After making fans wait three years for a second season, Squid Game is already back for its third and final installment just six months later, and the first reviews say it’s a worthy conclusion. The pop culture phenomenon has spawned a reality show spin-off and is set to continue with an American offshoot tied to the original, but this is the series that shocked the world with its satirically violent premise, and it remains as spectacular and bloody and surprising as ever.
Here’s what critics are saying about Squid Game Season 3:
Is this still one of Netflix’s must-see shows?
After Season 3, it’s clear that Squid Game is the best TV show Netflix has ever produced.
— Cameron Frew, Dexerto
Hwang and his astonishing cast can take a bow knowing they made one of the greatest Netflix shows ever – if not one of the greatest shows ever, full stop.
— Molly Edwards, Total Film
This final chapter isn’t without flaws, but it still delivers the suspense and cinematic polish that made Squid Game a hit in the first place.
— Shannon Miller, IGN Movies
Ultimately, Squid Game does its job. But it leaves the impression, too, that it has become a more traditional action-thriller than it once was.
— Rebecca Nicholson, Guardian
It brings me no pleasure to report that the third and thankfully last of Squid Game seasons only confirms that we, like Gi-hun, should’ve left that cursed island behind for good after his first victory.
— Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter
How does it compare to the previous seasons?
Season 1 was phenomenal. Season 2 was better. Season 3, rather extraordinarily, is the best.
— Cameron Frew, Dexerto
For anyone who found the second season of Squid Game a huge disappointment, here’s some good news: the third and ostensibly final season is a big improvement.
— Karl Quinn, Sydney Morning Herald
After what I felt was a disappointing season 2, the final episodes wrap things up perfectly.
— Tessa Smith, Mama’s Geeky
A staggeringly excellent final season, one that recaptures the utter heartbreak of the latter half of Season 1… Squid Game Season 3 can count itself a winner.
— Molly Edwards, Total Film
Nothing will recapture the sheer “what the hell am I watching?” quality of a first season that came out of nowhere. But this is a satisfying sign-off – tied up winningly with a blood-stained bow.
— Ed Power, Daily Telegraph
Does it go in any new directions?
Dong-hyuk actively sidelines Gi-hun for the early hours to dig into the supporting cast. It’s a highly effective decision, one that dovetails nicely with the increasing stakes of late-round games. The effect infuses Squid Game with a newfound sense of hopelessness.
— William Goodman, TheWrap
It is odd to criticise Squid Game for not being credible, given that it is a hit show about an underground tournament in which children’s games are played until many or most of the participants die, but introducing this new player is completely out there.
— Rebecca Nicholson, Guardian
The reality of having a newborn baby in the games massively amplifies the dystopian nightmare fuel the show is so adept at.
— Molly Edwards, Total Film
Has it lost anything since the first season?
The satire has ebbed away… nowhere near as pointed as it was.
— Rebecca Nicholson, Guardian
In season three, the plot has lost some of that nerve, reaching for redemption that feels slapdash and therefore, sometimes, hollow.
— Emily Watkins, iNews.co.uk
How are the games this season?
One of the most entertaining parts of Squid Game is the actual games, and the same remains true for the final season.
— Tessa Smith, Mama’s Geeky
Third time out, the challenges hark back to the cartoonish cruelty of series one.
— Ed Power, Daily Telegraph
Production designer Chae Kyoung-sun excels once again in season 3: the games look stunning, the most unnerving blend of childhood whimsy and unrelenting brutality.
— Molly Edwards, Total Film
The staging of the games is awesome; these are truly some of the most immersively stressful set-pieces on TV.
— Cameron Frew, Dexerto
None of them feel as well thought through as the first season’s challenges… The games now feel like an add-on to a baggier story that sprawls towards its ending.
— Rebecca Nicholson, Guardian
Are there any standout performances this time?
What Lee Jung-jae has accomplished this season, and throughout Squid Game‘s entire run, is one of the greatest television performances of all time.
— Meghan O’Keefe, Decider
I really can’t praise Lee’s performance across all three seasons highly enough: transforming a character so completely is a serious challenge, and one that he makes look effortless.
— Molly Edwards, Total Film
There is a standout: Im Si-wan’s Lee Myung-gi, who comes to the fore in an unexpected way.
— Cameron Frew, Dexerto
Will this season leave us heartbroken?
Viewers are sure to shed some tears… There are twists and turns and shocking decisions that are made that are sure to break the hearts of viewers.
— Tessa Smith, Mama’s Geeky
There are several deaths that are incredibly painful to watch.
— Cameron Frew, Dexerto
Remember how crushing the marble game was back in Season 1? An early episode of Season 3 manages to top that, to absolutely heart-wrenching effect.
— William Goodman, TheWrap
Remember the way Marbles made you feel like you’d been stabbed in the heart? Prepare for that all over again, but worse.
— Molly Edwards, Total Film
Is the ending shocking?
Creator Hwang Dong-hyuk still has a few more nasty tricks up his sleeve — including one final twist of the knife so cruel I gasped when I realized what was happening.
— Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter
The final minute of the whole thing… contains a moment so WTF and genuinely surprising that I bet my editor a serious amount of money she wouldn’t be able to guess what happens.
— Rebecca Nicholson, Guardian
I won’t spoil the end – just know that the last challenge deserves to go straight into a textbook as a case study for ethics students, and I mean that as a sincere compliment.
— Emily Watkins, iNews.co.uk
Should season 2 and season 3 have been one season?
Season 3 [is] made up of a group of episodes that really should be considered “season 2.0” rather than a whole new installment.
— Chris Evangelista, Slashfilm
The two halves could have made a tight single season, but in this drawn-out state, it remains loose around the edges.
— Rebecca Nicholson, Guardian
Are there any other major issues?
There is no excuse for the time given to the VIPs, who appear to be in a different show to everyone else.
— Rebecca Nicholson, Guardian
The inclusion of a new round of VIPs… becomes a vehicle for restating the obvious instead of offering something new or insightful to the proceedings.
— William Goodman, TheWrap
There is one criticism regarding the use of extremely specific VFX… but it’s too much of a spoiler. For the most part, the show employs physical effects and makes everything feel as tangible as possible.
— Cameron Frew, Dexerto
Will it leave us excited for the spin-off?
The reason for leaving things the way they did is so that this series can effortlessly blend with the new one. After that tease? I cannot wait.
— Tessa Smith, Mama’s Geeky
The series has one last jolt to offer on its way out, one that could just be a fun little bow to tie the whole thing together or the start of yet another new spinoff chapter. For its sake and our own, let’s hope it’s the former. The kindest thing to offer this universe now might be a mercy killing.
— Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter
Squid Game: Season 3 is currently available to stream on Netflix.
