South Korea, or rather a global event <Squid Game> continues its story on June 27. Netflix's original content <Squid Game> has received worldwide love for its story about 456 people risking their lives in a survival game where the final winner takes all the prize money. The release of <Squid Game Season 2> in December 2024 depicted the process of Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae), the survivor and winner of the first season, re-entering the game to stop it and failing in his efforts to save people. Thus, Season 2, which ended without a conclusion, will be followed by this <Squid Game Season 3>. As many viewers question what will unfold in Season 3, Cineplay reporters have become curious about who will be the first to fall. So, each of them has made their own guesses about who the first eliminated character in <Squid Game Season 3> (from the main and supporting roles) will be. Let's see if the instincts of Cineplay reporters are worth something and who among them has the best instinct.
Kim Ji-yeon_120 Jo Hyun-joo (Park Sung-hoon)
This is the conclusion reached after excluding characters that seem likely to survive through the process of elimination. Let's consider the narrative progression and the use of characters. The <Squid Game> series mercilessly kills off the more virtuous characters. Additionally, the <Squid Game> series depicts minorities in a sympathetic manner. It is quite surprising that director Hwang Dong-hyuk has not yet killed off a character who is armed with all kinds of 'goodness', such as being transgender, participating in the game to cover surgery costs, forming a special bond with Young-mi (Kim Si-eun), and teaching others how to use firearms. Jo Hyun-joo, a former soldier, was a crucial character for Seong Gi-hun to incite a rebellion. However, since the rebellion in Season 2 seems to have failed, the character Jo Hyun-joo has likely fulfilled her narrative purpose in Hwang's story. Therefore, it is highly probable that Jo Hyun-joo will exit <Squid Game> Season 3 immediately, and in a shocking manner that deeply touches emotions.
Seong Chan-eol_100 Im Jeong-dae (Song Young-chang)
Im Jeong-dae, who participated in the Squid Game to pay off 10 billion won in debt, is the person who most actively utilized the newly added 'agree/disagree' rule in Season 2. He is the first person to subtly scratch the human psychology that feels 'dying is better than living miserably', urging participants to continue the game. Therefore, I think he might be the one who gets eliminated the fastest among the main characters in Season 3. This is because the game has been set up in such a way that it can continue without needing to agree anymore. Since the rebellion led by Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) has failed, people will no longer be inclined to join the side that wants to stop the game. The game will not stop now. From the perspective of creating the work, Im Jeong-dae, who provided momentum to the game, becomes useless. Moreover, the first game in Season 3 is likely to be jump rope, and I don't think he will be able to skillfully navigate such a game at his old age. Even if he barely survives here, he will likely be injured, affecting the next game, which will also require physical strength. As increasingly difficult games continue, Im Jeong-dae will naturally face elimination.
Chu Ah-young_7 Park Yong-sik (Yang Dong-geun)
In <Squid Game> Season 2, Yong-sik, who once betrayed his mother Geum-ja (Kang Ae-sim), might end up being eliminated in place of his mother to save her in Season 3. I feel sorry to say this to Yong-sik, but he is a character who lacks upright justice, sharp intellect, and strong power, making him close to a one-digit combat power. Just surviving until now can be considered impressive. To be frank, he is also a character with less weight among the survivors. Yong-sik, who showed a mama's boy and kangaroo-like dependence on his mother in Season 2, might sacrifice himself for his mother in the end. To appropriately utilize the family melodrama, one of Geum-ja and Yong-sik will have to go first. Since Geum-ja needs to help Jun-hee with her safe delivery, I cautiously predict that Yong-sik will go first.
Lee Jin-joo_125 Park Min-soo (Lee Da-wit)
After the game ends, a vote is held to decide whether to continue, and while most participants in <Squid Game 2> show relatively consistent opinions, there is one person who appears confused. That is participant 125, Park Min-soo. Of course, an external force called 'Thanos' intervened, but in the world of 'Squid Game', where there are no eternal allies or enemies, his actions are somewhat difficult to understand. In a survival game, a character who has lost direction usually ends up in one of two ways: either revealing a huge secret as a 'powerful hidden character' or being eliminated in vain due to being caught up in the plans of major characters.
In the situation where <Squid Game 2> has dropped a huge bomb and has to wrap up the narratives of many characters, this season seems to lack the luxury to empower Park Min-soo. Moreover, since the rebellion led by Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) ended in failure, the game is already running like a runaway train. It seems that there is not much room for Min-soo now.
Joo Seong-cheol_333 Lee Myung-ki (Im Si-wan)
Who will be the first to face elimination? Honestly, I don't know, but as I pick out characters that seem necessary until the end of the season, eventually, there will be one person left. For example, although I dislike the Dragon Palace Fairy (Chae Guk-hee) the most, there needs to be a character who constantly provokes the emotions of others throughout the drama, and Nam-kyu (Noh Jae-won) is likely to rise as the new season's villain following Thanos (Choi Seung-hyun), who died after being pierced by a fork in the carotid artery. As I look into this, there is one character that stands out, who has already shown their true nature and revealed their background. That is Myung-ki (Im Si-wan), who caused Young-mi (Kim Si-eun) to die in the 'Round and Round' game in Season 2. He was a YouTuber doing investment broadcasts, but after a bad investment caused significant losses for himself and his subscribers, he participated in the game to escape from creditors and subscribers. He is also the father of the child that his ex-girlfriend Jun-hee (Jo Yu-ri) will give birth to in Season 3. It has already been hinted in the previous season that Lady Jang Geum-ja (Kang Ae-sim) will help with the childbirth, so Myung-ki is the character that best fits the 'exit due to birth'. Additionally, this will also be the choice that best aligns with the recurring themes of 'family melodrama', 'awakening', and 'repentance' (and the resulting death) in <Squid Game> every season.
