Episode six was not only the most depressing since 'Puella Magi Madoka Magica' began airing—it was also the most controversial.
That very night, Tang Dongxue and Wada Haruka, the actresses who played Sayaka and Kyoko Sakura, shot to the top of trending searches across major entertainment platforms.
Dimensional Pictures' official website also released pre-recorded interview videos of the two actresses. They spoke about their understanding of their respective characters, thanked Su Yan for giving them the opportunity, and shared their thoughts on the characters' deaths.
One particular line flooded fan groups and forums that night:
[If the fate of magical girls is to fall into becoming witches, and their dream is to eradicate evil and bring peace to the world, then destroying themselves before reaching that end… is their happiest conclusion.]
Fans were already in emotional collapse.
This line shattered them completely.
The crusade against Su Yan was relentless.
[Su Yan, you sadist, get out here!]
[Are you insane? Shouldn't a normal writer have Madoka call Sayaka back to her senses? How can you be this cruel?]
[Damn it, I shouldn't have trusted him. He's a pervert who enjoys torturing his fans.]
[Remember before this show aired? "Low-age demographic, children's series, Su Yan entering the kids' market!" I'm laughing at home right now.]
[I've been silent since finishing episode six. It hurts.]
[So this isn't a dual-female-lead drama with Shen Liqian and Gu Qingyuan? It's an ensemble cast. Since the beginning, Sayaka and Kyoko feel like they've had even more screen time than the two of them.]
[I used to think Tang Dongxue was just a pretty variety-show singer. And Wada Haruka—I thought her acting was weak. But this episode? They made me cry.]
[The script is god-tier. Su Yan may be crazy, but this script gave me chills.]
[Magical girls… witches… damn. So that wordplay was waiting for us all along.]
[How are the next episodes even going to continue? Are all five girls just going to die?]
[The plot is in a deadlock now. If Madoka doesn't become a magical girl, she can't solve the witch crisis. If she does, she'll eventually become a witch.]
[Sometimes I want to break into Su Yan's house and open up his brain to see why he writes this stuff.]
[For watchability, obviously. Who watches a smooth, conflict-free story? We curse him, but we still acknowledge his works. It's just him as a person we don't accept. He clearly can write a happy ending, yet always chooses tragedy.]
[Old sadist, if you're reading this forum—reflect on yourself! You promised a happy ending. Don't break your word!]
[I've given up. I'm assuming it's a tragic ending now. Let's just see how he plays it.]
[I'm scared to keep watching. Next up is Homura and Madoka, right?]
[Don't say that! Maybe there's a twist?]
[I'm kind of looking forward to Homura's witch transformation.]
[Heretic. Get out of the forum. What kind of thing is that to say?]
[I've gone from anticipating Madoka becoming a magical girl to anticipating her becoming a witch.]
[What the hell—I just realized there's a group of masochists in Su Yan's fanbase. The more depressing the plot gets, the more excited they are? Is this peak M?]
The next afternoon, episode six's ratings were announced.
5.56%.
As the plot grew increasingly outrageous, the ratings grew increasingly stable.
Though Su Yan faced the largest fan backlash since the show began—his account flooded with abuse to the point the platform issued warnings, and Dimensional Pictures' official site temporarily crashed due to the sheer volume of angry comments—
All of it ultimately served as publicity for 'Puella Magi Madoka Magica'.
Casual viewers in the Xia Nation wouldn't hesitate over forum arguments.
They only looked at one metric: ratings.
Monday.
Su Yan handed Shinozaki Ikumi the preliminary scripts for the first few episodes of 'Fate/Zero', as well as the screenplay for the live-action film version of 'Rurouni Kenshin'.
As for the heroic spirits in 'Fate/Zero', Su Yan had two options.
One was to directly adapt historical figures from the Xia Nation.
But that would require massive changes and risk countless plot holes.
So he chose the alternative: set it in an entirely fictional world.
The Xia Nation market was already saturated with alternate-history and alternate-mythology dramas. Audiences were accustomed to it.
