Abhiroop Das
Co-directed by Norichika Ôba and Tomoyuki Takimoto, Netflix’s ‘Straight to Hell,’ also known as ‘Jigoku Ni Ochiru Wa Yo,’ dramatizes the life and experiences of Kazuko Hosoki, who was one of Japan’s most famous fortune tellers and writers. With the help of fictional scenarios and characters, such as the novelist Minori, who wants to write a biography on Kazuko, the drama series comments on a life full of context and nuance, where every action is met with several perspectives that push Minori to doubt her understanding of Kazuko, both as a television personality and as a human with her own vulnerabilities.
By the end of the season, Minori’s book, a critical endeavor in itself, is implied to have been shelved, whereas another article leaking the seeming truth about Kazuko forever changes how she handles fame. As of writing, neither Netflix nor the film’s creators have commented on a possible second season, making the chances of a sequel very slim.
Straight to Hell Completes its Story With a Single Season and Doesn’t Need a Sequel
A sequel to ‘Straight to Hell’ is unlikely, mainly because of how every major plot beat wraps up by the season finale. There is a sense of finality in Minori’s narration, as she takes us through Kazuko’s future immediately after the ending scene. Though the article eventually gets released and does substantial damage to Kazuko’s public image, it isn’t enough to lead to a complete boycott. Instead, she cuts ties with traditional forms of mass media like television and instead takes to the internet. Ironically enough, her app ends up becoming an even bigger success than any of her books or shows, which leaves Minori to remark that Kazuko got everything she wanted and essentially won the game.
Though the ending may seem anticlimactic at first, it is likely intentional on the creators’ part, which in turn makes a second season even less probable. Throughout the show, fortune telling features as a powerful motif, both when depicting the past and the present. In line with that, it is thematically fitting for the show to conclude on a relatively open-ended note, while simultaneously telling us how Kazuko’s journey will eventually end. The fact that ‘Straight to Hell’ is loosely based on a true story is also important here, as the first season covers almost all the major events from Kazuko’s life, except for her death on November 8, 2021. However, there are at least a few years’ worth of events that the show can hypothetically dramatize for the screen, which detracts from the narrative impact of Kazuko’s journey. Thus, the creators are unlikely to return to the story, staying true to its semi-biographical identity.
A Hypothetical Straight to Hell 2 Can Dramatize Kazuko’s Rise to Fame in Her Final Years
While ‘Straight to Hell’ may not be welcoming a sophomore season, there are still some plot threads that it introduces but doesn’t conclude, which suggests that there might be more ways the story continues. Specifically, the show fictionalizes some of the most important encounters in Kazuko’s life, including a dramatized, conflict-riddled dynamic with singer Chiyoko Shimakura, as well as a brief romantic stint with a man named Sudo, who turns out to be a con artist. In both cases, we only get a brief glimpse into the other characters’ lives, and bid them goodbye as soon as Kazuko’s life moves on. A second season, as such, can open the doors to more experimentation with these fan favorite side characters, much like the show depicts Masaya Hotta’s conclusion.
Another idea that the finale teases, but doesn’t explore in depth, is that of Kazuko’s Six Star Astrology app. Though the number of skeptics is shown to increase by the turn of the century, the number of believers doesn’t show a significant dip either. For Kazuko’s app to work means that more people are falling for her warped perspective of reality, and it might be time for Minori to step in and do what’s required. We also see no confirmation about her strange visions of her younger self, as well as the disappearance of the dog. All of these points point to Kazuko potentially losing her grip over reality and illusion, which can give a hypothetical sequel a unique twist. However, given what we know, the chances of any such continuation are slim to none.
Read More: Straight to Hell Ending Explained: Will Kazuko Publish Minori’s Book?
