"Zoroark, come over here and take a look. Can you transform into this thing?" The next day, Edward called Zoroark over. Zoroark leaned in and took a glance. On the screen was a bizarre-looking creature—it had yellow fur with some black stripes, and most eye-catching of all was the large "王" (king) character boldly marked on its forehead.
"Boss, what is this supposed to be? Is it an Incineroar?" Zoroark asked curiously as it scrutinized the image. It had never seen anything like this before. It did somewhat resemble Incineroar, but not exactly—it actually looked even more imposing in a way.
Edward shook his head. "How could this possibly be Incineroar?" If anything, it was more accurate to say Incineroar was inspired by this creature. Edward had complicated feelings about Incineroar's design, especially the way it belched fire from its waist like some sort of living championship belt.
That design choice alone made him question a lot. But the Siberian tiger, this creature from his past life—it exuded a raw and primal sense of power. Though it had no supernatural abilities, it was one of the most formidable predators back on Earth.
"I'll give it a try." Zoroark said, then activated its illusion ability. In a flash, a small tiger materialized before Edward. It wasn't very large, roughly the size of a golden retriever. Visually, the appearance wasn't bad—quite realistic even. But when the tiger opened its mouth, the illusion broke: its teeth were distinctly human, and its tongue too.
That was when Edward realized something important—Zoroark's illusionary abilities, while incredibly dependable, weren't perfect. They still needed some fine-tuning.
Narrowing his eyes, Edward thought to himself, This won't do.
Sure, the tiger could be scaled up in size, and the details could be adjusted. But Zoroark was the only member of the company who could star in this production in the way he envisioned.
From the current results, achieving a truly lifelike portrayal would be significantly more difficult than he had imagined. Not to mention that Zoroark would also have to fabricate the tiger's prey during hunting scenes.
And besides, if they really started filming "Animal World," there was no guarantee the audience would even recognize the animals being shown. In that case, maybe it was better to first publish a setting guidebook—something that introduced these creatures and their background. Depending on the market's feedback, they could decide later whether to proceed with the full documentary.
"In that case…" Edward rubbed his chin thoughtfully. It didn't matter—he had a backup plan. He decided to begin filming the Sherlock Holmes detective series, produced in the format of a television drama. However, instead of the usual 45-minute-per-episode format, each episode would be extended to an hour or even ninety minutes.
This idea he borrowed directly from the British series Sherlock from his past life. After all, detective stories didn't necessarily need to be split into dozens of episodes. Even a season with only three or four episodes could be gripping, as long as the content was of high quality.
"A Study in Scarlet" was the most suitable storyline to kick things off. As for casting… Edward had originally planned to use human actors, but considering how much the people of this world loved Pokémon—and the fact that the Sherlock Holmes series wasn't a horror genre—it wouldn't feel strange to include Pokémon in the roles. On the contrary, it might even add some fresh elements to play with. In the end, Edward decided to use Pokémon actors after all.
"Detective Pikachu… speaking of which, Pikachu actually is a pretty good fit," Edward said aloud, excitedly typing out his thoughts on the computer. Seeing this, Zoroark quietly poured him a glass of water and gently closed the office door behind him.
Zoroark knew all too well—once his boss got a burst of inspiration, he became a completely different person. He would ignore everything else and throw himself entirely into scriptwriting, oblivious to the world around him.
Judging by the look on his face, Edward probably wouldn't come out for quite a while. Looked like today was going to be an easy one.
Feeling quite cheerful, Zoroark pulled out his phone. The timing was just right for grinding the latest in-game event.
Meanwhile, Edward was still deep in thought. Naturally, Sherlock Holmes was the central character of the entire series—brilliant, sharp, a true genius with certain eccentricities that made him feel somewhat detached from normal society, but absolutely unmatched in his abilities. His insight was on another level.
This role, Edward mused, might not suit Pikachu all that well. Sherlock Holmes required someone with top-tier acting skills, especially the ability to express complex emotions through micro-expressions.
A truly great actor could portray a psychological shift without the aid of makeup or special effects—just one glance, one subtle change in facial expression could leave the audience breathless. In his past life, viewers would rave about actors who could transform from "pure white lotus" to "black-hearted villain" with just their eyes.
Compared to those who needed layers of smoky makeup to signify a "dark transformation," actors who could convey that transformation with just a glance or a subtle facial cue were the real deal.
And for a character like Sherlock Holmes, that level of performance was absolutely essential. The way his eyebrows tensed or relaxed, the intensity or softness of his gaze—these were all tools to construct the essence of the character.
As for Pikachu, Edward figured it'd be better to have him play the role of Dr. Watson. As Sherlock Holmes' loyal companion, Watson was an indispensable part of the story—someone who could occasionally spot key clues and provide assistance at critical moments. Plus, with Pikachu's small stature, he could even ride on Holmes' shoulder, which made for a great visual.
"But Watson's background as a military doctor…" Edward murmured, thinking aloud. This wasn't a problem either. They could simply explain that Pikachu used to be a military doctor with the Pokémon League's investigation corps and had to retire due to injuries. In this world, Pokémon were heavily involved in human life and work, so a Pikachu having served as a military doctor wasn't far-fetched at all.
Then came the major antagonist of the Sherlock Holmes series—Professor Moriarty.
"Moriarty… that character's requirements are really high," Edward muttered. "A criminal genius. The emperor of crime. The one who controls the entire dark underworld of London. A supervillain, and the most troublesome opponent Sherlock Holmes ever faced…"
Moriarty was the ultimate boss in the Holmes series. Though the author had once tried to end the series by having Sherlock Holmes and Moriarty fall into a waterfall and die together, the fury of fans eventually forced him to bring Sherlock Holmes back—though Moriarty remained dead for good.
The success of Moriarty as a villain was crucial. A well-crafted antagonist could make the entire work far more memorable to the audience.
But casting him would be difficult.
"Logically speaking…" Edward thought of a type of Pokémon—Psychic-types. They were known for their high intelligence and powerful mental abilities. Perhaps a Psychic-type could portray Moriarty?
"I really hate casting…" Edward sighed. He decided to start filming first anyway. Moriarty didn't appear until much later in the series, so there was no rush. There were plenty of standalone mysteries in the early episodes to keep them busy, and Edward could use the time to think more about the casting.
(End of Chapter)