Viewers have shared their sympathy for one contestant who had a hard time on the second season of Squid Game: The Challenge
Lucas Hill-Paul Content Editor
13:09, 05 Nov 2025
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Warning – this article contains major spoilers for Squid Game: The Challenge season 2.
Squid Game: The Challenge viewers have rallied behind a beloved contestant who became the target of another player’s harsh treatment.
Some fans have gone so far as to brand the behaviour as “bullying” towards the cast member, who was heartbreakingly sent home in the third episode of the latest series.
After surviving The Count and Six-Legged Pentathlon, Mark (Player 100) took part in a gruelling round of Catch that ultimately sealed his fate in the competition.
Yet fans are now pointing the finger at fellow competitor Ryan (Player 272) for targeting Mark in the preceding episode with cruel remarks about his looks, reports the Mirror.
They believe the confrontation, which reminded him of playground torment from his school days, may have rattled him sufficiently to impact his game performance.
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Ryan did receive his just desserts by being knocked out before Mark met his end.
Nevertheless, viewers have flocked to social media platforms to condemn his conduct.
“Mark, 100, was so sweet and I hate them for insulting and hurting him,” one fan posted on Reddit.
Another Redditor wrote: “Screw 390, screw Ryan for bullying Mark, if he hadn’t done that, Mark would’ve caught it.
“I’m sorry, I forget his name but I think it was player 272 who was mean to Mark,” a third added. “Are people actually like this? Did he really think what he said was okay. I’m so glad that one guy called him out but I wish more people did too instead of just watching. They let him talk for way too long.”
Squid Game the Challenge fans defend player after ‘bullying’(Image: NETFLIX)
Over on X, the discussion continued with one fan posting: “Mark (Player 100) is literally my favorite in #SquidGameTheChallenge he’s so sweet and I hate how some of these people are being so mean toward him.”
Another added: “That guy who singled out the sweet nerd Mark for literally NO REASON is a bully and needs to go.”
A further comment agreed: “How are you going to tell Mark to his face that people judge him. So happy that guy stepped up and told the other guy to stop. What a bully.”
Following his elimination, Mark confessed to Tudum: “It was really hard.
Fans have accused Ryan of “bullying” Mark(Image: NETFLIX)
“I was immediately transported back to my sixth grade gym. I kind of reverted back to 12-year-old Mark, and it was hard to get my head back in the game.
“When it came up that the strategy was, ‘Pick on Mark, he looks weak,’ that hurt in a very sincere way.”
However, he also reassured viewers that there’s no bad blood between himself and Ryan.
“I think [he] was probably acting in his best interest at that time, but it felt like extreme bullying, and it was really hard in that moment,” he continued.
Mark was sadly eliminated during the game of Catch(Image: NETFLIX)
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“I was not OK for a little while. I’m fine with Ryan now. We’re good.
“I was very thankful for how the rest of the [team] came to my side and made sure that I was OK. That’s a thing I was really thankful for.”
Squid Game: The Challenge season 2, part 2 will be released on Tuesday, 11th November, followed by the finale on Wednesday, 19th November on Netflix.
