because gihun understood that the real enemy wasn’t the people who voted “O”, it was the people in charge…
hey, you just gave an example proving my point though.
you said your country had to fight to be free? well this is also what i'm trying to say — that gihun tried to fight against the squid game creators so that in the future, there wouldn't be any more squid games taking advantage of common people who are desperate for money (for good or for bad reason).
"Sacrifices are worth only when the result has changed." <--- you thought gihun's plan was illogical because it didn't change anything immediately, but your country took 150 years to be free... interesting...
gihun may not have changed anything right away, but he was likely the first SG player to start a revolution against the creators. that's already a good starting point because like i said before, "real change won't happen unless people are willing to speak up and fight back — even when the odds are against them, even when that means sacrificing and losing." your country is a one very good historic example proving that and i salute to them for fighting for their freedom.
anyway, i think this discussion has turned the wrong way so let's just end our thoughts here...
because gihun understood that the real enemy wasn’t the people who voted “O”, it was the people in charge…
what? this is a discussion page so i'm sharing some insight for why gihun did what he did, since you thought it was a "pathetic and suicidal" decision.
yeah "squid game" is just a fictional survival game show but it has themes that mirror real-word struggles. delving deeper into those themes makes the show feel much more meaningful.
because gihun understood that the real enemy wasn’t the people who voted “O”, it was the people in charge…
i believe that gihun wanted everyone to vote "X" for three main reasons: (1) to save them obviously, (2) for them to not be apart of the oppressive games, and (3) in hopes of them realizing how destructive the games are and therfore change their morals.
if everyone had the same mindset as you — that "we shouldn't fight back because nothing will change anyway / it'll only make it worse" — then the world would never move forward. oppressed groups would just continue to be oppressed, and the powerful would only become more powerful.
the fact that gihun tried is what matters most at the end of the day, because real change won't happen unless people are willing to speak up and fight back — even when the odds are against them, even when that means sacrificing and losing.
First 2 episodes,Dae Ho was right to confront Gi Hun and ask him not to blame him, coz Gi Hun' s plan in season…
because gihun understood that the real enemy wasn’t the people who voted “O”, it was the people in charge of the squid games (frontman, vips, guards, etc)
nothing would've changed if gihun went for the ones who voted "O"; the squid game creators would've just continued the games with a new set of players.
people tend to think its me vs you, when actually it's me and you vs the problem — the system that pitted us against each other in the first place.
loved everything about this drama except for Gu Yu character, he was so unattractive and old and looked to be…
gao hanyu was part of the idol group HIT-5. i looked at their photos before and noticed all the members had this similar type of appearance, which made me think their company must've forced or pressured them to do plastic surgery. very sad; it happens to a lot of idols :(
"This book tells the story of a group of ordinary people who are captured and taken to the 'Land of the End,' where they are forced to go through a life-and-death cycle every ten days. They live, die, and live again in this place. To escape, they must participate in deadly games designed by the 'Twelve Zodiac Signs.' However, after several rounds, some people begin to awaken supernatural abilities.
(No harem, no clichés, no overpowered characters, no game systems, no brainless plots, no power-fantasy vibes — those who mind such things, beware.)
Excerpt: When I thought it was just an ordinary day, I found myself captured and taken to the Land of the End. When I thought I just had to keep playing death games to escape, people began awakening supernatural powers. When I thought this place was meant to create gods — everything instead moved toward total annihilation."
just because xiao yao and xiang liu were doomed from the start doesn't mean i’ll stop wishing they were endgame.…
"And he's not even Jing's real son. And Jing did not do things to make it happen. The unfortunate things just happened."
although chenrong wasn't his blood family, although he had absolutely nothing to do with the feud between chenrong and haoling/xiyan, xiang liu still chose to fight alongside chenrong — just to repay his adoptive father's kindness.
and there's the difference between your favorite character and mine.
just because xiao yao and xiang liu were doomed from the start doesn't mean i’ll stop wishing they were endgame.…
you're absolutely right that jing never actively sought the role of tushan clan leader; he only took it up out of duty. in fact, he was so unwilling to be the leader that he couldn’t even put aside his personal desires to stay with his young nephew. again, you prove my point that by prioritizing xiao yao over his nephew, he is a good lover but not a good person.
