Its first season aced its place on the borg list of the best TV series of the past decade. The second season of Alice in Borderland was brilliant, too. In a surprising return, director Shinsuke Sato is bringing a new chapter to his adaptation of the popular manga graphic novel by Haro Aso, extending beyond the original manga. I reviewed all eight volumes of the original here — check ’em out if you’re after the best of manga action, intrigue, and genre-mash-ups. The TV series is a Netflix production–its most successful Japanese entry so far–and its women leads netted three spots on our annual Kick-Ass Heroines list.
In the final episode of Season 2 viewers actually get to The End–and learn the secret behind the entire series. Was it science fiction? Fantasy? Or supernatural horror? What does it mean if there is something after The End?
In addition to the welcome return of both leads: Kento Yamazaki as Arisu (Alice in Japanese) and Tao Tsuchiya as Usagi, is the return of Ayaka Miyoshi as An Rizuna, the savvy former forensics expert for the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department who proved integral to the events at the Beach. But other key players may not be back, including key game players like athletic trans woman Kuina, played by Aya Asahina, and the cool and careful Chishiya, played by Nijirō Murakami. A few supporting players from Season 2 will return, including Hayato Isomura as Sunato Banda, a convicted murderer with a death sentence for killing four women, and Katsuya Maiguma as Yaba Ōki, a manipulative villain in the second season.
Watch this intriguing trailer for the third season of Alice in Borderland:
The live-action, dystopian, Japanese noir-meets-steampunk thrill ride required its characters to play a game of survival loosely inspired by Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland. Doomsday, Tokyo-style, is surprisingly violent, surprisingly thought-provoking, as a city finds itself mostly vacated (as in The Quiet Earth and 28 Days Later) and the remaining citizens must fight for their lives The Running Man or Hunger Games-style or they’ll get zapped and killed The War of the Worlds-style.
In the first season the playing cards revealed the level of difficulty and “genre” of each game. A low numbered card is supposed to be relatively simple to survive, such as a locked room mystery, a 10 card far more difficult. The suits identify whether strategy and intelligence (diamonds), physical strength (spades), or teamwork (clubs) is needed, and, in the case of hearts, psychological games involving tricks and betrayal. Some players work better alone, others work better in teams. The worst battles require turning on whomever is also currently in the battle. The violence mimics 1980s action movies, meaning you should expect lots of bodies dropping (or exploding or boiling or melting) and lots of blood splatter. Shinsuke Sato is able to work all 52 battles into his two seasons. He also masterfully works into Season 2 venues–and re-creates entire scenes from a new vantage–from the first season.
But the last card–The Joker–remains.
We named it #26 in the best TV series of the past decade, a Best Horror/Thriller TV Series, Best Limited TV Series, and Best API/AAPI TV Series. Alice in Borderland returns September 25, 2025, with the entire third season on Netflix.
Game on!
C.J. Bunce / Editor / borg
