Aahana Swrup
In ‘Joko Anwar’s Nightmares and Daydreams,’ Netflix’s Indonesian series— revolving around various horror narratives— the season finale focuses on the mysterious disappearance of the protagonist’s sister. Valdya Prameswari, one of the best diamond appraisers in the country, lost her older sister, Dara, after the latter applied for a cryptic job application five years ago. Although the younger sister attempts to move on with her life, her guilt over dating Dara’s ex-boyfriend takes over her conscience. As such, when a clue pops up that steers Valdya toward the mystery job that Dara applied to, she finds herself singlehandedly undertaking a daunting mystery that ends up drastically endangering her life. SPOILERS AHEAD!
The Disappearance of Valdya’s Older Sister
Dara’s initial disappearance was incredibly devastating for her sister, Valdya, who teamed up with the former’s boyfriend, Rendy, to ensure no stone remained unturned in their investigation. Nevertheless, as the years passed, the duo began to give up hope and realized Dara might be lost to them forever. Afterward, Valdya and Rendy tried to move on and found themselves gravitating toward each other. Eventually, five years later, the pair ended up engaged, looking forward to their married lives together.
Nonetheless, Valdya continues to feel guilty about dropping her sister’s case. During one such instance, the woman comes across a hidden USB stick behind one of Dara’s photographs and learns details about her previously elusive job interview. As it would turn out, the mysterious company had asked Dara to drop her application at a P.O. box numbered 888. After doing some research, Valdya locates the same P.O. box and tries to learn more about it. Consequently, her paths cross with another woman, Ratna, who is in a similar situation as herself.
As such, Valdya learns that Ratna’s husband, Adi, applied for the same job five years ago. However, unlike Dara, he managed to return home— even if with severe head wounds, injuries, and brain damage. Valdya gets her confirmation that Dara fell victim to the same people as Adi after the man recognizes the latter’s photograph. Although she attempts to involve the authorities, Ratna’s fear prevents her from making any substantial development. Therefore, the younger Prameswari sister decides to take up the case herself.
Who is Behind The 888 P.O. Box?
For five years, Valdya has bought the same newspaper as Dara used to in case the job listing from before shows up again. Consequently, once the advertisement for the same job, revolving around the 888 P.O. Box, turns up, she applies for it. The opportunity seems to promise lucrative salaries with vague job descriptions— the only requirement being that the candidate be the best in their field. Afterward, she shows up at the post office to shadow the P.O. boxes and see if she can find the people behind the 888 locker.
Fortunately, Valdya manages to catch the men who collect the applications from the P.O. box and sneaks into their car trunk to locate their home base. Thus, the woman finds herself in a nondescript underground car park. Soon, the company also responded to her application with an invitation for an interview the following day. Determined to see the case through, Valdya decides to face her “potential employers.” who are also behind her sister’s disappearance. On the lift ride to the interview, other applicants— each an expert in their distinct fields— accompany Valdya. However, as the group discusses how outlandish the job listing has been, they end up getting attacked by a strange gas inside the elevator.
Once Valdya wakes next, she’s strapped to a chair in a great hall where several well-dressed individuals— with peculiar sunglasses on— reside on a long dinner table. Horrifyingly, the realization sets in that Valdya and the other applicants are their meal. The job listing, which shows up every once in a while, is actually a ploy that monsters like Sophia and her acquaintances use to lure skilled humans to their lair. These monsters have a specific palette that is only satisfied by consuming human flesh and organs. However, rather than eating any human, these beings prefer only humans’ most skilled body parts. For the same reason, they have equipped a job interview to screen out their prey and pick out only the cream of the crop.
Is Dara Alive?
Similar to Valdya, her older sister also possessed the same talent in her eyesight that made her an expert in her own profession. Consequently, her application was also accepted by the company that Sophia and her fellow monstrous crew use as a cover for their nefarious plot. Therefore, she fell victim to the scheme and ended up becoming fodder for a group of hidden monsters. Although one can survive even without their eyes— and the monsters had no intention of consuming other parts of Dara’s body— it is still likely that the woman never made it out of the evil-infested building alive.
Due to the nature of their existence, Sophia and the others would want to maintain a level of secrecy that would only be threatened if any of their victims walked out of their grasp alive. In fact, Adi’s escape has resulted in much the same. For the same reasons, the monsters killed Dara after dining on her gifted eyes. As they attempt to assign Valdya to the same fate, Sophia puts the struggling woman under a spell that takes her into the recesses of her mind. Therein, she encounters Dara— or her memory— again, which helps her gain the motivation to fight for her life. In the end, Valdya ends up lucking out as a group of superpowered individuals storm the building, coming to her rescue.
Who Rescues Valdya?
Although the odds of Valdya’s survival remain dwindling, she never gives up and continues fighting for her life, especially after her encounter with Dara in her dream. Therefore, it comes as a huge relief when a group of saviors burst through the horrid dining halls’ main doors, attacking Sophia and the other monsters. Moreover, these rescuers’ familiar faces and advanced powers— from healing to telekinesis— present an even more shocking discovery. Although Valdya is a stranger to most of these individuals— except one— the viewers will recognize the faces in the group.
Among Valdya’s saviors are Panji, Rania, Wahyu, Dewi, and Ali, from the show’s previous seemingly unrelated episodes. As it would turn out, all these characters are a special group assigned to humanity’s protection against monsters and demons. These monsters have existed alongside humans for decades. However, since they existed below the Earth’s surface in the Agratha realm, they managed to stay anonymous. Furthermore, their hidden existence made them envious of the humans, who were allowed to roam the surface freely.
Consequently, monsters like Sophia and her crew have taken to hunting humans for their own pleasure. Over time, some humans experienced various unnatural phenomena that pushed them to fight for humanity’s protection. The group earned the label The Antibodies and began fighting evil for good. One of the fellow Antibodies is an older woman who has been cryptically following Valdya for some time now. It is likely that the group somehow sensed that her investigation into her sister’s disappearance would lead her to Sophia and the others. Thus, they began keeping tabs on her, coming to her rescue in the knick of time. Following an epic battle between the monsters and the Antibodies, the latter wins, banishing the evil beings. In the end, Valdya is presented with the opportunity to join the group in their fight— an offer the woman readily accepts.
Read More: Nightmares and Daydreams Episode 1 “Old House” Ending Explained
