Season 2 ofAlice in Borderlandfinalized the series with an explosive reveal. It answered the biggest question the series kept dangling in front of its viewers like carrots on a stick. While the ending did put a conclusive response to what exactly was going on in the show, it still left many questions unanswered.
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Much of that is due to time constraints since Season 2 ofAlice in Borderlandonly had eight episodes to work with, and it definitely veered off from its manga source material. But regardless of whether the conclusion was satisfying or not for the viewers, it’s hard to let go of some of these questions, and they might even warrant a rewatch.
7What Exactly Is The Borderland?
The show’s ending did explain how Arisu and everyone else ended upin the Borderland,but it never really touched upon the true nature of the enigmatic place. At best, viewers only get deflective and misleading lies from the Queen of Hearts as she tries to toy around with Arisu during the final game.
In the manga, the Borderland is some kind of purgatory or in-between world for the victims of the Tokyo meteor, where their will to live ultimately decides their fate after the accident. However, in the show, that doesn’t explain why the Borderland is too close in appearance to Tokyo and why the need for all the sci-fi shenanigans.
6What Were The Physical Rules In The Borderland?
Since it’s hard to pinpoint what exactly the Borderland is, it’s also somewhat difficult to pin down its physical rules. Viewers do know that some people live in relative privilege there, particularly the permanent residents, but in that case, where do they get their basic necessities? The whole place isn’t exactly a functioning society.
The series never had the luxury of explaining how the permanent residents of the Borderland thrived. It also never explained how they managed to set up theirexpensive and elaborate games. If they do have some kind of metaphysical powers or the ability to shape reality, then why were they also bound by biological limitations?
5Why Did They Even Need Surveillance Cameras In The Borderland?
By the end of the first season, Arisu, Usagi, and the survivors of the Beach came across a huge surveillance facility in the Borderland whichmonitored all the games. Sadly, Season 2 never really expanded upon this notion. The facility implied that the game masters didn’t work alone and even needed helping hands in their games.
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However, given thebleeding-edge technologyall around them— particularly the super-accurate death lasers, it’s fair to say that manual security cameras are a regression of what was available in the Borderland. Whoever controlled those lasers likely didn’t even need surveillance.
4What Happened To The Residents/Civilians?
The residents of Borderland are also intriguing and have left so many questions in their wake. What was in it for them if they chose to stay? Do they just keep risking their lives every time a batch of new tourists comes pouring in? And those surveillance people who were killed by the game masters were also presumably residents.
Viewers were informed at the end of Season 2 that those who died in Borderland also died in the real world, while those who survived and chose to return managed to overcome their cardiac arrest in the real world. But what of the residents? It’s easy to assume that their incapacitated bodies in the real world also died if they chose to stay in the Borderland, but the show never really touched upon that subject. For all viewers know, residents in the Borderland could be in a coma in real life.
3Why Was The King Of Spades Allowed To Cheat?
In the first episode of Season 2, the King of Spades made a rather loud and bloody entrance after gunning down visitors by the dozens. Thedeadly game seriesnever really went on with why he was permitted to perform this kind of ambush without explaining the rules and limitations first; the other face card games were bound to such courtesies.
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That also begs the question of who actually sets the rules and etiquette for the games in Borderland. Because when one thinks about it, it’s impossible for just the citizens to build up those game sets— blimps and unlimited supplies included.Out of all the gamesso far, the one from King of Spades was the most unfair, and for some reason, the proprietor of the Borderland allowed this.
2Who Made The Games?
Speaking of which, the Borderland is desolate and in a post-apocalyptic state save for when it’s introducing game areas and the game masters. The game arenas were notably in pristine condition and had gadgets and facilities that would put a lot of modern sports centers to shame.
In a world or reality that’s so devoid of order and authority, who actually makes these games and their required materials? Moreover, why did the proprietor of Borderland choose a suit of cards and party games to test the visitors? Granted, one could argue that the Borderland could just be a shared fever dream, and maybe none of what happened there mattered, but if that’s the case, Arisu wouldn’t have been able to move on so fast from his friends' deaths.
1Who Was The Joker?
The big tease at the end of the series was a camera shot of the Joker card coupled with an ominous shift in music. It’s not clear what the showrunners intend to do with this, and all hopeful reasoning points to a Season 3 orperhaps an adaptationof one of the manga spinoffs.
Speaking of which, in the manga, the Joker is some kind of god being who runs the Borderland and makes a deal with the residents and game masters. Arisu even spoke with him. The Netflix adaptation didn’t cover this exchange in the manga, so there’s really no telling what the show is implying with the Joker card. They likely need another season or a movie to flesh that out.