"He was raised from the start as the future Tushan Chief — supported by the elders, groomed for the position, and never treated as a second choice." this is exactly why i describe him as "trapped" — because he himself was never given a choice on whether he wanted the position. you know very well how jing felt when he was forced to be the leader, so why can’t you apply the same to zhen?
although a child may not have met them or known them for long, the absence of biological family and parental figures DOES impact a child for the rest of their life. just think about how the nephew will feel once he learns the truth about his family history; his reaction could be the same as xiao yao's — a deep sense of abandonment and hatred towards his family.
“Jing’s nephew, by contrast, grew up in a stable environment, with a clear role as the clan’s future leader, and support from both family and elders."
(1) what makes you think tushan clan will be any better than xiyan? there will always be people hungry for power, and internal politics can happen anywhere. (2) have you forgotten what happened to xiao yao? just like xiao yao, zhen is not pure tushan blood. when his parentage gets leaked, people will no doubt react negatively, leading him to be targeted and even assassinated.
it’s unfortunate that despite their similarities, tushan zhen isn’t as lucky as cang xuan or xiao yao to have a powerful family member watch his back or share a life-saving bug with a nine-lives demon. no one will be able to protect and revive him when he needs it most.
so considering all this, is jing really "ensuring his safety”?
really the only two things i hated were gihun resenting then killing daeho, and junho's basically-useless boat cruises. everything else was either mid or understandable
just because xiao yao and xiang liu were doomed from the start doesn't mean i’ll stop wishing they were endgame.…
the primary reason why jing chose not to reclaim the title wasn't to ensure the clan and his nephew's safety as you said; it was so he could be with xiao yao. xiao yao never cared about royalty or status, she just wanted to be free. since jing wanted to be with her, he too had to give up his position as tushan clan leader, which we all know he struggled with for a long time. his nephew inheriting the position finally solved that problem for him, so naturally he wouldn't try to take it back. if jing truly cared for his nephew like you claimed then he should've stayed with him, not leave. hence why i describe him as a good lover but not a good person.
going on about how they've "done enough" smh. their lifespans are very long. what jing (and xiao yao) did was for only a small percentage of that kid's life. compare it to trapping him in the position of a lonely tushan clan leader that will last for the rest of his long life.
as for preventing a hou-jing...
hou didn't torture jing because he was seen as a "second choice." the actual reason is that their mother didn't love and treat him well, just because he wasn't her biological son like jing. hou wasn't even considered a choice to her. that being said, assuming your scenario became reality, there shouldn't be any resentment between jing's nephew and his son. after all, jing is "kind" and would therefore raise both with care and fairness, unlike his mother, right?
well those are just hypothetical scenarios anyway.
it's a good thing they prevented another hou-jing catastrophe. but now, they've created a child who, ironically, will probably end up like cang xuan or xiao yao, because (once again...) "This nephew who had already lost his grandmother and biological parents now has to cope with losing his uncle as well."
Yangzi went to the Magnolia Awards as well. However, I didn't witness any communication between Tan Jianci and…
i saw a post that said an interviewer asked jianci, "did you know that yang zi was nominated for best actress?" to which he responded, "yes, i hope she wins best actress."
other than that, i haven't seen any other interactions between them at that event
just because xiao yao and xiang liu were doomed from the start doesn't mean i’ll stop wishing they were endgame.…
and since you said that jing was the only right person for xiao yao, let me just bring up this comment i wrote a while back:
"I strongly believe that one shouldn't revolve their entire life around one person; it's unhealthy. If we're only focusing on the romantic aspect, then sure, maybe Jing really is the ideal partner. He's devoted to you and only you after all. But what if we take a step back and look at the bigger picture? To be with Xiao Yao, Jing had to abandon his role as Tushan clan leader, passing the responsibility onto his young nephew. This nephew who had already lost his grandmother and biological parents now has to cope with losing his uncle as well. Therefore, while someone like Jing might be considered a good lover, can we truly call him a good person? I don't know about you but if my partner was like that, I would be very concerned.
Love is a beautiful and important thing, but it's not everything in life. That's why I love Xiang Liu's character. He loves Xiao Yao deeply, doing so much for her without expecting anything in return, yet still remains true to his morals, repaying his foster father Hong Jiang's kindness by caring for the Chenrong army. You view his actions as ‘stupid’ and while I do kinda agree (out of bitterness about his end lol), it just demonstrates how great his morals and gratitude towards Hong Jiang are. This type of person imo is a good lover AND a good person, in fact, even more than 'good' - he is selfless and honorable."
