squid game

"Squid Game" is the mega hit Korean thriller about playground antics and violent deaths that's blowing up on Netflix. Heard of it? I'm sure you have. And even if you haven't, odds are you've seen memes of it floating around the internet.

This disturbing, gruesome, funny and nostalgic streaming sensation has ignited a ton of online buzz, not least of which being the lawsuit brought to Netflix by a South Korean internet provider over an astronomical surge in traffic. The show has even generated some halloween costume ideas with which to traumatize the neighborhood. And, perhaps most terrifying of all, there's viral "Squid doll" sightings.

So what exactly is "Squid Game"? The show centers around people facing financial ruin, who are given the "opportunity" to make the equivalent of $39 million American dollars. All they need to do is win a series of simple, childlike challenges. The only catch is, if they lose, they die.

Without giving too much away, this is what makes the show truly scary: that people already in dire situations are targeted for their desperation, and pit against one another in meaningless, downright silly "games," and yet beating out the opponent really is a matter of life or death. "Squid Game" in essence is about the "contests" we agree to as part of competition culture and how it forces us to quite literally risk our lives for the sake of money.