"Proposal daisakusen, saikou!!!"
After the special episode of "proposal daisakusen" finished airing.
That same night, in an RTT group chat named "Kashiwabara Takashi's First Support Group", countless netizens started chatting away enthusiastically.
"Ah~ proposal daisakusen has finally finished airing, and it gave us a pretty good ending."
"Yeah, yeah, fortunately the ending was good, otherwise I'd want to send razor blades to Moon River Company."
"Hahahaha."
"Have you guys noticed that Kashiwabara Takashi looks so good? He is completely an unparalleled peerless handsome man."
"Does that even need to be noticed? An unparalleled handsome man like Kashiwabara Takashi walking down the street—you don't even need to look closely, just a glance is enough to spot him, right?"
"That's true, hahaha. If someone fails to notice Kashiwabara Takashi's beauty, then there must be something wrong with their eyes."
"I really love Kashiwabara Takashi so much; he looks so good, completely growing right on the tip of my heart."
The RTT group chats under Pokeni Co., Ltd. also gradually caught fire.
Many people found that this chat tool was actually quite easy to use, especially at times when they really needed to share things with others.
Everyone's desire to express themselves was activated.
And on the internet, you don't need to tell others who you are at all, nor do you need to know who others are.
This completely virtual form of communication, stranger socializing, is really addictive.
"But have you guys noticed that in "proposal daisakusen", Uchida Yuki is also very charming?"
"Uh-huh, noticed it, noticed it! Uchida Yuki is just too good-looking, especially when she wears a wedding dress. Even as a girl, my heart flutters when I look at her."
"Yeah, too gorgeous. Miss Uchida is the kind of type that even girls would blush at. When watching her other TV series before, I always regarded her as a boy. I didn't expect her to be so pretty and feminine in "proposal daisakusen"."
Uchida Yuki's face had made countless girls daydream countless times, and even bent quite a few girls, but in reality, Uchida herself is a thorough straight woman who likes boys, and likes boys with high looks even more.
And she is also a love-brain, which is why she keeps falling deeper into love time and time again.
Fortunately, in the end, Uchida met Kashiwabara Takashi. The two of them came together, which can be considered a happy ending.
"Uchida Yuki's wedding dress is really gorgeous, and she's even prettier in person. I really like her so much. I also really like Kashiwabara Takashi. In the show, these two are simply too cute. Just looking at their appearances, they seem so well-matched."
"The plot is also very captivating. A pair of childhood sweethearts, they have had great tacit understanding since childhood, caring for each other. Just watching the interactions between Kashiwabara Takashi and Uchida Yuki is something I could watch for a lifetime."
"Fortunately, the two of them came together in the final finale. It can be considered a very good television series."
"Ah, Kashiwabara Takashi and Uchida Yuki in the show really look like the ideal of the mortal world; I even wish so badly that they could be together in reality."
"Who is to say otherwise?"
"Ah~ I wonder when the next time we'll be able to see such a good TV series will be."
"I'm so looking forward to them collaborating once again!"
After the TV series "proposal daisakusen" was broadcast, it successfully triggered another wave of [first love craze].
Many people exclaimed after finishing proposal daisakusen that they wanted to go back and find their first loves.
Or go back to find their childhood sweethearts.
Those people who were missed countless times, and the youth that was missed, are really nostalgic.
But some people also feel that there is no need to disturb others; sometimes, beautiful things are best left in one's own memories.
When you go back to look for them, you might find that everything is not the way you imagined it to be.
Sometimes, imagination is the most beautiful.
Once pulled back into reality, everything might become unrecognizable.
In short, there were many people hotly discussing it on the internet, and quite a few went specifically for the looks of the male and female protagonists.
Kashiwabara Takashi and Uchida Yuki successfully became the number one best on-screen couple voted by everyone at the end of 1996.
Ever since "Love Letter", Kashiwabara Takashi's popularity surged wildly again, and in terms of momentum, he even faintly felt like he was going to surpass Kimura Takuya.
