BY ASHMITAA THIRUSELVAM
Show: Squid Game
Creator: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Rating: ★★★★1/2

Netflix’s breakout international star Squid Game has taken over social media and is set to overtake Bridgerton as the platform’s most-watched and popular series of all time. 

As it stands, the series is Netflix’s most successful South Korean drama and saw its fan engagement exceed 981 per cent in its first week, according to Whip Media.

This sees the series’ interest levels on par with, and even exceeding, other major Netflix originals such as The Queen’s Gambit, Lupin and Sex/Life.

Released September 17, the nine-part South Korean thriller features 465 debt-ridden players who compete to win a cash prize of 45.6 billion South Korean won (Aus $52.1 million) through a series of simple children’s games - each with a morbid twist.

Viewers get to experience this survival drama through the eyes of the main character Seong Gi-hun, who succumbs to a gambling addiction which lands him in great debt.

With loan sharks on his tail, he struggles to make ends meet with his mother and gain custody of his 10-year-old daughter. 

In an interview with Variety, Squid Game’s Director Hwang Dong-hyuk said his vision for the drama was for it to be “an allegory or fable about modern capitalist society”. 

“Something that depicts an extreme competition, like the extreme competition of life,” Hwang said.

But what makes this series so addictive? It poses two questions: “how far would you go for money?” and “how much of your body, your life, would you trade to keep the wolves from the proverbial door and to get to live the life you’ve always dreamed?”.

A particular scene in the Hell episode shows surviving players casting a vote on whether the deadly games should be terminated - a clause in Squid Game’s contract, which requires a majority vote.

This is a significant, yet confusing moment in the series, as the audiences watches players vote to stay after previously witnessing them begging to leave.

The scene is pivotal in revealing contestants’ desperation to put their lives on the line for the chance of riches, while revealing their experience with hunger, poverty, debt and dishonour have been as brutal as the murderous games themselves.

Aside from its gruesome plot, Squid Game’s rise to mainstream popularity has had its benefits, featuring traditional Korean foods such as dalgona and dosirak which have trended on social media and even reignited local businesses. 

Dalgona makes an appearance in The Man with the Umbrella episode, where cash-strapped contestants are made to carve out a shape in the brittle honeycomb with a needle. They must avoid breaking it, or be executed on the spot.  

This scene is a great example of how contrived the notion of fairness is in our society, where the rules of the game are set by those at the top and players have no ability to contest, no matter how cruel the rules are.

In an interview with Global News, Seoul dalgona vendor An Yong-Hui said the show’s popularity had welcomed “200-300 people per day compared to 100 people” they served prior to the drama’s rise to popularity.

Despite its global success, Squid Game has had its fair share of criticisms with many, including Swedish Youtuber Pewdiepie, calling it an “anime rip-off” as it shares a similar concept to classic Japanese mangas like Kaiji and Liar Game. 

However, Hwang admitted in his Variety interview that he did draw inspiration from these comics but wanted to replicate children's games, which are “simple and easy to understand” unlike the “complex” games described in the mangas he read. 

The major cliffhanger in the final episode has sparked debate with many furious at Gi-Hun’s choices and others left wondering about the possibility of a second season which is yet to be confirmed. 

Hwang told Variety that a second season may be possible in the future but he would “certainly not do it alone” and “consider using a writers’ room and...multiple experienced directors”.

For now, fans can only ponder on countless theories and easter eggs embedded within the series to fuel their curiosity. Was there a reason why Gi-Hun dyed his hair red at the end? Could it possibly symbolise him returning to the game as one of the soldiers? Why did he not end up boarding his flight in the end?

It seems that audiences will just have to continue convincing themselves their favourite characters are still alive as they enter the first stage of grief – denial. 

It is more than safe to say that while the gory and violent scenes in Squid Game are not for the faint of heart, it is the show’s attention to the twisted aspects of modern-day capitalism that ultimately makes it an amazing watch.