Debunking The Theory About 001 | Squid Game Explained

[@victorsullivan7238]

His huge advantage in red light green light is him already knowing that people were going to violently die, and him already being desensitized to this from being a spectator. A majority of deaths in RLGL were attributed to people panicking when witnessing the graphic murders. The RLGL game was pretty easy, and if everyone knew the rules, consequences, and results like 001 did, almost everyone probably would have survived.

[@Sir_Isaac_Newton_]

Edit: Look at @Wicked Play's comment, they are quite right.

[@CosmicMaanz]

@@Sir_Isaac_Newton_ They freaked out because they didn't know that eliminated meant killed. Yeah someone died telling the players that eliminated meant killed, but that doesn't mean everyone is just gonna be calm.

[@Ingenius_]

@@Sir_Isaac_Newton_ would like to have seen your reaction and performance in there lmao

[@brettjohnson536]

@@Sir_Isaac_Newton_ Yeah, cos you'd totally be thinking and behaving rationally in that situation... lol

[@Ingenius_]

@@Sir_Isaac_Newton_ is that so? That’s bullshit bro if there’s a dozen sniper rifles pointed at you your instinct is to get the fuck away from the open field not freeze there and become the perfect target. You can see that in literally any footage that has armed terrorists shooting at crowds, nobody freezes in fear, people run esch other over in the desperate attempt to get away as far and as fast as possible. It’s literally a well described phenomenon how sudden crowd panic can often be mire dangerous than the threat itself as dozens literally die by getting stomped to death. Freezing in fear is what may happen if you’re alone in an ally with one opposing perpetrator, not your reaction when fire arms are pointed at you on open field and there’s hundreds next to you.

[@georgegotay9709]

A better theory about red light green light would be that the doll only moved after he stopped moving. The time delay between him stopping and it turning is significant enough to support this. Unlike the blink of an eye green outline theory.

[@franceboy2363]

CHUNGUS

[@InfiniteSkiegh]

The outline theory works, if you ask me, though. Because those that are outlined the same as him are pretty close. To be sure he was safe they wouldn't risk shooting anywhere near him, so those nearby would have to be safe as well. As for why she turned so soon after he stopped, I'd attribute that more to the fact that he is the host and has likely seen a lot of these games before. He likely knows the timing for red light green light very well. He's obviously never 100% safe, but definitely exempt from the main games. They may make him feel alive and he may even be okay with passing away in the games, but I don't think that's what the line meant. I think he means playing the games he played as a child, with other people's lives at stake, makes him feel alive with an emphasis on the nostalgia he gets from playing these games in his youth. He was never in danger from the games, he just had fun being in the rat race.

[@dzauthor]

That theory about 001 stopping moving to trigger the doll would work only if using a language dub. In the English language dub, the “green light, red light” game and words don’t match the Korean language game. In Korean, the song-like phrase is completely predictable about when it will end: so 001 was simply stopping when the phrase was coming to an end.

[@cometvaudin2850]

@@dzauthor But then what would happen if someone were to push him or make him move? Yes, his own actions are safe but you can’t predict what other people will do.

[@dzauthor]

@@cometvaudin2850 That is a valid risk that 001 man took, the possibility of being killed by other players’ actions. Maybe he was risking his life by playing. For example, in the barracks night fight scene, the old man was not protected by anything other than scrabbling to the top rack. Even that position would have been hard to defend without assistance. Though the game might have been interrupted by guards if he was threatened by others. Perhaps the rack was bolted down to protect him in his hiding place, but we were not given evidence of that. I gave a thumbs up to acknowledge your comment. The issue I was responding to was the theory of the man stopping well in advance of the doll turning around, triggering the doll to move. That scene can’t be properly understood by the rules of Green Light, Red Light. The Korean game is a set phrase, so the old man knew that the phrase was coming to an end. Watching the English dubbed version makes it seem like 001 is controlling the doll’s “Red Light” exclamation. My point was that the old man’s pause before the doll turned is based on the doll’s voice timing, not the old man dictating when to say “Red Light” and turn. The theory that 001 was being monitored and not targeted for shooting is a more viable theory, rather than him controlling the doll. What’s the fun in controlling the game if he wanted to relive his childhood games?

[@conorisnothere7244]

Even though 001 wasn’t 100% safe in red light green light, I still believe that he knew there was a very low chance he would die in red light green light. The fact that his expressions show him enjoying it, and the fact that he remembers the lyrics to the song the doll sings so that he knows when to stop moving at the right time.

[@STH_552]

Nice profile picture

[@CFAnne]

The song is something everyone knows btw. Il Nam didn’t have the advantage because of that. It’s a phrase ALL korean kids say when playing the game. *sigh*

[@user-op6kt8pg9y]

Exactly the only advantage you can get for that game is to know it will be that game thats why he's so happy and comfortable even with the real risk of dying he is the only one who A knew that the game would be red light green light so knew not to move and B he was the only one that knew that eliminated meant death therefore he still had a massive advantage and next to no actual risk of dying

[@williamhaynes7089]

I believe the computer was programmed to not target him...

[@jonathanflint7117]

There could be a special sniper hole with a tranq dart for him, idk

[@danevileye]

I think 001 was safe on the 1st game via software. Let me explain. The doll always read the numbers before the execution (as in "number xxx eliminated"), so obviously they had an number identification system, an OCR maybe, so when the software would detect that the number 001 moved, it would simply ignore it and outline it as green, thus not killing it

[@morgianasartre6709]

That is probably the most likely scenario as even if he was confident he can pass without cheating, there is still a risk of being pushed by other players. But either way his strategy of being in the middle wouldn't protect him from being accidentally caught in the crossfire imo. The safest thing would have been to move along the walls.

[@kupidzheart]

either that or it recognized his face

[@RealSunny]

@@kupidzheart yeah I think they had a face id system

[@silentwalker434]

Yeah , this is the most logical explanation.

[@deliciousnoodles5505]

Even if he moved, the sniper guns are shown to be manually operated and as such he should still be safe as no sane guard will shoot 001.

