Plastic Beauty Ending Explained: The Netflix Japanese medical drama showcases an emotional rivalry between two doctors with completely opposite thought processes whose journeys come full circle by the end. Fueled by family issues that test them every day, the women understand the ethics behind being a doctor and its various facets while understanding themselves and each other as well.
Across eight episodes, we see the two’s rivalry go from professional to personal and back again, taking viewers on a rollercoaster ride of emotions. But what does the ending mean for Rin and Fumi?
The cast includes Mayu Matsuoka, Riisa Naka, Shotaro Mamiya, Minami Tanaka, Riku Hagiwara, Mijika Nagai, Daichi Watanabe, Reiji Nakagawake, Kavka Shishido, Yu Shirota, Naozumi Masuko, Sose Takeda, Rika Izumi, Kentaro Tamura, Eisuke Sasai, Hana Amano, Hina Kagei, Naoko Ken, Kayo Noro, Rin Furukawa, Yumi Adachi, Shunsuke Kazama, Koki, Hiromi Nagasaku, and Atsuro Watabe. The 8-episode series (ダウンタイム) is directed by Yuki Saito.
Plastic Beauty Ending Explained
What Happens in the Plastic Beauty Finale?
In the last episode of the series, a devastating accident leaves Fumi horrifyingly disfigured, resulting in both Arata and Rin visiting her despite their differences. The finale brings the story’s central conflict to a head, with both Rin and Fumi’s lives intertwining. While they had initially thought of never seeing each other, Fumi implores Rin to reconstruct her face and help her heal. She is unsure at first, but eventually realises that she cannot run from her responsibilities, just like how she decides to accept her relationship with Sara.
After getting nothing but rejection from Arata, Rin realises what is truly important to her and embraces her relationship with Fumi, accepting her as a part of her life, even though she knows that Fumi is Arata’s biological daughter.
Do Fumi and Rin Work Together?
Fumi and Rin work together from early on in the series as we see them overcoming their preconceived notions and embracing each other’s talents. This leaves them both able to achieve incredible feats, but the camaraderie soon breaks down when Fumi finally puts two and two together and realises that Arata is her father. It immediately becomes clear to her that her relationship with Rin will be at stake if the truth comes out, but she can’t keep it in for too long either. Deciding to accept the truth and face it head-on, she resigns while telling Rin the truth, and the latter, obviously, breaks down and decides to cut ties with her.
What Does Her Tenure With Rin Teach Fumi?
Fumi’s biggest challenge was understanding the emotional toll that patients go through when they seek out cosmetic procedures. Throughout the runtime, her preconceived notions are constantly challenged, which ultimately culminates in acceptance and understanding when her brother shares his struggles with her. While she always thought that the cosmetic industry was vastly different from the medicine she believes in, she is eventually forced to see that the distinctions are not that black and white.
A person’s appearance can affect their confidence, relationships and emotional well-being, which can sometimes be even more important than staying alive for a long time. As Rin mentioned in an episode – it’s not always about the quantity; sometimes it’s about the quality. While her concerns surrounding patient safety are valid, we see both Fumi and Rin closing in on their differences and coming together somewhere in the middle to provide good quality of life to clients. The finale, thus, showcases Fumi finally accepting the importance of cosmetic procedures as she asks Rin to reconstruct her face and make it what it was before the surgery.
What Happens to Rin Tohyama?
After learning the truth about Arata’s relationship with Fumi, Rin goes down the deep end for a bit and almost loses herself in the midst of a lengthy legal battle with Arata, who wants to take over her business and the nagging feeling of betrayal from Fumi. However, the ending showcases that she is in a much better place, after Fumi asks Arata to leave the clinic to her in lieu of her joining his new clinic. The Plastic Beauty mid-credit scene showcases Rin in a much better place, as she is on friendly terms with Fumi and has closed her business, opting instead to travel.
Why Is the Episode Called “Deconstruction”?
Episode 8’s title works on several levels, as, on the surface, the episode showcases Rin deconstructing Fumi’s disfigurement and reconstructing her face to its origin. But on a deeper level, it showcases how every character has gone through deconstruction throughout the runtime. Fumi has finally understood the importance of cosmetic procedures beyond vanity and how important they can be for people’s mental health.
Rin has understood that she cannot live her life catering to her father and must take control of her own life and leave her daddy issues behind. Even Arata goes through deconstruction and realises the importance of his family after Fumi’s accident, even letting go of his petty issues with Rin to hopefully get in the good graces of his daughter.
The title, thus, signifies taking apart the beliefs and structures that created the different crises in the characters’ lives and taking it to a place where they are happy and peaceful.
What Does the Ending Really Mean?
The central message of Plastic Beauty drives home the notion that changing yourself to accept yourself doesn’t have to be different; for some people, these two things come hand in hand. The psychological impact of not being comfortable in one’s own skin can be tremendous, and the series showcases the issue with a lot of empathy and depth. While it recognises genuine insecurities and social pressures, it also recognises the darker side of such procedures. In the end, there’s a ton of nuance that the subject requires, and one size doesn’t fit everyone.
However, the problem begins when doctors don’t keep their patients’ well-being in mind and go through with procedures that might physically harm the patient, pushing them towards death. Rin and Fumi coming together, thus, signifies how both of these ideologies must exist together for something like this to truly work and result in the best possible outcome for the patients.
Plastic Beauty is streaming on Netflix. What are your thoughts on the series? Let us know in the comments below!
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