Watched episode 1 a year ago and enjoyed it so much that I got my wife to watch it. Then we decided our daughter would enjoy it, so we all started again. So I watched the first episode three times in three days, enjoyed it every time and we all got completely hooked. As everyone has said, that super rare combination of kind, intelligent, interesting people is so good. Imagine how awful the US version would be…
And now we’ve just rewatched it all in advance of S2 and enjoyed it almost as much.
Seok-Jin is the first guy I’ve been activity jealous of in a loooong time. How he and see-won aren’t the most beautiful couple in the world is beyond me.
Also really want to try equation poker because I am a nerd.
I’ve yet to start S2. Waiting for the optimal viewing conditions given how highly I rated S1.
I’ve started Genius Game UK and it’s a decent first episode imo. Very much a direct translation of the South Korean version and as a result very similar to The Devil’s Plan. Definitely disagree with that Guardian review above slating it. Let’s see if casting and editing has managed to do a good enough job to get the most out of the format.
Guardian review is way off the mark imo. I’m up to date with this now. It’s obviously missing the South Korean social dynamics that makes the originals so compelling, but I still think it’s good telly!
One of the contestants is really winding me up though
First episode of S2 was good, seems a bit more dramatic though and not sure I’m down for that. 90 minutes episodes is absolutely crazy, they didn’t even finish up the first game in episode 1
Absolutely loving season 2, get so absorbed in it, just binged two in a row. I think because they hold back info to us as well, like not knowing who the crooked cops are in game 1 until the contestants do, it keeps you hooked. Often in reality shows, the audience knows all that and gets the POV of the crooked cop type figure throughout so the suspense is more about watching whether they’ll pull it off whereas here I was actively trying to figure it out which is more compelling
Finished the first episode. What’s with all the Seinfeld slap bass?! The Go guy’s voice has a pitch that’s just so funny to me every time he speaks, it’s so fragile, like the wind could just blow it away. It also sounds a bit like this guy
The game they were playing was a modified version of this, if anyone enjoyed it and wants to play it themselves
On episode 3 now. Loving it so far. Still don’t know everyone’s name yet but sad that the little sisterhood formed in jail got broken up so quickly. Can’t decide if Lee So-Dol is manipulating everyone on purpose or if it’s just his personality, seemed to be putting a lot of pressure on to choose someone to go in the hole, always seems to be rushing people.
Yet to make it through a full episode in one go. The combination of subtitles, complex rules and being in our forties has lead to a lot of heavy eyelids
Gobbling these down, absolutely mad for this show. Every episode could be 4 hours long for all I care.
Spoiler for the last currently available episode: I hate Hyungyu, the evil kid who beat the 8x8 knights challenge, fully pulling the strings. Desperate for Hyungjoon, the kid who beat the prison challenge to tell him to go fuck himself.
RIP adorable Tinno but none of the living room crew would last a day in the asylum where they raised prison crew (prison). I hope that prison crew keeps shanking living room crew tbh
Done a complete 180 on 7High, who came off so aggy but I do think he just had a very strong sense of justice. Kinda wish he’d been battling it out in prison all along tbh.
Also BTS Justin Min did an insta story today about how rough he found the show, being jet lagged constantly as well as not getting enough food, and described himself as ‘distraught’ about Lee Sedol’s elimination. Each contestant has an assigned producer who does the 1-to-1 interviews with them and liases with them and his is apparently the main reason he stayed as long as he did. Sounded like he wanted to quit and found it really difficult and draining. Kinda sad to hear!
You’ve nailed 7 High. Weird thing is how quickly he gets triggered by an injustice or misplay and how he can’t hide it given he’s a professional poker player. He gave off alpha male vibes at the start, but there’s a decent guy underneath.
I watched season one back when I came out, so I’ve forgotten some of the vibes of the people playing, but it feels to me like the switch up of sending half of them to prison every night has really changed the vibe of how alliances are working. Escape back to the living quarters is much harder now and there’s far less sympathy from the haves towards the have nots.
There’s a couple of things going on I think. One is a bit of culture shock having grown up as an American-Korean, living in California. The other is that there’s nothing in his background that puts him on the same level as most of the others in terms of his ability on these games.
(Spoilers for the second batch of episodes) He still gives a really good account of himself - really has the guts to commit to high risk but strong strategies in the prison games.
Seen some folks online say he’s getting a bit of ‘gyopo’ (foreign born Korean) treatment, where the Korea born Koreans don’t see him as quite equal to them and can’t be bothered with him
I think it’s clear that he understands a lot more than he can express in Korean and that seems to have really put a wedge for him. I think if he was with the more English-confident/western influenced characters like Tinno, 7High, or Jiyoung, it would be easier for him.
Just trying to be as unspoilery as possible here btw!
Not as into this series yet (halfway through episode 5). The cast isn’t as likeable and the editing could be a bit stricter. Still enjoying it a lot though.
Think I’m out, seems impossible for anyone interesting to do well. Hate seeing So-Hui bowing and scraping to Hyun-Gyu, who is clearly an evil brat. Such bizarre behaviour, it’s like Hyun-Gyu has twice the moves anyone else does because she does whatever he says.
