Squid Game narratives as platforms

‘Gi-Hun will become the New Frontman’

Bibliographic Data

ID21439567
AuthorsD Y Jin (0000-0002-2507-7333, Simon Fraser University, corresponding author)
Year2026
Pages1-16
Publication date2026-07-06
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueAsian Journal of Communication (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0129-2986 • E-ISSN: 1742-0911
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/01292986.2026.2687806
OpenAlexW7167491097
LanguageEN
References cited25

By critically analyzing narratives about the Squid Game series, one of the most popular cultural programs worldwide, on social media, this article examines how fan communities use social media to construct narratives that function as platforms themselves. It engages with the notion of ‘narratives as platforms' (Joubin, 2013; Yang, Citation2025) rather than ‘platforms as narrative tools’ (Kozharinova and Manovich, Citation2024). In other words, this article examines Squid Game-related narratives as platforms, expanding the notion of what constitutes a platform. It focuses on the analysis of narratives surrounding the Squid Game series among fans on social media and, therefore, aims to advance the argument by examining the quest narrative, which is the fundamental storytelling structure that the leading figure uses to challenge the status quo, while advancing the events (Kinyon, Citation2020)-arguably one of the most essential narrative archetypes in the history of social media

Narrative · Squid · Cephalopods and Marine Biology · Crustacean biology and ecology · Echinoderm biology and ecology

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