Since this was a drama adaptation, Su Yan had trimmed out all the more drawn-out side quests from the original game.
The female lead, Max, used her time-reversal ability and once again returned to the classroom.
Just like before, she flawlessly answered photography teacher Xu Jie (Jefferson)'s question.
Then, she waited in the restroom ahead of time.
As before, her former best friend Chloe arrived, accompanied by the rich and reckless classmate Nathan.
Everything unfolded exactly as Max had seen it the first time.
Except now—before Nathan could draw his gun in a panic—Max slammed the emergency alarm deep within the girls' restroom.
A blaring siren echoed through the entire building.
In the chaos, Chloe managed to escape, and Nathan—terrified—also fled. But before leaving, he caught a glimpse of Max at the alarm and realized she had seen him bring a gun to campus.
The remainder of Episode 1 revolved around Nathan seeking revenge on Max at school. He even got into a fight with a male student who had a crush on her.
At the critical moment, Chloe showed up in her pickup truck, crashing onto the scene to rescue Max and get her out.
For an episode under an hour, the story was packed with tension and conflict from beginning to end.
On top of that, it planted a ton of narrative seeds:
What happened to Shen Qiu (Rachel), the missing girl from school?
Was it connected to Nathan, the arrogant and dangerous rich boy who dared to bring a gun to campus?
What happened between Max and Chloe during the five years they'd been apart? Why did the top student Chloe drop out of school and get involved in a contraband scandal?
And what was her relationship to the missing Rachel?
'Life is Strange' was completely different from Su Yan's past dramas.
There was almost no romance—instead, it focused on friendship, mystery-solving, and uncovering the criminal truth surrounding the two female leads.
That night after the broadcast, some fans of Su Yan weren't quite sure how to react.
The shift in tone was significant, but—
["Honestly... this drama's actually pretty good!"]
["The time-reversal ability is such a brilliant concept. Watching Max use it to get out of tough spots is so satisfying!"]
["Su Yan's dramas are usually slow burns, but this one hooked me right from Episode 1!"]
["So what's the main plotline? Is it about finding clues to Rachel's disappearance through time travel?"]
["Nathan's character is so ridiculously over-the-top. Bringing a gun to school? Must be connected to Rachel's case."]
["So this is set in the late 20th century? Back then, Xia had cities full of gangs and chaos. This tracks."]
["Su Yan's not acting in this one, but surprisingly I'm into it! Shen Liqian and Gu Qingyuan, as Chloe and Max are total badasses. Not having a male lead was a genius move!"]
["Yeah, stories that focus on strong female friendships are honestly refreshing!"]
The first episode was mostly setup, full of narrative hooks and mysteries.
Strictly speaking, it wasn't the kind of jaw-dropping opening that grabs everyone instantly.
If this had been written by an unknown screenwriter, the feedback probably would've been a simple "Yeah, looks promising. Might keep watching."
But since it was Su Yan behind the script? That changed everything.
In film and television, the name behind the script drastically changes expectations.
Because Su Yan's past works had earned such a strong reputation, fans were basically watching 'Life is Strange' under a microscope—searching for things to praise.
Costume design, pacing, originality, narrative depth...
When you're looking for the good stuff, it's easier to find it.
The next day, ratings for Episode 1 were released.
4.25% — ranking third among this season's premieres.
But the audience score? A strong 9.0—the highest-rated debut of the season.
Upon seeing this, Shen Liqian and Gu Qingyuan both let out long sighs of relief.
Especially Gu Qingyuan—since Su Yan wasn't acting in this one, she'd been terrified it would flop.
After all, this was an A-tier drama with a budget of 40 million, twice that of the 'Your Lie in April' hit.
But despite airing on Aozora TV, it still managed to pull 4.25% and a third-place rating.
And knowing how Su Yan's dramas usually snowball in popularity later on…
This could very well surpass 'Your Lie in April' in the long run.
That wasn't just what the crew thought—the entire industry was thinking it too.
Everyone knew that launching on Aozora would mean lower initial ratings. It couldn't compete with the Big Three networks.
But Su Yan's dramas relied on long-term momentum—positive word-of-mouth and tons of viewers catching up on RaccoonNet after the fact.
That's exactly how 'Your Lie in April' became the top drama of its season.
And it looked like 'Life is Strange' was heading down the same path.
So even though it only ranked third in Week 1, come Monday, the media was flooded with headlines and articles about it.
Everyone hoped 'Life is Strange' would replicate the success of 'Your Lie in April' and help Aozora TV score a back-to-back seasonal win.
