Diamond in the Rough
Episode 3 of The Naked Director Season 2 sees changes afoot. Muranishi has rebranded to become Diamond Visual Inc. He has a new assistant too, a guy called Komu, and there’s a slew of new girls here. Among those is Miyuki whom Kawada encouraged to join last episode. On the back of this, Muranishi continues to push boundaries, heading up to Satellite East with incriminating videos of what Mr Umino is doing. It’s a pretty underhanded tactic and something Mr Honda doesn’t take kindly to. In fact, he decides to walk away from the project. Back at Diamond Project however, Miyuki learns that Muranishi is no longer directing. He’s so caught up on the satellite rights that he’s lost sight of his true passion. It’s a bitter pill for Kuroki to swallow though, especially given how she’s been pushed to the sidelines as well. That evening Kaoru visits Muranishi but he’s a shadow of the guy he was. He’s caught up in work and calls Kaoru his “poster girl.” Elsewhere, Takei visits Fuyura and questions him over the murder of a man in an alleyway. He’s had his head chopped off with a samurai sword. Takei continues to ruffle up feathers, telling the others that some fish have swum in from Taiwan and could cause serious trouble. Just to make things more volatile, Takei also reveals that Kawada and Muranishi have gone their separate ways. Muranishi remains dead-set on pushing this satellite gig, visiting a religious man named Mr Shiraiwa and encouraging him to let Muranishi buy out the building. The cost is 1.9 billion…which Muranishi hastily agrees to. He gives a 500 million yen down payment and promises to pay the rest at a later date. Meanwhile, Toshi walks in on Furuya having sex with Sayaka. It completely breaks his heart, especially as he has real feelings for her. She doesn’t seem too phased though when she sees him. Kaoru is sent off to do an advert. However, the elegant black dress Miyuki chooses for her won’t do. Instead, the Director forces Kaoru to cover up as much skin as possible. She’s certainly not happy when she finds out though. Back at the villa, Muranishi sets to work putting his vision into place. This includes a big publicity stunt including the bay bridge, blocking it off for everyone. Kuroki listens to this from the wings and eventually takes Muranishi aside to talk. When he tells her it’s not her time and she needs to be patient, she walks away. In fact, she heads on TV and forces his hand, claiming Muranishi is Directing and their first video will be of Kaoru.
The Episode Review
Thee Naked Director returns and sees Kuroki continue to be pushed to the sidelines in favour of younger, vibrant models. She’s still the star of the show of course, and if it wasn’t for her then Muranishi would not have ascended to the heights he has. That much is especially evident here, and Kuroki knows that too. In fact, seeing her force his hand at the end is incredibly satisfying and a reminder that the power doesn’t solely lie with Muranishi. With Honda and Kawada both gone from Muranishi’s side, his new assistant Komu is the perfect example of what I mentioned before about yes men. The subplot involving Toshi is probably the least interesting part of this show so far, although that does look like it’s going to grow into something far more intriguing in the coming episodes. For now though, The Naked Director bows out with another good episode.
