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satalasers RIDICULOUSLY GOOD.
- I really liked it! There are some aspects that I think I prefer in the live action show, but also: I'm curious how is the live action show going to cover the second half?
- I maintain what I said about the live action: it is bleak and awful but it's also hopeful and heartwarming in a way that I wouldn't have guessed. Little details add up, building to what is truly something spectacular. You can see why these characters go mad, in that sense, it truly does grasp Alice In Wonderland in a way that very little adaptations do, TBH?
- I loved how meticulous it was planned? That's actually such a cool thing, how details come together, and how the side stories interconnect at the end and just!!! I DIDN'T THINK DOUDOU AND HEIYA WERE GOING TO RETURN BUT THEY DID???
- (Is the live action going to include them? Oh I hope so!)
- Hatter and Agni's story broke my heart!
- I still loved Arisu in this! I admit: I was afraid that I might have just liked him because of the actor and how well he was played, and how quick I was to care for him, but no? It's also just Arisu himself? How he tries and makes mistakes, how he loses hope and leans on people, how he has his driving question, but he tries to be good, to be kind, and I just. I love him very much.
- You know what I loved? How he NEVER forgot about Chouta and Karube and also Shibuki!!! Like, he always remembered them, never forgot who they where, and carried that survivor's guilt. It's not that I want him to have survivors guilt, but it does irk me when a main character has a friend, that friend dies, and the main character basically forgets that their friend even existed. Not here!!!! A lot of times when his guilt and depression threatens to overwhelm him, he thinks of his friends.
- I'm surprised by how much Arisu/Usagi worked for me romantically? When watching the live action I was against it. I wanted them to be each other's anchors, but here, as these two fell into despair, I really began to love how they took care of each other? I think, though, it helped that the manga was better at telegraphing hints that they were falling for each other -- and I liked that it wasn't instantaneous? It took time, Arisu confessed, and Usagi wasn't ready for that; and so it was a fallout, and it was awkward, and in her own time, Usagi began to reciprocate. I wanted these two to be happy, so I began to root for them in earnest. They deserved a break! They got to live a couple of days in peace! I respect that!
- I will definitely say, that when both woke up and had no memory of their time in the Borderands, I was charmed by their meet cute. Like. I did! I did love them! I like that they got a second chance!
- Fucking loved Chishiya and how ruthless he is. Oh, I adored him in the live action, but here? I adored him a lot too. I liked that he went off on his own and even Kuina was disgusted by him, I liked the sadness that in him, the hollowness, the emptiness, and how that it compels him to the King of Diamonds, who is his diametric opposite. He doesn't value life, but that exactly what haunts the King of Diamonds: what is the value of a life. God, I will be in awe of the actor of Chisuya if he can translate that -- that nuance that he has, that sadness that is hard to grasp, TBH. Like, definitely the lack of emotional neglect on his father did a number on him, and just. Agh. I don't have the words for his backstory, but I liked it very much. Did very much gasp when Niragi shot him though -- only in the shoulder, but like? JFC. Didn't see that coming at all.
- I did not expect Niragi to survive? In some ways, he's fascinating, because he embraces being as terrible as possible. Which makes for a great character, I will admit that. But I do loath him for it all the same. He tries -- and most likely succeeds offscreen -- to do some reprehensible acts. Not just to Usagi.
- I liked that Kuina's backstory was the same! IDK why I thought her being a trans woman might just be an adaptation thing, but it wasn't! And she lives to the very end! She helps out Arisu, and hates Chisuya! And I am curious to know how the live action is going to play that out, TBH. Like, it seemed in the live action, they were going to stick together, no matter what -- and I'm still sad that we didn't really get the story of how they met in the manga, although it's easy to say that they teamed up together because of a game -- but after Ten of Hearts, Kuina wants nothing to do with Chisuya. So, there's that.
- Oh gosh, I loved the Face characters so much! I didn't expect to adore them and their friendship! (Well, not the Jack of Hearts, but like? King of Spade, Diamond, Clover and Queen of Hearts. Those four.) I just -- I felt for them, because they were so different and plagued by their own thoughts. I loved how graceful King of Clover was. I mean, he was eccentric for sure, but! I enjoyed his sincerity and positivity and how he had his own group of friends that he cared about. I loved how the King of Spades was like: I must end their suffering as quickly as possible, and how mercurial he tried to be. King of Diamond, of course, the lawyer, who wondered what the worth of a life was. Queen of Hearts, twisted but fun. I liked how croquet was brought into the mix, and how she could wear Arisu down by talking to him, and also: drugging him. Underhanded, yes, but not against the rules.
- Jack of Hearts game was unpleasant, but honestly, I'm so curious about the two survivors. Out of everyone shown, they were the only two to agree to stay behind. Maybe there were others, but! Those were the only two we know of. Which. Does make me curious about the sequel manga. I did really like the swindler who got everyone sussed, though.
- Hatter turning up as Agni's hallucinations were *chef's kiss* I just. I really liked them and how they humanized this person who clearly hates himself and feels he let down his friend, but also, what else could he have done?
- I really liked the montage of people getting asked: what's the point of life? of living? and how the question what's the point of the Borderland games never gets answered either, and both with Arisu, we never really get a definite answer either.
- IDK, I liked the changes made in the live action, and I definitely am going to have to rewatch it at some point.
- Also mad intrigued about the side story manga and the sequel manga. The sequel manga is ongoing, but I think I want to keep an eye on it all the same. The side story is finished, so I will probably give that a go, but I'll see how I feel about the sequel manga once I finished the side story manga TBH. Maybe next week?