Then came Week 2.
And things took an unexpected turn.
'Rain in Hudu: The Sequel' rose to 4.52%. A solid increase.
'Blazing Sun' hit 4.31%, also climbing.
'The Mystery of Time' reached 4.21%.
But 'Life is Strange'? It dipped slightly to 4.22%.
The ranking stayed the same as Week 1: third place.
But the other three shows all went up, and only 'Life is Strange' went down.
This was... odd.
It wasn't that the story quality had dropped—on the contrary, the audience rating had climbed again, now at 9.1.
Episode 2 focused on Max's classmate Qin Ling (Kate).
Max revealed her time-reversal ability to Chloe, and after a series of demonstrations, convinced her it was real.
Meanwhile, Kate had been drugged by Nathan, and private videos of her were spreading around the school.
Max chose to help her—and also started digging into the connection between Nathan and Rachel's disappearance.
Narratively, this episode was just as tight and compelling.
The growing bond between Chloe and Max was beautifully portrayed.
So why did the viewership drop?
At home, Su Yan stared at the comment section filled with reactions from 'Life is Strange' fans, then let out a long sigh.
He finally realized what was wrong.
This show's school bullying content might be too much.
His past dramas were emotionally heavy too—but the sadness came from romance.
Most of his audience were young, single viewers.
Watching tragic love stories? Sure, it hurts, but it's still emotionally distant.
But in 'Life is Strange'?
Episode 1 starts with a school shooting.
Episode 2 deals with severe bullying.
Yes, the themes were powerful. The depth was there.
But what about the viewing experience?
Xia audiences can handle sad stories—but very few want something this dark and heavy.
And the bullying, the entitled rich kid tormenting others—it felt too real.
It hit too close to home for many viewers.
Realizing this, Su Yan couldn't help but give a bitter smile.
He genuinely believed 'Life is Strange' was an outstanding story, worthy of adaptation in Xia.
But he'd overlooked this cultural mismatch.
Even though the entertainment trends in Xia had shifted due to its absorption of Sakura Island, and Japanese content had a big influence—
That didn't mean every successful title from Japan would automatically do well in Xia.
Romance? Maybe.
But school bullying and violent crime?
Definitely riskier territory.
Even with time-reversal powers, the core themes hadn't changed.
Su Yan finally saw the bigger picture.
"Lesson learned," he muttered with a wry smile.
Still, he wasn't too shaken.
He was never blindly arrogant.
His confidence in his dramas came from the proven track records of the originals from his previous life.
And 'Life is Strange' had done well as a game. It even spawned several sequels.
That's why Su Yan had invested so heavily in adapting it.
But adapting a game across worlds into a drama? Always a gamble.
"Well… It's not that bad yet. Let's observe for a few more weeks."
Soon, Week 3 of the winter season arrived.
And the story of 'Life is Strange' took an even heavier turn.
Kate—the girl bullied over the videos—attempted suicide.
Of course, in the plot, Max pushed her powers to the limit.
Not just reversing time, but freezing it to reach Kate just as she was about to jump.
She successfully saved her.
But the desperation Kate showed beforehand—her breakdown, her near-fall—
It all felt too raw, too real.
It was hard to watch.
That week, all four A-tier dramas saw viewership increases.
But—
The other three rose more.
'Life is Strange' increased to 4.28%.
But its rank dropped to fourth.
Because 'The Mystery of Time' finally climbed to 4.31%, overtaking it.
'Rain in Hudu: The Sequel' still led the season with a towering 4.51%.
However…
The critics didn't mock 'Life is Strange' for slipping in the rankings.
Instead, they praised it across the board.
Max uses her power to save a girl from being shot, then saves another from bullying-induced suicide—
This narrative drew widespread acclaim.
The viewers might have found it too heavy.
But critics and media?
They loved it.
Why focus on shallow romance dramas when you can explore bullying and school shootings?
If you had the power to reverse time, would you use it for evil? Or to fix the world's regrets?
Looking at the bigger picture, 'Life is Strange' had more depth than any other drama in its time slot.
As for ratings?
Even fourth place was an accomplishment for a show this emotionally intense.
It made sense that many viewers seeking light entertainment would pass on it.
Which led to something Su Yan didn't expect:
The ratings were lower than he'd hoped.
But the critical acclaim?
Far higher than he imagined.
"So this is what they call 'critically acclaimed, commercially underperforming'?"
Su Yan looked at the 5 million average paid streams per episode on RaccoonNet and the updated 9.4 rating, feeling amused and exasperated all at once.