Diksha Sundriyal
The second season of Hulu’s ‘Nine Perfect Strangers’ comes to an end with a finale that digs into the trauma of its characters while also presenting some semblance of resolution to them. The plot picks up after the events of the previous episode, where Masha drugs David Sharpe with the excuse of introducing him to their daughter by sharing her memory. In truth, she sits him down for a trial in front of all the other guests as she explains why he and all of them were chosen, and how this confrontation is supposed to help heal all of them. SPOILERS AHEAD.
David’s Shocking Connections with the Guest Come to Light
Much like the first season, it turns out that Masha’s guests this time are also carefully curated. They aren’t random people with incidental connections, if any. Rather, all of them are connected to David Sharpe, or rather have been influenced by his actions. Beginning with Brian, it is no revelation that David’s news channel was a major critic of his meltdown. While David claims that he has no idea or control over what news is picked up by the channel, a flashback reveals that he himself asked for Brian’s character assassination because he thought it would be good for the ratings.
Then comes Sister Agnes, who is told that the shady practices that led her to leave her church and ignited a crisis of faith in her were not hidden from David Sharpe. He just kept that information from the rest of the world until it was convenient for him to break it. It also turns out that David’s company created the scholarship that was supposed to help Wolfie and others like her. But when the company discovered that their grant wasn’t going to be tax-free, they pulled it out completely, leaving Wolfie and other young musicians with no place to go.
Turning the spotlight towards Matteo, it is revealed that it was David’s company that invested in a software used to target people who were blown up mercilessly. To make matters worse, Imogen realises that this software was created by her father, who killed himself after witnessing the devastation caused by his creation, which was supposed to be used for good things. To her credit, Masha does not point out Imogen’s connection, but she does not back away from the topic, even after Victoria asks her not to dredge up old wounds for her daughter.
David Makes a Shocking Statement While Martin Spirals
As fingers are pointed at David and tensions flare, Masha decides to leave the billionaire’s fate in the hands of the rest of the guests. Being put on a trial, he asks for the chance to say his piece, where he tries to defend himself by explaining that he wasn’t directly involved in anything that happened. He tries to paint himself as an innocent man, but Peter calls him out on this, revealing that his father used to practice crying and showing emotions for the media at their dinner table. A punch from Imogen sobers him up a bit as well.
Drugged and cornered, David decides to show initiative and prove that he is not a bad person. He declares that his company will pull out of weapons once and for all, and use those billions to invest in good things, like schools and hospitals, things that will help and save people. When Imogen points out that he could very well change his mind the next morning, David decides to go through with the declaration immediately. While there are no phone signals inside the building, he has a satellite phone through which he can send the message, for which he walks out into the cold.
Masha runs after him to bring him back in, and in the meantime, Martin reappears. While David’s trial is in process, he ingests a good amount of drugs, which makes him hallucinate, so that he sees his dead mother again. At first, she consoles him, but then her words of love change into words of rebuke as she pushes her son to take back control of the place from the people who want to wrest it away from their family. This person in question is David, who is ready to buy Zauberwald, so Martin gets his gun and goes after David.
Masha Almost Dies as Things Get Heated
While David runs around the dark night, with no idea where he is going, Masha runs after him, completely unaware of an armed Martin chasing after them. They converge at the bridge where the guests were welcomed at the beginning of the retreat. While Masha tries to get David back in the house, Martin shows up, pointing a gun. She tries to calm him down, but he hallucinates his mother, and egged by her words, shoots, aiming for David but hitting Masha, who falls down the bridge. As her daughter welcomes her, ready to take her to the other side, she decides not to follow her just yet. She says her goodbyes to Tatiana, saying that she has to let her go because there is a lot that needs to be done yet.
Masha wakes up in her room the next morning. Fortunately, the bullet didn’t do much damage, and she will be back on her feet soon. Martin apologises to her and she quickly forgives him, while also revealing that she never planned to take over Zauberwald. It also belonged to Martin, and that’s also what his mother wanted. Meanwhile, the guests prepare to leave. As Brian packs up his things, he leaves the puppet behind, as he has made enough progress to know that he doesn’t need the puppet anymore. This is a significant change because at the beginning of the season, he was out of his mind when his puppet was misplaced. As he leaves, he bonds with Agnes, who has become his best friend now.
Then there is Wolfie, who changes her flights and decides to leave a day earlier. She doesn’t get the flight changed for Tina, which suggests that she wants to explore a different path now. After she leaves, Tina sits down at the piano and finally plays, coming out of her creative block and accomplishing what she was supposed to at the beginning of her healing journey. While this couple breaks up, another promises to make things work. Peter and Imogen bid farewell to one another, but they promise to meet soon, be it in London or New York. Victoria points out that her daughter will meet him at any place at any time if he sends his private jet to pick her up. Before she leaves, Peter kisses her, signifying that they are both intent on trying to make things work.
What is the Notification? Does David Leave the Weapons Business?
As the guests leave Zauberwald and their phones finally get a signal again, all of their phones start to ping with notifications. There is one that all of them get, and it turns out to be David’s declaration of pulling his company out of the weapons business. This is a shocking turn of events, especially for David, who wasn’t earnest when he said all those things. In fact, the next morning, when he comes to see Masha, she congratulates him on his deeply moral decision, but he reveals that he just said what he needed in the moment. He isn’t actually going to go through with it.
At the same time, he mentions that the shooting incident has made him reconsider his investment in Zauberwald, for obvious reasons. It seems that Masha anticipated this response, which is why she already had a remedy in mind. She knew that David would not let go of his biggest profit-maker so easily. This is why she put him on a public trial so that he would be forced to make a declaration, even if a fake one. All she needed was to get his words on a video, and that’s what she leaks to the press. With the video going public, David is cornered, and he will be forced to go through with his words or risk public humiliation.
Of course, David doesn’t take kindly to this act. He threatens to ruin Masha while also claiming that one way or another, he will find a way around this and keep his billion-dollar weapons business. At the same time, he will also dedicate his resources to making her life a living hell. Masha, however, is not fazed by his threats. In fact, she tells him that this will be great for him and his conscience, even if he doesn’t see it at the moment.
What’s in the Agreement? Why Does Masha Sign It?
Six months pass by, and it turns out that David did not find a way around the video after all. However, he intends to keep the promise of the threats he made to Masha. They meet on Bavarian soil again, in the neutral territory chosen by Masha. David reveals that leaving the weapons business has caused a dent of one billion on his net worth, though he still has six billion to go around. Because his company wants to build a good name for itself now, they have decided to invest in Masha’s research on drugs and treatment for people’s trauma. He brings an employee agreement for Masha, but there is a catch.
The agreement would give Masha the resources she needs to continue her research, but at the same time, she must sign a non-disclosure agreement, since she cannot be trusted following her previous antics. Masha notices that her compensation is only $100,000, which offends her, but David points out that she has no choice. It turns out that he reached out to Martin, paid him a little money to keep the lights on in Zauberwald, and in return, got the videos that show her unregulated use of drugs and how her actions have jeopardized the lives of the guests.
These videos aren’t just from Zauberwald, but also from Tranquillum House, and David intends to use them to put Masha in such a legal cycle that she would never be able to come out of it. Seeing that she has no other choice, Masha signs the document and seals the deal with a kiss, as she points out that she and David are intrinsically conneted to each other. As they share a daughter, they are bascially family, and one cannot get rid of their family, which reads more like a threat than something to find comfort in.
Read More: Where Was Nine Perfect Strangers Season 2 Filmed?
