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2 hours ago, Gene Parmesan said:
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Him being the creator was a dumb way to end it.  Yeah he was dying so he just wanted to feel the thrill of the games firsthand. 

 

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I don't think the old man was the host.  He was the creator of the games.  The host was the detectives brother, who couldn't be there with the VIPs because he was hunting his brother.  Or at least that's what I thought.

 

i'm starting to lose track of all these quoted spoilers

 

Spoiler

remember at the end of the last episode after 001 dies, they do a flashback to where he's wearing a suit and taking off the golden cat mask and he's telling the Front Man to host the VIPs by himself because it's more fun to play than to watch.  i took that as happening in the middle of the games, somewhere between games 3 and 4 right before the VIPs showed up.  my wife said she took it to occur before the contestants showed up on the island.  that makes more sense.

 

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Here's my question, and the fact that no one else has asked it makes me think I missed an episode?

Spoiler

The whole thing w/ the doctor and the selling of the body parts came out of nowhere.  Like all of a sudden a player is taking body parts out of a body and it's all super secret, but there wasn't any build up or hints.  How did we even get to that point?

Also, as far as the business of selling organs on the black market goes, I have a ton of issues w/ that:

1) There's no way the workers know where the island is, so how have they set up clandestine boat pick ups?

2) They can't count on a Dr in every group being willing to work with them, so how the hell do they have this whole thing set up?

3) Was the Dr even in any of the previous episodes?  Do we even know he's a Dr?

Agree w/ a lot of what's been said already w/ the VIPs being cartoonish and the cop/brother tangent being ridiculous.

Definitely think I should go back and watch the whole series again, because even as it was happening, I knew I was missing things the 1st time around.

 

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Spoiler

001 did the tug-of-war because the trill of potentially dying was what he was after - he could have died in any of the games.

001 was the host.  The scene with the golden mask was after he supposedly died after the marble game.  He couldn't play anymore games because he was supposed to be dead.

There were over 400 participants.  The game makers knew all of the participants, including the professions and the dire straits that led them to compete in the first place.  It doesn't seem that far fetched that they could pull the doctor aside, after returning following game 1, and bargain organ removal for info on the next game.  If that didn't work, then no organs until the next series of players.

 

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re: @Jerry Callo

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Quote

There were over 400 participants.  The game makers knew all of the participants, including the professions and the dire straits that led them to compete in the first place.  It doesn't seem that far fetched that they could pull the doctor aside, after returning following game 1, and bargain organ removal for info on the next game.  If that didn't work, then no organs until the next series of players.

Right, but they didn't just start up the organ harvesting side hustle out of the blue, did they?  Had to be an ongoing, every game cycle thing, no?  How do you set up something so intricate and risky based on the assumption that every game cycle will have a surgeon who makes it through the 1st game.  Hell, even in this cycle the group voted to go home and what if he hadn't decided to return?  Just seems like a super risky operation (no pun intended) relying on a crazy variable(s) to keep it going.

 

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Spoiler

001 did the tug-of-war because the trill of potentially dying was what he was after - he could have died in any of the games.
001 was the host.  The scene with the golden mask was after he supposedly died after the marble game.  He couldn't play anymore games because he was supposed to be dead.
There were over 400 participants.  The game makers knew all of the participants, including the professions and the dire straits that led them to compete in the first place.  It doesn't seem that far fetched that they could pull the doctor aside, after returning following game 1, and bargain organ removal for info on the next game.  If that didn't work, then no organs until the next series of players.

 



the golden cat mask happened when the VIPs got to the island which was right before the glass bridge game, which was one before the marbles

 

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Here's my question, and the fact that no one else has asked it makes me think I missed an episode?
Spoiler

The whole thing w/ the doctor and the selling of the body parts came out of nowhere.  Like all of a sudden a player is taking body parts out of a body and it's all super secret, but there wasn't any build up or hints.  How did we even get to that point?
Also, as far as the business of selling organs on the black market goes, I have a ton of issues w/ that:
1) There's no way the workers know where the island is, so how have they set up clandestine boat pick ups?
2) They can't count on a Dr in every group being willing to work with them, so how the hell do they have this whole thing set up?
3) Was the Dr even in any of the previous episodes?  Do we even know he's a Dr?
Agree w/ a lot of what's been said already w/ the VIPs being cartoonish and the cop/brother tangent being ridiculous.

