South Korea’s Squid Game has become nothing short of a sensation, the talk of the internet and adored by fans and critics alike, the deadly game show has captured the attention of audiences in a way that few shows ever have and become one of Netflix’s biggest hits. The kiddie playground pastimes turned massacres for money are incredibly intense to watch, yet what really hooks the audience in is the phenomenal cast of characters risking it all for a chance at the prize money.
Brought to life by some of Korea’s finest acting talents, each contestant has their own often disastrous reasons for playing. By the time the music hits for the start of the second game, all know exactly what they’re getting themselves into. It’s simply impossible to witness death on such a scale and not be affected, yet some of Squid Game’s players changed more than others before it was game over.
10 Hwang In-ho Put On A Serious Front In The Face Of The Unthinkable
Played by one of Korea’s genuine heavyweight acting talents in Lee Byung-hun, The Front Man, or Hwang In-ho as he is later revealed, changes little throughout the tumultuous tournament, remaining focused on his job even in the face of what to him is Squid Game’s greatest tragedy.
That tragedy is very real however, In-ho murders his own brother after unmasking, and whilst there is clear regret on In-ho’s part, he keeps the pain hidden, a task made much easier with the help of the iconic black mask he spent most of Squid Game hidden behind.
9 The Expat With A Heart Too Big For His Own Good, Abdul Ali Learns A Lesson Too Late
Few, if any characters in South Korea’s smash are as neutrally good or likable as Ali Abdul. A Pakistani immigrant seemingly competing through no fault of his own, the strongman succumbs to some villainous trickery by a man he fiercely idolized and looked up to.
Ali’s change is a lesson learned far too late, and his death gave viewers one of the show’s most upsetting and agonizingly avoidable demises. Naivety cost player 199 his life, and his last thoughts were likely about not trusting a man simply because he paid a bus fare.
8 Jang Deok-su Dials Up The Destruction Throughout The Stages
Squid Game’s most obvious big bad, Deok-su is essentially a villain from the starting pistol, yet the lengths he reveals himself willing to go to are despicable enough to remain shocking even in such a dire situation as the Squid Game.
Murder is of course a common occurrence, yet this gangster goes from throwing his weight around to gain advantage to ruthlessly slaughtering his fellow teammates and contestants, either via brute force or using his marbles, both literally and figuratively.
7 Ji-yeong Makes A Heartbreaking And Selfless Sacrifice Before Her Game Ends
Almost nothing is known about Ji-yeong in the early stages of the outrageously risky Squid Game, she shows little compassion or care for others, though she does appear to be a little mesmerized by the alluring Sae-byeok.
As her backstory is revealed so is her appalling journey to adulthood. In a single episode, Ji-yeong becomes one of the show’s saddest stories, and her decision to throw the marble game so that Sae-byeok can live is a most admirable one. 240 reminds viewers how little they really know about the contestants and their lives outside the vibrantly colored walls.
6 All Hope Is Lost For Seong Gi-hun’s Mother
It isn’t just the contestants whose lives are ruined by the deadly game show, though Seong Gi-hun’s mother loses much before the second stage is even underway, her end is just as tragic as those fighting for survival in the amped-up children’s playtime practices. She cares deeply for her screw-up son, and after repeatedly being taken advantage of by her offspring, she appears to lose all patience with the Squid Game contestant.
Seriously ill and unable to pay for care, Gi-hun’s mom accepts her fate and returns home with survival odds seemingly lower than those perched on the glass bridge. She had given up, and it was simply too late for her son to redeem himself.
5 Han Mi-nyeo Starts Out Screaming And Goes Out Swinging
The one near-constant with Han Mi-nyeo is the volume of her voice, she begins Squid Game as a desperate mother pleading for her life, and though her outlandish pleas continue as she shows her evil side, the loudmouthed lunatic never slows down in her pursuit of the prize money.
Manipulative and manic, 212 proved herself a deadly competitor in the end, and gangster Deok-su made his biggest mistake in double-crossing the new mother. Mi-nyeo took matters into her own hands and refused to go down alone. Hell hath no fury indeed.
4 Squid Game’s Lesson Seems Somewhat Lost On Seong Gi-hun
You’d expect the star of the show to go through the most changes with all the tragedy that comes with making it to the end of the sadistic Squid Game, yet Seong Gi-hun starts out as a hopelessly absent father and appears to finish the series as the very same deadbeat dad, just one with a considerable amount more cash to splash and some rather dashing red hair.
Gi-hun’s biggest change is the apparent shedding of his morals, whichever way you look at number 456’s marble game performance, he cheats, and through cheating, he sentences what he believes to be an innocent old man to death.
3 The Old Man Had A Master Plan Inside His Head Alongside The Lump That Inspired Him To Play
In the eyes of the viewer, no participant changes nearly as significantly in Squid Game as contestant 001. Oh Il-nam joins the high-stakes game as a helpless and frail old man, yet his wisdom provides saving grace when it comes to the tug of war matchup, and the friendship which develops between him and Gi-hun makes for Squid Game’s most touching sequence.
Episode 9 revealed that Il-nam was in on the game all along, and the revelation hits like a train, whilst of course, derailing the beautiful marble moment midway through the season. Whether the old man really changed at all is up for debate, though he did genuinely seem to have enjoyed himself playing alongside his gganbu.
2 From Lonesome To Loved, Kang Sae-byeok Deserved A Better End To Her Game
The North Korean defector is perhaps Squid Game’s most tragic figure, from a self-imposed outcast to Gi-hun’s final companion, Kang Sae-byeok started out the series as a closed book, and just like her heart through the episodes, opened up to become one of the most captivating contestants in the game of death.
Playing in a desperate attempt to reunite her family from across the border, she ends the game a far cry from the simple pickpocket she started out as. Jung Ho-yeon’ show-stealing performance along with some fantastic writing and direction ensured number 067 would finish as one of Squid Game’s most memorable personas.
1 Cho Sang-woo Went From Honors To Horrors, Becoming The Game’s True Villain
The pride of his hometown, University graduate, and alleged financial mastermind at least in the eyes of his childhood friend Gi-hun. Once the game commences, early signs show that Sang-woo is likely just fine with some deaths being collateral damage, including those of his friends and companions within Squid Game.
Though as the stakes rise, player 218 descends into murderous mayhem in the pursuit of the piggy bank full of cash, tricking the honorable and loyal Ali, pushing the man before him on the bridge to his death, and then finally brutally stabbing Sae-byeok to death. Some redemption comes with his final sacrifice, but when it’s game over, Cho Sang-woo is a cold-blooded killer.
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