[@xiopaovid1215]

I never thought that 001 was safe from the games. My theory when it was revealed that 001 created the games, was that instead of just watching them, as the V.I.P.s, he decided to participate. Since he knew that he was dying from cancer, he probably would've much rather die "having fun" in his mind, than suffering through chemo with his body and mind slowly deteriorating.

[@prophet_x3229]

you are correct to a degree but as we know at the end of the series he still had a whole year of life left in him. and the fact that he was safe in the rioters and was spared after the marble game proves that it was intended for him to survive. watching people die and panic is probably much less satisfying for a psycho than being right beside them and smelling the fear up close. I don't think he was supposed to play in the marble game. he made zero effort to team up and probably assumed no one would pick him cause honestly he was a liability. everyone assumed the woman got murdered so that is what they would've thought happened to the old man

[@gneu1527]

@@prophet_x3229 yeah, and 431 was a good person, so he didn't want 001 to die. He teamed up, then he realized, that one of them will die. And the woman just skipped the marbles game xd xd xd

[@lb7164]

He says in a flashback in the final episode when he’s telling the face to deal with the guests that he’ll have ‘more fun playing than watching’ so yeah

[@CodyCha]

@@prophet_x3229 when you have a brain tumor, nobody know how long you’re going to live. You can live a month or a year. You can live a month then live another year in a comma.

[@invernofuyu2542]

THANKS, finally someone said it

[@technocore1591]

No idea if it was rigged for him, but the advantage he would have gained just by knowing what was coming would have been so great as to be effectively rigged. He would have had the song and it's rhythm at the front of his mind and be ready to deploy the most effective strategy (see how he ends each run ending definitively with the rhythm of the chant) and of course most importantly he'd be the only person completely unaffected, un-shocked and immediately focused on the task when the deaths started, which you can also see when he plays.

[@31webseries]

Agreed. I think he wanted to play for real but there were outs in place throughout if he changed his mind. I don't think it would have been "fun" for him if he knew he was completely safe.

[@jameslever3497]

@@31webseries Yeah. This was my impression as well.

[@Neljosmusic]

there isn't enough information to prove that he actually knew what the games were ahead of time.

[@capuchin334]

He may not known what the games were ahead of time but he knew what elimination meant in the first one so could remain focused.

[@TacticalDimples]

There’s also a trick to playing red light green light which you see him doing and no one else. You can see he’s moving with his foot flat on the ground, this way he’s able to cover a lot of distance while also be able to stop a moments notice.

[@claytongarry2208]

Im glad you addressed this, because I couldn't notice a difference during red light green light. And if he was safe from losing a game, you still can't predict what the other contestants would do. Too many wildcards. But he was definitely safer than any other player.

[@Thesamurai1999]

You can see that he doesn’t have a green shade over him like the others do (except for the girl kneeling. She also doesn’t have a shade over her because she is so close to him).

[@NewsofPE]

@@Thesamurai1999 boi, did you really just skip everything the video talked about?

[@Sabrina-sc1db]

001 was safe in red light green light because he knew the game He didn't flinch at gunshots, he was used to it He probably knew the song by heart He also probably had time to prepare And yeah, I think people on the inside had a way to not shoot him, like it happened on the marble game, someone had to tell the guard to not actually shoot 001

[@prophet_x3229]

I think you're right, we see how many games have been played over the years. He would know the exact timing of the songs. I do believe that there was some coding or facial recognition to keep him green. Cross fire and ricochet bullets could resault in him having injuries. Hence why he stayed in tbe back at the begining. When everyone was grouped together and he knew tbe front people would be slaughtered. He obviously knew there was no risk of him dying and just wanted to be in the thick of it and sense and smell the fear of the contestants. If he didnt actually care about getting hurt he would not have had all those fail safes. He threw the marble game because there would be no way to cheat the glass game without compromising himself. If he was first he would be flawless, if he was last he may lose by timing. Plus the explosive glass couldve killed him like the girl. The odds ate pretty goid that she wasnt the only fatality of explosive glass at tge end considering the amount if times that game was played.

[@shnpio]

It also might not have shot him anyways without any indication to the audience

[@prophet_x3229]

@@shnpio another person pointed out that he seem to have a circle around like a no scan zone. the girl beside him is also not highlighted so she was in his safe perimeter. which makes sense. because even if he knew the game people around him could've panicked fallen on him and forced him to move as we saw happen a few times. so If people around him were safe he would also be safer. I was in the best interest for the game to run ahead so no one was within his personal shield. especially after the the first wave of panic was over. there was less of a chance for him to be compromised by miss fires or being trampled

[@CFAnne]

ALL Koreans usually know that song. It’s what they all say when playing the game. They never just say red light, green light. *sigh*

[@Sabrina-sc1db]

@@CFAnne I didn't express myself correctly, I didn't mean "the lyrics", I mean the timing Sometimes the doll would sing faster, some others, slower. That's something that, if you know by heart in advance, is a huge advantage because you know how much you can move safely

[@danielledominguez459]

For the tug-of-war seen you can’t just rely on that one shot. The shot where it’s showing the angle from above when they’re leaning back you can see a lock and finally the shot where his hands are up in the air as they all fall you can see the lock. The shot you were referring to where it looks like he doesn’t have a lock it’s actually the inside where the bolt is connecting the chain to the cuffs, but was twisted towards the front of his wrist (most likely because they are small and skinny.)

[@danielledominguez459]

Oh and I was with you 100% on the other debunking’s.

[@gan1]

@filaaa !! yeah, im saying hes not in books cuz he made them. im replying to this person as if he thinks 001 is not owner.

[@worldsedge4991]

THANK YOU!

