Squid Games season 3: What happened in season 2? From Front man's story to player 001, check this before you watch new episodes

Time of India

8 hours ago

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The wait is nearly over—Squid Game is back with its gripping finale, and it all begins on June 27. This Friday, fans will finally get a taste of the twisted survival saga's third season as the first six episodes hit Netflix.The episodes will drop globally on Friday, June 27, following Netflix's usual release schedule—12 a.m. PT and 3 a.m. ET. So, if you're eager to uncover the next chilling twist, it's time to set your alarms and clear your schedule.But, it has been a while since the season 2 was out, so what really happened in the last season?In Season 1, Gi-hun discovers a shocking truth—his trusted ally, Player 001 (Oh Il-nam), wasn't the helpless, down-on-his-luck old man he claimed to be. In reality, Il-nam was the wealthy mastermind behind the deadly Squid Game all along.Season 2 brings a new twist in the same vein. As Gi-hun reenters the game with a mission to end it, the Front Man also steps into the arena—this time under the alias 'Young-il,' taking over the Player 001 mantle. Actor Lee Byung-hun, who portrays the enigmatic Front Man, told Tudum that his character joins the game to confront fundamental ideological differences with Gi-hun. While Gi-hun still clings to the belief that people and society can change for the better, the Front Man has given up hope entirely.'It's almost like they're placing bets against each other,' Lee explains. 'The Front Man is asking, 'Do you really believe you can stop the game? Do you still think there's hope for humanity? That the world can change?''This philosophical showdown between Gi-hun and the Front Man lies at the core of Season 2's narrative, Lee adds, making it a battle not just of survival, but of ideals.Although Front Man is using a false identity, Young-il's personality is heavily influenced by his own life. Before he was the Front Man, he was In-ho, a police officer who loved his wife. But she died of acute cirrhosis years before Season 1.In the first four episodes of Season 2, we get some insight into her death. As Front Man tells Gi-hun under the guise of his Young-il persona, his wife's cirrhosis eventually became so bad that she needed a liver transplant. While figuring out her treatment, Front Man and his wife also learned she was pregnant. Although doctors recommended terminating the pregnancy, she was determined to give birth, no matter the danger. The couple struggled to find a liver donor as her condition worsened. Desperate, Front Man borrowed as much money as he could and eventually accepted a loan from the wrong person. Front Man's superiors saw the cash as a bribe and fired him despite his years of loyal dedication to his work.A conversation between Jun-ho and his mother — who is Front Man's stepmother — further explains the family's history. Years before Front Man's wife's diagnosis, he gave Jun-ho his kidney. Therefore, when his wife became ill, Front Man couldn't sell his own kidney to pay for her treatment. The entire family was also going through a difficult financial time, so Jun-ho and his mother couldn't help with the bills. In the ensuing years, Front Man has avoided his family, as well as his wife's grave.These details helped Lee Byung-hun portray Front Man. When preparing for Season 2, he had many conversations with Hwang. 'I would ask questions like, 'Why does he act this way? Why does he say these things? And to what degree do I want to express the complexity of the character?' ' he explains.'Having to give different nuances to each of these three aspects was the most challenging — as well as the most fun — for me as an actor,' Lee Byung-hun says about juggling the identities of Front Man, In-ho, and Young-il.Park Gyu-young as No-eul in Season 2 of 'Squid Game'In Episodes 1 and 2, we meet No-eul (Park Gyu-young), a mysterious woman who seems like the perfect candidate to play Squid Game. But, as the end of Episode 2 shockingly reveals, No-eul isn't a player. She's a pink guard and an expert sniper.Season 2 gives us a few details about No-eul's past. She's a North Korean defector who left her family — including her daughter — behind. '[No-eul] has no other purpose in life than to reunite with her child,' Park says. '[She's] harboring the kind of indescribable agony that cannot be expressed in words.'Although No-eul may seem like nothing more than a mercenary, Park says she's quite the opposite. 'No-eul begins working at the game with the mission of letting hopeless people pass on peacefully without pain. She's someone who can't go on living but must do so,' the actor explains. 'She joins the game with the idea of lifting others' pain and giving peace to those suffering just like her.'Early in Season 2, Gi-hun teams up with detective Jun-ho in an attempt to destroy Squid Game. They plan on staying in touch via a tracker that Gi-hun embeds in a fake tooth, but they lose track of each other when Gi-hun is taken back to the arena. (The problem is, they hadn't planned on security discovering the tracker and disposing of it, and yet that's exactly what happens.) The tracker is eventually found — not on the island, but mixed in with a pile of fishing bait. (Apparently, someone handed a fisherman a bag of leftover worms, which was hiding the tracker.)But Jun-ho doesn't give up, and he and the people he's hired continue the search from their boat. While Jun-ho assumes he's surrounded by friends (or at least loyal hired hands), the finale reveals something nefarious is afoot on the vessel — and the problem starts at the helm. In the middle of the night, one of the men on the boat finds the captain messing with a drone that was being used to search for the island. Once the man starts asking questions, Captain Park stabs him and throws him overboard. The captain then pretends