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Apple TV’s dark comedy series Sunny has returned with its third episode. Titled Mmmm, Hinoki, this episode was released on the platform on July 17, 2024. The first two episodes introduced the central mystery at the heart of the story—the disappearance of Masa. The latest episode introduces several characters and plot elements that only complicate the mystery further.
Sunny episode 3 starts by showing a blonde woman (Yukiko Ehara) engaged in a conversation with another woman. In the course of the interaction, we learn that the blonde is called Hime. Hime’s appearance in several other key scenes of the episode implies that she is connected with the mysteries surrounding Masa and The Dark Manual.
The episode also shows the titular robot Sunny, Suzie, and Mixxy teaming up to solve the puzzle of Masa’s work in robotics. The three set out to unravel the enigma, but unbeknownst to Suzie (Rashida Jones), she continues to be spied on.
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Sunny episode 3: The mysterious blonde called Hime
Hime is seen right at the beginning of the episode, when she is being delivered an artificially made finger by another woman. Hime says that she would have to look perfect for the funeral. As the episode progresses, we understand that it is Masa’s funeral that she is talking about.
Hime is seen next when Sunny, Suzie, and Mixxy have found their way to Wanted, the shady club that runs a robot fighting tournament in its basement. It is made clear that Sunny, Suzie's homebot, is brought on to the fighting arena for a match because of Hime’s wish.
When Hime and Suzie meet each other, the former is evidently angry with the latter, who is probing deeper and deeper into the mysterious disappearance of her husband and son. In a scuffle to get Sunny out of the robot fighting arena, Suzie pushes Hime back, resulting in her fake finger detaching and falling to the ground.
The next appearance of Hime is her last in this episode, and it is by far the most chilling. The last scenes of the episode show her attending Masa’s funeral and locking eyes with Suzie. Noriko, Masa’s mother, even nods at Hime. This suggests Hime was close to Masa’s family.
The characterization of Hime in this episode hints at the possibility that she is the villain of the story. It certainly is the case that she was aware of Masa’s work in robotics and is involved with The Dark Manual. Is it she who has caused the disappearance of Masa? While it is too early to guess, it remains a viable possibility. Further, now that Hime and Suzie have crossed paths, they may clash in the future.
The plot of Masa gets thicker
Episodes 1 and 2 of Sunny already show that Masa was lying to Suzie all the while about his profession. While he was a robotics engineer, he told Suzie that he was in the refrigerator industry.
Also, though Masa and their only son have been declared missing after the alleged crash of Flight 405, their bodies have not yet been found. Episode 3 does not shed more light on this enigma. However, other darker shades of Masa’s character come to the light, appalling and surprising Suzie in equal measure.
When Suzie goes to the basement of the club Wanted and witnesses the violent robot fighting tournament, some of the demeanors of the machines remind her of Masa. The editing here is suggestive: the movements of the robots are often cut, followed by flashbacks showing Masa making the same movements while performing a mock fight with their son.
This begs the question: Is Masa the creator of The Dark Manual? The answer might as well be in the positive, since one of the prominent themes of Sunny is that robots reflect their creators. This is a sad realization for Suzie to come to terms with, given the otherwise lovable and kind nature of Masa.
What is The Dark Manual?
In the introductory episodes of Sunny, Mixxy broached the fact to Suzie that certain secret ‘codes’ were available that could modify robots to perform certain specialized tasks. Episode 3 clarifies that such ‘codes’ are The Dark Manual.
The Dark Manual can enable a robot to perform s**ual acts to gratify its owner, or it could also weaponize a robot by turning it into a killing machine. There are several hints in this episode to make one conclude that it was Masa who created The Dark Manual.
For instance, we are shown a flashback where Noriko takes food to a reclusive Masa, who has shut himself up in his room, engrossed in some crucial work. This socially alienated state of his was referenced by Masa himself in the earlier episodes, when he told Suzie how he cut himself off from society one time and did not come out of his room until his work was done.
It is plausible that the ‘work’ in question is the design of The Dark Manual. Apart from this, the robot-fighting episode discussed above also solidifies this claim.
What lies next for Suzie?
Suzie’s grief has been a strong motif in Sunny. By episode 3, while she is not over her depression yet, she is ready to go on an independent investigation, accompanied only by Sunny and Mixxy.
The previous episodes already showed that Suzie was being spied on by a mysterious man who was reporting her whereabouts to some other authority. The same continues in this episode as well. There is one question the viewer cannot help but ask: “Is Suzie being watched through the camera of Sunny?” There is no clear answer to that yet.
The next episode of the series, called Sticky, will be released on July 24, 2024.
With the introduction of several new characters and plot elements, this Apple TV series has only become more appealing for fans of mysteries and thrillers. Sunny is now streaming on Apple TV+.
