“I’ve played these games before, I said I’ve played these games before!”
This line was from one of many intense scenes from the second season of Netflix’s hit original Squid Game. Directed by the brilliant Hwang Dong-Hyuk, viewers saw the continuation of the hit first season. 126.2 million viewers tuned in on Dec.26 to follow Gi-Hun as he vows to take on the cruel “games” run by the ever-mysterious frontman.
One of the best aspects of Squid Game 2 was its premiere, “Bread and Lottery.” Similarly to season 1, the premiere serves as an expose for the characters and their motivations. Gi-Hun is immediately seen refusing to get on the plane to see his daughter and vowing to take down the games instead. Next, we see an immediate flash forward to Gi-Hun trying to find the Recruiter. Since he first entered the games, Gi-Hun has built an army of men from the loan sharks of season 1. His actions serve as an excellent view of Gi-Hun’s nobility as he’s willing to sacrifice his own needs for the sake of others, juxtaposing with the games’ brutalist nature. I really enjoyed the Recruiter from the premiere as well. Hyuk brilliantly uses the Recruiter as a vehicle for one of the season’s major themes as a whole. We first see the Recruiter buying lottery tickets and bread. Next, the Recruiter goes to a popular homeless spot and offers a decision between the two. All the homeless people except one take the lottery ticket rather than the bread. Hyuk and Gong-Yoo work harmoniously to highlight that capitalism incentivizes the capacity to make more rather than basic necessities. The premiere finishes with a beautiful scene between Gi-Hun and the Recruiter in the Pink Hotel. In a game of Russian roulette, Gi-Hun talks about how the Recruiter is just a horse in the grand scheme of the game. The Recruiter responds with a beautiful reference to the movie The Matrix and asks if Gi-Hun wants to take the red or blue pill. These both beautifully combine to critique capitalism. The ending is a beautiful crescendo, and Gong-Yoo looks happy and afraid as he shoots himself.
The premiere of Squid Game 2 does an excellent job of creating an environment where characters can flourish and the audience can understand them. However, a critical critique of the Squid Game is that outside of Gi-Hun, no characters are given depth, as Episode 1 foreshadows. For example, we meet the likes of player 120 (Cho-Hyun-Ju), player 007 (Park-Yong Sik), and player 149 (Jang Guem-Ja). We are introduced to some fundamental conflicts about them, like player 120, who is trans, or 007/149, who is mother-son. Despite these problems being introduced, Squid Game 2 flatlines the development of these characters. They are left solely as symbols for their problems instead of being dynamic. Yes, player 120 is transgender, but outside of a couple of comments from 149 and her not wanting others to see her during the race, there is no complexity to these conflicts.
Furthermore, we see no influence in the family dynamic between the mother and son. Yes, there is some bickering and tension. However, when Park-Yong Sik is pushed away from Jang Guem-Ja in the room game, he doesn’t have a choice. It wasn’t like he actively decided to go against his mom for his own survival. Season 1 did a fantastic job of creating characters with not only complexity but would put them in nuanced situations. Yes, Sang Woo is a cutthroat businessman, but he’s tested when he has to betray Ali. Season 2 falls slightly short of this mark as Thanos, Gyeong Suk, and Jung-bae all lack true complexity.
Where the characters lack, some aspects of the game make up for. One of my favorite elements of this season was the element of voting after every round, something that wasn’t in season 1. Voting added an incredible element to the games, which wasn’t explored even when players voted in season 1. I really enjoyed the divide that voting incurred. The warring factions of Gi-Hun vs Player 100 and Thanos’s side were fascinating to watch. Players voting or choosing to switch their votes added a complex take on the critique of capitalism. Really, to what extent are they willing to jeopardize their own lives or other lives for monetary compensation? Another element I really enjoyed was the return of player 001, this time in the form of the frontman. He is the only exception to my critique in the previous paragraph. We see a cool take on his benevolent yet evil nature.
Squid Game season 2 ends on a cliffhanger, the resistance stops, Gi Hun is at the mercy of the Front Man, and games are still to be played. Although this season felt like an awkward middle child of season 1 and the next season, it was full of good moments that I enjoyed.
