Gi-hun made promises to two of the other players in previous episodes. He may have made promises to characters outside of the game, but his most notable promises to those inside were to Sae-byeok and Sang-woo.
Gi-hun approached Sae-byeok, who was severely injured, in Episode 8. They then talked about the future they would have if they ever won. They then agreed that whoever survived would look after the other’s family.
During his final moments, Sang-woo asked Gi-hun to help his mother with the money he had just won now that he was the obvious winner.
Read on to have the Squid Game ending explained.
After the Final Game
Gi-hun woke up blindfolded in a limousine where the Front Man congratulated him. He tried to ask him questions about the game, but the Front Man did not answer. He took his mask on again as the vehicle was filled with gas again. He was dropped on the side of a road, where a bystander helped him. He noticed that something was stuffed in his mouth, so he spat it out, and it was a credit card. He went to an ATM to withdraw cash. He withdrew a single 10 thousand won bill ($8).
He went to their house, where Sang-woo’s mother was around. She asked for her son’s whereabouts, but he could not respond due to his experiences. He just handed the bill he withdrew to her. Inside his house, he found his mother already dead. Hence, the title of the episode referred to a novel where a character worked hard for the needs of a dying loved one only to find that loved one dead once he got back home.
The Host
A year later, Gi-hun hadn’t touched much of his prize money due to the trauma. He went to the bank where his money was deposited. His talks with the manager were futile and only ended with Gi-hun asking for 10 thousand won. With the money, he went to a riverside, where he was approached by a rose seller who insisted that he buy a rose from her. So he agreed. He also received a black envelope with the squid game card in it. On the back of the card, it was his gganbu asking him to meet him at a certain time and place.
So he did. He went to the address at the indicated time. In the room, he was surprised that it was Oh Il-nam, the old man from the game. The old man explained a few things about the game. According to him, it was perpetuated by him and his very rich friends because they felt bored and lonely. Furthermore, the very rich and the very poor are suffering from the same loneliness. So they devised the games as entertainment based on Il-nam’s childhood games. He thanked Gi-hun for playing with him and said that it was the happiest he had ever had. At the stroke of midnight, Il-nam died.
Fulfilling the Promises
After receiving a new hairstyle, he went to the orphanage where Sae-byeok’s brother was staying and took him out. He then left him to Sang-woo’s mother to take care of him. He brought a suitcase to Sang-woo’s mother, which contained bundles of cash. At this moment, Gi-hun fulfilled the two promises he made to the other two players before the last game.
Squid Game Ending Explained
Two promises down, one more to go. This time, to his daughter. While in a train station to the airport, he found the very same salesman playing ddakji with another person. He ran to save the person playing, but the salesman had already boarded a train. He confronted the innocent man, pinning him to a wall, and ordered him not to go under any circumstance. He stole the squid game card from the man.
Once he was about to board his flight, he called the number on the card. Once the call was answered, he confronted the organizers of the games, stating that he wouldn’t forgive them and that they killed a lot of people just for their entertainment. The Front Man told him to just move on in his life, board the plane, and not meddle anymore. However, he turned back.
That concludes our Squid Game recaps! Now that we’ve had the Squid Game ending explained, and we know that a second season will be coming out, we hope this is enough of a refresher before getting into the new installment.
