‘The Platform 2’ just solved one of the first movie’s biggest mysteries

Also known as the Messiah or the Hidalgo, the Master sent a message of hope that kickstarted the Revolution of Solidarity in the Pit. It is said that the Master survived an entire month in the lower levels without eating, only meditating. The following month, the Master was assigned to a level where food never arrived. So, he used flesh from his thigh to make sure the unfortunate people who shared his fate wouldn’t die. These people, saved by such a pure gesture, would become the Anointed Ones who spread the Master’s word and enforce his Law.

The Platform 2 tricks the audience into thinking the Master is Goreng (Iván Massagué). In the first movie, Goreng is called the Messiah by Imoguiri (Antonia San Juan), Trimagasi (Zorion Eguileor) cuts flesh from his thigh to eat, and he ends his journey by sending Mali (Zihara Llana) up with the platform, as the ultimate message of hope. Any inconsistency between Goreng’s stay at the Pit and the Master’s legend could be easily dismissed due to the game of telephone the Pit’s inmates have to play to pass forward his story.

However, The Platform is not a sequel. It’s a prequel. That means the Master and the Revolution of Solidarity happened long before Goreng entered the Pit. So, who is the original Messiah?

Is Miharu the Master in The Platform 2?

While The Platform 2 doesn’t straight-up tell who the Master of legend is, the movie gives us many clues, all pointing to a familiar face from the first movie: Miharu (Alexandra Masangkay).

The first movie reveals that the Administration’s official name for the Pit is “Vertical Self-Management Center.” According to Imoguiri, the prison structure was designed to study the spontaneous emergency of solidarity in extreme conditions. Despite working for the Administration, Imoguiri is unaware of children being sent to the Pit. Nevertheless, Goreng finds a child in the 333rd level, ultimately saving the girl’s life.

The Platform 2’s ending reveals that a child is placed on level 333 every month, and many people before Goreng traded their lives for the children’s safety. That means the prequel suggests the placement of the children at the bottom level of the prison is done on purpose to test the lengths people will go to save the little ones from starvation. So, Goreng’s journey is not unique; instead, it is part of a terrible cycle that repeats every month.

The first movie also shows Miharu descending with the platform each month. Rumors claim she’s looking for her lost son, which can’t be true considering Imoguiri underlines Miharu has been on the Pit only for a few months. Plus, when Goreng reaches level 333, he finds a girl, not a boy. However, now that we know a new child is put into the Pit at the beginning of each cycle, we finally understand Miharu’s actions. She’s repeatedly trying to reach the final level, hoping to save every child.

To emphasize this point, The Platform 2 has multiple scenes where children play together or fight each other, all wearing the uniforms granted to the Pit’s inmates. Among these children is Mali, whom Goreng saves in the first movie. In one pivotal moment, we see a child chosen as the next sacrifice. The people picking the boy are Miharu and a mysterious man.

If Miharu is involved in placing kids inside the Pit, she is aware of the children’s role as a message of hope to the other inmates. That means she’s most likely the Master from which the Law derived. Plus, with Miharu in charge of the neverending cycle of children being sent to the Pit, it makes sense for her to also come up with stories that support the myth of the Master and convince so many people to respect the Law. Finally, her being the Master gives her actions in the first movie more meaning, as only someone who knows the importance of solidarity messages would put herself in harm’s way month after month just to reach the bottom of the Pit multiple times.

Of course, until we have concrete evidence to support this claim, it’s best to take everything with a grain of salt. Also, Miharu being the Master opens many more questions. If the Master is working with the Administration in each cycle, what is the ultimate goal of the Pit? Who created it, and for what ends? In addition, if the Law forbids cannibalism, why is Miharu so comfortable with consuming other people’s flesh in the first movie? Has she given up on the Law since the Barbarians now rule the Pit?

In The Platform, each answer comes with a series of questions. We can only hope that Netflix keeps greenlighting sequels until the truth is revealed.