Responses
-It was a Romantic Comedy. It's just that their personalities were very odd for a story like that.
-The productter said it himself, he didn't have the same passion like a young one could have. So yeah, it had less sparkle but it was more a mature & steady love.
-'You were too late' just mean that if he didn't encounter at all ML he could have give him a chance. So he did feel something for him.
-In the end, he choose ML because he is a sucker for the needy one or pitiable like you said. It was well explained with his inconditional love for his sick cat.
I genuinely loved this for the first several chapters. Great concept but mid execution. Having the two characters fall in love with each other early on in the story made the plot feel frozen and like the same 2 plotlines be reused over and over again without feeling like it went anywhere. The story also couldnt decide if it wanted to be a romantic drama or a parody comedy of reality shows which made the tone confusing. I never felt like there was any chemistry with the producer and the main char and he felt like he was being used simply for 1 of the 2 repeating pointless plotlines. I never got the idea the mc liked him back which made their kiss scenes uncomfortable. But then the end the mc just dropping "you were too late" was gross. Like imagine finding out your s/o said they would have chosen someone else if they came first and they only chose you since you look pitiable. By the end of the story i felt like it was blatantly trying to tell the readers that they are a toxic couple even with the author mentioning that the romantic interest is too blinded by love too see the reasoning of his friends then proceeded to push them away. I felt like the romantic interest lost his personality midway and was never consistent with it. The ending honestly felt like a slap in the face with the whole producer bit and really lost the initial charm it originally delivered. It was fine nothing more nothing less. Just fine. I dont plan on revisiting this.