Sachiko Makino (マキノ サチコ, Makino Sachiko) is a supporting character in Season 3 of Alice in Borderland. She is part of Arisu's Team. She is portrayed by Risa Sudou.
Appearance[]
Sachiko is a middle-aged woman with short dark hair pulled into a low ponytail and bangs. She is dressed in a light blue zip-up hoodie over a white T-shirt with black horizontal stripes, loose knee-length tan culottes, patterned ankle socks, and casual slip-on shoes. She does not wear any visible makeup.
Personality[]
Sachiko is a timid and non-confrontational person who prefers to stay away from tense situations and does not get involved in arguments with her opponents, even if she disagrees with their opinions. She enjoys gossiping and does not mind discussing someone's decisions, but she does so in a lighthearted and non-offensive way. When Tetsu or Kazuya say something too aggressive or insulting, she usually shushes them or expresses her disapproval of their words.
Due to her past as a housewife abused by her husband, she admires Arisu's resolve to find his wife in the world of deadly games and feels a kind envy towards Usagi. Over the course of the events, she grows attached to her teammates, and losing some of them breaks her heart.
History[]
Prior to her arrival at the Borderland, Sachiko was a housewife. She was part of the support group due to the severe physical abuse from her husband. During one of the support meetings, the host hypnotized her, which is when she saw Banda and received a Joker card from him. Same as the other participants of the Joker Tournament, Sachiko had played the games before, making her Sojourn in Season 3 a return to the Borderland rather than her first visit. However, the games she experienced in the past were not the same ones faced by Arisu and his group. Since Borderland games are created and overseen by individual Citizens, their scale, rules, and format vary depending on who hosts them. Therefore, Sachiko's earlier participation took place under different Citizens, resulting in a distinct set of challenges.
Story[]
As Arisu walks into the shrine's territory, he sees 20 other participants, including Sachiko.
Having entered the first game venue, Sachiko notices Tetsu's strange behavior and turns away with a judging look on her face. After the rules of the "Sacred Fortunes" game are explained, Sachiko wonders if there is a festival. Tetsu proceeds to draw the first fortune and receives "Great Blessing", to which Sachiko happily applauds.
Sachiko during the "Sacred Fortunes" game
The second fortune comes with a math equation, and the wrong answer sends three flaming arrows towards the crowd, killing two unnamed participants and causing panic. Sachiko prays to the gods and draws the third fortune, number 45. She starts searching for the right drawer, repeating the number, and it opens with a slip containing "Middle Blessing" (中吉, Chūkichi). She does not read the fortune and proceeds to the question: "How many people need to gather for the probability that two of them share the same birthday to exceed 50%?" People give different answers, and she decides to choose the one in the middle, but the choice is wrong, and 55 arrows are launched at the venue. Seeing dead people on the ground, Sachiko apologizes in shock.
Multiple further questions result in the same damage. After Arisu draws the last fortune and answers incorrectly, he starts looking for an escape route and asks everyone for the unlucky directions they had on their slips. Eventually, the players figure out the safe zone of the venue and rush towards the exit, which ends up blocked by lasers. While Sachiko and the others panic, Kazuya and Masato help Arisu lift up a stone to unlock the way into an underground tunnel. Then they all jump down and reach a notice congratulating them on clearing the game. Another noticeboard they bump into when they are out instructs them to proceed 17 km northeast, because the next game starts the next day at sundown. Walking slightly further, they see multiple blimps holding a massive Joker card.
Having found a shelter and looking at their own Joker cards, everyone realizes that they received them from the same man while having a near-death experience. Learning about Nobu's attempt to take his own life, Sachiko sympathizes with him and reveals her own story about being part of a support group for housewives with family issues.
On the way to the next game venue, Sachiko disagrees with Tetsu's judgement of Arisu's decision to enter the Borderland willingly, so she claims that Tetsu has never known love. Sachiko believes that a husband's duty is to cherish his wife. Nobu wonders about the chances for Arisu to find her, and Tetsu screams that there are none, but Sachiko shushes him. By sundown, they reach the National Institute of Virus Research and enter the game venue, where they see eight more participants. They listen to the rules, and the "Zombie Hunt" game begins.
