The new Korean drama Pyramid Game has received positive feedback from the UK’s BBC, gaining international attention. It is a Tving original series that heightens psychological tension through a secretive voting system among the students of Class 2-5 at Baekyeon Girls’ High School and the ensuing survival game. The series depicts the students becoming divided into perpetrators, victims, and bystanders through a monthly secret vote to select an outcast, gradually descending into violence.
Pyramid Game, which first aired on the 29th of last month, is based on a popular webtoon. It revolves around the mental battles and psychological warfare among the students. The BBC has referred to the series as the “new Squid Game,” analyzing that both series reflect the harsh realities faced by Koreans. Film critic Nemo Kim, in an interview with the BBC, stated that both series address themes familiar to Koreans. The debt-ridden participants in Squid Game and the school violence issue in Pyramid Game reveal the pain present in reality, not in a fictional dystopia.
Pyramid Game was officially invited to “Series Mania,” Europe’s largest series event held in Lille, France, from the 15th to the 22nd of this month. This marks the second consecutive year a Tving original series has been selected for a special screening, following After-School War Activities last year. Thus, Pyramid Game is elevating the status of Korean content on the international stage and is generating high expectations among overseas audiences ahead of its global release through a partnership with Paramount+.
This international interest and recognition demonstrate that Pyramid Game is more than just entertainment; it conveys social messages and achieves worldwide empathy. It will be interesting to see the impact this series will have and the new discussions it will spark. The next episode of Pyramid Game is scheduled to be released at noon on the 7th, and anticipation is building for the sensation it will create.
