Squid Game Season 2 (2024)

Talented Actors.. Ample Budget.. All the Time in the World.. Yet a Below Par Unfinished Sequel..

When you create a banger of a first season the audience expects the next one to be equally good if not better.. Unfortunately Squid Game Season 2 completely fails to meet those expectations.. I spent seven hours watching it.. Only for it to end on a cliffhanger.. Now I have to wait several more months just to get a conclusion?? What a waste of time..

Honestly all the emotions, the quality of the games and the sheer thrill that made the first part unforgettable were completely missing in season 2.. Why couldn’t they just release everything in this one season?? This money grabbing trend is getting worse.. While I agree that some dramas need to be split into multiple parts to make sense.. Squid Game Season 2 doesnt fall into that category..

Psychopath Gong Yoo was an absolute sight to watch.. If I am not wrong this is his first time playing a psycho and he absolutely nailed it.. His character was fascinating.. I mean this guy when he wasnt recruiting people for a kill or die game in the most bizarre way.. He was casually roaming around, taunting and messing with the homeless.. How much of a psycho is he really?? He deserves a spin off like a prequel or something..

The first 2-3 episodes were pretty boring.. The build up was poor and failed to capture the momentum.. Honestly.. In my opinion Lee Jung Jae’s story should have ended with first Season.. If not he definitely shouldn’t have been in the anchor role again.. He literally fell into the same trap again... How stupid is he?? He also took away the opportunity to explore new characters or stories and there were plenty to explore..

I don’t know what to say about Park Sung Hoon.. He absolutely nailed his role.. And TOP?? His character was so pathetic.. I was expecting nothing less than a horrible death for him and he got what he deserved..
Im Si Wan.. You can always expect a top tier performance from him.. And he definitely delivered.. I really hope he and Jun Hui get a happy ending..

The introduction of Player Number 1 was a huge twist.. Totally unexpected.. I was thinking "Gi Hun and his plans are screwed "..

Why so many talented actors if you dont plan on utilising them??

Squid Game Season 2 really missed the chance to recreate the intensity and impact that made the first season so iconic.. It ended up being a below par season.. Felt more one dimensional.. They should have just made it a 12 ep season and finished the drama.. For me Im Siwan and Park Sung Hoon were the standout performers..

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Blah games

The fundamental problem is that season two feels utterly unnecessary. It lacks any genuine creative spark, instead rehashing familiar elements with diminishing returns.

Well.. we're here. So...

The core components that made Squid Game a global phenomenon—the brutal games, the exploration of class disparity, the desperate lengths people will go to for survival—are all present in season two, but they lack the same impact. The shock value of the games is gone; we’ve seen it all before. The social commentary feels diluted, less focused and more like window dressing. The desperation of the players feels less authentic, replaced by a sense of obligation to the plot. The few new additions introduced feel less like organic expansions of the narrative and more like tacked-on elements designed to justify the season’s existence. The introduction of a pink-clad soldier within the main cast and the exploration of the Front Man's backstory, while offering brief moments of intrigue, ultimately fail to provide sufficient narrative weight to justify an entire season. They’re simply not compelling enough to warrant this continuation.

The acting, a significant strength of the first season, takes a noticeable dip. While the returning actors do their best with the material they’re given, the new additions to the cast are largely forgettable. They embody thinly sketched archetypes, lacking the depth and complexity that made the characters of season one so compelling and emotionally resonant. The performances themselves are technically adequate, but the actors are hampered by a lack of substantive material. This is further exacerbated by the over-the-top acting from many of the guest performances, which shatters any remaining pretense of realism and often veers into unintentional parody. These exaggerated performances clash jarringly with the more grounded portrayals of the main cast, creating further tonal issues.

This brings us to perhaps the most egregious flaw of season two: its jarring and inconsistent tone. The pervasive tension and palpable sense of dread that defined season one, creating a truly unsettling and immersive experience, are replaced by a bizarre and often jarring mix of melodrama, forced humor, and over-the-top action sequences. It’s as if the creators fundamentally misunderstood what made the original so effective, mistaking its dark themes for mere spectacle. In prioritizing entertainment over substance, they’ve sacrificed the show’s emotional core. The result is a tonal inconsistency that severely undermines the narrative. This inconsistent tone makes it impossible to invest in the stakes of the games or connect with the characters on an emotional level. It becomes abundantly clear that the showrunners have lost sight of what made the original Squid Game so compelling.

Season two demonstrates the challenges of continuing a successful narrative. While it retains some elements of the original's visual style and explores the backstory of key characters, it struggles to recapture the thematic depth and emotional resonance of the first season. The narrative may feel repetitive, and the impact of social commentary may be less pronounced. Additionally, the introduction of new characters and storylines may not be as engaging as those in the original. The potential for a third season, hinted at throughout Season two, might leave some feeling that the narrative is being artificially extended

Pros:
• Nostalgia: Returns to familiar characters and offers some closure.
• High production values: Visually appealing with strong technical execution.

