The Filmscape Reverie

*Spoiler alert, dear readers! Don’t go further unless you’re OK with knowing how the show ends*

By: Maria Cieslarczyk

“We are not horses. We are humans. We are…” – Gi-hun (Season 3, Episode 6). Here is the Squid Games S3 Official Trailer!

I remember watching Squid Games for the first time in my college dorm room in St. Louis and immediately clutching my chest. I experienced extreme emotions switching from sympathy, to shock, to sheer rage and sadness…all in the span of a single episode.

I was a Disney TV and Film intern at the time, so shortly after I finished binge-watching the series, I attended a competitive analysis meeting. During that call, the obvious statistics were discussed…and we analyzed, in awe, just how impactful Squid Games was…especially as an Asian-based Netflix show.

Squid Games (created by Korean writer and director Hwang Dong-hyuk) takes place in modern South Korea, and follows the tantalizing survival story of Seong Gi-hun, a debt-filled good-hearted gambler, who joins a secret competition where 456 cash-strapped players participate in deadly children’s games to win a cash prize of $45.6 billion won ($33 million USD).

Statistically speaking, Squid Games took the world by storm, with nearly 600 million views across S1 and S2 prior to S3’s drop. S1 is Netflix’s most popular show ever, and S3 even broke records with its premiere (60.1 million views in the first 3 days!). It also was ranked #1 in all 93 countries with Netflix top 10 lists in the first week of its release. Talk about a global phenomenon!

So, why do people like this Asian, non-English, TV show in the first place?

Apart from its suspense and thrilling plot twists, audiences are drawn to the series due to its exploration of societal issues…including poverty, classicism and the complexities of human nature.

Gi-hun and the other 455 competitors find themselves in a dark place of desperation; so much so, that they enter into this insane competition to acquire wealth and pay off their debts. After being so down on his luck, Gi-hun chooses to risk his own life in these deadly games in order to win the prize. Losing means instant extermination from the guards – mask-wearing individuals who carry machine guns and carry out the killing sentences at the end of every game.

But winning means a second chance. Not just with finances, but with life.

S1 was released in Fall 2021, with S2 released in Winter 2024 and S3 swiftly following, with a mid-Summer 2025 release. I binge-watched S1 and S2, and S3 was definitely no different as I avoided TikTok spoilers like my life depended on it!

S3 is the most intense out of all the seasons, as Gi-hun struggles with survivor’s guilt from his failed rebellion in S2 to end the games once and for all. Gi-hun mentally retreats into a dark, murderous place, and we watch as he gives up on finding the good in humanity after he experiences betrayal after betrayal. It’s heart-wrenching to witness our beloved protagonist turns into a shell of himself, aka an exhausted product from these exploitative games.

The ending is one that had me staring at the wall FORREAL! After making it to the very last round, Gi-hun ultimately sacrifices himself so that Jun-hee (Player 222’s) newborn baby (who was born during the games!) will become the sole winner.

To me, there are still some story-lines left unfulfilled. Detective Hwang Jun-ho fails to confront his brother, In-ho (who was the Front Man of these games) in time, only seeing him for a brief moment at the end while he escapes police detection and arrest. But the most frustrating part is that Gi-hun does not survive after all his sacrifices to save people from the games.

However, the ending features a 6-month time-skip, in which In-ho, who was impacted by Gi-hun’s character as he got to know him during the games, delivers the baby and prize money to Detective Jun-ho. He then visits LA to give Gi-hun’s daughter his belongings. The show ends with In-ho witnessing an American recruiter playing ddakji…showing that the exploitation of the vulnerable has expanded on a global scale.

Although I was disappointed by the ending, I can’t help but applaud the way we see that one person (Gi-hun) can truly make a difference in the lives of others, even if not in the powerful grandeur way he had envisioned.

Sometimes all we can do is try our best with what we have.

As an Asian-American, seeing the impact of Squid Games has brought me such happiness in knowing that people from around the world do enjoy learning and consuming Asian media. It’s inspired me to keep going with my own creative projects, and for that, I am grateful.

Squid Games is a Korean series that redefined dark comedy and action-thriller foreign shows. With moments of joy sprinkled into pure desperation and creative violence…the series reminds us of what we are all capable of in times of desperation.

But more importantly, it is a show about human nature…the very best and very worst of it. S3 embodies that messy humanness, all the way up to its excruciating end.