[@rdubb6592]

@@gan1 everyone knows he’s the owner that’s not a question everyone saw the final scene with him. The dispute is if he was ever in any real danger during the games he was playing

[@gan1]

@@rdubb6592 yeah thats why i said that. even his name is proof also the green light was protecting him :D it just didnt hit people in his area and also the chains were on at firsty but off after to help him out in a way. on the marbles he also didnt really get shot (even in that scene) and a old man would have to die on the glass and to make it not obvious he also could of wanted death and fun in life. hes obv the owner, im just daying more points to help and as i said not appearing in books

[@kevintaylor8144]

People forget the girl wasn’t shooting them. It was triangles in the walls. The triangles just knew not to shoot him

[@razywazy7271]

The doll was automated to detect movement and shoot them. It’s just A.I. Plus a deadly weapon

[@CaityRaindrop]

@@razywazy7271 yeah the guns are automated in the walls

[@nayida4ever]

The guns are fired by snippers. It was mentioned in the series

[@CosmicMaanz]

But when lots of people were panicing. How did the guards in the walls know which people were moving. Lots of people were moving because of them panicing so it would be hard to see who wasn't moving. And that's why the guns are automated to shoot..

[@BonJoviBeatlesLedZep]

EXACTLY

[@JustDevon1]

Number 1/Oh Il-nam was definitely safer than most other contestants as he was aware of the games. And what you said about how he wasn’t safe during the “Red light, green light” game was spot on to me. However one thing that I would also like to mention is that it doesn’t really matter if he was safe or not, he was dying from the tumour in his head anyways, so he just simply wanted to have some fun.

[@Anaaaaaaattttt]

I think that the doll girl in green light red light only moved when oh Il nam stopped moving, but idk

[@jarrickhillery8664]

I think 001 is safe in Red Light, Green Light in a much simpler way. He already knows the nature of the game. The game was very easy for someone with foresight. You didn’t have to move incredibly fast in order to win; you just had to make it across the finish line. I imagine there weren’t any safeguards in the first game because they weren’t necessary.

[@turboteabag08]

I also believe if 001 broke his shape in the toffee challenge, the guard in charge of "shooting" him had blanks...and 001 would just have to play dead until the game was over.

[@BrianaLynn7]

or he would just not be shot they'd pretend he did it. If that were the case, we would just not be shown maybe. but obviously thats not how it was written.

[@ttrey743]

Blanks can still kill you

[@brokenlegs8431]

@@ttrey743 if pressed against the head, give it a foot or two and you're 100% safe except for maybe hearing damage

[@CZsWorld]

Is 011 played by Millie Bobbie Brown (daughter of Bryce Edward Brown)?!?

[@gamingwithty1744]

😱😱😱

[@thedanielstraight]

This one goes in a museum. I'm dying, 🤣. Well done, Mr. Zac.

[@grahamdolamore]

we must protect his daughter from Drake

[@L1MEST0NE333]

Oh hi

[@clydecromey6933]

Was this a joke?

[@Graenolf]

I really want to play tug of war with someone

[@BryceEdwardBrown]

Soon.

[@coltrag6954]

69th like?… nice

[@TimelessCode]

U mean whitout dieng?

[@TekkLuthor]

Ask Palmela Handerson

[@gamer_playz4772]

If you do listen to the old man

[@versversa8083]

I think Il-nam would not feel excitement if his life wasn’t on the line, plus he’s gonna die anyway so…why wouldn’t he play it with that risk

[@Lilitha11]

@Jisoo Kim Exactly. He made death games based on childhood games he used to play. Does anyone think he doesn't know how to play them? Kid games are his creepy hobby.

[@Pixietoria]

And yet he clearly didn’t die when he was eliminated.

[@LookSomethingFunny]

He did have locks on his cuffs! If you look when they all fall down then you can see it if you pause it right. The screenshot being used in the video showed the opposite/backside of the cuff where the links are and not where the locks would’ve been placed.

[@CodyCha]

Exactly! There are identical silver loops on both sides of the wrist cuffs. The padlock is put on only one side. The way old man rested his hands, the padlocks are actually on the none visible side of the wrists.

[@gan1]

@@CodyCha That still doesn't explain why in the episode he searches through the books for his brother, 001 didnt appear in the books

[@CodyCha]

@@gan1 why would the creator of the game have profile?

[@sarah4hp]

@@gan1 the reason he didn't appear was obviously that as one of the VIP people behind the creation of he games he wasn't about to have a player profile like that filled with sensitive personal information that could in any way EVER tie him to the whole illegal operation. And then it was a giant clue to us as the viewer that he might be behind it all as well of course. But whether he had a profile in the book or not tells us nothing about how safe he was during the games, so it isn't even relevant here. The question is whether he would have died if he failed any of these "games", or if he had made arrangements to make sure he came out of the games alive regardless of what happened and thus wasn't competing on equal footing with everyone else.

[@gan1]

@@sarah4hp well at the end it shows e is the owner i cant bother reading that

[@PandaCake978]

He can still be safe with the green overlay. It detects his position, it doesn't mean if he moves the program will shoot him. I doubt he would need it anyway

[@mike-mz6yz]

but the program doesnt shoot, the programs only job is to detect motion, then the snipers shoot. I dont think the overlay matters at all as long as the snipers know not to kill him he is safe.

[@TheTaxxor]

@@mike-mz6yz I don't think there are snipers at all. These are all automated guns, reacting to the motion detection and maybe one person for safety. How would a person behind these guns know which ones to shoot a second after the camera detected motion?

[@mike-mz6yz]

@@TheTaxxor there is a delay between movement and shot though. They could easily have a scope that overlays the targets. Every other game the people shot are shot by the playstation heads why would this one situation be different? If they had automatic targeting systems why not always use them or fire from the doll. Instead they have windows on the side. Also the windows are bigger then the guns, if it was computer targeting then you could just have turrets.

[@Wavgun3k]

@@mike-mz6yz because then they can just run away from the gun? Or just not go to it at all?

[@mike-mz6yz]

@@Wavgun3k you mean like all the bodies that piled up against the entry gates after the shooting started?

[@briancahill8281]

Il Nam DOES have locks on him during the tug of war. At 47:43 in the episode you can see his locks dangling from each bangle.