Cons:
• Repetitive narrative: Rehashes familiar elements without adding significant depth.
• Weak character development: New characters are forgettable, and performances lack nuance.
• Inconsistent tone: Shifts from dread to melodrama, undermining emotional impact.
• They made filler, feel like filler.

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Meh

This was a cash grab.

I rooted for Hyun-ju, Young-mi, and the halmeoni and no one else. While I appreciated that the show took out the really unnecessary sex scenes in the first season, that was the only improvement over the first season I noticed in s2. The plots all felt recycled, the character profiles felt like copies of the first season and, worst of all, there were several points where I felt like the writers were treating the viewers like they were stupid. Having seen that Netflix is trying to put out more content that allows for it's viewers to consume media without fully paying attention to it, this tracks with some of the shows they've released this year. A season 2 for this show was wholly unnecessary.

This only got somewhat interesting for me on the very last episode. The first episode was the most boring opener I've watched in a kdrama this year. This needed a very, very strong edit, but I fear, if they took out everything that didn't need to be here, the season would be 3 episodes long. The drawn out voting scenes when we know they're going to continue on, the tedious cuts to the detective searching for the island, etc. I also laughed at the concept of this many people treating Gi-hun like some sort of war general. I also hated the hive mind mentality the other players outside of the main cast had because they were indignant to the point of idiocy and it made them feel like NPCs.

I enjoyed Hyun-ju, Young-mi, and the halmeoni's story. While annoying at times, I thought the TOP character brought some life where there was way less levity this time around. The 001 character was an interesting addition this time around with the viewer knowing there was an inside man this time around. However, overall, Squid Game s1 was like a 7.5-8 for me and s2 was just an unnecessary addition.

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A whole season to set up for a finale

I wasn't really planning on watching s2 of Squid Game, mostly because I thought the open ending of s1 was satisfactory. I ended up giving it a try and while it had me watching all the episodes back to back to figure out what happened, I was left unsatisfied by the end of it. This review will contain spoilers from here out!

I thought that the concept of Gihun returning to the games to shut it down was great - the first two episodes had me excited to see the plan unfold, and I was hopeful that things would work out. Going into this season, I knew that they were already planning a third, so I didn't expect everything to be wrapped up. However, the first section of the games was frankly underwhelming, with none of the deaths even feeling that meaningful. We spent less time with the characters and didn't get much backstory on them, so it felt like I was less invested than I was with s1. Also, I felt like I was constantly waiting for this big plan of ending the games and it took so long for it to happen. Instead, we just watched Gihun live through another set of games and learn the same lesson that he did in s1: people's greed is not stopped by reason. As I reached the end of the series, I could tell it was going to end on a cliffhanger, and it didn't even end in a good spot! It really felt like this entire season was just to set up for the next. The games felt less intense, the deaths less tragic, and the plot to stop them was nearly nonexistent. Frankly, I wish I waited to watch this until s3 came out so I could just watch them both back to back.

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Pointless season...

Of course, this season was very anticipated after the huge success of the first season. In my opinion, the second season wasn't really necessary, but here we are. Apparently, the director admitted to shooting the second season just for the money, which is honestly noticeable. It also defeats the whole point of the show, which is that money is the cause of all suffering.

This season was very underwhelming and it felt very low effort. The first season didn't feel like a stereotypical kdrama and I think that's the reason why it became so successful outside of Korea, this one however had more of an actual kdrama feel to it. Some parts were even predictable unlike the first season and the cast of this season included a lot of famous and familiar faces, which is also why it felt more like a good ole kdrama.

The music also played a big role in my rating because it made everything seem less intimidating, and at some point, I even forgot they were brutally killing people.

The characters were also nice but because of the side plots we never really got to get attached to them so when people died it wasn't as heartbreaking as the first one (though I do admit I cried to one death).

In the end, you can really just tell how this season was shot just because of money and they ended it on a cliffhanger for season 3, again for money. They could've made this season 9 episodes like the last one and it would've been perfectly enough to wrap it up.

Overall very disappointing and I don't think I'll be watching season 3. And yes a big part of my thoughts on this show were shaped by the fact that the director is only doing this for money and you can really sense it too with the lack of creativity, enthusiasm, and spark.

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Creators clearly forgot what made Season 1 popular

The biggest mistake the creators made was forgetting to write interesting characters.

Gi-hun, despite being the "good-hearted" protagonist, has always been a bit of a bumbling idiot. In season 2, he doesn't have a smart friend to help him. We simply watch the bumbling idiot be played by 001 AGAIN. He never learns from his mistakes and is just frustrating to follow. Sang-woo from season 1 was a morally grey character but rational and level-headed, and was undoubtedly a competent leader for most of the show. His character was the perfect contrast to Gi-hun. This season lacked someone like that -- Lee Byung-hun's character is predictable and wasn't as interesting as he was.

