Squid Game may be well on its way to becoming a fully-fledged Netflix franchise, but it was once a show that stood well enough on its own. The first season of the dystopian, Battle Royale-inspired series was phenomenal, and its viral success made expansion a no-brainer. After a game show spin-off and rumors of an English-language follow-up, the original Squid Game is returning to secure its place in the streaming hall of fame.
Squid Game Season 2 is easily among the year's most anticipated series. Expectations are high, given the first season’s widespread appeal, and series creator Hwang Dong-hyuk seems determined to surpass them, promising a “much crueler, scarier and more gruesome” story. With less than a month before the second season finally premieres, the latest trailer teases Hwang’s vision with a new game that’s much more than a return to form.
There would be no more Squid Game without the games themselves, and Season 2 finds a clever way to return to the arena. After winning a fortune (and losing nearly everyone he cared about) in Season 1, Song Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) finds himself on the warpath in Season 2. He might have escaped the games unscathed, but he’s determined to stop anyone else from losing their life for the promise of a better one. He enrolls in a new game with one goal: to destroy the system from the inside. But he’ll have to sway his competitors — each desperate for the prize that could change their lives — to his side.
Gi-hun must also contend with the Front Man (Lee Byung-hun), the mysterious antagonist controlling the game from the shadows. As Hwang explained earlier this year, their showdown “will continue into the series finale with Season 3, which will be brought to you next year.”
With the show’s two final seasons releasing in close proximity, fans are likely in for a wild ride. It was hard to imagine how the stakes could get higher after Season 1, but Hwang has seemingly found a disturbing way to level his show up. Now all that’s left to do is sit back and enjoy.
