Squid Game S3 delivers agonizing tension & unforgettable games leading to an explosive conclusion
The most-watched show of all time on the biggest streaming platform has come to an end. And what a ride it has been! With a penchant for surprising its audience while staying true to its vision and characters, Squid Game’s final season is as nerve-wracking as you’d expect. While the end may divide audiences or may divide individuals within themselves, it can’t be denied that the show leaves an imprint on your soul.
The 2nd season ended with Park Jun-bae’s (the hero’s friend) execution in front of Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae, playing our hero), as a direct result of the hero’s planned battle against the guardians of the game. The lost lives of his friend and others who fought in the battle by his side devastate Gi-hun. The pain is too much to bear, but he isn’t granted the sweet release of death by the Front Man. He must continue living, and he must continue playing.
The new players introduced in season 2 have stuck in memory, but their bond with the audience, if tested, may cost the show its viewers. Hence, unlike the previous season, season 3 picks up the pace in the early episodes. An anxiety-inducing vote is quickly held, and as you’d guess, a new game begins. The games here are more tense, with fewer players and enough of them to care about. Seeing desperate people pushed to the brink of suicide and murder still remains harrowing. If you start the series, you can’t stop, such is the pull of the production.
We knew the games are like witnessing a car collision; you are saddened by the events, yet you can’t stop looking at the damage. But the master storyteller and Squid Game creator, Hwang Dong-hyuk, squeezes tension out of each moment, each predicament, like a juicy lemon. It’s divine torture
The set design and overall production are expectedly amazing. In one scene, upon discovering the suit worn by one of the guards, a cop says (I’m paraphrasing), ‘In all my years as a cop, I don’t know of any criminals who’d wear this pink suit!’. This level of self-awareness is most present when we see the rich clients, the people who actually pay to watch these games. At times, their reactions aren’t much different from ours. But the difference is that we are seeing actors play parts in a TV show, whereas they are witnessing real-life Hunger Games or Battle Royale.
Gi-hun is light on his feet and quick with his feet, which makes him the perfect specimen to win the Squig game. He is also driven by his conscience, however, and having lost his sense of purpose, it adds another element of surprise to his fate in the show. The games continue until the last man/woman standing as greed does not desist.
The commentary on class and greed is piercing, but the show elevates it to the level of agonizing realism despite portraying a superficial scenario. This season has upped the ante to the maximum degree and reached a conclusion that has the potential to be talked about for years to come.
Geum-ja – ‘I still believe you came here to save us all.’