Squid Game: The Challenge
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I understand why Husnain (198) did it.
In poker terms, the guy was on tilt.
Perhaps he forgot the nature of the competition hes in.
He doesnt have many options.
Hey buddy, want a treat?Pop.
Youd be distrusted for the rest of the game, but at least youd still be in it.
But his sweatiness is too obvious.
Bryton lives to condescend another day.
This, I think, extends from the shows nature as an adaptation.
Of course, Oh Il-nam turns out to be the villain behind the entire Squid Game enterprise.
All of which is to say I find Rick very endearing his beekeeping anecdote alone!
but knowing the source material, Im keeping him at arms length.
They, too, have developed a nice bond.
(Shout-out to the departed Kyle and Dani.)
Then again, Bryton continues to hover over the proceedings.
Having watched the K-drama, hes betting the next challenge will be Tug of War.
Lingering over everything is the memory of Dalgona reps being eliminated for not achieving consensus in time.
Player 182, named TJ, emerges as a character at this moment.
Just think about each other!
Dont think about yall selves!
When the lines are ultimately formed, some are visibly nervous.
Player 453 starts to cry, which Bryton characteristically berates.
Control your emotions, he says aloud.
This is not a game of sympathy at all.
TJ cuts a sharp contrast as he comforts 453.
Brytons line is part of the first matchup.
He continues feeling confident, having assessed the opposition as not physically capable.
But his confidence is all for naught.
Because the challenge, surprise surprise, isnt Tug of War at all.
Bryton is overcome with emotion.
He taps his noggin.
This is gonna win all day, baby.
I made a sound of delight at the twist.
The rules, in case you need a refresher: Yep, its justBattleship, pegs and all.
Each team is led by two people, with everyone else making up the peg of each ship.
Teams win by sinking two opposing ships, but the nuance lies in how elimination works.
The losing teams leaders get axed, as do people on sunk ships on both sides.
Ill be honest: The Warship challenge is mostly a tedious watch.
It just doesnt feel like the most dynamic television.
Which isnt to say it was absent of drama.
Theres still plenty of that.
Later, in the dorm, he finds a quiet moment for himself to cry.
Bee uses her grasp on game design to wipe the floor with the opposing team.
She even teaches us a fun fact: InBattleship, people always seem to go after C3.
Time for the tally.
Were now down to 73 players, corresponding to a pot of $3.83 million.
Theres some excitement in the room, but it feels more muted than usual.
Youd think wed be done for the day, but no.
The red tracksuits return, dragging out a lectern with a number pad on it.
Everyone has to vote for one person to be eliminated.
The top three vote-getters are out.
Theyre given some time to come up with a plan.
This is where Nowhere to Hide picks up.
Even the phone test: Husnain was self-defeating, punished for being a little too greedy.
Here, the players as a whole are made to act upon the moral judgments of everyone around them.
Another game to lay on top of this test, as it were.
But others, including LeAnn, the stone-cold killer, are dismissive.
I like the chaos of their game, she says.
Personally, I go back and forth on how I feel about this.
On the one hand, Im all for trying to introduce more fairness.
Chaney (179) narrates her dislike of his demeanor, and she isnt alone.
(Rick, by the way, prefers to be a leader on the down low.)
A spread of strategies emerges.
What exactly drives this thinking is unclear to me.
Rumor and gossip and bits of intel fly around the dorm as players hustle to figure out viable targets.
All the while, paranoia settles into the firmament.
This does not sit well with LeAnn.
Time for the vote.
Immediately, the full picture of the tests dynamics clicks into place.
Vote entrepreneurs carry a disproportionate burden here.
Player 374s gambit of playing it cool?
Who knows backfires, and hes first on the board.
Theres no way hes getting out of this.
Lorenzo, seemingly oblivious to the consequences of his behavior, is surprised.
Chaney recognizes this, having clocked that three people need to go no matter what.
So she throws Dr. V on the board, believing that the solidarity of her team will hold.
Unsurprisingly, he adds Chaney to the mix.
Will he have enough votes behind him?
The same question applies to Lorenzo, who makes a show of going after LeAnn.
The answer, of course, is no.
Some, though, take a stab at use this time to put plans into motion.
Word about his machinations gets back to Chaney before long.
We are all finding person-to-person elimination harder than the game, she says.
We see this expressed in other ways.
In the showers, the Gganbu gang reverbalize their commitment to each other (for now).
Elsewhere, others, like Mai (287) and Chad (286), do the same.
As downtime drags on, life continues to hum along.
The players eat, hang out, exercise, occasionally breakdance.
But I can get behind Phalisias choice to do so.
So begins Trick or Treat.
The test is an adapted Russian roulette, with each jack-in-the-box containing a different outcome.
Jesses box grants him the task of eliminating two players, and we get to hear his reasoning.
(That cuts both ways, though.)
Jesses second cut is Dash, whose shenanigans come back to bite him.
Player 375s box is a bullet in the chamber; hes out.
Phalisias stressed as Player 130 cranks his box, but the guy gets an advantage in the next game.
After a nail-biting, drawn-out run-up, Phalisia pulls the opportunity to cut three players.
Her first choice is Player 130, simply for the reason of having drawn that advantage.
Pockets of the room mumble in understanding.
Shes far more vicious in her next targets.
She picks off informal father-son pair, Physician Rick and Mullet Steve, effectively decimating the Gganbu gang.
Im bummed narratively gonna miss that beekeeper!
but I, too, mumble in understanding.
The strategy is sound.
(Props to Player 269 for the most emotive response.
Rick, we love you, he whimpers.
I love that guy.)
The remnants of the Gganbu gang commit to lying low for a bit.
Organically formed groups of buddies start to feel nervous about hanging out constantly.
After all, the two have constantly come up as potential elimination targets since the beginning.
Time for the tally.
Were now down to 63 people, with a pot of $3.93 million.
The room seems the most muted its ever been.
As the dorm decompresses, various players take stock of their situations.
Phalisia reunites with her closest ally, Ashley (whos a civil-rights investigator!
), and the two steady themselves in each others presence.
The competition is what it is, I suppose.
Its chore time, but with a twist.
If five volunteers complete the task in time, everybody gets a treat.
Mikey is understandably suspicious; wejustsaw what happened to the last five volunteers.
They only learn later that they were.
Only Jordan (222), or Young Hulk Hogan, is left all by himself.
But the guy doesnt fret, being characteristically Australian about it.
Picnic baskets emerge: juice, cookies, cupcakes, chips.
The overhead lighting warms into an orange hue as the players euphorically dig into their treats.
But not for long.
Working on a hunch, Trey starts examining his picnic basket.
Eventually, he finds a false floor and pulls out a small pouch.
The realization descends on mother and son, who now realize they have to fight to eliminate each other.
Its time for Marbles.