And Uchida Yuki also completely changed everyone's stereotypes of her from the past:
Things like boyish, tomboy, lesbian, cool and fierce, too handsome, sister kill me...
Now it has changed to:
So sweet, she looks so good, feminine, first-love vibe, dream lover.
Among the votes of male viewers, Uchida Yuki topped the list, becoming the number one ideal goddess for numerous boys.
Many boys expressed during interviews:
"Uchida Yuki reminds me of my first love, and Uchida Yuki is really too good-looking. If anyone can marry her in the future, they will definitely be very happy."
"The ideal girl is like Uchida Yuki. To be precise, she should be the Uchida Yuki version of Yoshida Li: childhood sweethearts, next-door girl, and at the same time having many things in common with oneself, sharing mutual affection, and thinking of each other..."
"If one can marry a girl like Uchida Yuki, it really would be the greatest happiness in life."
Uchida Yuki successfully became the universal first love in everyone's hearts.
In contrast, Kashiwabara Takashi's popularity was also super high.
In the female selection, Kashiwabara Takashi also topped the list to become the number one ideal boy in the hearts of girls.
When accepting interviews, many girls mentioned Kashiwabara Takashi's name and jumped up with excitement, while also blushing because of it.
"Kashiwabara Takashi really looks so handsome."
"He is my ideal type, but I probably won't encounter a boy like Kashiwabara Takashi in my entire life."
"I really liked Kashiwabara Takashi, who was full of youthful vitality in "Love Letter", and he had a scholarly aura. When it came to "proposal daisakusen", I liked him even more. I feel that not only is he handsome, but in terms of personality and behavior, he is really super similar to my first-love boyfriend. Of course, this might just be his performance in the show. However, what I want to say is—the combination of Iwase Ken and Kashiwabara Takashi is my inner ideal."
In subsequent reporter interviews, Uchida Yuki and Kashiwabara Takashi both attended the scene, and Director Iwai Shunji was also there, mainly to promote the TV series.
The TV series itself had extremely high heat, and everyone also very much wanted to understand the situation of the actors.
Reporters were actually very glad to see such a scene.
"Is proposal daisakusen the two of you's first collaboration?"
"Yes." Kashiwabara Takashi nodded, "It's our first collaboration."
Just as he finished speaking, Uchida Yuki, standing next to him, gave him a side-eye and punched him on the arm with her small fist.
Kashiwabara Takashi was stunned for a moment, then quickly reacted, "Ah, it's our first collaboration for a TV series."
Uchida Yuki nodded, "However, prior to this, the two of us collaborated on shooting advertisements together."
Seeing this scene, the reporters laughed on the spot.
Ah~ Two people who were so well-matched and sweet in the show, who would have thought that outside the show they would unexpectedly have such sweet interactions as well.
"Mr. Kashiwabara Takashi, do you know that your recent popularity is very high?"
"Huh?" Kashiwabara Takashi was taken aback for a moment, then silently nodded.
"Do you have any thoughts you would like to express regarding this?"
"Well..." Kashiwabara Takashi scratched his head, "What they like should be Iwase Ken in the TV series. Although I personally have a lot in common with him, I might not be the kind of person who keeps things hidden deep in my heart; instead, I'm more proactive. Moreover, things I've decided on, people I've determined, I will definitely pursue to the end and never give up. From this point, I think I am still somewhat different from Iwase Ken. Therefore, I'm actually not as good as the viewers think."
"Haha, what a straightforward personality."
The reporters at the scene were very satisfied with Kashiwabara Takashi's answer.
"Then Miss Uchida Yuki, do you know that you are now the national first love voted by boys? They think you have a very girl-next-door temperament, reminding them of their high school days."
"Eh?" Uchida Yuki covered her mouth in some surprise.
Successfully being elected as the national first love was something she hadn't expected either.
"Just like Kashiwabara Takashi, actually what they should like more is the image of Yoshida Li, it's just that I happened to portray it. I think if there were someone more suitable, then she would definitely become everyone's first love in their hearts."
