Squid Games

Episodes: 9 

Synopsis: A Netflix show that tells the story of a group of 456 people who are invited to risk their lives for 45.6 billion won (38.7 million USD) in a series of childhood games. 

Review: 
This was so entertaining because it took childhood games + survival shows + dystopian tropes and combined them. Squid Games had amazing marketing leading up to its release and had a cast of big-name actors such as Lee Jung Jae and Gong Yoo. I found this series to be sinister and hard to watch because of how graphic and brutal the scenes can be, but I was entranced just the same. 

When childhood games come with such high stakes & when the characters are not necessarily cookie-cutter individuals where you feel openly good about rooting for them, it forces you to confront why you want these players to make it. They were all fighting for money due to circumstances beyond their personal control - with influences of society, life, and misfortune leading them to many of the decisions made. However, these players signing up for games for rich people's entertainment, begs the question of how much of their downfall serves the system/serves the rich? 

While the societal discourse surrounding Squid Games is fascinating, I did think the portrayal of the wealthy watching them for sport was a bit shallow. The acting was hard to watch and it felt too in-your-face. Also, what was the point of the undercover cop & what he figured out? I know it's to set up Season 2 -- but I worry Season 2 may be repetitive of the chaos and dilute the story behind how the Squid Games were built to use the "lowlife/poor" individuals as game pieces and there is little to fight against a system that works against them in real-life and in the games.