K-Drama 
2
30
This review may contain spoilers
The trilogy of a tragedy about humanity
"When we were kids, we played just for fun, and our mothers would call us in for dinner. But now, we’re all alone." - Sang Woo
"I did this so that we can start a new life, a happy life." - Myung Gi
I watched all 22 episodes of Squid Game in a few days, and it probably helped that I experienced all three seasons back to back. In my opinion, the ending is perfect—there is no other right way.
The first most memorable character for me was Sang Woo. His last scene, especially his final exchange with Gi Hun, really moved me. But my favorite became Myung Gi. His story with Jun Hee was touching, and he's a tragic villain who shows how an environment like the games can push someone who's already far from perfect to a point of no return. He was a victim from the beginning and a sadly genuine character who couldn't make up for his mistakes. Especially when he killed Thanos, something seemed to have snapped inside him.
The crypto investment was also an important way to reflect more modern issues. Sang Woo was an anti-villain, and Gi Hun wasn't that morally bright either, even before he killed Dae Ho. He literally sacrificed the Xs for the rebellion, although it was understandable in a life-or-death situation. I loved Gi Hun's own fall because he's the one who said, "You don't know what this place does to people. It changes them." His villain arc is great irony. And to me, Myung Gi's arc is even more tragic as the only time he should have listened to someone (unlike the Dalmatian coin and Nam Gyu), which is Gi Hun, he didn't and referred to him as one of the people who ruined his life because he trusted them, going as far as to try convincing himself the baby is not his to make an unbearable choice. He was overwhelmed with jealousy, grief, guilt, regret, shame and intense fear literally all at the same time. In the end, Myung Gi is what Squid Game is about, a person who becomes a monster without really being one. An ordinary, solitary, unwise person. Here's the real tragedy. The truth is that he was still a good person, and Gi Hun clearly saw the sadness in his eyes, holding onto him until the very end. It wasn't about survival anymore. It was about how he wished he could go back. His character arc literally went from protecting Jun Hee to his own survival after he lost his love, showing the tragedy of a failed redemption.
I loved all the dark psychology, tragedy, and contradictions between the characters. To me, Squid Game is a beautiful ode to humanity and history: the votes, the rebellion, the diversity of the cast, the setting that gives Korean and universal childhood games a completely different meaning, the nightmarish atmosphere, and a story that stays grounded in reality, combining fear, greed stemming from a strong desire to live a better life in a world that's also hell, and survival. Honestly, the way the personalities from both seasons completed each other was perfect.
Season 2 was almost too joyful to be true. Of course it wasn't "necessary", but it's a real shame without it and the director obviously had plans. Season 1 literally ends with Gi Hun turning back at the airport and confronting them on the phone. Personally, I would've never watched the show if it had stopped there and the new seasons were clearly my favorites. While Season 1 was sufficient on its own, it did not give me characters to like as much as I did with Season 2, the games and everything else worked better on me. I also think many people misinterpret the ending of Season 3. A VIP in Season 1 already says, “This year, the Korean games were spectacular”, so Squid Game USA wasn’t some last-minute addition. I also saw Gi Hun's red hair as foreshadowing for In Ho's "red pill" speech in Season 2, especially since Gi Hun later wears the red player shirt.
As for Jun Ho, people forget the island isn't supposed to be easy to find, his final search only lasted a few days, and he was deliberately misled by the captain. The real horror is that the games keep continuing, the dread and despair were perfectly conveyed in the final games. Since the main setting can become suffocating, the scenes in the sea helped. He wasn't useless either: his character is crucial to the plot, he saved Gyeong Seok, and he had an internal conflict towards his brother. His betrayal storyline with the captain also worked as a parallel to Gi Hun and In Ho's story.
Lastly, the most tragically beautiful thing for me was the parallel between the deaths of Gi Hun and Sang Woo, and Myung Gi and Jun Hee.
P.S. I don't support the idea of an American Squid Game, and I'm glad it was cancelled. The ending just being the fact that the games are still around somewhere else is perfect. Continuing from this type of haunting ending is a terrible choice. We saw everything we had to see.
