Squid Game Season 2 Brings Back A Forgotten Character In A Major Role

This article contains spoilers for "Squid Game" season 2.

"Squid Game," by its very design, is a show with a massive ensemble cast. Well, at least it starts out that way — as fans remember all too well from "Squid Game" season 1, the show's deadly playground games tend to pare down the cast something wicked as the plot progresses. Knowing this, it's only natural that some of the show's more obscure characters fail to catch the viewer's attention. This actually works for the sophomore season's favor when it comes to Jung-bae (Lee Seo-hwan), who's such a minor presence in "Squid Game" season 1 that he almost counts as a brand new season 2 character ... while simultaneously having a handy, pre-established history with series protagonist Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae).

Jung-bae is Gi-hun's good friend who makes a couple of appearances in the first two episodes of season 1 — "Red Light, Green Light" and "Hell" – and signs up to play the game in season 2. As if the things weren't already tense enough for Gi-hun, the discovery that what just might be his closest remaining human contact outside his daughter Ga-yeong (Jo A-in) is now wearing the green overalls is just the thing to raise the stakes (and Gi-hun's stress level) sky high. 

You'd be forgiven for not remembering Jung-bae at first, since he's not actually named in "Squid Game" season 1. He's the goofy and childish bar owner who Gi-hun likes to hang out with in his "civilian" life. As he's only present during the drab, washed-out early scenes that take place outside the game, he's comparatively easy to miss and only turns up in the first two episodes. Yet, he's actually present for quite a bit of Gi-hun's early character development, being his partner-in-crime in gambling and later sharing a candid conversation outside Jung-bae's bar before his wife (Kim Young-sun) puts a stop to it. 

While Jung-bae has a business and thus seems to have his life somewhat more together than Gi-hun, the very first episode of the show, "Red Light, Green Light," establishes that the pair share a love for gambling — and, if anything, Jung-bae just might be the more irresponsible one out of the pair, given Gi-hun's constant torment over his inability to be a better man. Since Jung-bae joins the other four returning characters from season 1 and becomes the deadly game's latest Player 390 for "Squid Game" season 2, his newly-established major character status marks a very dramatic — not to mention tragic — shift in his fortunes. 

"Squid Game" season 2 is now streaming on Netflix.