As for the lore of the characters in 'Fate/Zero', official setting guides—like those for 'Puella Magi Madoka Magica'—would help audiences understand the concepts.
From just the first few episodes, Shinozaki Ikumi couldn't see any obvious issues with 'Fate/Zero'.
But when she read the 'Rurouni Kenshin' film script, she fell silent for quite a while.
Though only three or four years had passed, it felt almost dreamlike.
After all, she and Su Yan had first risen to fame because of 'Rurouni Kenshin: Trust & Betrayal'.
"This is a sequel film? The story after Yukishiro Tomoe's death?" she asked.
"Yes. It's about Kenshin choosing to lay down his sword in the new era," Su Yan replied.
Shinozaki Ikumi flipped rapidly through the script.
"Another tragedy?"
"How could that be? I'm not some kind of psychopath. Not all my works are tragedies," Su Yan said with a smile.
"There'll be a new female lead. And the story is a proper martial arts action film."
"You're finally not doing tragedy?" She let out a huge sigh of relief, smiling.
It's not that I'm not doing tragedy anymore. It's just that the works I personally redeem—I can choose not to make tragic.
As for the system-drawn 'Fate/Zero'… still tragic.
Su Yan paused slightly, but kept that thought to himself.
"When we filmed the 'Rurouni Kenshin' drama, we had no money and no manpower. But I've always felt this IP had huge potential. Kenshin Himura is a character with so much to explore. So after all these years, I developed the continuation. I plan to move quickly on this film and release it during next February's Spring Festival slot. And 'Fate/Zero'—I'm aiming for a January winter broadcast. Didn't you mention collaborating with Sakura TV?" Su Yan looked at her.
"For 'Fate/Zero', just discuss the details with Minister Ogata Aya."
Shinozaki Ikumi paused thoughtfully. She understood his implication.
Minister Ogata Aya?
Meaning—if Ogata Aya were promoted to Head of Production, they would collaborate.
If Sakura TV continued protecting Akasaka Yoshitoki, then forget it. Their cooperation with Zhongxia TV was going very well anyway.
"And you're targeting the Spring Festival slot?" she quickly realized.
"Yes."
The Xia Nation film market essentially had two prime release windows: Spring Festival and summer.
"Prime" referred to ceiling potential.
Generally, the Spring Festival box office champion became the annual champion.
Summer could also produce blockbusters—but overall, Spring Festival had both the highest ceiling and the highest floor.
Films released during Spring Festival typically grossed at least 700–800 million.
"To squeeze into that slot…" Shinozaki Ikumi hesitated.
"To what?"
"You'll need to spend money. At least 100 million on promotion and public relations. Of course, if '5 Centimeters per Second' and 'We Made a Beautiful Bouquet' explode at the box office in July and August, and our company's strength is recognized, everything will be easier."
Major slots weren't open to just any film.
Cinemas weren't charities. Screening allocations depended on profitability.
If an unknown film with a weak cast wanted screenings during Spring Festival, why would theater owners give it even one slot?
So before release, promotion had to be maximized, and relationships fully managed. Only then would there be screenings—and box office.
"If money can solve it, then there's nothing to worry about," Su Yan smiled.
"This is a crucial stage for our company's growth. Since 'Rurouni Kenshin' is entering Spring Festival, we won't worry about risk or return rate. We still have some foundation."
"So you're fully committed to Spring Festival?" Shinozaki Ikumi asked.
"Yes."
"Understood. I'll start arrangements immediately," she smiled.
"With the boss speaking like that, what do I have to fear? And if 'Rurouni Kenshin' can reach the quality of the original drama, it'll definitely explode during Spring Festival."
In the Xia Nation, no martial arts action film featured anyone with Su Yan's physical skill.
She didn't believe his action scenes could fail in the Spring Festival market.
"Good. Since we agree, it's simple from here," Su Yan said.
"Let the staff rest for a while. During this time, I'll need you to work a bit harder—finalize the budgets quickly and get the new projects started as soon as possible."