After the last game,
only three contestants are left, the series central antihero Seong Gi-hun
(Lee Jung-jae), ruthless strategist Cho Sang-woo (Park Hae-soo), and North
Korean refugee Kang Sae-byeok (Hoyeon), with the latter being severely
wounded by a shard of glass and not given any medical treatment. The three
contestants are treated to a "last meal", which each of them is
allowed to leave with a steak knife - which makes for a night of fear and
distrust, especially between Gi-hun and Sang-woo, as the former is sure
the latter will do everything to get rid of another contestant to further
his chances to win. He even teams up with Sae-byeok and promises to
protect her, even though she's on the verge of dying anyways, but somehow
Sang-woo still manages to slit her throat behind Gi-hun's back ... Meanwhile,
Hwang Jun-ho (Wi Ha-joon), who has gone undercover within the game's staff
to look for his brother lost in one of the earlier games, has collected
all the evidence he needs and tries to make a getaway - but ultimately is
cornered by the Front Man (Lee Byung-hun) and his men. And when the masked
Front Man reveals his identity, Jun-ho is in for a nasty surprise ... A
pretty exciting penultimate episode that plays on the series strengths -
character development and suspense - and while without any actual main
event (as in, a game) still has plenty to tell, quite besides wrapping up
one narrative thread quite nicely and not losing itself in any more
subplots. And it really sets up the finale well.
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