Link Click
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (August 2022) |
| Link Click | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 时光代理人 | |
| Genre | Action Fantasy Supernatural |
| Directed by | Li Haoling (李豪凌) |
| Country of origin | China |
| Original language | Mandarin Chinese |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 11 + 1 special |
| Production | |
| Animator | Studio LAN |
| Production company | Bilibili |
| Original release | |
| Network | Bilibili |
| Release | April 30 – July 9, 2021 |
Link Click (Chinese: 时光代理人; pinyin: Shíguāng Dàilǐrén, lit. "Time Agents") is a Chinese animated streaming television series produced by Studio LAN and Haoliners Animation League. It was first released on Bilibili and Funimation on April 30, 2021, and episodes were released every Friday at 11:00 until July 9.[1] There are 12 episodes, one of which is a special episode named 5.5.[2] There are also several chibi specials.
Synopsis
Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang run Time Photo Studio and accept requests from clients to relieve them of regrets. Through a photo provided by the client, Cheng Xiaoshi can travel back in time to the moment it was taken and assumes the identity of its photographer, with him absorbing the photographer's memories and emotions in the process. At the same time, Lu Guang has the ability to keep track of the events in time and helps Cheng Xiaoshi relive the experiences of the photographer. The two work under the conditions that they have only 12 hours with one chance to travel in time and find what their client is searching for, while also leaving the events of the past unchanged.
Characters
Main characters
- Cheng Xiaoshi (程小时)
- Voiced by: Su Shangqing[3] (Chinese), Alejandro Saab,[4] Xanthe Huynh[4] (young) (English)
- The owner of Time Photo Studio. His ability is to enter the photo world and possess a designated person, and can control all the words and actions of that person.
- Lu Guang (陆光)
- Voiced by: Yang Tianxiang[5] (Chinese), Zeno Robinson[4] (English)
- An associate of Time Photo Studio. His ability is to retrace everything that happened in the photo world within 12 hours of the photo being taken; he also directs Cheng Xiaoshi's actions.
Supporting characters
- Qiao Ling (乔苓)
- Voiced by: Li Shimeng[6] (Chinese), Suzie Yeung[4] (English)
- Cheng Xiaoshi's childhood friend and landlord and also the agent of Time Photo Studio.
- Emma / Wú Lìhuá (吴丽华)
- Voiced by: Zhào Yìtóng (赵熠彤) (Chinese), Xanthe Huynh[4] (English)
- Overworked secretary to the CFO at Quede Games (formerly) and client of Time Photo Studio.
- Yu Xia (予夏)
- Voiced by: Qián Chēn (钱琛) (Chinese)
- Client of Time Photo Studio who asks them to find the secret ingredient to her friend Lin Zhen's noodles after she left her to restart everything.
- Lin Zhen (林贞)
- Voiced by: Niè Xīyìng (聂曦映) (Chinese)
- Yu Xia's closest friend and chef of their noodles. She ended up leaving Yu Xia's side after coming to terms with the fact she no longer enjoyed making the noodles Yu Xia once enjoyed.
- Chen Xiao (陈肖)
- Voiced by: Wāi Wāi (歪歪) (Chinese)
- A client who seeks out the Time Studio as he asks if they could simply deliver a message to some people from his past on the day of a basketball game. Qiao Ling notes that he looks incredibly tired and unhappy.
- Liu Lei (刘磊)
- Voiced by: Gǔ Jiāngshān (谷江山) (Chinese)
- Lu Hongbin (陆鸿斌)
- Voiced by: Guān Shuài (关帅) (Chinese)
- Doudou (豆豆)
- Voiced by: Zǐ Zǐ (仔仔) (Chinese)
- A young boy who is kidnapped. The Time Photo Studio looks for clues to secure the boy's rescue.
- Xiao Li (肖力)
- Voiced by: Tútè Hāméng (图特哈蒙) (Chinese)
- The police chief who requests the aide of Time Photo Studio.
- Xu Shanshan (徐姗姗)
- Voiced by: Zhào Shuǎng (赵爽) (Chinese)
- A school friend of Qiao Ling, Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang who comes to them seeking help when she can't remember what Dong Yi told her when she was drunk.
- Dong Yi (董易)
- Voiced by: Jīn Xián (金弦) (Chinese)
- Xu Shanshan's friend who enjoys hanging out with her and uses every excuse he can to stay by her side.
- Liu Min (刘旻)
- Voiced by: Sūn Lùlù (孙路路) (Chinese)
- A mysterious man who seems to be connected to a string of murders that have been occurring in the story. Son of the CEO of Quede Games.
