The third season of Alice in Borderland offers a neat (albeit not that great) conclusion to the misadventures of Arisu (Kento Yamazaki) in the land between the worlds of the living and the dead. Alongside his now wife Usagi (Tao Tsuchiya) and a myriad of new characters, our hero faces off against the ultimate card on the deck, the Joker, and emerges victorious from another brush with death. The story seems pretty much over, and it looks like Netflix agrees: so far, the streamer has not renewed the Japanese hit series for another season.
But does that mean that fans need to pack up their things and move on to some different show? Well, perhaps not. There is still a chance that there might be a fourth season of Alice in Borderland on the horizon, at least if we’re going by what the series finale and the show’s source material have to offer.
There Is Another Manga That Takes Place in the World of ‘Alice in Borderland’
Actually, to be more specific, there might not be a fourth season per se, but a spin-off. The final episode of Alice in Borderland Season 3 leaves room for another story to take place in Borderland, while mangaka Haro Aso, the man behind the series that inspired the Netflix show, has another original story of his own that takes place in the very same universe. Alas, one of these alternatives seems more interesting than the other. This begs the question of whether fans of Alice in Borderland truly want the story to go on no matter what. The end result may not be what they expected from their beloved show.
The most desirable scenario is the one that involves that other work by Haro Aso. Alice on Border Road centers on a teenage girl from Kyoto that must travel to a deserted Tokyo alongside a group of strangers after waking up in that deserted other realm. The story, however, is completely separate from Alice in Borderland, with the main events only tangentially mentioned on one occasion or two. Therefore, it would make no sense for Alice on Border Road to be adapted into a fourth season of Alice in Borderland. The most logical approach would be to turn it into a spin-off.
However, there is one thing that we must take into consideration: the writers of Alice in Borderland, the show, also had a spin-off series that they could have used as a basis for Season 3, but decided to forgo it entirely. Alice in Borderland: Retry shows Arisu back on Borderland and forced to participate in a deadly game as a pregnant Usagi waits for him in the world of the living. While it serves as a direct sequel to the original manga series, the writers of the show chose not to adapt it into Season 3, instead opting to use just a few elements from its main plot. Such elements were then mixed with others from Alice in Borderland‘s original ending, such as Arisu’s encounter with the Joker, and then turned into a completely different story.
So, if there is a Japanese spin-off or fourth season of Alice in Borderland in the works, it might go one of two ways: either it will be based on Alice on Border Road or it will feature a brand-new storyline. Now, said storyline might star even newer characters or even Arisu himself, though we have to admit that taking him back to Borderland a third time would be one silly thing to do. Come on, how many encounters can a person have with death before they are definitely done for? If Alice in Borderland keeps on going, either via a spin-off or via a fourth season, the best thing to do would be to focus on someone else.
‘Alice in Borderland’ Season 3 Leaves Room for an American Spin-Off
But then there is also another possible approach — one that has at least some fans all up in arms. The ending of the Season 3 finale takes us from Japan to the other side of the world, all the way to the United States. There, we see two friends entering a café while discussing sports. Suddenly, the camera moves away from them and focuses on the chest of one of the waitresses, zooming in on a name tag that reads “Alice.” Now, there are many ways to interpret this scene. It might just be the show’s way of telling us more about how omnipresent the Borderland is across the world, a nice message about how none of us, no matter where we live, are safe from the game of life and death. But some people have taken it to mean that Alice in Borderland is taking a trip out of Japan and kicking off its own American spin-off.
Considering the news about Korean death game hit series Squid Game getting its own American version, helmed by David Fincher, it is only natural for fans to be a little bit freaked out. And, to be quite honest, their gut reaction isn’t exactly wrong. Much like Squid Game, Alice in Borderland doesn’t need an American spin-off. Not every story needs an American cast to work. The reason why the original show is so good is that it is attuned to the culture that originally created it, providing commentary on the particular problems and beliefs of its corner of the world. You know, much like Squid Game. So while an American spin-off of Alice in Borderland doesn’t have to be bad, it would have to be made with extra care to actually deliver something that will conquer fans’ hearts and minds.
Still, so far, all of this is nothing but speculation. Much like Alice in Borderland Season 4, no spin-off has been greenlit by Netflix. All we have as of now is the conclusion offered by Alice in Borderland Season 3. Sure, that might not be enough to appease some fans, but it will have to do, at least for the time being. And if another season of Alice in Borderland ever makes it our way, chances are that it will not be part of the same original show, but Season 1 of a spin-off series. Whether that series will be American or Japanese remains to be seen.
