Manga- Netflix
Rizuna Ann (安 梨鶴奈, An Rizuna) is a supporting character in Alice in Borderland. Her specialty is Diamonds (♦️). She is portrayed by Ayaka Miyoshi.
Appearance[]
Ann is a tall, slim young woman with short black hair and brown eyes. She is usually seen wearing a white tie-front button-up shirt and navy-blue shorts. One of the accessories that makes her stand out is a pair of sunglasses that she often wears even inside the building.
Personality[]
Ann is one of the more intelligent characters, as demonstrated during the "Witch Hunt" game, where she used her forensics skills to find the murderer; as well as one of the very perceptive ones, since she quickly figured out how to solve the "Light Bulb" puzzle, even though she refused to reveal the answer. She remains calm and cold, rarely showing her emotions regardless of the situation, and is never intimidated even if her life is in danger, either during a game or because of another player.
Additionally, Ann is shown to be very decisive and brave, as she comes to save the others from the King of Spades, and then follows her own hunch outside of Tokyo.
History[]
Before coming to the Borderland, Ann was part of the forensics department in the Tokyo Metropolitan Police. As shown in flashbacks, she was one of the first members invited by Hatter to the Beach. Her experience in the games gave her the position as one of the executive members of the organization, and her direct and strict personality quickly earned her Hatter's trust.
Story[]
Season 1[]
Ann's first appearance
Ann is introduced at the Beach, following Arisu and Usagi's arrival. She is one of the Beach's executive members, who first appears standing wordlessly in front of the sliding doors and merely smiles as Hatter explains the purpose and the rules of the organization.
As everyone splits up to play games, Ann is entrusted with testing Arisu to see if he is fit for being an executive member. Ann and Arisu, alongside Kuina and Tatta, enter the Four of Diamonds game arena, where the players have to work out which switch turns on the lightbulb. Ann finds the solution immediately, but refuses to tell anyone so Arisu can be tested. She keeps pushing for him to use his logic instead of blindly pulling switches, and then deduces the likelihood of survival in different circumstances. She smiles when Arisu finally starts thinking in the right direction and remains unfazed even as the water level goes dangerously high.
Ann is present during an executive meeting, when Hatter reveals that the Ten of Hearts game is yet to be cleared, and she suggests looking outside of Tokyo. Despite Hatter's rude rejection, she does not take it personally and does not react, keeping a calm and cold demeanor.
Ann is doing an autopsy when Tatta runs in and tells her to come to the meeting room quickly. There, she discovers that Hatter has been shot dead, although it is unclear if he died in the game or not, so she inquires about whether his game included guns. When she reaches for the wound in the chest, Niragi abruptly stops her, calling her a dissection maniac. She is hesitant to vote for Aguni to be the next leader, so Last Boss holds a katana to her throat and threatens her, and she silently raises her hand.
Later, Ann is present when Aguni opens the black envelope and learns the location of Hatter's safe. When Momoka's body is discovered, and the "Witch Hunt" begins, Ann is in the lobby along with the others.
Ann presenting evidence of Hatter's murder
Ann explaining how to find the Witch
Ann is accused of being the Witch when some players spot blood on her handkerchief, but she explains that she was doing an autopsy on Hatter, inadvertently revealing his death. After chaos breaks out, Ann heads to the lab and tries to find superglue to solve the game using her forensics skills. Kuina joins her, wondering if Ann is the Witch, but Ann explains that the Witch is likely either killing others or actively searching for the solution. Whoever is working alone is not the Witch, which is how she knows she can trust Kuina. After Ann finds the cyanoacrylate glue (superglue), she explains how she plans to use it:
"If we heat this up and hold it over the murder weapon, the cyanoacrylate vapors will fuse with the moisture to show fingerprints. Next, we will use some cocoa powder to dust for fingerprints on things like cups that have been used by the most likely suspects. After we take the fingerprints with tape, we will be able to identify the culprit."