[@Hempsicle]

Its briefly shown that the players have some sort of chip in their head. This is shown when everyone comes back the second time and the red henchmen are taking their count of the sleeping participants in the van. The police officer, Jun-ho, doesn’t have the chip. Perhaps Il-nam doesn’t have the chip so he wouldn’t have been detected? Idk just another possible theory that might be wrong lol

[@Real_r]

I think it wasn’t a chip but it was facial recognition

[@Neljosmusic]

The theory involving the tug of war doesn’t really hold up if you go back to Episode 4, there are multiple shots that clearly show that he has locks on his cuffs just like everyone else. 47:44 and 48:35 into the episode are two examples that show he had locks.

[@hemmydall]

If a starbucks cup ended up in a GoT scene, I can imagine they might forget to add locks in a single scene for him. Its plausible, but the attention to detail the show has is a key element to it.

[@realScottThomas]

@@hemmydall the Starbucks cup was intentionally left there..paid promotion.

[@-DeeKay-]

This is so true. I was wondering, why nobody else saw this. Tug of war wasn‘t rigged for the old man. As you can see in the scene before, his cuffs are only twisted in this one shot. The locks are on the part of the cuffs, which is on the underside of him.

[@invernofuyu2542]

Thanks, finally someone said it

[@dalaube]

Thank you. I don't understand how anyone can scrutinize a scene to find the one frame where it's a little unclear, and completely ignore the other frames where the locks are blatantly obvious.

[@CodyCha]

The Missing Padlock theoryis debunked. There is a silver loop on both sides of the wrist. The padlock is put on only onside. When the old man is laying on the ground, you're seeing the side that does not have the lock put on. If you look at the scene just before that and in the previous episode when they were playing the game, you can clearly see the locks on him. Even in the behind the scene footage, you can see the lock on the old man

[@static8647]

yea cant believe so many people missed this. The lock holds the opening end of the cuffs together, the chain attaches to the opposite side.

[@dude-man]

You can see the locks before the match, but after, they do seem hidden

[@CodyCha]

@@dude-man you can see the lock on the old man after they beat their opponent and the rope is cut. Old man is sitting on the ground a second BEFORE every lay flat on the ground. The camera is literally right behind the old man, and clear shows the padlock on his cuff.

[@mrn8645]

Padlocks are on both sides. The lock on his right arm can briefly be seen swinging.

[@erickamakeeaina1649]

I don't think Ill Nam having voted the way he did to let them out shows that the game was fair, people have pointed out the Many holes in the 'Fairness' Logic and that the game was anything but. However I do think it shows that, at the very least Ill Nam BELIEVED in the games 'Fairness' Rheortic, so it makes sense he would be in danger with the others

[@bigmann8932]

Literally everyone with a KZbin channel is an expert after watching the squid series

[@comicbookguy2326]

at 0:39 the thermal camera shows him having a temperature of 122f or 50 celsius, that's a big fever

[@astro2662]

the way he stands looks so adorable

[@fourloaves]

001 was the biggest loan shark and grew a gang large enough to become filthy rich. Then he thought of what to do with those that couldn't pay him....like getting organs ( like they were gonna do to 456) but then decides on making these games for payment. The pink guys could also have to pay a loan and must obey this * career * until their loan is payed off. This is a theory of mine.

[@juanprada4410]

the real challenge of this game was to finish it, after learning that all the contestants could really die. Most of those eliminated die due to panic. Even if 001 didn't know what game they would play, knowing this beforehand gave him a huge advantage. the organizers of these games are as fair as john kramer in jigsaw. XD

[@kjulo88]

God bless you being one of the few english speaking youtube channels doing their own research. This theory always annoyed me and made me ignore any channel that repeated it.

[@gutobernardo7457]

The vfx team might be laughing with all these theories when all they did was design a simple effect for the recognition system 🤣 yes, I understand that the director of SG is very meticulous, but this is reaching a extreme stretch already.

[@asterginete3812]

He was not even safe in the tug of war game. The locks are there, they’re just not visible in the shot. In this behind the scene clip: kzbin.info/www/bejne/i2maY4mNgttneZI you can see Il-Nam’s locks!

[@joew4656]

You are correct. The locks go on the side opposite to the chain, not on the same side as the chain. The locks are shown on his wrists just seconds earlier when the team falls down after the rope is cut. You can clearly see 001 with the locks still on his wrists at 1:38 on the episode timer in Episode 5

[@babiegat]

Yeah I noticed that too!

[@tobler17]

It's 100% fair to say 001 was safer relative to the other contestants but he was definitely not safe.

[@suck634]

Agree with you, he was never safe in Red light, green light or in the tug of war, he knew how to play it and that was why he succeeded. In the honeycomb and marbles he was safer though since the guards could be instructed not to kill him (just masquerading the kill). 001 also knew about the glass bridge game and therefore might had a good plan to use his dementia during the marbles game since he thought he would definitely be doomed in the glass bride game afterwards.

[@Lilitha11]

Personally, I think if he got to the bridge game he would of just taken whatever number was left over. Which ironically the last number picked was the very last number. So he would of survived. I think the squid game would of been pretty tough for him, but if he had been against Seong or Sea-byeok he could of potentially finagled a win, since they would be a bit hesitant to just cut his throat on the spot. Though who knows, maybe he knows how to use a knife.

[@evagarcia865]

(Some guy moves and gets shot) Hundreds of people: I have no better idea than to start running

[@nastee10]

He was safe insofar as he knew what the games were beforehand. Thus giving him an extreme advantage. So, yes if he were to move he would have been shot, but he knew not to move. I'm certain that if all 456 players knew what game was being played and what the stakes were beforehand, there surely would have been many, many more survivors. Ultimately, how can you argue that he was not safe if he was not shot after the marble game?

[@PhantomDogman]

Well everyone could have know what games would have if they would have seen drawings on walls. But at start of all games they were blocked by beds. Someone could have noticed gap between bed wall & wall. Only players were worried about their lives. Of course if they would know what game would be played than at least at start wouldn't know order of it. Maybe lore wise some background characters noticed it but of course you know what happened to them before they figured out. But could have said about drawings but for some reason didn't.

[@williamhaynes7089]

@@PhantomDogman - even if you know what the games are, it doesnt always help you win them. The best you can do I know who to team up with

[@Lilitha11]

Well I think the vast majority of people who played red light green light survived. That is, when you rule out all the people who fled at the beginning and got shot before even attempting to play the game.

