<Episode 84>
I went to a restaurant to finally meet PD Yoo, a meeting I had been putting off.
“CEO, over here.”
“It’s been a while.”
It was a modest Korean home-style restaurant that suited his personality well.
“Have you been doing well? Well, with Spade Joker rising so smoothly, there’d be no reason you wouldn’t be.”
“Well… I suppose you could say that.”
I didn’t bother going into detail.
Although I currently have a good relationship with PD Yoo, there was no guarantee it would last forever.
So there was no need to reveal too much.
“It’s all thanks to you, PD.”
Of course, I didn’t forget to clearly acknowledge his contribution.
“My doing?”
“After I appeared on your variety show, I was able to come across more favorably to a lot of people, wasn’t I?”
That was sincere.
My image is becoming more approachable to the public
also contributed to Spade Joker’s success.
Not just fans, but even ordinary people became interested in Spade Joker’s songs and music videos.
“On top of that, the members’ variety appearances are doing well too. The fans are reacting very positively.”
“That’s good to hear.”
While we talked, the food arrived. The table quickly filled up.
‘This seems like a good place to casually treat someone to a meal if there’s a meeting.’
“Let’s eat first.”
“Sounds good.”
Unlike other PDs, PD Yoo didn’t like drinking, which made things comfortable.
When meeting other PDs, I’d often have to drink to the point of worrying about the next day,
but with him, there was no such concern. Thanks to that, I could fully enjoy the food while talking.
“Did you read the proposal I sent?”
He finally brought up the main topic.
“Yes.”
Only after reading his proposal did I remember.
This was a program that aired during my sixth regression… and failed.
Koreans go abroad and run a restaurant.
It was, in fact, a format that had already been used several times.
A calm, healing-type program that suited PD Yoo well, but the program itself followed a path that was bound to fail.
The biggest reason it failed was that people who actually worked in the restaurant business felt it was somewhat deceptive.
Opening at 1 p.m. and closing at 8 p.m. is an unrealistic schedule.
A prime location with an ocean view through the window.
And not a single difficult or rude customer.
Yet celebrities with no experience working in restaurants complained about how hard it was… which naturally angered people in the industry.
‘At first, people might find it entertaining, but anyone who’s worked even a part-time job would realize this format can’t sustain itself. On top of that, the format itself was already getting stale.’
“What do you think?”
“May I speak honestly?”
I spoke in a polite tone.
“Of course.”
“I don’t want the Spade Joker members to appear.”
PD Yoo’s expression darkened.
Still, I had to say what needed to be said.
If I let them appear just because of personal ties, it wouldn’t be only PD Yoo who would get hurt.
“What is your reason?”
“First, if it goes on like this, people will say it’s a program made just to promote Spade Joker. I’m grateful that you think highly of them, but I don’t think this is the right approach. If all the members appear, I think you should secure two restaurants and cast other actors or idols of similar age as well. Otherwise, it would be better to have only one or two of the members appear.”
I said everything I had in mind without filtering.
“…And?”
Even though I was criticizing his plan, PD Yoo showed not the slightest sign of agitation.
If anything, he seemed to want to hear more.
“I want the restaurant to be run sincerely. Even if it’s just selling ramen, it should be done with the mindset of truly running a restaurant. From operating hours to the overall method, there needs to be a sense of real intensity you’d see in an actual business. With the economy being poor and so many restaurants on the verge of closing, many viewers will feel uncomfortable watching wealthy celebrities run a restaurant just for fun.”
After hearing me, PD Yoo fell into thought for a moment, then nodded.
“You’re right, CEO.”
As a PD, he must have had his pride, so I didn’t expect him to accept my criticism so readily.
“I think I was viewing things too much from my own perspective.”
I didn’t know what to say, so I remained silent.
“Thanks to you, I think I’ll be able to create a good variety show.”
PD Yoo expressed his gratitude sincerely.
“I’m glad I could help.”
“You would’ve succeeded even if you became a PD.”
“You flatter me.”
“I mean it.”
PD Yoo suddenly began to slowly look around the restaurant.