Definitely think I should go back and watch the whole series again, because even as it was happening, I knew I was missing things the 1st time around.
 

Yeah as much as you had to suspend belief for the entire show this storyline made no sense.
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Whoever said the VIPs were shitty actors drastically undersold that. Holy shit. It was almost unwatchable when they were speaking.
It's really weird, all white actors in Asian dramas sound like that. It has something to do with the way Asians perceive how white people should sound. Oftentimes native English speakers are actually made to pronounce words in a stilted or incorrect manner.
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It's really weird, all white actors in Asian dramas sound like that. It has something to do with the way Asians perceive how white people should sound. Oftentimes native English speakers are actually made to pronounce words in a stilted or incorrect manner.
That was my assumption. That is how they think we sound, and it was terrible.
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On 10/16/2021 at 12:04 PM, Scary Stranger said:

Whoever said the VIPs were shitty actors drastically undersold that. Holy shit. It was almost unwatchable when they were speaking.

Makes me wanna move to Korea and get into acting.  Probably some decent money in portraying Evil White Guy Number 3 and it doesn't look like actual talent is much of a factor.

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I must be stupid because I don't get the hype.  I am through 4 episodes (i think) and they are pretty fucking boring.  Less bullshitting and more killing yo.   Also kill off that dumbass chick already 

Saw a lot of marbles comments so waiting for that one to hopefully not suck.  

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23 minutes ago, Scraps said:

I must be stupid because I don't get the hype.  I am through 4 episodes (i think) and they are pretty fucking boring.  Less bullshitting and more killing yo.   Also kill off that dumbass chick already 

Saw a lot of marbles comments so waiting for that one to hopefully not suck.  

fwiw the marbles episode didn't move me the same way it apparently did so many others here. to me it was the same as the rest. 

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Just finished ep.5. Can anyone cliff note for dummies wtf the point of the dr was? They were taking human organs out to sell? Were guards in on it trying to make some side cash without the leader knowing?

Also the dude who sneaked in, I’m bad with names…what’s his purpose in any of this and what name did he say in the dark room he snuck into that ended the episode?

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12 minutes ago, MNLonghornFUKM said:

Just finished ep.5. Can anyone cliff note for dummies wtf the point of the dr was? They were taking human organs out to sell? Were guards in on it trying to make some side cash without the leader knowing?

Also the dude who sneaked in, I’m bad with names…what’s his purpose in any of this and what name did he say in the dark room he snuck into that ended the episode?

Spoiler

cop who snuck in saw his brother had won one of the previous squid games.  that was his name he said.

 

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1 hour ago, MNLonghornFUKM said:

Just finished ep.5. Can anyone cliff note for dummies wtf the point of the dr was? They were taking human organs out to sell? Were guards in on it trying to make some side cash without the leader knowing?

Also the dude who sneaked in, I’m bad with names…what’s his purpose in any of this and what name did he say in the dark room he snuck into that ended the episode?

Are you actually watching the show?  I thought most of these plot lines were pretty obvious 🤷‍♂️

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4 hours ago, F250 said:

lol The line about "I think that is a lot of money but the currency exchange is confusing."

yeah, we didn't start watching until this past weekend (after most everyone had already been talking about it) and i went on google, and typed w-o and auto fill in was "won to dollar conversion chart" or some such.

i agree the last couple episodes were a bit of a letdown, but that was bound to happen.  the show had a clock (a game show where people die) and clocks run out.  i did like that they attempted the "double twist" including both the cop's brother and the old man, though neither were really oh shit twist moments.  the scene with the old man was wayyyy too drawn out and slow, as if they were basking in the light of some glorious twist.  not so much.

we predicted the cop's brother one, as i'm sure most did - you had to figure he was  one of them, if not the main masked dude, once you realized he didn't die.

agreed that the organ harvesting thing was kinda shoe-horned in and didn't really belong, though it (theoretically) pushed the brother plot along (the kidney situation).  you'd think after ~20 years of doing the game (is it only once a year?) they would run a tighter ship. 

as the game went on, i found myself way more interested in the non-player portion and how that all went down.  i liked the shape hierarchy and weird protocol.  they lived like prisoners too so i'd be interested to hear how they ended up there "in charge".

also when the last game started, the wife was like, "what are the rules of squid game again?" and i was like "i don't think it matters, they're having a knife fight in the rain."

