Chapter 302: Starting at the Apex

Translator: BeetleBarker Editor: Tennesh

As the trailer time was limited, the majority of stars had only appeared in a flash. Only the faces of those playing lead characters or important supporting roles had been seen. Now that it had officially launched, the majority of fans were here to count stars as they watched "Founding Era."

Others were either curious or here to join in the fun. People that were actually interested in the subject itself were a small minority.

After watching two consecutive episodes, the most intense feeling fans got was: brutal!

Brutal deaths!

Right at the start, large quantities of bento boxes distributed. How could it not be brutal?!

The first episode started off gently building up the Old Era's exquisite and peaceful ambience. However, what followed was chaos, blood, and cruel catastrophes that created an obvious contrast. The Period of Destruction had officially arrived, and it signified that many more people would die.

"Founding Era" had its own rich historical vibe and sense of solemness. Even this impressive lineup of stars was unable to dilute the main ideology it was trying to propagate. This was the first official, profound dialogue the creative team had with audiences regarding that period.

Everything people of the New Era knew about the Period of Destruction was from historical books and various historical resources and records. This was just akin to a skeleton. For the majority of New Era people, their sentiments toward that period were not deep. After all, it had already been so many years.

And this cultural film was bestowing flesh to the skeleton!

Flesh and spirit!

It was only through this method that more people would understand the culture of that period and have a greater sentiment toward this history!

From the beginning, Roman had requested that battle scenes be as realistic as possible, so much so that it would scare viewers. He felt that this was the only way to make those people who had emerged in that time stand out and show their mettle! Regardless of whether they made their mark on history or not, regardless of whether they were from the influential families or they were a little-known person, nobody could be missed!

Because of Roman's high standards, the opening of all 11 chapters were all coherently realistic. The sound effects also helped maintain the lifelike state of these scenes.

Take the Yanzhou chapter, for example. In the first episode, there were two large-scale battle scenes. Without any accompaniment music, the sound effects took the lead in creating extremely realistic battle scenes. However, in the battle scene toward the end of the first episode, there was tragic and stirring background music playing. This stirred up the audience's feelings and created a deeply emotional effect. After that scene finished came the end credits, where a list of the names of those who had died in battle was shown. Included on it were the martyrs' names and grave numbers.

Along with the extra effort put in by the actors, it produced a multipronged battering effect.

In the past, whenever fans had heard about anyone receiving a bento box, they had laughed and joke, but now they could not even smile.

Harsh, cruel.

This was history.

Not every chapter started before the calamity. Every chapter's timeline was different. Yanzhou's chapter simplified the preceding happenings and began when Wu Yan was young. The Fang Zhao of that time had already gathered a bunch of people by his side.

Leadership was a sort of authoritative circumstance. This was why, right from the start of the chapter, "Fang Zhao" had the aura of a leader wielding power.

And the temperaments displayed by other characters in the Yanzhou chapter was slightly different from characters in other chapters. According to Yanzhou chapter's timeline, these people had already adapted and had learned the ways of survival during the Period of Destruction.

Because the timeline was different from the other chapters, that Yanzhou chapter's list of lives lost in battle at the end credits was longer than other chapters. These names had all been recorded in history.

The list of names here was longer, but that did not mean that the officially distributed bento boxes here were great in number. On the contrary, bento boxes were seemingly distributed wholesale in the other chapters.

The beginning of the other chapters was when the apocalypse started, where the peaceful world was pounded till it became hell on earth. Some small celebrities and internet personalities with minor roles received their bento boxes right at the opening sequence.

Each celebrity's fans were treated so brutally that their insides were all jumbled up.

This was just the opening sequence, and looking at the current circumstances, the wholesale distribution of bento boxes would definitely not be little!

Online, 90% of hot topics were related to "Founding Era." Some had companies behind them generating buzz for their celebrities, others were topics that netizens had brought up themselves.

There were even people that listed the celebrities that had appeared in the first episode.

"A breakdown of the poor little things that received their bento boxes right at the opening sequence..."

Even with all the promoting by their companies in the past, nobody had concerned themselves with these less popular celebrities. Now, everyone was especially stirred up, and the companies behind these celebrities seized the chance to promote their assets. The benefits that "Founding Era" could bring had started to show.

Some celebrities that weren't too famous but who played rather impressive roles, even if they only appeared for a few minutes, with their companies' operations, the fame of these celebrities could rise greatly.

Of course, the ones that were most evident and had the ability to dominate mainstream entertainment headlines were the various leads of every chapter.

