A show that almost everyone has heard of, “Squid Game,” has become one of Netflix’s top watched programs with over 111 million viewers since the show was released. While it became popular in such a short period of time, that begs the question; why has it become so popular?

Created by Korean director and filmmaker Hwang Dong-hyuk, the series follows main character Seong Gi-Hun who is down on his luck and has lost all of his money to gambling and debt collectors. Because of his situation, he gets approached to take part in a small game for a small amount of money, but it soon spirals out of control.

Within the show are a few main characters who are all in similar situations in their life. They are all struggling with money, and either cannot care for themselves or their families in their lives. When offered the chance to win 45.6 billion won (which amounts to about 38 million US dollars). The show displays the lengths individuals will go to when their livelihoods are at stake and how much money and unchecked capitalism can corrupt.

Even though the show has an incredibly interesting premise alone, it still begs the question of why this show has become so much more popular than other Korean media that has been put on Netflix? Though it seems like there could be a variety of reasons, there are a few main breakdowns as to why it has become one of the most-watched shows on streaming services.

Word of mouth is one of the biggest aspects of “Squid Games” that seems to have set it apart from many other pieces of media. Not only did people seem interested in the story, but a ton of memes became created over different aspects of the show. From the big red light, green light doll, to the honeycomb candy becoming a challenge on social media, the show features many unique aspects that have been highlighted through different forms of social media.

The fact that “Squid Game” is not an English show has also been seen as one of the reasons why people have found it so interesting. It has been noted that the English dub of the show was quite bad quality and caused the story to lose some of its intensity and high point moments. Most have said it should be watched in its original form to gain the most from the show.

While “Squid Game” may have started slightly unknown, it has now skyrocketed to popularity and has left individuals wondering about the questions it left unanswered.