— Ann explaining to Kuina how to find the Witch
As they leave the lab, Last Boss discovers them. Kuina holds him off as Ann runs to steam the knife. The episode ends with Ann realizing who the Witch is, but as she runs to tell the others the militants attack her and knock her unconscious.
Ann is found by Kuina, who carries her to the lobby, where Ann announces that the knife has a reverse grip, meaning Momoka was the culprit and therefore the Witch. She unknowingly proves Arisu's theory and then survives the following massacre. Later, Ann can be seen on the other side of the bridge along with the others, watching the hotel collapse in flames.
Season 2[]
Ann and Tatta saving the others
During the King of Spades' massacre, as Arisu, Usagi, Chishiya, and Kuina are cornered, Ann and Tatta arrive in a car and urge everyone to get in. Usagi, Arisu, and Kuina make it to the car, but Chishiya is forced to stay behind, as he tells Tatta to drive without him, and Ann repeats the instruction loudly.
When Arisu states that the King of Spades operates alone, and defeating him is the only game rule of the massacre, Ann points out the movement of the blimp during the game, which likely follows the King himself, so the whole city is his game arena. Hearing Arisu's theory about clearing all the Face Card games in order to finish the Second Stage, Ann claims that it does not guarantee them going home, and advises others to stop believing Hatter's words.
Ann after the crash
The discussion is interrupted by the King of Spades, who has taken one of the Beach cars in order to catch up with the group. He shoots right at them, and a car chase begins. Seeing Tatta panicking too much, Ann decides to take over the wheel, so she pushes him out of the driver's seat and speeds up, successfully evading other vehicles and obstacles. Making a sharp U-turn, Ann manages to pull away from the pursuer, but not for long, and his car starts hitting theirs. In an escape attempt, the group accidentally crashes into another vehicle, and their car turns over, while the King of Spades drives past them and gets hit by other Beach residents. All five survive and crawl out of the car, but the King of Spades opens fire once again, forcing players to split up, and Ann inadvertently separates from her friends. She takes cover in a tunnel, attempting to help a traumatized player, but the player chooses to jump towards the gunfire instead, which forces Ann to flee.
Ann appears in Kaito Kameyama's film, which Usagi and Arisu discover and watch. Ann is caught on camera while she is checking a small stream and then stating that there is a lot more fish in the water, the plants have started to cover everything, and the further away from the city, the more nature is growing rampant. Kameyama wonders whether the lack of human influence is the reason for that, but Ann points out that the plants are growing way too fast, people arrived at different times, and certain foods are rotting more quickly than others, which indicates that time is not working the way they are all used to. Ann claims that she wants to go further outside the city to see what is happening to the world.
Ann searching for answers
Ann hikes through the forest with a map and a compass, stating that she is likely in Yokohama now, but the forest never ends. Suddenly, her compass starts acting odd with the arrow rotating erratically at a high speed. She puts it away, looks around, and takes out her knife. Carving lines on the trees she passes, she hopes to find her way back later. Hiking farther up the mountain, Ann finally gets to the top, exhausted. However, instead of seeing the scenery she expected, she finds herself on a mountain range that does not exist in her world and stretches out of sight.
Going back through the forest, Ann looks disappointed, but then she notices a deer lying on the ground. She gently strokes it, looking into its eyes, and remembers how she saw people's deaths in the real world, working as a forensic investigator, specifically a little girl who was murdered despite fighting until the bitter end and not giving up hope. The memory gives Ann the strength she needs to continue fighting for her survival. She puts on her lipstick and heads back to the city.
Kuina and Ann uniting to beat the Queen of Clubs
Ann enters the Queen of Clubs venue, waiting for the game to commence. She notices Kuina approaching her and walks in her direction. Seeing how happy Kuina is to see her, Ann assumes that Kuina expected her to be dead, but Kuina explains that she knew Ann would survive due to how strong she is. Despite them both feeling like death would be a lot easier, they decide to team up and fight together.
