ignore gender and nationality and simply like them because of their looks.

This would be extremely damaging for Johnny & Associates's.

After all, Johnny & Associates's Entertainment started out by producing handsome male idols. Johnny Kitagawa can say with certainty that, with a few exceptions, Johnny & Associates's idols are the pinnacle of Japan male celebrities.

But now there are talent agencies with male celebrities who are even better looking than those from Johnny & Associates's! Isn't that just maddening?

In particular, this agency likes to sell celebrity photo albums, which is taking away Johnny & Associates's business.

"Type-Moon Company..."

Johnny Kitagawa picked up the relevant documents for Type-Moon Company, all the wrinkles on his face gathered together.

His biggest dilemma right now is that he knows who his opponent is, but he doesn't know how to take action.

Despite Type-Moon Company's involvement in film production and photo sales, they don't have many areas of conflict with Johnny & Associates & Associates.

Activities that most idols engage in, such as holding concerts, appearing on TV variety shows, national tours, and releasing CDs, are almost entirely avoided by Type-Moon Company.

The feeling that Type-Moon Company gave Johnny Kitagawa was, "I'm taking your business, but not completely."

They've clearly challenged Johnny & Associates's in their core area, yet they haven't even considered expanding their gains in other areas. Is Type-Moon Company just here to annoy Johnny & Associates's?

"Ah, if only we had a way to communicate with them."

Johnny Kitagawa sighed once again.

There was no communication between Johnny & Associates's and Type-Moon; the latter treated Johnny & Associates's, a dominant force in the Japan entertainment industry, as nothing.

However, Johnny Kitagawa, mindful of his status, could not take the initiative to contact the other party, as that would be tantamount to showing weakness.

It's important to know that in Japan, seniority-based ranking isn't just a phenomenon among employees in the workplace; it also exists between companies.

Despite its current success in the global entertainment industry, Type-Moon is still a lowly junior company in the Japan entertainment industry, having been established for less than five years.

Just as Johnny Kitagawa was still struggling with his decision, his older sister Fujishima Taiko, who was five years older than him but even more robust, walked into the office.

"A'kuo (the old man's name)! Look at the TV! TBS Television is broadcasting a press conference for Tsuburaya Productions!"

"What's so interesting about a product launch event from a small company like Tsuburaya Productions?"

Despite saying that, Johnny Kitagawa's actions betrayed him as he turned on the television and tuned it to TBS.

The sight of the blue-haired young man on the television screen startled Johnny Kitagawa.

"Shinji Matou?! When did he start hanging out with Tsuburaya Productions?"

On the screen, Shinji, beaming, announced, "At the strong urging of the vast majority of Tsuburaya Productions employees, I, Shinji Matou from Fuyuki City, hereby officially declare myself the largest shareholder of Tsuburaya Productions!"

"At the same time, I will be filming an Ultraman movie that will be released next year. Both Showa Ultraman and Heisei Ultraman will appear in this movie. Ultraman fans, please look forward to it."

Chapter 109 Give Me Back My Mood!

At the press conference, Shinji sat in the center with a kind smile on his face. His approachable demeanor was a far cry from the "tyrant" he had been at the UBW appreciation event a while back.

Because this was a press conference for Tsuburaya Productions, in addition to Shinji Tsuburaya, a number of Tsuburaya veterans, including Kazuo Tsuburaya, Ooka Shinichi Sadao Iizuka, were also present.

In addition to them, Bandai representatives Udagawa Nao and Matou Kariya also attended the press conference.

Bandai has a representative because Shinji, like in his previous life, gave Bandai 49% of the shares so that they could focus more on developing Tsuburaya toys.

Kariya's attendance at the press conference wasn't because he was following behind wealthy and beautiful women; he had just been appointed as the executive director of Tsuburaya Productions by Shinji.

Shinji brother would definitely not have much time in the US to handle Tsuburaya's affairs in the future, so they simply passed their second uncle over to him.

In Zouken's words, this stupid son is getting on in years and has accomplished nothing; let him manage a company to gain some experience.

That's what Zouken said. Shinji wouldn't dare let his second uncle take over Tsuburaya directly. He had finally managed to pull Tsuburaya out of the mire, and he didn't want his second uncle, a business novice, to kick him back.

Therefore, the Second Master only gave his second uncle the title of executive director, so that he could first learn how to manage the company.

Shinji and Zouken were intentionally grooming Kariya, but he himself didn't appreciate it much.

"It's really troublesome, not fun at all."

Kariya moved her lips and complained.

