Squid Game 1: Money, Debts and Gamble

Squid Game has been trending on my Facebook feed so I decided to watch it too because I couldn't relate to the posts I've been reading on my news feed. I decided to watch the series and I'm not regretting that I did because this is the best K-drama I've seen with this genre.

To those who don't know yet,

Squid Game is a Korean action, thriller, and mystery drama that shows a story of unfortunate people who decided to become players of a mysterious survival game with a jaw-dropping multi-billion-dollar prize.

This series caught my attention that I got to finish 9 episodes in just one sitting. I started watching the film from around 10 in the morning and finished it around 8 in the evening. I only paused when I had to grab some food and had to pee. That's how good the series is for me.

In every episode of the series, there are lessons and alarming issues that were discussed through the characters. And if you have been reading some of my previous articles, you probably know that when I watch a movie or series, I tend to dig deeper about the small details of the scenes and analyze the lessons I can learn from them.

And because there are so many lessons that I got to take down from each episode, I will be writing a couple of articles about them, starting from Episode 1 until the last episode.

So to my readers, please bear with me this time if all you will be reading about for the next couple of days is about Squid Game. These lessons I've learned are just worth note-taking and I want to share them here.

Don't worry. I will try my best not to spoil you if you haven't seen it. But if you are planning to watch the series too, I recommend you to watch it already if you find time because it's worth it.

Without further ado, here are some of the issues and lessons I took note of from Episode 1: "Green Light, Red Light."

1. Gambling Addiction

• Gambling is just a matter of luck and people gamble their money because they want to multiply it easily, especially if they are already in a financial crisis that they are willing to risk the little they have for the small chance of making a lot out of it. People uncontrollably urge to buy lottery tickets, bet on sports such as horse racing, visit casinos, and play slot machines. Gambling can be done for the matter of having fun, but when a person is willing to lose a lot of money, pawn their properties, sell their houses, and even acquire a lot of debts just to fulfill their desire to gamble, that's when Gambling Addiction is formed.

• Gambling is not good at all because it will cause you a lot of financial, physical, mental, and emotional problems not just for yourself but for your family as well. So before engaging in any kind or form of gamble, think not just twice but a lot of times because once you start doing it, you will eventually get addicted to it, especially that when you feel that luck is on your side.

2. Acquiring Debts

• All of the players of the game were chosen because of a common denominator- they need money because they have a lot of debts to pay. There are a lot of reasons why people acquire debts. For instance, some people resort to debt just to provide their basic needs such as food, clothing, and shelter for their families to survive their day-to-day life. Some also acquire debts because they have no choice as they got short of their monthly income, or they had to pay a huge sum of money for an emergency because someone got into an accident or had a chronic disease, while others got fired and became unemployed. But the worst and unacceptable reason to acquire debt is just to use it for gambling.

• I'm not judging those who resort to debt or have debts because even my family does it too, but debt is like a hole, no matter how little it is, it becomes bigger and bigger if it is not paid and continues to be accumulated. It is also like putting yourself in the quicksand that you are not able to get out of it if you are not willing to pull yourself out of it.

3. Money

• People are willing to do a lot of things to get money just like fooling someone you know (the mother), and stealing the money of others (pickpocketing). Some are also willing to get hurt just to win money (gamble with a twist). And others are also willing to bite an offer that is too good to be true (the game) even if they know nothing about it.

• Money is important in life because almost everything has a price tag now. Some people resort to doing illegal things and bad habits to have money. In this world, if you don't have money, you won't survive. This is why it is so important to manage money well and spend it wisely and not on unimportant things and vices.

There are also a lot of lessons from the first episode aside from these I've listed above such as treating your mother right, especially if she is already old. As his child, you are not obligated to provide for your mother, but you are expected to care for her and not just shout at her and fool her around. For the parent, it's also about doing your best to give your child everything he/she needs, even if it means you have to continue working until you are grey and old, because being a parent does not have an expiration.

The first episode was really good and it caught my interest. It would want you to continue watching it, play the next episode until you get to the end.

Watch it to believe it. Cheers!