So, you’re trying to remember why that giant doll still haunts your nightmares? Or maybe you’re just prepping for the next round of chaos and need a quick refresher on how Gi-hun ended up with that questionable red hair. Either way, looking back at the recap squid game season 1 provides, it wasn't just about the gore. It was a brutal, neon-drenched mirror held up to every desperate thing we do for money.
The show starts with Seong Gi-hun. He’s a mess. He’s gambling his mother’s money on horse races and signing away his physical rights to loan sharks in a dirty bathroom. It’s bleak. When a well-dressed man in a subway station offers him a chance to play children's games for millions, Gi-hun says yes. He doesn't really have a choice. That’s the hook. The "choice" is the biggest lie the games tell the players.
The Red Light That Changed Television
The first game, Red Light, Green Light, is where the series went from "interesting thriller" to "global obsession." We see 456 people in green tracksuits standing in an artificial field. They think it's a joke. Then the giant animatronic doll, Young-hee, turns her head.
The motion sensors are ruthless. Anyone who flinches gets sniped. It’s a massacre. Half the field dies in minutes. This is where the recap squid game season 1 gets really heavy—the realization that these aren't just games. They are executions.
What's fascinating is what happens after. The players actually vote to leave. Under Clause 3 of the Game’s Agreement, if the majority agrees, the games end. They go home. But here is the kicker: their lives outside are so miserable, so debt-ridden and hopeless, that 187 of them eventually return to the island. They chose the possibility of death over the certainty of poverty. That’s the most haunting part of the whole story.
The Survival of the Meanest
As the episodes progress, we see the group dynamic splinter. Gi-hun teams up with his childhood "prodigy" friend Cho Sang-woo, the North Korean defector Kang Sae-byeok, and the elderly Oh Il-nam.
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- Sugar Honeycombs (Dalgona): This was pure stress. You had to carve a shape out of a brittle sugar disc using a needle. Gi-hun survives by literally licking the back of the honeycomb to melt the sugar. It’s gross, clever, and intense.
- Tug of War: This highlighted the strategy. You didn’t need the strongest team; you needed the smartest. Il-nam’s technique—leaning back and keeping your feet planted—saves the group. It showed that experience sometimes beats raw power.
The Marble Episode: Why We’re Still Crying
If you ask anyone about a recap squid game season 1 highlight, they’ll bring up Episode 6, "Gganbu." It’s widely considered one of the best hours of television in the last decade. The players are told to pair up with the person they trust most. Naturally, they pick their friends and spouses.
Then the twist hits: they aren't playing with their partner. They are playing against them.
The loser dies.
The betrayal here is visceral. Sang-woo, the guy we thought was a "good" businessman, manipulates the kind-hearted Ali Abdul into giving up his marbles. Ali, who literally saved Gi-hun's life earlier, dies alone because he trusted the wrong person. Meanwhile, Gi-hun tricks the elderly Il-nam, who seems to be losing his memory. The guilt on Gi-hun’s face is palpable. He wins, but he loses his soul in the process. We also see the heartbreaking sacrifice of Ji-yeong, who lets Sae-byeok win because she feels Sae-byeok has more to live for.
The Glass Bridge and the Final Descent
The games get progressively more "luck-based," which is a cruel irony for a system that claims to be fair. The Glass Bridge was basically a coin flip for your life. Step on tempered glass, you’re fine. Step on normal glass, you plummet.
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By the time we get to the final three—Gi-hun, Sang-woo, and Sae-byeok—everyone is broken. Sang-woo eventually kills a wounded Sae-byeok in her sleep just to ensure she can't vote to end the game. It’s cold. It’s calculated. It’s exactly what the game wants him to be.
The Final Game: Blood and Rain
The titular "Squid Game" is the finale. It’s Gi-hun versus Sang-woo in the mud and the pouring rain. It’s not a game anymore; it’s a street fight. Gi-hun eventually gets the upper hand, but he can't bring himself to kill his old friend. He tries to invoke the clause to end the game and walk away with nothing.
But Sang-woo knows he can’t go back to his old life. He stabs himself in the neck, making Gi-hun the winner by default.
Gi-hun goes home with 45.6 billion won. But he finds his mother dead on the floor of their apartment. He won the money to save her, and he was too late. He spends a year living like a ghost, barely touching the cash, until he gets a final invitation.
The Old Man Twist
The biggest shocker in any recap squid game season 1 discussion is the reveal that Oh Il-nam, the "helpless" old man, was the creator of the games. He wasn't a victim; he was a bored billionaire who wanted to "feel something" before he died.
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He tells Gi-hun that the games are a way to see if humanity is actually good. He bets that no one will help a freezing homeless man on the street. When someone finally does call for help, Il-nam dies, losing his final bet but leaving Gi-hun with a permanent scar on his psyche.
What This Means for You
Squid Game isn't just a show about people dying in tracksuits. It’s an exploration of debt, late-stage capitalism, and the thin veneer of civilization. The show suggests that under enough pressure, almost anyone will turn into a monster—but it also offers a tiny glimmer of hope that some will choose to remain human.
If you’re watching this and feeling the existential dread, here are a few things to keep in mind for when the story continues:
- Watch the Backgrounds: The show hides the ending in plain sight. The murals on the walls of the dorm room actually showed all the games from the beginning, but the players were too busy fighting to notice.
- Follow the Colors: Red usually represents the system (the guards), while green represents the players. When Gi-hun dyes his hair red at the end, it signals his transition from a "player" to someone who is ready to take on the system.
- The Recruiter is Still Out There: The man in the suit (Gong Yoo) is still recruiting. The game didn't die with Il-nam. It’s a global enterprise.
Gi-hun’s decision at the airport—turning away from his daughter to go back and find the people running the game—sets up a completely different dynamic. He’s no longer a desperate man looking for a handout; he’s a man with a vendetta and billions of won to fund it.
To prep for what's next, pay attention to the Front Man (In-ho). His backstory as a former winner and a former police officer is the key to understanding how the games keep running year after year without getting caught. The power isn't just in the money; it's in the hierarchy.