The Naked Director Season 2 Plot Synopsis
Season 2 starts in 1990. Muranishi is at the top of his game, conducting TV interviews and doing so with an unrivaled swagger that makes all the women around him swoon. However, when he learns about satellite TV and the lucrative prospects this could bring with it, Muranishi is blinded by a much larger vision.
Despite Kawada and Mr Honda’s concerns, Muranishi dives head-first into this venture. As one may expect from a show depicting his downfall, this doesn’t go well.
Does Toshi Kill Muranishi?
The end of episode 7 saw Toshi pick up Muranishi and drive him to a secluded stretch of road. There, he holds a gun up to Muranishi and prepares to fire. Muranishi pleads for his life but Toshi fires wildly, missing the porn Director, which he interprets as fate. Toshi eventually drives off, unable to kill the man.
Instead, he heads back to Furuya and shoots him in cold blood. With the boss bleeding out, Sayaka eventually slips away to safety. On the way out the door, Toshi is murdered but he casts a knowing glance to Sayaka in the process. He smiles, having accepted his fate.
Part of this stems from his inability to kill Muranishi and become a cold-blooded killer. We’ve seen across this season that he’s a man of honour, typified by the fact he refused to sleep with Sayaka and acted like a gentleman the whole time. He really did care about her and in the end, died to save her.
What happens to the yakuza?
After Toshi kills Furuya in cold blood, the Yakuza are a shell of what they once were. Takei tries to take advantage of this to turn Ogiwara to his side. Instead, the police become wise to what Takei is doing.
For the past season he’s been playing both sides and with Furuya out the picture, they strike. He’s killed by the police (presumably anyway, it happens off-screen) for bribery and being a crooked cop. With his death and Ogiwara’s capture, the debt against Muranishi and Kawada are lifted.
What happens to the Diamond Visual family?
During our flash-forward sequence to 1994, we catch up with our various characters and find out what they’ve been up to. Junko gets back to her roots and continues to work as a Director. Mitamura and Kawada are still making their adult videos, while Kuriko is off exploring the world and snapping photos. Naoko is engaged after rejecting Mitamura and seemingly living a happy life now too.
Muranishi is living with Nogi and they’ve got kids. The shot of them together inside the apartment is telling, with a baby crib and a joyous look in their eyes. Through it all, the pair have settled down together.
Does Kawada make peace with his choice by the end?
One of the more interesting characters this season is Kawada. He starts off on the fringes of Muranishi’s plans for expansion and eventually goes off on his own. Everyone turns their back on the brains of this organization and it comes back to bite them in the end.
Kawada has always had a soft spot for Kuriko. He finds solace in a sex doll that sports the same hair as Kuriko. This seems to be his alternate replacement and also a physical representation of the baggage he’s been carrying with him.
The whole subplot with his doll and its subsequent burning is symbolic of what Kawada has been carrying with him all this time.
The real tipping point for this comes from the conversation with Muranishi near the end. This is instrumental in serving as the final step to letting go of his hate and moving on with his life.
Does Muranishi get his mojo back?
Out by the shore, Kawada catches up with Muranishi while he’s sleeping on a bench. He’s at rock bottom but Kawada still isn’t ready to forgive him for essentially ruining both their lives. Kawada is still reeling over Toshi’s death and his sacrifice to save Sayaka.
Kawada encourages Muranishi to get back to his roots of being a salesman. In order to pick him back up, Kawada encourages Muranishi to sell him a rock.
Muranishi’s showmanship and passion both come back, and like a lightbulb it ignites what he had lost with this satellite deal. Kawada helps cleanse his soul and help Muranishi find a way back to what made him so beloved.
How does The Naked Director Season 2 end?
The season ends in a suitably flamboyant way. Muranishi decides to film an adult video out in the middle of a busy street. Sporting his familiar white underwear, he’s eventually bundled to the ground by police.
Looking up at the camera he smirks and declares “I sunk lower, but I’m alive!” which is in reference to his downfall and clawing his way back up again.
To read everything that happened in this final episode, do be sure to check out our full finale recap & review by clicking HERE.
Read More: The Naked Director Season 2 Review
Thanks for reading our Ending Explained article! What did you think of the ending? Would you like to see this return for season 3? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!