And for Yanzhou chapter, before Wu Yan grew up, Fang Zhao was the lead.

After all, according to the timeline, during the first season, Wu Yan was still young and had less screen time than the leads of other chapters. During this period, there was no way to simplify Fang Zhao's role in the story, as too many matters revolved around Fang Zhao.

"That aura of Fang Zhao's! Dope! [Image][Image][Image]."

Some people took a few screenshots of Fang Zhao's fight scenes in the Yanzhou chapter's first episode. Among them was a closeup of Fang Zhao's face.

"A death gaze coming from Zhao-god! When I was watching this segment, my back shivered."

"Let me upload a screenshot too [image]! This was the predicted fight scene with the beasts that flashed by so quickly! I never expected that he would take on six at once!"

"It's seven! There was one more hidden behind him."

"It seems quite casual, but when you look at it carefully, it isn't casual at all. How ruthless. Every move is efficient, and the killing intent that follows after... And there is still the scene of a meeting where Fang Zhao glances in the direction of the camera. At that moment, I felt a constricting pressure! That is probably the aura of a leader?"

"Awesome! He doesn't look one bit like a newcomer. Fang Zhao is indeed rather impressive."

"Wait a minute! Which Fang Zhao are you people actually talking about? I can't tell the difference. How are we going to differentiate them in future discussions?"

"Cough! Fang Zhao is only a newcomer in the acting circles, but he has made a name for himself in the gaming and music circles already!"

"Gaming fans have brought out the 'scripture' videos from 'Battle of the Century' to watch once again. It has the same effect even though they are different media."

Reputable film reviewers from Yanzhou also gave their evaluations of Fang Zhao.

"Some people can soar up to the heavens when just given a chance. Fang Zhao is that sort of person."

"Starting his career at the apex," yet another reviewer said.

Starting his career at the apex might have sounded very impressive, but actually, there were two ways it could be interpreted.

The first was that he had come flying out of the blocks, vastly exceeded other actors of the same grade and status, and stepped on the summit many newcomers had no way of achieving even after many years. The other meaning was: starting off at the top, he could only go down from there.

That was the intention of the reviewer. Right now, according to the audience's understanding, these were good words that were praising Fang Zhao, but if Fang Zhao went downhill, that reviewer would give a different sort of interpretation all the same.

Even so, there were many media news outlets that used this reviewer's evaluation of "Starting his career at the apex," with the majority appearing to praise or lament.

A newcomer, someone not from the showbiz circles, an amateur who could not even be considered an actor! Relying on "Founding Era," he had truly made a name for himself in the showbiz circles!

At a certain military district.

There were a group of people gathered to watch "Founding Era" together. All 11 chapters were being watched one by one.

After they had just watched finished the Yanzhou chapter, one person among them pointed to the screen and asked another, "The person you selected to play the role of Fang Zhao was him?"

"Yes, it's this actor. I even voted for him! Now it seems like I made the right choice."

"Indeed, he acts rather well and makes the role memorable. That flair of his is just something else!"

It was too dazzling when there were too many stars. Some people might not be able to recognize this face of Fang Zhao's, but they could remember his flair. The next time they saw this, even if they could not recognize the face, they would be able to correspond it to the role.

Many stars were unrecognizable after putting on makeup. Their originally mild impressions would be even more insipid, but the impression Fang Zhao gave off was very profound. Perhaps people were slightly biased toward Fang Zhao. After all, Fang Zhao had originated from Baiji military district. Just checking the news back then would reveal all this information.

"This actor was once a soldier. He has really fought against terrorists."

"No wonder you can feel that killing intent from his fight scenes. Other actors can portray this somewhat, but their killing intent isn't as realistic." Military personnel that had experienced real betters were more sensitive to this.

"The other actors aren't bad either. This is much better than those so-called war flicks from before. The filming is great! This series lets everyone see that it isn't the same as those nonsense series of the past, and the acting isn't exaggerated either. Those fight scenes are especially immersive for us."

Multiple fight scenes filmed in one take were grim, nimble, and not at all gaudy.

This series did not have many gaudy fight scenes. When the actors of the cast and crew had been training, they found out that this was unlike any previous series they had acted in before.

Fight scenes in past serials were just for the sake of looking cool, but the fight scenes here were to be as realistic as possible.

For artistic purposes, Fang Zhao had actually added an appropriate amount of depth to his acting. Not too little or too much but just the right amount so that he would appear even more natural before the camera. This effect was needed for the filming and was a change that Fang Zhao had made according to Shen Wei and Roman's guidance.