Honestly when I meet fans of LYF, they often don't like it when I say: "I love that XY chose TSJ in the end. Although…
just because xiao yao and xiang liu were doomed from the start doesn't mean i’ll stop wishing they were endgame. why? because i believe that they both loved each other, and that xiang liu was the one xiao yao wanted to be with the most, if only they weren't enemies and shackled by their duties. their bond was the deepest and most heartfelt in the entire story imo.
"Xiao Yao felt like the two of them could have kept playing together like this for forever and an eternity. Because the two of them were just too similar [...] They appreciated all that was beautiful, but wanted to own none of it." — chapter 17 from the novel
"虽然狐狸比较适合小天, 但他就像白开水, 是为了生 存而已。 相柳才是让人觉得活着值得的人, 能让你感 觉到心脏的悸动" (Although the fox is more suitable for Xiao Yao, he is like boiled water, just for survival. Xiang Liu is the one who makes people feel that life is worth living, and can make you feel the throbbing of your heart.) — comment by @xinxinjiang9204
xiang liu never gave xiao yao “false hope.” this selfless nine-headed demon so carefully made sure xiao yao would never find out about his love — masking it behind coldness or transactions, even hurting her. in the end, he erased himself from her memory mirror so she wouldn’t be emotionally attached after his death.
just like akumau, i also don't really care if people like jing, ship xiao yao with jing, or whatever etc (i even commented before that i believe xiao yao loved both him and xiang liu by the end of the story) but i don’t agree with people insisting that xiao yao ONLY ever loved jing, NEVER loved xiang liu (in a romantic sense at that), and that jing is the best, kindest, or most selfless person.
1 
2 
you said your country had to fight to be free? well this is also what i'm trying to say — that gihun tried to fight against the squid game creators so that in the future, there wouldn't be any more squid games taking advantage of common people who are desperate for money (for good or for bad reason).
"Sacrifices are worth only when the result has changed." <--- you thought gihun's plan was illogical because it didn't change anything immediately, but your country took 150 years to be free... interesting...
gihun may not have changed anything right away, but he was likely the first SG player to start a revolution against the creators. that's already a good starting point because like i said before, "real change won't happen unless people are willing to speak up and fight back — even when the odds are against them, even when that means sacrificing and losing." your country is a one very good historic example proving that and i salute to them for fighting for their freedom.
anyway, i think this discussion has turned the wrong way so let's just end our thoughts here...
yeah "squid game" is just a fictional survival game show but it has themes that mirror real-word struggles. delving deeper into those themes makes the show feel much more meaningful.
if everyone had the same mindset as you — that "we shouldn't fight back because nothing will change anyway / it'll only make it worse" — then the world would never move forward. oppressed groups would just continue to be oppressed, and the powerful would only become more powerful.
the fact that gihun tried is what matters most at the end of the day, because real change won't happen unless people are willing to speak up and fight back — even when the odds are against them, even when that means sacrificing and losing.
nothing would've changed if gihun went for the ones who voted "O"; the squid game creators would've just continued the games with a new set of players.
people tend to think its me vs you, when actually it's me and you vs the problem — the system that pitted us against each other in the first place.
happy anniversary to lost you forever s2!
the plot sounds really intriguing!
"This book tells the story of a group of ordinary people who are captured and taken to the 'Land of the End,' where they are forced to go through a life-and-death cycle every ten days. They live, die, and live again in this place. To escape, they must participate in deadly games designed by the 'Twelve Zodiac Signs.' However, after several rounds, some people begin to awaken supernatural abilities.
(No harem, no clichés, no overpowered characters, no game systems, no brainless plots, no power-fantasy vibes — those who mind such things, beware.)
Excerpt: When I thought it was just an ordinary day, I found myself captured and taken to the Land of the End.
When I thought I just had to keep playing death games to escape, people began awakening supernatural powers.
When I thought this place was meant to create gods — everything instead moved toward total annihilation."
(translated from https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E5%8D%81%E6%97%A5%E7%BB%88%E7%84%89/63368747)
although chenrong wasn't his blood family, although he had absolutely nothing to do with the feud between chenrong and haoling/xiyan, xiang liu still chose to fight alongside chenrong — just to repay his adoptive father's kindness.
and there's the difference between your favorite character and mine.
"He was raised from the start as the future Tushan Chief — supported by the elders, groomed for the position, and never treated as a second choice."
this is exactly why i describe him as "trapped" — because he himself was never given a choice on whether he wanted the position. you know very well how jing felt when he was forced to be the leader, so why can’t you apply the same to zhen?
although a child may not have met them or known them for long, the absence of biological family and parental figures DOES impact a child for the rest of their life. just think about how the nephew will feel once he learns the truth about his family history; his reaction could be the same as xiao yao's — a deep sense of abandonment and hatred towards his family.
