MovieChat Forums > Ojing-eo geim (2021) Discussion > Best “Netflix” series I’ve seen, until t...

Best “Netflix” series I’ve seen, until the ending.

posted 3 years ago by R_Kane (15828)
9 replies | jump to latest

I put Netflix in quotation marks because they clearly bought this wholesale from some Korean schmuck. Really interesting production design, very good character development and narrative pacing—and then it all falls apart. The protagonist is stupid and unbelievable, willing to pull Defeat from the jaws of Victory. He apparently has Poverty Consciousness, having been a destitute loser all his life. He has no respect for his new wealth and the wonderful opportunities it can open for him AND OTHERS. He TURNS HIS BACK ON HIS DAUGHTER at the end to go try to “end” the game. (1) Do not try to tell me that “the daughter was okay. She is HIS DAUGHTER and he PROMISED he’d be there for her birthday. This is a blatant and pitiful effort to transform what should have been a 1-and-done TV event into an episodic series. (2) The showrunners have an immature need to make us believe that we humans are inherently “good.” The protagonist questions the decision to push the procrastinating contestants to their deaths when all are trying to cross the bridge and time is running out. He refuses the kill his “friend” who has tried repeatedly t kill him and claim the treasure that CAN TRANSFORM HIS LIFE. So the showrunners have the false friend COMMIT SUICIDE, so Our Guy will remain good. This is deus ex machine (which means “bunny rabbit out of the hat”) bullshit. Life does not work like that, and, not for nothing, I believe in fundamental human goodness. I just don’t have a third-grade comprehension of what that really means.

[–] joej2923 (3093) 3 years ago

The protagonist has a good heart from the beginning but he has a horrible gambling addiction that has cost him his marriage and led to a huge debt to organized crime.

I struggled to understand why he didn't access his winnings until other posters mentioned that he might thought it was blood money. He probably felt guilty over the death of his mother, the suicide of his childhood best friend and his betrayal of the old man, his gganbu. There was probably even a lot of PTSD for the protagonist since that was certainly a harrowing ordeal. He did choose to return to the game after the red light, green light massacre so that's why I questioned his mental state after winning.

To me, one message of the show is not that all people are inherently good but that not all people are evil. I would argue the show is both aspirational and inspirational with the transformation of the protagonist from a zero to a hero. There were plenty of evil people in the show who were running the game and playing the game. The show demonstrates that there are still some people in society who look out for others while there are many who will step on their necks to achieve their objectives. The old man didn't think that anybody would help the bum on the street but the protagonist won the bet when the one guy returned with a cop to help the bum.

The protagonist's daughter is with her mother so he has not abandoned her. The protagonist has a greater calling that will save thousands so I don't think it's a big deal if he misses a birthday. She'll have plenty of birthdays in the future and he can talk to her on video chat.

This show is probably a big disappointment to people who tuned in to see gratuitous carnage since the show has a deeper meaning that condemns these sorts of games. While the cop's brother won the game and joined the firm, the protagonist won the game and now plans to stop the slaughter.

[–] Interlepos (1811) 3 years ago

>>This show is probably a big disappointment to people who tuned in to see gratuitous carnage since the show has a deeper meaning that condemns these sorts of games.

Big disapointment? It delivered big time. Nobody tuned in to see just the violence, people tuned in to see a good dramatic show.

[–] joej2923 (3093) 3 years ago

I certainly can't speak for ALL people but I know that many people enjoy watching movies to see a body count. Slasher films like the Friday the 13th and Halloween movies come to mind. I don't think there is much drama with either Jason Vorhees or Michael Myers since they usually don't say a word. The article below ranks the top twenty Jason Vorhees kills.

https://www.watchmojo.com/video/id/41803 *** Top 20 Jason Vorhees kills ***

The hero who won the game did not bask in the glory of victory like most films. Instead, he spent a year mourning the lost of his childhood best friend, his Gganbu, his mother and others. He also didn't even touch the money since it was blood money. I thought the ending was different since there was some deep introspection and the hero underwent a major transformation.

[–] Interlepos (1811) 3 years ago

Top 20 Jason Vorhees kills - that's funny.

I know what you mean, but still. It's pretty weird that some people would only watch Squid Game because of the violence - like the rich VIP people in the show. Friday the 13th is B-movie fun, though, but this is more serious stuff. The fact that Squid Game actually works as a dramatic show with a concept like this - makes it pretty brilliant.

I agree about the end.

[–] FootOfDavros (8388) 3 years ago

Breaking Bad was better.

Weak final season but still better overall. Last couple of episodes of this pretty much dismantled everything which had come before.

[–] aavfreak (3362) 3 years ago

I didn't realize Breaking Bad was a Netflix series. I thought is was an AMC original.

[–] FootOfDavros (8388) 3 years ago

Depends where you live I guess. Obviously an AMC production but "aired" on Netflix here...

[–] aavfreak (3362) 3 years ago

Ah, so it's a "Netflix" series in the same way that Squid Game is, as explained in the OP. Not a Netflix original, but taken from another source and made available to specific audience through the Netflix platform.

I guess one way to distinguish would be if it is originally produced content vs exclusive content.

Where I am, Breaking Bad originally aired on AMC, and although may be available on Netflix, it is not exclusive to Netflix.

Squid Game on the other hand is exclusive to Netflix where I am (as far as I know), so it's more of a "Netflix" series to me.

[–] FootOfDavros (8388) 3 years ago

I see what you mean.

I never read about Squid Games production before and had assumed, as per the OP's comment "Netflix in quotation marks because they clearly bought this wholesale", that like Breaking Bad they'd just bought it off the shelf from another country's channel.

But yeah, looks like this was more of a Netflix Netflix show...