Sachiko teams up with Shion for the first few rounds of mini-games and loses at least one of them. After Arisu brings over two women with Zombie cards, Kazuya suggests eliminating them, but Sachiko protests against murdering other people. Then Rei introduces her plan to survive without the need to kill anyone.
The strategy is spread out between the other participants, but they soon decide to start killing the zombies instead. Sachiko is present when Kazuya comes back with blood on his face.
Sachiko defending Tetsu
When Nobu is tasked with taking another person's life, Sachiko gasps in shock. Then she sticks with Shion and walks around the venue, returning to the common room where she finds out that Ikeno and the others suspect some players are hiding their Zombie cards. Ikeno looks at everyone in the room, and Sachiko turns away anxiously. Then he notices Tetsu, who is visibly shaking, but Sachiko shields him and explains that he is experiencing drug withdrawal symptoms, so he is not a zombie. While the others are busy, Sachiko, Shion, and Natsu find a secluded spot to stay off the radar.
Later, when Sachiko sees that Nobu is looking for them, she waves at him, revealing their location. He joins them and explains Arisu's plan: ensure they are all zombies because the zombies are going to win. The game ends, and Sachiko and the others survive. They all leave the venue and see another noticeboard with directions to a new game two days later. When they find a quiet, safe place to get some rest, Shion and Natsu notice Arisu's anxiety, assume he is thinking about his wife, and Sachiko shares her admiration.
"I'm jealous. My husband yells right away, hits me right away, and I've thought 'just die already' so many times... but I guess it's nice to devote yourself wholeheartedly to someone."
— Sachiko about her marriage
A flashback follows, showing how her husband kicked her and her son repeatedly despite her screams and pleas to stop.
Sachiko and the others on a train
Sachiko and the other members of Arisu's team participate in the "Runaway Train". After Arisu finds Usagi but cannot get a hold of her, Tetsu points out that she was with another man, and Sachiko shushes him. The train approaches the end of the line, and an announcement instructs the players to stop it. Nobu rushes to the last car, and Sachiko exclaims, looking at Tetsu, who also does not know how to stop the train. Then Kazuya yells that something has to be done urgently, and Arisu decides to pull a lever. It turns out to be an accelerator, so he pulls another one, but it is too late, and the train crashes, leaving everyone with injuries of varying severity.
Having reached safety, everyone is worried about Arisu's well-being because he took the biggest hit. His wounds are bleeding, and he is unconscious. Sachiko insists that Tetsu is the only one who can save him if he stitches up his wounds, but Tetsu protests that he has never done it before in his life. Shion supports Sachiko, and Natsu brings a sewing kit and alcohol from the store. Seeing that Tetsu drinks the alcohol instead of using it to sterilize the wound, Sachiko worries at first, but he explains that it stops his hands from shaking.
When Arisu wakes up the next morning, everyone rushes towards him to see how he is feeling. Learning that the next game starts soon, Arisu asks the others to go without him, but Sachiko and Tetsu insist that they will not leave him alone, and then the others back them up, realizing that Arisu has saved them in previous games.
Sachiko holding the first can
The next game they join, a semi-final challenge, is called "Kick the Can". Round 1 begins, and Sachiko is lost and scared, but Kazuya, who has picked up the can, finds her and gives the can to her, urging her to run. At first, she refuses in panic, but he insists, so she grabs the can and escapes. However, it is later revealed that the attempt was unsuccessful.
During Round 3, Nobu brings the can to the main room and gets jumped by multiple opponents. He sees Sachiko and sends the can rolling towards her. She picks it up in disbelief, and the timer on the bomb resets. She starts running around erratically, trying to avoid being grabbed by the others, and Tetsu jumps onto the player who is holding her back, urging her to proceed quickly. Eventually, she manages to reach the base and insert the can back into its original spot, becoming the first player to clear the game. The announcement instructs her to enter the elevator to separate from the participants who are still playing.
Sachiko crying over Shion's death
Sachiko watches the others through the glass, gradually joined by them. When Shion explodes in front of her, she screams in tears. Then she hears the explosion that killed Natsu, and Kazuya blows up in the last round as she watches him.
