"You" vs. "Squid Games": A Review & Deep Dive Into Diversity

The show "You" took Netflix by storm in 2018 and "Squid Game" is currently all the rage on Netflix. “The show "You" first aired on Lifetime, and then got picked up by Netflix” (Pomarico, 2019). Joe Goldberg, the main character, moves from New York to Los Angeles to start a new life in season two by kidnapping and using his victim’s identity to create a new one for himself. “Joe encounters multiple new characters, including his neighbors, Delilah and Ellie Alves, Love, and her brother, Forty Quinn. Joe starts to repeat the same obsessive cycle that we were shown in season one and begins to stalk Love. Joe strives to make his relationship with Love succeed at all costs, to avoid repeating his past” (IMDb, 2018). In each season, Joe Goldberg remains the main character, but in season two, the audience was introduced to a brand-new set of characters.

Not only is the show “You” intriguing to watch, it is also very intense and has a big cast. “The main character of "You" is a serial killer who is now using the pseudonym Will Bettelheim to help kick-start his new identity. Love Quinn plays Joe’s love interest. Forty Quinn is Love's twin brother who struggles with lots of issues. Candace Stone is Joe's ex-girlfriend that was introduced in season one. Delilah Alves is Joe's neighbor and property manager. Ellie Alves is Delilah's 15-year-old sister and also Joe’s neighbor” (Sorren, 2019). This cast is much more diverse than the first season's cast, including those of Hispanic heritage, and does not portray them in a negative light like other shows. The audience of this show is directed towards people 17-years-old and up, as it has some intense scenes.

The show "Squid Game" is just as intense as "You" however, it has a much different plot line. “The show "Squid Game is about adults with money problems that are lured into playing children’s games to win a lump sum of money and if they fail, they get killed off” (Paris, 2021). A single winner is left standing with a cash prize of about 40 million won. “The creator of "Squid Game" came up with the idea more than a decade ago” (Yoon & Martin, 2021). Now "Squid Game" is on Netflix and is a nine-part series with each episode being about an hour long.

Seong Gi-hun is the main character in "Squid Game" that the audience follows along with. “Seong Gi-hun has a gambling addiction and needs the money to pay his mom's medical bills and to get his daughter birthday gifts. Seong Gi-hun’s childhood friend, Cho Sang-woo, is caught stealing money from his clients and is on the run from the police. Kang Sae-byeok needs to get her mother and the rest of her family out of North Korea. Played by one of the few non-Korean actors, immigrant Pakistani worker Abdul Ali lost several fingers to a factory accident and was never compensated. The oldest player is Oh Il-nam, who Gi-hun cares for and helps keep alive. Seoul police officer Hwang Jun-ho goes undercover as one of the staff who organizes the games to find out what happened to his brother” (Mutuc, 2021). Although having a Korean cast, the cast isn’t very diverse. The audience of this show is directed towards people 17-years-old and up, as it has some gruesome scenes.

In episode one of "You," season two, titled "A Fresh Start" is based around Joe getting a fresh start. “To escape his ex and memories in New York City, Joe changes his name and moves to Los Angeles, to be a different person. But then he meets Love, and the cycle begins to repeat itself” (IMDb, 2019). He goes back into his old obsessive ways that were portrayed in season one of the show. He begins to stalk Love and find out all the information he can about her, without her noticing.

In episode eight of "You" season two, titled "Fear and Loathing in Beverly Hills," there is another turning point for Joe where he tries once more to be a good guy. “Joe attempts to run away from his life once more. However, Forty stops him because he wants Joe to finish the script they were working on” (IMDb, 2019). Joe attempts to kill Love, just to find out she is just as psychotic as he is. It isn’t until she reveals that she’s pregnant with Joe’s child that he stops in his tracks and lets her live. Together, they move away and start a new life. At the very end, he starts honing in on his next-door neighbor, and we are left to believe that the cycle is about to start all over again.

In episode one of "Squid Game", titled "Red Light, Green Light", the premise of the show is set in stone. “People are tricked into joining what they think will be a fun and easy way to win money. Gi-hun is desperate for money and agrees to join, and soon the true horror of the games is exposed” (IMDb, 2021). The players take a vote, and the majority choose to end the games, yet when given the chance they came back. This is when they learn what the games are about. They must play children’s games and if they lose, they are killed off without remorse.

In episode nine of "Squid Game", titled "One Lucky Day," it’s the final game. “Gi-hun has to go up against his best friend Sang-woo. The final round is the most brutal one, as no rules apply to the game chosen. In this episode, we also discover the identity of the creator” (IMDb, 2021). Gi-hun refuses to murder his best friend, who ultimately chooses to commit suicide to let Gi-hun win. Gi-hun leaves with over 40 billion won and begins to reshape his life. He goes to board a flight to America to see his daughter when he sees a salesman trying to rope someone else into the games. Gi-hun stops them from calling the number and calls the number himself instead. He turns his back on the plane ride and chooses to return to the games, or so it seems.

The show "You" is filled with a cast that is very diverse when it comes to age. The cast ranges from people aged 47 to as young as 17 (Seon, 2020). The show "Squid Game" also has an extensively diverse cast based on age alone. The cast ranges from cast members aged 76 to as young as 27 (Baty, 2021). Despite their age, all the characters are given a voice in their perspective show. In fact, in the show "You", the youngest character, Ellie Alves, plays a big role in season two and becomes very close to Joe and is even protected by the serial killer himself. In "Squid Game", the opposite happens. Instead of the youngest character being the most important, the eldest character is the main focus. Although he seems helpless, it turns out the eldest member of the cast is the most important character, as he is the mastermind behind all the games.

In regard to diversity based on ethnicity and race, both shows are not good at including them. In "You," there are two Hispanic characters, Ellie and Delilah Alves. They are portrayed as lower-class working people, which is a generic representation of Hispanics in shows. They are portrayed in a positive light as caring people. Delilah tries to look after Joe until she unravels the truth behind him and his life, which forces her to get protective and defensive. Ellie is portrayed in a negative light, being viewed as aggressive throughout the entire show. The only stereotype used in the show is the fact that Hispanics are typically lower-class working people.

In "Squid Game", despite being filled with an all-Korean cast, which in most cases would be deemed as diverse, that is all that makes up the cast. Since the show takes place in Korea, it isn’t unusual for the cast to be primarily Korean. However, there is one member who is an immigrant Pakistani worker, Abdul Ali. He is seen in a positive light as a hard-working lower-class person who is selfless. He focuses on winning the money for his family and family only.