Kariya had attended several press conferences as an actor, but this was the first time she had attended one as a company manager.

Although it was just a change of identity, Kariya felt a complete transformation, and an invisible pressure made him feel uncomfortable all over.

Fortunately, the reporters weren't interested in Kariya, a second-rate actor. The main character of this press conference was only one person: the current world box office record holder, the great commercial Director (according to the Britain media)—Shinji Matou.

Despite being only Director at the press conference, Shinji stole the show from everyone else present.

"Mr. Matou, why did you choose to make an Ultraman movie?" a reporter asked, holding up a microphone.

The reason so many reporters attended this press conference was certainly not because of Tsuburaya Productions, but because they wanted to get more information from Shinji about the currently popular Unlimited Blade Works.

But after the new movie plans were announced, "Why make Ultraman movie?" became the question in the minds of all reporters.

For a Director whose works have grossed over $1 billion worldwide, tokusatsu films like Ultraman simply lack appeal.

Shinji naturally replied, "Because of childhood memories, because of childhood heroes, and even more so because of my childhood sentiments."

As he spoke, Shinji looked at Kazuo Tsuburaya: "I am very grateful to Mr. Kazuo Tsuburaya; he gave me the best opportunity to pay tribute to my childhood."

A hush fell over the scene; everyone was watching Shinji.

Kazuo Tsuburaya responded to Shinji with the same smile, seemingly thanking Shinji for what he had just said.

Two days ago, Shinji had communicated with everyone at Tsuburaya Productions and formulated a publicity strategy that focused on selling nostalgia.

Shinji decided to use Ultraman as a topic that represents his own hero and dream, in order to evoke memories for more people.

As for the effect, that depends on the performance of the Second Master himself.

When it comes to selling nostalgia, Shinji must have seen too much of it in his past life.

Since 2010, all sorts of sentimental works have emerged, dazzling the eyes.

From Hollywood's Transformers series to various "renaissances" of Japan anime, and even to the new versions of China's Four Great Classical Novels.

Regardless of how well these nostalgic works turn out, the most important thing is to first establish that nostalgia and attract those longtime fans.

In fact, Tsuburaya Productions also realized the effectiveness of playing the nostalgia card. Even without Shinji's intervention, Tsuburaya would have started playing the nostalgia card with "Ultraman Max".

But it's unclear whether it's due to the Japanese Tokusatsu environment or Tsuburaya Productions' inability to effectively utilize nostalgia.

In any case, Tsuburaya Productions' appeal to nostalgia relies entirely on word-of-mouth from longtime fans. Without word-of-mouth from fans, Tsuburaya's own promotion alone could perfectly avoid those longtime Ultraman fans.

From this perspective, Tsuburaya's publicity strategy can be considered a unique phenomenon in the world of publicity.

Shinji is different. He doesn't think playing the nostalgia card is pretentious; what he wants is to spread the word about Super 8.

From 50-year-old middle-aged men to 10-year-old children, everyone is a target of Second Master's advertising.

The core message of the promotion is simple: the new Ultraman movie is a super nostalgic work, and you're not human if you don't watch it!

As an extremely old IP that started in 1966 and has a lifespan longer than Shinji lifetimes combined, it is almost the childhood of all East Asians.

If this force can be mobilized, Second Master believe countless viewers will be willing to pay for their childhood memories.

So, facing hundreds of reporters asking questions, Shinji fondly recalled, "I grew up watching Ultraman. For me as a child, this series was my eternal companion. My favorite toy when I was little was a Ultraman Tiga soft vinyl figure. It was my best friend and accompanied me as I grew up."

Upon hearing Shinji's words, many reporters at the scene wanted to stand up and speak, but hesitated.

Many of the reporters present had attended UBW's thank-you event a few days prior, and seeing that Shinji clearly hadn't finished speaking, they dared not be presumptuous.

Did I go too far before? Did they get so scared they became ill?

Shinji touched his nose, maintaining his sorrowful expression, and said, "But as I grew up, I forgot about this companion, I neglected it. It was my best friend who accompanied me through my childhood, yet it was met with the fate of being ignored."

At this point, Shinji looked at Kazuo Tsuburaya again, patted him on the shoulder, and said emotionally, "So I want to thank Kazuo Tsuburaya. Some time ago, he took the initiative to contact me and ask if I was interested in Ultraman."

"Yes..."

Kazuo Tsuburaya's smile was very forced.

If time could turn back, he would definitely... still go find Shinji Matou.

After all, Tsuburaya didn't have many options when it was being outmaneuvered by TYO.