Original subtitles

[LIN LING] What is a hero?

[electricity crackling]

[LIN LING] A ray of light in the darkness.

[grunts, chuckles]

[male villain roars]

[LIN LING] A guardian in a moment of need.

[grunts]

[electricity crackling]

[thumping]

[explosion]

[LIN LING] A savior made perfect,

by and for the people!

Nice!

We live in a world

where heroes are forged by trust.

You have the power to create heroes.

And with hard work,

you can become a hero, too!

[CHENG] Stop, stop, that's enough.

- [LIN LING] Hm? - Lin Ling.

Tell me again exactly who our client is on this?

You mean the perfect hero, Nice?

Then why are you telling our audience

they can go out and become heroes themselves?

Our focus is Nice. Nice. Nice!

Sure. but I'm trying to channel what's trending.

And the biggest thing at the moment

has gotta be the number one hero competition!

For the title, I say we go with...

"To Be Hero X!"

At first, the "X" seems like it might be

some label the winner will receive,

but what it means is that the number one slot

could go to anyone!

That even nobodies like me

- can become heroes-- - Enough!

How old are you now?

- You want to be a hero? - Uh...

- Kinda? - You're delusional!

Look at yourself!

I don't see one thing that makes you special!

You have no skills! No real talents!

Let me wake you up from your stupid little dream.

You're average!

The only way you'll succeed is if you accept the truth

and leave greatness to the great!

Sheesh.

[CHENG] Scrap the whole project!

Start over!

- But... - [cellphone vibrates]

[CHENG] Damn it, what? Uh... Hm.

- [CHENG] Turn off that noise! - Hm.

Yes? Miss J.

Happy to help.

Wait. What?

You received the proposal?

Sorry. That wasn't supposed to be sent out yet,

our internal... Oh, um, hello?

Miss J? Are you there?

Uh, sorry.

But I'm pretty sure you told me to send the proposal

to the client ASAP, didn't you?

[CHENG] Get out.

You're a moron.

And you're fired.

Huh?

[papers rustling]

[LIN LING] Maybe he's right.

They make it feel like anyone can become a hero.

But who'd put their faith in a nobody?

It can take years to gain enough trust.

Plus, I'm not exactly Mr. Popular.

Oh, hey! Feeling down?

Oh. Hey, it's Moon!

Guess what?

You can make your own happiness!

You wanna know the secret ingredient?

Well then, tune in!

[BOTH] Enjoy our joy on True Love Recipe!

Oh, shit.

This promo didn't feel so soul-crushing

when I wrote it last month.

Now my stupid words are hurting my stupid feelings!

[MOON] We hope you and the one you love

will be watching!

Hey! Do you have a home?

- [LIN LING] No! - To start a family,

you need more than love alone.

You deserve a place to grow.

And we can help!

Treeman Corporation. Have no fear.

[static]

[exhales]

You can shove it, Nice!

You're not gonna be perfect forever.

As soon as you get old and ugly,

they'll find a new you!

♪

Huh?

♪

Huh?

♪

Uh...

♪

- [screams] What're you doing? - [thuds]

[ADVERTISER] Treeman Corporation's Top Hero.

Nice!

P-p-perfection incarnate!

Brought to you by...

[whimpering] H-he can fly, he's fine.

Oh, no no no no no, that's blood!

[LEO] Miss J! Over there!

[Lin Ling shudders]

- Where's Nice? - [Lin Ling gasps]

He must have fallen!

[LIN LING] He didn't fall anywhere, he jumped!

- Get him! - [Lin Ling gasps]

[LIN LING] No, please! I had nothing to do with it!

[Lin Ling screams]

[MISS J] Cancel his appearances for the week

and say he's training.

Make something up about new combat techniques.

[LIN LING] Wait. This is real!

Oh, my God, it wasn't a dream.

He killed himself!

Nice!

- [MISS J] Good. You're awake. - Hm.

Someone. Pick up the kid.

Wha... Wait, please! No!

[whimpering]

Please don't do this, Miss J!

You know me, I send you ad proposals!

My name is Lin Ling!

- [Miss J grunts] - [Lin Ling whimpering]

I don't care who you are.

I care what you saw and heard up on that roof!

He floated down, walked right past me,

didn't say a word, and proceeded

to throw himself off the building.

- That all? - Huh.

- Uh. Oh, yeah! - What?

Well, he did the pose.

[cellphone ringing]

Hello? Mr. Shand?

Right.

[sighs] Give him a little time.

He might surprise us with something new.

Sure. Got it.

[LIN LING] Nice is dead!

[SHAND] What? Who's dead?

Oh, that was just some fan badgering the talent.

He said "Nice is dead sexy."

