A lot of comparisons are made about Netflix’s two celebrated hits, Alice in Borderland and Squid Game, both released during the midst of world-wide Covid-19 lockdowns. Unlike Squid Games, Alice in Borderland has the distinction of being based on a manga of the same name, so the story was already penned and the ending firmed before filming of the television series started. Whereas Squid Game has no manga, nor script to work from. The story of Squid Game has been built from the ground up, albeit languishing for many years as a script until it was finally picked up. Squid Game manages to be an impressive series, but I suspect the thought that goes into having a great, settled scripted story and ending goes a long way towards having a successful series.
A good foundation is important like having an established novel, it is what made film series like Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter well loved and treasured by their fanbases because the films had something that guided the narrative and ended in a way envisioned by their authors, who put a lot of time and effort into how they wanted their work to be wrapped up. On the other hand, series that don’t have that foundation can be a hit or a complete miss, consider the Game of Thrones series which veered off course once the show went beyond the books or even Fullmetal Alchemist in its first anime run – when the story lost all sense and ended in a unsatisfying manner. In both Game of Thrones and Fullmetal Alchemist, much loved series became very controversial and lost their luster due to poor narrative choices and unsatisfying conclusions. But in Fullmetal Alchemist’s case, it managed to redeem itself with the faithful adaption of the manga with Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood.
What makes Alice in Borderland – season 2, really good and probably even better than season 1 is that it knows what the end has in store. It manages to focus its attention on the most interesting elements from the manga and shows us the key moments, the games, the characters, etc.
My overall thoughts on Alice in Borderland – season 2
Alice in Borderland – season 2 is worth watching. It complements season 1 really well and can be seen as a conclusion to the series overall, albeit there are rumblings of unfinished story arcs in the manga not yet covered, but for the most part the series has neatly been wrapped up. Being able to neatly wrap up the story, even with its supernatural elements, is important and something that most series fail to do properly and satisfactorily.
I thought the key moments of the series were plentiful with Alice and many side characters like Usagi, Chishiya and Kuina having the chance to grow and take the spotlight. What made the show more impactful was that Alice was not the only character and other characters had the chance to shine and win the games without Alice’s involvement. Alice was still an important character, because he ultimately tied every characters stories together and placed the key role in the final game. I highly recommend Alice in Borderland in its entirety, it’s incredible.
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