Squid Game 2 is released! The crazy lines of the crypto kid character resonate with the audience, why are foreign media reviews polarized

Netflix's highly anticipated second season returns, sparking global attention.

The highly anticipated second season of the Korean drama 'Squid Game' will be globally released on Netflix at 4 pm on December 26th. The season consists of 7 episodes with a total duration of 427 minutes. Building on the success of the first season, this time, in addition to Lee Jung-jae and Park Hae-soo, new faces such as Park Kyu-young, Im Si-wan, and Park Sung-hoon have joined. Please provide the text to be translated. The story revolves around the winner of the first season, Seong Gi-hun (played by Lee Jung-jae), returning to the squid game, prepared to confront the mastermind behind the scenes, Hwang In-ho (played by Lee Byung-hun). Among them, Park Gye-eong, known as 'Netflix's darling,' portrays a defector named Kang Ha, who participates in the game to find her child, using her exquisite acting skills and outstanding appearance, gaining favor from the audience for her character's setting and interpretation. It is worth mentioning that Park Seong-hyun, who became popular for his role as Jeon Jae in 'Dark Glory,' appears in this season dressed as a girl with a bun hairstyle, playing the role of a transgender, becoming a highlight of this season.

Image source: Netflix. The second season of Squid Game revolves around the winner of the first season, Gi-hun, returning to the game and preparing to confront the mastermind behind it, Sang-woo.

The plot and game innovation have caused polarized reviews and sparked discussions.

Compared to the first season, the second season has made significant changes to the game rules. Participants can choose to press the O button to take away the accumulated prize money after each game, or press the X button to continue challenging for a higher prize. This new setting not only adds tension to the story, but also makes the plot more watchable. After each game, the voting session allows all players to decide whether to divide the accumulated prize money equally according to the number of participants, or continue the game. Coincidentally, this situation coincides with the recent 'short-lived martial law' incident in Korea. Korean media even exclaimed, 'It's so real that it gives you goosebumps.'

Further reading South Korea's Martial Law Lazy Package: The Six-Hour Political Drama, What Happened?

However, there is a clear difference in the evaluation of this among major media. On the 'Rotten Tomatoes' website, the second season received an 83% approval rating, slightly lower than the 95% of the first season.

"The New York Times" pointed out that although there are new contestants in the second season, many people's experiences seem familiar, losing their sharp angles, and originality is also lost.

" The Guardian " was more strongly critical , arguing that the show fell into the usual sequel dilemma in Hollywood, forcing the story into two halves in order to continue box office revenue.

However, Variety gave positive reviews, stating that the second season not only has a larger scale and maximizes audience engagement, but also successfully examines social issues such as capitalist exploitation, moral decay, and class inequality from a new perspective.

The role of the coin fryer has sparked controversy, and Ren Shiwan's superb acting has been praised.

Director Hwang Dong-hye specially incorporated the speculative mentality of modern society's 'get rich overnight' into the plot. Lee Myung-gi (No. 333), played by Yim Si-wan, is a highly symbolic character. He plays a YouTuber who falls into a predicament due to a cryptocurrency investment scam in the drama. Not only does he suffer significant losses himself and his girlfriend (played by Cho Rye-ri), but he also implicates many subscribers who collectively become victims.

The exaggerated and provocative lines, such as: 'Why did you take my phone and wallet? Please give them back! At least give me back my phone, I want to check cryptocurrency. If I lose money, will you compensate me? I want to keep track of the price in real time! Do you know how much money I've invested?'

It has also triggered strong reactions from Korean netizens. Netizens on the Korean forum 'theqoo' have expressed their views one after another:

"Wow, this is too reflective of reality, the voice and tone are exactly the same as the typical twenty-generation male Olympians"

Even if I have to face the perfect face, I hate it... The crime of being too good at acting!

"When I hear the first sentence, I get angry... Completely the kind of crazy person who has a very bad character and makes people speechless."

The feeling of being completely obsessed with cryptocurrencies, thinking that one is very rational and logical, but actually being extremely selfish and paranoid about unrealistic things.

"The full and sharp voice full of victim's consciousness, as if it doesn't need to gasp, is so well acted."

The scene appears in the third episode of this season, '001: New Player Onboarding.' In fact, director Hwang Dong-hyuk confessed in a media interview that the modern social mobility system is crumbling, and many no longer believe in exchanging stable income through normal labor. Instead, they are turning to speculative activities such as virtual currency, cryptocurrency, stock speculation, and even online gambling, hoping to 'get rich overnight.' The director hopes to reflect the current social atmosphere and provoke the audience to contemplate the reality of society. And 'Coin Master' played by Yoon Shi-yoon perfectly embodies the epitome of this era.

Crypto City also reported in July that 40% of South Korea's students invest in cryptocurrencies as a lifeline to their growing debt and financial woes, perfectly in line with the plot of Squid Game.

『Squid Game 2 broadcast! The super-crazy lines of the role of the coin speculator resonate, why the foreign media evaluate the two poles' This article was first published in 'Crypto City'