Season 2 of Squid Game widened its scope by following not only returning winner Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae), but amiable cop and half-brother to the Front Man (Lee Byung-hun), Jun-ho (Wi Ha-joon), and giving us a different look inside the games through Squid Game guard, Kang No-eul (Park Gyu-young). It returns to Netflix for its third and final season on June 27. Creator Hwang Dong-hyuk writes and directs episodes as layered as they are visually iconic, so revisiting exactly how Season 2 raised the stakes – and where it left off – is a necessity.
‘Squid Game 2’ Opens Outside of the Games and Focuses on Revenge
Four years after winning, Gi-hun enlists the help of loan-shark, Mr. Kim (Kim Pub-lae). His right hand, Woo-seok (Jeon Seok-ho), helps run Gi-hun’s operation. With a series of phones in his car, Gi-hun runs his own kind of games, sending Kim’s men, two at a time, into train stations to find The Recruiter (Gong Yoo). Mr. Kim and Woo-seok spot The Recruiter playing ddakji and follow him to a park. He torments the homeless with the choice between bread or a lottery ticket. After he makes contact with everyone, he dumps the remaining bread rolls onto the ground and stomps on them. They try to follow him further and are caught. The Recruiter forces them to play Rock, Paper, Scissors, Minus One, which combines the childish game with Russian roulette.
Mr. Kim sacrifices himself for Woo-seok, after Woo-seok plays two rocks, and The Recruiter takes Woo-seok to Gi-hun’s makeshift headquarters. Gi-hun and the Recruiter enter into a game of Russian roulette. The Recruiter shares that he was once a lowly guard in the games, even shooting his own father, before working his way up to The Recruiter. He tries to justify his behavior by comparing the competitors to animals, and Gi-hun counters this by telling The Recruiter he is nothing but a dog for the VIPs. The Recruiter’s luck runs out, and he dies during the roulette.
Meanwhile, Jun-ho has returned to the police force. He’s taken on a smaller beat and spends his free time searching for the island with the fisherman who saved him from the water, Captain Park (Oh Dal Soo). During a routine traffic stop, he recognizes Gi-hun’s name and discovers a business address. He arrives at Gi-hun’s headquarters post-roulette. Following an invite found in the Recruiter’s things, Gi-hun, Jun-ho, and Woo-seok head to a VIP party with their combined forces to stage an ambush.
Gi-hun wears a tracker in a false tooth. The plan is for the others to follow him to the Front Man’s location, but he sends Gi-hun an empty limo. The Front Man communicates through a speaker in a gold pig, reminiscent of the piggy bank above the dormitory. Knowing this might be his only chance to find proof, Gi-hun demands the Front Man put him in the games.
We also followed a new character, No-eul. A defector from North Korea, she is trying to find her young daughter she left behind. She makes ends meet by working as a character actor at a theme park. There, she has grown fond of a small child whose father, Gyeong-seok (Lee Jin-wook), works as a portrait artist in the park. No-eul is approached in the car she lives in and receives an invitation to the games. The twist is that she gets on a truck and dons the pink guard jumpsuit.
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“Green light!”
Gi-hun Returns to the Squid Game and Everything Gets Personal
Gi-hun awakens player 456 once again. He’s accosted by a shaman, Seon-nyeo (Chae Gook-hee), who speaks of vengeful souls hovering around him. More surprisingly, he sees Jung-bae (Lee Seo-hwan), his friend, is in the games. Unbeknownst to Gi-hun, his tracker was tossed in a bucket of fish bait, leading Jun-ho and the others to the wrong location. Gi-hun realizes he will have to play the games again for real. He tries his best to warn the others, but they don’t believe him until the first casualties of Red Light, Green Light. One player joins him in trying to save lives, Hyun-ju (Park Sung-hoon), and from her sniper post, No-eul finishes kills cleanly that other guards intentionally botch to harvest organs.
Gi-hun and Jun-bae aren’t the only interpersonal connections in these games. Crypto influencer MG Coin – Myeong-Gi (Yim Si-wan) – finds his ex-partner, Jun-hee (Jo Yu-ri), in the games, heavily pregnant. He also runs into former fans who found themselves in debt after the cryptocurrency he promoted failed, including reality show rapper, Thanos (Choi Seung-hyun), and club bouncer, Nam-gyu (Noh Jae-won). A mother and son, Geum-ja (Kang Ae-sim) and Yong-sik (Yang Dong-geun) discover they both entered the games to pay off Yong-sik’s debts. Unbeknownst to Gi-hun, his connections run deeper. The Front Man poses as a player, using a fake name, Oh Young-Il. He participates in the first vote, leading the games to continue, and moves closer to Gi-hun.
