”Squid Game” has only one mountain to overcome in season 1... Viewer numbers and hot topic status are an overwhelming success

The entertainment industry is looking at season 2 of the Netflix original series "Squid Game," saying, "Season 2 of 'Squid Game' has been highly anticipated around the world.
"However, there is a tendency to underestimate the achievements that have been made since the series' release. It is already one of the most successful series of all time."
The prevailing view is that it has been a success. Kim Young-hee, an open route expert, said, "Compared to the overwhelming success of Season 1, it may be a little disappointing, but the various figures and hot topic nature of the show are a great indicator of its success."
"It is difficult to evaluate a specific work in terms of its economic effect or sales, but the results are sufficient for Netflix to continue investing in Korean content," he said.
[New record upon release] The first season of "Squid Game" released in 2021 was the biggest hit in the history of Netflix, a global OTT (online video service) platform.
It set a new record as the number one hit among the K-pop groups (including English and non-English, with 2.252 billion hours of viewing time) and led the K-content craze. Encouraged by its popularity, seasons 2 and 3 were produced and released.
Even before the film was released, it was heavily promoted in countries around the world, including the US, Australia, the UK, and France, creating a sense of anticipation. Since its release, overseas media has praised the film for being "highly immersive" (Variety).
" "The story stagnates (New York Times)," and other reviews were mixed, but as soon as it was released, it was ranked 1st in the rankings by Flick Patrol, a global OTT content ranking aggregation site.
According to the Netflix TOP10 Official page, "Squid Game" Season 2 topped the charts in the fourth week of December (the first week of its release).
The total number of viewership hours was 487.6 million in the first week of release (23rd to 29th). Based on the first week of release, it surpassed the previous record of 448.73 million hours for "Squid Game" Season 1 in the fourth week of September 2021 (20th to 26th).
Looking at the overall week, it is an astonishing achievement, ranking second only to the 571.76 million hours that "Squid Game" Season 1 recorded in the first week of October 2021.
Popular culture critic Jung Deok-hyun said, "The previous work was the number one hit on Netflix, so there was a lot of pressure, but the characters were great.
"The story is beautifully constructed with a story of a man fighting against the system of survival competition," he said, "People's opinions will differ based on their expectations of entertainment value and message, but no matter what the content, this kind of
"The reaction is inevitable," he continued, "If you look at the number of viewers and the hot topic factor, it's already a work that has been a huge success industrially," and "I can see that director Hwang Dong-hyuk's choice was not wrong."
"Squid Game" was selected as the biggest hit, and before the release of season 2, the marketing industry planned various pop-ups and collaborations in hopes of benefiting from it.
The convenience store GS25 has been gradually selling 40 kinds of Squid Game collaboration products since the end of January last year, and as of the 6th, it has sold over 1.2 million units.
The "Squid Game" pop-up store also attracts an average of 1,000 visitors a day, with a cumulative total of 20,000 visitors.
Considering that only 500 people visited, it was considered a success. Food manufacturer Ottogi also collaborated with "Squid Game 2" to sell two types of snacks called "Pushopush" in two months.
Cumulative sales have exceeded 2 million units. [Expectations for Season 3...Even stronger story] Season 2 is not an independent story, but an epilogue to Season 1 and a prologue to Season 3.
There are many fans who are disappointed with Season 2 due to its unique character. Many fans are criticizing the fact that the story is not yet concluded. However, there are also those who believe that the harsh criticism is a disappointment in the expectations for Season 3.
Critic Jeon Deok-hyun said, "Some people think that Season 2 is disappointing, but if Season 3 has a good ending, the reaction will eventually return to positive."
The company's CEO said, "No Korean TV series has ever had such a huge global impact before," and added, "Whether season 2 was good or bad, there are people who are curious to see what the story will be like in season 3.
"There are so many questions, so this is also proof that season 2 was well made," said director Hwang Dong-hyuk. "All the questions will be answered in season 3. This is the best part of the entire season.
He also raised expectations by saying, "It's an even more powerful story, so I hope you'll be prepared to watch it."