As I toiled away at my Communications Case Study paper one night, my neighbor Alex hopped over and offered me a familiar toffee-colored sugar cookie embossed with a star, as well as a toothpick. Naturally, if you have watched Netflix hit “Squid Game,” you would know what the challenge is.
For the next 30 minutes, I furiously poked and scratched the dalgona, to no avail. Having shipped the candy directly from Korea, Alex and I were some of the millions to participate in the fanaticism of “Squid Game.”
Strangely enough, for a show priding itself on its scathing criticism on the failings and spectacle of capitalism, Netflix’s marketing campaign and the cultural fads it spawned encourage the consumerist phenomenon it seeks to discourage. In a marketing stunt, cast members attempt to pry the iconic Netflix ‘N’ out of the aforementioned Dalgona candy. Netflix France extended the fad to the public, offering participants one month of free Netflix subscription should they successfully extract the candy in one minute and 30 seconds. As a business conglomerate, it is unsurprising that they would try to start marketing trends to increase discourse and uplift branding.
Such campaigns enable and encourage the international cultural phenomenon well over one month after “Squid Game’s” release. Its inspiration of children’s games, simple but iconic visual designs (such as the costumes) become easily reproducible, universal cultural products that many seek to participate in. Dalgona candy vendors worldwide and in Korea, such as An Yong-hui, reportedly had sales more than double, as reported by Reuters. Through people like Alex, Squid Game spoofs have found their way into the USC Community as well. Some would have also seen a familiar pink jumpsuit handing out invitation cards to a “USC Date Game” around campus, using “Squid Game” iconography to promote a dating game with cash prizes on their audio dating app Matter.
Co-Founder and USC Business Administration alumnus Monji Batmunkh shared with Annenberg TV Network that “Squid Game” served as a marketing tactic to launch across campuses. He adds that “‘Squid Game’ is #1 on Netflix, everyone is talking about it” and handing out cards in the pink jumpsuit serves as a pop culture reference that students “know what is going on.” Evidently, “Squid Game’s” cultural popularization has led businesses such as Matter to leverage the show’s popularity, to be culturally relevant and ultimately use it for commercial gains.
People became more interested in participating in the cultural phenomenon (and perpetuating it) than mulling over the horrific implications of its anti-capitalist message. No matter how harmless Minecraft or real-life faux-Squid Games are, they still indulge in the entertainment spectacle while making light of the “hell” on Earth experienced by the characters of “Squid Game.” Being able to watch the show as entertainment and indulge in its cultural trends is a privilege in itself. We are the VIPs and Netflix is the ultimate host that profits from our indulgence, generating a staggering $900 million of impact value just by viewership alone based on Netflix’s estimates.
Beyond hypocrisy, the game’s anti-capitalism message evolves into a meta-commentary about its own success. The successful marketing and persistent cultural phenomenon of the show became its own case study of how deeply entrenched we have become in the spectacle of capitalism.
Variety points out how the show condemns theatrical violence while thriving off the spectacle of gore and violence and itself as an entertainment product. Similarly, the show criticizes capitalism, while reveling and profiting from it. In a consumerist-driven society, it seems that any media critiquing capitalism runs the risk of falling into its own trap of hypocrisy. Fellow Korean dark comedy “Parasite’s” marketing appears to be targeted towards the independent film market and avoided stirring mainstream cultural fads intentionally, allowing its vicious critique on class to stand. Yet, its eventual mainstream success inspired local government officials to preserve its set as a tourist attraction, earning criticism of the commercialization of poverty and the ire of local residents feeling a “sense of embarrassment and discomfort”. “Squid Game” as a Netflix series and its marketing targeted at general young adults, along with its easily reproducible cultural icons, has allowed it to be more widely accessible and viral.
While I do not have the answer as to how to resolve the conflict between the necessity of marketing and branding to any media production and preserving the essential critique by media such as “Squid Game” and “Parasite,” ultimately as viewers, we need to reflect and be conscious of the commercialization and position of privilege around us in the real world.
“Squid Game” is a bold cultural statement against class and capitalism but its marketing campaigns certainly put an asterisk next to its message. So what happened to that piece of Dalgona Alex gave me? I mistakenly broke off a corner of the star and promptly hurled it into the bin. I was certainly not punished fatally but it was admittedly intoxicating to participate in some pop-culture fun.
A quote from co-founder, Monji Batmunkh, was altered for clarity.