“Jing’s nephew, by contrast, grew up in a stable environment, with a clear role as the clan’s future leader, and support from both family and elders."
(1) what makes you think tushan clan will be any better than xiyan? there will always be people hungry for power, and internal politics can happen anywhere.
(2) have you forgotten what happened to xiao yao? just like xiao yao, zhen is not pure tushan blood. when his parentage gets leaked, people will no doubt react negatively, leading him to be targeted and even assassinated.
it’s unfortunate that despite their similarities, tushan zhen isn’t as lucky as cang xuan or xiao yao to have a powerful family member watch his back or share a life-saving bug with a nine-lives demon. no one will be able to protect and revive him when he needs it most.
so considering all this, is jing really "ensuring his safety”?
going on about how they've "done enough" smh. their lifespans are very long. what jing (and xiao yao) did was for only a small percentage of that kid's life. compare it to trapping him in the position of a lonely tushan clan leader that will last for the rest of his long life.
as for preventing a hou-jing...
hou didn't torture jing because he was seen as a "second choice." the actual reason is that their mother didn't love and treat him well, just because he wasn't her biological son like jing. hou wasn't even considered a choice to her. that being said, assuming your scenario became reality, there shouldn't be any resentment between jing's nephew and his son. after all, jing is "kind" and would therefore raise both with care and fairness, unlike his mother, right?
well those are just hypothetical scenarios anyway.
it's a good thing they prevented another hou-jing catastrophe. but now, they've created a child who, ironically, will probably end up like cang xuan or xiao yao, because (once again...) "This nephew who had already lost his grandmother and biological parents now has to cope with losing his uncle as well."
this user is a yang zi and tan jianci shipper. since you also ship them, maybe this is a good account to follow^^
other than that, i haven't seen any other interactions between them at that event
"I strongly believe that one shouldn't revolve their entire life around one person; it's unhealthy. If we're only focusing on the romantic aspect, then sure, maybe Jing really is the ideal partner. He's devoted to you and only you after all. But what if we take a step back and look at the bigger picture? To be with Xiao Yao, Jing had to abandon his role as Tushan clan leader, passing the responsibility onto his young nephew. This nephew who had already lost his grandmother and biological parents now has to cope with losing his uncle as well. Therefore, while someone like Jing might be considered a good lover, can we truly call him a good person? I don't know about you but if my partner was like that, I would be very concerned.
Love is a beautiful and important thing, but it's not everything in life. That's why I love Xiang Liu's character. He loves Xiao Yao deeply, doing so much for her without expecting anything in return, yet still remains true to his morals, repaying his foster father Hong Jiang's kindness by caring for the Chenrong army. You view his actions as ‘stupid’ and while I do kinda agree (out of bitterness about his end lol), it just demonstrates how great his morals and gratitude towards Hong Jiang are. This type of person imo is a good lover AND a good person, in fact, even more than 'good' - he is selfless and honorable."
"Xiao Yao felt like the two of them could have kept playing together like this for forever and an eternity. Because the two of them were just too similar [...] They appreciated all that was beautiful, but wanted to own none of it."
— chapter 17 from the novel
"虽然狐狸比较适合小天, 但他就像白开水, 是为了生 存而已。 相柳才是让人觉得活着值得的人, 能让你感 觉到心脏的悸动" (Although the fox is more suitable for Xiao Yao, he is like boiled water, just for survival. Xiang Liu is the one who makes people feel that life is worth living, and can make you feel the throbbing of your heart.)
— comment by @xinxinjiang9204
xiang liu never gave xiao yao “false hope.” this selfless nine-headed demon so carefully made sure xiao yao would never find out about his love — masking it behind coldness or transactions, even hurting her. in the end, he erased himself from her memory mirror so she wouldn’t be emotionally attached after his death.
just like akumau, i also don't really care if people like jing, ship xiao yao with jing, or whatever etc (i even commented before that i believe xiao yao loved both him and xiang liu by the end of the story) but i don’t agree with people insisting that xiao yao ONLY ever loved jing, NEVER loved xiang liu (in a romantic sense at that), and that jing is the best, kindest, or most selfless person.
"i should have known" ahahaha 🤣 yes it's me
the only thing i can think of is that jackson can just easily chat with anyone. he could probably hold a successful conversation with even a stranger.