The Series Fans Call a Perfect Squid Game Replacement is on Netflix with 90% Rotten Tomatoes Score
Do you love Squid Game and can't wait for the next season to come out?
Summary
- Alice in Borderland is a brilliant Japanese sci-fi thriller on Netflix.
- Based on the manga, it combines terror and gaming.
- Fans are calling it the perfect replacement for South Korea's Squid Game.
Alice in Borderland premiered on Netflix in December 2020, and it has become a real sleeper hit. This Japanese drama brilliantly blends elements of sci-fi and action to create a quality thriller.
The plot revolves around two people who find themselves in a completely empty Tokyo and are forced to play deadly games to stay alive. The questions of how they got there and why Tokyo is deserted quickly become less important than simply surviving their precarious situation. Critics have compared the series to movies like Battle Royale (2000) and Cube (1997), praising it as a vast improvement.
Similarity to Squid Game
Squid Game landed on Netflix in 2021 and blew viewers away. This South Korean drama-thriller focuses on a large group of people who volunteer to play games in order to earn a large sum of money. However, they only find out once they start playing that these games are life or death, and being eliminated means being killed, literally.
It is like Alice in Borderland in terms of the idea of people being forced to participate in games with potentially devastating consequences. The effects and action are brutal and realistic, but not over the top, adding to the sense of urgency and terror in the plot. And the characters are amazing. Both shows offer us a diverse range of people to admire, love, fear, and loathe, and the writing is clever and well thought out.
Main Differences Between the Shows
The second and perhaps biggest difference is in character motivations. Squid Game shows us people who are after money for a variety of reasons. While some are involved out of blind greed, others are desperate and willing to risk their lives in the games in hopes of paying off enormous debts. In this way, Squid Game manages to give us sympathetic characters with positive motivations, and prevents the audience from dismissing them as simply greedy. They are literally playing for their lives, whether they participate in the games or not. But the games give them a chance to win, while their lives do not.
Alice in Borderland shows very different motivations of the characters. Mainly because our heroes are only motivated to survive and try to figure out how they ended up in an empty Tokyo in the first place. They did not choose to be there. They made no decisions, as far as they know, that put them in this desperate situation. In that sense, the characters are true victims, and we immediately find ourselves on their side, sharing their fear. With Squid Game, it took us a little longer to side with certain characters because we did not know them well enough at first.
How is Alice in Borderland a Perfect Squid Game Replacement?
Alice in Borderland is exciting, scary, and brilliantly constructed. And it has thrilling twists and turns that you never see coming, adding to the story and the overall tension.
The games vary in difficulty, which keeps the audience on their toes, just like the characters. If you loved Squid Game, you're looking for a really exciting watch that has spectacular acting and directing, and you're not too weak of a stomach, check out Alice in Borderland on Netflix today.