Content Warning: The following article contains plot spoilers for the Netflix show Squid Game.
Squid Game gave fans a violent competition, unforgettable characters, and shocking twists and turns. Players had to outsmart each other to survive the bloodbath and only the most brilliant among them made it through several of the games.
Children’s games are not so easy when they’re reimagined as deadly competitions. Characters like Gi-hun and Sang-woo have to think on their feet to overcome the dangerous contest. Not only do the smartest players have to be strategic about winning every game, but they also have to be cunning and callous enough to trick other players to get ahead of the competition.
10 Byeong-Gi
Some may argue that Byeong-gi is automatically one of the smartest characters in the game due to his profession, but it’s easy to forget that the reason he’s in the competition in the first place is medical malpractice.
His only smart move shown in the series is his willingness to cheat by collaborating with a few corrupt guards. By helping them traffic organs, he gets insider information on what the next game will be. This only gets him so far, however, as he freaks out when the guards don’t have any information to give him about an upcoming game. He knows his survival is dependent on cheating, as he’s not actually smart enough to get through the games on his own.
9 Han Mi-Nyeo
Squid Game is a K-drama that doesn’t involve romance, but Mi-nyeo’s introduction made it seem like it might have some romantic elements. It’s quickly revealed that the obnoxious character only slept with Deok-su to try and get information about the next game.
Mi-nyeo knows that she’s not the smartest or the strongest among the players, so she uses others to stay alive. She survives the deadly riots by staying with Deok-su’s team and learns about the honeycomb game by reluctantly helping Sae-byeok. It’s also shown that she’s willing to cheat with a smuggled lighter in the honeycomb game, which could be considered a smart move if only she didn’t pass it on to Deok-su afterward. She could have easily died in the fourth game since no one picked her, but is saved by a strange rule about weak links. Mi-nyeo's luck lasts long enough for her to take revenge on Deok-su, which was admittedly a satisfying end for the two characters.
8 Abdul Ali
Ali is undoubtedly the kindest but most naive player in the game. As an immigrant who knows what it’s like to suffer under unfair working conditions, he tries his best to help those around him. After saving Gi-hun in the first game, he joins the protagonist’s team and his strength becomes useful to them in games like Tug of War and during the riots.
Ali can quickly pick up the mechanics of the games despite being unfamiliar with them since they’re mostly played by Koreans. He’s a team player who is an invaluable asset until he has to play the game of marbles. Right before he beats Sang-woo, Ali’s naivety and kindness shine through and make it easy for his opponent to trick and defeat him.
7 Jang Deok-Su
Deok-su plays the role of an archetypal villainous gangster in Squid Game and he does this exceedingly well. As a former member of a powerful organization in the criminal underworld, he knows not to trust anybody and is more willing than most to get his hands dirty.
While he often relies on brute force and intimidation to get his way, Deok-su does sometimes show he can play the game in a clever way. He immediately recognizes that Byeong-gi’s insider information about the game will be useful to him, so he keeps him close. He’s also smart enough to turn the tide of the battle in the game of marbles, winning against his arrogant opponent in the last round.
6 In-Ho
The enigmatic character known as The Front Man never actually participates in the games since he runs the entire operation. He still shows fans that he’s a force to be reckoned with, especially when he successfully identifies and kills the cheating doctor, Byeong-gi.
He’s also acute enough to deal with interruptions in the game, like when a player unexpectedly got his hands on a guard’s gun. He masterfully orchestrates the entire competition while also successfully tracking down an intruder. The fact that he previously won the entire game himself a few years back is also more than enough proof that he’s an intelligent individual.
5 Hwang Jun-Ho
The series has an interesting subplot that’s like a K-drama thriller, easily getting fans hooked. Jun-ho is at the center of this story and audiences follow his dangerous infiltration of the island, holding their breath with every risky move he makes.
Despite being an outsider, Jun-ho is smart enough to manipulate the guards and learn the hierarchy to keep himself safe. He’s determined to find his brother in the middle of all the chaos, so he expertly evades getting caught several times. He’s not prepared for the shocking revelation that his missing brother is actually The Front Man, however, and he’s too stunned in the end to make the smarter decision to take the offer that could have saved his life.
4 Kang Sae-Byeok
Sae-byeok is one of the most badass female leads in recent K-dramas. Her tumultuous past that revolves around defecting from North Korea has given her a unique strength and motivation to rescue her parents and support her brother.
In the competition, she’s hesitant to trust others and relies only on her own tactics and abilities to win the first two games. She brilliantly sneaks into the vents to spy on the workers and uses Sang-woo to identify the honeycomb game. Her decision to join Gi-hun’s team afterward was more of a strategic than a social move, as she knows she can’t survive an attack from Deok-su.
3 Seong Gi-Hun
As the protagonist and eventual winner, it’s not surprising that Gi-hun is one of the smartest players in the competition. He has his foolish moments that are mostly a result of being too empathetic, like when he spends all his mother’s money to try and buy his daughter a nice birthday dinner, or when he chooses Il-nam as his partner in the fourth game out of pity.
Overall though, Gi-hun is a quick-witted player. He realizes that he can win the honeycomb game by licking through the piece instead of risking using the needle. He also sees a horrific way to win in the marble game by tricking Il-nam and using his dementia against him. In the final game, he’s smart enough to throw sand in Sang-woo’s eyes to gain the upper hand, but not heartless enough to kill him in the end.
2 Cho Sang-Woo
Sang-woo and Gi-hun’s childhood friendship and adult rivalry may be a common K-drama trope, but it was enjoyable to watch from start to finish. As the protagonist’s friend, most fans likely expected Sang-woo to be a helpful and supportive character, but he turned out to be one of the more brutal players in the game.
He shows viewers that he cares more about winning than friendship when he doesn’t inform his team about the honeycomb game, letting Gi-hun almost die by choosing the umbrella. Sang-woo does a lot of horrific things after this, including tricking Ali, pushing the glassmaker, and stabbing Sae-byeok. They’re cruel but strategic actions that enable him to last until the final game.
1 Oh Il-Nam
Player 001 managed to fool 455 other competitors, as well as audiences, by posing as a defenseless and feeble old man. The biggest twist in the entire series is the revelation that Il-nam never actually died in the games and was the man responsible for starting the messed-up competition.
He’s undeniably the smartest character in the show, as aside from the fact that he tricked everyone in the game, it definitely took a lot of planning and strategizing to put something like that together. Not only did he have to come up with the different levels and games for several years, but he also had to ensure that they took every precaution not to get caught. Il-nam and his rich friends got away with mass murder for years, which is not an easy thing to do.
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