"Then do you have anything else you want to say to the viewers, or anything you want to say yourselves?"
Uchida Yuki and Kashiwabara Takashi exchanged glances. Kashiwabara Takashi stood properly in place, made a gesture of invitation, and yielded the floor to Uchida Yuki.
At this moment, Uchida noticed Director Iwai Shunji, who had been left out by everyone all along, and quickly said with a smile:
"We should thank the director, right? Mr. Iwai Shunji was able to film the beauty of student days and the future dilemmas of adulthood. Whether it's the scenes, the storyboards, or the guidance on performance, he is very serious and very kind. Without Director Iwai Shunji, there wouldn't be such an excellent TV series. So for me personally, I am very grateful to Director Iwai Shunji."
"Thanks should go to Moon River Company, as well as the two founders of Moon River Company." Iwai Shunji quickly said.
"Right, right," Uchida Yuki laughed sheepishly, "The most thankful part goes to Moon River Company, as well as Aoki Haruhi and Nao Tsuda. Without them, there wouldn't be this excellent work. I only learned later that Mr. Aoki Haruhi had actually selected me for the role of Yoshida Li right from the start; I was truly flattered at that time."
"Me too. Thank you Mr. Aoki Haruhi for choosing me as the male protagonist from the very beginning, otherwise I wouldn't have had this opportunity to appear in everyone's field of vision."
Kashiwabara Takashi in the back leaned closer and spoke into Uchida Yuki's microphone.
She quickly brought the microphone closer to Kashiwabara Takashi, but because they had leaned so close just now, a flush of red spread across Uchida Yuki's face.
The reporters present eagerly recorded this wonderful moment and couldn't help smiling knowingly.
The TV series was immensely popular, even creating a terrifying rating record of 36.2% for the final episode.
This rating even surpassed "Long Vacation" starred by Kimura Takuya previously, which means "proposal daisakusen" is a dark horse that broke out at the end of this year, becoming the king of dramas of '96 with almost no suspense.
With only one month left, there was actually no opportunity left for other TV series to compete.
After the TV series became a hit, it naturally brought a large amount of sales to Pokeni Co., Ltd.'s game of the same name.
The audience of "proposal daisakusen" had too little overlap with the audience of the game.
A large portion of the game's main audience were boys; after all, this game was a galgame, and girls rarely touched it.
And the main target audience of the TV series happened to be the exact opposite.
There were many girls and many boys, but overall, the number of girls watching the drama was far greater than boys.
Even a large portion of them were married housewives and full-time homemakers.
This is also the reason why Kashiwabara Takashi has a larger fan base than Uchida Yuki.
After watching the TV series, more and more people developed a strong interest in the game, attracting many users who had never touched a game before.
Among them were all kinds of girls, as well as a large number of mothers.
Sometimes, while playing the game, tears would fall.
Perhaps it was because they were happy enough with their current husbands.
Or perhaps it was recalling a certain beautiful romance from the past.
Or perhaps because their current husband was actually their first love back then, and they were moved by the memories...
In short, the game sales surged upwards by another huge wave.
...
November 14, 1996.
Tokyo.
Ginza.
Pokeni Co., Ltd.
"Ahhh, isn't Kashiwabara Takashi just too handsome?"
As soon as Aoki Haruhi came to work in the morning, he saw a group of girls in the company daydreaming.
Especially those two fellows, Ishino Mika and Ayase Akane.
"It's really great that proposal daisakusen can be adapted into a TV series, President Saiko!" Ayase Akane clenched her fists and shouted.
The girls around them all laughed along.
"I originally held no hope for things in the three-dimensional world," Gen Urobuchi said, pretending to be profound, "but after watching the live-action version of proposal daisakusen, I must say, this is the most successful live-action TV series adaptation I have ever seen.
Although it's still not as good-looking as two-dimensional, it'll do."
"Make do? Are you speaking human words? Urobuchi, you really should go to the hospital to check your eyes. Such a good-looking pair as Kashiwabara Takashi and Uchida Yuki starring in proposal daisakusen really moved even me."
