Major narrative spoilers will be discussed for all seasons of Squid Game. Proceed with caution!
Summary
Season 3ofSquid Gameis available to stream on Netflix, and fans of this innovative Korean thriller can finally witness its long-awaited conclusion. As expected, it’s filled to the brim with everything one can expect from the show — shocking character deaths, emotional scenes, creative but violent games, and much more — meaning that it’s already a hit with viewers around the world.
While Season 3 is obviously not perfect, there are a lot of things it does way better than its predecessors, Seasons 1 and 2, and it has even managed to surprise fans on more than one occasion. These are seven noteworthy examples of areas in whichSquid Game’s final season really stands out.
7The Hopelessness
This is the Bleakest Season Yet
Squid Gameis an inherently dark and morbid show, as it’s mostly centered on how a capitalist society can force people in need of money to go to extremes in order to earn more and pay their debts. As a result,Seasons 1 and 2 were already full of shocking and violent character deathsand featured a disturbingly dark atmosphere.
However, Season 3 is undoubtedly the bleakest one yet, as it’s filled with an air of complete hopelessness all the way through. At least Season 1 made it obvious that Seong Gi-hun was eventually going to win, and Season 2 really made it seem like he was going to put an end to the games with his rebellion. But after failing to do so in the previous season’s finale, it really feels like everybody is going to die in Season 3, which results in the viewer feeling even more anxious and engaged than usual.
6Character Deaths
It Features Some of the Most Shocking and Gruesome Deaths in the Entire Show
Squid Gameis obviously well-known for its unpredictable character deaths, as it constantly feels like nobody is safe, and they can all die at any moment. Season 1 featured the memorable deaths of many iconic characters, like Ali Abdul, Kang Sae-byeok, and Cho Sang-woo. Season 2 was just the first half of the 2024 games, so the character deaths were pretty much kept to a minimum.
On the other hand, the deaths of Season 3 are not only very frequent,but are also some of the most shocking ones in the entire show: Hyun-ju’s abrupt death by stabbing, Park Yong-sik’s demise at the hands of his own mother, Geum-ja’s shocking suicide, Jun-hee’s tragic sacrifice, and Min-su getting revenge on Nam-gyu (just to name a few). These characters' deaths are already having an impact on fans around the world, and they’ll be remembered for many years to come, even more so than any other ones from the previous seasons.
5The Final Game
Sky Squid Game is Much More Compelling Than Regular Squid Game
The final game of Season 1, the titular Squid Game, was quite simple in nature, as it was basically a one-on-one battle between childhood friends Seong Gi-hun and Cho Sang-woo. This encounter was obviously very intense and emotional, but it lacked the sense of dread and unpredictability that all the other twisted games in the event had, especially considering that it was obvious from the get-go that Gi-hun was going to come out victorious.
In Season 3, viewers finally got to witness the final game of the 2024 event, and it was much more interesting in comparison.Sky Squid Gameis not only a new twist on the classic game, but it was also played by nine different participants who had to decide who they were going to eliminate in each round. This resulted in a lot of tension, arguments, betrayals, and shocking deaths, and viewers had to keep guessing who was going to live and who was going to die.
4The Connection Between the Two Main Plots
Hwang Jun-Ho Finally Did Something Useful
Back in Season 1, a police detective named Hwang Jun-ho managed to infiltrate the games and even escaped the island with vital information, until he was found and gunned down by the Front Man, who was none other than his own brother that he was searching for, In-ho. Jun-ho’s B-plot did a good job at showcasing how the games worked from the inside, but he never really interacted with the players, making it feel entirely disconnected from the A-plot.
In Season 2, Jun-ho kept searching for the mysterious island with the help of other people, but he didn’t do much in the entire season. Season 3 finally connects the two plots by making Jun-ho find an injured Park Gyeong-seok near the island and calling the Coast Guard, which forced In-ho to evacuate the island and destroy it with explosives. Some fans are still disappointed by Jun-ho’s surprisingly brief role in Season 3, but this time around, he at least did something useful that had a major impact on the main plot.
3Kang No-Eul’s C-Plot
A Brilliant and Refreshing Addition to the Story
Season 2 introduced audiences to Kang No-eul, a North Korean defector who wants to earn enough money to find the daughter she had to leave behind. But she wasn’t a player — she was actually a Pink Soldier — so her story allowed viewers to witness how exactly these terrifying soldiers worked. However, when she found out that Park Gyeong-seok, the father of a sick child she knew, was participating, she had one goal in mind: to get him out of there.
No-eul put her plan into motion in Season 3 by tricking her colleagues, killing anybody who got in her way, and going against her higher-up’s orders in order to help Gyeong-seok escape. This C-plot was not only incredibly interesting and satisfying,but it also concluded with a happy ending, which was a breath of fresh air in comparison to the hopelessness of the rest of the season. In a way, it felt like No-eul contributed a lot more than Jun-ho ever did.
2The VIPs
The Worst Part of Season 1 Got a Little Bit Better
MostSquid Gamefans agree thatthe VIPs(the group of billionaire clients who fund and watch the games) were the absolute worst aspect of Season 1. The actors gave an over-the-top performance that clashed with the bleak atmosphere of the show, which was made even worse by their questionable accents. As a result, the VIPs came off as unrealistic caricatures of evil rich people, instead of the cruel exploiters they were supposed to be.
The VIPs are back in Season 3, and their portrayal has gotten much better in comparison. While they kept their horrible accents and exaggerated demeanor, they now feel a lot more cruel and despicable, especially when they decided that Jun-hee’s newborn baby should keep playing as Player 222. On top of that, they were introduced while posing as Pink Soldiers in order to kill players in cold blood, as if it was just a mere game for them, which made them feel even more evil. Additionally, not all the VIPs are old men now, as there are also younger men and even women in the group, which is a lot more realistic.
1It’s the Conclusion to Gi-Hun’s Story
After Four Years, the Main Character’s Story Has Finally Come to An End
Seong Gi-hunis the protagonist ofSquid Game,and as a result, he’s the only character who has consistently appeared throughout all three seasons of this show. He won the games back in Season 1, and it almost seemed like his story was going to conclude with him traveling to America to reunite with his daughter — until he decided to stay in South Korea to try and put an end to the games.Season 2 also tricked viewers into thinking he was going to achieve his goal with his rebellion, but he was stopped by the Front Man at the very last minute.
After so many twists and turns,Gi-hun’s story finally came to an end in Season 3. The failure of his rebellion (and the many deaths it caused) greatly discouraged him, but he found a new reason to live when Jun-hee asked him to take care of her newborn baby. This resulted in Gi-hun sacrificing himself in the final game, so the baby could win instead, thus proving to In-ho that humans are not completely worthless. His death was not only incredibly shocking and emotional, but it was also a satisfying conclusion for this complex main character.