“Even though I was observing right next to it, I couldn’t think of the points you mentioned.”
“Isn’t it natural? When you’re deeply focused on something, it’s hard to see other things.”
“If I revise the plan, would you consider letting the Spade Joker members appear?”
“Of course.”
At my answer, a gentle smile formed on PD Yoo’s lips.
From the start, it wasn’t a bad offer for me.
I wanted to maintain a good relationship with him, and the members had already mentioned the U.S. program’s setting during a livestream.
If the chances of failure were reduced, I was willing to let them appear.
“By the way, CEO.”
“Yes.”
“Would you have any intention of appearing yourself?”
“…Pardon?”
‘Why me all of a sudden?’
“I think it’d be interesting to see you together with the Spade Joker members, and you’d probably approach running the restaurant from a business perspective. Plus, since you’re mixed, you must be good at English.”
“Thank you for the offer, but I don’t think I can leave the company for that long.”
“Ah, that makes sense.”
Filming would take at least a week.
As the CEO of a company, leaving for a whole week would be difficult.
“Then would it be possible for you to appear in just one episode? Even if you show up in the first episode and simply explain, ‘This is what business is,’ I think it would be great.”
As he said, even if it wasn’t a restaurant, having someone who runs a business appear and instill the idea that business is never easy could improve public perception.
It would also show that the production team isn’t taking restaurant work lightly.
“…I’ll think about it.”
It was difficult to accept immediately since even the filming schedule hadn’t been decided yet.
“Just considering it is more than enough, thank you. Ah, thanks to you, I had quite a treat. You introduced me to actor Kang Woojin.”
“Really? That’s good. He said he wanted to focus on that drama.”
“About that…”
PD Yoo took out a script from his bag.
‘Is he asking me to pass it along to Kang Woojin? That’s not difficult. I’d just be delivering it… I wouldn’t be involved beyond that.’
The issue was that Kang Woojin already had a drama scheduled for filming.
He was famous for never taking on two projects at once.
Officially, it was because he wanted to fully focus on one work.
‘But the real reason is probably that doing two projects at once would confuse his identity. He has to continuously act out his constructed image even on set.’
So simply passing along the script was something I could do.
“Could you show this script to Leejoo?”
“You mean I should deliver it to Kang Woojin?”
We spoke at the same time.
Then we looked at each other with the script between us.
“Weren’t you asking me to pass it to Kang Woojin?”
“Yes. He’s known for not doing two projects at once. This was something a drama director asked me to deliver after seeing the Spade Joker film music video.”
“Ah, I see. Thank you.”
“He seemed quite desperate. We’re not even close, but he pushed the script into my hands.”
At that, I checked the title written on the script.
[priest]
I had heard this title a few times in previous regressions.
‘Was it a horror drama?’
It wasn’t a massive hit, but it could be considered a pioneering work that sparked interest in producing horror dramas.
“It’s a mystery thriller. You should read it. From what I hear, it’s not bad.”
It seemed PD Yoo also thought it was a decent project.
‘I haven’t seen this drama before, so I can’t be certain. Its performance was average.’
Even if it inspired other works, I wasn’t sure whether sending Leejoo into such a mid-tier project and consuming his image was a good idea.
“You’re planning to have Spade Joker act, right?”
I didn’t particularly intend to push them into acting,
but even if I said that, it probably wouldn’t be believed.
‘After spending so much money to produce that kind of result, anyone would think I’m lying if I denied it.’
“I’m still considering it. I’ve never raised actors before. And we’re still short on managerial staff.”
To regularly attend drama shoots, I’d need at least one more manager.
It wouldn’t be an immediate problem since Spade Joker would soon enter an inactive period, but it was necessary to prepare for unexpected situations.
‘Like yesterday, when Kim Jawook came down with a fever, and I had to go to the filming site myself.’
“I’d recommend at least having a meeting.”
“Thank you.”
I carefully placed the script beside me.
‘I was worried about image consumption, but if they’re just starting acting, it might be better to showcase their acting skills in a project like this rather than jumping straight into a major production.’
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