Garnering 216 million hours globally in just the first five weeks on the streaming giant, Alice in Borderland season 2 left the viewers hanging on a cliff of suspense that has no end. When Arisu and his peers gave a sigh of relief, thinking they were finally free, they were instantly faced by the malicious smile of the Joker card that mocked them on their faces. Just when they thought they had made it back to the real world, the sardonic laughter pulled them back to the rut.
Alice in Borderland is inspired by a titular manga series that follows the life of Arisu, who suddenly finds himself in an alternate Tokyo that does not inhabit humans. Without any ideas as to what is going on around him and what is happening to him, he only knows that he is supposed to get “visas” that will prevent him from being executed. On his way, he comes across a rock climber, Usagi (Tao Tsuchiya), who ends up being Arisu’s partner in unraveling the mystery of the circumstances.
Premiered in December 2020, Season 1 gave the audience such a riveting plotline. It’s been two years since the fans of the show got the opportunity to watch the second season of this exciting show, which has proven to be equally exciting and thrilling. For those unversed, the official synopsis of Alice in Borderland reads: “An aimless gamer and his two friends find themselves in a parallel Tokyo, where they’re forced to compete in a series of sadistic games to survive.”
Although the season 2 finale seems like a series finale, fans are anticipating the show to appear on Netflix again. But what does Netflix think?
Ever since season 2 premiered on the streaming giant in December 2022, there has been no official word regarding the renewal of Alice in Borderland for a third season. Be that as it may, something is cooking in a subway in Japan, and fans might think that it is related to their favourite series. Here’s the complete breakdown of the same.
Is Alice in Borderland renewed for a third season?
At the time of writing this article, Netflix has not renewed the adaptation of this manga series for a third season as of yet. Recently, however, certain photos went viral on social media. These photos were basically the new posters featuring Netflix’s logo and a stack of ten cards in two rows of five. The first row featured three of spades, two of clovers, two of diamonds, one of clover, and two of hearts, while the second featured five of hearts, ace of hearts, four of hearts, five of clover and two of hearts.
Some fans are going bonkers over this cryptic message, while some are losing their night’s sleep deciphering it. So far, the best possible explanation that we could find on social media was the one given by someone whose account handle is: chp_marke. Here’s what the account holder deciphered:
これすごい！
今際の国のアリスの続編かな！？▼上段（Alice）
3 sp「a」de
2 c「l」over
2 d「i」amond
1 「c」lover
2 h「e」art▼下段（three）
5 hear「t」
1 「h」eart
4 hea「r」t
5 spad「e」
2 h「e」art https://t.co/duVagLxsCT— ちぴ@美容マーケ (@Chp_marke) September 18, 2023
As you can see, the bracketed letters read “ALICE THREE”. Does this mean that Netflix has renewed Alice in Borderland for a third season? Or better yet, does this mean that the third season of Alice in Borderland will grace our screens this December?
No matter how much fans speculate and rejoice over this new discovery, Netflix has not confirmed anything as of yet. But this does feel like something. What do you think?
What can we expect to happen in Alice in Borderland Season 3?
In the season 2 finale, the stakes for Arisu and others were higher than ever before. The viewers understand why Arisu, being the only one fit to compete in the final game, was able to drag Usagi also. In the final game, Queen of Hearts, Mira is the croquet who almost succeeds in manipulating the pair to believe that the entire world is an illusion. However, Usagi dissuades Arisu from believing, and that’s how they end up revealing their feelings for each other.
Despite winning the game of croquet, Mira is later annihilated by the sky laser, and all of the players are provided with a choice of either returning to the real world or staying back in Borderland. Most of the players decide to leave, except for Banda and Yaba.
With the arrival of the players in the real world, they discover that a meteor destroyed a majority portion of Tokyo, and none of them had any recollection of their shared experience in Borderlands. Arisu also learns that everyone who hadn’t died was transported back to Borderlands.
With Arisu and Usagi finding each other back in the hospital, the camera covers the hospital grounds, featuring a table full of playing cards which are mysteriously blown away, except for the Joker card.
If Alice in Borderland returns for a third season, viewers can expect some paramount deviations in the plot structure since they have limited source material to work from. According to What’s on Netflix, “The Joker card shown at the end of the series heavily alluded to the character of the Joker, who is in the manga series, but not yet revealed in the television adaptation.”
Who are the expected cast members of Alice in Borderland Season 3?
The following list includes all the cast members who can potentially return in Alice in Borderland Season 3:
- Kento Yamazaki as Ryōhei Arisu
- Tao Tsuchiya as Yuzuha Usagi
- Nijiro Murakami as Shuntarō Chishiya
- Ayaka Miyoshi as Ann Rizuna
- Dori Sakurada as Suguru Niragi
- Aya Asahina as Hikari Kuina
- Yutaro Watanabe as Kōdai Tatta
- Tsuyoshi Abe as Keiichi Kuzuryū
- Sho Aoyagi as Morizono Aguni
- Riisa Naka as Mira Kano
Speaking to Nextshark, Riisa Naka shared her optimism about the reality of the third season and the return of her character. In season one, she was the executive member of ‘the Beach’ and was later unveiled to be the Queen of Hearts and the last foe of Arisu and Usagi in the Borderlands.
She said, “If there were to be a season three, I wonder what would happen with the whole team that fought together so far. You saw the ghost of Hatter introduced in the show so many times, so I have this feeling that he might come back again. So for Mira, you might also think that she could return.”
When can we expect Alice in Borderland season 3 to release on Netflix?
Owing to the paucity of information on the renewal of Alice in Borderland season 3, it is difficult to presume the release date of the same. However, if Netflix does renew the show for a third season, we won’t be able to stream it on the streaming giant before the latter half of 2024 or even 2025, considering the onerous process of production and post-production.
For more renewal and release date updates on Alice in Borderland season 3, stay tuned to Web News Observer!
Frequently asked questions
- How many episodes will be there in Alice in Borderland season 3?
At the time of writing this article, no official word has been released regarding the renewal status of this manga adaptation, let alone the episode count. However, since the first two seasons constituted eight episodes each, we expect the potential third season to also stream eight episodes.
- Is Alice in Borderland rated TV-MA?
Yes, both seasons of Alice in Borderland were rated TV-MA, which means that it is exclusively for mature audiences. Any TV-MA-rated series or movie is designed to be viewed by adults and is considered to be unsuitable for children under 17. The potential third season of Alice in Borderland is also expected to be rated TV-MA.
- Has filming on Alice in Borderland season 3 started?
Since the show has not been renewed for a third season, the chances of it kickstarting the production process are minimal to zero. Even if the streaming giant decides to renew the show amidst the strike delays, there is no guarantee that it will begin filming by the end of 2023.