Eight strangers are offered to participate in a game where they will be locked inside a building and earn a substantial amount of money for each minute the game continues. Each are sequestered at night in a different room on eight separate floors, during which they purchase all of their basic provisions at one hundred times their normal cost using their current prize earnings, while during the day they can use a portion of their remaining time to buy provisions for the group.
Initially, the eight people, opting to only be named based on their floor, work together to try to maximize the remaining game time and individual earnings while living with basic comfort. However, when they discover that the higher floors are earning significantly more money and have larger rooms than the lower floors, a power struggle erupts between the players, while at the same time they try to figure out the unclear means by which more time is added to the game clock.
Jin-su arrives at a mysterious building. When he enters he has an option to play the game or take money and go back home. He decides to stay and chooses a card with three on it. He enters the game room and goes to his room. Once there a door opens and gives him a book with simple rules for the game as well as clothing. He soon sees that he gets ₩30,000 per minute. Items can be bought but at a high rate. In the morning, he meets the other players. They all learn that the higher your room is, the more money you make (Fibonacci sequence). They also learn that Floor 8 received 12 meals and 12 waters which she used to take a bath. They devise a plan to share the food while trying to learn the hidden rules of the game.
2
Han Jae-rim
Han Jae-rim
May 17, 2024 (2024-05-17)
The episode begins showing how Floor 8 came to the game. After learning how to share the food, the team learns from Floor 8 that the stairs are the key to earning more time. After all eight run up and down the stairs, more time is given. They make a plan to divide the work into two teams so four run one day (and get two meals) and the other four rest (and get one meal). Floor 1 is not able to contribute due to his injury, so Floors 2 and 3 steps in for him. When they wake up the next day, they see that the time is almost out. They all run the stairs and Floor 4 has an epileptic seizure. Floor 2 is stopped by Floor 6 from making the call since the time will expire, but Floor 3 is able to make the call. The time jumps to 40 hours. Floor 7 realizes time is added because the fight was entertaining to whoever is watching them.
3
Han Jae-rim
Han Jae-rim
May 17, 2024 (2024-05-17)
Floor 7 is shown entering the game and trying to discover the format and what's happening. After learning the viewers want to be entertained, the group decides to do a talent show. Each act is awarded hours based on the level of entertainment. They also decide that they must know when the group wants to end the game. They let Floor 1 decide since he makes the least and he will stop once he has ₩1 billion – 2 and a half months. After a successful talent show, the group decides that Floor 1 shouldn't keep the waste since they don't run anymore. The group then votes for Floor 8 to have a bathroom for all. But she refuses to comply and retaliates by sending empty food containers and empty water bottles.
4
Han Jae-rim
Han Jae-rim
May 17, 2024 (2024-05-17)
Floor 4 beginning is shown, and she originally chose 8 but changed her mind. Floor 8 withholds all food and water. Floors 3 and 4 eventually offer to hold the waste and Floor 7 apologizes for the group and explains the new set-up. Floor 8 has the group play the King Game [ko]. After a vicious fight between Floor 2 and Floor 6, the group decides that someone can disobey the King and the penalty will result in the person being tased. The game is changed where the loser of any pairing had to be tased. Floor 1 realizes the game is being rigged and Floor 7 catches Floor 4 manipulating the balls at night. Floor 8 loses the next day and is about to be tased until Floor 6 kicks floor 7 to stop the penalty. He then tases him.
5
Han Jae-rim
Han Jae-rim
May 17, 2024 (2024-05-17)
Floor 7 wakes up in Floor 8's room. He has switched sides. A new, tortuous game is formed with Floors 4, 6, 7, and 8 demanding Floors 1, 2, 3, and 5 play violent games against each other. After playing a violent Hide-and-seek game, Floor 3, the winner is blindfolded and randomly swings a baseball bat to hit Floor 1, 2, OR 4. He hits Floor 1. Then they are given nine coins and have to secretly write down how many they want. If the total goes over nine, they lose all the coins to buy food and water. Luckily, they do not go over nine. After winning 20 Questions, Floor 2 hits Floor 3 with the bat. After several days of playing, they have an incident where they go over nine but refuse to go back to their rooms until 10 coins are offered and Floor 5 takes them, indicating she's diabetic. The lower floors develop a plan to revolt and enact it, but accurately sensing a trap, Floor 6 attacks and overpowers them until Floor 7 reveals the taser gun is empty and tells them to attack Floor 6. They do so and immobilize 6,8 and 4
6
Han Jae-rim
Han Jae-rim
May 17, 2024 (2024-05-17)
After subduing the top floors, the bottom floors tie them up, and Floor 1 begins beating Floor 6. The bottom floor takes the top floors back to their rooms to wait out the remaining time. The bottom floor group asks to spend Floor 8's money and they have a great time while waiting out the remaining time on the clock. With nine hours left, the bottom floor group goes back to their rooms but is shocked to see the clock reset to 36 hours the next morning. Someone is torturing the tied-up people to add time to the clock. Floor 2 decides to lock everyone inside their rooms. The next day Floor 5 sees Floors 4 and 8 free from the captivity. She checks on Floor 6 but he is still tied up. He convinces Floor 5 to stay and be with him and tells her that Floor 2 pulled out his toenails.
