Due Spicci ending explained: who kills Paturnia and why?

The ending of Two Pennies, the animated series of Zerocalcare su Netflix, leaves the viewer in an uncomfortable situation, because it does not end the story with a clean solution, but with a series of consequences that are difficult to digest. At the center is the death of Paturnia, the man who seemed destined for a head-on clash with Zero and his group, but the real blow comes when it is discovered that the one who killed him was Montini, the most fragile and least predictable character in the story. From there, the ending takes a completely different meaning.

The finale of Due Spicci doesn't look for a happy ending

The ending of Two Pennies It doesn't want to console the viewer, and perhaps that's precisely why it works so well, because Zerocalcare constructs a conclusion in which the main danger disappears, but no one can really say they were saved. Paturnia dies, Montini ends up in prison, Zero remains full of doubts, Emerald he doesn't find immediate emotional peace and Boar, even though he's far from Rome, he continues to live in fear. The series doesn't rely on the "problem solved" logic, but on a more bitter truth: that certain wounds remain even when the event that caused them seems over.

The strength of the ending lies precisely in its lack of narrative cleanliness, because Two Pennies It doesn't offer a moral reward to the characters, it doesn't hand out absolution, and it doesn't transform Paturnia's death into a victory. The final feeling is that of a fragile truce, not a liberation, because each character remains trapped within their own fears, their own mistakes, and an adult form of emotional precariousness that Zerocalcare depicts without sugarcoating. Essentially, the story ends, but the chaos remains, and this choice is much more consistent with the author's universe than a reassuring ending designed to put the audience to sleep.

Who really killed Paturnia?

The real killer of Paturnia è Montini, even if for a good part of the finale the series pushes the viewer to look elsewhere. Suspicions in fact seem to fall on Carlo and Emilio, the brothers of Emerald, because their desire for revenge, their anger at what Paturnia did to her sister, and their presence near the scene seem to point to a fairly straightforward explanation. Zerocalcare, however, overturns this interpretation just when the clash seems imminent, because the arrival of the police and the discovery of the body interrupt the war before it can even truly explode.

The revelation on Montini It weighs heavily because it shifts the focus of violence from the more aggressive character to the more vulnerable one, and this choice changes the moral sense of the series. Paturnia is not killed by a self-confident avenger, he is not eliminated by a criminal figure and he does not fall in a heroic scene, but he dies at the hands of a man crushed by years of Bullying, isolation, fear and humiliations. Zero sees it with the bloody knife, but the scene is not treated as a spectacular revelation, but as a trauma, because what emerges is not a solution, but the point at which a fragile person goes beyond the limit.

Why Montini went so far as to kill Paturnia

Montini kills Paturnia after the attack on Giulio, the dog to whom he is deeply attached and who represents, for him, the only truly secure relationship in a life marked by the contempt of others. That gesture becomes the point of no return, because Paturnia doesn't just hurt an animal, she strikes the only creature capable of giving Montini a sense of presence, affection, and recognition. The series, with a rather merciless lucidity, shows that Montini's violence doesn't arise from nowhere, but from an accumulation of humiliations that no one was able to intercept before his collapse.

The most interesting, and also most uncomfortable, thing is that Two Pennies It doesn't transform Montini into a hero, because murder remains an irreversible act and prison is its consequence. At the same time, the series avoids a flat sentence, because the viewer has seen how consumed that character was by loneliness, by the past, and by a fragility that was never truly heard. Zerocalcare doesn't say Montini did the right thing—that would be a crude interpretation—but he shows how dangerous it is to leave a person trapped in a life of abuse, without tools, without community, and without any real possibility of existing outside the role of victim.

Giulio survives, but Montini only discovers it later

One of the strongest doubts of the finale concerns Giulio, the dog of Montini, because the aggression suffered by Paturnia It leaves him in very serious conditions and for a part of the narrative the worst seems possible. The answer, however, is clear and changes the emotional weight of the ending, because Julius does not die. The dog survives, but Montini ends up in prison before knowing his fate, and this suspension makes the ending even more painful, because the man immediately pays the consequences of his actions without having confirmation that the only person he loves is still alive.

He will be informed of this Zerocalcare, who takes Giulio in, writes to him in prison, and even sends him a photo with the dog, thanking him for saving them. This detail is crucial because it introduces a small form of healing into an otherwise harsh isolation, even if it doesn't erase anything of what happened. Zero doesn't free Montini from guilt, doesn't make amends for Paturnia's death, and doesn't make the world right, but he does make a concrete gesture, perhaps one of the few truly adult gestures in the series, because he takes responsibility and delivers news to Montini that can prevent him from being stuck forever in the idea that he's lost Giulio too.

