thinking many thoughts about how fundamentally the average tiktok comment andy misunderstands not only the ending of Squid Game (both in the context of the games and in the context of the series and its message as a whole) by hating Myung-gi and simultaneously disapproving of the manner in which Gi-hun's arc ended.
like, on one hand, people often fail to understand what Gi-hun's death really MEANS and thus find it to be "unsatisfying" and a "badly written" or "badly executed" or overall "bad ending" because they didn't not get what the wanted. and in that thought process I feel like they fail to recognise that that's the POINT. it's MEANT to be disappointing when the characters we've grown to care about die, it's not "bad writing" when Hyun-ju dies for absolutely nothing, that's the POINT. Gi-hun didn't have to die and neither did Hyun-ju or Sae-byeok or any of the people involved, it's unfair on purpose.
but that's not even what Gi-hun's death really represents. in my view, Gi-hun wins in the end. he may not win the game but he wins AGAINST the game by 1) proving In-ho and the whole principle of the game wrong over and over again just by sticking to his morals and refusing to let go of his humanity, no matter hopeless the situation was and b) disappointing the VIPs and defeating the voyeuristic purposes of the game -- if they can't get their satisfaction, then there was no point. and in that way a lot of people who apparently watched the whole show with their eyes closed and ears shut (or just willfully ignorant of the very real state of our society that the whole fucking story is a product and representation of). by sacrificing himself he PROVES to everyone watching that no matter how hopeless the circumstances are, humanity and humans will prevail, in one way or another.
by sacrificing himself, Gi-hun won. and unlike at the ending of season 1, it does not go unseen. in fact I view the effort In-ho puts into visiting Ga-yeong as a direct acknowledgement of not only Gi-hun's victory, but his own defeat (which only culminated in Gi-hun's sacrifice, the whole of season 2 and 3 were basically In-ho trying desperately to stifle the flame of Gi-hun's humanity and Gi-hun going "nah. fuck that." over and over again which I honestly find kinda funny)
now, how does this relate to Myung-gi exactly? to understand that I find it crucial to understand the system that Squid Game is and that system's purpose. simply put: the game aims to break people. it's not a flaw in the system that the participants develop caring relationships with each other, it's designed that way. the system itself is designed to take, and take, and take from people until their humanity shatters, allowing their own selfishness to replace them. Myung-gi is a perfect specimen, beat down and tattered to a point he'd be willing to kill his own child in order to win. by the end of the games, he becomes the perfect product to a system designed by psychopaths.
thus: to hate Myung-gi is to deplore the system of which he is a product. in my view this is where the problem arises for most of said comment andys, who fundamentally misatribute Myung-gi's actions to stemming from his own nature (selfishness) instead of the system which forced him to become what he is.
by hating Myung-gi, viewers let the system win. they fail to consider what it took for him to get to that objectively disgusting point -- they forget his humanity.
BUT. and this is where it gets funny. by hating Myung-gi the viewers also learn to hate the system, even if they don't recognise it for what it is. it's fundamentally contradictory to my previous point, this is because the stance itself makes no fucking sense and is inherently self-contradictory.
and this where we arrive at Gi-hun again. by hating the system they've been brainwashed by (or again, just refuse to acknowledge for the sake of their own sanity) and simultaneously hating Gi-hun's ending because deep down they too are supporters of the system (specifically as a means of entertainment. which we all are to an extent considering we watched and in some way enjoyed the show. the difference lies in whether we recognise this. a lot of people don't.) many fans of the show let the system win. they attribute the deplorable traits to a person instead of the system that created it -- while simultaneously wishing the show had ended differently only so they could be happier about it, once again proving to those who set the system up that humanity, in the eyes of the consumer, has no purpose, no meaning, no value.
this inherently implies: it is better to be selfish, it is better to let the system have what it wants, as long as you too get what you're after.
and yet: they hate the one who tries to do exactly that.