10/10. It really was an experience and I really liked it.
- I really liked it! There are some aspects that I think I prefer in the live action show, but also: I'm curious how is the live action show going to cover the second half?
- I maintain what I said about the live action: it is bleak and awful but it's also hopeful and heartwarming in a way that I wouldn't have guessed. Little details add up, building to what is truly something spectacular. You can see why these characters go mad, in that sense, it truly does grasp Alice In Wonderland in a way that very little adaptations do, TBH?
- I loved how meticulous it was planned? That's actually such a cool thing, how details come together, and how the side stories interconnect at the end and just!!! I DIDN'T THINK DOUDOU AND HEIYA WERE GOING TO RETURN BUT THEY DID???
- (Is the live action going to include them? Oh I hope so!)
- Hatter and Agni's story broke my heart!
- I still loved Arisu in this! I admit: I was afraid that I might have just liked him because of the actor and how well he was played, and how quick I was to care for him, but no? It's also just Arisu himself? How he tries and makes mistakes, how he loses hope and leans on people, how he has his driving question, but he tries to be good, to be kind, and I just. I love him very much.
- You know what I loved? How he NEVER forgot about Chouta and Karube and also Shibuki!!! Like, he always remembered them, never forgot who they where, and carried that survivor's guilt. It's not that I want him to have survivors guilt, but it does irk me when a main character has a friend, that friend dies, and the main character basically forgets that their friend even existed. Not here!!!! A lot of times when his guilt and depression threatens to overwhelm him, he thinks of his friends.
- I'm surprised by how much Arisu/Usagi worked for me romantically? When watching the live action I was against it. I wanted them to be each other's anchors, but here, as these two fell into despair, I really began to love how they took care of each other? I think, though, it helped that the manga was better at telegraphing hints that they were falling for each other -- and I liked that it wasn't instantaneous? It took time, Arisu confessed, and Usagi wasn't ready for that; and so it was a fallout, and it was awkward, and in her own time, Usagi began to reciprocate. I wanted these two to be happy, so I began to root for them in earnest. They deserved a break! They got to live a couple of days in peace! I respect that!
- I will definitely say, that when both woke up and had no memory of their time in the Borderands, I was charmed by their meet cute. Like. I did! I did love them! I like that they got a second chance!
- Fucking loved Chishiya and how ruthless he is. Oh, I adored him in the live action, but here? I adored him a lot too. I liked that he went off on his own and even Kuina was disgusted by him, I liked the sadness that in him, the hollowness, the emptiness, and how that it compels him to the King of Diamonds, who is his diametric opposite. He doesn't value life, but that exactly what haunts the King of Diamonds: what is the value of a life. God, I will be in awe of the actor of Chisuya if he can translate that -- that nuance that he has, that sadness that is hard to grasp, TBH. Like, definitely the lack of emotional neglect on his father did a number on him, and just. Agh. I don't have the words for his backstory, but I liked it very much. Did very much gasp when Niragi shot him though -- only in the shoulder, but like? JFC. Didn't see that coming at all.
- I did not expect Niragi to survive? In some ways, he's fascinating, because he embraces being as terrible as possible. Which makes for a great character, I will admit that. But I do loath him for it all the same. He tries -- and most likely succeeds offscreen -- to do some reprehensible acts. Not just to Usagi.
- I liked that Kuina's backstory was the same! IDK why I thought her being a trans woman might just be an adaptation thing, but it wasn't! And she lives to the very end! She helps out Arisu, and hates Chisuya! And I am curious to know how the live action is going to play that out, TBH. Like, it seemed in the live action, they were going to stick together, no matter what -- and I'm still sad that we didn't really get the story of how they met in the manga, although it's easy to say that they teamed up together because of a game -- but after Ten of Hearts, Kuina wants nothing to do with Chisuya. So, there's that.
- Oh gosh, I loved the Face characters so much! I didn't expect to adore them and their friendship! (Well, not the Jack of Hearts, but like? King of Spade, Diamond, Clover and Queen of Hearts. Those four.) I just -- I felt for them, because they were so different and plagued by their own thoughts. I loved how graceful King of Clover was. I mean, he was eccentric for sure, but! I enjoyed his sincerity and positivity and how he had his own group of friends that he cared about. I loved how the King of Spades was like: I must end their suffering as quickly as possible, and how mercurial he tried to be. King of Diamond, of course, the lawyer, who wondered what the worth of a life was. Queen of Hearts, twisted but fun. I liked how croquet was brought into the mix, and how she could wear Arisu down by talking to him, and also: drugging him. Underhanded, yes, but not against the rules.
- Jack of Hearts game was unpleasant, but honestly, I'm so curious about the two survivors. Out of everyone shown, they were the only two to agree to stay behind. Maybe there were others, but! Those were the only two we know of. Which. Does make me curious about the sequel manga. I did really like the swindler who got everyone sussed, though.
- Hatter turning up as Agni's hallucinations were *chef's kiss* I just. I really liked them and how they humanized this person who clearly hates himself and feels he let down his friend, but also, what else could he have done?
- I really liked the montage of people getting asked: what's the point of life? of living? and how the question what's the point of the Borderland games never gets answered either, and both with Arisu, we never really get a definite answer either.
- IDK, I liked the changes made in the live action, and I definitely am going to have to rewatch it at some point.
- Also mad intrigued about the side story manga and the sequel manga. The sequel manga is ongoing, but I think I want to keep an eye on it all the same. The side story is finished, so I will probably give that a go, but I'll see how I feel about the sequel manga once I finished the side story manga TBH. Maybe next week?
10/10. It really was an experience and I really liked it.
