A lot has been written about the Squid Game phenomenon. Its success is its main criticism. It's in fashion to despise something because of its popularity. Also, Squid Game is often reduced to something less than it actually is. In my opinion, it was one of the highlights of 2021. Like with most movies and series, I went in completely blank, not knowing anything about it apart from the fact that it was Korean. I often watch first episodes of unknown series and see where it takes me and quickly abandon them if the opener does not keep me hooked. Squid Game hooked me, however I wasn't really sure what to make of it in the beginning.

After four episodes, I would have rated it a solid three stars. Some aspects really annoyed me. For example, everything involving the VIPs is just ridiculously bad. In the end, Squid Game is a fantastic, mesmerizing piece of TV history that can really only get worse in subsequent seasons. I'm a bit sad that it does have these shortcomings. It could have been even better.

Squid Game should not be watched in its dubbed English version nor with "English CC¹" subtitles. Unless you are fluent in Korean, watch it with English subtitles.