MYUNGDAE

So... What's Myungdae?

Myungdae, also known as Daeggi, 721, and TigerCoin/MGTiger/CryptoTiger, is the romantic rare pairing of Kang Dae-ho (388) and Lee Myung-gi (333) from Squid Game S2 + S3.

As a rarepair, the two don't have much canon interaction: they interact once when Dae-ho offers his team's assistance to Myung-gi following an unsavoury encounter with Choi Su-bong (Thanos) and Nam-gyu; and then again during the Mingle game when Dae-ho, along with Kim Jun-hee, defend Myung-gi's actions when Cho Hyun-ju blames him for Kim Young-mi's death.

Myungdae started as, and has remained as, a rarepair following the release of both S2 and S3. The ship gained a small amount of popularity following S3, but still only has a small dedicated following. It sometimes features as a way to pair off the two characters in the background of larger fics.

The Foundations

OR: A Side Tangent about SkySwan

The primary basis for the ship doesn't actually come from Squid Game itself – it mostly comes from the interactions between Im Si-wan (Myung-gi's actor) and Kang Ha-neul (Dae-ho's actor), otherwise known as SkySwan.

Si-wan and Ha-neul have a long history together, dating back over a decade to their roles in the 2014's Misaeng: Incomplete Life, a workplace drama centred on the troubles and tribulations of Korean office workers. The series centres around Si-wan's character, Jang Geu-rae, who is an isolated young man beginning an internship at trading company One International after having his dreams of becoming a professional baduk player crushed. The show focuses on Geu-rae's troubles at work and his developing relationships with his coworkers, including the geeky, ambitious, yet remarkably jealous Jang Baek-gi, played by Ha-neul.

In Misaeng, Geu-rae and Baek-gi develop a one-sided rivalry, where Baek-gi grows jealous of Geu-rae due to his own anxious inferiority complex and his sense of stagnancy. Baek-gi is distant, closed off, and rude toward Geu-rae at first, who is already struggling to fit into One International's established work environment. Throughout the series, though, Baek-gi gets over his jealousy of Geu-rae, and the two become good friends with mutual respect. Baekrae (Baek-gi x Geu-rae) is its own standalone ship, and it's pretty popular in the Misaeng fandom. However, their relationship and its development established one key thing, even back then: Ha-neul and Si-wan have excellent chemistry on an acting set.

In the years following the filming of Misaeng, Si-wan and Ha-neul would periodically interact. However, it wouldn't be until the announcement and launch of Squid Game 2 that they would interact again in a substantial way. Despite their lack of shared screen time, Si-wan had this to say about being on-set again with Ha-neul:

"I was really overwhelmed when I got to meet him [Ha-neul] again. Even though we didn't have many scenes together (in Squid Game 2), we were still one. The fact that I was working on a project with Ha-neul again gave me a lot of psychological relief. I want to continue working on projects with Ha-neul."

When asked about Si-wan, Ha-neul stated the following:

"[...] I was surprised when I saw Si-wan hyung during the test filming. He was also surprised to see me, saying: "It's been a few years, hasn't it?". It was interesting to meet not as Jang Geu-rae and Jang Baek-gi, but instead as participants in Squid Game."

Though they didn't share many in-character moments, the two were frequently seen together in behind-the-scenes content, supporting each other because of their prior connection. This is how we got these photos below – the holy grails of Myungdae nation!

Ha-neul and Si-wan were also paired together at the Squid Game Season 3 Press Conference, wearing contrasting black-and-white suits and sharing several friendly interactions. Despite not being of their characters, these photos also became essential to Myungdae.

The Myungdae Thesis

...is coming soon!!

Miscellaneous

Stamps I've made!:

Some of my art!:

Myungdaeita bag!:

Favourite Fics:

Workplace Etiquette - skibiditoilet
This is THE original Myungdae fic, posted in February of 2025. A cute, Misaeng-inspired fic with Dae-ho and Myung-gi as coworkers!

Melting Down, Softly - runelun
A short post-game fic exploring trauma and internalised homophobia. Not as sad as it sounds - it's hurt/comfort!

(18+!!) show me your teeth - pixelprotag
Vampire Myung-gi and Werewolf Dae-ho. Self-explanatory.

poppy - pixelprotag
Dae-ho and Myung-gi become parents to a cute little kitten.