“Squid Sport” is extra than simply probably the most thrilling competitors on TV — it additionally wears its cultural identification on its sleeve. Although it offers with common themes such because the skewed distribution of wealth, the sequence is profoundly and unashamedly South Korean. In reality, Hwang Dong-hyuk’s survival thriller revolves closely round a lethal sequence of Korean playground video games that the nation’s determined, impoverished individuals play for the amusement of the jaded international elite.
One of many issues to recollect about “Squid Sport” is that it thrives on rigorously chosen areas and spectacular set items however hardly ever overexplains them. Whereas the present does a terrific job of depicting the on a regular basis life and deep monetary misery of the Squid Sport contributors and explaining every sport for viewers who could also be unfamiliar with them, it is typically content material to depart its spectacular areas unaddressed. Nonetheless, it does not damage to know extra in regards to the areas the place the present’s occasions happen, so let’s make the viewing expertise much more immersive by having a look at the place “Squid Sport” was filmed.
Squid Sport supplies metropolis views aplenty
The components of “Squid Sport” season 1 that do not happen on the mysterious island the place the titular video games are performed occur invariably in both South Korea’s capital Seoul or one other main metropolis, Incheon. In-universe, each single contestant whose backstories the present explores comes from this area — even Kang Sae-byeok (Jung Ho-yeon) and Ali Abdul (Anupam Tripathi), who’re respectively from North Korea and Pakistan, function within the space. Sightseeing-minded viewers are little doubt thrilled to listen to that the town scenes have been shot on location.
Main Seoul areas that make an look on “Squid Sport” embrace high-profile locations like Gangnam district’s Yangjae Citizen’s Forest Station, the place Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) performs a fateful sport of Ddakji with the Salesman (Gong Yoo), and the towering, fashionable IFC Mall, which performs host to his confrontation with Oh Il-nam (O Yeong-su) within the season finale, “One Fortunate Day.” We additionally see the favored Namsan Park, the place Gi-hun and Sae-byeok find yourself in episode 2, “Hell,” after their temporary exit from the competition.
Seoul’s neighbor metropolis, Incheon, closely options throughout Gangster Deok-soo’s (Heo Sung-tae) episode 2 storyline, which takes him to Wolmido Island’s Wolmi Theme Park exterior the town. One other distinguished Incheon location on the present is Incheon Worldwide Airport, the place Gi-hun nearly boards a flight in “One Fortunate Day” earlier than deciding to problem the individuals behind the sport. By the way, in case you assume that filming at an enormous, energetic airport will be difficult, you are completely proper. In 2023, the makers of the present needed to concern an apology when the individuals filming a “Squid Sport” season 2 escalator scene on the Incheon Worldwide Airport drew complaints for bossing passengers round.
The seedier facet of Seoul can also be current
Our unwitting tour information to the darker facet of Seoul is as soon as once more Gi-hun, who’s so brazenly happy with his roots within the metropolis’s comparatively gritty Ssangmun-dong neighborhood that “Ssangmun-dong” turns into his in-series nickname. Cho Sang-woo (Park Hae-soo) additionally has roots in the identical space, which makes Ssangmun-dong a distinguished “Squid Sport” location that we see many occasions on the present.
Different Seoul districts we see embrace Daeheoung-dong, the place Gi-hun’s pal Jung-bae (Lee Website positioning-hwan) operates a bar. In episode 1, “Crimson Mild, Inexperienced Mild,” the pair visits the town heart after they wager on horses on the Sangbong Intercity Bus Terminal, with Sae-byok later stealing the winnings. There’s additionally the Chang-dong district, the place Gi-hun visits the Pokopang arcade, and Baegun Market in Gileum-dong, the place Park-soo reveals his dire monetary straits to Gi-hun.
The intentionally drab shade schemes of “Squid Sport’s” gloomier metropolis areas are a harsh distinction to Seoul’s lavish cityscapes, to not point out the flowery, colourful units of the Squid Sport itself. This performs properly into the present’s general theme of socio-economic disparity, in fact. At occasions, the sequence can play the viewer’s feelings like a violin by its set design sport alone, and it is hardly a shock that the perfect “Squid Sport” season 1 episode, “Gganbu,” unleashes its heart-wrenching horrors in an idyllic mock village.
Set areas and tiny paradise islands
Whereas the present’s metropolis scenes happen in Seoul and Incheon, the vast majority of “Squid Sport” season 1 — particularly, the scenes happening on the sport compound — was filmed in a completely totally different metropolis. The present depends closely on bodily units and sensible results, and as such, the makers of the present truly constructed the sport’s many elaborate units in full dimension. All these indoor scenes have been filmed at a studio within the metropolis of Daejeon. When the sequence truly exhibits us the abandoned island the Squid Sport compound is positioned on, the scenes are from a small, appropriately desolate isle known as Seongapdo — one of many many on this explicit space barely west of the mainland.
Funnily sufficient, the island that the characters talk about probably the most within the sequence is not truly the one the video games happen on. In any case, the participant characters don’t have any manner of understanding that they are on the island within the first place. In “Gganbu,” Sae-byeok and Ji-yeong (Lee Yoo-mi) spend a while crafting a cocktail-fueled fantasy trip to an island known as Jeju. Whereas the placement does not make an precise look on the present, Jeju is definitely a really actual South Korean province island positioned some 60 miles south of mainland. Although Sae-byeok and Ji-yeong by no means get to go to, the island certainly has many cool seashore resorts and loads of sights — and, little doubt, a Mojito or two on provide.
