Her tactics help her muscle her way into Deok-soo’s team, but after he betrays her, he eventually learns the hard way that hell hath no fury like a woman scorned when Min-yeo throws them both down to their deaths in one of the final challenges.

6. #218 Cho Sang-woo (Park Hae-soo)

The intelligent and pragmatic Cho Sang-woo, Gi-hun’s childhood friend, was easy to root for early on, as he took charge and organised our favourite players against their more dangerous opponents.

As the games wore on his practical side morphed into something terrifying; first he wanted to boot out weaker players, but eventually he became comfortable dispatching his allies himself, whether by cheating them or gutting them with a knife.

5. #240 Ji-yeong (Lee Yoo-mi)

We only meet Ji-yeong when Sae-byeok invites her to a team to play in the third challenge and she doesn’t make it past the fourth, but #240 probably has the most impact per minute of screen time, as her kooky character adds an unusual energy to the group.

She later breaks our heart when she explains how she went to jail for killing her abusive father just before losing a win-or-die marble toss.

A relatively new face, Lee Yoo-mi has quickly made a name for herself playing memorable oddballs in indie productions such as Superpower Girl and Young Adult Matters, and through a supporting role this summer in Hostage: Missing Celebrity.

4. #456 Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae)

Both the last player drafted and our entry point into the story, Seong Gi-hun is a deadbeat dad and washed up gambler who isn’t above stealing from his own mother. Yet he’s also a sociable sort who becomes increasingly sympathetic through the games, as his positive attitude brings people together and as he risks his life to save others.

3. #199 Ali Abdul (Anupam Tripathi)

It’s true that Ali Abdul represents some negative Korean stereotypes concerning infantile and harmless South Asian migrants, but player #199 largely managed to break through that racial morass, first by saving Gi-hun in the first game and then time and again by being a loyal team player. In the end, his trusting nature costs him his life.

Playing the Pakistani character is Indian actor Anupam Tripathi, who studied at the Korea National University of Arts and has been active on screen since Ode to My Father. He has typically portrayed migrant workers in small roles until his breakthrough in Squid Game.

2. #1 Oh Il-nam (Oh Yeong-su)

Though many viewers may have felt betrayed by what was revealed after the game in the finale, very few people weren’t rooting for player #1 to come out alive from each challenge. A wispy old man with a brain tumour, his chances of survival were slim, but his desire to play was infectious and his vulnerability a constant source of sympathy.

Most of all, despite the deception that would come later, it was Oh Il-nam that helped Gi-hun find his humanity.

1. #67 Kang Sae-byeok (Jung Ho-yeon)

Topping our list is Kang Sae-byeok, a North Korean defector who became a young pickpocket before finding her way to the games. Hard as nails and (wisely) not given to trusting her fellow contestants, she knows how to take care of herself and from the outset it was clear she would go far.

The show’s coolest character becomes one of its most sympathetic as we get to know her, setting us up for a gut punch at the tragic close of her story.

Remarkably, the layered #67 is played by debutante actress Jung Ho-yeon. Jung is an accomplished model who appeared in magazines and on TV in Korea’s Next Top Model, but Squid Game is her first dramatic screen role. No doubt the first of many.