[@ayahoo16]

* I don't think it's possible to have total immunity in games like this. Even if he had special treatment I don't think there's any way to guarantee his safety. For instance in Red light Green light players were all over the field and being shot at from all sides even if he was never shot at he could potentially get shot from a ricochet or a bullet that goes completely through another player. * He also had a significant advantage in the red light green light game in that he knew the stakes before the game. He did not experience the panic like everyone else did because he knew from the outset that if you lose you die. It's not a hard game and that extra time that he is playing while everyone else is panicking would definitely give you the edge.

[@kameshouse9474]

They had hollow tips 😅 so no inside and out

[@hirotrum6810]

I think he called off his death at the last second because gi hun made him feel something without the threat if death for the first in a long time

[@eugeniaskelley5194]

Well I am assuming he didn't have a sensor in his neck like all the other players did. Most likely the robot was picking up the sensors in the people's necks. When the police officer was hiding in the van the guard was trying to read him with his sensor, but it wouldn't work.

[@hann2fam217]

Oh my god I’ve heard this theory on every video, you’re the only one who made it make sense!

[@goonting]

One Advantage No. 1 Does have is advanced Knowledge Losing Mean Died. So he is not in shock when playing red light green light. Having fear playing any game with a time limit is always a disadvantage. Plus the old man is ready to die. He is safer no save !!!

[@Lilitha11]

Yeah his whole thing is that he was dying and thought risking his life would be fun. It makes no sense if he was cheating to avoid danger.

[@BrendanEnrick]

Please re-watch the tug of war scenes. 001 has locks on his wrist bands when you see them standing holding the rope. I'm guessing it's just the angle of that one screen shot making them hard to see. He absolutely has those locks in at least a few shots.

[@wispa1a643]

Yeah

[@jennabreann4221]

HE DOES HAVE LOCKS ON DURING TUG OF WAR!!!! THE SHOT BEFORE, WHERE THEYRE PULLING OTHERS OVER THE EDGE, YOU SEE THE LOCKS ON HIS CUFFS FROM BEHIND!!!!!!! THEN THEY FALL DOWN, AND THE SHOT IS JUST WEIRD, I ASSUME.

[@erinmchugh7829]

if you look at the scene where the whole team is leaning back in tug of war, you can actually see the locks on il nams wrist straps, it was just the angle that you couldn’t see them in the end.

[@marcusgoosey8343]

I’d have just assumed the snipers were told not to shoot him..

[@HuntBigs]

Him smiling during red light green light I think is just him beginning to feel the exhilaration of playing child like games after so long.

[@GrimIntel]

thank you, ever since I saw this theory for the first time I didnt get it. Like you said he's in the middle of the camera which has a better focus point.

[@quigli]

The bit about him not having locks on it tug-of-war is false!! In the shot just before the one everyone (including you) shows, you see them all fall backwards and you can see Il-Nam's arms/hands come into frame for a split second and the locks are visible

[@h-e-acc]

I would disagree about the guns in the red light/green light scene tho. There’s no way that can be carried out with maximum efficiency, effectiveness and accuracy without it being computer software where the system detects motions of the players during the game and appropriately target and take out those who fail. I mean humans are prone to make mistakes and may target wrong players. So in episode 1, it’s basically automated sentry guns like the score streak reward in call of duty.

[@loganmcstien90]

Exactly. Why have a robot girl at all if you're just using guards

[@kameshouse9474]

Humans make robots my friend

[@LuxValkyrie]

I think a lot of people tend to forget that Il-nam is already DYING. Essentially, he is already a dead man. Therefore, the risk of him dying in a game is kind of a moot point because he’s going to die soon anyway and as he says himself, he wants to have what fun he can before that so if he dies in a game, at least he got to relive a little of his childhood and go out having that thrill before his death. Il-nam is so disconnected that he does not feel empathy or fear anymore the same way other people do. He created these violent, bloody, dangerous games for entertainment and he says that no one can convince him watching it is as fun as joining them, implying that the risk and danger of them is part of the enjoyment for him. It’s the same with us. Even though we know these are just stories, the danger and thrill of seeing who survives and who dies horribly is part of the enjoyment. Why do people go through haunted house attractions during Halloween season? Look at how many videos and conversations came up posing the question “would I survive Squid Game?”- people can’t help but envision themselves in such a situation when we’re fascinated by something. Such was the case for Il-nam, which included embracing a measure of the danger.

[@Sugarman96]

I mean, the fact that he hid from the fight at night seems to show that despite the cancer killing him, he wasn't interested in being brutally killed by anyone in the games or by the games themselves. That's probably why he threw the fourth game, because he knew that participating in the 5th game would end in him plummeting to his death.

[@LuxValkyrie]

@@Sugarman96 No, it doesn’t. It shows that he doesn’t want to die in a stupid pointless fight. That’s not the same as dying in a game.

[@Sugarman96]

@@LuxValkyrie Then why did he pull out after game 4? He threw the game and got to live. He knew he was winning throughout the game, so why did he decide that was enough for him? He could have gone on to game 5 and brutally die in that game, but he chose not to do that.

[@we_wee_weeeeee]

Explanation of Red light Green light I watched a video on youtube I don't remember whose but he pointed that the player 001 wasn't captured by the motion camera you can slow that clip and you will notice that every player was captured either in green box (safe) or red box (moved) but player 001 wasn't being captured in any of the boxes meaning he was safe from the very start of that game. 100 percent safe. You can cross check.

[@mr.magikman4126]

Player 001 did have locks on. At the very beginning of the episode where you see them falling back after the rope is cut. Watch his hands as he throws them out to try and balance himself and you can see the locks.

[@Coophack6584]

001 is Jigsaw who got bord with life one day...and used his money to create elaborate "games" to show them 🟦🟥

Yep

[@AnRuixuan]

Thank you for saying this. I felt like I was crazy watching other theory videos claiming he was safe during the Red Light Green Light game because I could not for the life of me see the difference between 001 and the others in terms of the green outlines.

