THE
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Demnocracy the series argues is
And everything within the show
has becomne
Lee Jung-jae won an Emmy for the first season in a
role characterized by live-wire dexterity Everything in Lees
performance was
from broad comnedy to broad tragedy reconciled
perfectly by the end While Lee is a
enough actor to mnake Gi-
huns one-note haunted aspect a fitting development ofthe character;
hes less
interesting as a result. Other than Choi, who Inakes Thanos
wildly unpredictable and vibrant (if never close to a real person); every
new character feels like a lesser
replacemnent for somnebody we lost the
first time around and the series suffers hugely fromn the absence of0
Yeong-sus wily Il-namn, Jung Ho-yeons deeply tormnented Sae-byeok
and Inore
grimn.
grii.
big;
good

plays Hyun-ju, aformer special forces soldier and transgender woman who enters
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the games to earn funding for gender-affirming surgery. (Worth noting: Parkis a cis
man; Hwang says he had difficulty finding an out trans actress in Korea and chose
Parkforthe role rather than cutting this important storyline) Hyun-juis sharp,
Upgrade to + P3Lus
compassionate capable and complicated
fully realized person with her own
No ads unlimited game maps,
incredibly valid motivations who’s treated with notable care by Park and Hwang:
free games discounts and
Another headline-grabbing choice: Choi Seung-hyun aka revered, once-
underground South Korean rapper TO.P who plays well,
a revered underground
See all the benefits
rapper named Thanos. Thanos is a lightning bolt of unrepentant chaosin an already
electric environment and Choi has found a way to imbue pitch-perfect physical
comedy, rage and tragic recklessness into a character that makes the viewer
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simultaneously hold their breath infear and begfor more It’sa match madein hell
Search
through and through
though Thanosisn’t without his own sobering baggage
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making him just as easy to pity as heis to fear.

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With all the past contestants being killed off, director Hwang has the luxury of having
an almost blank slate for characters for the second series, and he’s zonedin on some
gripping back stories of this new motley crew There’sa mother and her gambling-
addict son both startled to find the other is in there; vulnerable young women, ex-
Marines a crypto influencer and a menacing pill-popping rapper (in a nice easter egg
to Korean music fans, played with gusto by rapper Choi Seung-hyun otherwise
knowna- TOP) who has lost all his money after buying crypto-currency
recommended bythe aforementioned influencer.

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With the humor (mostly) sapped out of his hero; Hwang adds
compensatory comic reliefthrough several new characters. Jung-bae
forms a
charmingfriendship with Dae-ho (Kang Ha-neul) ayoung Marine
who’s eagertobeofservice tothe older man Jeon Seok-hois
consistently amusing as Woo-seok an excitable small-time criminal who
joins Jun-hoin the searchforthe island. And Choi
-a
well-known rapper
off-screen
brings phenomenal chanisma and swaggerto Thanos who
maintains his MC bravado evenin the most horrific circumstances. Yoo’s
slick recruiter enjoys more screen time this season,and the actor
explodes his character’ s chilling composure during a terrifying
and
delightfully unhinged
reunion with Gi-hun.

SCREENRANT
T.O.P ‘sCharacter Is One Of Squid Game Season 2’s Most
Entertaining Additions
Thanos Is extremely unpredlctable and full of energy
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From “AgathaAll Along” to “Squid Game” to “The Penguin”

Choi Seung-hyun in “Squid Game” (Netflir)
Choi Seung-hyun (Squid Game”)
Pour a shot for the most unhinged man to ever take part in “Squid Game’
Thanos. Choi Seung-hyun aka rapper TO.P., brings an unsettling amount of
to this season about playing murderous children s games, from dancing in
the middle of blood-splattered challenges to literally kissing the button that will
ensure more
will die.
Thanos is almost
psychotic in how he dances through the games, making him one
of the best villains ofthe year. But what transcends Choi’ s performance from fun
to notable is the honesty he brings to the role. Yes, Choi plays Thanos as an
entitled and violent bad
But there s a sense that, behind all of his
and
grand proclamations, Thanos is just as unsettled by the games as anyone else.
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