Japanese Maples: This Tree is Ugly. What Should I Do?, 1 by GardenSox

GardenSox wrote:
This tree is an Acer japonicum 'O isami' or Full Moon Maple. Last year it was still a very small tree. It was only about as tall as the lower set of branches seen in this picture. But one branch showed a surprising (perhaps even alarming) amount of vigor last spring so I chose that as a leader and I staked accordingly. This leader branch grew maybe 2 to 2 1/2 feet last year alone!

So what I have now looks like a sideways dumbell with weights on either side. I'm not sure what I should do because the leader branch hasn't grown any lateral branches except at the very top. It keeps looking like it will because there are buds along the way up the leader branch but as you can see it has done nothing yet.

My question is this: should I just leave it alone and let it take its natural course or should I plan to prune off the lower branches at some point to give it a more normal appearance? Any other options that I haven't mentioned? Thanks!