Joker

Joker (ジョーカー, Jōkā) is a special card held by a mysterious being who is in charge of the Borderland. It is not part of the traditional card deck.

The symbolic value of the card varies between the manga and the live-action adaptation. The card owner, often referred to as Joker due to his unknown origin, appears only after the final game is cleared, and the players have refused the permanent residency.

Manga[]

After the last game of the Second Stage is cleared, the card appears on the table alongside the mysterious faceless entity who asks Arisu whether he looks like a God or a Devil to him.

Season 2 (Netflix)[]

The second season of the live-action adaptation leaves the interpretation of the Joker card's at the end of the series deliberately ambiguous, as the card appears on its own after all the other cards are blown away from the table.

Whether the games and deaths of the non-survivors actually occurred is left up to the reader or audience in both the manga and TV series, since the returnees have no recollection of the events and they do not recognize each other.

Season 3 (Netflix)[]

The Joker card becomes the symbol of the season as it begins and ends the story.

"A deck of cards has four suits with cards numbered from 1 to 13. If you add up all those numbers, you get 364. Add the Joker, and it becomes 365... the same as the number of days in a year in the human world. Add one more Joker, and it becomes 366 — a leap year. The two Jokers are indispensable cards based on the truth of time in the human world. The Joker exists in the gaps between cards, in the gaps of time — a jester who fills the space between life and death."
— The Watchman revealing the significance of the Joker card

Banda, one of the Citizens of the Borderland, organizes the Joker Tournament, inviting multiple players who have survived the deadly games before, and returned to the real world, back into action.

Each participant meets Banda and receives the Joker card from him as a token of participation and an invitation to the tournament.

Joker Tournament[]

The Joker Tournament is a large-scale event that includes multiple starting games, semi-final games, and the final game on predetermined dates and locations. Players are divided into several groups and must win each round to advance to the next. Unlike in the previous stages, the games no longer award cards or visas. Since all the games are part of the Joker Tournament, they all contain various elements of the four suits in the deck.

Card	Game	Short Description
	Sacred Fortunes	Players have to draw ten fortune slips and decipher the messages.
	Zombie Hunt	Players have to participate in minor card games and win either against the zombies or as zombies.
	Rhythm^[1]	Players have to dodge incoming lasers from different directions, such as diagonal, vertical, horizontal, and others.
	Runaway Train	Players have to go through eight carriages and stop the train.
	Kick the Can	Players have to kick the can and then return it to the original spot. Semi-final game
	Tokyo Bingo Tower	Players have to climb up the tower and complete the bingo card. Semi-final game
	Future Sugoroku	Players have to roll the dice to unlock rooms and exit the venue. Final game

Timeline[]

October 6, 2024: In the beginning of Episode 1 (Season 3), Ryuji records his conclusions about the people who had a near-death experience, and the text is displayed on his monitor along with the date: 2024/10/6. So the story begins on October 6, 2024, which is 3 years, 2 months, and 27 days after the Tokyo Meteorite Disaster.
October 14, 2024: Ryuji is invited to a special "seminar", where he is later revealed to be playing the "Old Maid" game and meeting Banda. The date of the seminar is October 14, 2024.
October 20, 2024: When Arisu is questioned by the police, he explains that he and Usagi met Ryuji about half a month ago (半月くらい前), which is the equivalent of two weeks. Therefore, the date Usagi and Ryuji decided to have a near-death experience is October 20, 2024. Notably, they did not go to the Borderland at that time yet, Usagi's heart stops only moments before Ann injects Arisu with a medicine two days later.
- October 22, 2024: Arisu goes to the police the same day as he gets a disturbing call from Usagi, then he inspects Ryuji's workplace the next day, and pays a visit to Ann a day after. Therefore, the date of Arisu's arrival in Borderland is October 22, 2024.

The timeline of the games that take place during the Joker Tournament
Game name	Date and description
Sacred Fortunes	October 22
Sacred Fortunes	Arisu's first game, where he establishes his team. The players are instructed to proceed 17 km north-east, as the new game will begin the next day at sunset.
Zombie Hunt	October 23
Zombie Hunt	Rei joins Arisu's team. The players are instructed to proceed 16 km south-west, as the new game will begin at sunset two days later.
Runaway Train	October 25
Runaway Train	Arisu is gravely injured but manages to briefly see Usagi and Ryuji. According to Shion, the new game will begin the next day at sunset.
Kick the Can Tokyo Bingo Tower	October 26
Kick the Can Tokyo Bingo Tower	The two semi-final games for both Arisu's and Usagi's teams. Arisu loses Shion, Natsu, and Kazuya. Usagi loses Himari and Taro.
Future Sugoroku	October 27*
Future Sugoroku	The exact date of the game is unverified. However, since all the games take place within a day or two of each other and Arisu's team is exhausted, it can be deduced that the final game occurs the next day. Notably, the game begins in the afternoon and not at sunset like the rest of the games. Tetsu and Itsuki lose the game, the survivors try to hide while Borderland collapses, and Arisu meets the Watchman.

Players[]

These characters participate in the games that are part of the Joker Tournament:

References[]

↑ The actual name of the game was never stated in the show. However, the official Instagram account on NetflixJP and the full YouTube video on the NetflixJP channel revealed the name to be りずむ.

[Naming_confusion-1] The actual name of the game was never stated in the show. However, the official Instagram account on NetflixJP and the full YouTube video on the NetflixJP channel revealed the name to be りずむ.

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