MMB Chapter 232 Counterattack, Special Episode Aired
Chapter 232 Counterattack, Special Episode Aired
Chapter 232 Counterattack, Special Episode Aired (5/71)
In July 1994, the first season of "Bayside Shakedown" ended.
In July and August, he focused on the pre-production of the theatrical version and the expansion of stores. The second batch of regular trench coats began to be distributed in more cities, and offline stores opened one after another in Shibuya, Shinjuku, and Umeda, each with a simple decoration style that continued the first store. At the same time, the script for the theatrical version was repeatedly revised and rewritten, and the production team was also being built.
These two things were happening simultaneously, filling the entire summer to the brim.
In September, Kitahara Shin finalized the script for the autumn special.
He wrote three drafts of the script for the special episode.
He rejected the first draft himself because it was too satisfying to write—Shunsaku Aoshima finally won this time, a clean and decisive victory, slapping the faces of the bureaucrats at headquarters one by one, resulting in a thoroughly enjoyable triumph.
After reading the first draft, he put down his pen, thought for a long time, and then scrapped the entire draft.
That's so fake.
Toshisaku Aoshima is not the kind of person who can suddenly win decisively. His true nature lies precisely in the fact that he is always teetering on the edge of winning a little and losing a little, never finding a way to completely resolve the situation.
The second draft went to the other extreme, being too depressing, filled with systemic barriers and a sense of powerlessness from beginning to end, leaving the reader feeling suffocated.
Not right either.
What a special episode needs is not something heavier, but something bigger.
In the third draft, he spent two whole weeks expanding the scope from within the Bay Shore Office to the overall situation for the first time. The series of thefts that occurred in the dock area near Tokyo Bay uncovered a smuggling network that spanned three jurisdictions and was hidden behind legitimate freight companies.
The scale of the case was unprecedented in previous installments of "The Great Investigation Line".
If the subordinate unit is not capable of handling the matter independently, it must report to headquarters.
After taking over, the headquarters, as is customary, marginalized its jurisdiction, relegating the Wangan District staff to the periphery to perform auxiliary work.
Of course, Qingdao Junzuo wouldn't agree.
But this time, what truly carried the plot wasn't Aoshima Shunsaku's refusal, but Muroi Shinji's.
This is the most important highlight of this episode.
In the first eleven episodes, Shinji Muroi is always seen as part of that wall—he represents headquarters, procedures, and the bureaucratic system that even Shunsaku Aoshima couldn't overcome. Viewers have complex feelings towards him; they know he's not a bad person, but they can't truly stand by his side.
But in the special episode, Shinji Muroi truly stood on Shunsaku Aoshima's side for the first time.
It wasn't because he suddenly awakened, but because the direction of the case made him realize something he had always vaguely known but had never openly acknowledged—
What the system protects is not always the right thing to do, but sometimes the right procedure.
These two things are not the same.
As the case progressed to the middle, a critical flaw emerged in the headquarters' handling plan. If the procedure were followed, the key figures in the smuggling network would be transferred before the evidence was secured, and the most important findings of the entire case would be lost.
Aoshima Shunsaku discovered this loophole, rushed up to Muroi Shinji, slammed the evidence on the table, and said, "The case didn't happen in the meeting room."
Shinji Muroi stared at the evidence in silence for a long time.
Then he did something unprecedented in his career—he bypassed the normal approval process and directly authorized the Wangan District Office to continue following up on the case site beyond the stipulated time limit.
This decision cost him dearly at headquarters, but the case was saved.
The key figure in the smuggling network was cornered at the pier late that night by officers from the Wangan District Police.
The outcome was still not a complete victory. The upstream of the smuggling network was not completely investigated, the pressure on Shinji Muroi did not disappear, and Shunsaku Aoshima still filled out every single form after the case was closed.
But in this episode, for the first time, a crack appeared between Shunsaku Aoshima and Shinji Muroi, a barrier that had always stood between them.
It didn't disappear, it just loosened up.
This detail left viewers who watched the episode stunned for a long time.
The special episode aired on the first Saturday of October.
Many people specifically made time to watch it—after the first season of "Bayside Shakedown" ended, its reputation continued to grow over the next three months, and more and more people who hadn't watched the main series before started catching up. When the news of the special episode was released, the number of people who pre-ordered to watch it was more than any episode of the main series.
Oshima Bento Shop made an exception and extended its opening hours that day. Kenichi specially hung a handwritten sign at the entrance: "Today's special episode, welcome to watch."
The old man at the table by the window arrived almost an hour earlier than usual and ordered twice the usual amount of food, seemingly planning to stay there for a long time.
Ijuin Toru and his roommate were holed up in the dorm room. His roommate watched the whole thing from beginning to end without ever going to the bathroom once.
When the sentence "The case didn't happen in the meeting room" was uttered, someone in the bento shop tapped their chopsticks against the edge of their bowl, making a soft sound, and said, "That's how it should be said."
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No one knew who said it, but everyone nodded.
The viewership ratings for the special episode were released the following morning.
24.3%.
The reactions from all sides to this figure are quite intriguing.
For Kitahara Shin, 24.3% isn't exactly a comeback. Any final episode of his previous dramas could have surpassed that number. But the significance this time isn't in the number itself, but in the viewership data that shows this episode attracted more than three times the number of new viewers compared to any other episode.
In other words, a large number of people who had never watched "Bayside Shakedown" before came to watch because of this episode.
When the director of Fuji TV's production department received the data, he remained silent for a moment before instructing his assistant to file it separately.
