Alice In Borderland Season 3 Must Give Us The Chishiya Moment We’ve All Been Waiting For Since Season 1

Alice in Borderland season 3 has the chance to give us the Chishiya and Arisu moment that the show has been teasing since the first season. While Alice in Borderland is about Arisu – he is the “Alice” trapped in a different reality after all – Chishiya stole the show and became one of the Netflix live-action series' most popular characters. Netflix’s version of Chishiya was slightly different from the one in Haro Aso’s manga, but all the changes worked and made for a very interesting character that ranged from a potential villain to a beloved antihero.

Apart from Kuina, there was no one in Alice in Borderland Chishiya would trust. The other characters soon learned now to trust Chishiya either, including Arisu. That said, toward the end of season 2, Chishiya went through a life-changing experience during the King of Diamonds game. After beating the “Beauty Contest,” Chishiya reevaluated how he perceives life and is now a different person from when he entered the games. Even so, he should still make for a formidable player, and it would be fun to see Chishiya and Arisu competing against each other in Alice in Borderland season 3.

Alice In Borderland Season 3 Needs Arisu & Chishiya Competing Against Each Other

Arisu And Chishiya Have Barely Played Games Together In Alice In Borderland

Arisu and Chishiya have technically been in two full games together – the Five of Spades and the Ten of Hearts. However, we never got to see them either properly working together or competing against each other, especially not after we learned more about Chishiya. During the Five of Spades, Chishiya was still an unnamed character whose importance to the story only those familiar with the manga were aware of. Although Arisu and Chishiya helped beat the game, they were still strangers at that point.

Likewise, while Arisu and Chishiya were both part of the Ten of Hears in season 1’s finale, they were on different parts of the Beach as it was happening. Each character had their own demons to face during the Which Hunt, with both Arisu and Chishiya surviving it and making it through the second phase of the game. Then, after the King of Spades’ first attack, Chishiya got separated from the rest of the group and spent most of the second season on his own making his way through the Face Card games.

It was only at the end of Alice in Borderland season 2 that Arisu and Chishiya shared the screen again. Even then, they were not playing any games. This was when Chishiya was shot by Niragi, which was followed by Arisu and Usagi joining the others against the King of Spades. In other words, after Alice in Borderland showed us more about Chishiya and how good he was at surviving, the Netflix series never put him and Arisu in the same game. This is particularly disappointing considering how they are arguably the best players on the show.

Arisu & Chishiya Are The Best Players In Alice In Borderland For Different Reasons

Arisu Is Creative, But Chishiya Is Willing To Make Sacrifices

Who is the smartest character in Alice in Borderland – Chishiya or Arisu – is a popular debate among fans of the show. Looking at the source material, Haro Aso’s Alice in Borderland suggests that Chishiya is the smartest character in the story and is ready to take on any game, especially the ones that ask the player to get rid of their feelings. Chishiya had no problem playing Heart games in Alice in Borderland, which were the games designed to break someone’s spirit by turning them against other people.

One of Chishiya’s most impressive feats in Alice in Borderland was winning the Jack of Hearts, a game where trust could be weaponized. Not only is Chishiya extremely smart, but he also knows how to play both people and the odds. Arisu, on the other hand, values strategy and creativity in every game. Arisu is the character that, no matter what the rules of the game are, will try to find a way for everyone to be safe by the end of it. This is why Heart games – especially the Seven of Hearts – were so difficult for him.

Alice in Borderland Season 3 Should Explore Arisu And Chishiya's Dynamic Better

Arisu And Chishiya Barely Interacted In Season 2

Chishiya went from a supporting character with a very strange moral compass in season 2 to an antihero with a lot of screen time in season 2. Whereas most of the characters were playing the games in teams or duos, Chishiya got two major games all for himself in Alice in Borderland season 2, one of which he was not part of in the manga. By giving Chishiya his own arc full of important moments in season 2, Alice in Borderland confirmed that he is now one of the show’s central characters.

As such, there should be more moments in season 3 involving Arisu and Chishiya. Those two have a complicated history, particularly because Chishiya’s betrayal in season 1 is what allowed Niragi to capture Arisu and Usagi. Since then, most of the survivors of the Beach have become friends by default and lack of better options. We don’t know exactly how Arisu and Usagi feel about Chishiya, let alone how they would interact in the real world without their memories of everything that they went through. Hopefully, Chishiya will interact more with the other characters in season 3.

Alice In Borderland Season 3 Will Struggle To Surpass The Games From Seasons 1 And 2

Alice In Borderland Season 3 Will Have To Come Up With Original Games

Alice in Borderland will likely never put Chishiya and Arisu in a game where only one of them can come out alive. That said, there should be plenty of ways to use those two characters prominently in the same game, either as teammates or adversaries. Either way, Alice in Borderland season 3 will have to have new games that can somehow top what has already been done in the first two seasons. This will not be easy considering that there are basically no games left from the manga to be adapted.

Netflix’s Alice in Borderland has created a few original games already. However, those were usually among the weakest games of the series. This includes the Queen of Spades game, which had a rather confusing set of rules and was not too fun to watch despite having lots of action. Having a game featuring both Arisu and Chishiya that would allow them to show how smart they are would be a lot of fun, even more so if they somehow have their memories back already.

It's still unclear how and why the characters will return to the Borderland, if at all. Alice in Borderland season 2 ended where the manga concluded, meaning them, from now on, the Netflix series will be telling an original story. Regardless of what happens, not having Arisu and Chishiya in the same scene more often would be a mistake.