How Gi-Hun's death in Squid Game season 3 is symbolic and reiterates the core idea of the show

Squid Game just dropped its most-awaited season 3 on Netflix, where Gi-Hun is seen broken from the failed retaliation and losing more of his mates to the game. However, Gi-Hun is successfully able to end the game "once and for all," at the cost of his own life.

After surviving and winning the whopping amount in the previous game, he returns with a greater purpose. And you know what? Gi-Hun becomes the last person to be killed on the Island. To save the newborn baby, aka player number 222, Gi-Hun sacrifices his life, straight looking into the camera and delivering an iconic dialogue, the show ends. A just-born baby 222 wins the game.

Gi-Hun's death is symbolic and reiterates the core idea of Squid Game.

Read on to know the details.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers. Readers’ discretion is advised.

Player number 456, aka Gi-Hun, dies in Squid Game season 3, and it is symbolic

As mentioned, Player number 456, aka Gi-Hun, dies in the last game, saving the life of the baby 222. Gi-Hun's character arc is the show's highlight, and his death is symbolic of the central idea. Amidst the corrupting and brutal influence of the game, Gi-Hun becomes the character who remains human. His death, his iconic dialogue at the moment, and his heroic backwards fall on the ground, reiterate the same:

"We are not horses, we are Humans and humans are...," Gi-Hun says.

Gi-Hun at the beginning of season 1 is shown as an estranged father and a gambling addict who is chasing easy money. The recruiter finds him at a subway station and offers him money to play a game of ddakji, which he wins. His greed for more money brings him to the Squid Game. He is naive but somehow survives the game's brutalities.

Through the game, he also helps his other players, like Ali, and builds a bond with Il-nam, who later turns out to be the game's creator. Even though Gi-hun wins the game, he is scarred forever. He doesn't touch the money for long and later uses it to get into the game again, but this time to end it altogether.

Season 2 showcases a transformed and mature Gi-Hun. From a desperate, morally conflicted man, he is a deeply traumatised survivor now. He then becomes a rebellious force, and finally into a man teetering on the edge between vengeance and redemption in the final season.

By the end of season 3, only three players remain — Gi-Hun, Myung-gi, and the baby. Myung-gi, despite being the father of the baby, is determined to kill and exit with the money alone. When Gi-Hun realizes this, he eliminates Myung-gi for the baby first. Then, in the final round, he let himself fall from the structure, making the just-born the winner and sole survivor of the game.

His dialogue hits hard at such a moment, while the rich and the front man observe the same. The gut-punching moment becomes the heart of the show and the message it comes with. His entire character arc echoes what happens to humanity amidst such a manipulative and profit-driven structure. Gi-Hun resembles humanity, and for that alone, he sacrifices his life by the end.

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