A single father with a gambling habit drives himself to go deep into debt to serious people who run shady businesses. Now, he’s playing Red Light, Green Light for a chance to pay off everything he owes. 

     On September 17, 2021, Netflix released an original Korean series called “Squid Game”. The suspenseful Korean show follows a man and 455 other impoverished people who accepted an offer to play children’s games for a ridiculous amount of money. They agreed to the game’s terms, however, without understanding the penalties and consequences of playing the games if they lost.

     The show can be watched with subtitles or dubbed, where you can access voice overs in different languages. This allows for a wider range of viewers and contributes to its popularity.

     After viewing the series, senior Ghazia Battool  says, “It shows people are able to appreciate movies, TV shows, and music that isn’t Western influenced in language or cast.”

     “Squid Game” is on its way to becoming Netflix’s most watched original show. With only 1 season containing 9 episodes, “Squid Game” tops as Netflix’s most viewed series. It has been trending since its release along with other popular shows known worldwide, such as You, On My Block, Demon Slayer, Criminal Minds, etc. 

     According to CNET, an editorial company and website, Netflix stated “the dark Korean series was sampled by 111 million accounts, which would make it Netflix’s most-viewed original program ever — show or movie.” 

     “Squid Game” is also bringing non-K-Drama fans into the hype. Since it’s a Korean show, it makes sense for many viewers to be familiar with K-Dramas. However, due to its increasing popularity on social media platforms, “Squid Game” is catching the attention of many foreign watchers. 

     Senior Sanaa Darden does not consider herself a K-Drama fan, but she watched “Squid Game” to see if the show deserves the hype it received. At first glance, the show appeared boring to Darden’s taste. After viewing the entire show, however, she concluded that “Squid Game” was very interesting and different from other shows that are on Netflix. 

     Darden agreed with the buzz, saying, “ …it is all over social media, and it’s a type of show that just not a certain age group would like, but everybody would. You could also ask a lot of people if they’ve watched Squid Game, and 9 out of 10 everybody is gonna say that they have either watched it, or are watching it, or heard about it.”

     Korean Dramas have been extremely popular in East Asia and Southeast Asia, and “Squid Game” is unquestionably paving the way for other Korean films.