[@williamhaynes7089]

it was the guards in the walls shooting the 'eliminated' contestants.. they might know not to shoot him. Most contestants were busy worrying about themselves and wouldn't notice if he moved and didn't get shot.

[@asdbanz316]

@@williamhaynes7089 Some of them still may shoot grandpa by mistake cause he's moving

[@unusualusername8847]

For everyone saying "The guards wouldn't have shot him". I must ask this, did the guards even know 001 was the Host of the games?

[@AttackHelicopter64]

yes, he didn't get shot in marbles

[@massacrematt4613]

Yea because the frontman orders the guards and the front man knew

[@DonMhata]

The Red hair is foreshadowing that he's going to start a pirate crew called the red haired pirates and head to Wano

[@DermotBrophy]

😅🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@lucifer1896]

Everyone:😢😞😫 001/II-nam:😃🚶‍♂️

[@jlo9993]

i don't even understand what people mean by the "green outline and overlay". here's a better way of proving it: 001 is the host, so he knows what games are coming. the marbles game is the easiest game for him to lose without dying, therefore allowing him to be "eliminated" before the next two games, wherein the VIPs have arrived and he has to live up to his host duties. extra proof is that the glass bridge game is the "fool-proof" one. the old man would've almost certainly died during it and there would be no way to rig it in his favor.

[@toneriggz]

I don’t think it matters if he was safe or not. Either way, he was going to die. He probably had contingency plans for every scenario. And the Squid Games had been going on for awhile, so there probably was a point in time where the safeguards were necessary but once he received the terminal illness diagnosis, those safeguards didn’t matter as much yet they were still there from years past before he became sick.

[@nesomaru9043]

Great take

[@michaelangst6078]

How do you explain him quitting before the glass game then? if he truly wanted to get the ultimate rush, wouldn't he memorize the glass game safe spots and leave it up to fate?

[@aason1st]

I'm pretty sure 001 did have locks on cuffs the side that we can see is just how the cuffs connect to the chain, we can't see the locks not because they aren't there but because they are just on the other side of his wrists

[@cobra_commander2255]

Look at Il-Nam's cuffs while they all lean back. He has locks.

[@waitingonamonabel]

Yep this was pretty much the only thing that i disagreed with in the other theory videos. Glad to know I’m not alone!

[@Eternityyyyyy]

The thing you mentioned about two players near il-nam were also outlined like il-nam was because if they shot the players around him the gun may miss and hit il nam and the players were perfectly in line with il-nam

[@justin-tyme]

The locks thing is a continuity error or something - as when they are getting lined up as they are about to start the tug of war game, old man DOES have locks in his wrist restraints.

[@Lilitha11]

Yeah it is just a filming error or it is difficult to see in that one shot. The theory doesn't even make sense, because if he was holding the rope like he was and they fell, he would of been dragged off anyway. Also everyone in the room would of saw him escape if he survived. How would they explain him just walking away to the other players? "Oh he is the boss of the place and was just trolling you guys, we are letting him live." The players would all riot if that happened.

[@michaelangst6078]

@@Lilitha11 Everybody knowing he was part of this while his team falls and he breaks free doesn't really change the other contestant's situation though. He could have been using some type of locks he can just break out of... Regardless, it's kind of insane to argue this.. Just know these things are a possibility and it's up to you to determine if he was willing to die or not.. My biggest reasoning for him not playing for ''real'' is that he wasn't in the player base as it started with 002....

[@Lilitha11]

@@michaelangst6078 Of course he didn't put his background information into the files, it would just be a huge list of incriminating evidence against him and his associates.

[@michaelangst6078]

@@Lilitha11 My opinion is he wouldn't have quit after the marbles game if he truly was playing for real and didn't have safeguards up for the first 3 games... let's agree to disagree

[@Lilitha11]

@@michaelangst6078 He would have had to kill Gi-hun to advance though. So you are saying if he joined the contest for fun and put himself at risk, he would have killed Gi-hun to advance with no hesitation? I think he put himself at risk but didn't want to kill his friend and that is the only reason he dropped out. I don't think your position makes sense. Just because he is willing to risk his life, doesn't mean he wants to directly be responsible to Gi-huns death.

[@joew4656]

The tug-of-war locks theory for 001 is wrong. Sure, it looks in the scene you showed that the locks are not there. But, the locks go on the side opposite to the chain, not on the same side as the chain. The locks are shown on his wrists just seconds earlier when the team falls down after the rope is cut. You can clearly see 001 with the locks still on his wrists at 1:38 on the episode timer in Episode 5.

[@CodyCha]

You can also see the locks on the old man in Episode 4

[@marissa6393]

also in the clip when they play tug of war when they lean back you can see 001 has locks on his cuffs

[@mrn8645]

Il-nam's locks were still on when the tug of war ended. They can clearly be seen as they all fell back when the camera pans over from behind.

[@dmxd]

I watched the tug-of-war scene carefully in slow motion, Il-Nam has lock. So he is fair.

[@ashleymfukala3988]

He did have locks though you can see one at the start - some other players you couldn’t see them in some shots as well.

[@MrSurvival4200]

I believe the slow motion clip of him shows him moving when everyone else was stopped and someone else was shot

[@kjp.7714]

4:58 In this shot we see 001 with chains on the rope when all the contestants are facing the sky.

[@squirrelmonkey5]

I’m loving all this squid game content

[@BryceEdwardBrown]

More on the way!

[@turboteabag08]

It doesn't matter if he was scanned or not, the shooters knew not to take aim at 001.

[@Trish_in_Christ]

This. Or, perhaps, they would only scan him when he wasn’t moving (green). Again, they could just shoot him with a non-lethal bullet or something like that. He’s still an old guy, and as a human being, involuntary movements can happen. I highly doubt they would let him die. That’s also probably why he was enjoying himself so much during the games. Knowing he was the only completely safe player among everyone else would add a feeling of power to the “fun” of gameplay.

[@91truedreamer]

Each game had a strategy, if you could figure it out than more than likely you’ll win the game. I think the giant doll in red light had a time pattern between go and stop that 001 knew about, which is why he was able to stop in time. If the other players wasn’t in such of a panic, they could have figure out the pattern as well, but it just wasn’t enough time.

