Did Squid Game Season 3 Live Up to the Hype?

UAE Moments

01-07-2025

After the success of Squid Game Season 2, which was released after a hiatus of more than two years, fans had high expectations for the third and final season of the South Korean series; however, the series did not live up to fans' expectations.
Rebellion Squashed, Games Resumed
The third season picked up from the second season's conclusion when Seong Gi-hun's (Lee Jung-jae) rebellion falls apart after the death of his friend Jung-bae (Lee Seo-hwan). He is returned to the remaining players, and the games are resumed.
The following games are deadlier than the last, including hide and seek, jump rope, and push, with the players left with no choice but to resume. However, given the vital plot twist in the last season, one expected that Seong Gi-hun would attempt an escape again, but he does not do so. He seeks revenge from Kang Dae-ho (Kang Ha-neul) and continues with the games in a defeated manner.
He constantly tries to persuade the remaining players to avoid their brutal intentions, but he cannot change their decisions. If the writer and director, Hwang Dong-hyuk, wanted to resume the maniacal killing and relentless greed, he should have added these episodes to the previous season itself. There was no need to split this season into two because it was not worth it.
The Women are Killed, But the Men Remain?
Since the games were resumed, each player was eventually killed off like dominoes falling. However, it is still disappointing that the diverse cast is slowly being killed off, including the transgender woman Cho Hyun-ju (Park Sung-hoon), the pregnant woman Jun-hee (Kim Jun-hee), and the old mother Jang Geum-ja (Kang Ae-shim). First, the uprising is crushed, then the creator quickly rids the show of these characters who make it so far. Their survival challenges gender norms, but their death defeats the purpose they were introduced for in the first place.
The fans have already understood the classist and the survival of the fittest themes of the series from the first season, why do the lessons need to be reinforced? The fans get the point.
The rebellion gave Hwang Dong-hyuk the perfect opportunity to create a plotline where the players can possibly outsmart the games and make their escape, but he stuck to reinforcing the lessons from the first season. It does not make sense when Seong Ji-hun risks his life and returns to the game. He did not need to be a superhero, but why make him return only for a tragic ending? If nothing can change, why even try?
The VIPs in Squid Game
David Sayers, Jane Wong, Bryan Bucco, Jordan Lambertoni, and Kevin Yorn play VIPs who fund the games and get a chance to control how the games work in the final season. They revel in the violence of the games, like the VIPs from the first season. They dehumanize the players completely, enjoying their misery, but if the inhumanity of the wealthy has been shown in the first season, was there any need for it in the final season?
No, because fans already know how brutal they can be. They introduce nothing new to the plot, and the opulence they lounge in while they watch the games is caricature-like.
The Final Season's Subplots
The police officer Hwang Jun-ho (Wi Ha-joon) continues his search for the island, but that subplot does not have a satisfying end either. Like Seong Ji-hun, Jun-ho is adamant on finding the island ending the games for good, but he also remains helpless in the end.
Despite the shortcomings of the final season, Kang No-eul's (Park Gyu-young) subplot keeps viewers hooked and ends on a positive note, but it does not redeem the rest of the plot.
The third season of 'Squid Game' was a terrible disappointment. There was a hint at an American version coming at the end of the season, which has raised fans' hopes. Nonetheless, viewers did not expect such a disappointing ending to this globally hit series.