Summary
Alice in Borderlandseason 3 has a major challenge after season 2’s perfect ending, but I know just the right story for the Netflix show to tackle next. One of thebest live-action adaptations on Netflix,Alice in Borderlandbrought Haro Aso’s manga to the screenand became a hit for the platform. Even thoughAlice in Borderlandseason 2’s finalecaught up with the manga’s ending and concluded the story, the show will return for season 3. I’m excited to see how the series will continue past the source material.
Although the show has done a great job of adapting Arisu’s journey into a live-action series,Alice in Borderlandseason 3will essentially be an original story. There are only a handful of games from the manga that have not been brought to the show yet, not to mention howArisu’s manga story ends once he returns to the real world.HowAlice in Borderlandwill honor season 2’s ending while also continuing the show remains to be seen. However, I believe there is a great way to do this, and it includes the Joker card.
Alice In Borderland Season 3 Should Bring The Games To The Real World
The Joker game(s) should take place in the real world.
Alice in Borderlandseason 3 should break the show’s formula and bring the games to the real world. While this would break the very premise of the series – Arisu enters the Borderland and goes through a journey of self-discovery as he tries to understand this mysterious world – it would make for a compelling story now that we are past the source material’s ending.Alice in Borderland’s next season will be very differentfrom the previous ones regardless, as the show is continuing despite having already covered the manga in its entirety.
By declining to stay in the Borderland, Arisu confirmed he was ready to live again.
There would be no better way to reinventAlice in Borderlandfor season 3 than to bring the games to the real world.Some argue thatAlice in Borderlandseason 3 should not happen at allconsidering it already had a great ending, and while I also have reservations about the show continuing, I think it can work. Netflix’sAlice in Borderlandcreated an identity of its own and arguably improved upon the source material in some aspects. Therefore, I would love to see the show try something very different in season 3.
Arisu Going Back To The Borderland Would Make Season 2’s Ending Pointless
Arisu declined to stay in the Borderland at the end of season 2.
Another reason whyI thinkAlice in Borderlandseason 3 should be set entirely in the real worldis that returning to the Borderland would make season 2’s ending pointless.Alice in Borderland’s previous season ended with the big reveal that the characters were in a hospital on the verge of death during the events of the show. Beating theAlice in Borderlandgameswas a symbolic representation of how Arisu and the others were fighting for their lives following the Tokyo incident. By declining to stay in the Borderland, Arisu confirmed he was ready to live again.
Arisu briefly returns to the Borderland after an accident inAlice in Borderland: Retry, a one-shot manga that revisits Arisu and Usagi, now a married couple waiting for their first child.
If Arisu and the other protagonists return to the Borderland in season 3, their decision of declining to stay there in the first place will have been pointless.The“I decline”scene fromAlice in Borderlandseason 2’s ending is one of the show’s bestand perfectly concludes the story that began in the very first episode when Arisu was accused of wasting his life. Every time a character declined to stay in that world, they were saying they wanted to live, even though they did not know what was going on in the real world.
Alice In Borderland Season 3’s Real World Games Would Massively Raise The Stakes
The games would actually be happening this time.
One big criticismAlice in Borderlandseason 2 dealt with was the lack of stakes, particularly after the King of Spades fight where characters would get shot countless times and keep fighting. There was an in-universe explanation for this – Nothing in the Borderland was real but rather a representation of the characters fighting for their lives at the hospital.Alice in Borderlandraises some compelling questions regarding determinism and free will, but overall, everything that happens in Borderland is tied to how the characters respond to their medical treatment at the hospital.
Alice In Borderland Season 3 Wishlist: 8 Things I Wanna See The Most
Alice in Borderland will return for season 3, and there are a few things I wish would happen now that Arisu and the others returned to the real world.
Even though the“if you die in the game, you die in the real world”trope is used inAlice in Borderland, having the games take place in the real world would massively raise the stakes for the show. This time, the challenges would no longer be symbolic representations of the characters fighting for their lives but rather a real fight for survival. This would still include supernatural elements, though. For example,Alice in Borderland’s different take on the Joker from the manga could be the character orchestrating the games in real life.
Alice in Borderland
Cast
Alice in Borderland: Released in 2020, Alice in Borderland follows a young man obsessed with video games and his two friends who find themselves transported to a mysterious version of Tokyo. They must participate in perilous games to survive and navigate the challenges of this alternate reality.
