‘Squid Game’ Season 2 is ruined by its latest twist: Full season review

meanwhile squid game Season 2’s Mingle Game has contestants standing on a revolving platform while an unsettling nursery rhyme plays. “Guru guru, guru guru,” the children sing. “Let’s spin around and dance.”

This song might be a good way to start: squid gamehas plenty of dangerous games for kids, but it’s also proven to be a pretty accurate depiction of the season 2 viewing experience. Despite all the hype — 3 years For the revival of the biggest series in Netflix history, squid game Season 2 is frustratingly repetitive, featuring repetitive and borderline uninspired storytelling rather than the propulsive do-or-die stakes of season 1.

This recurring problem persists throughout the season, but even more so with the restart of the season. squid game‘s voting mechanism will play a bigger role this season (to the great detriment of the show).

What is squid game What is the Season 2 voting mechanism and why isn’t it working?

In season 1 of squid gameAs players experience the horror of red light, green light, they are presented with a choice. If a majority votes to end the game, everyone can go home. They do (with one vote). However, when players return to the real world and are once again faced with the weight of debt, most players choose to return to the game as it is unlikely that they will be able to win enough money to save their lives. .

When Song Ki-hoon (Lee Jeong-jae) acolyte) Return to the game in Season 2 and experience voting again after red light, green light. Only this time, things are different. Players can now choose whether to exit the game after each challenge. If they choose to leave, they will split the current prize pot, with each death increasing their prize.

This change to the game’s voting mechanism is an interesting development. This determines whether the player is willing to walk away alive with a relatively small (yet significant) amount of money, or whether they are willing to risk their lives and the lives of those around them to go after more money next time. Test whether round. “One more game,” they say to themselves, recalling the gambling addict who racked up debt.

An additional vote would also further heighten tensions between those who want to leave and those who want to remain in office. Finally, this serves as a message from the frontman (Lee Byung-hun) to Ki-hoon. Despite Ki-hoon’s attempts at heroism, there will always be people who choose to play at the expense of others. That’s part of the reason why frontmen and others running the game consider players “cockroaches” even as they ignore the injustices of the capitalist system that got them there in the first place. .

With all these nuances in mind, repeated voting could work in theory. But it doesn’t actually work. Season 2 features three voting scenes, each lasting longer than the last. After all, there are only so many ways to keep people interested in lining up to press the button. Needless to say after that every Once people vote, they have to apologize or give an explanation. these scenes feel very similar RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars You might wonder if you watched a reality show as contestants justify whose lipstick they wore Squid Game: The Challenge Instead.

squid game It’s trying to toy with its own formula by making “shocking” shuffles about who votes for what. It’s easy to graph how people stand in a game, but when the outcome is so obvious, it’s best to focus on the personal arcs of people choosing to leave or stay with the team. is difficult. meat squid game is such a game that every time we go to a vote, we know there’s no way it will pass. By design, the show has to stay in this hellish playground.

In reality, repeated votes only give us the illusion of difference, just as they give players like Ki-hoon the illusion of escape. What could have been an interesting game mechanic ends up being horribly bloated in an already frustrating season. So by the time the third vote results in a tie, we’re less interested in what happens next and even more frightened by the promise that it’s still going to happen. another Voting order. (At least the series can avoid a fourth round thanks to Ki-hoon’s finale rebellion.)

squid game Season 2 is boring and repetitive, as is the voting system.

Choi Seung-hyun from “Squid Game”.
Credit: No Joo-han / Netflix

squid game‘s overemphasis on voting is just one symptom of Season 2’s overall problem. It’s all about reusing plot points from season one with a grounded twist.

Let’s start with the obvious. Once again, player 001 of the game is a plant of the people managing the game. This time, none other than frontman Hwang In-ho sneaks into the match to watch over Ki-hoon and ends up becoming one of Ki-hoon’s closest allies. All the better to break his spirit once you know his true identity! The only problem is Gihoon I don’t As we learn who 001 is this season, the sense of brutal catharsis we got from season 1’s Oh Il-nam (Oh Young-soo) reveal is lost.

(That detail is just one of many unsatisfactory points) squid game Leaves are hanging at the end of season 2. It’s no surprise considering creator Hwang Dong-hyuk said this. entertainment weekly He said he originally envisioned seasons two and three as one story. )

In other places, squid game Similar to Season 1’s Kang Sae-byuk (Jung Ho-young), a new perspective will be added by the character Kang No-eul (Park Gyu-young), a North Korean defector who becomes a soldier in the game. What was supposed to be an enlightening look at what drives someone to a role quickly becomes a remix of Season 1’s organ-harvesting plot, with a look at No-eul’s inner life as she recognizes someone she knows from the outside. Little consideration was given to conflict. game.

The game itself becomes a matter of memorization. Hexapod pentathlon is a compilation of so many matches that it becomes a chore to watch. Mingle overstayed his welcome after several rounds. I feel like I’m watching squid game Slam your body against the ground. That becomes doubly true when you add in the overlong subplot of Detective Hwang Joon-ho (Wi Ha-joon) getting lost and wandering around on a boat. We spin around and dance in circles, but we don’t have much to show for it.

squid game Season 2 is a step down, but that’s not the only blame.

Park Gyu-young from “Squid Game”.
Credit: No Joo-han / Netflix

when squid game Season 1’s first hit felt like a fresh take on the “death game” genre. It spoke directly to anxieties about debt and inequality arising from life under late capitalism. In addition, game elements aimed at children were given devilish aesthetic twists, such as pastel-colored playgrounds and now-iconic-shaped masks worn by soldiers.

However, since then, the concept of squid game I was beaten to death. Beyond Netflix’s ill-advised reality spin-off, YouTuber MrBeast recreated the game for his channel in 2021, essentially plagiarizing it again for his channel. beast games game show. Meanwhile, Netflix continues to release countless tie-ins, mobile games, and even real-life experiences. squid game The long wait between Mania and seasons only builds anticipation, but diminishes what once felt special. Season 2 will be even weaker squid gameeven ending in a generic gunfight miles away from the claustrophobic, almost intimate stakes of season one.

We’ve made every effort to dial up elements of Season 1, whether it’s the voting mechanics or the frontman’s role. squid game Season 2 takes away from the mystique and charm of Season 2 itself. This is proof that too much of a good thing can completely ruin a show’s momentum, and that sometimes great series don’t need a second season.

squid game Season 2 is now available on Netflix.