[SHAND] He's certainly been underperforming

ever since the incident.

I think it would be best to let him rest this time.

[MISS J] Got it, boss.

[LIN LING] Miss? I'm pretty sure

torturing me won't resurrect your hero.

He may be dead, but I'm still alive.

And I have a brand to save.

[all gasp]

- Hmm. - [LIN LING] What?

Is it just me?

Or is this kid a dead ringer for Nice?

Nice!

[MISS J] So, Nice.

Do you have your lines memorized yet?

It doesn't matter what my ranking is.

I will, uh...

I'll give my all to be the perfect--

Again, but pretend to have some confidence this time.

[LIN LING] I'm sorry. [MISS J] No apologizing!

And no doubting yourself!

[LIN LING] Miss J. It's been a minute since it happened.

Do we have any clue why Nice jumped?

[MISS J] You don't get it.

A young man jumped to escape pressure at work.

- Him. - [LIN LING] Hold on. What...?

That's a picture of me!

I don't remember volunteering to die!

[MISS J] The article has one view.

Relax. No one cares if Lin Ling died.

- All they care about is... - [crowd cheering]

[Lin Ling gasps] Wait. Are you serious?

You want me to do this now, like, in front of people?

- [gasps] - [MISS J] Keep in mind

your reality is shaped

by how much those people out there trust you.

The power of Trust is king.

[Lin Ling grunts]

[chuckles]

[fan chuckles]

- [female fan blabbering] - [Lin Ling chuckles]

Wait a second, I'm not...

[groaning]

[MISS J] If the people say you're Nice,

then you're Nice.

If they think you can,

- then you can. - Okay!

[grunts]

[MISS J] We need to deliver a flawless package.

Do as you're told, and they won't bat an eye.

Your Trust Value will be through the roof in no time.

That boost in Trust

will spur some physical changes in your body.

Before long,

you'll be everything he was.

Huh. Whoa!

My eye color changed.

The hair is spot-on too. We might pull this off.

Don't celebrate yet.

Establishing trust can take ages.

But look at someone the wrong way,

and it goes down the drain.

[LIN LING] I've always dreamed of being a hero.

But I never thought it would come true.

This is blowing my mind.

[MISS J] Oh. Also,

you haven't seen your girlfriend.

- [gasps] - Guess what?

You can make your own happiness!

Do you wanna know the secret ingredient?

Well then, tune in!

[BOTH] Enjoy our joy on True Love Recipe!

Moon, over here!

Did you visit Nice while he was away training?

[MOON] No.

This will actually be my first time

seeing him in a while.

[LIN LING] Hold on, Moon is Nice's girlfriend,

not mine. How can I--

[MISS J] Get it through your head!

You're Nice now, and that means

everything that was Nice's is yours!

No, no, no, no, no, no.

I can't do this!

You expect me to stand next to Moon on live TV

and tell the whole world she's my girlfriend?

She's gonna see through me right away!

Hey. What's with the blush?

You're excited about this, aren't cha?

[gasps]

Well, I mean, I do like her.

But I'm not some creep who's obsessed with her,

I'm just one of her followers!

Then man up, get out there, and follow her!

- [thumps] - [groaning]

[Lin Ling gasps]

[sighs]

[camera shutters clicking]

It's been a while.

I missed you so much, Moon.

[MALE REPORTER 1A] Amazing!

Nice arrives with a gorgeous postmodern spin

on a classic waltz turn!

So elegant. So gentlemanly.

And so perfect!

[LIN LING] I've never seen her up close before.

- She's beautiful. - Hm.

[LIN LING] Wait, why isn't she responding?

Oh, did I overdo it?

Huh. Well, that's a good sign!

Maybe I did die.

Because I'm in heaven!

[MALE DIRECTOR 1A] Great, hold still, lovebirds!

- Makeup? - [MAKEUP ARTIST] Ready!

[MALE DIRECTOR 1A] Backgrounds! [BACKGROUNDS OPERATOR] Ready!

[MALE DIRECTOR 1A] Props! [PROPS OPERATOR] Ready!

[MALE DIRECTOR 1A] Sound! [SOUND OPERATOR] Ready!

[MALE DIRECTOR 1A] Okay! And we're live

in five, four,

three,

two,

one!

[crowd cheering]

[ENLIGHTER] Coming to you live,

this is True Love Recipe!

I'll be your host for today.

Ranked 249th by the Hero Commission.

I am Enlighter.

Eye of Truth.

What the hell?

What happened to the normal host?

He just quit. Apparently Enlighter dug up

some dirt on him live. He's gone.

[MISS J] Why didn't you tell me sooner?

[JAM] It just happened!

Enlighter was the only one who could cover for him!

