Netflix’s “Alice in Borderland” debuted with a huge success in 2020 as a thriller-drama, breaking records for non-English language TV shows on the platform. It’s been compared to “Squid Game”, which released one year later, in its nature of being an intense thriller. That was the first impression of it that I heard, but nothing could have prepared me for the emotional roller coaster I was about to go on. The two shows are honestly incomparable, both portraying very different takes on life-or-death games.
“Alice in Borderland” follows teenage Arisu and his friends as they’re mysteriously transported to an empty Tokyo, where landmarks around them have transformed into games categorized by playing cards where they must survive alongside strangers. Each of the characters are based on an Alice in Wonderland character, which is prominent as the show progresses, and it gives an entirely new meaning to life and the motivation to survive. I found it extremely creative, emotional, and very accurate to the manga of the same name written by Haro Aso. Something about screen adaptations being book-accurate scratches a part of my brain, and because it followed the manga so perfectly right up until the ending, I was okay with the idea of the show stopping after season two’s wild ending.
So that’s why I was a bit confused seeing the “It’s Official: Season 3 is Coming” in its Netflix description as of recently.
Doing my own research, I found that season 3 has actually been teased for months now, so it’s a waiting game at this point as to when it’s arriving. But here is the general breakdown of season 3, as someone who’s both excited and afraid at the same time.
!! WARNING: MINOR SPOILERS AHEAD !!
After that Joker card ending of season 2 (which was perfect, by the way), I thought it was supposed to simply be a metaphor to how life itself was a big game, and how you’ll always be in the fight to survive. But of course, it’s more complicated than that. Let’s break down the timeline so far of season 3, and the question all fans probably have in their heads: What could possibly be next?
Plot Theories
While the ending did answer the big question of what actually got the characters into the Borderlands, there are still a few plots hanging on by a thread that could bring new villains and actually explain the Borderlands, like how the Game Makers came to be, if it exists elsewhere, things like that. It has been speculated by many that Banda and Yaba, the two side characters from Chishiya’s jailhouse game, will be a lot more present in the third season as they decided to become citizens of the Borderlands. What does that entail? I honestly have no idea. But judging by the fact that they’re not my favorite people, I don’t doubt that they could become villains.
Going back to the Alice in Wonderland parallels, two prominent characters who have not appeared yet have been Tweedledee and Tweedledum, which could introduce new characters that keep the plot moving.
What’s tripping everyone up the most is the memory loss every main character experienced at the end. They no longer know each other, apparently; so how will this group that survived so much together reunite for a new plotline?
So many questions are out there, but fans that are a lot smarter than I am have been on top of it since the beginning.
Cast and Production
Supposedly, production on season 3 began at the end of last year and wrapped up early 2024, set for a release date in early 2025 after some delays. The excitement started when the production company, Robot Communication, began casting calls for extras and rented studios for filming. Ads also popped up in Shibuya, the main location of the show, portraying playing cards and spelling of the show’s acronym. Not much is known about production details other than filming locations, but it is confirmed that the main two protagonists, Arisu (Kento Yamazaki) and Usagi (Tao Tsuchiya), as well as beloved characters like Kuina, Ann (my favorite) and Chishiya, are set to return.
And perhaps the most relieving news about all of this has been that the manga author, Haro Aso, is involved in the production. Like I said, the show did end exactly where the manga did, but it’s good to know that Netlifx isn’t creating an unnecessary plotline to keep the money rolling in, like it’s done with other shows I love (*coughs* Umbrella Academy). I trust that the new season will be an unexpected continuation of the emotional damage we all suffered from the first two seasons.
https://x.com/asoharoo/status/1707172248275272103?t=5-IaoS_0yBZ-tILI_2zMng&s=19
I am a firm believer that anyone who likes exciting thriller shows should give “Alice in Borderland” a try. My friend and I randomly came across it that one winter break and haven’t let it go since, and surely you’ll find a character you’ll love as much as I adore Ann. Whatever season 3 may be, I hope to see more updates and that it allows others to feel the same surprise I did watching this show for the first time.