The game begins, and their task is to throw glowing balls of different colors at their opponents in order to knock them off the platforms. They stand close to each other and attack other players on different fronts. After the game is over, Ann and Kuina leave the venue, and the Queen's blimp explodes behind them, falling down and indicating her demise.
The next morning, Ann and Kuina are seen running among the others towards the Shibuya Crossing, while the King of Spades is firing at them. They spot Arisu and Usagi, so the four reunite, hiding behind cars. Ann realizes that the King wants to settle things there and then, and Kuina proposes taking him down together. While trying to escape the attack, Ann separates from the others, trips, and falls, so the King comes dangerously close to her, shooting another player nearby. Ann takes out a gun, but he knocks it out of her hand, leaving her defenseless. Kuina kicks a mirror off one of the vehicles, launching it towards Shirabi's head, so Ann has time to get up, pick up her gun, and run away.
Ann smiles hearing Arisu's strategy
While other players try to injure the King, Ann and Kuina manage to escape and then reunite with Arisu and Usagi in an overgrown tunnel. Heiya joins the group as well, and soon after that Aguni follows. Aguni's strategy is to lure Shirabi into an area where the blimp cannot drop supplies, which would leave him defenseless if he cannot restock the ammo. Hearing Arisu's plan to trigger an explosion in a drugstore, using the bomb Chishiya gave to Kuina, Ann claims that Arisu will die and asks how he plans to survive the ordeal. His well-thought-out yet unsure response makes her smile. Aguni volunteers to be the bait, but Usagi decides that they all need to help him, so she, Kuina, Ann, Heiya, and Aguni take on the job to lure Shirabi into the store through a narrow alley.
After Kuina shoots at the King and attracts his attention, Ann unexpectedly fires at him from behind, and a few of her shots hit his back; however, they are not fatal, since he is wearing a bulletproof vest. Kuina engages in close combat with Shirabi, who then threatens her with a gun for a split second before Ann shoots him again, allowing Kuina to escape and complain about almost hitting her. Ann claims to know what she is doing and hides behind a wall.
Ann saying her last words to Kuina
While Kuina, Heiya, and Aguni are fighting Shirabi up close, Ann takes a few shots at him from afar, attracting his attention and making him fire multiple bullets at her until he runs out of ammo. After the King reloads his gun, he gets attacked by the others once again, so Ann shoots him from behind to save her friends and runs into hiding since Shirabi opens fire at her in response. Heiya hits him with her bare hands, which buys enough time for Ann to drag Usagi to safety. During the fight between Heiya and Shirabi, the latter points his gun at Aguni, and Heiya shields him with her own body, becoming the first victim of the group's mission. Her sacrifice makes Ann lose her composure, so Ann recklessly comes out from behind cover and shoots at the King, who fires back at her, hitting her chest and stomach. As she falls down, Usagi and Kuina attempt to avenge her but end up wounded as well.
After the game is cleared, Ann whispers to Kuina that there is only one more left.
"If we meet somewhere again, let's become friends."
— Ann's last words
She smiles and loses consciousness, and Kuina's screams do not reach her.
Ann lies next to Kuina throughout the entire last game, and when given the choice to stay in the Borderland or leave, she is unable to respond. Kuina takes Ann's hand and says that they will return together, inadvertently making Ann's choice for her.
Ann in Shibuya moments before the meteorites
A flashback follows: Arisu was at the Shibuya Crossing, waiting for his friends. The scene repeated the same way as Episode 1 (Season 1) at first, with the zombie talk, then Karube putting Arisu on his shoulders, and then the trio causing a road accident. However, this time it is revealed that all the other people Arisu met in the Borderland were also at the Shibuya Crossing at the same time, including Usagi, who was standing nearby, Niragi sitting on a bench, Kuina decisively rushing through the crowd, Chishiya having a nonchalant stroll, Hatter and Aguni walking out of a shop and talking, Tatta sitting in a big lorry, and Ann looking at her watch as she walked past Arisu and his friends. The same scene that was shown in Heiya's flashback before repeats itself, but now shows that the assumed fireworks were actually a few meteorites that hit Shibuya, causing a massive explosion and crushing all the buildings in the area.
