Risqué Business is a Netflix Limited Series hosted by two Korean men Shin Dong-youp and Sung Si-kyung. Previous seasons had the two men exploring sexual mores in Japan and Taiwan. In the third season of the series they go further outside their comfort zones to explore alternative cultural perspectives on sexuality and nudity in the Netherlands and Germany. In episode two of season three they two men visit a coed German sauna and thermal bath and a naturist club.

Coed spa and sauna

 The episode starts with a visit to a mixed coed sauna. The hosts first shock is the coed experience starts in the locker room. Men and women share the same space to change out of clothes and store their clothing. The hosts managed to conveniently keep their robes on using the need for their microphones as an excuse. They go on to speak with a couple of friends at the spa thermal pool hot tub.

There the hosts learn that attitudes towards social nudity are much different in Germany than they are in Korea. One particularly surprising moment was the hosts’ discovery that the male and female couple they are speaking with are not dating and just friends. The idea of going to a spa with someone of the opposite sex, seem completely out of line with the cultural attitudes of the Korean men. 

They are astonished when the woman reports her boyfriend knew she was going to be at a spa with a male friend. And he told her to have a good time.  The idea that a man could be around another woman naked and not sprout an erection, is another topic of conversation. The German man reminds them that all nudity need not be sexual in nature. He shares that it would be an embarrassment and unacceptable for any man to be walking around showing off his erection or harassing a woman sexually. Sounds like a naturist way of thinking to me.

Naturist FKK club

After leaving the German spa, the two visit a naturist sport club (see teaser trailer below). Upon entering the hosts two men out jogging around a path. After they have recovered from the shock and lost their awkward looks, they are greeted by a female host who is clothes free as any naturist would be. When asked how she feels about the ambient temperature, the club host she responds that a little cool air helps to stimulate blood circulation.

The host are ushered into an open green space at the club where they are given a brief history of German naturism and the FKK movement. Some of the activists the hosts observe include swimming, ping pong,  badminton, trampolining and weight lifting. They also participate clothed in a yoga class and speak with the expat American yoga instructor about how she got started teaching naked yoga. Next they talk with a man and woman playing ping pong and engage in a friendly game that the naturists win. The male naturist remarks that “everything is better naked”.

Conclusion

Over all the episode is interesting and engaging despite the unwillingness of the hosts to join in the activity because as one of them said they have a career to think of. Though all the other episodes are focused on sex and sexuality, episode two of Risqué Business: The Netherlands and Germany honestly and accurately portray genuine naturism. The sheepishness of the hosts is balanced by the authentic expressions of no sexual social nudity by the interview participants.

There is significant though not complete blurring of faces and genitals throughout the episode. This seem to align with other treatments of nudity I have seen in video originating in Asian. Those looking to see bits and not listen and engage with the information shared will be disappointed. However, it doesn’t distract from the overall message shared by the participants. More distracting is the lack of English language voice over necessitating captioning. The hosts don’t speak English and there are Korean titles as well as English captioning on the screen. This turns out to be confusing because some of the people who are interviewed speak English others speak German so sometimes you can listen sometimes you have to watch to follow the dialog.

Watch “Risqué Business: The Netherlands and Germany” on Netflix

https://www.netflix.com/us/title/81728569

Trailer