7
Han Jae-rim
Han Jae-rim
May 17, 2024 (2024-05-17)
After being set free, Floors 4, 6, and 8 capture the others and begin beating them again. Eventually, after tying them up, Floor 6 finds out who ripped his toenails out after Floor 8 buys the CCTV footage and he shoots Floor 7. Floor 1 was behind it. Floor 6 goes to kill Floor 1 but is stopped when Floor 8 tasers him, and he falls down the stairs and appears to be paralyzed. Floor 8 ties up 1, 2, 3, and 7 and tortures them with sleep deprivation by tying them to chairs and forcing their eyes open while watching horrible videos, while their faces are in a bowl of water. Floor 8 enjoys watching their pain from her room, using it to inspire her art of masturbate. Floor 1 shares with Floor 4 that she can change rooms for ₩1 billion, which is why Floor 1 wanted to stay.
8
Han Jae-rim
Han Jae-rim
May 17, 2024 (2024-05-17)
Floor 1 has a daughter with a very rare disease and is kicked out of the hospital because he does not have the money to pay for her treatment, thus he enters the game. Floor 4 tells Floor 2, 3, and 7 about the ability to change rooms. They agree to help Floor 4. The next day, Floor 5 unties everyone. Floor 8 catches Floor 3 and 5 in Floor 6's room. Floor 4 hits her with a golf club and ties her up. Floor 6 is revealed to be a washed-up baseball player. Floor 5 gets revenge on Floor 6 by castrating him. Floor 1 uses the money to change rooms, but only receives instructions and the cost to change to a higher room (₩340billion)! Floor 1 demands everybody be tied up so the show can continue since he needs money. He performs a circus act; however, after bouncing high enough to grab a projector, it comes loose and he plummets down into the fire and dies. Floor 3 shoots out all the cameras to force the doors open, but Floor 1 dies. Floor 3 leaves the arena and goes through the curtain where he is greeted with applause and cheers via a stereo system. He opens a red envelope that tells him the winning money will be wired to his bank account. Floor 3 is traumatized by Floor 1's death and deals with depression and thoughts of suicide. He puts together an event to be like a funeral for Floor 1 and advertises it throughout the city. Floor 2, Floor 5, and Floor 4 go to the service and they all talk. Floor 3 shares he met Floor 1's wife and learned that Floor 7 gave her enough money for her lifetime. Floor 6 does not go, but sends a huge wreath. 8th floor was arrested for destroying an art gallery. She had to use all her prize money to restore the art gallery and to pay for the damaged artwork. The four leave and go their own way. Floor 7 takes his experience and writes a screenplay about it titled "The 8 Show".
