After a three-year absence, the popular Japanese sci-fi thriller series Alice in Borderland finally returned for Season 3 on Netflix in September 2025. An ideal substitute for those left cold by the underwhelming third season of Squid Game, Alice in Borderland delivers the life-or-death stakes and make-or-break survival instincts that made the inaugural season of Netflix’s most-viewed hit show so addictive.
Based on the mega-popular manga series, Alice in Borderland envisions a parallel version of modern-day Tokyo, where two teenagers are compelled to participate in a series of deadly, torturous card games that become increasingly challenging. Although Squid Game draws from a real-life Korean children’s game and Alice in Borderland adapts a Japanese manga, both deliver visceral thrills while offering sharp social commentary.
‘Alice in Borderland’ Takes Place in Deserted Tokyo
Based on Haro Aso’s beloved manga series of the same name, Alice in Borderland is an acclaimed Japanese sci-fi series that revolves around teenage gaming allies, Arisu (Kento Yamazaki) and Usagi (Tao Tsuchiya). Similar to the cash-strapped contestants in Squid Game, Arisu has no money and less luck, spending most of his time playing video games in his bedroom and avoiding his disconnected family.
Everything changes for Arisu when he exits a public bathroom and suddenly enters the Borderlands, an otherworldly replica of post-apocalyptic Tokyo, where he unites with Usagi, a skilled mountain climber reeling over the recent death of her father. The Borderland is revealed to be a purgatorial holding place between life and death, where those who’ve experienced a near-death experience get a second chance to survive.
As Arisu and Usagi vie to stay alive by competing in deadly card games of escalating difficulty, with death being the ultimate consequence, they form a tender romance. Each card suit determines the type of challenges the players face. For instance, spades indicate physical games, diamonds signify mental games, clubs represent teamwork challenges, and hearts denote emotional games.
Alice in Borderland Season 2 ended with Arisu, Usagi, and their friends learning that their so-called ally, Mira (Riisa Naka), is secretly the Queen of Hearts who challenges them to a high-stakes game of croquet. Season 3, which premiered on Netflix on September 25, picks up five years after a meteorite hit Tokyo, leaving Arisu, Usagi, and the other participants with no memory of the Borderland.
Apart from the survival instincts that both shows revolve around, popular children’s games fundamentally connect Alice in Borderland and Squid Game. While cards in the deck are the determining factor in the former, Arisu and Usagi engage in such playful, innocent games as tag, hide and seek, dodgeball, croquet, and other physical games. They also solve cerebral puzzles and strategic parlor games such as Mahjong.
With death the ultimate punishment for losing any particular card game challenge, Alice in Borderland is most aligned with Squid Game in its potential rewards. The ultimate prize for winning the games in Alice in Borderland is an extension of their visas. If they lose, not only will their visas expire, but they will also be shot to death by laser beams shooting down from the sky. Behind the veil of flashy gaming thrills and harrowing death defiance is a trenchant social commentary permeating from both TV shows.
Squid Game‘s commentary is more prominent, touching on social experiments and Darwin’s theory of survival of the fittest. The series poses the question of how far a person in financial ruin is willing to go to enrich themselves at the cost of harming another human being. A scathing commentary on the corrosive rot of capitalistic greed, Squid Game utilizes recognizable children’s games to make a strong statement.
Not far off, Alice in Borderland‘s social commentary spotlights inequality, legal citizenship, personal sovereignty, and the inherent value of human life. Moreover, both TV shows explore themes of crushing Survivor’s Guilt, with Gi-hun in Squid Game reeling over the death of his friendly rivals after emerging victoriously, and Arisu lamenting the deaths of his friends, Chota and Karube, after personally prevailing.
What To Expect in ‘Alice in Borderlands’ Season 3
Returning after a three-year hiatus, fans may notice a slight episode reduction in Alice in Borderland Season 3. The first two seasons each featured eight episodes, while Season 3 has just six episodes. Plot-wise, the story picks up five years after the devastating meteorite struck Tokyo in the Season 2 finale, and left Arisu and Usagi with amnesia in the real world. Now married to Usagi, Arisu turns to Dr. Ryuji, who begins probing Arisu’s memory about the Borderland.
As Usagi experiences traumatic flashbacks to the gory Beach massacre in Season 2, Dr. Ryuji is transported to the Borderlands. Once his memory returns, Arisu races the ticking clock to rescue Usagi from a coma in the Borderland after Dr. Ryuji kidnaps her. The opening episode sets up a heroic dynamic for Arisu as he embarks on a solo mission to keep Usagi alive.
If you were left disappointed by the ending of Squid Game Season 3, Alice in Borderland could be the perfect series for you. For the most successful Netflix series on record to drop off so drastically is a hard pill to swallow, with Squid Game Season 2 also well below the standard that Season 1 established during the COVID lockdown.
By contrast, Alice in Borderland has improved season over season. The first season earned an 82% Rotten Tomatoes score, while the second season increased to 91%. With an equivalent audience score of 91% (Popcorn Meter), Alice in Borderland appeals to both critics and non-critics, continuing to improve with each passing season. With three years to write, direct, film, and edit Season 3, chances are high that Alice in Borderland will continue to do what Squid Game could not: get better with time. Alice in Borderland is streaming on Netflix.
This story originally appeared on Movieweb
