'Sunny' Episode 9 Preview: Mystery thriller takes a bizarre turn ahead of finale
Contains spoilers and speculations for 'Sunny'
KYOTO, JAPAN: Apple TV+'s 'Sunny' stretched the mystery surrounding Masa Sakamoto (Hidetoshi Nishijima) over seven episodes before finally revealing it through an intriguing flashback in Episode 8. It delves deeper into Masa's family dynamics, revealing he had a strained relationship with his father, only to later discover that he wasn't even his biological son. His real father, Yuki Tanaka aka Hiromasa (Jun Kunimura) shifted him to a cabin where he spent time fixing a trash bot.
When Masa completely detached himself from his family, he found solace in improving the robot that could understand human emotions and carry out the tasks accordingly. Before the episode ends, Yuki also reveals that Masa met him a few nights before the plane crash. He seemed worried as he handed over Sunny to him. The revelation makes Suzie Sakamoto (Rashida Jones) realize that her husband wasn't a bad person but was also a target of the Yakuza.
What to expect from 'Sunny' Episode 9?
In 'Sunny' Episode 8, Mixxy (annie the clumsy) finds another GPS coordinate and Suzie believes it could lead them to Masa and Zen. As she rushes to the location, a bizarre event in the final moments of the episode left fans confused. Suzie seems to have found Zen, and much to her surprise, Sunny comes to her rescue when a Yakuza member holds her at gunpoint.
However, we see the Earth collapsing and Sunny falling into it. But what could it possibly mean? Here are the three things we expect from 'Sunny' Episode 9:
1) Is Sunny not the perfect robot?
Sunny seemed to be the most perfect and advanced robot until the Yakuza kidnapped it and messed it up. Ever since it returned, it had been acting weirdly, paying no heed to Suzie or her needs. That's why Suzie believed that Sunny was going to attack her in the final scene of 'Sunny' Episode 8. But what changed for the robot suddenly?
The official synopsis for 'Sunny' Episode 9 reads, "Sunny looks inside herself." Could Sunny's fall into the depths of the Earth mean that it's time for Sunny to introspect its role in Suzie's life? Are the robots even capable of doing that? Anything could be possible. Masa did an amazing job when it came to teaching the robot patterns of human behavior. The robots eventually started to note the pattern and human emotions and perform actions accordingly.
Since Sunny is the trashbot's much advanced version, it is probably capable of learning more about humans and most importantly, about itself and the impact it could create in the life of their owners. Sunny has also killed a man. It serves as an alarm for humans to look into the dangers of Artificial Intelligence.
2) Has Suzie Sakamoto found Masa and Zen?
It appeared that Suzie had found her son, Zen (Fares Belkheir) in 'Sunny' Episode 8 until the bizarre Earth collapse happened. We are hooked for the next episode to find out if Suzie has actually found her family or if was it some kind of delusion.
By the events so far, we are convinced that Masa and Zen are alive. Masa feared for his life from the Yakuza and probably faked his death. It also appears that he was the one who placed the trackers on Suzie, Hiromasa, and Noriko to keep a check on his family while he went into hiding.
3) What is Noriko Sakamoto upto?
If you recall, Noriko Sakamoto (Judy Ongg) is still in prison. She deliberately got herself caught under charges of shoplifting in one of the earlier episodes. When Suzie went to bail her out, Noriko seemed rather content being locked up and expressed no desire to be free.
It remains a suspense why she has chosen to live in prison. Is it her way to redemption? Her son went into isolation and made himself a prisoner of loneliness for years after his father's death. Learning about Noriko's affair with Hiromasa only added to his miseries. After Masa's alleged death, Noriko probably wanted to punish herself for all the pain her actions caused. Or is there another mystery in Noriko's life?
When and how to watch 'Sunny' Episode 9?
'Sunny' Episode 9 is titled 'Who's in the Box?’. It has a runtime of 36 minutes and will release on Apple TV+ next Wednesday, August 28.
'Sunny' features Rashida Jones, Hidetoshi Nishijima, and annie the clumsy in pivotal roles. Eight episodes of 'Sunny' are currently available to stream on Apple TV+.