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"You guys don't scroll through your phones, so you don't get it. A good movie might never make it to theaters, and a great show doesn't always move forward~"
Their son scrolled casually on his phone, speaking absentmindedly.
"What do you mean by that? Explain it properly!"
Dad wasn't having it—he pressed right away.
"Mainstream TV channels just want to play it safe now. It's all about praising people and showing how good everyone is~"
"You know, that kind of 'Long live the emperor, the land is at peace, and people are living happily ever after' stuff~"
"Otherwise, how could a group like 'Thief Company' that satirizes real life ever make it through? No way~"
"Besides, you've got big shots like Matt from the traditional comedy scene sitting in the audience. That guy made a whole career out of praising stuff with comedy~"
"Trying to do satire in front of him? That's like bringing up the 7–1 match in front of Brazil!"
"Look, the internet is all over this 'Thief Company' thing now."
He handed his phone over, and Mom took it to check. Sure enough, the comment sections were blowing up.
"Ridiculous," she said, "It's like we're going backward in time. They won't change, and they won't let others speak out~"
Dad stabbed at his food angrily, ranting, "We put on a variety show to relax, but all we get is moral lessons. Can't even laugh properly, and sometimes they even make you cry—what is this, a funeral?"
"Seriously, it's gotten hard to just sit back and laugh," Mom sighed.
The neighbors upstairs were constantly moving stuff and making noise.The elevator was broken and no one fixed it.Someone down the hall had cats, and now the place was full of cat food and fleas.
Just a few days ago, Grandma paid a scalper at the hospital but still couldn't get in line. She has to go again next week.The kid's tutoring center changed names and reopened—but the prices went up again.
Life was full of crap. They just wanted a little peace with a funny show.
But nooo, even a ten-minute clip had to lecture them about being grateful and tolerant.
Screw that! This ain't a graveyard—why the hell do I have to cry while watching a comedy show?!
And it wasn't just this family feeling like reality was absurd. This was happening all over.
In a rental room, a young man was eating takeout fried rice after work. When he saw Kyle and Mia had been eliminated, he couldn't help but complain.
"Six-thousand-something salary, five-thousand-something gone to deductions and fines, rent's twelve hundred, utilities one-thirty, food fifteen hundred."
"Buy a little fruit, smoke a little, pay for clothes, phone bills, transportation, those damn company dinners—if I'm lucky I save a thousand a month."
In that kind of life, the best and easiest way to unwind—without thinking—is just watching some light-hearted variety shows.
But now, even the good comedy skits and stand-up acts were getting canceled!
Goddamn it! I just wanna laugh, is that too much to ask?!
"Fine, you eliminated them. You're the mentor, you call the shots. But guess what? I'm not buying it!"
He whipped out his phone and started clapping back under every trending post criticizing "Thief Company."
"Hey hey, guess who's back—one of the OG online warriors from the Di Bar days!"
And scenes like this weren't just in his room. They were happening in thousands of little rooms, all in front of screens.
At a university student council office…
Newbie Ethan walked in with a form."Harris, here's a club application~"
"Harris? You got guts, huh?"
"Uh, I don't think I said anything wrong. I don't usually act bold or anything…"
"You've got guts. This is the student council, you're a newbie. You call me Minister. Got it?"
"Bullshit! Trying to throw your bureaucratic weight at me? You son of a—Minister, my ass!"
A scuffle broke out in the student council, and "Harris" was quickly turned into "Loser Harris."
Victorious, Ethan returned to his dorm and scrolled through his phone—right into the "Thief Company" backlash.
"Damn, even the student council's drowning in this bureaucratic crap. Useless departments wasting funds on parties and fake jobs, and people are still pretending everything's fine?"
"Every time I watch 'Thief Company,' I crack up. I've already watched it three or four times!"
His posts started blowing up, gaining him over ten thousand followers overnight. From a regular student, he suddenly became a small-time influencer.
And it wasn't just college kids. Even elementary schoolers weren't spared.
"My son's in first grade. He's under the class labor committee, below six hygiene supervisors, and he's a rear-end inspector…"
"All that, and we had to bribe with two bags of spicy chips! Now only three kids in the whole class don't have some kind of title. We used to think it was funny, but after watching 'Thief Company,' all I feel is sadness."
A mom posted that, and tons of people agreed.
Meanwhile, short video platforms were flooded with clips of Kyle and Mia's sketches—going viral fast.
"'Steal at the Olympics'—LMAO! Did they just skip to the ending?"
"'Learn advanced foreign stealing techniques?' I can't! At least steal something high-tech, come on!"
"'If I say it's wrong, then it's wrong—even if it's right!' Bro… that's power abuse in a nutshell!"
Each clip shot up to 100k, 300k, 500k views… eventually hitting 700k. The total views soon passed ten million.
A challenge went viral too: #NoChoiceButToObey
Three hours after work ended, the office was still packed for a meeting.
The boss, eating dinner in a hotel, chuckled:"I gave them jobs—they have to listen. Once I'm done eating, I'll go teach them how to be grateful~"
But when he arrived at the office, an employee stood up:"Work hours ended four hours ago. You think I have no choice but to obey? Let me show you what not obeying looks like!"
With that, more employees stood up, handed in their resignations, and walked out in style.
"No choice but to obey? Sorry, I'm not your dad—I don't have to baby you."
With epic background music, the challenge ended.
Participation numbers kept rising, and views kept climbing into the tens of millions.
At the same time, people were calling louder and louder for Kyle and Mia to return to the stage.
Meanwhile, in a hotel room, Kyle and Mia were glued to their phones, laughing non-stop.
Mia said happily, "We're trending! And we didn't spend a single cent to get there!"
Taptaptap—her fingers were flying across the screen as she replied to messages.
The buzz was real—everyone at home had heard about it.
Kyle grinned, "Of course! Our show was great. And you stirred things up at the end—of course it got attention~"
"Just look at how popular our sketches are now! They're everywhere—people are even imitating us!"
He scrolled through entertainment news, smiling at articles about himself.
They had no pressure to perform right now, ten million in startup funds, and a top-notch partner. If they wanted to open a small company or their own theater, they totally could!
Back at the production team for The Comedians, the discussion was heating up.
"Director, look! Kyle and Mia are on the trending list!"
"Not just once—seven or eight trending topics! Way more than Lily and Nick!"
"I know, I've seen it. Their shares are almost breaking a hundred million—basically as much as three episodes combined!"
"This is huge. They're not just in entertainment news—social news is talking about 'Thief Company' too!"
"Director, should we invite them back? Maybe let them into the finals?"
"I was thinking the same thing. Okay, you guys go contact them first—let them appear in the elimination round."
"As for the rest of the rounds, I'll talk to the three mentors. Worst case, I'll go directly to the station head."
This internal meeting wasn't random—the station had already given the green light.
Sure, Matt was a big deal, but he didn't control the TV network. Only some folks in the traditional stand-up scene listened to him.
Sketch actors, opera performers, and everyone else? They didn't care.
Kyle and Mia were a super-powered combo—they could make the show a nationwide phenomenon!
Matt? Even if there were ten thousand Matts, they couldn't compare!
"....."