Squid Game creator Hwang Dong-hyuk said, “I almost feel like you leave us no choice!” to the Associated Press when asked about the then-potential second season of his hit show. It was inevitable Netflix would renew its most successful show ever, which followed a group of contestants playing deadly children’s games to win a big prize. After spending nine episodes watching our favorite characters get murdered, we’re keen to have our hearts broken all over again.
But it could be a while until we get a second season. Squid Game started development in 2008. But with Netflix’s support, it shouldn’t take that long. Still, it does look like we’re in for a wait for Season 2. In the interim, we have time to ponder six questions Season 1 of Squid Game left unanswered.
Warning! Squid Game Season 1 spoilers ahead.
6. Who is the Salesman?
After the success of Train to Busan, it’s odd that Gong Yoo would take a small role in Squid Game. Perhaps the character required a particular charisma. Maybe it was part of a wider deal with Netflix (Yoo had a starring role in Netflix’s The Silent Sea). Or perhaps the character is more important than we realize. One popular theory suggests the Salesman is the son Il-nam (Oh Yeung-su) refers to during the marbles sequence. With the Host dead, he could take a more prominent role in the organization behind the Squid Game.
5. What is the Front Man’s backstory?
Season 1 established the Front Man as In-ho (Lee Byung-hun), Jun-ho’s missing brother. There remains much we don’t know, however. How did a winner of the games start running the show? How did he hide his involvement? He had been missing for days, not years, at the start of the season, after all.
In-ho’s apartment is interesting. It’s small and sparse, not unlike the guards’ cells. In-ho could have returned as a guard and risen through the ranks. Perhaps Season 2 will show that the post-game journeys of Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) and In-ho are more similar than expected.
4. How do you become a Squid Game guard?
Season 1 focused on the players, so it was easy to miss that the guards were numbered, too. The administration behind the Squid Game keeps track of potential contestants, maintaining detailed files on each of them. But are the guards just as desperate as the players?
Little in the organization of the Squid Game appears to be left to chance. When presenting Gi-hun with the red and blue squares, the Salesman likely knew Gi-hun would pick blue based on his profile. But if he had chosen red, might he have become a guard? Hopefully, Season 2 will shed a little light on this process.
3. What happened to Ju-hon?
Welcome to TV Land, where anything that doesn’t happen on-screen cannot be trusted! Squid Game already pulled this trick when it revealed Il-nam was the Host after he had ostensibly met his demise.
We never saw Jun-ho (Wi Ha-joon) dead or his body – and Squid Game was never shy about showing us bodies. Instead, he falls from the cliff, and we hear a splash. Is he really gone? He could return in Season 2 to help Gi-hun.
2. What is Gi-hun’s next move?
We cannot be sure of Gi-hun’s intentions. Lost in the latter half of the series is that Gi-hun is a pretty terrible person, which is easy to forget when he’s surrounded by people murdering each other. He spent years stealing from his mother and letting his daughter down.
This is important because we assumed he turned back in the final episode of Season 1 to take down the games. In doing so, he abandons his daughter yet again! Can we trust Gi-hun to be a force for good? There is a lot of subtext around him and Il-nam. In a series littered with overt symbolism, moments like Il-nam handing Gi-hun his 001 jacket don’t feel accidental. Will he destroy the games, or will Gi-hun succeed Il-nam as Host?
Maybe it’s not so binary. Gi-hun is a bumbling character. In an effort to do good, could he accidentally become the villain? Perhaps he takes over but tries to make the game less… murdery — unaware he’s maintaining the same oppressive system as Il-nam. All we know is that, according to Hwang, “Gi-hun will be back and he’ll do something for the world.” We’ll just have to wait to see what that means.
1. Will Season 2 show the games in other countries?
When the VIPs arrive, one remarks that the games in Korea are always the best, teasing that the games are happening in other countries. With that said, there isn’t any guarantee the next event will be held in Korea. Netflix, who has referred to the series as the “Squid Game universe,” could be planning something else – perhaps opening the concept up to different territories as they have with Money Heist.
Wherever Squid Game goes next, it’s bound to be another season full of new twists and turns that may even bring up even more questions than answers.
Squid Game Season 1 is now streaming on Netflix.
