Squid Game Season 3 Review: The Netflix Hit Comes To An Inevitable Underwhelming Conclusion

"Squid Game" comes to an inevitable and somewhat underwhelming conclusion with season 3, made up of a group of episodes that really should be considered "season 2.0" rather than a whole new installment. The Netflix mega-hit from South Korea became a cultural phenomenon after it first arrived, probably because so many of us can relate to the series' themes of being desperate to get out of debt under the crush of capitalism. While season 1 built up a hellish world where cash-strapped contestants competed to survive deadly children's games for a big prize, seasons 2 and now 3 have an uber-cynical, extra unpleasant attitude spelling out what was perhaps the show's ultimate theme all along: when the chips are down, people are inherently horrible.

I don't even disagree with that assessment: people are often horrible! But for "Squid Game" to take us through three violent seasons and conclude in a manner that seems to be saying little more than "Everything sucks, what more did you expect?" feels like a bit of a letdown. But perhaps it was the only logical ending the show could employ (until Netflix launches the American spin-off with David Fincher working behind-the-scenes).

In season 2 (read my review here), "Squid Game" season 1 winner Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) returned to the games he already beat for two reasons. First, he wanted to bring the games down from the inside. And second, he wanted to prove to the mysterious, masked Front Man (Lee Byung-hun) running the show that people, despite all their flaws, were ultimately good. Even after having played the games once, Gi-hun was steadfast in his belief that people will always do the right thing. He was in for a rude awakening.

Sure enough, season 2 and most of season 3 are devoted to proving Gi-hun's hypothesis wrong. There were nefarious players in the first season, but seasons 2 and 3 have only increased this concept tenfold, surrounding Gi-hun with some truly awful people who are willing to spill plenty of blood if it means they'll win a huge monetary prize. Yes, Gi-hun met some good people, too, like trans player Hyun-ju (Park Sung-hoon), the pregnant Jun-hee (Jo Yuri), and mother-son team Geum-ja (Kang Ae-sim) and Yong-sik (Yang Dong-geun). But the majority of the new players seem downright psychotic at times, and Gi-hun finds his inherent belief in the goodness of people tested at literally every turn.

Season 2 ended with Gi-hun inspiring some of his fellow players to stage a violent uprising against the gun-toting guards running the show. Unfortunately, Gi-hun didn't realize his new best buddy, player 001, was secretly the Front Man in disguise. As the season drew to a violent end, many players were killed and the rebellion was put down with serious consequences. Season 3 picks up immediately after this (in fact, it actually backtracks a few minutes to provide us with new context from something we've already seen).

Once again, the surviving players vote to stay in the game — not because it makes any sense, but because the show would end if they made the smart decision and voted to get the hell out of there. Gi-hun is now a broken man, haunted by his failures, and new deadly games are presenting themselves (my personal favorite is an utterly nerve-shredding game of jump rope played with two giant robot statues). Who will survive and what will be left of them?

Meanwhile, disgraced cop Jun-ho (Wi Ha-joon), who just happens to be the long-lost brother of the Front Man, is still sailing around trying to find the island the games are being held on. This storyline felt lifeless in season 2, and it still feels that way in season 3 — although it eventually leads to something. Sort of. As all of the show's stories eventually wrap up one or another you start to get the sense that the series is going through the motions. 

"Squid Game" creator/writer/director Hwang Dong-hyuk has famously said he wasn't exactly itching for more "Squid Game," especially after the first season barely made him any money. But the first season proved to be such a massive success that there was no way Netflix would let the show go. And while Hwang isn't exactly phoning it in, you can feel a weariness at work, as if "Squid Game" is sighing while saying, "Let's get this over with, shall we?"

There's plenty of impressive production design coupled with some thrilling moments in these final episodes, and the last scene of the finale is bound to get lots of people talking (I know I almost let out a yell at the screen). But as "Squid Game" season 3 ticked off its final hours I could feel my interest slipping — and it certainly didn't help that those uber-wealthy masked VIPs return to spout more horrendous dialogue. I have no doubt Netflix will try to find new ways to keep the "Squid Game" brand going in one form or another, but for now, it's time to give this story a much-needed rest. Game over. 

/Film Rating: 5 out of 10

"Squid Game" season 3 is now streaming on Netflix.