Top 10 Shocking Moments in Squid Game

“Red Light, Green Light”
It was the first game and the first time that we realized the true stakes of the competition. After accepting a mysterious offer from a well-dressed stranger, indebted chauffeur Seong Gi-hun is brought unconscious to a prison-like dormitory, where masked men await. The rules seem simple enough: win six games and win billions in prize money. Despite the cloak-and-dagger actions, nobody seems to realize what they’ve gotten into. Even the blood trickling from the first “eliminated” player seems unreal. It takes the massacre of nearly half the contestants to make the horror come to life. This is the preamble for what lies ahead and the first glimpse of what our characters will do when death is on the line.

“One Lucky Day”
One year after the contest’s conclusion, Gi-hun seems to have put the experience behind him, and is heading to Los Angeles to visit his daughter. That is until he spots two men on a train platform, playing a familiar game. When he intervenes and finds a business card that he knows all-too-well, Gi-hun confirms his fear that another round of the macabre contest is about to begin. He calls the number on the card and receives a warning to stay away, but a red haired and rejuvenated Gi-hun is no longer a race horse. Though no “Season 2” has been confirmed, this moment makes it clear that the game, and Gi-Hun’s story, still has more to come.

“VIPS”
Never was a story of more woe than that of the unhinged woman and her homicidal beau. Gangster Jang Deok-su and the manipulative Han Mi-nyeo seem to possess cockroach-like survival abilities. They form an alliance, although Mi-nyeo warns Deok-su of severe consequences should he betray her. It doesn’t take long for Deok-su to do so, but not until penultimate Game Five does Mi-nyeo get her bloodthirsty revenge. Crossing a glass bridge that could shatter beneath her at any time, My-nyeo abandons any desire for victory or survival. With madness in her eyes and satisfaction in her smile, she throws herself from the bridge, pulling Deok-su with her.

“Stick to the Team” & “A Fair World”
Some of Squid Game’s best surprises teach us that common conundrums can possess uncommon solutions. For example, player 001 teaches that tug-of-war isn’t about which side is the strongest, but rather which team knows best how best to USE its strength, via timing and placement. His teammates gain advantage by positioning themselves strategically and pulling at just the right time. Ultimately, though, it’s Cho Sang-woo’s idea to step towards the other team that saves them. The move causes the opposition to flounder, and Sang-woo’s team heaves the rope to victory. It seems the brain is truly the body’s strongest muscle.

“Stick to the Team”
This is getting your lunch money stolen taken to the extreme. The players wait in line for pop and a hard boiled egg, but Deok-su decides one portion isn’t enough. He cuts the line for seconds, resulting in too little food to go around. When a player calls Deok-su out for his unfair behavior, Deok-su beats the man to death. The guards do nothing and the deceased man’s prize money is added to the jackpot. Watching this, the players learn that not only will murder go unpunished, it will actually benefit their standings in the contest. It’s a ghastly display that teaches everyone the primal depths of morality they’re capable of descending to.

“Front Man”
Just as a gun in act one of a play must go off in act two, a man with a mask must have a secret. Filling that role in “Squid Game” is Front Man, the leader of the disguised guards who operate the deadly trials. His identity remains shrouded for most of the season, until Hwang Jun-ho, a police detective infiltrating the unknown organization, uncovers the truth. He learns that Front Man is his missing brother, In-ho, who previously won the games in 2015. In-ho’s survival raises unsettling questions: including the reason a man would abandon his family for an operation that puts human lives at stake. We hope that a second season will tell us more.

“One Lucky Day”
This entry takes us from one man-behind-the-curtain to the next. Contest winner Gi-hun receives an invitation from his “gganbu,” the old man that he’d befriended in the games. He discovers that Player 001, whom he had thought executed, is still alive. Furthermore, the old man appears to have been behind the games all along. “Why,” is the best question Gi-hun musters. Reliving childhood; relieving boredom; searching for virtue in a society wracked with inequality…the answer seems to be all these things. Arguably more haunting is the revelation that the man who seemed the most kind-hearted of anyone could craft such an artificial hell. Perhaps it’s the show’s way of asking us: which life is the real ‘hell,’ anyway?

“One Lucky Day”
There’s a couple of heart-stoppers in this entry. You may have guessed the final winner, but it’s how we finally get there that makes this moment so memorable. It’s jarring how quickly Gi-hun shifts from anger to compassion, when he can’t bring himself to murder Sang-woo. And it’s absolutely gut-wrenching when Sang-woo takes his own life, begging only that Gi-hun take the winnings to help his mother. In one moment, everything else between them washes away and only life, death, and the prize at the finish line, remain. Gi-hun might win, but he’ll never be the same again.

“Front Man”
You might not be inclined to think highly of a pickpocket who stole your money. Despite this being Gi-hun’s introduction to Sae-byeok, he becomes her teammate. Eventually, Gi-hun recognizes Sae-byeok’s resourcefulness and the bravery with which she faces adversity. She becomes a beacon of goodness in the moral abattoir that Gi-hun has found himself in. After Sae-byeok sustains mortal injury, Gi-hun pleads through the walls for medical help. When his back is turned, Sang-woo takes the opportunity to end Sae-byeok’s life. The shock, disbelief, and sorrow is plain on Gi-hun’s face, and we felt it right alongside him.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

The Riot, "Stick to the Team"
The Murder at Lunch Incites a Killing Spree

The Vote, "Hell"
The Players Decide If the Game Will Continue … & It Comes Down to the Last Vote

Gi-hun Wins Il-nam’s Final Game, "One Lucky Day"
Maybe the Human Decency Il-nam Was Looking For DOES Still Exist

Gi-hun Finds His Mother’s Body, "One Lucky Day"
She Never Lived to See That Her Son Would Finally Be Okay

Ali’s Death, "Gganbu"
Arguably the Most Noble Character Is Betrayed by His Partner

“Gganbu”
This sixty minutes had us reeling. Where to begin? There’s the twist that players would actually be matched against their selected partners. Then there’s Gi-hun using Player 001’s (supposedly) deteriorating memory against him. There’s also Sang-woo’s betrayal of Ali, and Deok-su’s incredibly lucky victory. That’s all before we even mention Ji-yeong’s brief friendship with Kang Sae-byeok, followed by the heartbreaking sacrifice that left our throats dry. Every conflict and Earth-shattering resolution encompasses the elaborate morality and dizzying storytelling of the show. This is an hour of television that deserves a list of its own, and if you haven’t leapt from your seat, check your pulse.