After learning that David is Tatiana’s daughter at the end of Nine Perfect Strangers season 2, episode 4, it was clear we would need to learn more about this backstory. That came in Nine Perfect Strangers season 2, episode 5, but not in the way expected.
Caution: This post contains SPOILERS for Nine Perfect Strangers season 2 episode 5.
It’s hard to get a read on David Sharpe. He doesn’t seem to think that he’s a good person, but when he talks with Masha about the past, he is receptive, and he seems to want to be better. There is a heart in there, and I don’t think that it’s just the drugs that bring that out. I think it’s more that the drugs allow him to feel like he can be himself.
David and Masha’s backstory explained in Nine Perfect Strangers season 2 episode 5
This whole episode is focused only on Masha and David, picking up off the reveal in Nine Perfect Strangers season 2, episode 4 that David is Tatiana's father. He has come to her room, where she’s been able to drug him to go through the past. It’s time for David to learn about the daughter he didn’t know about.
We’re taken back to when they first met, which was when he was going on TV shows around the world to promote his company. Masha was an assistant, and the two make an immediate connection. It’s clear that David views his money as a status symbol, but Masha doesn’t. She can’t take his money, even though he offers to buy her fancy necklaces and more.
That night, they spend the night together, and we get to see a side of David that is hinted at throughout Nine Perfect Strangers so far. He makes a call to his son, who is likely around 10 at this point in the story based on some ages given later on. It’s not exactly clear, but Peter is old enough to talk to his dad on the phone, and David says that he makes it a habit to check in each night. He wants to be a good father, so what happened along the way?
Of course, that’s the night that Tatiana is conceived. At least, that’s the story that Masha is telling, and we have to admit that she’s not always been a reliable storyteller in Nine Perfect Strangers. But, she seems to believe that David is the father, and he accepts that as he learns about it.
Why didn’t Masha tell David sooner in Nine Perfect Strangers?
Why has it taken so long for Masha to tell David about his daughter? Well, she shares that she tried to get in touch with him, and a few years later, he returned to Russia. He even seemed to look right at her, but he ignored her and kept walking with the man that he was talking to.
It was clear to Masha that this man was potentially dangers. She couldn’t help but do a deep dive into who he was, and with that, she decided to avoid David. That is until now.
David wants to know where his daughter is, as she must be around 20 now. That’s when more of the truth comes out. That man that she started following was dangerous. There’s a suggestion that Masha realized that she was being followed and that Tatiana’s accident was actually on purpose. Someone targeted Tatiana to get to Masha.
It’s a heartbreaking moment, and now it makes more sense why Masha would want to connect with Tatiana so much. This is more than a mother’s grief, as there’s an element of guilt mixed in there.
Now the story must move forward. How will David take to everything that he has learned? Will he tell Peter, or could this give David the push he needs to be more connected to his son? After all, could there be a threat to Peter with everything that Masha feels about Tatiana in Nine Perfect Strangers?
Nine Perfect Strangers airs on Wednesdays on Hulu.