Of course, others did not know that Fang Zhao had deliberately made adjustments to his acting for filming. From what many older precursors in the industry saw, Fang Zhao's understanding of the role, his dialogue, fundamentals, and techniques were satisfactory. This made those among the Committee of 100 that had voted for him feel relieved.

Relieved and somewhat pleased. What did so many positive evaluations prove?

It proved that their foresight was good!

Look, we picked out a no-name among a field of big-name actors, and he is the most suitable!

Now that they were emboldened, when these people accepted interviews or were asked for their comments, they naturally praised Fang Zhao. Praising Fang Zhao was the same as praising themselves! And at the same time, it was smacking the bunch of people who had previously refuted and doubted their choice. My own foresight is better than yours! This also lets those students of film and art academies see clearly for themselves who had the perception to choose this talent!

At this time, they could more or less understand how Roman felt.

This sort of feeling was rather pleasing.

Yanbei City retirement facility.

Great-Grandfather Fang wiped away tears; his eyes were red. He had no idea whether he had been affected by the solemness of the series or by his great-grandson.

After he finished watching the two episodes, Great-Grandfather Fang sat in front of the screen, staring at nothing in particular and remaining silent throughout.

Beside him, Great-Grandmother Fang's eyes were red too. She sighed. "Surviving during that period was no easy task... Little Zhao has acted really well. Word online is that these one-take fight scenes require many tries to be successful. It is very tough on the actors, and they might suffer injuries. And Little Zhao has many more of these sorts of scenes than others. I wonder how much he has suffered. To be able to act until he gets this sort of result isn't easy at all."

"That goes without saying! Could this result be achieved if it wasn't tough?!" The tears that Great-Grandfather Fang had just held back starting flowing again.

For more than an hour, the two old Fangs sat there talking about the cruel fate of survivors in the Period of Destruction and then about how Fang Zhao was holding up while filming.

"Are we going to watch the other chapters now?" Great-Grandmother Fang asked.

The two of them had told the younger generations of Fangs that if anyone wanted to visit, they should come beforehand and come looking for them today. Therefore, nobody would disturb the two old Fangs, and these two old folks had decided to spend the whole day watching the serial.

"Nope, let's wait for a few hours before watching," Great-Grandfather Fang replied.

After he had calmed down, Great-Grandfather Fang browsed some news online. When he saw those compliments and praises for Fang Zhao, he smiled till his creases were on the verge of blooming. He wiped away his tears and snot, which had flowed out once again, and washed his face, then headed out to look for his old comrades for a chat.

Fiery Bird Yanzhou department.

The Diting series earpieces and sound equipment that Fang Zhao endorsed saw another round of buzz. There was a significant increase in sales after the first and second episodes of "Founding Era" aired. Some warehouses in Yanzhou were already out of stock. Other continents had stored less stock, and there were many more empty warehouses.

The influence that "Founding Era" had was global.

"Fang Zhao's momentum..."

"If we extend our contract with Fang Zhao, his endorsement fees surely have to be increased. Otherwise, he might not continue with the endorsement."

"Then do we still sign with him?"

"You don't say! Of course we sign! The planning department made plans early on, but the circumstances with Fang Zhao after the broadcast of 'Founding Era' were unknown, so it was set aside. Now that Fang Zhao's momentum is ascending, the new product plans have to be implemented. Diting series's newest model, a high-end version."

Fang Zhao had already played the role of a leader. Naturally, there was a need for a corresponding high-end version, the sort that would cost a minimum of at least five digits.

"All right, I will leave a message for him. They only get two hours of internet access every seven days. We still have to wait a few days for a reply. Why does Fang Zhao not have a manager?"

Fiery Bird approaching a party for an endorsement and even having to wait a few days was extremely rare.

This was something unavoidable because these were the rules of "Founding Era," not something decided by Fang Zhao or certain actors, so Fiery Bird had no choice.

Fang Zhao was not the only actor that endorsed Fiery Bird products, but now, if Fiery Bird wanted to look for any actors to film new advertisements, they would need to wait.

In time, there would surely be many more manufactures headed to planet Wai who would take the opportunity to film advertisements during actor's rest times.

The sales volume of items endorsed by lead roles, important supporting roles, and other roles that appeared multiple times saw a great increase alongside the rising internet popularity.

The large ship that was "Founding Era" carried many people's interests along with it.

But at the same time, the original purpose of this film project was still in the midst of being completed.

Every continent's Cemetery of Martyrs saw a peak in visitors. Some graves that did not have any visitors in normal years suddenly received a lot more people paying their respects.

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