It seems as though a lifetime has passed since Squid Game swept a pandemic-fuelled globe by storm. Although it has been four years since the first season of Netflix’s South Korean thriller series aired, the mark it left on popular culture can still be felt today. Despite this, the recently released second season highlights that perhaps the one thing that has faded from collective memory of the show was what it all meant.
The first season of Squid Game followed Seong Gi-Hun (Lee Jung-jae), a down-on-his-luck gambling addict who takes a chance by entering a secretive, reality show style game where he must compete in children’s games against others to earn a massive fortune. The catch being that by losing these games, the contestants would pay with their lives.
This acted as a particularly conspicuous showcase of both the economic disparities present in South Korea but also how easily these can be exploited by the entertainment industry, reality shows in particular. None of it felt overtly complicated but it feels as though general audiences fell in love with everything about Squid Game but the central theme.
The show was a pop culture hit, quickly becoming one of Netflix’s most viewed series and expansion was quick off the mark, The merchandising opportunities alone were ripe, with the ominous red suits and black masks worn by the guards in the show becoming a prominent Halloween costume. Many popular gaming platforms such as Fortnite and Roblox quickly took to creating in-game versions of the Squid Game.
Further than a digitalisation of these fictional games many have taken the opportunity to turn the rules of the Squid Game into a real life reality show (minus the mass murder of course). Both Netflix and popular YouTuber MrBeast have created exact replicas of the “Squid Game” as reality series, and many other popular reality shows have taken direct inspiration. Despite this being an extraordinary testament to the set design and world building of the original, it is hard not to describe it all as “missing the point”.
Now the second season of the show has been released, a second season that lead creator Hwang Dong-Hyuk never planned for, it is clear that Dong-Hyuk has one central message to get across; a simple yet desperate plea with the audience to engage with the original concept. This season again follows Seong Gi-Hun as he reenters the games in an attempt to put an end to them. This time, rather than just fighting to survive, he must fight the will of his teammates to continue the murderous games for a chance at fortune. Much of the second season revolves around Gi-Hun trying to convince people to vote for the games to stop, as they are allowed to do after each game played.
Again, Dong-Hyuk has left little to the imagination in what he is conveying with his premise. This time he uses the voting system to delve deeper into the different forms of economic desperation that can push people to the brink. It seems he too is aware that much of his own audience have missed the point of the first season completely. The actual games this season are less central to the plot, Dong-Hyuk instead deciding to focus on conversations around class solidarity and free will of the broken masses.
This isn’t to say the second season is more of the same. The characters that do return feel as though they have evolved in many ways. Watching Gi-Hun go from a desperate man willing to do anything for a fortune to a near Marx-like figure is mesmerising in its own right. Many of the newer characters taking part in these games feel more rounded and fleshed out than those who took part in the previous season. Even those with minimal screen time feel engaging to watch, and any characters that feel frustrating to watch get their due comeuppance.
Substance isn’t the only area where Squid Game 2 improves on the original. Stylistically the show feels as though it has much more to offer this season. Split camera angles, long focused zooms and a busting colour palette all aid the show in feeling fresh and exciting without much change in location, pace or aesthetic.
However it is yet again Lee Jung-jae’s performance as Seong Gi-Hun that stands out the most. His range feels more fully utilised this season with the roaring anger of a grieving champion fully realised by the actor.
Squid Game 2 is an improvement in many ways on the first season, both in style and substance. Yet, it is difficult to separate the show from the reputation. Knowing the full scope of how the show has been perceived by many in the industry, it is almost upsetting to watch Hyuk plead with the audience to engage substantively with his material. The themes yet again feel as though they are staring you in the face, while Squid Game 2 skins are already available for purchase in Black Ops 6. It seems yet again the show’s themes are doomed to go unnoticed.
All in all Squid Game 2 is far more dedicated to a larger cultural commentary than it was the first time. The gore and broader horror elements are toned down in favour of longer character development all with the aim of shining a mirror back at society. Yet as the second season rushes to a messy finish, most likely because the script was written across a two-season arc, it isn’t any clearer whether this time around people will finally get the message.
