As someone who typically doesn’t enjoy watching the entirety of a TV show in one sitting, Squid Games quickly changed my mind. Before a couple of days ago, I had never considered watching Squid Games, as I believed it to be a horrifying and demoralizing show. However, after I saw that the second season was recently released and quickly gaining popularity, I decided to watch it.
After only watching the first couple episodes of season one, I was intrigued by the incredible acting job of not just the main character, but also the outstanding representations shown in the series of how gambling can not only affect a person’s life but also affect the people around them, including family. Seong Gi-Hun, played by the incredible actor Lee Jung-Jae, was quickly introduced as the main character, showing the main theme of an average Korean living with financial struggles in Seoul, Korea in 2021. In Squid Games, average Koreans are given the chance to play children’s games to win a handsome cash prize, and though there may be consequences to breaking such rules, the struggling competitors easily take up this chance to make up their large debts. In a bid to win the reward, the 456 participants were willing to sacrifice their cherished friendships and intimate relationships, expressing the lengths people will go to for the sake of financial gain.
On Dec. 26, 2024, the second season of Squid Games was released. Although this season had only six episodes, three fewer than the previous, the directors perfectly captured everything necessary in this series. A Korean film director, Hwang Dong-hyuk, did an extraordinary job curating this sequel to the first season. By the second season’s first episode, we are quickly introduced to Gi-Hun making an effort to learn more about this island, setting off the second season with an obvious theme. As I continued to watch, it became hard to choose whether I preferred the second or the first season, as they are both spectacular.
Within the first three days of its release, the second season of this show accumulated well over 68 million views, growing to be one of the top-watched Netflix original series ever, alongside the iconic shows Wednesday and Stranger Things. However, Squid Game grew to this spot for a good reason, as it is not like the majority of other shows. It has an interesting combination of horror and action and seems to incorporate almost every genre, like mystery and humor.
The use of humor in the second season also makes it much different from the first season, however, in the best ways possible. This new season features participants with a more diverse demographic profile, rather than primarily middle-aged individuals burdened by substantial debt. Many of the participants in the second season are younger and tend to have more of a humorous approach than the past players. One of the newer and most beloved characters of this season, Thanos (Choi Seung-hyun), has a large impact on the games themselves. As a younger adult and a famous rapper, he uses his abnormal humor and personality to make it through the games, ultimately changing the vibe of the season overall, into a much happier approach. As the season continues, the guards also have a noticeable change, as many of the rules have been altered to the younger players’ preferences, automatically giving them the option to leave without the need to ask. The second season continues to hold heartbreaking deaths of some of our favorite characters but finds a way to break up the previous sadness with comical aspects throughout this show, ultimately making the show feel a tad bit happier than the first season.
The sequel to Squid Games season one nevertheless ended off the season on yet another teeth-chattering cliffhanger per usual. As new characters and secrets are introduced throughout the series, they will remain unresolved until the release of the next season. I believe that the director portrayed these hidden secrets perfectly in a way that doesn’t reveal them too obviously, but instead makes it much more anticipating and exciting to see what happens next in the third season.
Many consider the second season significantly more serious than the first; however, it still presents numerous poignant themes and remarkable character development. It illustrates that while Gi-Hun achieved his desired life, the build-up to his success affected him far more than his financial gain. Squid Game 2 was breathtaking and an incredible creation of a show; however, I cannot fully determine the tying together of the season until the next one is released.
hayeon • Jan 23, 2025 at 1:23 pm
very well written!!! i still need to watch it