Squid Game, the series everybody is talking about

On September 17th, Netflix launched the most successful South Korean TV show on the platform, Squid Game. But, what is it about? The nine-part Netflix original show tells the story of a group of people in financial straits who sign up for a series of simple, but lethal games. Whoever wins all the games will take home a huge amount of money, and those who don’t will get killed.

The mastermind who brought this intriguing and brutal TV show to life is none other than the South Korean Dong-hyuk Hwang, known for his work in the movie Silenced (2011). He created something spectacular that, in itself, is quite a tricky game. In an exclusive interview with Variety, he said “I wanted to write a story that was an allegory or fable about modern capitalist society, something that depicts an extreme competition, somewhat like the extreme competition of life. But I wanted to use the kind of characters we’ve all met in real life.” In the Squid Game, he managed to portray how stressful and competitive life can be nowadays. And how such competition can have terrible side effects.

The games we see throughout the series are extremely simple and easy to understand. It doesn’t take a lot of time to understand the rules and that allows you to focus on how the characters interact and respond to each game. You get to see how they fight to win no matter what. But, while we are on the topic, you may be wondering why it’s called Squid Game… Well, it’s a children’s game in which only one team can win. The “battlefield” is created through geometric shapes on the floor that, together, form the shape of a squid. Interesting choice for the title, right?

After reading all of this, it’s no wonder why it soon became Netflix’s most popular TV show ever. Ted Sarandos, Netflix’s co-CEO, said “Squid Game will definitely be our biggest non-English language show in the world, for sure.” And he is absolutely right. Everybody is talking about it. But we must not forget that the impact Squid Game is having is also thanks to the popularization of South Korean culture after the Korean Wave, or Hallyu, which boosted the national culture industry.

Read more about the Korean Wave and doramas here

Realistic, brutal and breathtaking are some of the adjectives we can use to describe this must-watch

TV show. What happens at the end? You must watch it to find out…

Tell us your thoughts on the TV show in the comments or on our social media.

And remember: Keep your eyes open and stick with the strongest team. Kids’ games are simple.