Seong Gi-hun emerges as the winner in Squid Game, but the ending would have been much more powerful had he sacrificed himself instead. In the bloody season finale, Gi-hun and Cho Sang-woo clash brutally during the eponymous Squid game, with Sang-woo ultimately killing himself and Gi-hun reluctantly claiming victory. Gi-hun thus becomes the sole survivor of the games and lives to tell the tale (or keep it to himself, more likely). However, what happens in the events that follow reveals that Gi-hun’s survival in Squid Game may have been a mistake.

As the story jumps forward in time one year after the conclusion of the games, Gi-hun is revealed not to have changed at all in the aftermath of his victory. Racked with guilt and mired in grief, Gi-hun reverts to his old persona and ekes out an impoverished existence while leaving his 45.6 billion won prize money untouched. It is only after the revelatory encounter with Oh Il-nam–in a twist that may have spoiled Squid Game's ending–on his deathbed that Gi-hun finally decides to make amends to Sang-woo and Sae-byeok’s families and books a flight to reconnect with his daughter in the United States. However, Gi-hun’s actions of atonement may have come too late, and him forgoing his visit to his daughter in favor of pursuing those responsible for the games shows that Gi-hun is still the same flawed individual deep down inside. But there was a way for Squid Game to give the character a dignified redemption.

Related: Squid Game Set Up Two Perfect Winner Stories (But Used Neither)

What the early episodes show—besides hinting at a death in Squid Game’s finale—is that Gi-hun is not a good person. As the show progresses, it becomes clear that Gi-hun does have a lot of good in him, and there is kindness and idealism in how he conducts himself. This is precisely why it would have made sense for Gi-hun to redeem himself with the ultimate act of sacrifice: putting someone else’s life above his own.

Seong Gi during the Red Light Green Light game in Squid Game

By the end of Squid Game, Sang-woo, having committed too many atrocities, is too far gone to make for a suitable beneficiary of Gi-hun’s sacrifice. There is, however, another candidate who truly deserves to have been spared from tragedy. The penultimate episode of the show sees Kang Sae-byeok succumbing to her wounds and having her demise fast-tracked by Cho Sang-woo while Gi-hun is distracted calling for help. Sae-byeok's death in Squid Game is surprising considering all that happens to her during the games and the reason she is there in the first place. Sae-byok’s backstory involves fleeing North Korea with her brother. Unlike many other contestants who seek fortune for selfish reasons, Sae-byok’s motives for joining the games are as noble as can be: she wants to provide for her brother and pay to bring her parents across the border. Her cause is so commendable that Ji-yeong decides to die for her during the marble game, stating that Sae-byok deserves to win to help her family. There was thus a real opportunity for Gi-hun to follow suit and redeem himself in the process.

Dramatically speaking, there are a few reasons why Gi-hun had to be the winner in Squid Game, but none of them are as compelling as Sae-byok’s. First and foremost is the fact that Gi-hun is the show's protagonist, but this should not render him exempt from death—and conversely would make his sacrifice even more of a powerful gesture. Then there are his familial ties to consider. Ultimately, though, Gi-hun’s mother dies anyway and his daughter moving to the United States is a great setup for them to have shared a final, emotional goodbye on-screen. If Sae-byok had somehow survived her wounds—or perhaps never got wounded in the first place—Gi-hun would have had the perfect opportunity to redeem himself in a way that just didn’t happen while also ensuring that his family is taken care of via Sae-byok. All it would have taken is a sacrifice in the vain of Ji-yeong’s, and the ending of Squid Game would have been much better as a result.

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