Recently, Netflix released “Squid Game: The Challenge,” a five-episode reality competition show based on the fictional Korean drama “Squid Game.” The point of “Squid Game” was to critique capitalistic society and how people put their lives on the line to succeed financially, which makes the release of the real version immediately off-putting. But, of course, few could say no to trying to win the largest jackpot in reality game show history — a whopping $4.56 million.
Of course, no one is being killed if they lose these games, unlike the poor players in the original show. This does not seem to mean there is no danger at all, as two players are taking legal action against Studio Lambert, the competition’s production company.
Allegedly, when these contestants were crouching in the cold during the game “Red Light, Green Light,” they developed hypothermia and damaged nerve endings. Three contestants stated they felt “unwell” after the game and received medical attention. While this claim is quite serious, the story behind it is so vague that one has to question the motive of a lawsuit, especially since this is said to have taken place in January.
From what I’ve read, it seems like the story is full of roundabout language and issues that could have been avoided. For example, one contestant mentioned that the green jumpsuit modeled after those from “Squid Game” was not enough protection against the “very cold” conditions on set. Reading this, I immediately remembered the thermal shirt I was wearing underneath my sweater — you know, the popular sneaky way most people make sure to stay warm this winter if they don’t want to sacrifice their style.
I have a concern surrounding the situation: why would they continue to stand around if it was too cold? I understand it is a “reality” competition show, so there has to be some real-time competition, but this could have been avoided. I think the entire conflict is on both sides: the studio and the contestants.
If the studio found it cold enough to provide hand warmers and heated tents, they should have realized they may need to rethink what the contestants were wearing or where they were filming.
As for the contestants, they should’ve immediately spoken up about the way they were feeling. I think it would be safe to assume one can notice when “feeling cold” evolves into potentially having hypothermia. The contestants were filming this game for six hours, even though this part of the show only makes it seem like five minutes. If it was already taking six hours, people might as well have taken a bit longer to stay warm.
Finally, I want to return to what I mentioned earlier: this all happened in January — which is, at this point, almost an entire year ago. If this occurred almost a year ago, why is it being brought up now? It’s like the people suing Mariah Carey for “All I Want For Christmas is You” even though that song has been out for years, dominating every second of November to January. Why wait so long to say something?
Of course, I’m speaking as someone who does not have much legal knowledge surrounding filing claims or potential lawsuits. Everything just seems to be a bit fishy though. Part of me wonders if this is perhaps just some advertising ploy to get people to watch the show. I’ll admit, after reading other articles to write this one, part of me was curious.
Overall, I think this situation is just… well, stupid. The amount of vagueness surrounding this ordeal makes it harder to really understand the gravitas of what the contestants went through, if they were seriously injured and the conditions of filming.
pbortner@ramapo.edu
Featured photo courtesy of Freestocksorg, Pexels
