Japanese contestants have figured prominently in recent international beauty pagents, in particular the Miss Universe contest, which endeavors to find the most gorgeous woman in the world. The runnerup in 2006 was Kurara Chibana, and last year the winner was Riyo Mori.
Much of the credit for Japan's ascendancy has gone to Ines Ligron, who is profiled in the NHK Special, "Watashi wa Koushite Sekai-ichi no Bijo wo Tsukuru (This is How I Make the World's Most Beautiful Woman)" (NHK-G, Monday, 10 p.m.). Ligron, who is French, "cultivated" both Chibana and Mori, and advises contestants in the competition that selects the Japan representative at the Miss Universe pageant. Ligron is known to be a strict and uncompromising taskmistress, with a talent for locating the particular aesthetic appeal of a country's concept of feminine beauty.
A good indication of how looks counts for more than talent in the world of J-pop is the fact that most cute boy groups can't sing in harmony. Thus, the contestants on the annual choral group contest, "Seishun Akapera Koshien Zenkoku Hamonepu (Hamonepu National Young People's A Capella Tournament)" (Fuji, Tuesday, 7 p.m.) have already accomplished more than SMAP. Hosted by the comedy trio Neptune, this special brings together some of the best amateur harmony a capella groups (harmony + Neptune = Hamonepu) from high schools and universities throughout Japan for an annual tournament.