"Broadcast Murder" is a sad occasion in the history of "Furuhata Ninzaburô". It is the last episode to be directed by Mamoru Hoshi, its most exciting and original director whose penchant for flashy visuals and punchy theatricality made his work proudly stand out among other, far more conservative TV directors. Hoshi injected a dynamic intensity and cinematic visuals into what is a rather stagy and dialogue-driven show. He was able to make even some of the thinner scripts work and the four episodes he directed stand out as the pinnacles of "Furuhata Ninzaburô" so far.
For his final trick, Hoshi delivers another standout episode, maybe the most unusual so far and definitely the most operatic. Set entirely in a TV studio, Hoshi intently focuses on the mechanics behind a live broadcast, the cameras, the runners, and the nervous executives in the viewing gallery. Not only does he give this well-oiled machine a graceful, almost dance-like air, but he also underpins it with a downright bizarre atmosphere of unidentifiable terror. Hoshi shoots even the most mundane of TV activities as pulling focus in a way that inspires both awe and horror. His low-angle shots, slowly coming into focus as his camera glides across the studio floor are unexpectedly creepy. Contributing to the overall mood of the story is Yusuke Honma's score which has been excellent across all the episodes but especially stands out here.
The story itself is greatly unusual as well. Not only does most of it take place live on air but Furuhata and the killer don't meet until the 30-minute mark. In fact, Furuhata solves the murder before he ever speaks to his suspect. Instead, the cat-and-mouse battle of wits takes place between the killer, a TV psychic, and a professional debunker who clash before the studio cameras. The debunker is played by Takashi Yamaguchi, an actor of great presence and intensity who makes for a brilliant stand-in for the wily inspector. The scenes between Yamaguchi and the psychic, played by Ken Ishiguro, are so suspenseful, clever, and beautifully played that I completely forgot I was watching "Furuhata Ninzaburô" and fully bought into the idea of watching a live broadcast.
That is not to say the lead of the show is entirely sidelined. He does spend three-quarters of the episode silently watching the live broadcast unfold but once he steps into the picture Tamura Masakazu is better than ever. The final scene in which Furuhata taunts and prods the psychic is a quintessential example of what makes this show so great.