Zero, Smeralda, and a relationship that remains suspended

In the final of Two Pennies, the relationship between Zero e Emerald remains suspended, and this choice also fits into the bitter logic of the series, because the affection between the two exists, but it is not enough to immediately build a solid relationship. Smeralda carries with her the consequences of the toxic relationship with Paturnia, while Zero continues to be trapped in his blocks, his anxieties, and that almost chronic difficulty transforming feelings into clear actions. Zerocalcare avoids the textbook romantic ending, the one in which the trauma is overcome thanks to the right person, because it would have been false, convenient, and decidedly less interesting.

Their final dynamic perfectly illustrates the series's approach to adult relationships: bonds that are possible but continually hindered by fears, memories, insecurities, and an inability to truly live in the present. Zero e Emerald They're not indifferent to each other, but they're not ready to reciprocate, either, and this nuance makes the ending more believable. There's no definitive kiss, no declaration that restores order, no promise of happiness, but a possibility that lingers, caught between irony, pain, and bad timing.

Wild boar escapes, but is not truly saved

The ending of Boar It seems, apparently, the closest to a restart, because the character manages to go in South America and opening a food truck with his family. It would be easy to read this as a successful escape, but the series never really leaves room for such comfort, as Cinghiale continues to live with the fear of debt and the consequences of organized crime. Even away from Rome, therefore, the character isn't freed from his problems, but rather carries them with him in a different form, as often happens when one moves to a new place without truly changing one's inner state.

His story reinforces the overall sense of the ending, because in Two Pennies No one finds complete salvation, not even those who leave, not even those who survive, not even those who manage to build a new business. Zerocalcare tells the story of people trying not to sink, not characters who win a battle and return home with a lesson learned. Boar It thus becomes another piece of the same vision, because escape does not coincide with freedom, and the future remains fraught with anxiety, precariousness, and consequences that do not disappear just because the geography changes.

The final scene and the true meaning of the series

The final scene, linked to the reading of the story, brings to the surface the real theme of Two Pennies, that is, the idea that growing up doesn't mean becoming invincible, lucid, or finally resolved, but learning to live with fears that often remain the same, only slightly better disguised. Zero reflects on the way children look to adults as strong figures who always know what to do, only to discover, as they grow up, that even adults are confused, fragile, and terrified. It's one of the series' most bitter insights, because it dismantles the idea of ​​adulthood as a destination and exposes it for what it often is: a more or less dignified management of chaos.

The ending, therefore, should not be read only as the explanation of a murder, because the death of Paturnia It's the narrative crux, but not the deepest emotional center. The core is the difficulty of becoming an adult without feeling completely defeated, a theme that runs through Zero, Emerald, Montini, Boar, Sarah e Dry In different ways. The series tells the story of a generation that continues to navigate lost responsibilities, unstable jobs, complicated relationships, and the fear of never being truly ready, and it does so by using Zerocalcare's comedic language as a Trojan horse, because we laugh until the bill arrives.

The meaning of Paturnia's death

The death of Paturnia doesn't really solve anything, and maybe that's where the ending of Two Pennies It gets more interesting. Paturnia was a real, violent, and toxic threat, but his elimination doesn't bring about a collective rebirth, because those who remain must still deal with what they've experienced, what they've endured, and what they couldn't prevent. Zero feels relief, but also guilt for that relief, and this reaction contains almost the entire moral of the series, because in Zerocalcare's stories, there are no clean victories, only consequences to bear.

The meaning of Paturnia's death is therefore not "evil has been defeated," but "even when evil disappears, the damage remains." This difference is crucial, because it prevents the ending from becoming a cathartic revenge and forces the viewer to remain within a much more ambiguous space. Montini pay, Giulio survives, Zero takes on a responsibility, Emerald remains marked, Boar He flees but finds no peace, and the world of the series continues to spin, offering no one true absolution. Bitter, yes, but much more honest than a consolatory ending.

Does Due Spicci really end without hope?

Two Pennies It doesn't end without hope, but it offers a minimal, fragile and unspectacular hope, because the series doesn't believe in great saving turns. Hope lies in Giulio that survives, in Zero who decides to take care of it, in the letter to Montini, in the prison visit, in the possibility that some bonds remain alive even in a history filled with damage. These are small, almost anti-heroic gestures, but for that very reason they are credible, because they don't pretend to erase the pain, they only try to prevent it from becoming the only thing left.

The ending of Two Pennies It's heartbreaking, but not nihilistic, because Zerocalcare doesn't say everything is pointless; rather, he says that life isn't fixed with a twist, an escape, a love affair, or revenge. It holds together through trial and error, through belated responsibilities, through imperfect bonds, and through small acts of care that don't work miracles, but keep the characters from disappearing completely into their own fear. The explanation for the ending lies entirely here, because the series isn't about people who find the solution, but about people who, after making mistakes, losing, and trembling, still search for a way to avoid sinking.