ALICE IN BORDERLAND: SEASON 3 on Netflix is more brutal and deadly than ever. And that’s saying something for this series, which has never held back when it came to fatal and heartbreaking moments. Get ready for six new intense episodes. Read our Alice in Borderland S3 review here!
ALICE IN BORDERLAND: SEASON 3 is now on Netflix with six new hour-long episodes. While episode 1 serves as a way to set the stage and bring the surviving characters back into the world of deadly games, episode 2 is wild.
YOU MIGHT LIKE
A little service announcement: If you’re looking for an actual recap of the previous storyline, you’ll need to watch that before pushing play on episode 1 of this third season.
With season 3, that first episode does open with a recap. Or so it says, but it’s not much of a recap as it only reminds viewers that those who survived and won in season 2 were offered to stay forever or go home to their lives. That’s it.
Personally, I needed a little more to get fully back into the world of this Japanese genre hybrid about playing games to survive.
Continue reading our Alice in Borderland S3 review below. Find the six new episodes on Netflix now.
The games are more deadly and brutal than ever
For me, Alice in Borderland has always reminded me of a sci-fi adventure version of Squid Games. In this one, something bigger than this world is happening, while the South Korean hit is all about human nature (and greed).
With season 3, Alice in Borderland is even more brutal, and the games are more deadly than ever before. Sure, many people have always died during the games, but still, something is very different this time around.
From the very first game played in the borderlands, you’re bound to recognize what I’m getting at. Actually, even in episode 1, there’s a game of sorts being played in the “normal” world, which will indicate that things are wilder now.
Life back in the real world
Usagi and Arisu are married now in the real world, where some time has passed since the meteor hit down in the city center. A mysterious professor is very intrigued by the idea of a world between worlds.
He interviews many of the survivors of the meteor strike to find common stories about the “dreams” they had while fighting to survive.
The professor is convinced that Arisu, Usagi, and several other survivors were in some kind of afterlife or purgatory (my definition, not his directly) before making it back to survive.
Along with several others, the professor is intrigued, and even suicide cults are beginning to pop up all over Japan. It’s a strange situation indeed, and the professor wants to know more.
Why does Arisu return to the games in Season 3?
Having watched the main character Arisu survive the first two seasons, it’s difficult to understand why he would return. However, Alice in Borderlands season 3 quickly sees Usagi left unconscious by the mysterious professor.
Neither Arisu nor his wife Usagi remembers anything about the games, but during interviews and by seeing familiar places, something does stir within them.
In an attempt to get Arisu to return to this world, the professor goes quite far… and so does Arisu when he needs to get his wife out of a coma.
The setting for this third season is intelligent and intriguing, and while episode 1 sets the stage, episode 2 will remind you of the horrors of the games in the borderland.
Watch season 3 of Alice in Borderland on Netflix now
As always, this Japanese Netflix series is based on the manga “Alice in Borderland” by Haro Aso (published by Shogakukan). The director of the series adaptation is Shinsuke Sato, who wrote the screenplay with Yasuko Kuramitsu.
I’ve already said this several times, but it bears repeating: This third season of Alice in Borderland hits very hard. We will see many deaths that would not have happened in previous seasons. Games are different in this “Joker” version.
As Arisu teams up with new players, try not to get too attached to any of them. They are facing the yet-unseen “Joker” stage of the games, and it exceeds any previous games.
Again, the comparison to Squid Game may be obvious, but the sci-fi and supernatural elements of Alice in Borderland make for much crazier games. Episode 2 reminded me more of Indiana Jones than Squid Game. I love the adventures of the Indiana Jones movies, so I was happy… and quite shocked!
If you’ve been a fan of Alice in Borderland this far, you have a true treat in store. The connection to our normal/real world is finally explained further, while the games are as innovative and deadly as ever.
Not quite as fair, but this is the Joker stage, after all.
Alice in Borderland S3 is out on Netflix from September 25, 2025.
Details
Director: Shinsuke Sato
Screenplay: Yasuko Kuramitsu, Shinsuke Sato
Starring: Kento Yamazaki, Tao Tsuchiya, Hayato Isomura, Ayaka Miyoshi, Katsuya Maiguma, Koji Ohkura, Risa Sudou, Hiroyuki Ikeuchi, Tina Tamashiro, Kotaro Daigo, Hyunri, Sakura Kiryu, Yugo Mikawa, Joey Iwanaga, Akana Ikeda, Kento Kaku
Plot
After Usagi is abducted and left unconscious by a mysterious scholar obsessed with the afterlife, Alisu returns to the perilous “Borderland” to save her. Teaming up with new players, they must face the yet-unseen “Joker” stage in a desperate bid to find a way back to their original world.
📺 Watch trailer
- Troll 2 – Movie Review | Netflix (4/5) - December 1, 2025
- Interview with the Vampire – Series Review | Netflix - November 30, 2025
- Primitive War – Movie Review (3/5) - November 28, 2025
