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Alice in BorderlandAlice in Borderland

Alice in Borderland

Before Squid Game, there was another puzzle-like Netflix show that blew people’s minds

Action & Adventure, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi & Fantasy

best
THE VERY BEST

8.0

show

d, Japan
Japanese
Binge-Worthy, Character-driven, Dark
2020
Aya Asahina, Ayaka Miyoshi, Ayame Misaki
56 min

Synopsis

rotten tomatoes
imdb
wikipedia
With his two friends, a video-game-obsessed young man finds himself in a strange version of Tokyo where they must compete in dangerous games to win.

Our Take

8.0
The Staff

Alice in Borderland is a fast-paced heart-wrenching puzzle of a show that will have you wracking your brain and wiping your tears, often at the same time. It combines the wit of Hunger Games, the ruthlessness of Battle Royal, the goriness of Saw, and the social commentary of Squid Game, though sadly it has yet to receive the same renown as these titles. 

With each game, the characters must solve a given problem before the timer runs out—when it does, they die, often violently and for others to witness. While playing the games, leads Arisu (Kento Yamazaki) and Usagi (Tao Tsuchiya) also try to solve the bigger picture by figuring out once and for all who the gamemaster is. Like the story it names, Alice in Borderland drives its characters into increasingly dark and mad situations the deeper it gets. It’s also built to last like the novel, a classic in the making bound to be rediscovered and re-enjoyed in the years to come.

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