 

they'll never know the simple joys of a monkey knife fight.

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1 hour ago, henrygandorf said:

as the game went on, i found myself way more interested in the non-player portion and how that all went down.  i liked the shape hierarchy and weird protocol.  they lived like prisoners too so i'd be interested to hear how they ended up there "in charge".

I have a feeling this is what season 2 is going to be mainly about. I really enjoyed seeing more about how the game was ran, but I hope to god they have better acting for any non-korean folks in the next season lol

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Pretty impressive numbers for a show we all generally think was creative and interesting but not amazing and probably a 7/10 or a B-/B+ review:

Quote

 

The gory Korean drama has become Netflix’s most popular show by far, with 142 million accounts tuning in within its first four weeks—demolishing runner-up Bridgerton’s lifetime viewership of 82 million by 73%.

Squid Game reportedly generated $900 million in value, and it cost only about $21 million to make.

It was also the No. 1 show in 94 different countries, showcasing Netflix’s extensive global reach.

 

 

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it's basically a lord of the flies type deal trying to show people breaking down and what their limits are.  agree that getting into the structure of the captors would be interesting.  like how were they treated like shit and locked in their cells but allowed to carry guns where they could most certainly mutiny.  need to spend an ep from season two on the subway slap guy.  that guy fucks

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it's basically a lord of the flies type deal trying to show people breaking down and what their limits are.  agree that getting into the structure of the captors would be interesting.  like how were they treated like shit and locked in their cells but allowed to carry guns where they could most certainly mutiny.  need to spend an ep from season two on the subway slap guy.  that guy fucks
Subway slap guy was the best character.
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Spoiler

Help me understand the marble episode where the big bad guy wins after they switch the rules. He’s been getting his ass kicked and is down to one marble. He petitions to start playing a different game and it appears he suffers no penalty for having been beaten so bad, it seems they just start from scratch with the new game. He’s able to match throws at the hole with his opponent. How’s that working, it’s a bullshit game. I also didn’t like the agency and intervention from the worker to “referee” the argument over what game to play. Seemed out of keeping with the spirit of the games; that would have been a good moment for the big baddie to bluff his way into getting the henchman to change games by just refusing to play/move and wind the clock. 

Spoiler

Yes, the VIPs are unwatchable. I also didn’t like the “generic white people” villains. Seems they missed a chance to add interest and intrigue by having an international cast of rich goons— American venture capitalists. Russian oligarchs, Chinese factory owners, Latin American drug lords, Middle Eastern petro-sheikhs……And maybe in subsequent seasons you find out that different countries take turns “hosting” and using their own kids’ games. I’d watch a Red Rover or tether ball death match. 

 

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On 10/19/2021 at 9:46 PM, Captainant said:

I have a feeling this is what season 2 is going to be mainly about. I really enjoyed seeing more about how the game was ran, but I hope to god they have better acting for any non-korean folks in the next season lol

The behind scenes was for me the least interesting part and spoiled what made the game initially so unsettling. When all the workers were faceless and unspeaking automatons, the symbolism of the uniforms incomprehensible. The game runners just ciphers and you don’t know their motivations.  You got a real “the Gods are toying with us, they’re capricious, we can’t understand them or resist” type vibe.

Are they even human? And when it was all ultimately revealed, it was of course a disappointment and cliche. 

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Oh, and last thoughts:

Spoiler

The glass game was one of the best games but it also had some of the worst inconsistencies. First, tipping the scales to eliminate the glass worker’s advantage rubs against the whole Darwinian” harsh but fair” ethos you see in the rest of the games. Sometimes you experience or physical attributes work for you or against you, you go into each game blind, but once it starts— you’re either lucky or fit and that’s the breaks. 
 

Second, injuring the NK girl seriously after she’s won was bullshit. Again, it rubs against the games’ ethos. During the games, you face death for breaking the rules or losing the game. Outside the game, it’s Lord of the Flies with other players but the game runners are no threat to you unless you try to escape the fish tank. They went to great lengths to give the players rest and a good meal so they had strength for squid game, they should have treated the NK player at least. 

 

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On 10/16/2021 at 7:38 PM, gsoda3 said:
On 10/16/2021 at 7:04 PM, Scary Stranger said:
Whoever said the VIPs were shitty actors drastically undersold that. Holy shit. It was almost unwatchable when they were speaking.