Devastated and exhausted, the remaining five players, including Sachiko, walk towards Shibuya Crossing, where the final game, "Future Sugoroku", is about to unfold. Sachiko hopes they can get out of there alive. They find a staircase, and Tetsu uses the "Ladies first" phrase on Sachiko again, but she says she does not need courtesy this time and sends him after Arisu. When they get up, they realize that they are in the real-world Shibuya, with commercial screens moving and people walking.
Sachiko is with Arisu, Nobu, Tetsu, and Rei when they walk into the game venue and end up in the real-world Shibuya. They quickly realize that all those around them are screens depicting pre-recorded images. Each of them sees themselves walking across the street, then they go through a door that closes behind them without a trace and end up in Ikebukuro during the evening. Sachiko and the others watch Arisu reunite with Usagi.
The screens turn off, revealing a dark-gray room, and three more players join them. One of the walls turns white, displaying the game name, and the players are instructed to equip collars and wristbands. The announcement states that there are ten registered participants, and Arisu reveals that Usagi is pregnant. Sachiko gets worried that having a child in their situation might prove dangerous.
Round 1
Map of the venue for better visual representation of the players' movements
The game rules are explained, and Arisu introduces Sachiko and the rest of his team. The starting room, C3, turns fully white, and four doors appear behind the players, with C2 (the blue one) behind Sachiko and Rei. The players realize that the dice on the white platform in front of them are connected to the doors. Tetsu volunteers to roll the dice, making Sachiko comment on his gambling addiction, and the result is 5 (D3, red), 4 (C4, green), 1 (B3, yellow), and 7 (C2, blue). The room turns black and the screens on the walls start flickering with multiple videos of each player's future. One of the walls shows a vision of Sachiko's husband being nice and respectful towards her and her son, while another wall shows her eating alone in her apartment. Arisu insists on minimizing point loss and splitting into two big groups to reunite next turn, so he instructs Itsuki and Yuna to be on a team with Rei and go through the red door to D3, while Arisu, Usagi, Ryuji, Tetsu, Sachiko, and Nobu go through the blue door to C2 and regroup later in D2.
Round 2
Sachiko happy to see Tetsu's positive prospects
C2 ends up a minus one point room, so the players are invited to choose who will pay the penalty. Sachiko wonders what it means, and Ryuji explains that some rooms will deduct an unknown number of points for staying in them. The group rolls the dice, the screens light up with flickering futures once again, and Sachiko states that if those events will come to pass. Then she sees a vision of her husband presenting her with tickets to an event called "Everyone Loves Family!", and they both happily smiling, so Sachiko wants to choose the blue door again. Tetsu sees himself taking an exam to become an architect, and Sachiko cheers him on at this possibility. Arisu instructs Sachiko, Nobu, Tetsu, and Ryuji to go through the blue door, while he, Rei, and Usagi go through the red one. One of the visions on the yellow-door wall shows Ryuji texting "Yuzuha Arisu" and asking her out. Sachiko notices Ryuji staring at it and whispers to Tetsu that she has a weird feeling about this game.
Round 3In C1, Sachiko hears Arisu's voice through the wristband and informs him that they all (she, Nobu, Tetsu, and Ryuji) can go to D1. Then she sees a vision of herself at a restaurant with her husband, seemingly happy, while her husband asks her to keep her voice down. Sachiko urges everyone to go to D1, but Ryuji questions Arisu's plan once again. Sachiko sees a vision of her future where she has to apologize for her husband's drunk behavior, and her husband insults and hits her. Ryuji assumes that the exit is in one of the corner rooms, and Sachiko agrees that he has a point. She decides to split up into two groups, but also insists on following Arisu's plan, so Sachiko and Ryuji go to D1 as promised, while Tetsu and Nobu go to B1.
Round 4In D1, Sachiko, Ryuji, and Usagi discuss their next move. Usagi suggests staying in the same room in order to release Rei from lockdown, but Ryuji insists on going to a corner room to check for the exit.
Round 5
Sachiko calling for Nobu
Sachiko, who is still in C1 with Usagi, calls for Nobu through the wristband and asks if he is okay, and Nobu confirms that he split with Tetsu, and also that A1 was not the exit. Sachiko tells him to stay in the same room because they are on the other side of the wall, and promises to meet up the next round.
Round 6Sachiko and Usagi walk into B1, reuniting with Nobu. She has 11 points left on her wristband. Nobu says that they need to find Tetsu, and Sachiko starts shouting Tetsu's name into the wristband with worry, but neither she, Nobu, nor Usagi can reach Tetsu.
