The first episode of Squid Game season 3 ended with the players getting ready to start playing the show's version of hide and seek. It's the most deadly one you'll see! Gi-hun (Player 456) is convinced that it's Dae-ho's fault (Player 388) that they failed in their revolution and now Dae-ho needs to hide, because Gi-hun is definitely seeking him.
I honestly don't even know where to start with season 3 episode 2, "The Starry Night" on Netflix. It takes us on such a wild ride with two major heartbreaking deaths that we didn't think would happen the way they did. Let's get into the recap. SPOILERS BELOW.
Squid Game season 3 episode 2 completely shatters our hearts
The game of hide and seek is officially here, and it's a terrifying one. It's true that the blue team has keys to open doors and hide, though the game is not jus that simple. They only have one key shape, and the doors all have different locks depending on that shape. Of course those are triangle, circle, and square. Some doors don't even open to somewhere else. You're standing at a scary height. Plus, the exit requires all three keys but we'll get to that in a moment.
It's hard to work as a team here because everyone has their own interests at heart. But not for the dream team - Jun-hee (Player 222), Geum-ja (Player 149), and Hyun-ju (Player 120). The trio sticks together and Hyun-ju is a literal superhero. She protects her companions any time a red team member comes up and she just kicks ass. It's truly needed because there's a surprise little extra player who decides now is the right time to enter the world.
Jun-hee's baby arrives in the middle of hide and seek
Jun-hee goes into labor, with Geum-ja and Hyun-ju helping her though it. She welcomes a baby girl, and it would be a happy moment if not for the stress-filled tension that they are sitting ducks right now. Oh, and Jun-hee twisted her ankle too. So there's that. I knew it was coming, but I still cannot believe this little baby is here and in this crazy moment.
Hyun-ju even eventually finds the exit and learns that you need all three keys - a triangle, square, and circle, to open it and get through. She gets there, because remember she held on to all three of their keys, and literally opens the door and hears the congratulations song but she's too good and pure for this world, and goes back for Jun-hee and Geum-ja.
RIP Myun-gi (Player 333)
Unfortunately, she's off her guard and not paying attention, making it easy for someone to come up behind her. And that would be Lee Myung-gi (Player 333). He and Nam-gyu (Player 124) go on a blood bath of sorts, realizing that even though they've passed and killed a player each, they can eliminate more to up the prize money. Because remember the rule? A red team member has to kill at least one. At least. But they could kill more. Which they do.
Of course Jun-hee knows that Myung-gi already passed hearing it on the speaker. I knew the partnership between those two was going to cause more trouble. And he's heartbreakingly the one to kill our beloved Hyun-ju. The way I was screaming at my screen, you guys. The tears are still flowing. But, wait. It doesn't stop there!
The heartbreaking mother and son twist we didn't see coming
Squid Game season 3 episode 2 was adamant on playing with all of our emotions, and it certainly was successful. Jun-hee and Geum-ja are heartbroken over Hyun-ju's death, but know that she found the exit which means it's nearby and they really need to go. There's a baby to protect now after all.
Yong-sik (Player 007) had the opportunity to eliminate someone, but didn't end up taking it. And as bad as I feel for saying this, I truly wish he did because something even worse ends up happening. Just as they're about to make their way to the exit and time is running out, Yong-sik finds his mother and Jun-hee with the baby. He admits he wasn't able to kill anyone and that he's going to die. He's rightfully scared, and his mother tells him she's lived long enough and to go ahead and eliminate her.
He isn't able to, that's his mom. Even though she's willing to sacrifice herself for him. Unfortunately, and backed into a corner, Yong-sik knows there's another way out where he and his mom can make it out together. That's by killing Jun-hee. In a crazy turn of events that I'm still trying to wrap my head around, Geum-ja stabs her own son when he goes to kill Jun-hee while she's holding her baby. Not only that, she does it with her emergency weapon - the hairpin. I mean, talk about a literal knife to the heart for us viewers. Ugh. What an absolutely heartbreaking and horrendous decision to have to make.
More major players are eliminated
We're only into the second episode, and already two major characters that were introduced in season 2 have been eliminated. And there's two more who are gone as well. This episode confirms what we've all known this whole time that Seon-nyeo (Player 044) is a shaman who is full of baloney. Yet she almost gets out and is able to make it through most of the way.
She teams up with Jeong-dae) Player 100) for a hot second after he covered his face with blood and pretended to be dead. But to no one's surprise, he betrays her and makes his way through one of the two exits there. She too gets eliminated as a result when a drugged up Min-su (Player 125) shows up, having found Thanos' cross with the pills that Nam-gyu then took. He's hallucinating and sees the shaman lady as Nam-gyu and stabs her to death. Then the vision turns into Se-mi and he starts freaking out.
Now where was Player 456 during all of this? He had his sights set on Dae-ho (Player 388) and only Dae-ho. As teased at the end of season 3 episode 1, Gi-hun is blaming Dae-ho for everything. He admits he never served in the military and that his tattoo was fake. He pretended that he did to be a part of their group. Oh, Dae-ho.
He also yells at Gi-hun that it was actually his fault for leading them into a rebellion. Player 456 snaps, and actually kills Dae-ho with his bare hands. Remember in the first episode when the players were mad about only having their hands as a weapon before being given a knife? Oh the writing and foreshadowing of this series. It's truly brilliant. Gi-hun then iterates that it's his fault, blaming himself, and tries to take his own life but a pink guard stops him.
The final plot point worth mentioning in this crazy episode is pink guard No-eul. After saving Gyeong-seok's (Player 246) life, she kills the doctor so he doesn't talk. Despite her telling him she'd spare him if he helped her. But you know. Desperate times call for desperate measures. This episode seriously played with all my emotions, and I need some time to recover. Holy cow.
Squid Game season 3 is now streaming on Netflix. Check out a list of all the season's recaps, here.
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