Netflix Mega Hit ‘Squid Game 2’ Premieres In Seoul After Martial Law

Squid Game is back. Netflix’s most popular show ever, a dystopian South Korean vision of divided society, premieres its highly-anticipated second season on Monday as Seoul battles real-life policial chaos.

The show’s return comes shortly after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol briefly declared martial law before being forced into a dramatic reversal by vengeful lawmakers who battled heavily-armed soldiers in parliament.

Yoon is still in office despite being the victim of an impeachment attempt, his party being accused of staging a “second coup” to maintain control, the opposition vowing to try to remove him once more, and massive street demonstrations are anticipated this weekend.

“Squid Game”, an ultra-violent tale exploring themes of division and inequality, is considered to be one of the most significant works in solidifying South Korea’s status as a global cultural powerhouse, alongside the Oscar-winning film “Parasite” and K-pop megastars BTS.

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Hwang Dong-hyuk, who wrote and directed both seasons of the show, said he was feeling “heavy-hearted” by what happened in his country ahead of the show’s second season red carpet premiere on Monday, with global release set for December 26.

“It is extremely unfortunate and infuriating… that the entire nation cannot sleep due to such absurd circumstances”, he said at a press conference in Seoul.

Due to the political chaos, South Koreans have had “to take to the streets, and must spend the end of the year filled with anxiety, fear, and depression”, he said, adding he had stayed up all night to watch the martial law events unfold in live news broadcasts.

He urged “the person responsible” for the real-life drama, President Yoon, to accept responsibility “whether it is through impeachment or voluntary resignation”.

‘ In the abyss ‘

A “crypto expert” with a lot of debt and a transgender person who can’t afford gender confirmation surgery are two brand-new young characters in Squid Game Season 2.

The main protagonist, Seong Gi-hun, played by megastar Lee Jung-jae, returns and joins the game again.

Three years after Gi-hun won the first season, the second season is set for violent life-and-death games, spoiler alert!

The “Hallyu” or “korean wave” — the seemingly unstoppable rise of South Korean content that was first recognized by many in the West following Psy’s 2012 breakout hit song “Gangnam Style” — was a high point for the “Hallyu” or Korean wave.

3, 000 people in the film industry said in a statement this week that President Yoon’s weakened government had put all of this in danger.

Hallyu has “fallen into the abyss” thanks to Yoon’s decision to declare martial law, the group, which includes luminaries like “Parasite” director Bong Joon-ho, said Sunday.

The Martial Law Command will have control over all media and publications during the six hours of martial law.

What appears to be a mere delusion has actually occurred, according to a statement from South Korean film industry workers calling for Yoon’s exit and arrest.

“For Korean filmmakers, Yoon Suk Yeol is no longer the president. He is just a red-handed criminal for treason”.

Most watched show

The show’s first season was loosely inspired by South Korea’s real-life tragedy of a crackdown on a 2009 Ssangyong Motor strike, which resulted in around 30 people taking their own lives or dying of stress-related causes.

A North Korean defector and an indebted, laid-off worker were two of the most marginalized people in the fiercely competitive South, as were some of the characters in the series.

In somewhat mysterious circumstances, the two teams compete for an unimaginable fortune in traditional children’s games where all the winners face death.

With more than 330 million views as of Monday, the first season still has the record for the streaming giant’s most watched series of all time.

According to Hwang, the key to the success of the first season of “Squid Game” was the lack of “links” to the “society we live in.”

Even in the upcoming second season, viewers will be able to “find scenes that connect the absurd conflicts, divisions, and upheavals happening in our country and around the world”, he said.

Squid Game’s “Watching” doesn’t seem to be particularly out of place in terms of how we view the world.

Source: Channels TV