MovieChat Forums > Imawa no Kuni no Arisu (2020) Discussion > Finished Watching! (SPOILERS)

Finished Watching! (SPOILERS)

posted 2 years ago by Ace_Spade (9657)
5 replies | jump to latest

Made it through the Borderlands! I really enjoyed this show, although there were some parts that detracted from my experience.

The best thing about the show is its focus on the main theme of life. It's all about choosing life, living your life, and embracing whatever life throws at you. Throughout the show, the characters' backstories are riddled with bad decisions, regrets, or just abandonment of hope, joy, and dedication. They shave their ethics down to the minimum, or just laze about all day. Their present states are hopeless and aimless. The show is about these characters reclaiming their will to live, their purpose in life, and encouraging one another to do so as well (or, sometimes, dragging each other down...)

That adherence to theme kept the real tension and character drama. By the end of the show, I really dug most of the characters and wanted to see their arcs completed. Arisu, Usagi, and all of their various friends and enemies are mostly all pretty interesting.

Another major plus is the games themselves. The games, the world, and the constant danger and physical tension is amazing. The advancement is cool.

My complaints:

I wish they'd have doled out information in small parcels throughout the show instead of in dumps during one or two episodes. I get that they needed the mystery of the world to remain intact, but it felt like they gave us nothing at all until halfway through. Then, we got mysterious statements deliberately worded so we had no chance of discerning the truth. This is kind of obnoxious after a while.

In another post, I mentioned the physical reality of the world oftentimes being messed with. Inconsistent physics intrudes on an otherwise realistic setting (I mean... well, realism within the setting, anyway). I don't mind hyper-reality where punches send people flying, but it should have been one way or the other. They mostly stuck to real-world consequences for violence, but sometimes they'd have a guy kick somebody in the chest and knock them literally ten feet through the air. The main problem is that it makes discerning how much trouble the characters are in almost impossible.

Can they physically overpower the King of Spades? Sometimes, yes. For instance, in the penultimate episode, they're fighting him in an alley. Aguni smashes into this guy and grapples with him. These two brutish monsters trade blows and wrestling moves and Aguni barely keeps up long enough to hurt the KOS before being thrown down. In comes Kuina, and...basically fares the same. How? Aguni is twice her size. She's got martial arts skills, but when she's wrestling this boss monster, how does she keep up without being immediately destroyed?

Another example is in the inconsistent physical abilities demonstrated in the Queen of Spades game. In round one, the QoS and her posse of three people tag half off the opposing team. In the following rounds, not a single person manages to tag anybody. I get that the Queen was going around and talking them into joining her, but she couldn't have been everywhere at once, and at that point, there were so many red players that it's hard to buy that not one of them got tagged back. This gets worse when Arisu is the main target. How many players are tagged is down to the writer, not the physical world, so the stakes are impossible to guess.

A final gripe: the last episode drags on. Some of the season 2 episode are overlong, but the finale really felt like they were dragging it out. There are *so many* speeches between Arisu and Usagi and Mira. There's some really moving stuff in there, but after a time, it was like, "Get to the point!"

With that said, the final episode was, overall, fantastic. The Queen of Hearts game was phenomenal, and the fact that her game was based entirely on just straight-up playing head-games made it the perfect "Heart" game. Of course, it sorta feels like that should be the King difficulty level but... whatever. (I guess "inconsistent difficulty levels might be the true final gripe, albeit a small one).

Character moments make up the final conflict, and that's beautiful. I loved the choices made by the characters at the end. I expected Niragi to make a very different choice; a pleasant and interesting surprise.

I was worried that the final explanation would be a letdown, but it really wasn't. It felt like the "dream world" of Borderland had real world consequences, even if it wasn't "real real". I felt the loss of Arisu's friends Karube and Chota all over again. It was deeply sad. I also felt the loss of their experiences together, although I liked that they kinda remembered one another.

CONT

[–] Ace_Spade (9657) 2 years ago

The final shot is interesting. It alludes to more story. I don't think they need it, although having them in a psych-out would explain the psychic connection they all feel from a meteor strike. Still, it feels wrapped up, and yanking them back for a third season would feel a bit cheap. In a series that managed to make the games always feel "fair," playing such a trick on the audience just to milk it would leave a sour taste in my mouth. Another person on these boards - scannerdarkly - has a great theory that the Joker alludes to the purgatorial elements of the show. It's in the thread Season 3 on these boards. I like scannerdarkly's interpretation, that this final shot is about not taking life as a joke, but treating it as important.

The technical elements come together really well, too. Whether it’s impeccable stunt work, cool (and sinister) sky lasers, or just the interesting sets, the show looks good. The costuming is well-done, although they’d be a LOT dirtier looking.

At the end of the show, I felt a good sense of satisfaction, and that it had lived up to most of its potential. Despite some drawbacks, it was overall really great.

PS
At the risk of indulging in rants, I have some more observations/complaints about the King of Spades episode:

They have inconsistent tactics, leaving guns lying in the street sometimes, or failing to take shots when they could. Even the King of Spades himself takes off his cloak (understandable), then his mask (less so), and then – for no reason at all – his armoured vest. I know that the integrity of body armour deteriorates when it gets hit, but why waste time taking it off?

Oh, and for some reason, the KOS can get hit by a car going 30+kph – that then *explodes* and just climb out of the conflagration of burning steel, firing the whole time (hitting everybody but the heroes, no matter what the cover or lack thereof!)

