Saram-eun...

This final season (supposedly) of Squid Game undoubtedly arrived on a far lower key than the last after the very poor reception of the second season (and I agree). Anyhow, this season is a pickup in form, but to be honest, it doesn't fully recover all the goodwill lost.

We're back on the island, and our remaining characters after the failed violent putsch are resigned to continue with the games. Everyone's favourite Korean cop is out there still sailing around in circles with his motley crew trying to find the island whilst the rest of the world remains oblivious of the games.

One major problem is that possibly there is little new that can be done any further here. So many plot points in this season had me thinking that this reminds me of this or that from season 1 and so on. The games are new but frighteningly violent as before. As before, we have the empathetic crew and a crass, selfish crew, it's much the same really.

Despite that, there's still much good too, in particular the acting and the emotive moments really are visceral. The settings & games are disturbingly immersive, and there's some neat twists too.

Yet overall it never reached the heights of the first season despite some very emotive moments. It's still worth a viewing, but probably they'd already hit a glass ceiling in the first season and will likely not come close to hitting it again.

Just be prepared for some follow-ups and spinoffs.

I don't think there is much point in reiterating what others have written before me as I can largely confirm the negative points. The VIPs are cartoon villains - again - cringeworthy at best. The absence of logic and convoluted mess makes this the worst ending possible to one of the best series in the recent years. At this point it feels like a cash grab, an excuse to vindicate a likely American-based spin-off. No essential questions were answered. Multiple interesting storylines devolved into nothingness. This season felt like it's building up to something big, yet with every new episode it felt more and more like an elaborate running gag.

Season 2, Part 1 and 2, feel rushed and appear to have been adapted for the US market. This is a waste of what was a promising story. The ending was terrible in every conceivable way. I'm so disappointed that this could have ended so poorly. Characters were stripped of their complexity, and the dialogue felt unnatural. The suspense was gone, replaced by lazy writing and predictable twists. It felt like fan service for a completely different audience. What once had depth and meaning has now turned into a shallow imitation. A total betrayal of what made Season 1 so impactful. Let's continue milking the cow!

Squid Game Season 3 is a deeply satisfying, poetic, and thought-provoking sendoff to one of the most compelling character journeys we've seen in modern television.

This ending is going to spark debates for years-maybe even split fans down the middle. But that's what makes it great. It dares to choose meaning over mass appeal. And in a time when so many finales are designed to please, Squid Game chooses truth.

In the streaming age, where everything is sliced into bite-sized tension loops to satisfy the binge model, most shows are afraid to breathe. Squid Game isn't. It knows how to deliver thrilling, edge-of-the-seat moments and still remain grounded in story and character. It doesn't just hook you with cliffhangers-it earns your investment by making you feel the weight of every decision.

And when it comes to decisions-every single character's choices, no matter how dark or tragic, feel understandable. You may not agree with them. But you get them. That's what makes this such a rich piece of storytelling. It doesn't paint morality in black and white. It embraces the murky grey where real humanity exists.

Gi-hun's ending isn't the ending many viewers would have hoped for. It's not wrapped in justice, not drenched in triumph. But it's honest. It's raw. It reflects the truth that in real life, good doesn't always win. And even when it does, it comes at a cost. This ending has the courage to stare into that truth-and that's what makes it unforgettable.

There's a brutal kind of poetry in how this series understands people. The hurt. The compromise. The desperate, clawing need to survive. Even the villains aren't truly villains. Just broken people trying to play a rigged game. And the way Squid Game navigates that terrain-without ever spoon-feeding its audience-is what elevates it.

Season 3 isn't just a conclusion. It's a statement. A warning. A mirror. And most importantly, a triumph in screenwriting that will be studied and remembered for years.

We didn't just watch a show. We witnessed the making of a modern classic.

Hats off.

They remind us about the sand snakes from GOT. Characters that are meant to add dimension but ultimately end up annoying and add nothing to the plot.

As for this season, since the concept isn't fresh it was dependent upon the pace and honestly it was slow. The concept of the games were nice but dragged on for so long that it lost steam. Out of all the games, Hide & Seek was the best one as it showed the main character being exposed to his dark side.

But bringing in a baby so the main character can show how noble he is was stretching it to a soap opera level and not needed.

But I am glad I watched it; though the freshness of the first season was lost.