In the real world, doctors are trying to restart Ann's heart during surgery, but she has no pulse. After a few defibrillator charges, the pulse returns, and tears roll out of Ann's eyes before she opens them.
Season 3[]
Ann making sure Arisu remembers how much time he has got
Ann appears in Season 3 with her memories of the Borderland seemingly intact. After the meteorite disaster, her PTSD became chronic, and she is undergoing care at Takinogawa Sanatorium, a psychiatric hospital's long-term treatment facility.
As part of her recovery process Ann comes to Arisu's workplace. He treats her as an unknown patient with PTSD and talks to her very formally, but she informs him that they have met before, which he is completely unaware of. She tries to make him remember what happened and insists that they have been to another world together where they had to survive. Ann reveals that her memories are also quite fleeting, so she wants to return to that world and learn the truth.
Following Usagi's disappearance, Arisu comes to Ann's hospital room and informs her that Usagi is pregnant and in a coma, so her heart may soon stop. Then he shows her a Joker card and asks about the other world she mentioned earlier. Ann decides to help him and explains that once someone goes into cardiac arrest, they have no more than two minutes to be resuscitated or they die. Arisu can use this time to go back to the shared consciousness, find Usagi, and return. Ann also explains that time between life and death flows very differently, so two minutes in the real world may be the same as fighting a war in the Borderland. According to her, if Arisu does not come back, he will die, and she will be charged with assisted suicide or murder.
Seeing Arisu's determination, Ann injects him with a syringe meant to temporarily stop his heart, then repeats the time limit to him, and Arisu slowly closes his eyes, remaining on the chair in her room.
While Arisu is fighting in the Borderland, Ann is waiting for him to return to the real world. Time goes by slowly as she watches him unconscious.
Ann trying to stop Banda from killing Arisu
A dark silhouette appears behind the armchair where Arisu is sitting, slowly turning into a man, but Ann does not notice him at first despite watching closely. Banda starts suffocating Arisu, but then opens his eyes and sees Ann staring right at him without blinking. Shocked, Banda asks whether she can see him, and Ann stands up from the chair, running towards him and reaching out to grab him. Since Banda is still physically in the Borderland, time passes differently for him, so all Ann's movements are very slow compared to his. He swears and disappears before she can touch him, and she falls down to the floor in the attempt. Then she turns around and rushes back to Arisu, screaming his name and shaking him.
"Arisu! You have to bring Usagi back!"
— Ann's attempt to keep Arisu focused on survival
Her voice reaches his consciousness in the Borderland, and he wakes under the water.
When Arisu opens his eyes back in the real world, he sees Ann worried about him. Her room is messy, with the chair sideways on the floor as well as the injector she used on him. Ann informs him that he has been on the verge of death for two minutes and that a few more seconds could have been lethal. In response to Arisu's question about Usagi, Ann says that he should know more than she does.
As Arisu is about to leave, he thanks Ann for her help in a friendly tone and uses her name confidently without additional suffixes, which indicates that his memories of her and the Borderland have returned and remained. She realizes that and nods at him in affirmation.
Games Played[]
Gallery[]
Etymology[]
- The forename Rizuna is a combination of the three kanji: "梨" (ri) (pear), "鶴" (zu) (crane, stork), and "奈" (na) (apple tree).
- The surname Ann is written with the kanji "安" (peace, quiet).
- The surname is Romanized differently in different sources, as there is no set way in Japanese. The direct and most accurate version is An, but a more Westernized version is Ann, which is used in the Netflix subtitles.