Okay. I'm done. Rant over (finally).

[–] scannerdarkly (1398) 2 years ago

I've been telling people "If you liked Squid Game, you oughta watch Alice in Borderland". I enjoyed the movement within the series with regards to the games and the different rules and settings. It has so much going for it. I understand many of your complaints. When Chota and Karube died so early on I was shocked. But Arisu no longer had that friendship that grounded his aimlessness, he now had to find his own reason to carry forward and he was blessed that Usagi made it a point to get him to carry forward and not allow himself to die as well. I was worried that when they introduced "The Beach" that it was gonna become this soapy mess and was grateful they did a full pivot and just had the place basically implode and scatter everyone. Another concern I had was that when the King of Spades ditches his costume that he wasnt going to be as intimidating anymore, the guy was even more intimidating without the mask xD. I wish the visual of him ditching the cloak wouldve had him engulfed inflames and he swings it off as it burned to cinders. But it was still a decent moment. That back alley brawl was a piece of cinematic history to me and you felt it when every character was done in. Im happy we got a satisfying conclusion. The show Dark on netflix is another show where they had the ending planned out in advance. Shows that have mysteries and they just meander and drag on are mistakes. Not this one! Great story and cinema!

[–] Ace_Spade (9657) 2 years ago

Agreed: if somebody enjoys AiB, they'll dig Squid Game, and vice-versa is true, too. I think I preferred Alice in Borderland. I connected more to the lead in SG than Arisu, emotionally. But, the theme of AiB, about appreciating life, was profound. That dug into me more than any one character. AiB had some great characters, too. The other advantage AiB has is that it isn't a zero-sum-game. AiB has players fighting to stay alive, but very few are guaranteed to die. A couple games have this (the King of Diamonds requires only one survivor) but for the most part, players might or might not die. As a result, tension was higher because I didn't know who would live and who would die.

I agree that Arisu needed to lose his buddies, I just wish that he had lost them a little later. Part of my problem is that they could have killed one person, but chose to kill all but one. I get why (character motivations), but it wasn't wise. Given the big reveal at the end, it makes sense (they were choosing to let go after the meteor strike - just like how everybody at the end is asked if they want to be citizens) but it didn't feel "justified".

100% in agreement about The Beach: it was used *very* well. I loved the relationship between Hatter and Aguni; it really added much-needed depth and dimensions to Aguni. Without that compassionate/bro/friendship side, Aguni would not have been sympathetic enough to be enjoyable.

King of Spades was DEFINITELY intimidating with the mask off. And you're right: the fight was pretty epic. I stand by my annoyance with the on/off physics, though. This is primarily because it robs tension in the fight. If the KoS can mow down players by the dozen right until the plot needs him to miss. Or he can overpower people based on plot. It meant I never knew who was in danger and who wasn't because the plot just dictated it.

I haven't finished Dark yet, but I've loved every minute I've seen. Mysteries need clear conclusions from the start for sure!

[–] scannerdarkly (1398) 2 years ago

That was a problem I had with Squid Game as well, as the gamerunners stated that the games are fair and there can be more than one winner. We find out later that its a lie, they even tricked people into teaming up with loved ones and friends only to discover that you are playing AGAINST your partner! WTH!? They set these people up to become wrecked and emotionally devastated, with only one guaranteed winner. Alice in Borderland was better about this as there were many games, contestants could choose ones to participate in, and there was change in setting all the time.

I wouldve liked to see Karube and Chota more as well, throws you off guard quickly that they died so soon.

Hatters story with Aguni truly rounded him out. I was thrown off by how Aguni seemed decent, tough, and loyal. Yet same time he sacrificed one of his team to the anTAGonist in the horse mask. But later finding out his predicament in keeping the peace at The Beach, you can assume the guy he sacrificed must have been one of the scummiest goons at the beach and its why he got him killed on purpose! But we are never told this precisely. Aguni became fully redeemed by shows end and I hope the new life choices he made were good ones. I also wonder what new life Niragi went onto. Chishiya probably went on to form his own medical practice and helped those really in need.

Dark is one of those shows where its more beneficial to binge watch it or watch it regularly. I took a short hiatus before season 3 was available and it took me alittle bit to remember all the characters and position in the storyline. Such an excellent story, and I love the music. I still hum the music on occasion xD. I dont wanna say much as im unsure how far along you are in the story. Theres a word someone "coined" in a comment and its funny and truly sums up this show and I wont write it until you've finished xD

[–] Ace_Spade (9657) 2 years ago

AiB had better games for sure. Main theme was better, too. I did really like the Squid Games characters, though, and the twist with the Old Man (I don't want to write specific spoilers in case people come along who haven't seen it) messed with my head and wrecked me. That was great writing. But the "cheap" games weren't as dramatically interesting.

And, yeah, I was 100% thrown off my guard with Chota and Karube. I figured Karube at least was going to bite it - right from the beginning, he had all the checkmarks (too much to lose/fiance, tough guy, brave, competent, etc.) - but I wasn't expecting it so fast. And, for that, it was pretty effective at throwing me off balance.

Aguni was a great character by the end. I agree: fully redeemed.

Ah, Dark... yeah, I have to set some time aside to pick that back up, and yes, I will be starting from season 1 or 2 just to get my bearings. Even while I was binging it (before it was all out) I sometimes had to pause it and remind myself of who everybody was. It's a rich, complex show. I'll try to remember to head back here once I'm finished.