"I think what Urobuchi should check is not your eyes, but your brain. There must be something wrong with your brain to make such a judgment."
"I only have one question, with Urobuchi's aesthetic that two-dimensional looks better than three-dimensional, how did he get married?"
"Hahaha, mocking Urobuchi is one thing, but Urobuchi's bride is really nice."
Now Urobuchi's wife should be called Yui Urobuchi.
Gen Urobuchi didn't care about other people's mockery at all. Compared to Maeda Jun, Gen Urobuchi's heart was simply made of stone.
"Kashiwabara Takashi is really too good-looking. I still have his posters collected at home." The receptionist young lady also chimed in.
"Do you guys know who recommended Kashiwabara Takashi to the president?"
Just at this moment, the voice of Ishino Mika came from the corner.
"Who?"
"Guess?"
Ishino Mika smiled and held a cup of coffee, puffing out her chest.
Looking particularly majestic.
"No way?"
"Is it really you, Ishino?" Ayase Akane widened her eyes.
"That's right." Ishino Mika was immensely proud.
Several girls cheered.
As if they had discovered some incredible event.
"Well done, Ishino!"
"You have such a good eye, being able to pick Kashiwabara Takashi to play the male protagonist in one go."
"I just want to know who chose the female protagonist. It couldn't be that you recommended her to the president too, Ishino?" Akanishi Ken also walked over holding a teacup.
"Well..." Ishino Mika was a bit embarrassed, "This was chosen by the president himself. He specifically requested Miss Uchida to play the female protagonist."
"President Saiko!!!"
A group of boys joined in the commotion.
The company was filled with a joyful atmosphere.
"Sure enough, girls understand girls best, which is why Ishino could recommend Kashiwabara Takashi; but on the other hand, men understand men best.
The president's vision is really impeccable."
"Uchida Yuki is really so cute. If there's a chance in the future, I'd even want to get in touch with her in person."
"That depends on how proactive you guys are. Just make more games and adapt them into TV series, right? Who knows, maybe you, Urobuchi, will get to designate the female protagonist for the next TV series?"
"Eh?" Gen Urobuchi was taken aback, his eyes shining brightly, "Really? Then I have to think about it carefully."
"Maeda, you must work hard too!"
"Yeah, work hard!" Maeda Jun cheered himself on.
...
Hearing their praise, Aoki Haruhi was still quite happy.
However, he still had work to be busy with.
"Takahashi Kazuma, come over for a moment."
Operations Director Takahashi Kazuma, who was immersed in chatting about gossip with the girls, suddenly tensed up when he heard the president's voice.
He hurriedly packed up the materials on his desk, stood up, and trotted submissively behind Aoki Haruhi into the president's office.
"President, is there something you need?"
Takahashi Kazuma came in, closed the door, and then took out a notebook to prepare for taking notes.
Honestly, situations where he was called alone into the president's office for a talk were quite rare for him.
But they usually talked about very important things.
After all, what he was responsible for was related to money. Operations concerned the sales status of each product in the company, and at the same time managed various promotional and marketing activities.
"It's like this."
Aoki Haruhi invited him to sit down, and then slowly said, "There are two things I need your side to operate."
"Okay, President."
"Actually, they are much the same. One is that I need you to find people to hold the [Pokeni Manga Award], and the other is the [Pokeni Light Novel Award]."
As the name implies, one is to solicit manga submissions nationwide, while needing to evaluate the participating works within a certain time frame to finally determine the champion.
The other one is the same model, except it's for light novel submissions.
Both of these things were the result of Aoki Haruhi's deep deliberation. Last time after chatting with Takeuchi Takashi, he deeply felt that Pokeni should establish such a competition mechanism.
There are several functions. The first is to be able to screen out sufficiently excellent works.
If there are any that particularly satisfy and move Aoki Haruhi, after evaluating feasibility, they can be made into games or produced into animations.
The second is to select talents.
Like Takeuchi Takashi and Nasu Kinoko, perhaps they could be selected through a similar award.
