Squid Game season 2 doesn’t just feature the return of characters from the previous run, but also introduces several new figures to the story – and one of them messed up so badly that the show’s final season needs to correct the mistake when it airs in 2025. Not all the players in Squid Game season 2 received the same amount of screen time. However, those who did feature heavily were provided with compelling arcs that helped flesh out their characters. Unfortunately, by the end of Squid Game season 2, there’s one new player who is difficult to root for.
Many of the best new characters in Squid Game season 2 fall into one of two categories: hero or villain. That being said, there is the occasional player who is difficult to read at times, but one more so than most. Although very little is known about Squid Game season 3’s story at present, it has been confirmed to be the Netflix show’s final batch of episodes. So, there isn’t much time left for one of the tournament’s many competitors to right a very big wrong from Squid Game season 2.
Squid Game Season 3 Needs To Give Min-su A Redemption Arc
Min-su betrayed Se-mi and never rectified his mistake
David Lee’s Park Min-su is one of Squid Game season 2’s most intriguing characters, but he’s also one of the easiest players to hate. Although he initially seems meek and loyal, only the former ends up being true. Instead, he aligns himself with Thanos (T.O.P) and Roh Jae-won’s Nam-Gyu and even continues to do so after being warned away by Se-mi (Won Ji-an). Perhaps most infuriatingly, Min-su betrays Se-mi during Mingle in Squid Game season 2, episode 6, “X O.” The dark indiscretion means Squid Game season 3 must give Min-su a chance to redeem himself.
Choosing scissors so he can run to safety with Thanos and Nam-gyu ensures his survival far more than the risk of leaving to try and find a third with Se-mi, but it’s a brutal way to betray a character who has only tried to help him at every turn.
When Se-mi offers her open hand to Min-su in an attempt to get him to form the basis of a group of three (as per the round’s rule), Min-su manipulates Won Ji-an’s character’s act of friendship to appear as though she has chosen paper in a round of Rock Paper Scissors. Choosing scissors so he can run to safety with Thanos and Nam-gyu ensures his survival far more than the risk of leaving to try and find a third with Se-mi, but it’s a brutal way to betray a character who has only tried to help him at every turn.
Squid Game Season 2 Already Ruled Out The Best Way To Redeem Min-su
David Lee’s Squid Game character lets Se-mi die
The Mingle incident confirmed Min-su’s cowardice was an incredibly dangerous trait, but only to those like Se-mi who chose to befriend him. Thankfully, Se-mi managed to make it through Mingle despite being hung out to dry by someone who she believed to be her ally. This set up the perfect way for Min-su to repair his damaged reputation, and a great opportunity came along during the violent dormitory brawl scene near the end of Squid Game season 2, as Team O tries to thin out the crowd by way of bloodshed.
Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) and a few other members of Team X are also hiding during the fight, but they are at least doing so with the intent of surviving so they can overthrow the games’ infrastructure. Inversely, Min-su is simply in self-preservation mode.
During the conflict, while in his hideout spot on a top bunk, Min-su spots Se-mi coming under attack from Nam-gyu and does very little to help. Although David Lee’s character does at least sacrifice his only weapon (a glass bottle) to try and distract Nam-gyu and give Se-mi the upper hand, that’s where Min-su’s intervention stops. Instead, he simply looks the other way and covers his ears as Se-mi is stabbed to death with a fork. Given how badly he had already failed Se-mi, Min-su owed her a much bigger effort to save her life, and he blew it.
How Min-su Could Still Win Fans Over & Become A Hero In Season 3
Squid Game season 3 will probably give Min-su a shot at redemption
Squid Game season 2 spent a lot of time with Min-su, so it would be weird if the final season simply left him as a pariah, or someone to be endlessly despised for how he treated Se-mi and his failure to save her during the brawl. Instead, what’s far more likely is that Squid Game season 3 provides him with an opportunity to prove that he is capable of heroics and isn’t just poisonous in how self-centered he is.
One possibility would be Min-su standing up to Nam-gyu. Not only did Roh Jae-won’s character kill Se-mi, but he also generally spoke down to and manipulated Min-su. So, giving David Lee’s character the chance to put Nam-gyu in his place would put a huge dent in the workload he has to do to have any chance of winning the audience back. Alternatively, he could intervene during another fight scene and save a beloved character – unlike how he handled Nam-gyu’s attack on Se-mi. Perhaps even more impactful would be Min-su sacrificing himself to save the others in Squid Game season 3.