Music
| Season | Opening Theme | Ending Theme |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Dive Back in Time" by 白鲨JAWS | "Overthink" by 饭卡 |
Media
Donghua
The donghua was released on bilibili and Funimation on 30 April 2021. The series is directed by Li Haoling, original character design by INPLICK, art directed by Tanji Takumi, Asami Tomoya and Zhu Lipiao, photography directed by Sanjou Yasuka, and chief animation directed by LAN. The second season of the donghua series was announced at the ending of the episode 11.[7]
A Japanese dub of the series premiered on January 9, 2022, on Tokyo MX and BS11.[8][9] Crunchyroll premiered an English dub on August 8, 2022.[4]
Series overview
 | This section's plot summary may be too long or excessively detailed. (August 2022) |
Season 1
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "EMMA" | April 30, 2021 | |
|
Lu Guang and Cheng Xiaoshi of the Time Photo Studio receive a task from an unnamed client to expose the company's fraudulent activities. Using a photograph taken by Emma, Cheng Xiaoshi enters the photograph in Emma's body, guided by Lu Guang in the present. Cheng endures sexual assault by Emma's boss at Vicky Games, then goes home. Lu Guang and Cheng talk whilst lying in their respective beds, where Lu Guang advises Cheng to be careful and not do anything that could change the timeline. Against this advice, Cheng sends a text message to Emma's boss. The following morning Cheng makes a purposeful "mistake" that gets Emma unfairly treated and ultimately fired, something Cheng struggles with greatly. Cheng nevertheless allows himself to be slapped as Emma, allowing him to see the desired information. In the present, a sad Emma stumbles into her home and sees the message she sent to her parents, and a scene follows showing both Emma and her parents preparing to get a train ride to see each other. Emma is offered a ride to the station by a man as Cheng discusses the implications of his actions. When Cheng is distracted by Qiao, Lu Guang looks at his phone to find news that Emma has died. | ||||
| 2 | 2 | "Secret Recipe (秘方)" | April 30, 2021 | |
|
Yu Xia, owner of a chain restaurant company finds the timing duo hoping to obtain the secret soup recipe secretly kept by partner Lin Zhen. Through multiple failed attempts to learn the secret recipe, Cheng comes to understand the reason for the breakup between Yu and Lin to be a difference in ideology on how to run the noodle shop. Yu wanted to grow, while Lin wanted a small noodle shop. Piecing together clues, Cheng realizes that the secret ingredient was a fragrant flower from Yu's hometown that Yu used to make noodles in the girls' dorm room. Hearing this, Yu seeks out and finds Lin to repair their friendship, and the episode closes with the two embracing with a smile. | ||||
| 3 | 3 | "To Lose, Not To Win (只许输，不准赢)" | May 7, 2021 | |
|
Architect Chen Xiao hears rumors of Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang powers and seeks them out to change his regrets from the past during his last basketball game. Cheng takes the role of benchwarmer and photographer during the game, until an untimely flash allows the opponent to get away with purposefully injuring the team's star player. Cheng is substituted in, and dominates the court. However, Cheng Xiaoshi's actions could end up shifting the past and altering the future, something that Lu Guang warns Cheng of multiple times, especially in regards to changing the results of the game. Remembering the importance of others and teamwork, Cheng passes the ball to a teammate at the final moments. The teammate make a three-point shot, changing the results of the game. | ||||
| 4 | 4 | "Confess (告白)" | May 14, 2021 | |
|
After the basketball game, Cheng Xiaoshi continues the mission smoothly, spurred on by Lu Guang's assurance that the "node", or critical point in history, has not been altered. Cheng learns that the team captain pushed for the basketball court to not be torn down if they could win the game, and the coach lacks the heart to admit that the gym will be torn down anyway. Cheng bikes the captain home and delivers the message to him. The two meet the captain's sister, and the three of them go home together. The sister walks with Cheng afterward, at which time Cheng delivers the second message. After going home and resolving a fight with Chen's mother, the final message was delivered. Cheng soon realizes that this mission was directed toward an unspeakable memory- an Earthquake that is destined to kill Chen's friends and family. | ||||
| 5 | 5 | "Farewell (告别)" | May 21, 2021 | |
|
Cheng comes to understand why altering the basketball game had no effect on the timeline, as they were doomed to die anyway. Lu Guang tells Cheng that he cannot alter death, as it is an important node. Cheng ignores this and attempts to convince Chen's friends to flee their village to escape the Earthquake with little success. Cheng begs Lu Guang to allow him to save Chen's mother, and Lu Guang agrees. This agreement is not genuine, however, as the mother still dies. Cheng realizes Lu Guang knew this would happen and punches him in anger before collapsing to his knees and crying into Lu Guang's chest. Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang tell Qiao Ling that they will be taking a break from entering photos, then a police officer arrives and asks about the mystical business being conducted. | ||||
| 6 | 6 | "Search of The Child (寻子)" | June 4, 2021 | |
|
The police officer was seeking help in a kidnapping case and was accompanied by the father of the child in question. Visibly distraught, he is nevertheless turned away as Cheng had just decided to put operations on pause. Qiao Ling later admits she saw the child, Dou Dou, being kidnapped from his parents' milk tea store three years prior. The duo is spurred into action and uses CCTV footage from the police to look for clues. The CCTV footage sends Cheng into the past as himself. While chasing the kidnapper, he runs into Qiao Ling in the past. | ||||
