Alice In Borderland’s Final Plot Twist Made The Show’s Worst Death Scene Even More Heartbreaking

Alice in Borderland season 2 revealed the truth about that world and made the deaths of Chota and Karube even more tragic. It took Netflix’s Alice in Borderland two seasons to cover Haro Aso’s manga, with the end of the second season matching how the source material concluded. While Alice in Borderland season 3 is happening, season 2’s final episode felt like a series finale because of the way it finally solved most of the show’s biggest mysteries. This includes what the Borderland actually was and how Arisu and the others ended up there.

While “it was all a dream” twists can be frustrating, Alice in Borderland season 2’s finale perfectly pulled off its big reveal. The episode even made fun of the most popular fan theories about the show and the meaning of the Borderland, from aliens to virtual reality. However, the truth was that Arisu and most of the characters we met on the show were in a hospital the whole time fighting for their lives after a comet hit Tokyo. Dying in the Borderland meant dying in the real world, or vice versa.

Alice In Borderland Season 2’s Big Reveal Makes Chota And Karube’s Deaths More Tragic

Chota And Karube Were Also Fighting For Their Lives In The Real World

Chota and Karube both died in Alice in Borderland season 1, episode 3. By far the most tragic deaths on the show, seeing Chota and Karube sacrifice themselves during the Seven of Hearts so that Arisu could live was incredibly heartbreaking. Not only did this moment almost break Arisu until he properly met Usagi, but it also set the tone for the entire show. If Arisu’s best friends could die in episode 3, no one was safe in Alice in Borderland. However, season 2’s big reveal about the Borderland completely recontextualized Chota and Karube’s deaths.

Mira, the Queen of Hearts, created the Seven of Hearts game.

Whether there is free will in the world of Alice in Borderland is a complicated question, but the fact is that Chota and Karube died in the real world as soon as they died in the game. Arisu’s friends losing the Seven of Hearts game meant that, in the real world, they lost the battle for their lives and died at some hospital. One interpretation is that Chota and Karube’s deaths in the real world caused their defeat in the game, but we can also speculate that their sacrifices during the game sealed their fates at the hospital.

How Chota And Karube Remained Important In Alice In Borderland (Despite Dying In Episode 3)

Arisu Never Stopped Thinking About His Friends

Despite dying in episode 3, Karube and Chota continued to be two of the most important Alice in Borderland characters. The first couple of episodes of the Netflix live-action show make it clear that Arisu was “wasting” his life and did not have any reason to keep going. Deemed a failure by his family for not using his intelligence for something they would consider productive, Arisu was living day by day with no goals or dreams. This is why, in many moments, he was ready to die during the games.

Chota and Karube gave up on their lives so that Arisu could keep his, meaning he now had to live for them.

However, this changed after Karube and Chota sacrificed themselves during Hide And Seek. Alice in Borderland’s Seven of Hearts game was twistedly created so that players would turn against each other, although it also considered that some people would try to sacrifice themselves to save one of their friends. Chota and Karube gave up on their lives so that Arisu could keep his, meaning he now had to live for them. This is why Chota and Karube appeared to Arisu a few times, particularly during moments when he was unsure about whether he should keep going.

Should Chota And Karube Return In Alice In Borderland Season 3?

They Have Already Served Arisu’s Character Arc

Karube and Chota returned as illusions in the final episode of Alice in Borderland as Arisu was about to make his decision of whether to stay in the Borderland or decline the invitation and return to the real world. This moment brought the show full circle, with Arisu finally confirming that he wanted to live and would forever honor his friends’ sacrifices. Given how great Chota and Karube’s final scene in season 2 was, bringing them back in season 3 either as illusions or in a flashback does not seem necessary.

Whether or not Arisu’s friends should appear in season 3 in any form speaks to a bigger challenge that Netflix’s Alice in Borderland faces. Season 2 already had a perfect ending, namely because it was the same ending as the manga. Therefore, Alice in Borderland season 3 is expected to be an original story and will have to justify its existence without ruining season 2’s finale.