Jing Yu's Bluestar Media & Film Company had announced so many projects this year that even his fans had developed a high tolerance for surprise.
Since summer, there had been 'Ultraman Tiga', 'Attack on Titan', new theatrical films for 'Spirited Away' and other older drama IPs, and now a wave of game adaptations of past works.
Fans understood that given Jing Yu's current status and position, it was unlikely — and impractical — for him to direct every sequel personally. So game adaptations were already satisfying enough.
But the sheer scale of Bluestar Media's operations stunned peers across both the film/TV and gaming industries.
"He's insane — it's like he's injected with rocket fuel."
Just the gaming projects alone included 'Initial D', 'Rurouni Kenshin: Trust & Betrayal', 'Steins;Gate', 'Pokémon', 'Yu-Gi-Oh!', and 'Natsume Book of Friends' — all with medium to high budgets. Add the upcoming 'Attack on Titan' and 'Ultraman Tiga' games, three live-action films in production, and three major seasonal dramas back-to-back on TV…
"Dude, is Jing Yu possessed or something?"
"How does he have the energy to manage all of this?"
"We're talking about over a dozen projects, and he's the central creative for all of them — script, direction, concept. Even the music? He's directly involved. This is crazy."
"If I were him, I'd be dead. Sure, I'm jealous — early thirties and already dominating the Great Zhou entertainment industry. But then you see that he's produced 40–50 projects in under a decade? I can't even write five decent scripts under pressure."
"He's proof that talent trumps connections. No background, no industry ties — just pure hustle. He shut up all the people who said it's just about resources."
"And the grind is real. He's sitting on tens of billions in assets and IP value. If Bluestar Media goes public, it'd be a billion-level company — and yet, he's still in the trenches, taking on over ten roles at once in both TV and gaming. That's dedication."
"Must be that dream job situation — when your work is your passion. That's why he keeps making hits."
"But wouldn't it be smarter to just retire? So many projects running in parallel — what if something bombs? That's a billion-level loss!"
"You're thinking like a summer bug talking about ice. Are you worried about losses? Has any of Jing Yu's projects ever lost money?"
"High risk, high reward. That's how it is."
At this point, Jing Yu's every move sparked buzz and panic among his peers.
The scale of Bluestar Media's rollout this time had the whole industry on edge.
But internally, the company paid no mind. Once the new projects were announced online, they also released a rough plan for the next year.
Then came their year-end break.
Granted, "break" meant just five days. Most residents of Great Zhou still celebrated based on the traditional calendar, not the solar one.
Still, with over a thousand employees, Bluestar managed to distribute its year-end bonuses before the holidays. With annual revenue in the tens of billions, even allocating a small percentage as bonuses made the company the highest-paying studio in the entire Great Zhou industry.
Naturally, these perks spread like wildfire.
HR hadn't even returned from break, and the inbox was already full of applications from industry professionals.
Jing Yu was clearly planning something big, and talent was flocking to his banner.
So while most of the industry was on break, Bluestar Media was quietly poaching elite talent from rival companies.
On January 1st, Jing Yu finally took a full day off at home.
The next day, he and Yu Youqing flew back to Lan Province to visit her mother, and for Jing Yu to pay respects at the grave of the father he had never met in this world.
Though he had no emotional attachment, the man was still his legal father here, and Jing Yu wasn't so cold as to ignore that.
He also met up with some old friends from Jinhui TV, shared a few meals, and was recognized by fans, which caused a bit of a traffic jam — prompting him to leave early and fly back to the capital by January 4th.
Back in the office, Jing Yu resumed his usual high-intensity schedule.
Though it was the start of the spring season, Bluestar Media had no shows airing on Yunteng TV that week due to schedule spacing.
So for now, the spotlight was still on the six major TV stations.
Because of Bluestar Media's aggressive release schedule this quarter, the six majors had all become more cautious with their investments. As a result, ratings were unimpressive — the highest among premiere episodes was only 6.88%, very average.
But viewers didn't really care.
Everyone was waiting for the two big shows from Jing Yu this season:
✅ 'Attack on Titan' – the new chapter
✅ 'Gundam SEED' – the long-awaited premiere
January 10, Saturday — The Return of 'Attack on Titan'
Although dubbed a "new chapter," it was really just a continuation of the Season 1 story that had been cut for broadcast scheduling.