nothing happened and blames the commotion on the waves.The twists and turns of Squid Game clearly aren't limited to the competition. You can expect the series to unravel more secrets around this story when Season 3 debuts next year.Lee Seo-hwan as Jung-bae in Season 2 of 'Squid Game'The Squid Game Season 2 finale escalates to an armed rebellion between Gi-hun and some of his allied players and the people running Squid Game. Gi-hun's best friend, Jung-bae — among many other players — winds up as collateral damage, because Gi-hun doesn't know that Young-il is actually Front Man. At the start of the rebellion, the players think they have a good chance of emerging victorious — believing that they just might be able to seize control of the Squid Game arena.But the game is not designed for the players to win, and Front Man makes sure the rebellion fails. Once he splits off from the group, he kills two of the rebels and fakes Young-il's death. He then switches his radio to the guard frequency and tells his team to finish quashing the rebellion. They do. By the time Gi-hun and Jung-bae surrender, Front Man has discarded his Player 001 tracksuit in favor of his usual black cloak and mask.Front Man takes this opportunity to prove to Gi-hun that his 'little hero games' were ultimately empty. He shoots Jung-bae, killing him. This way, he can finally teach Gi-hun that there really is no hope in the world. Knowing that Gi-hun will have to live with that lesson is far more appealing to Front Man than simply killing Gi-hun. Death is too easy a way out.'Audiences are definitely going to be shocked and very sad to see Jung-bae go,' Hwang says. The Squid Game creator sees Jung-bae as someone with the same optimism and warm heart that Gi-hun once possessed but has since lost. 'He's also the only person within the games that Gi-hun can trust and completely rely on.'Hwang thought Jung-bae's devastating loss would be the perfect place to end Season 2. Lee Jung-jae believes Jung-bae's death will fundamentally change Squid Game's formerly hopeful protagonist.'How much pain can someone endure in order to achieve their goal?' Lee Jung-jae asks. 'Would that determination he had in the beginning still be intact? Would he still have that feeling inside of him? Because now his best friend is dead.'Lee Byung-hun as Front Man in Season 2 of 'Squid Game'Gi-hun's deadly season-ending meeting with Front Man is also his most honest conversation with his friend Young-il. However, Lee Jung-jae says, 'I don't think Gi-hun knows the truth yet.' He's incapable of realizing Front Man's villainous switcheroo because he's too busy 'blaming himself for everything that happened.'Hwang doesn't exactly categorize Front Man's actions as a true 'betrayal.' 'Because that was his intention and plan all along,' the writer says. 'That moment is really the climax of Season 2. The Front Man starts off the season with his mask off, but then returns to himself and ends with his mask back on.'Lee Jung-jae as Song Gi-hun in Season 2 of 'Squid Game'While the first episode of Squid Game Season 2 saw Gi-hun in the surreal setting of the Pink Motel, the final scenes of the season leave Gi-hun in the darkest place yet. His allies and friends have been murdered in the rebellion. His dream of overthrowing the guards seems to be dead as well. 'And now, his best friend's gone,' Lee Jung-jae says. 'He's been ripped of everything. He's lost all he's got.'Director Hwang says this is an integral moment for Gi-hun. 'You realize that Gi-hun's attempts to put an end to the game have failed — in two ways,' he explains. First, he wasn't able to persuade his fellow players to stop Squid Game through voting, with only 182 players voting to leave during the first vote. Then, Gi-hun 'failed at trying to use physical power and strength to go up against those that were hosting the game.'But the Squid Game creator is excited for audiences to find out where this 'state of deep despair' pushes Gi-hun. 'Is he still going to believe that he will be able to persuade others and leave together or put an end to the game?' Hwang asks. 'Or will he give in and become a completely different person? Someone just like the Front Man, who thinks, 'What can I change?' 'These questions set up the story for Season 3, which Hwang calls the 'second chapter of Gi-hun and Front Man's showdown.'At the start of the Episode 7 rebellion, Hyun-ju (Park Sung-hoon) proves her military prowess as a Sergeant First Class in the Republic of Korea Special Forces. Her fellow players are impressed. Park hopes this moment in the series may encourage viewers to consider the 'multifaceted' lives of trans women like Hyun-ju.Hyun-ju is forced to leave the rebellion early to retrieve some much-needed ammo after Dae-ho (Kang Ha-neul) fails to return with the supplies. Back in the dorm, she realizes Dae-ho panicked, leaving him unable to return to the fight. Suddenly, pink guards storm the dorms, forcing Hyun-ju to stay put. Geum-ja (Kang Ae-sim) urges Hyun-ju not to resist, knowing that it would be a suicide mission for her friend.But the veteran soldier can't stop thinking about protecting her fellow rebels. 'In that moment, more than anything, Hyun-ju is deeply worried about the safety of others, especially those who are still waiting for the ammo to come,' Park says. 'She's concerned about their safety more than anything else.'Gi-hun's tragic goodbye to Jung-bae isn't the last you see of Squid Game in Season 2. In between the credits, we get a surprise glimpse at what's ahead in the series, including a look at three players walking, Young-hee's always terrifying face, a mysterious boy doll, and the glow of a green light turning on. What does it all mean?To find out, you'll have to tune in when Season 3 — the final one — premieres on Netflix on June 30. And to dig even deeper into Squid Game Season 2, listen to Squid Game: The Official Podcast wherever you enjoy your podcasts.