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Chapter 128. You Use Your Imagination, I Use Mine
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"President Cujoh is coming to inspect?!"
In the production team of "Battle Tendency", Akiyuki Shinbo looked at Kakyoin Ryoko with a bewildered expression.
He repeated the words Kakyoin Ryoko had just conveyed to him as if trying to see through her: "And she's coming to act as a supervisor?!!"
"Uh... yeah..."
What could Kakyoin Ryoko do?
She was helpless too.
When Cujoh Jolyne previously asked her for an analysis, Kakyoin Ryoko had gone to great lengths to find a well-reasoned answer.
She had intended to use it as a rationale to persuade Jolyne to stop fixating on the number of productions and instead quickly reconcile Pucci and Akiyuki Shinbo, the two best partners who could complement each other perfectly.
Otherwise, their newly established Green Dolphin Studio really couldn't handle this kind of strain.
And Jolyne's response?
She started calculating elementary school math!?
She asked whether it was better to have 1 (Pucci) + 1 (Akiyuki Shinbo) = 1 or 1 (Pucci) + 1 (Akiyuki Shinbo) = 2?
Although Kakyoin Ryoko could understand Jolyne's concerns after hearing her explanation, and she knew that instead of just putting Pucci and Akiyuki Shinbo together, it might be better to take a risk, separate them temporarily, and let them understand their own weaknesses while comparing themselves with their previous collaborative efforts to grow individually. Green Dolphin Studio's ambitions could then be set even higher.
Moreover, for a studio that was just starting out and didn't want to rely on the connections of the SPW Foundation or Joestar Real Estate, and Joseph's reputation to gain Johnny's support, this process of nurturing supervisors was an invaluable experience.
But still!
"—Jolyne, didn't you just say that you have absolute faith in Director Shinbo, that he's definitely up to the task?!"
"—Your sudden reversal would've been better handled by following my earlier advice and bringing Director Pucci back!"
In her heart, Kakyoin Ryoko was shouting all these thoughts, but in reality, she could only manage a forced smile and say, "That's what President Cujoh said."
"Even though Director Shinbo and the team have done an incredible job so far, President Cujoh is concerned about the audience's previous complaints about the "Battle Tendency" storyline. She wants to come over as a supervisor to take full responsibility so everyone else can work without worries..."
Kakyoin Ryoko continued to relay the reason Cujoh Jolyne had prepared in advance.
Since Jolyne couldn't reveal that she had a system where losing money actually made her profit—where the more she lost, the more she gained, and this method was even faster than earning money the conventional way—
Naturally, Jolyne had come up with a solid reason for her actions.
And as she said,
Her role as a supervisor was really just a title without any real responsibilities.
This wasn't because Jolyne felt guilty or had a sudden surge of kindness.
It was simply because she lacked the experience and didn't know how to be a supervisor:
How do you ruin a production?
How do you ensure a show isn't well-executed?
These were all unknowns to Jolyne.
She wasn't planning to mess around with things she didn't understand.
After all, the example of Pucci was right there.
As another newbie who didn't know much about production, how did Pucci's first project turn out?
It was a massive hit!
Jolyne wasn't sure whether this strange phenomenon was due to Pucci working with Akiyuki Shinbo or if Akiyuki Shinbo's flaw was that he needed a completely clueless, disruptive supervisor to bring out his potential. Therefore, she wasn't going to take any risks.
This, of course, eased the worries of Kakyoin Ryoko and Akiyuki Shinbo, who had feared that Jolyne would wreak havoc as a supervisor.
As long as she doesn't mess things up, that's fine.
"If Director Shinbo has heard this, I'll take my leave for now. I'll return if President Cujoh has any further instructions."
Kakyoin Ryoko tried to reassure Shinbo, "And maybe President Cujoh is just curious to watch you work on the production."
Although Kakyoin Ryoko didn't know about the system, she was unaware of Jolyne's true motives.
However, she was well aware that Jolyne had been planning to test Akiyuki Shinbo all along.
Perhaps this was part of that test.
Maybe Jolyne had already realized that the massive investment in "Battle Tendency" made it unsuitable for testing or training supervisors.
Even though Shinbo had managed to bring "Battle Tendency" back on track, who's to say it won't derail again?
In such a situation, having someone come in as a supervisor to keep an eye on things seems like a safer option.
After all, while supervising might not be something many can do without mistakes, the audience is the one who ultimately knows if a production is good or bad.
What Jolyne had to do was simple.
If she, as an audience member, could be won over by the production, why couldn't other viewers be as well?
Just like how some games invite players to test them before release.
If the game isn't fun, wouldn't the players know?
Similarly, if a production isn't good, wouldn't the audience know?
Kakyoin's thought process led her to give Shinbo a subtle hint—
—"Jolyne doesn't understand anything, so what else can she do besides be an 'audience'?"
Unfortunately, unlike Kakyoin Ryoko, her close friend, Akiyuki Shinbo genuinely understood Jolyne's "level."
The scenes of Zeppeli's death and Jonathan's death…
If it weren't for Jolyne's unwavering support, giving them the confidence to create and film these scenes,
Would "Phantom Blood" have had the impact it has today?
Probably not.
So now, not only did Shinbo completely miss Kakyoin's hint, but he also genuinely believed that Jolyne was dissatisfied with their previous work and had come to evaluate him personally.
As soon as Kakyoin Ryoko left,
He immediately found Pucci, clung to him, and cried out, "Director Pucci, you must help me this time!"
"The only person who can save me now is you, Director Pucci!"