China's Squid's Victory under fire for plagiarizing Squid Game

China's YOUKO is being accused of plagiarizing Squid Game. ( Image via Netflix, YOUKO)
China's YOUKO is being accused of plagiarizing Squid Game. ( Image via Netflix, YOUKO)

Squid Game’s complicated relationship with China is about to go a step further as the country is reportedly all set to launch its own version of the hit show, titled Squid’s Victory.

Netflix’s Squid Game has taken over the world, breaking several records. The Korean survival show is currently the most-watched Netflix show on the planet, a first for any Asian production. In the wake of the show's success, a variety of parodies have popped up around the world, with several places offering real-life recreation of the games. From Halloween costumes to SNL, Squid Game is everywhere.

A Chinese variety show has taken this a step further by launching a reality show, based on Squid Game which blatantly plagiarizes not just the concept and the name but even the logo!


China's plagiarized Squid Game - Squid's Victory

Various media sources have reported that a Chinese video streaming service, YOUKO, will be launching a brand new variety show titled Squid’s Victory. The show is scheduled to hit Chinese screens in 2022. While parodies of Squid Game have become common, YOUKO takes it a step further, copying the Netflix show’s font, shapes, and even colors.

The similarity doesn’t just end with the title and font. Just like the Korean show, Squid’s Victory too is set to follow a similar format, that of traditional children’s games. Contestants on the variety show compete with one another in different traditional Chinese children's games. No information is available as to whether losers on this game show will suffer the same fate as those on Squid Game.

Squid’s Victory has understandably received immense backlash, with both Korean and Chinese netizens pointing out the hypocrisy shown by China and its censor boards. The original Korean show was banned by the country, with China also criticizing the success of Squid Game, stating that the series would never be remade in China due to the “dark theme of human nature”. Other K-Drama and K-Pop productions have also been treated in a similar manner, with Chinese citizens being forced to rely on illegal streaming sites to view these shows.

Following Squid’s Victory’s promotional posters, several Chinese citizens took to Twitter to vent their frustration and embarrassment at this blatant plagiarism of Squid Game. Several Koreans, too, chimed in with their perspectives.

Many people have also brought up this discussion on online forum The Qoo.

“It’s not even a small site. Isn’t YOUKU really famous in China..? But they are blatantly copying it? So classy hahahahaha I’m not even surprised anymore with their fakes.”
“Are they freaking crazy?? Even their title is really tacky. Everything they do is tacky.”
“Seriously, are they not embarrassed? It’s like their country doesn’t feel embarrassment??”

While the producers of Squid’s Victory, YOUKO, have not yet responded to the backlash, several fans of the original show, both Korean and Chinese, have demanded a complete overhaul of the variety show’s premise and theme.

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Edited by Sandeep Banerjee