Round 9Sachiko's exact movements between Rounds 6 and 9 remain unknown, but by Round 9 she is in B3 with Nobu and Usagi as Ryuji comes in. They all acknowledge that Itsuki is gone, and Nobu points out that he does not know what room Tetsu is in, so he calls for him again but to no avail. He blames himself for leaving Tetsu behind, but Sachiko tries to remain positive and claims that they do not know if Tetsu is dead, he is simply not responding at the moment. B3 is a minus four point room, and Sachiko volunteers to be the one losing them. It leaves her at 7 points total.
Round 10Usagi rolls the dice, and the result is 1 (C3, red), 1 (B4, green), and 2 (A3, yellow). Since Usagi is pregnant and counts as two participants, there are five of them in the room, so one has to stay behind. Sachiko sees the vision of her husband insulting and kicking her son while she is begging him to stop.
Sachiko in a locked room
Sachiko looks at the vision of her husband punching her son, then turns around and sees a potential future where she and her son are carrying shopping bags, and he is helping her. She volunteers to stay behind in the locked room, explaining that she is the oldest and wants to let the youngest go on to live their lives while she takes on the difficult task herself. The others accept her reasoning, Sachiko stays in the room as the rest split and head towards different doors. Then she and Ryuji nod to each other, seeing Yuna sobbing beside her brother's body in one of the unlocked rooms.
Due to staying behind as an extra player with no other choice, Sachiko becomes trapped in B3. The room turns red, and multiple bad futures begin flickering on the screens around her as disturbing screeching noises fill the space from all sides. After learning about Tetsu's fate from Usagi, who has found his body, Sachiko cries out his name in pain.
Round 11Arisu comes up with a plan to release Sachiko from the lockdown. His plan involves placing the wristband of Usagi's baby in A2, but nobody knows what the penalty will be, so Sachiko worries that the child might die while they are trying to save her. However, Yuna comes to the rescue, and the plan is enacted. Usagi places her wristband in A2, and Sachiko's lockdown is lifted.
Round 12–13Sachiko moves to A4. While Usagi is trying to retrieve the wristband, the door to A3 opens, and Sachiko sees Tetsu's body, so she turns away in shock.
Round 14The dice are rolled, and the door to the last room, A5, becomes available. Sachiko sees a vision of her son holding a blood-covered knife as he angrily looks at his father. Then the vision fast-forwards to the scene where Sachiko scolds her son in tears, hugging him while he is in the police precinct. During the conversation with the others, she points out that she saw a glimpse of the exit door in Arisu's vision.
All the players reunite in A5, and the announcement states that they have all reached the exit room successfully. The collars and wristbands are automatically released and can be removed. However, one last roll is required to leave the venue, and Arisu rolls only seven, while there are eight of them in the room. He volunteers to stay behind, the rest leave the venue, and the doors lock.
Sachiko and her son in the real world
The Borderland collapse, and a huge wave washes the players off the platform. They grab onto the metal frame and manage to survive with Arisu's help, hiding inside the game venue. After Arisu saves Usagi, everyone returns to the real world.
Later, Sachiko is seen walking with her son in Shibuya. She scolds him for leaving his phone in a restroom and reminds him that he is already in high school. She then jokingly wonders who he takes after, referring to his absent-mindedness, and he laughs that he takes after her. She looks puzzled at first but then admits it with a smile. It is revealed that she has left her husband[1] and now lives a happy life with her family.
Games Played[]
Gallery[]
.jpg "AIBS3 EP2 S13 Unit 017 (Netflix).jpg (9.19 MB)")
Trivia[]
- The forename Sachiko commonly consists of the kanji "幸" (sachi) (happiness) and "子" (ko) (child). The exact kanji depend on the official spelling, which is not provided in the show, as the name is written in katakana.
- The surname Makino is commonly written with the kanji "牧" (maki) (pasture) and "野" (no) (field).
- Sachiko is a new character that did not appear in the original manga source.
References[]
- ↑ The information about Sachiko's decision to leave her husband is presented in the Netflix TUDUM article titled "Alice in Borderland Season 3 Ending: Who Is the Joker?"