Squid Game Season 1 Episode 5: “A Fair World”

Opening Scene: The Aftermath of Chaos**

Episode 5 picks up immediately after the  brutal night of carnage in the dormitory, where players turned on each other after it became clear that killing was allowed and even rewarded . The dormitory floor is littered with blood and bodies, and the survivors are silent and shell-shocked.

Seong Gi-hun (456)  and his team— Sang-woo (218) , Sae-byeok (067) ,  Ali (199) ,  Oh Il-nam (001) , Mi-nyeo (212), and three others—are rattled but still intact. The atmosphere is grim, as each player comes to terms with the new reality  the game is not only physically demanding but also emotionally and morally corrosive.

The morning count shows 80 players remain , meaning 107 people died in just one night, either through sanctioned games or the lawless dormitory slaughter. The prize pot increases accordingly.

The Guards Remove the Dead

The pink-suited guards come in to  remove the bodies , treating both victims and their killers with the same detached efficiency. The players notice that the dead are treated as commodities , not humans—stacked and burned like garbage.

This dehumanization serves as a chilling reminder that the players are nothing more than pawns in a cruel system, valued only for the entertainment or profit they provide. The phrase “A Fair World,” the title of the episode, becomes deeply ironic.

Jun-ho’s Investigation Deepens

Meanwhile, Detective Hwang Jun-ho , still undercover as a guard, continues his dangerous investigation into the facility while searching for his missing brother. He explores restricted areas and uncovers more evidence of  illegal organ harvesting  orchestrated by a rogue group of guards.

He discovers a refrigerated storage room filled with  harvested organs , confirming that some guards are selling organs on the black market in secret. One of the guards brings in  Player 111 , the doctor who had been helping with the illegal surgeries in exchange for early access to game information.

But a crucial tension builds: the guards are now struggling to maintain secrecy. One of them begins to crack under pressure and the fear of exposure.

The Doctor’s Fate and a Lesson in “Fairness”

The organ-smuggling plot quickly unravels.  Player 111 (the doctor) , feeling deceived after not being told what the next game is,  panics and kills one of the guards . In a frenzy, he tries to escape but is quickly cornered by the other guards and executed.

This moment prompts the Front Man , the mysterious leader overseeing the games, to make an announcement over the intercom:

“We are not trying to sell your organs or deceive you. What we stand for is equality, and this is a fair game. Everyone has an equal chance to win. That’s why we had to eliminate those who broke the rules.”

The irony is blatant: in a world where players are murdered for sport and exploited in every possible way, the system claims to value  fairness and equality .

But this declaration serves a psychological purpose—reassuring the remaining players that they still have  some control as long as they follow the rules, even though the rules themselves are twisted.

Preparing for the Fourth Game: Tug-of-War

Later, the players are instructed to **assemble in their ten-person teams** formed at the end of the previous episode. They are taken to the game arena: a massive room with two high platforms and a **tug-of-war setup** in between, complete with a deadly drop in the middle.

The rules are simple: two teams face off in a traditional  tug-of-war  match. The losing team will fall off the platform to their deaths. No second chances. No tricks. Just brute strength—or so it seems.

Gi-hun’s team , made up of a mix of men, women, and the elderly Il-nam, knows they are at a disadvantage. Their opponents are younger, stronger, and clearly more physically dominant.

Il-nam’s Strategy: A Game of the Mind

Just as hope fades,Il-nam (001) surprises everyone by offering a strategy—based on his childhood experience winning tug-of-war against stronger teams.

He instructs them to:

1.Position their bodies properly: Stand at alternating positions, anchoring with their feet parallel and leaning back at a 45-degree angle.
2. Hold the rope tightly: Not just with arms but using body weight and timing to exhaust the opposing team.

3.Don’t panic: The first 10 seconds of the match are crucial to resisting the enemy’s pull.

The match begins, and Gi-hun’s team holds their ground better than expected, using technique over power. But the opposing team regains momentum and begins pulling harder.

As they near the edge, Sang-woo makes a bold and desperate call : take three steps forward suddenly to make the other team stumble. It’s a dangerous move that risks their balance, but it works.

The other team loses their footing, and with one final synchronized pull, Gi-hun’s team wins—sending the opposing team to their deaths.

The Emotional Toll of Killing

Even though Gi-hun’s team survives, the psychological weight of victory is unbearable. Each person just participated in the death of ten others. They didn’t push them directly, but they played their part in the system’s game of murder.

Mi-nyeo, who had been left out of the game due to the odd number of players, watches from a distance, both relieved and resentful. She feels abandoned but now understands that alliances are fluid, and loyalty is a liability in this world.

Il-nam, who was smiling moments before the win, looks distant again, as if burdened by memories we still don’t fully understand. His knowledge, physical weakness, and strangely positive attitude continue to make him a mysterious figure.

Growing Distrust and Strategic Thinking

Back in the dormitory, Gi-hun and the others are silent. There’s no celebration. Only exhaustion, reflection, and quiet sorrow. They’ve survived another round, but at great emotional cost.

Sang-woo, now clearly emerging as a cold strategist, begins to distance himself emotionally from the others. His earlier decision to risk everything with the “three steps forward” tactic saved them, but it also marked his transformation into someone willing to gamble with lives for survival.

Sae-byeok, growing closer to Gi-hun, begins to open up about her past. She reveals her desire to reunite her family—particularly her younger brother, who is alone in an orphanage. Her emotional layers deepen, showing she’s not just a stoic thief but a young woman haunted by duty and guilt.

Themes of Episode 5: “A Fair World”

This episode delivers powerful thematic punches:

1. Illusion of Fairness
Despite the system claiming to be fair, the structure is rigged by fear, inequality, and manipulation . The guards’ corruption and organ harvesting directly violate the game’s supposed principles, exposing  systemic hypocrisy .

2. Strength vs. Strategy
The tug-of-war game emphasizes that victory isn’t always about brute force. Mental strength, trust, and creativity can overpower physical dominance. This flips the players’ expectations and gives hope to the seemingly weaker.

3. Psychological Damage 
Survivors carry trauma. Winning doesn’t feel like success—it feels like collateral survival Everyone is complicit in the deaths of others, which blurs the lines between victim and villain.

4. Fragility of Alliances
Trust is both a weapon and a weakness. The bonds between players are being tested constantly—by fear, competition, and the allure of individual gain.

Closing Scene: A Moment of Uneasy Calm

As the episode ends, Gi-hun’s team sits in silence, processing what just happened. Meanwhile, Jun-ho continues to dig deeper into the hidden machinery of the games, now more determined than ever to uncover the truth.

The camera lingers on the dormitory, now with even fewer people than before. The lights dim again, and once more,fear returns with the night.

No one knows what the next game will be, but one thing is clear: the Squid Game is not just about survival—it’s about how much of your humanity you’re willing to lose to keep breathing