[@Warsrecker]

the parts in the episode show me that he wasn't save. He had the green outline so the system picked him up. The fact that he knew what consequences the game has, is the biggest advantage you can have. For him it was just a childrens game since he was aware of him losing results in his death. That consequence even gave him the extra kick. For the other players was it more difficult since they had to hold still seconds after realising that you can die in this game.

[@Thesamurai1999]

What? In the red licght green light you can CLEARLY see that he doesn’t have that green hologram over him which everyone else has. He does have green line around him, but no green shade hovering over him.

[@Lee-ss8yj]

We see this with many other players though. It's literally just because of the camera focus

[@Thesamurai1999]

@@Lee-ss8yj I disagree, in later fotages of other players they all still have that green halo over their body. If you look closely you can see a slight hint of a green shade across them. But the old man (and anyone one who is close proximity to him) doesn't have it. He does have a green line that goes around him, but no halo over him.

Exactly I don't agree with this video and also he did have locks on his wrists

[@philbateman1989]

My theory is that in the red light green light game, the guards firing were instructed not to shoot at him, simple. For the cookie cutting, his cookie was pre-cut, or he simply didn't cut the cookie at all, as we never see the guards inspect his cookie. Presumably they were told to just accept whatever he presented to them. For tug of war, he wasn't actually chained to the rope. Everyone would have been too anxious to notice if he wasn't, and if his team lost and he was left standing there after letting go of the rope, it could be played off as an "error" and they could fake his death some other way. For the marbles, his intention was to leave the game at that point, so he feigned dementia symptoms in order to let the main guy win. He wasn't going to "die" in front of anyone anyway, and he made sure of it by delaying as long as possible and making sure nobody else was around them when he lost. If his intention was to play by the same rules as everyone else as he knew he was dying doesn't add up, as if his intention was to potentially die, then he would have just let himself be killed after the marble game if the rest of his survival was just luck.

[@JJBeauregard1]

I think the middle road is right here. In the games where it would've been easy to cover up his failure (honey combe game) or his execution (marble game) he was probably 99% safe. However, during the tug-of-war or the bridge game he would've been at risk - even high risk - of dying because saying he would be 100% safe during those even when losing leaves open major plot holes and simple questions. They can't hide his failure when he's in plain sight of all other players and how would they explain or excuse his survival when failing at a game when the whole point supposedly was to "give everyone an equal chance"?

[@Nitin_editz_yt]

I think that number 1 is the future of 456 who time travelled back and played with his younger version 😂

[@vcrbetamax]

You can see the guns are manned by the guards. There is a bit of ones shoulder sticking out in one of the scenes. Since it's not automated, I just figured they wouldn't shoot him if the doll scanned him. Like if the guards knew not to shackle him to the rope, the guards could have also known not to shoot him.

[@ProgazQQ]

Thanks, I think he never was safe in the games. and he had locks on his handcuffs.. you can clearly see that in the show.. the theory videos always show the same scene where you cant really see them and they say there are no locks that is just not true..

[@Giant2005]

001 was safe during the games, but the real question is did he know he was safe during the games prior to his elimination?

[@subashpariyar8102]

I always took these “evidence” with a grain of salt because they just looked like the most conformation bias driven examples. I’m like 99% sure they treat Il-nam like any other character because the dude literally said, he was going to die, I don’t really think he would have cared either way if he got shot or died from brain cancer because he was so old already.

[@truthisland56]

The old man was protected, evidenced that he did not die during the marble game. He wanted to feel 'alive' by being a spectator, that happened to be an undercover player, so that he could get an upfront feel for what the players were going through but at the same time not be exposed to the same dangers as the rest of the participants. Yes, the old man was always in some form of mild danger by accidently getting stabbed or hurt but this was a small risk as compared to the casualties caused by being eliminated by one of the games. The old man always has a smile on his face and a positive attitude EXCEPT when violence breaks out at night as that is the only time that his life is truly in danger. When the old man feels that his life is in actual danger, that is when his true colors come out and he begins to panic, and uses his privilege to bring in the guards. Think of this as a person who goes into a shark cage so that they can view the sharks more closely. Is the person in the shark cage in danger? Yes, but obviously not as much danger as they would be if they weren't in the shark cage to begin with. It's kind of a cheap voyeurism that hunters get when they go on a safari hunt, where yes, there is a danger that your gun could malfunction and you might get hurt/die but the odds are still comfortably in your favor. This is the ultimate form of narcissism, which is probably based on the Roman Emperor Nero, who would compete in gladiator games so that he could feel manly and heroic but always rigged the games so that he would win in the end. The old man wants the pride and prestige of being a squid game competitor before he dies, without having to incur the risks associated.

[@afellowpotato]

*I disagree with you but I respect this theory. Hint hint most commenters on KZbin*

[@Maxx__________]

001 being safe theory is kind of at odds with itself. On the one hand we basically have proof that he was from game 4. Conversely, it really jams up the themes of the show and motivation of the character if that's the case. There's a large emphasis on fairness throughout the series and this seems to contradict it in a very unsatisfying way.

[@AtlantaGuns]

Plot twist 001 and 456 are the same person. He’s just an older version who has played many squid games and has travelled back in time to play his final/last, which is also his first squid game, with himself. 😬

[@longboarddude8101]

Yoooo imagine

[@m88247]

that wouldn’t make sense tho, oh il-nam had a son and wife, but never mentioned a daughter (which would be gi-hun’s daughter)

[@AtlantaGuns]

@@m88247 who’s to say he didn’t get a new wife and make a son after the first squid game?

[@x_pogbirb3521]

@@AtlantaGuns Gi Hun is too kind. He might have lost his daughter and wife but I doubt he would try to "replace" them

[@wholesomecomment45]

I think for Red Light, Green Light it was never planned for him to join and it was more so a last minute thing, hence why his scans doesn't look different but since he knew how the rhythm worked then he would have been perfectly safe

[@LtTamali]

001 had the locks on his hands in the tug of war game. You can clearly see them when the camera moves over their heads before they start.

