Lovers of thrill and suspense, gather 'round. Netflix's hot topic and the most-binged show of all time, "Squid Game" has dealt its crushing last hand. Mastermind, Hwang Dong-hyuk navigates the social plot around our protagonist, Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae), who reenters the game in Season 2, intending to bring the entire operation down. However, as he grimly discovers by the close of Season 2, in this deadly ring of games, the house always has the winning cards. While the closing season is a tad blood-curdling, it smoothly amps up the traces of its predecessor and provides a Westernized jumping-off point.

The Season 3 debut episode, "Keys and Knives," carries forward from the exact stopping point of Season 2. The previous rebel allies of Gi-hun begin to drop like dominoes, as the pink-clad soldiers reestablish order against the insurgents trying to halt the games. The plot twist? The VIPs have swapped their usual luxe armchairs for combat gear, soaking up the thrill of the games they've so far enjoyed from a distance. While most rebels meet a quick demise, Gi-hun is saved and directed back to the main common area. But amidst the mayhem, pink soldier No-eul (Park Gyu-young) sets in motion a daring plan to rescue her ex-colleague, Park Gyeong-seok (Lee Jin-wook), whose only aim was to secure funds for his child's cancer treatment.

Between a failed revolt and the weight of what's he's already lived through, Gi-hun is a broken man. Yet, the trials of "Hide and Seek," Jump Rope," and the fearsome "Sky Squid Game" persist. Although Gi-hun seems to relinquish all hope, Detective Hwang Jun-ho (Wi Ha-joon), who first stepped as a guard into the games to locate his missing brother, Hwang In-ho (Lee Byung-hun), ceaselessly pursues clues leading to the gaming island. Unfortunately, decoy trails and sly blockers initially deter his pursuit of truth.

Measured against the first two seasons, "Squid Game" Season 3 may not be as gasp-inducing, given the repetitive cycle of the games and the lack of fresh characters. Nevertheless, the plot twists of the last six episodes add spice to the intense narrative. With protagonist Gi-hun struggling with feeling powerless against the Front Man and grappling with personal demons, the newborn child of Kim Jun-he's (Jo Yu-ri) at the conclusion of Episode 2, "The Starry Night," presents a glimmer of hope for redemption. When the VIPs play their cruel, heartless games with the baby’s life, the exposure of unchecked greed where the stakes are a staggering $45.6 billion.

In the final face-off, Gi-hun doesn't make it. Faced with the need to preserve the life of the baby and finding no solution to thwarting the omnipotent Front Man or the games, he pays the ultimate price. So that the infant may have a fighting chance at life, "Sky Squid Game," concludes with Gi-hun’s life as the saving bet. A befitting tribute to Jung-jae's stirring portrayals spanning multiple opinions in the series, viewers experience a man navigating a myriad of emotions and clinging onto his humanity in unthinkable odds.

"Squid Game" may have ended, leaving us flabbergasted yet eager for more. Stirring our anticipation in the finale episode, "Humans Are…", we see In-ho and the recruiter (Cate Blanchett) chuckling over a game of slap in Los Angeles. The dark undertones of this scene belie Hwang’s hopeful take away: as individuals, our influence may be limited, but collectively, as Gi-hun, Jun-ho, and No-eul have shown, we could achieve something far greater. In the poignant words of Gi-hun in his final moments, "We are not horses. We are humans. And humans are…" Join us in saying a fond goodbye to this chapter of "Squid Game", now streaming its final season on Netflix.