October 3rd, evening.
In front of a certain train station, Shiga Taka looked up at the massive Death Note promotional poster and muttered to himself, "The anime airs tonight, huh?"
Although he'd never heard of the animation studio LSP, nor did he know its director, scriptwriter, character designer, chief animation director, or composer, Lin Zhiyan, the manga's first two chapters had left him thoroughly satisfied.
He was now eagerly awaiting the third chapter, but the manga wouldn't be released until October 26th. Since the anime version would release the third chapter before the manga, he definitely had to watch it.
Many others shared his sentiment. Some had even turned on their TVs as soon as they got home and were waiting, despite the anime still being several hours away from airing.
Inside the president's office at L.S Production, Lin Zhiyan was uncharacteristically not working. A radio sat on his desk, playing a broadcast program.
"Hello everyone, I'm Tanaka Rie. Please take care of me."
"Ms. Tanaka, it's a pleasure. We heard that an anime you voice the lead role in will be airing this month?"
"That's right! Ta-da! It's Death Note! I play the female lead, Misa Amane. It premieres tonight at midnight on the Tokyo Broadcasting System TBS Channel. Make sure to tune in!"
"Great! Can you tell us a bit about the anime?"
"It's a fantastic show! It's about a peak intellectual battle between two protagonists, all centered around a Death Note—a notebook that kills anyone whose name is written in it. You'll have to watch to find out the details, but I highly recommend it!"
"It seems you're very enthusiastic about this anime, Ms. Tanaka."
"Absolutely! I'm still so grateful to have been chosen as the voice actor for the female lead. By the way, the female lead is incredibly cute, has a wonderful personality, and is even a teen magazine model..."
Radio shows are primarily conversational in format.
Since the theme revolved around promoting Death Note, the content flowed naturally.
Tanaka Rie was no stranger to these radio programs and performed admirably. Though she couldn't be sure how many people would tune in or how many would be converted into animation viewers, she hoped it would at least have some effect.
It was a pity that internet speeds in 2000 couldn't support live streaming. Tanaka Rie was also still relatively inexperienced at the time. Had she had the benefit of the conditions available a decade or so later in another timeline, the promotional impact would undoubtedly have been far greater.
After listening for a while and feeling satisfied, Lin Zhiyan turned off the radio.
He stood up, stretched, and walked to the window, gazing out at the night view.
The cityscape wasn't particularly beautiful, but Lin Zhiyan had no inclination to admire the night.
At that moment, he couldn't help but recall his arrival five and a half years earlier. He had been a penniless wretch, living in a run-down apartment, possessing little more than good looks, a cheat-like memory, and max-level keyframe animation skills.
Everything had been changed by him now. He had a house and a car, and his first-ever animation, which he had personally created, was about to air.
The animation was currently completed up to episode seven, with episodes eight through eleven in production. All pre-broadcast promotional work had been finished as planned.
Now, all that remained was to wait for the animation to premiere at midnight tonight, and then... take off!
The thought alone made him feel a thrill.
But soon, he couldn't help but doubt himself.
Is this really going to work? Can it really take off?
Although in the other timeline, this animation had been a massive hit during its run, that was in 2006, and it had benefited from the built-in popularity of the original manga and two successful live-action films.
Now it was 2000. While he had done everything he could with pre-broadcast promotion, the environment was nothing like the original timeline.
Moreover, this era was flooded with popular anime adaptations of manga, such as Detective Conan, One Piece, Saiyuki, Yu-Gi-Oh!, and Inuyasha, which was set to premiere on October 16th.
Could Death Note truly break through this crowd of popular anime adaptations and take off?
To think that becoming a mere copycat would be enough to make a great animation was the height of arrogance. To believe that copying an animation that had already succeeded in another time and space would guarantee success now was arrogance bordering on self-delusion.
Such thinking was dangerous.
With this realization, he gently patted his face and took a deep breath.
Knock, knock~
The sound of someone knocking on his door echoed through the room.
"Come in," Lin Zhiyan called out as he turned to lean against the window.
The office door opened, and Nanase Mayumi stood in the doorway.
She entered the President's office and said, "Senior, it's almost time. Everyone's waiting for you."
Tonight was the animation's premiere, and L.S Production, as the animation's production company, was holding a launch celebration party.
While attendance wasn't mandatory, it was unthinkable for Lin Zhiyan, as the President, to miss it.
To host the launch celebration, Lin Zhiyan had even given the entire company a half-day off. Normally, the company operated from 10 AM to 7 PM, with an hour for lunch and rest. Tomorrow, everyone was only required to be in by 2 PM, and they could leave at the usual time of 7 PM.
A broadcast celebration is different from a wrap party. A wrap party invites everyone who participated in the animation's production or promotion, including the sound studio, co-production partners, voice actors, and so on, so it's usually held at a separate venue. A broadcast celebration, on the other hand, is an internal company event that can be held privately. Therefore, it took place in the company's main conference room.
Lin Zhiyan had put Nanase Mayumi in charge of organizing the event.
He nodded without asking further questions and followed Nanase Mayumi out of the President's office toward the conference room.
As they reached the conference room door, Nanase Mayumi stopped. "Senior, are you nervous?" she suddenly asked.
"Nervous?" Lin Zhiyan paused for a moment before replying, "Not really."
Nanase Mayumi turned to face him, her exquisite and beautiful face breaking into a radiant smile. "I wonder how our first animation will perform. But no matter what, I'll always be by your side."
With that, she opened the conference room door and stepped inside.
Lin Zhiyan glanced into the room.
It had been carefully decorated to create a festive atmosphere. Snacks and drinks were laid out, and a television was turned on, showing the Tokyo Broadcasting System TBS channel.
Most of the company employees had already arrived. When they saw Lin Zhiyan, they immediately started complaining to him, saying things like, "The President is too slow" and "We've been waiting forever."
Lin Zhiyan smiled and walked in, saying, "I'm here. Let's begin."
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