Years before Squid Game hit Netflix, another dystopian series on the platform combined social commentary and thrilling gameplay. 3% shares its biggest strength with the Korean hit show in highlighting how different individuals respond to the games and exploring the different ways the human mind can solve the puzzles in front of them. However, unlike Squid Game, elimination from the game doesn't result in instant death; instead, players who are eliminated lose the opportunity for a better future. Both shows have an insular feel, with the participants staying under the same roof even outside of challenges, meaning the audience gains an intimate insight into the players and the relationship that develops between them. Morality, loyalty and human sensibility are explored and tested, so fans of Squid Game will find recognizable tropes within the Brazilian series and be able to feed their desire for something similar.
What Is '3%' About? Close
3% centers around a competition known as "The Process," with success promising a place on the coveted offshore, an affluent society that promises luxury and freedom. The show's initial shots show how the inland, where the rest of the population lives, is rife with poverty and deprivation, therefore highlighting the incentive of reaching the offshore. The Process is shown as the singular way to escape the inland, and there is one opportunity to participate when citizens reach 20 years old. Immediately, the welcome to The Process cuts between multiple contestants, highlighting the absence of a central protagonist, which helps the show's unpredictability; no one truly feels protected by plot armor.
Much like Squid Game, the games themselves are fairly simple in explanation. The show doesn't bog itself down with complicated rules and instead allows its characters to drive the intrigue. The first game involves making enough cubes out of smaller cubes and the second is an escape room scenario where, in groups, the participants must figure out the details of the incident in front of them. The stripped-backed nature of the games means they are simple to follow, allowing 3% to focus on highlighting the personalities of its cast by how they respond to each challenge.
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Posts 1 '3%' Has an Unpredictable Conspiracy Surrounding Its Competition
The moments outside the challenges are just as important in 3%, with the show cutting between game sequences and those who are running the games. However, unlike Squid Game, the identity of the head of The Process is not a mystery. There is no intrigue in the anonymity of those in control, but rather the layered conspiracy surrounding the authorities. It allows the progression of the show to leave the process and explore the society created. The dystopian exploration of meritocracy is a huge theme throughout the show's four seasons, and being able to see behind the scenes of The Process so blatantly allows for the way this is exploited to be a major plot point that only grows with the show.
3% is plagued with gray morality, there are no true heroes and villains as every single contestant has merits and flaws. The diversity of the cast allows an exploration of different motivations and how they reflect each player's individual strengths. The variety of the games, with some physical and some mental, means it is not the games themselves that are interesting, it is the way they are played. However, what makes 3% so compelling is how grounded in reality it is, despite the dystopian technology, the characters are built around the human condition and the way hierarchy and power form.
Characters are hungry for the chance at a better life, and the lack of pre-existing relationships means they often don't have any issue with stepping on others to get there. It has the games that make Squid Game so compulsively watchable, albeit the set pieces are not as grandiose. However, the rich social commentary that runs through Squid Game is a huge aspect of 3%, with both shows having a diverse cast in genetics and behavior. Both shows treat morality as a spectrum, having overtly mean-spirited characters, yet also having slyly self-motivated individuals and even having their more likable characters making ethically questionable decisions. 3% is bleak, but that's what makes it so realistic and dystopian. If you're looking for something to binge after finishing the new season of Squid Game, 3% should be at the top of your list.
All episodes of 3% are available to stream on Netflix.
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3 Percent TV-MA DramaThriller Sci-Fi Release Date November 25, 2016 Cast Bianca Comparato , Vaneza Oliveira , Rodolfo Valente , Rafael Lozano , Thais Lago , Sérgio Mamberti , João Miguel , Geraldo Rodrigues , Michel Gomes , Luciana Paes , Luana Tanaka , Danilo Mesquita , Marina Mathey , Viviane Porto , Mel Fronckowiak , Samuel de Assis , Bruno Fagundes , Léo Belmonte , César Gouvêa , Laila Garin , Cynthia Aparecida , Cacá Ottoni , Carlota Joaquina , Clarissa Kiste , Júlio Silvério Main Genre Sci-Fi Seasons 4 Producers Tiago Mello Writers Ivan Nakamura , Pedro Aguilera , André Sirangelo Network Netflix Directors César Charlone , Daina Giannecchini , Jotagá Crema , Philippe Barcinski Expand
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