[@lyleman68]

Here's the thing I feel like people are forgetting. The doll doesn't kill people, the snipers do. The doll just detects movements and, i suspect, reports somehow to the snipers which contestants are eliminated. It's not impossible for the doll's programing to register 001, moving or not. That said, it's also not impossible for the snipers to have already been given the orders NOT to shoot 001. So if 001 moved even slightly and was picked up by the doll, the only ones who would know are the doll and snipers. The announcement wouldn't be made that he got eliminated. The players could potentially see him moving with the doll looking, but given their mental state after seeing 255 people get shot, I doubt they'd be able to piece anything together.

[@SkyfighterZX]

In my theory, 001 being safe is oposing the reason he participated, he was bored so he went into the games himself, but if he was completly safe that would most likely mean he would get bored for not puting his life at risk, i think he legit agreed to, "if i die, i die" since he was already old and had a brain tumor, so not much to lose, and went into the games knowing that if the guards couldn't get him out, he would just die and thats it, luckly for him he "died" in the marble game so he could have been escorted out and his death faked

[@TheHigherFury]

He had locks on. We only see the chain side of the bracers, opposite side from the locks. Another shot shows him with locks.

[@bluejay7071]

You missed one part of the theory that addresses your debunk. It's that the people around him were also highlighted like that to make sure the machine didn't accidentally hit him since they were so close. kinda like it's an area of effect rather than specfically highlighting just his person. Not saying this debunks your debunk, but rather that the theory does address this.

[@MothSignal]

I believe he was safe but not because of anything in the robot doll, when the guns are shown they are sniper rifles on bipods, likely being used by triangle guards being given numbers to shoot, so the guards themselves would know "don't shoot number 1"

[@siihamoamm4490]

Those who are saying that he knew when to move and when to stop in the RLGL game were probably watching the series in English dub because the doll would say RL suddenly while turning. This is a huge miss because in the Korean, original edition ALL players knew when to move and when to freeze because the doll was singing in Korean one sentence "mugunghwa flower has bloomed" and after finishing the sentence all must freeze and the doll will turn around.

[@thedanielstraight]

I do locksport, so I notice locks even when I shouldn't... I think 001 does have locks on his cuffs. It's just folded up by his sleeve, I think. I could be wrong, though.

[@asterginete3812]

You’re right. It just can’t be seen in the shot. Check out this behind the scenes: kzbin.info/www/bejne/i2maY4mNgttneZI You can see Il-Nam’s locks

[@CodyCha]

@@asterginete3812 the padlocks are on the other side of the wrists which isn't visible in the shot where everyone is laying on the ground

[@takke9830]

I think it‘s funny how I knew from episode 1 that the twist might be that he‘s behind it all cause i got spoiled by a thumbnail of this although i had doubts about it cause i didn‘t know if it was the humbnail or if it was just clickbait but even then I feel like the show was just great because the subversion of expectations really is fantastic and keeps you on edge. They even play with you a bit about this in the show too. Like making him emediately stand out as being number 1 and a paralell number wise to our protagonist. Not to mention the way he played all games like they were fun while knowing from what‘s around him that they were all super deadly. They clearly wanted us to suspect him for some time just so we‘d end up shocked when he voted them all out after the first game. It was cimsistent with his character but it also ar the same time managed to wow us and give some depth to the show. Now it‘s not some dumb death trap like the generic horror movie. It‘s a voluntary death game for desperate people to get into knowing the high risk just to emphasize how desperate they really are. But that‘s not the only cool subversion. The other one is his death. Until the episode ends we still may be in a bit of denial. I mean I sure was thinking that Ali would make it and so would the girls and old man plus protag. But no. Another rug pull right at the end as they all die only leaving sangwoo, protag and the north korean girl. So this is basically 2 times that threw me off even knowing he was in the theory video so it fooled me well. And that‘s why I find this specific outline theory so dumb because it‘s so dumb compared to the actual other games he got through. The guy gave himself away so many times yet we focus on this dumb thing that‘s obviously disprovable instead of him being always chill with the games, him knowing how to win the tug of war games and the cuffs thing. Him being number 1. him not ever looking worried he‘s gonna die. Him disappearing during the night riot. And lastly him dying off camera. There was so much actual foreshadowing expertly done to make this character seem sus from episode 1 but all ppl cared about was this dumb misinterpreted scanner thing and it does really annoy me cause it‘s just not that solid compared to the other things. And just shows that we overvalue overanalytical media dissection than just analyzing what‘s already there if we just look at it again knowing the twist.

[@B-FrancisIISMapa]

I still think that he was 100% safe even though he will be detected by the robot, since the workers actually shoot the players, and not the robot, they would not shoot the founder of the game if he was detected.

[@raccoonja5905]

The shot just looks like the people directly in the middle of the lens don't have the green/red overlay, just the outlines. I think if he was save from beeing shot there the doll just wouldn't recognise his movements and he would always be green or there is a security feature between the camera and the guns preventing him from beeing shot, even if the doll sees him moving.

[@traskulgo]

001 had locks. People just use that image, but if you look for another angles, you can see the locks in his handcuffs.

[@valoriebroderick]

If he were serious about playing for real, they would have shot him after the marbles game though... If he were really up for risking his life he would have died for real. But he didn't. He didn't want to die in the games.

[@NickTour]

You got it wrong. He could easily beat Gi-Hun, but let him live instead, since he didn't need to die to do so.

[@valoriebroderick]

@@NickTour Exactly. The old man didn't need to die to beat Gi-Hun. So it wasn't a true sacrifice (like it was with the girl from North Korea and her friend). He's the only one that didn't have to die if he lost. He wasn't playing for real.

[@henrikingholt9245]

To everyone saying he was safe in game 1 not due to failsafes but because he knew the game and its deathly nature beforehand: he still could’ve been pushed or someone could’ve run into him which would make him eliminated. Not super important I know but it bothered me that I didn’t see it mentioned anywhere xD And I agree 100% that he wasn’t safe most of the time