The hold Squid Game has on Netflix is huge to say the least, with over 100 million households tuning into the series, thus garnering over a million minutes of screen time, according to Netflix. It's no surprise that the series earned a second season, and it shouldn't be a surprise that for Netflix that isn't enough. In an age where franchises dominate media, a popular property -- whether original or not -- that strikes gold earning several sequels, spin-offs or tie-ins is far from unheard of; however, what is shocking with Squid Game is that along with its follow-up season, it is also receiving a reality tv show inspired by the fictional, deadly game, which seems to contradict the message and commentary of Squid Game.

Squid Game: The Challenge is planning to be the largest reality show ever, with 456 players -- the same amount in the fictional show -- competing for the biggest cash prize in reality tv history -- $4.56 million. This show will feature the players taking on games inspired by the original Netflix series itself. While it appears the reality show has the support from the director of Squid Game, Hwang Dong-hyuk, based on a statement provided to The Hollywood Reporter by Netflix's Vice-President of Unscripted and Documentary Series, Brandon Riegg, one cannot help but see the irony of a show critiquing class inequality via a game that exploits the poor inspiring a real competition that is doing the exact same thing, minus the bloodshed, death and biting commentary.

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Squid Game cast playing

In Squid Game, a select group of rich men from across the world gather to watch 456 players -- who all suffer from financial issues -- fight for millions of dollars. While they give these players the illusion of choice and fairness, the system is always rigged against the players, ensuring that any notion of comradery and collaboration does not actually lead to the contestants rising up and succeeding, thus leading to almost everyone's deaths, aside from one player.

There are many layers to dissect in regard to Squid Game's commentary, and one should take into account it is directly making a commentary on class in South Korea; however, many of the themes and critiques the show explores can and have been applied to other areas where the series is popular, like in North America. One such critique is how a competition like this is set up to exploit those of a lower class and the notion of being able to either escape or win are illusions at best. Along with that, it highlights how in a game like this, teamwork can only get you so far, and "success" comes at the cost of stepping over others and sacrificing one's morals. This carries beyond the constraints of the game itself, thus making the competition a metaphor for the larger economic system at play and condemning it for how it sets up anyone not in the one percent for failure, despite any promises of grandeur.

Come Squid Game: The Challenge, it is not adding to the commentary; it is perpetuating what is being called out. Here, hundreds of people are promised they too can be rich beyond their wildest dreams as long as they compete with one another and do whatever it takes to win a game they have no control over, likely leading to only a few contestants actually winning the prize money. Along with that, regardless of what Netflix may say in the future, this does not feel like an attempt to do a social experiment that proves or disproves how humanity is inherently driven by greed, especially since these contestants, like the fictional ones in Squid Game, do not have control over the situation they are in -- not truly. Instead, this reads as a massive company exploiting contestants and a popular IP for its own financial gain and entertainment.

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The VIPs in their animal masks from Squid Game

Reality competitions, spin-offs and mass-produced entertainment are not what's weird here. All of those are staples in the film and television industry today, whether we like it or not. What really stands out here is how Netflix is creating a literal Squid Game -- minus the death -- for real people to compete in, despite the series itself so overtly calling out those who exploit the poor for their own entertainment and financial gain. While it remains unknown at the time of this writing who the contestants are, it's highly unlikely any of them are in the same financial standing as a company like Netflix, which is now going to benefit off said contestants as they compete with one another for the possibility of climbing up the economic ladder.

Unfortunately, it's not that unheard of that a company would attempt to profit off the exact thing its series is critiquing. Case in point, Subway used the imagery and revolutionary tone of The Hunger Games to promote its sandwiches, despite the series' protagonist coming from a community that systemically suffers from food shortages. Meanwhile, CoverGirl released a makeup line inspired by the looks the Capitol -- the oppressive, fictional government -- would force its contestants to don prior in The Hunger Games.

This is a weird phenomenon that's happening, but it's somehow normalized, making the whole situation feel even more dystopian. Instead of learning from these works of fiction, companies are leaning more into them for financial benefit. Squid Game wasn't about how cool the competition was; it was a commentary on class politics that also happened to be entertaining. That commentary seems to have been overlooked with the development of this reality competition, but the irony of it all can be seen crystal clear.