Those media outlets that had written numerous pessimistic articles after the premiere remained collectively silent on this day, with not a single one issuing a comment immediately.
The conglomerate held a brief internal meeting, but no decisions were reached. When the meeting adjourned, someone said something, but no one responded.
Only the following day, the culture sections of major newspapers unanimously featured the same word on their front pages: "Counterattack".
The audience's reaction this time was completely different from that of the premiere.
The initial broadcast was met with mixed reactions, with some supporting it, others predicting its failure, and a large number of casual observers. However, after the special episode aired, the controversy almost disappeared, replaced by a wealth of very specific observations and descriptions.
Some say that Shinji Muroi held his breath when he made that decision.
Some people say that after watching the special episode, they sent a message to an old colleague they hadn't contacted in years, asking him how he was doing.
One person wrote only one sentence: "I want to watch it again."
The day after watching the special episode, Toru Ijuin opened a new notebook and wrote a few lines on the first page.
He didn't tell anyone what those lines of text meant. But his roommate later said that from that day on, their dorm's TV would be turned on almost every day at noon and tuned to Fuji TV, even if it wasn't showing anything on the screen.
Five days after the special episode aired, Kitahara Shin went to a dinner party.
This dinner was actually arranged two months ago.
When Representative Kobayakawa's secretary contacted him, Kitahara Nobu was dealing with store expansion matters and casually agreed, asking Ota to add it to his schedule. However, when Ota later conducted a background check and presented the results to Kitahara Nobu, his tone became somewhat ambiguous.
"President, regarding the dinner party this time, Representative Kobayakawa brought a few people—" Ota paused, "two of their names, I checked, and they have some connection to the financial chain that the conglomerate spearheaded last time to block the supply chain."
Kitahara Shin glanced at him: "Direct connection, or indirect connection?"
"Indirectly, and recently, that connection has been slowly loosening."
Kitahara Shin put down the background information and said, "I understand."
Da Tian hesitated for a moment: "Then you're still going?"
"Of course I'll go."
Da Tian didn't ask any more questions, but there was something left unsaid in his expression.
Kitahara Shin mentally went through the logic of the matter.
Representative Kobayakawa is a smart man, and the kind of smart man who has an extremely clear understanding of power structures. He brought these people to the same table, including Kitahara Shin, not randomly—he was doing something that the conglomerates had spent a lot of resources on but had never been able to accomplish.
The conglomerates wanted to firmly bind these opportunists to their side, using both incentives and threats, but to no avail.
Kobayakawa uses a different set of logic.
The dinner was held at a low-key kaiseki restaurant in Akasaka. There were only about ten people in the private room, and the atmosphere was relaxed, without any of the deliberate formality of a formal occasion.
When Representative Kobayakawa saw Kitahara Shin enter, he stood up, smiled, and shook hands: "Kitahara-kun, I watched the special episode, it was very good."
"You flatter me, Councilor." Kitahara Shin sat down in the seat next to him, subtly glancing at everyone present, each face matching the background information Ota had given him earlier.
After a few rounds of drinks, the conversation drifted from "Bayside Shakedown" to the cultural industry, then to manufacturing, and finally to the plans for a new development zone near Tokyo Bay. Kitahara Shin didn't say much, but every time he did, it hit the nail on the head.
Sitting opposite him was a man in his fifties, the actual controller of a large building materials group, surnamed Fujiwara. He had been subtly observing Kitahara Shin. When the conversation shifted to the related industry chain, he finally spoke, asking directly, "Kitahara-kun, I heard you have several physical stores in Tokyo?"
"It's just getting started," Kitahara Shin said. "The first store opened in July, and we're gradually expanding to several cities."
What is the logic behind the site selection?
"The overlap between foot traffic and the target audience," said Kitahara Shin. "You have to make sure the right people see what you're selling, otherwise it's useless no matter how good the location is."
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Fujiwara nodded, and the faint look in his eyes faded somewhat.
As the dinner party drew to a close, Representative Kobayakawa, holding his wine glass, said casually, "Kiba-kun, you've accomplished a great deal in the industry this year, as everyone has seen." He paused, then continued, "I wonder if you've considered allocating some resources to public works projects?"
These words were spoken softly, but everyone present understood their weight.
Kitahara Shin put down his chopsticks, thought for a moment, and said, "I've been considering this direction. What I'm doing should ultimately benefit more people, not just myself." He paused, "If a suitable project comes along, I'm willing to allocate a portion for public facilities or charitable causes. We can discuss the specifics further."
Representative Kobayakawa smiled and raised his glass: "Then let's have a drink."
Kitahara Shin raised his glass and clinked it against his.
The meal lasted nearly three hours. As it was ending, Fujiwara walked beside Kitahara Shin and said in a low voice, "Kitahara-kun, let's talk alone sometime."
Kitahara Shin glanced at him and nodded: "Anytime."
As soon as I stepped outside, Da Tian had already driven his car over and was waiting for me.
Kitahara Shin got in, and Ota looked at him in the rearview mirror, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back.
"Speak," Kitahara Shin said.
"Fujiwara," Ōta hesitated for a moment, "you know about his past relationship with the conglomerate, right?"
"Know."
"Then you should—"
"The fact that he's sitting here today," Kitahara Shin leaned back in his chair, looking out at the night, "in itself shows that he's thought things through."
Da Tian was silent for a moment, then started the car.
As the car drove into the night streets, Kitahara Shin looked out at the flowing lights and recalled the phrase, "The case didn't happen in the conference room."
Many things don't happen at the negotiating table.