"I did this so that we can start a new life, a happy life." - Myung Gi
I watched all 22 episodes of Squid Game in a few days, and it probably helped that I experienced all three seasons back to back. In my opinion, the ending is perfect—there is no other right way.
The first most memorable character for me was Sang Woo. His last scene, especially his final exchange with Gi Hun, really moved me. But my favorite became Myung Gi. His story with Jun Hee was touching, and he's a tragic villain who shows how an environment like the games can push someone who's already far from perfect to a point of no return. He was a victim from the beginning and a sadly genuine character who couldn't make up for his mistakes. Especially when he killed Thanos, something seemed to have snapped inside him.
The crypto investment was also an important way to reflect more modern issues. Sang Woo was an anti-villain, and Gi Hun wasn't that morally bright either, even before he killed Dae Ho. He literally sacrificed the Xs for the rebellion, although it was understandable in a life-or-death situation. I loved Gi Hun's own fall because he's the one who said, "You don't know what this place does to people. It changes them." His villain arc is great irony. And to me, Myung Gi's arc is even more tragic as the only time he should have listened to someone (unlike the Dalmatian coin and Nam Gyu), which is Gi Hun, he didn't and referred to him as one of the people who ruined his life because he trusted them, going as far as to try convincing himself the baby is not his to make an unbearable choice. He was overwhelmed with jealousy, grief, guilt, regret, shame and intense fear literally all at the same time. In the end, Myung Gi is what Squid Game is about, a person who becomes a monster without really being one. An ordinary, solitary, unwise person. Here's the real tragedy. The truth is that he was still a good person, and Gi Hun clearly saw the sadness in his eyes, holding onto him until the very end. It wasn't about survival anymore. It was about how he wished he could go back. His character arc literally went from protecting Jun Hee to his own survival after he lost his love, showing the tragedy of a failed redemption.
I loved all the dark psychology, tragedy, and contradictions between the characters. To me, Squid Game is a beautiful ode to humanity and history: the votes, the rebellion, the diversity of the cast, the setting that gives Korean and universal childhood games a completely different meaning, the nightmarish atmosphere, and a story that stays grounded in reality, combining fear, greed stemming from a strong desire to live a better life in a world that's also hell, and survival. Honestly, the way the personalities from both seasons completed each other was perfect.
Season 2 was almost too joyful to be true. Of course it wasn't "necessary", but it's a real shame without it and the director obviously had plans. Season 1 literally ends with Gi Hun turning back at the airport and confronting them on the phone. Personally, I would've never watched the show if it had stopped there and the new seasons were clearly my favorites. While Season 1 was sufficient on its own, it did not give me characters to like as much as I did with Season 2, the games and everything else worked better on me. I also think many people misinterpret the ending of Season 3. A VIP in Season 1 already says, “This year, the Korean games were spectacular”, so Squid Game USA wasn’t some last-minute addition. I also saw Gi Hun's red hair as foreshadowing for In Ho's "red pill" speech in Season 2, especially since Gi Hun later wears the red player shirt.
As for Jun Ho, people forget the island isn't supposed to be easy to find, his final search only lasted a few days, and he was deliberately misled by the captain. The real horror is that the games keep continuing, the dread and despair were perfectly conveyed in the final games. Since the main setting can become suffocating, the scenes in the sea helped. He wasn't useless either: his character is crucial to the plot, he saved Gyeong Seok, and he had an internal conflict towards his brother. His betrayal storyline with the captain also worked as a parallel to Gi Hun and In Ho's story.
Lastly, the most tragically beautiful thing for me was the parallel between the deaths of Gi Hun and Sang Woo, and Myung Gi and Jun Hee.
P.S. I don't support the idea of an American Squid Game, and I'm glad it was cancelled. The ending just being the fact that the games are still around somewhere else is perfect. Continuing from this type of haunting ending is a terrible choice. We saw everything we had to see.
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