Furthermore, as Pokeni's influence grows larger and more people participate in the future, under sufficiently fierce competition, a lot of talent will inevitably emerge.
This is all what Aoki Haruhi hoped to see.
Once Aoki Haruhi explained, Takahashi Kazuma understood immediately.
"President, I understand. Leave this matter to me; it will definitely be run flourishingly."
Who knows, in the future it might even spin off into a department, or even a subsidiary.
Takahashi Kazuma thought to himself.
"In the future, various competitions can also be held, such as programming competitions, robot competitions, game console competitions, game design competitions, and so on..."
"Then how much prize money is appropriate for us to give?"
"For the champion, provide generous prize money and publishing rights, and even adapt it into animation and games. As for the prize money, giving tens of millions is totally fine."
Aoki Haruhi said.
Nani?!
Takahashi Kazuma was shocked in his heart.
Nowadays, the prize money given by many light novel or manga awards is actually not high, with some only giving around the 500,000 yen level.
If the president sets it at 10 million, it will definitely be the ceiling among competitions of the same type.
It's roughly equivalent to 80,000 to 90,000 US dollars.
In 1996, this prize money was actually quite generous.
And with subsequent publications and such, there will definitely be quite a few powerful Authors coming forward.
Fortunately, the company has deep pockets and doesn't care about this little money.
For Aoki Haruhi, it's really small money; even the gifts he gave to Hattori Hiroyuki added up to more than this figure.
"Then how often will the evaluation be held?"
"Half a year, let's do it once every half year at first. If the effect is good in the future, we'll gradually shorten the time."
"Okay, President."
...
After the subsequent work arrangements on Pokeni's side were completed, Aoki Haruhi took time to visit Moon River.
In the evening, Moon River held a celebration banquet, which was a carnival party held in a hotel together by the company's employees, the two founders, and the entire crew members of proposal daisakusen.
The scene was particularly lively.
Because there were celebrities present, the hotel service staff appeared extremely enthusiastic.
In the evening, Aoki Haruhi sat by the pool with Director Iwai Shunji, envisioning the future of Moon River.
"After the filming of proposal daisakusen ends, what plans do you have in the future, Aoki-san?"
The president of Moon River is Nao Tsuda, and Aoki Haruhi is at most a CEO, and neither of them manages things much.
However, Aoki Haruhi had discussed this issue with Nao Tsuda before, so he had some idea.
Drama themes like proposal daisakusen are hard to come by, and as for whether they will make TV series in the future and what to do next, they haven't actually figured it out yet.
According to his previous layout with Nao Tsuda, the next step should be to enter the Europe and America market and produce the live-action TV series of Eternal Ashes.
But all of this depends on Old Man Martin writing the script fast enough.
But the company has to operate after all, and the employees also need to eat.
"Movies and TV series are both fine," Aoki Haruhi said. "In the future, combining with games, we will still follow this kind of linkage route. Of course, if there is a good script, we can also shoot it directly."
Of course, for Aoki Haruhi, games are still the mainstay, and film and television are just an auxiliary; but if it can really generate revenue, grow big and strong, it's not a bad thing either.
When doing the film market, doing it in Japan is quite different in gameplay compared to other places.
Japan's film market is mainly dominated by animated films; live-action films can never beat animation.
TV series are slightly better.
If shooting movies, either make animations or go abroad.
If you want to make it more world-class and international, it looks like you still have to go abroad.
Unfortunately, it is now 1996, and the Chinese market has not yet developed.
That is to say, Moon River Company currently has several development routes.
There is no one on the Europe and America side, which is the most troublesome part.
The two had a heart-to-heart discussion, and Aoki Haruhi also stated his concerns.
"Aoki-san is indeed not an ordinary person."
Iwai Shunji laughed, "Isn't this just right? If Moon River wants to enter the Europe and America market in the future, I happen to know someone who might be able to help you."
Eh?
Aoki Haruhi was somewhat pleasantly surprised.
"Okay," he said earnestly, "then I'll leave it to you."
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