Some adaptations from books to series are very successful. At the same time, some of them are complete flops, but this is different from the Japanese manga Alice in Borderland which was adapted into a television series on Netflix in 2020. The manga (a Japanese word to designate comic books) published in 2014 by Haro Aso gained popularity among manga readers, yet the story of it came to the interest of Netflix, so the platform released the first season in 2020, and now the second season premiered on December 22, 2022. The eight-episode series has fans craving much more thanks to its unexpected, and shocking season finale.
Before entering into the whole season 2. Alice in Borderland is originally a shonen manga (one of the most popular manga genres) published in 2014, Netflix’s live-action is well adapted to the book, so the platform series follows the story of Arisu, a teenager who constantly struggles to connect with his family, and usually spends time hanging out with his closest friends Karube and Chota. One day after the fireworks celebrations, the three were transported into a post-apocalyptic-like parallel world. After seeing the streets of Tokyo so empty, the group is greeted by a woman saying they have already entered their game. After clearing the game, the same woman clarifies, that in Borderland they must play games to survive.
The first season had positive reviews from critics, who liked the action, camerawork, and acting. Alice in Borderland was compared to other survival shows like the Korean series Squid Game (2021).
After an ending that left a lot of uncertainty among the public, we knew that another season would come, and it did. Alice in Borderland season 2 begins with The King of Spades shooting players indiscriminately, the game arena is the whole city, and his presence is marked by a blimp with his face card that follows him. Arisu, Usagi, Kuina, and Tatta escape into hiding together, while Chisiya and Ann have to flee separately. When the group is still searching for answers, Arisu decides to play against the King of Clubs, with Usagi, Kuina, Tatta, and Niragi as his teammates. Kyuma, the King of Clubs, introduces himself and his team as “citizens” of the country.
Alice in Borderland’s cast is formed by Kento Yamazaki as Arisu, Tao Tsuchiya as Usagi, Yuki Morinaga as Chota, Keita Machida as Karube, Nijiro Murakami as Chishiya, Ayaka Miyoshi as Ann, Dori Sakurada as Niragi, Aya Asahina as Kuina, Sho Aoyagi as Aguni, Nobuaki Kaneto as Danma/Hatter, Riisa Naka as Mira, Yutaro Watanabe as Tatta, and so forth.
After its release in 2020, Alice in Borderland received mostly positive reviews from critics, who acclaimed its cinematography, editing, use of graphic violence, visuals, and the performances of Kento Yamazaki (Arisu) and Tao Tsuchiya (Usagi). On the web aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the first season scored a 75% out of 100%, a month after its release the season accumulated 18 million household viewerships. Later, season 2 holds an approval rating of 88% based on eight reviews. In 2021, Alice in Borderland was nominated several times and won four times.
Andrea Rich
