Recap Japanese Drama "Alice In Borderland season 2" Episode 4

Dec 22, 2022

Episode 4 of Alice in Borderland Season 2 starts with us back at the prison. Chishiya is alone but he manages to convince Matsushita (the emo-kid) that Sunato Banda (the man he’s hanging around with all game long) is a serial murderer and it was all over the papers. Chishiya is convinced that he’s the Jack and warns that he’s going to start getting aggressive soon. The pair eventually agree to tell each other what their symbols are but unfortunately, Matsushita lies about Chishiya’s symbol.

There’s also Yaba and the timid girl (Kotoko) he’s aligned with too. Kotoko heads down to the kitchen to pick up some food, and whilst there Chishiya tries to strike up a conversation with her but it doesn’t go to plan. Time is running out and with Chishiya on his own, he’s unsure where else to turn. The girl lies to Yaba about his symbol, while Matsushita also lies to Banda too. With only 90 seconds left, Chishiya is left with a 50/50 shot at what his symbol could be.

The round comes to an end and both Matsushita and Chishiya show up out their cells, the former laughing maniacally. Suddenly though, Banda shows up too! Yaba appears just after, having survived this round. Realizing that Kotoko has been killed, they deduce that she and Mitsushita were working together all this time and he betrayed her. The latter is actually the Jack of Hearts. They were communicating through the snacks they picked up, with Chishiya realizing that the colour of the packaging correlated to their symbols, helping them through the game until this point.

The reason the Jack of Hearts is still alive is simply so they can get some answers from this guy, figuring out exactly what’s going on. With a razorblade in hand, Banda and Yaba have their way, eventually resulting in the Jack of Hearts blimp exploding. Chishiya manages to get away without dying.

Meanwhile, Arisu and the others try to work out the next phase of attack. With the Jack of Hearts and the King of Clubs both gone, Kuina takes her leave and decides to look for Ann and Chishiya. They’re going to need all the help they can get in order to take down the King of Spades.

Arisu and Usagi are left alone and end up going hunting together; some much-needed downtime after the events that have transpired. The pair try to catch a rabbit but to no avail. However, that simply paves way for a much darker bit of drama to ensue. As they step out from the clearing, they find numerous men and women dead on the floor. One survivor is propped up against an RV, and the pair approach tentatively. “Film…” He says, before passing away.

Inside the RV is a film projector, so the pair play the video and watch as Kaito – the man outside – ends up filming and documenting everything that’s happening in the city. Kaito ends up filming Ann in the water where she notes that plants are growing more wild the further out of the city they get.

As for Kaito, he follows a tip-off and arrives at a community just outside the city. One of the men mentions fireworks in the sky the first day. A lady in the community remembers everything from the day they arrived. She points out that when the fireworks exploded they flashed and seemed real. In reality, they weren’t fireworks but… BANG! Just like that, everything goes awry as the King of Spades shows up and massacres them all.

In the present, rumbling ensues as the King of Spades catches up to Arisu and Usgi, his blimp flying overhead. Arisu and Usagi are separated in the ensuing chaos, eventually leading to Arisu face to face with the boss. That is, until more gunshots rain down from the other side, hitting the Boss. Unfortunately, as Arisu sprints away, he bolts straight into the path of an unknown figure who knocks him out.

When he awakens, Arisu finds a woman with one leg is in camp and another in the shadows who brought him to their camp. So who is it? Arisu walks through the clearing and finds Aguni!

The Episode Review

Not only do we see the end of the excellent prison game, we also get teasing glimpses of exposition around the inception of what this whole city-wide game is about and what it all means. There’s lots to ponder here and it’s still unclear exactly what all of this is for – and who orchestrated it.

Alice in Borderland is not messing about this year and while the games have been brilliantly orchestrated, it’s what’s happening away from that which feels just as endearing right now. The added expanse of the world, not to mention deeper characterization, is making this year’s effort an absolute joy to watch. The ending with Aguni is certainly a surprise too and it’ll be interesting to see exactly what happens next.