Snowed in over the last week, I've been watching a lot of TV. I came across the series Alice In Borderland on Netflix and thought I'd give it a try. I was a little hesitant at first because I thought it looked like a Squid Games knockoff. Although there are several similarities, each show has its own plot and personality.
The basic plot goes like this. Arisu is a gamer who seems very unsatisfied with life. After deciding to leave home he meets up with some friends at Shibuya Crossing in Tokyo Japan. Somehow they end up in an alternate reality or some sort of hidden dimension with two of his closest and dearest friends. Nobody really knows what happened or how they got there and the series really leaves you guessing.
It appears that everyone in the world has disappeared. They're still in Tokyo, but almost all the citizens are gone. The few people that remain are forced to play games in order to survive. These are children's games like "Hide and Seek" or "Tag" only if you lose the game, you lose your life if you weren't already killed inside the game.
The difficulty of each game is decided by a deck of cards. For example, if the game is a 2 of clubs, that would be much easier to beat than playing a 10 of clubs game. Each suit of the deck represents something as well. Clubs are generally teamwork, Hearts emotions, etc.
None of the players or "citizens" of this world seem to understand how they got there or what they're doing there. Throughout the series, they consider aliens, VR, and hidden dimensions. As the players continue to play they fall deeper and deeper into survival mode. Sacrifices are made, morals tested, and each of them finds out who they really are.
Arisu, our protagonist has to know what it is. His only ambition is to find out what this world is. He continues to play the games and search for answers as he makes enemies and allies in this strange new world. He's also a good man and tries to find ethical solutions to each game problem. His morals and ethics along with the other players are tested to the limit in each game they play.
The series really made you question what you'd do in a similar situation. Would you survive at all costs, no matter what the price? Would you sacrifice friends to survive? Would you help the weaker players? It really made you ask yourself some uncomfortable questions. As the games carry on, many of the players start to enjoy this new world, while many just want the games to end so they can go home back to the normal world. Or at least that is their hope.
The series really keeps you guessing as to where or what they are taking part in. I really liked the ending a lot. It was logical and I kind of thought something along the lines of how they ended it. However, it really kept me guessing right up until the end. I honestly had several ideas, but no real clue. I hate crappy endings, and I'm happy to report that this seemed like a very fitting, well-thought-out, and reasonable ending.
The last episode or finale was kind of all over the place. I get it though, like the entire first two seasons, they run through all the different scenarios that are probably going through every viewer's head. Is it aliens, some strange dimension, or a Matrix-like reality? They keep you guessing right up until the end.
Arisu finally gets his answer at the end and so does everyone watching. The series ends with a logical conclusion. That was my favorite part. I was convinced it was going to have a really stupid ending or really far-fetched ending. I will admit, I didn't guess how it would end, but it did end in a way I kind of expected.
Although season 2 gives the series proper closure, they did hint at the end that there could be a season 3. Rumors are already circulating online about a possible season 3. The series was a huge success on Netflix so this could be very likely. Regardless, the ending of season 2 answers all the viewer's questions.
Fun movie, highly recommend it. If you're into gaming, and graphic horror/action series, this is a really good one. At times it was a bit too gory. I'm not very squeamish but at times I'd cover my eyes. Some of the scenarios were really twisted. Kind of reminds me of Squid games meets Saw. I think the anticipation of what was coming was worse than what would actually happen. The series had a good way of bringing your imagination to life and using it against you.
If Netflix decides on a third season, I'll definitely give it a watch! Highly recommend this one.