The episode picked up directly after Annie's capture.
Plot-wise, the first episode wasn't particularly thrilling — it leaned more on dialogue than action.
But it was loaded with foreshadowing. After all, the next big reveal — Reiner and Bertholdt being traitors — was just around the corner.
Still, for now, many viewers were left scratching their heads.
Ratings for the premiere? 14.22%. Despite a 3-week break, the show retained its momentum perfectly.
The Next Day — The One Everyone Was Waiting For
While 'Attack on Titan' had fans, they'd been following it for a while. The novelty had worn off.
But 'Gundam SEED' was new.
And it was the most expensive drama in the last 20 years of Great Zhou television.
More importantly, it was from Jing Yu.
"'Attack on Titan' cost 300 million — and looked that good. So what about 'Gundam SEED'?"
Fan forums were in full meltdown mode:
"5:16 PM. Just 2 hours and 44 minutes to go. The wait is killing me."
"What if 'Gundam SEED' is even better than 'Attack on Titan'? I'm already exhausted keeping up with one!"
"You're complaining… or bragging?"
"A bit of both. If it's too good, I'll be losing sleep again."
"Jing Yu's dramas are addictive. I've already rewatched 'Attack on Titan' four times on Qingyun Video."
"His show quality always scales with budget. He knows where to invest. 'Gundam SEED' has the highest budget — I bet it outperforms."
"It's not about popularity — it's ROI. 'Gundam SEED' may or may not be more popular, but it'll definitely be more profitable."
"Let's be real — between buying a 'Gundam' model and a creepy naked Titan figure? Yeah, 'Gundam' wins."
"I love 'Attack on Titan', but I'm not putting a Titan figure in my room. That's nightmare fuel."
Starting at 7:00 PM, Yunteng TV's share shot above 7%. As buzz exploded online, the number kept climbing.
By 7:56 PM, viewership broke 10%.
Everyone had predicted it, but seeing it happen still left the industry speechless.
"10% as a baseline — that's the kind of traffic Jing Yu commands. Forget producer — the man is a walking marketing campaign."
"Just putting his name on a title is like spending tens of millions in advertising."
8:00 PM — 'Gundam SEED' Officially Begins
The legendary theme song from the original anime played for the first time on Great Zhou TV, lasting one minute before the episode began.
And to fans' surprise…
"This feels… kind of warm? Totally different from 'Attack on Titan'."
"It's set in a space colonization era, right?"
"Jing Yu's imagination is insane. Resource planets, Gundams, interstellar wars..."
"It's not that peaceful. The world Kira lives in is on the verge of war."
"Still way better than the Titan world. I'd survive a year in 'Gundam SEED'. In 'Attack on Titan'? A month, tops."
"The male lead… not the most exciting. Another nice-guy protagonist?"
"I like Eren — impulsive, decisive. This Kira seems like a bleeding-heart pacifist."
"You think we're tired of this trope? The writers are, too. But you need these characters to drive the plot. No one wants to watch a selfish coward running from every problem."
"Fair enough."
"I'm still gonna complain though. Even if the lead is bland, the side characters usually slap in Jing Yu's dramas."
From the start, fans were already roasting Kira's overly helpful personality.
Then came the entrance of Flay, one of the female leads.
A wealthy, elegant young lady — beautiful on the surface, but subtle facial cues revealed a more self-centered side. She also gave Kira the occasional condescending look.
And… Kira had a secret crush on her.
Problem? She was engaged to his friend, Sai.
Some viewers immediately picked up on it.
"Wait, is this NTR?"
"Is Kira about to steal Sai's fiancée?!"
"Don't jump to conclusions — it's only Episode 1!"
"Still, the vibes are real."
"Jing Yu's shows are like that. Remember 'Initial D'? I thought Natsuki's sugar daddy was her actual dad…"
"But this might be the first time the protagonist is in that position…"
"Flay's getting too much screen time for just a side character. Something's coming."
Fans of Jing Yu had grown smarter. After so many of his adaptations from former Japanese IPs, they could easily read the tropes and foresee where the drama might go.
But the episode didn't give them much time to speculate.
The plot moved quickly.
Two factions — the Earth Federation and the ZAFT forces — were at war. Their conflict soon reached the resource satellite where Kira lived.
ZAFT's goal? Steal the prototype Gundams from the Earth Federation base on the colony.