Note: This story contains spoilers from “Squid Game” Season 3.
Gi-hun’s return to the Squid Game was always destined to be a big deal. But nothing could prepare fans for the war between inner goodness and capitalistic greed that is the series finale of this Netflix original.
Because this is “Squid Game” we’re talking about, no one had a happy ending (well, almost no one). But between the highest stakes fight to date and a twist that’s practically begging for a spinoff, this finale delivered for fans of this high-octane show about deadly children’s games.
Here’s what you need to know about how “Squid Game” Season 3 ended.
Who won the Squid Game in Season 3?
The 45.6 billion won went to Player 222, aka Jun-hee’s (Jo Yu-ri) baby. As is always the case when it comes to this show, it took a lot of stress and trauma to get to that victory.
The last game this season was the platform game. Once the game begins, players have a set amount of time to push someone off the platform. Players are required to sacrifice at least one person before they can make it to the next round. On the second platform, one of the players jumped off after the timer ended, choosing to die on his own terms rather than be used as a sacrifice. That meant the last challenge required either Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae), Myung-gi (Im Si-wan) or his newborn baby Player 222 to die.
Almost immediately, Myung-gi made it clear that his plan was to let Gi-hun be killed and bring his baby into the final game with him. After he murdered his own child, he would walk away with the prize money. Of course, Gi-hun wasn’t on board with this plan for many reasons. After lulling Myung-gi into a false sense of security, Gi-hun jumped onto the platform at the last minute and fought him. When Myung-gi asked if Gi-hun had already changed his mind about sacrificing himself, Gi-hun said, “You’re not worth it.” One of the tensest and highest stakes fights in all of “Squid Game” ended with Myung-gi falling to his death. That was the good news. The bad news was that both Gi-hun and Myung-gi forgot to actually start the final game, meaning someone still had to die on the last platform.
Right away, it was clear that Gi-hun planned to sacrifice himself so that Player 222 could live, but he took his time with this pivotal moment. In his last second alive, Gi-hun faced the direction where he believed the Front Man, aka In-ho (Lee Byung-hun), and the billionaires were watching him.
“We are not horses,” Gi-hun said, a callback to a previous conversation he had with In-ho. “We are humans. Humans are …” Without finishing that thought, Gi-hun fell to his death.
What happened to Detective Hwang?
At long last, Detective Hwang Jun-ho (Wi Ha-joon) managed to track down Squid Game island. All it took was him stumbling into a player fleeing from the island who literally pointed him in the right direction.
Before Gi-hun’s sacrifice, the Front Man was alerted that the Coast Guard was approaching. Because of this he set the island to self-destruct and instructed the guards to evacuate the facility while he collected Player 222. That’s when In-ho’s brother Jun-ho confronted him. While pointing a gun at his sibling, Jun-ho asked why he orchestrated these cruel games. Instead of responding, In-ho took Player 222 and left. Jun-ho escaped the island before it blew up, but finding his brother didn’t resolve much for him.
What happened to No-eul?
This North Korean mother may have the most bittersweet ending of anyone. Ultimately, No-eul (Park Gyu-young) was successful in her plot to save Player 246, aka Gyeong-seok (Lee Jin-wook), the father with a sick daughter. It was actually Gyeong-seok who led Jun-ho to the island. But while looking through the organization’s files on her, No-eul learned that her husband and daughter in North Korea were both dead.
Six months after the events of the Squid Game, No-eul visited Gyeong-seok at the carnival where they used to work together. As he sketched her portrait, she didn’t reveal who she really was, simply saying that she used to work at the park and heard about his daughter’s illness. No-eul gave Na-yeon a lollipop and told the young girl not to get sick again before she left the park.
No-eul’s story ended with her getting another call from South Men, North Women, the brokerage company she hired to locate her husband and daughter. After they tell her that her family has been spotted in China, No-eul hesitantly boarded a plane. Though she seemed to suspect she is being scammed, Season 3 ended with No-eul continuing to do everything in her power to save her husband and daughter.
What happened to everyone else?
The second half of “Humans Are …” took place six months after the ending of the Squid Game. Following his incarceration for breaking into the home of the shady boat captain, Jun-ho picked Mr. Choi (Jeon Seok-ho) up from prison. Though Mr. Choi proposed they work together, Jun-ho turned him down. Mr. Choi then went on to buy the hotel where Gi-hun used to stay.
As for Jun-ho, he told Mr. Choi that he no longer has any interest in rejoining the police force. It was unclear what he planned to do until Jun-ho returned to his apartment to find Player 222, a bassinet and a card declaring the baby the winner of the Squid Game. Jun-ho used the included ATM card and found the promised 45.6 billion won in the account. Like it or not, is seems as though Jun-ho is becoming a father courtesy of his brother.
Speaking on In-ho, he appeared in the final moments of Season 3. After traveling to Los Angeles, he arrived on the doorstep of Ga-yeong (Jo Ah-in), Gin-hun’s teenage daughter. Initially, Ga-yeong turned him away, saying that she has no interest in talking to her father who refuses to contact her. But once In-ho told her Gin-hun had died, she changed her mind. The season ended with Ga-yeong inheriting Gin-hun’s bloody suit as well as his remaining winnings.
Wait, was that Cate Blanchett in “Squid Game”?
That sure was. In-ho does hang around LA for a little bit longer than expected. The final moments of the season showed him watching a suit-clad woman playing a game of ddakji with a tattooed man. If you need a refresher, Squid Game recruiters play ddakji to find players for the game. If a ddakji player gives up soon after playing with the recruiter, they let them go. But if a player keeps playing the game and raising the stakes even though it doesn’t make financial sense to do so, it’s an indication that they likely have a gambling problem and they’re given a card to participate in the Squid Game.
For a brief moment, In-ho and the recruiter locked eyes. As she nodded to her boss, it becomes clear to the audience that the recruiter is none other than Oscar winner Cate Blanchett. It looks like the Squid Game is in America. And if it isn’t already here, then it’s coming.
Netflix and “Squid Game” creator Hwang Dong-hyuk previously said that Season 3 would be the end of the show. But given the rumors about “House of Cards” and “Mindhunter” executive producer David Fincher circling an American adaptation of the series and director Hwang’s comments about potentially expanding this universe, it feels very likely there will be more Squid Games in our future.
“Squid Game” Season 3 is now streaming on Netflix.
