Warning: There are spoilers ahead for Squid Game season 3.
The biggest twist inSquid Gameseason 3 was the villainous turn of Lee Myung-gi (Yim Si-wan). As Player 333, Myung-gi was one of the newcharacters introduced inSquid Gameseason 2, and despite the past mistakes he made in his personal and professional lives, he seemed to be on a path of redemption.
Myung-gi initially appeared to live up to this potential when he teamed up withSeong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) inSquid Gameseason 3, episode 5 to protect the baby of Kim Jun-hee (Jo Yu-ri). Since Myung-gi was the baby’s biological father, and given the direction of his character arc, this alliance seemed like a natural development.
However, this trust proved to be temporary, with Myung-gi turning against Gi-hun in the final round duringSquid Gameseason 3’s ending.Myung-gi being willing to kill his own baby and betraying Gi-hun was genuinely shocking, but it did align with the show’s themes and with his character’s true nature.
Myung-gi Turned Out To Be Squid Game Season 3’s Final Villain
He Was The Last Major Threat To The Baby’s Survival
Myung-gi’s villainous turn made him the final antagonist that Gi-hun had to overcome. Other villainous competitors like Nam-gyu (Roh Jae-won) and Im Jeong-dae (Song Young-chang) had already been eliminated. Hwang Jun-ho (Wi Ha-joon), Woo-seok (Jun Suk-ho), and Kang No-eul (Park Gyu-young) ended up dealing with the villainous threats outside the competition.
Even the Front Man (Lee Byung-hun), who was the overarching villain of seasons 2 and 3, found some redemption in the end. TheFront Man committed the humane actof saving the baby, and making sure the child and Gi-hun’s daughter were taken care of afterward. Meanwhile, Myung-gi became the last major threat to his child’s survival.
Myung-gi made it clear that he wanted Gi-hun eliminated before the final round so that the baby would be the only remaining competition. Once Gi-hun was gone,Myung-gi fully intended to send the baby to its death.
Why Player 333 Was Willing To Kill His Own Baby In The Last Game
Myung-gi Didn’t Believe Gi-hun Would Let Them Win
Myung-gi was willing to kill his own child if it meant he would survive. If he waited to push Gi-hun until the final round started, both Myung-gi and the baby would have been declared winners, and they would have had to split the money.Player 333 also didn’t believe that Gi-hun was going to let them win, meaning he would rather kill the child than risk fighting Player 456.
If Gi-hun died before the final round started, then nothing would get in the way of Myung-gi killing the baby and becoming the sole winner. Greed ultimately defined his actions, as he could not accept sharing the money, even with his own child, after everything he had done to reach the end of the games.
There Was No Redemption For Myung-gi In Squid Game Season 3
He Did Not Deserve To Be Redeemed
Even before becoming the final villain,Myung-gi proved earlier in season 3 that he did not deserve to be redeemed. No matter what he told himself, his decision to kill as many players as possible duringSquid Game’s dark version of hide-and-seekwas motivated by greed, as he was willing to repeatedly murder if it meant increasing the prize pot.
That decision led to him fatally stabbing Cho Hyun-ju (Park Sung-hoon) in the back while she tried to help Jun-hee and the baby safely escape. Myung-gi had already stabbed Hyun-ju by the time he realized she was helping Jun-hee and the baby, but he never needed to kill her in the first place.
Myung-gi only helped Gi-hun and the baby temporarily because doing so allowed them to eliminate all the other remaining competitors and increase the amount of money they could win. If he truly cared about the baby, he could’ve done more after the child was born, and didn’t have to wait until the second round of the final game to help.
After consistently putting himself first in previous episodes, any redemption at the end for Myung-gi would have felt contrived and unearned.
After consistently putting himself first in previous episodes, any redemption at the end for Myung-gi would have felt contrived and unearned.Squid Gamehas always showcased the best and worst of humanity, and in the final round, Gi-hun represented the best, whileMyung-gi represented the worst of humanity.