[LIN LING] This doesn't match the script Miss J gave me.

Who is he? The Eye of Truth?

[gasps]

Wait, what if he came here to out me?

Did I blow it already?

We are thrilled to have you on our show today.

Welcome to True Love Recipe.

Here we believe that behind every romance

hides a myriad of secrets,

many of which aren't known to anyone outside the pair.

Get production on the phone

and tell them to shut this down immediately!

[ENLIGHTER] In today's episode,

we'll find out how well you know your other half.

Tell us, Nice.

How many commercials has your girlfriend starred in?

And what is their total runtime?

What kind of gotcha question is that?

Don't you try to entrap my client, you hack!

[OLIVER] Ma'am. I ran a BC on Enlighter,

and it seems he's been investigating Nice.

[MOON] What a question.

Even I haven't done that math.

If your romance is truly so perfect,

then you must at least know that detail.

[LIN LING] In total...

- 134 commercials. - Hm?

[gasps]

And their runtime,

285 minutes, 48 seconds.

♪

[ENLIGHTER] I've researched him for ages now.

He's definitely an actor.

How was he able to respond so perfectly?

You really remember?

Yeah.

The goal for this one...

is to show her confidence!

Her strength. Her style!

We should go with a more mature look this time around.

Mature?

Are you out of your mind?

You leave your preferences out of this!

She's Nice's girlfriend, not yours!

And she stays as is!

[LIN LING] Every ad I write for you is a labor of love.

Huh?

[ENLIGHTER] For the second stage,

I'd like to play a little game.

I take it you've heard of truth or dare?

[MISS J] What is that thing?

[OLIVER] Must be a lie detector.

[ENLIGHTER] Honesty is the best policy,

especially when it comes to romance.

Let's find out how truthful you are, Nice.

Is the lovely Moon there actually your girlfriend?

Your perfection is but a facade.

And your romance works to further the narrative.

Say yes and prove you're a liar.

[gasps] Oh, crap.

This guy has totally figured out I'm an imposter.

What the heck am I supposed to do?

If I answer like Nice would, and say that she is,

I'll set off the lie detector!

[buzzing]

[LIN LING] But if I don't confirm the relationship,

they'll know I'm a fake.

No matter what I do,

I'll get found out!

It's an impossible trap!

I didn't realize it was such a tricky question.

♪

The truth is...

♪

Moon isn't my girlfriend.

[MALE MEMBER 1] Wait, she's not?

[FEMALE MEMBER 1] What is he talking about?

[Enlighter laughs]

You heard it here first!

The perfect hero isn't so perfect!

Nice is a...

She's more than that.

♪

She is my goddess.

[Moon gasps]

- Huh? - [ALL] Huh?

[LIN LING] I don't know when.

But at some point, Moon became someone

I couldn't live without.

[MOON] When you dream big, you come alive!

Be the best you,

and believe in yourself!

Keep fighting!

[LIN LING] She encouraged me.

[groaning]

Huh?

[LIN LING] She gave me hope.

Hope that even someone like me could be a hero.

I wanted to stand by her side.

And be her knight.

♪

[ENLIGHTER] All of that was the truth?

[NETIZEN 1] Aw, this is the sweetest thing ever!

[NETIZEN 2] I love true love!

[NETIZEN 3] He became a hero just so he could protect her?

[NETIZEN 4] Please live happily ever after!

[netizens chanting] O-T-P! O-T-P!

[ENLIGHTER] This isn't over, you frauds!

Time for the final stage!

[glass shatters]

[smoke hisses]

[gate whirring]

[stomping]

Wait a minute, what?

[stomping]

Hm.

[stomps]

[LIN LING] Is that my boss?

[ENLIGHTER] He was once an entrepreneur.

But since being pushed into a corner,

he's become a wild animal.

He owes his recent transformation to you.

Nice.

[LIN LING] What do I do? I can't let him recognize me.

- [MISS J] Who is that? - He's the ad exec

that we just terminated our contract with!

Look familiar?

This man built your entire persona.

Without his ads, you'd be just a pretty face!

And you.

You pushed him into bankruptcy!

And your actions drove his employee Lin Ling to suicide!

[gasps] Well, I guess we know

where the one view on the article came from now!

[growls softly]

[gasps]

[chuckles]

You planning to pay me, Nice?

Hm?

Well?

Are you planning to pay me what you owe me?

You lost your contract with us!

Since the beginning,

you swore you'd pay me for the near-constant revisions,

yet no additional payment has come!

[chuckles] You see.

Nice and his team are exploitative monsters

who use stolen labor to turn a quick...

- [grunts] - [thuds]

[FEMALE MEMBER 2] Is this part of the show?