It's really weird, all white actors in Asian dramas sound like that. It has something to do with the way Asians perceive how white people should sound. Oftentimes native English speakers are actually made to pronounce words in a stilted or incorrect manner.

i think theyre all just last minute casting of "white looking" people looking for free lunch.  theyre not careers actors and their performances arent widely scrutinized.  i hear in rural areas those backpacking english teacher types get day-time gigs showing up to businesses meetings just to show a white face and feign credibility.

 

like this sort of inane shit

 

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i think theyre all just last minute casting of "white looking" people looking for free lunch.  theyre not careers actors and their performances arent widely scrutinized.  i hear in rural areas those backpacking english teacher types get day-time gigs showing up to businesses meetings just to show a white face and feign credibility.
 
like this sort of inane shit
 


I don't recognize these actors but I doubt they're Joes off the streets. If you watch other soaps or movies they all sound like this and people always ask them why they talk so weird and they say they're coached on how to sound because that's how they're expected to sound and so the Koreans understand them easier.
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Finished this show last night, and I guess I wouldn't say I'm disappointed in it, I think the issue is that it's very overhyped.  The entertaining parts are the games, no question, those were the moments I was most interested in the show. The strategies, the betrayals, the survival instincts kicking in, all of it was entertaining. The problem is it's about 8 hours of content and the games are maybe 2.5 hours of it. The rest is mostly dumb filler with characters I don't care about, or story lines I can't possibly believe. I wish they had put more of the backstory and exposition into the games, instead of doing it between games. It would have made the pacing faster. It's an interesting concept for a story, certainly nothing novel, but it's brutal style of ultra violence and gore is shocking and attractive entertainment to a lot of people. 

If you haven't watched it yet, I would recommend watching the first episode to get the idea and context of it. However, if you aren't feeling it, don't worry about dropping the show all together. It's nothing ground breaking, but the first episode tells you plenty enough to know what people are talking about.     

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9 hours ago, Dutchrudder said:

Finished this show last night, and I guess I wouldn't say I'm disappointed in it, I think the issue is that it's very overhyped.  The entertaining parts are the games, no question, those were the moments I was most interested in the show. The strategies, the betrayals, the survival instincts kicking in, all of it was entertaining. The problem is it's about 8 hours of content and the games are maybe 2.5 hours of it. The rest is mostly dumb filler with characters I don't care about, or story lines I can't possibly believe. I wish they had put more of the backstory and exposition into the games, instead of doing it between games. It would have made the pacing faster. It's an interesting concept for a story, certainly nothing novel, but it's brutal style of ultra violence and gore is shocking and attractive entertainment to a lot of people. 

If you haven't watched it yet, I would recommend watching the first episode to get the idea and context of it. However, if you aren't feeling it, don't worry about dropping the show all together. It's nothing ground breaking, but the first episode tells you plenty enough to know what people are talking about.     

This is pretty on point. I think this is a TV show that would have been better as a movie. Preferably one with a bit more claustrophobic and paranoid atmosphere—- keeping the POV on the characters stuck in the game and never showing you behind the scenes of it.

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This is pretty on point. I think this is a TV show that would have been better as a movie. Preferably one with a bit more claustrophobic and paranoid atmosphere—- keeping the POV on the characters stuck in the game and never showing you behind the scenes of it.
Yes, that's a good point, nothing about the game designer was necessary, the cop story was pointless, and we didn't need to know anything about the pink jumpsuit guys beyond them being mindless drones.

The old man story would have been more compelling if that was the only backstory of the games. We didn't need the melodramatic cancer bullshit, but it would have been way more fun if old man had thrown it all in Gi-hans face. Say he wanted to feel the thrills of the game, make a good 'friend' and feel the betrayal. All of that can work if it's quick, jarring, and to the point. Drawing it out over 20? Minutes is boring.

The story felt like the writers were having a war throughout the process. Like there were 3 groups assigned to write the ending, and instead of picking 1, they used all 3. It leaves you feeling like there were useless dead ends, and other stories feeling cheap and unfinished. Whoever the showrunner is made a big mistake in the wrap up process and should have edited it all much better. I almost expected to see M Knight Shamalayans name pop up in the end credits.
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