| 7 | 7 | "Aunt May (梅姨)" | June 11, 2021 | |
|
Cheng loses track of the kidnapper while trying to avoid changing the timeline by interacting with Qiao Ling. Afterward, Qiao Ling talks with the father and mentally ill mother and admits she saw the child in the past. Using a photo taken by Dou Dou, the duo gain enough clues to identify the kidnapper and save the child. After the reunion, the police chief asks how Cheng got into the CCTV footage and asks for help on a serial murder case. Lu Guang looks at the photos of the case, one of which is Emma's corpse. Lu Guang hides the photo before Cheng sees it, substituting it for an image of the killer, and turns down the case. | ||||
| 8 | 8 | "Lost Signal (错失的讯号)" | June 19, 2021 | |
|
Xu Shanshan, friend of the Time Photo Studio gang, requests aid in discovering what her close friend and likely love interest, Dong Yi, said to her as she blacked out from intoxication. Just as Cheng is hearing what Dong said, he notices a man approaching Xu's friend. Fearing the man was the serial killer from the police chief's photograph, Cheng gives chase into an alleyway. It turned out to be a man Xu recently turned down, and was not the serial killer. In the present, Lu Guang texts Xu what Dong said to her, and the group receives an uncharacteristic text message in reply. Concerned, they call Xu and are surprised to hear a strange man's voice deliver a cryptic message on the other end. | ||||
| 9 | 9 | "Consequence of Goodwill (善意的恶果)" | June 25, 2021 | |
|
Fearing the strange man on the phonecall was the killer, Lu Guang visits the police. Entering the CCTV photo of the killer, Lu Guang is able to identify the license plate of the killer. Lu Guang then sees Cheng in the photo and realized Cheng entered the photo alone. The police chief visits Liu Min, the primary suspect and owner of the vehicle, to find him paralyzed from a recent automobile accident. Liu Min being in the hospital provides an alibi for the crime. Cheng, in the photograph, gets into the trunk of Liu Min's vehicle as Liu and Emma get inside. Liu drives to an isolated location and begins to strangle Emma, saying her name aloud. Cheng hears this name and realized that his actions as Emma changed her course of fate and brought her to this point in time, to be murdered. Cheng yells in distress, and just as Liu Min is about to open the trunk Cheng leaves the image. Cheng reappears at the Time Photo Studio in front of an angry Lu Guang and a very surprised Qiao Ling. The defeated Cheng admits he did not change anything and realized the futility of his actions. He takes responsibility for Qiao not seeing Dou Dou, as he was the reason she was distracted. Qiao is surprised to learn about Cheng's ability, but dismisses it to see if the police made any progress. The police report Liu's injury and say that Emma could not have been murdered, as CCTV footage shows her walking alone on a bridge. | ||||
| 10 | 10 | "Trap (圈套)" | July 2, 2021 | |
|
Finding a photo taken by Xu before her disappearance, Lu Guang discovers that something happens to Xu, and Cheng mentally prepares himself for what may happen if he enters the photo. Meanwhile, Dong Li waits for Xu to join him for an interview. At the Time Photo Studio, Cheng enters the photo, where he has conversations with himself and his friends and learns some of what they truly think of him, both positive and negative. Backstory of Lu Guang's friendship with Cheng and Qiao is shown, and the confrontation with Xu and the attacker draws near. In the present, the same attacker enters the Time Photo Studio at night. In synchronicity, Cheng stops the attacker from killing Xu, and Lu Guang runs to the development room and locks the attacker inside. Cheng makes a deal with the attacker in the photo, and then returns to the present, appearing in the development room with the attacker. | ||||
| 11 | 11 | "Pinnacle of Light (带着光的人)" | July 9, 2021 | |
|
It is revealed that the attacker visiting the studio was part of Cheng's plan. Remembering the uncharacteristic text message from Xu, Cheng plans to confront the attacker and make a deal, providing the attacker a “hint” the following morning in return for Xu's safety. Lu Guang agrees with the plan, in no small part due to Cheng's thorough preparation. The attacker also agrees, and finds himself locked in the development room with Cheng in the present. The two fight, with Cheng entering photographs of the attacker's victims. It is revealed to, in fact, be Liu Min behind the mask, who is arrested by authorities. Liu Min is interrogated by authorities, who are confused as to his inconsistent paralysis. Liu Min talks about his “friend” who did the killings, discussing the killings in a manner suggesting schizophrenia or multiple personalities disorder. This further confuses the authorities who have a diagnosis of no mental illness. Cheng asks for the CCTV footage of Emma, and uses it to attempt to save Emma. It is revealed that following Cheng's near discovery in the trunk of Liu's car, Liu was afraid he had killed Emma and rushed to a hospital. Emma regains consciousness and in a stupor causes Liu to crash the car. Emma survives and tries to text her parents who are waiting for her to find her phone broken. Just before jumping off the bridge, Cheng talks Emma out of it, revealing his ability and providing encouragement to her. Emma's eyes then change, and she jumps off the bridge. In the present, Qiao's eyes do the same, and she stabs Lu Guang. Cheng and Lu Guang both realize moments prior that another person has the ability to take over bodies, and Cheng returns to the present to discover a bloody Lu Guang. The possessed Qiao taunts Cheng for cheating, and remarks that they look forward to the continuation of their reset “game”. | ||||
OVA
An additional episode was released between episodes 5 and 6 of season 1. This episode does not connect significantly with the remainder of the episodes in the season.