[MALE MEMBER 2] This Enlighter guy is all over the place.

[FEMALE MEMBER 3] No wonder he's ranked 250.

You fools.

I'm ranked 249th! Far higher than any of you!

Just wait.

This isn't over yet!

I can't go bankrupt. I won't go bankrupt!

Now give me my final payment!

- [LIN LING] What is that? - [both gasp]

[explosion]

[rumbling]

[grunting]

[MOON] It's Fear!

[grunts]

[LIN LING] Fear?

[MOON] Fear and Trust are opposing forces!

- [thuds] - [grunts]

[MOON] He's turned into a monster.

We can't reason with him. It's too late.

[thumping]

- [thuds] - [glass shattering]

[OLIVER] Ma'am! Looks like Nice's new combat techniques

are already blowing up on social. We're going viral!

[laughs]

Everything's coming up J.

[chuckles]

[LIN LING] So, this is what it feels like to be a hero.

[Cheng groans]

[CHENG] The overtime,

the pay cuts and the layoffs were fine!

But I won't lose the company!

I won't go out of business! I refuse!

It's my career! My life savings!

Stop!

- [groans] - [thuds]

♪

You need to calm down.

[CHENG] Calm down?

You've never run a company.

You don't know what it's like!

The constant rejection.

Clients who don't pay.

Employees slacking off!

Loafing around on the job then trying to sue me!

[Cheng laughing]

[CHENG] Fire them all, I say!

You can never truly appreciate what you had until it's gone!

Out of their fear of being fired,

my new powers were born!

Powers like I'd never had before!

A light appeared in front of me,

and allowed me to harness the Fear.

I could manipulate their dread and use it for destruction!

♪

[CHENG] Let the despair grow!

Be afraid!

[all gasping]

- [LIN LING] What are they? - Letters!

He's trying to increase Fear by sending termination letters!

I need to finish this!

[LIN LING] It'll be fine.

I'm Nice. I have to win!

[metal clangs]

♪

Hm.

♪

[gasps]

He didn't even flinch!

[thumping]

[gasps]

[grunts]

[whimpering]

[thuds]

[grunts]

[LIN LING] It's not working.

I've tried everything they taught me.

[grunts] What do I do?

[gasps]

- [thuds] - [CHENG] Time is up.

Deadline!

[explosion]

- [Moon gasps] - Nice!

[clattering]

[thudding]

- [shuddered breathing] - [thudding]

I should be able to do this.

I'm the hero made perfect,

by and for the people.

Am I, though?

Can I really be him?

You're delusional! Look at yourself!

I don't see one thing that makes you special!

You have no skills! No real talents!

Let me wake you up from your stupid little dream.

You're average!

The only way you'll succeed is if you accept the truth

and leave greatness to the great!

♪

Lin Ling!

When you dream big, you come alive!

Be the best you,

and believe in yourself!

Keep fighting!

[LIN LING] Dream big.

And believe in myself.

I believe... that one day.

I'll be able to protect those who need protecting.

♪

[LIN LING] I believe in this world

where heroes are forged by trust.

That even a nobody like me...

has the power...

to be a hero!

♪

[thuds]

♪

[thuds]

[rustling]

♪

[MALE NEWS ANCHOR 1A] The incident last week

at the True Love Recipe live venue

was confirmed to be an organized terrorist attack.

The Hero Commission found a Fear Value amplifier

on the assailant.

These devices have been used in multiple attacks

orchestrated by the Spotlight Organization.

[sighs]

Your popularity has increased.

The people love you.

Seems you're going to be a good fit.

When all of this started,

I thought this was a role to play.

It occurred to me up there.

You were right.

There is no role.

I am Nice.

[MISS J] If that's the case,

then I can send you home.

Uh... home?

[MISS J] Hero Tower.

♪

Your living situation is based on your ranking.

The higher your rank, the higher the floor.

[beeping]

Pretty, huh?

I always enjoy the view from up here.

[LIN LING] Miss J?

Why did he kill himself?

[inhales deeply] It was his choice to make.

Someday down the line,

you'll be in the same spot.

Choose wisely.

[door slides open]

[MISS J] Have fun.

It's all yours now, kid.

[LIN LING] Damn, this place is massive.

Hello, statue.

[blows raspberries] Man, what a day.

I'm beat.

Where's the bed?

[grunts]

Oh, perfect.

[grunts]

[groaning]

Now that's nice.

Huh?

[gasps]

Moon? Why's she in my bed?

Oh, right.

She and Nice have lived together for a while.

Hm?

[exhales]

Hmm.

- [grunts] - [bedsheet rustles]

[sighs]

Hm.

♪

[gasps]

♪

[gasps]

- Huh. - [thuds]