Production
Development
The series was developed under the working title Money Game (Korean: 머니게임), which was based on Naver Webtoon of the same name [ko] and its sequel, Pie Game, both written by Bae Jin-soo [ko]. Director Han Jae-rim, who directed The Face Reader (2013) and The King (2017), was looking for his next work after Emergency Declaration (2021) and joined hands with Studio N to direct the series. It was also expected that it would release in an OTT platform.[6] Naver Webtoon announced that Netflix has picked up the franchise under the new title The 8 Show.[7]
Studio N and Magnum Nine managed the production while Lotte Cultureworks served as co-production and investor for the series.[8]
In December 2021, Ryu Jun-yeol and Bae Seong-woo were cast as the lead actors of the series. This would be Bae's return to small screen after self-reflecting on his DUI incident in November 2020.[6]
Naver Webtoon announced that The 8 Show would be released worldwide on Netflix in 2024.[7] Four months later, Netflix confirmed the release date of the series would be on May 17, 2024.[15]
Reception
Critical response
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 75% of 8 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.8/10.[16] Elisa Guimarães of Collider gave a score of five out of ten and wrote that the series "might garner comparisons to Squid Game", but " struggles with underdeveloped characters and disjointed humor".[17] Kate Sánchez of But Why Tho? gave the series a perfect ten and described it as "one of the best limited series on Netflix" and "it ends with finality and pays off every narrative choice made along the way".[18] Jonathon Wilson of Ready Steady Cut rated it a 2/5 and wrote that it "something fascinating for the wrong reasons".[19] Pierce Conran of South China Morning Post gave a score of three out of five and wrote that "viewers are likely to recognize The 8 Show as a blatant attempt to piggyback on the achievement of the most successful Netflix show of all time, but so long as they are being entertained they may give it more time".[20] Joel Keller of Decider compared the series "as dark as Squid Game, but it's definitely more wryly funny".[21] William Schwartz of HanCinema wrote that it "refuses to caricature even its most seemingly loathsome characters" and "all of them were driven to madness by the harsh, empathy-less world they lived in long before they accepted their invitation to the game".[22]
Viewership
The 8 Show ranked seventh in Netflix's Global Top 10 TV (Non-English) category after three days of its release and received a warm response in 11 countries being listed in the Top 10.[23] The following week, the series topped the chart with 33.2 million hours watched by 4.8 million viewers,[24] and remained on the chart for the next three consecutive weeks.[25]
^ abJeon, Hyeong-hwa (December 21, 2021). [단독]류준열·배성우, 한재림 감독 '머니게임'으로 호흡 [종합] [[Exclusive] Ryu Jun-yeol and Bae Seong-woo collaborate in director Han Jae-rim's 'Money Game' [Comprehensive]] (in Korean). Star News. Archived from the original on April 12, 2024. Retrieved April 12, 2024 – via Naver.
^Ahn, Tae-hyun (January 28, 2022). 웹툰 '머니게임' 드라마로 만난다...류준열·아이유·박정민 출연 [Meet the webtoon 'Money Game' as a drama...Ryu Jun-yeol, IU, Park Jeong-min appear] (in Korean). News1. Archived from the original on April 12, 2024. Retrieved April 12, 2024 – via Naver.
^Kim, Tae-ho (December 12, 2023). 240억 든 드라마 '더 에이트 쇼', 넷플릭스로 간다 ['The Eight Show', a drama costing 24 billion won, goes to Netflix]. Deal Site (in Korean). Archived from the original on April 11, 2024. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
^Hwang, Hye-jin (January 28, 2022). 류준열X아이유X박정민X박해준X배성우 '머니게임' 출연 확정(공식) [Ryu Jun-yeol X IU X Park Jeong-min X Park Hae-joon X Bae Seong-woo confirmed to appear in 'Money Game' (Official)] (in Korean). Newsen. Archived from the original on January 28, 2022. Retrieved April 12, 2024 – via Naver.
^Jeon, Hyeong-hwa (April 1, 2022). 문정희·이열음·이주영, '머니게임' 합류..류준열x아이유와 호흡 [Moon Jeong-hee, Lee Yul-eum, Lee Zoo-young join 'Money Game'...Working with Ryu Jun-yeol x IU] (in Korean). Star News. Archived from the original on April 4, 2022. Retrieved April 12, 2024 – via Naver.
^Hwang, So-young (May 27, 2022). [단독] 아이유, 한재림 연출작 '머니게임' 하차..천우희 물망 [IU, withdraws from Han Jae-rim's 'Money Game' directorial debut..Chun Woo-hee expected] (in Korean). JTBC. Archived from the original on May 27, 2022. Retrieved April 12, 2024 – via Naver.
^Jeong, Hee-yeon (April 1, 2022). '머니게임' 문정희-이열음-이주영 합류...5월 크랭크인 [공식] ['Money Game' Moon Jeong-hee, Lee Yeol-eum, and Lee Joo-young join... May Crank-in [Official]] (in Korean). Sports Dong-a. Archived from the original on May 19, 2024. Retrieved October 16, 2024 – via Naver.
^Jeon, Hyeong-hwa (December 30, 2022). 류준열x천우희x박정민, 한재림 감독 '머니게임' 6개월 촬영 종료 [Ryu Jun-yeol x Chun Woo-hee x Park Jung-min, director Han Jae-rim completes 6-month filming for 'Money Game'] (in Korean). Star News. Archived from the original on December 30, 2022. Retrieved April 12, 2024 – via Naver.
^Han, Hyeon-jeong (May 22, 2024). '더 에이트 쇼' 글로벌 7위·170만뷰..'종말의바보'와 비슷한 수준 ['The 8 Show' ranks 7th globally, 1.7 million views..Similar to 'Fool At the End of the World'] (in Korean). Maeil Gyeongje. Archived from the original on August 29, 2024. Retrieved June 24, 2024 – via Naver.