The "villains" like the thug and annoying lady from S1 were despicable yet entertaining and somehow likeable. That was not easy to pull off. But Big Bang's TOP and other antagonistic characters here were just annoying himbos that I wanted off my screen. Meanwhile, almost all other characters are remarkably un-memorable. It's funny how characters played by actors that are usually main leads were underwhelming and didn't need to be in this show. I probably would have preferred seeing fresh faces.

It was deeply disappointing how S2 slowed down the pace but had much less depth and emotion. S1 touched on issues like exploitation of foreign workers, North Korean defectors, gambling addiction, etc. S2 settled with young people who invested in the wrong cryptocurrencies (too bad for them), influencers (ughh), or pregnant young moms (generic female character found in too many shows). Some were almost like re-hashes of S1's characters. Also, there were not enough games and too many voting sessions. Did no one in the production feel that it was getting repetitive?? Overall, I give season 2 a mediocre 6/10. (Season 1 was an 8.5/10 for me.)

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An underwhelming drag on

Even though season 1 stands by itself, there was still a lot of potential for season 2. They could've ditched the old cast completely and bring in entirely new faces to play new games. I think with compelling characters, it would've worked great. But it felt like the makers were too scared to ditch the fan favourites, and so their presence and screen times were justified by unnecessary and bloated plot lines. Eg: Hwang Jun ho still searching for the island without a single clue. It probably would've been better seeing him enter the games this time and the Front man in turmoil trying his hardest to save him. But no, they played it safe.
Also due to the star studded cast, there were no real stakes in the few games they played. Unlike last season, where we never knew who would end up dead during each game.
Keeping all these aside, the main drawback was quite literally the lack of games. Whole 1st season had packed 6 intriguing deadly games into 7 episodes, this season had only 3. With the 1st one being a repetition. And the music and tone of these games seemed very far from the grim and gloomy atmosphere in the first one.

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waited years for…that?

i thought people who said season 2 would be a flop were wrong but hell na, they were right. i was so excited, i wouldn’t have minded if they left things with a cliffhanger but atleast make the cliffhanger better???

what the HELL was that ending. it felt like it ended mid episode.

its clear season 2 was there just for season 3. but seriously. they hyped this up so much and its literally just season 1 but bad. sigh. SIGH.

the only reason im rating it 6 which is still pretty high, is because atleast the games were entertaining to watch still, and the characters were much more likable than in season 1. im just pissed they ended up killing almost every character i liked. but oh well, i guess its not much of a surprise lol..

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squid end game

squid end game :D. instead using money to build community and become president of korea to fight against poverty. Our hero use money to join game again. he is completely a joke in this field.
this is not like jingsaw which people survive and go back because they didn't have any money beside their life.
our hero is not hero. he is just trash in society in the end. the producer make gamer controller like bad guy even he offer foods to people and yet they still paint him to be jerk. this is not good for society or relate to process to change anything. it is just become joke story unlike season 1.

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Disappointing, had a lot of questions.

I think this series was just built on what had made season 1 successful, but the show lost it's spark. Everything gets repetitive and I was hoping to see some change. Yes, there were new characters and character development but I could clearly see exactly which season 1 character they were shadowing, which made them lose their individuality.

I was most disappointed by how the show ended. There was no proper closing and felt like it was rushed. Nothing was shown about what happened to the search team, what happened to 456, what happened to the other players, or why there was organ harvesting again. I had so many questions. The last episode was just gun violence and nothing special. The show had so much potential but with each episode, the standard kept dropping. I feel like if they took more time and made a few more episodes, the ending would have been much better. Also the whole X and O thing felt weird and out of place for some reason.

Although there were many areas of improvement in terms of storyline, the casting was absolutely perfect. Every single actor portrayed their character and story so well. Although there wasn't must screen time, I really enjoyed watching Jo Yuri's performance. As someone who watches her perform on stage, this was very different and exciting.

The soundtrack was also very well done. Every single track fit the scene perfectly. The new sets and props were very impressive to see, especially the upscaled stair room and the mingle game room. I also really enjoyed the cinematography.

Overall, the entire show was just to attempt to reacted the hype that season 1 had, but I think this entire show and concept is dead and Netflix can never make the series as popular as season 1 was back when it came out.

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maybe it's time to wrap it up?!

let me start off with a short rant about this season's writing. this will be an unpopular opinion but most of the new characters left me cold (since they were the replicas of season 1 characters), and so did their deaths. also, they decided to keep junho around but didn't know what to do with him, so every scene we got of him was him searching for the games' location (some of these scenes were insane fillers). the glimmering light of season 2's writing was the introduction of noeul, and complexity of guards. the introduction of new characters was boring to watch. i would have rather learned about their stories during the game. one thing i hoped for was learning more about HIH's background since he's also a previous winner (otherwise, it's hard to explain why he was organizing games in the first place). he even got a replacement, but we have no clue who that is. the cliff hanger of this season was so underwhelming. netflix harassed the hell out of SQ's screenwriter for THIS. overall, acting was great and song choices were fitting. however, i felt like this could've been a final season.

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