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5.5 | N–A | "Marrying by Contesting (比武招亲)" | May 28, 2021 | |
|
In return for beating them at a fighting game, the duo must do a job for Qiao. A man wants his girlfriend's hand in marriage, but must defeat her father in a martial arts duel to receive approval. Not being from a martial arts family, the man finds it difficult, especially so thanks to a special move the father keeps using. Cheng and Lu Guang attempt to discover the secret to the technique to no avail. Worried that another suitor will take her hand in marriage first, Lu Guang and Cheng understand Qiao's imperativeness that the job be done soon. It is revealed that the man is now elderly and teaches at a dojo Qiao happened past, and the trio help the elderly man ascend the stairs to confront his girlfriend's father again. He collapses before the fight, and asks if next year they can fight at the bottom of the stairs. The father concedes defeat, realizing that his rejection has not been beneficial to his daughter or grandson. | ||||
Chibi
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "Troubles of Ordinary People (逍遥散人的委托)" | August 27, 2021 |
| 2 | 2 | "The Daily Life in Lighttime Short Episode 1" | October 10, 2021 |
| 3 | 3 | "The Daily Life in Lighttime Short Episode 2" | November 10, 2021 |
| 4 | 4 | "The Daily Life in Lighttime Short Episode 3" | December 10, 2021 |
| 5 | 5 | "The Daily Life in Lighttime Short Episode 4" | January 10, 2022 |
| 6 | 6 | "The Daily Life in Lighttime Short Episode 5" | February 10, 2022 |
| 7 | 7 | "The Daily Life in Lighttime Short Episode 6" | March 10, 2022 |
| 8 | 8 | "The Daily Life in Lighttime Short Episode 7" | April 10, 2022 |
| 9 | 9 | "The Daily Life in Lighttime Short Episode 8" | May 10, 2022 |
| 10 | 10 | "The Daily Life in Lighttime Short Episode 9" | June 10, 2022 |
Notes
References
- ^ "LINK CLICK Chinese Donghua Anime to Stream on Funimation". Retrieved April 29, 2021.
- ^ "两个月播放量破亿！这部国漫内容疯狂反转！". 搜狐网. Retrieved 2021-07-09.
- ^ "时光代理人：角色PV3" (in Chinese). bilibili. Retrieved May 21, 2021.
- ^ a b c d e f Dempsey, Liam (August 5, 2022). "Link Click English Dub Announced, Cast & Crew Revealed". Crunchyroll. Retrieved August 5, 2022.
- ^ "时光代理人：角色PV2" (in Chinese). bilibili. Retrieved May 21, 2021.
- ^ "时光代理人：角色PV1" (in Chinese). bilibili. Retrieved May 21, 2021.
- ^ Sonozaki, Kyoko (July 30, 2021). "Link Click donghua is getting a second season". Quora. Retrieved July 30, 2021.
- ^ アニメ「時光代理人」日本語吹替版放送決定、キャストに豊永利行・櫻井孝宏・古賀葵. Natalie (in Japanese). Natasha, Inc. November 11, 2021. Retrieved November 11, 2021.
- ^ 「時光代理人」キービジュ＆本PV公開、豊永利行・櫻井孝宏・古賀葵参加の先行上映会. Natalie (in Japanese). Natasha, Inc. December 19, 2021. Retrieved August 16, 2022.
External links
- [1] at bilibili
- [2] at Funimation