Summary
To survive the trials and tribulations ofSquid Game,players have to use every possible tool at their disposal, whether it’s intelligence, strength, orbackstabbing those around them. Regardless of the method, the results are either a triumph or a fatal mistake.
With a mixed bunch of gang members, rappers, investors, and everyone in between, the games require a variety of intelligence levels and degrees of critical thinking. Sometimes a player will devise a cunning plan and succeed with flying colors, while others can falter at the first hurdle due to a lack of understanding or simply an awful plan.
8The Mathematician (Season 1, Episode 7)
Run And Pray Is Not The Way
The games keep ramping up, and thecreator is showing his passionfor torture and mind-melting challenges. In this game players must make it across a long bridge of glass panes, with a choice of two with each step of progress. The catch is, one of the two will shatter upon stepping on it, plummeting the contestant to their death.
Player 062 steps up to the ledge and examines the odds of survival, assuming he picks every single one correctly. Surmising that his chances are slim, he decides to book it and sprints across with no strategy or reason, praying to the gods of luck. He does make it fairly far, but after a few steps, he falls through a pane to his death. Knowing his chances were low is one thing, but this method was almost guaranteed to fail. He could have perhaps suggested another contestant take the rest after a few right guesses.
7Roulette (Season 2, Episode 1)
A Game Of Chance But Also Of Nerve
Roulette in itself is a game of luck and a game to be played by those with a death wish. As Gi-hun attempts to find a way to get back into the games, he is confronted by the recruiter,a character with a fairly unknown backgroundand motives aside from recruiting players into the game and being as sadistic as the game himself.
He presents Gi-hun with a gun and points it at his head. But then he decides to play roulette, spinning the barrel with one in the chamber and taking turns pulling the trigger. In this case, both characters are reckless. Gi-hun could enact his revenge straight away by shooting the recruiter, and likewise, the latter could decide not to end his life when the final chamber arrives. Sure, it is about honor, but it is also about survival.
6Turning On The Guards (Season 2, Episode 7)
Storming The Castle
This play was equally unexpected and idiotic. The crew hatches a plan to take back control from the guards and launch an all-out attack on them. Things do start to look good, but they soon turn sour as more reinforcements turn up and the numbers and ammo begin to dwindle.
Even if the players could take out a few groups of guards, there was no indication of how many more were to come, what other defenses lay in wait, and whether it was even possible to escape. It was all done completely blind and was hopeless from the start.
5Dalgona: The Cookies (Season 1, Episode 3)
Deception For No Reason
Sang-woo is introduced as an old friend of Gi-hun’s early on. He is a stoic yet collected character who will do anything he can to make it through alive. As the games go on, he descends further and further. By the end, he is a ruthless killer with a passion for blood, but is eventually redeemed.
Early on during the Dalgona game, the characters talk about the shapes and their meanings. Sang-woo doesn’t let on that he understands the game to an extent. He knows to pick the triangle, but chooses to withhold this information from the others. If Gi-hun or another potential ally were to die because of his actions, he may have been eliminated shortly after,which questions his decision to betraythem so early.
4Fighting Back Alone (Several Episodes)
What Were They Thinking?
There are a few moments throughout the games where it looks like a contestant may have the upper hand. For instance, the doctor is revealed to be working with the guards to extract organs, in exchange for information about the next game. When he is no longer given the insider information, he lashes out, killing a guard and fleeing, only to be executed in the cookie room.
Another contestant manages to get a hold of one of the guards during a tense moment and then later turns it on himself, ending his life. It begs the question of what the two were attempting to accomplish. Although they were moments of desperation more than anything, they can also be described as acts of stupidity.
3The Insiders (Both Seasons)
Putting Themselves In Harm’s Way
In seasons one and two respectively, the games' creator andthe Front Mandecide to enter the games for a thrill and to incite more violence and tension. The first dumb decision was to take the 001 number in both cases, which although it was not picked up upon, seems like an oversight in deception.
The second issue with the plan is that either could die at any point, whether by being attacked by another player, falling off some of the higher structures, or failing one of the games and having a guard discretely shoot them to avoid death. It seems like far too much risk for the payoff, and even though it worked for the most part, it wasn’t the smartest choice.
2Running From The Doll (Season 1, Episode 1)
What Did They Expect?
What is the definition of insanity? Well, running away from gunfire despite being yelled out to hold still would be leaning in that direction. Right from the get-go, many contestants attempt to run away from gunshots, which, of course, ends in instant death for all.
Players of all ages and sexesbegin running and trying to get away, despite Gi-hun pleading that he understood the game and that if they listened, they would all survive. But in a blind panic, many are executed on the spot and, with no attempt at thought, are cut down before the games can even get going.
1Gi-hun Returns (Season 1, Episode 7)
There Has To Be A Better Way
Possibly the worst decision in the entire series, Gi-hun, after succeeding the first time, attempts to seek out the island and get back at the diabolical individuals running the games. It is a noble decision, and he simply wants to put a stop to it. But after winning an enormous amount of money, why is this the method he chooses?
Logic would dictate that he could either employ large numbers of individuals to scout all the islands thoroughly or move on with his life and return to his daughter. Even if it is a noble choice to attempt such a feat, he chooses that over his own flesh and blood, which is both cruel and shortsighted.