Alliances are born with the Six-Legged Pentathlon. Teams of five play five games – ddakji, flying stone, gonggi, spinning top, and jegi. Gi-hun works with Young-il, Jung-bae, a young veteran, Dae-ho (Kang Ha-neul), and the pregnant Jun-hee. Other relationships crucial to the story develop here. Hyun-ju works with the shaman, Seon-nyeo, Yong-sik and his mother Geum-ja, and a timid young woman, Young-Mi (Kim Si-eun). Thanos and Nam-gyu grow closer, sharing the drugs Thanos smuggled in via a crucifix necklace, and work with Min-su (David Lee), Gyeong-su (Kang Seong-uk), and Se-mi (Won Ji-an). Except for Seon-nyeo cracking under pressure, these groups work in relative harmony, with Hyun-ju in particular proving to be a natural leader and motivator.
Alliances Fall Apart
The groups begin to splinter during Mingle. Players ride a disorienting carousel, before they form groups and flee to a safe room based on a called number. Thanos’ drug-addled behavior becomes more erratic, with extreme mood swings, and it costs his group lives. Jung-bae witnesses Young-il choke a man to death to guarantee the right number for their safe room. Young-mi dies after Myeong-gi forces himself into a room, leaving Hyun-ju distraught. Seon-nyeo curses Hyun-ju and the others for abandoning her, as her shamanistic rantings gain her a following.
Meanwhile, No-eul finds herself at odds with the other guards once again. A masked guard warns her to back off, demanding she stop sabotaging the side hustle of black market organs. Jun-ho continues his search for Gi-hun and the real island, employing drones to scout from a distance. They believe they’re close, but when they go on land, all they find is a trap. Jun-ho realizes that someone must be a double agent protecting the games. He’s right: Captain Park throws a mercenary overboard, narrowly escaping being caught by Woo-seok.
Another vote is called. Young-il votes to leave, resulting in a tie. The guards announce a 24-hour break before a new vote. This gives those voting “stay” a clear incentive to intimidate or kill those who don’t. This is clearly what the games want – players are given sharp utensils with dinner. A confrontation between Myeon-gi and Thanos about his crypto scam escalates to violence, and Myeon-gi fatally stabs Thanos — it’s the first non-game kill. At lights out, further chaos erupts. Nam-gyu turns violent and kills former teammate Se-mi, despite Min-su’s attempts to save her by pelting glass at Nam-gyu from a bunk. This leaves them as the only two people left from Thanos’ alliance.
Gi-hun Finally Makes His Move at the End of ‘Squid Game’ Season 2
Gi-hun’s group joins with Hyun-ju’s, plus Gyeong-seok. They agree not to participate in the carnage. When the masked guards enter, they play dead and fight back when guards come to check their pulse. With the guards’ guns, they take over the dormitory and plan their rebellion. Hyun-ju reveals her military background and instructs the others. She joins Gi-hun, Gyeong-seok, Jung-bae, Dae-ho – and, unfortunately, the Front Man – in an attempt to overtake the games by making their way to the control rooms. They’re overwhelmed by guards and quickly run low on ammo. Hyun-ju and Gyeong-seok try to hold the line, sending Dae-ho to collect ammunition. Dae-ho has a traumatic flashback and never returns. As this happens, Gi-hun, Jung-bae, and Young-il move further towards the VIP area. The Front Man feigns his death over the radio. Back in uniform, he executes Jung-bae in front of Gi-hun.
Hwang has promised the expected grief and tragedy of Squid Game, but with an ending that’s ultimately hopeful. With teasers and sneak peeks showing Gi-hun alive but broken down, it’s clear both are possible. With gumball machines and a labyrinth of childhood-inspired hallways, the show will go out on some of its most unsettling juxtapositions yet. While the heartache is unavoidable, there’s no doubt that the ensemble’s incredible performances and Hwang’s writing and direction will make all that suffering worth it.
Squid Game Season 3 premieres June 27 on Netflix in the U.S.
Release Date
2021 – 2024
Network
Netflix
Showrunner
Hwang Dong-hyuk
Directors
Hwang Dong-hyuk
Writers
Hwang Dong-hyuk
Lee Jung-jae
Seong Gi-hun / ‘No. 456’
Jeon Young-soo
Game Guide
