賭博黙示録カイジ

GAMBLING APOCALYPSE KAIJI

MANGA

STATUS
COMPLETE
VOLUMES
13
RELEASE
October 1, 1999
CHAPTERS
158

DESCRIPTION

Ne'er-do-well Kaiji Itou's shiftless existence is suddenly rattled by a visit from the yakuza. Burdened by debt and resentment, Kaiji is coerced into gambling for his worthless life. As the stakes grow higher and the rules become increasingly more bizarre, Kaiji must finally take the future into his own hands!

(Source: Denpa)

Note: Won the 22nd Kodansha Manga Award for general manga in 1998.

CAST

Kaiji Itou
Yukio Tonegawa
Kazutaka Hyoudou
Yuuji Endou
Kouji Ishida
Makoto Sahara
Mamoru Andou
Takeshi Furuhata
Jouji Funai
Kitami
Nishio

CHAPTERS

RELATED TO GAMBLING APOCALYPSE KAIJI

ANIME PsychologicalKaiji - Ultimate Survivor

MANGA DramaTobaku Hakairoku Kaiji

Cover Art for Chuukan Kanriroku Tonegawa

MANGA ComedyChuukan Kanriroku Tonegawa

ONE SHOT PsychologicalKaiji Gaiden

Cover Art for Koushiki Ekkyouden: Fukumoto All Stars

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ONE SHOT DramaEspoir Mae Kaiji

Cover Art for Tenshoku Mokushiroku Kaiji

ONE SHOT ComedyTenshoku Mokushiroku Kaiji

REVIEWS

XROT
100/100
Fukumoto you have moved me. Interested in seeing what part 2 has in store
Gambling Apocolypse Kaiji

One of the best starts to any series I’ve read point blank.

The biggest player in that is how good the story is at engaging you. It’s very easy to read because of how enticing the plot is. The gambles and challenges Kaiji and his comrades go through never fail to keep you on the edge of your seat. From Limited Jaaken, to the two bridge events, to Emperor and even the tissue raffle, it’s hard for me to say there’s a dull moment. I’d find myself reading 20-40 chapters per day simply because of this

The story also challenges Kaiji in many cool ways. An important trait of his character has to be his compassion for others, especially towards those who’ve endured the same amount as him. This fact is why he teams up with Ando and Furuhata during Limited Jaaken, or why he holds onto Ishida’s ticket after his death. It’s the reason behind his dilemma of not being able to push anyone off during the first bridge race. At the beginning of the story, you could say he’s a bit too trusting, but he does grow out of that once he leaves Espoir. His sentiment, however, remains consistent. This trait of his is, what I believe, makes him such a unique gambler and a great foil to Tonegawa and especially Hyodo. The two of them both view the world as having limitless opportunities of exploitation, whether it be through the system or the people. They think of nothing but themselves, and cheat and manipulate to reach to the top. Kaiji isn’t immune to cheating, but he’d never view others, ones he can empathize with, as stepping stools as Tonegawa and Hyodo do. The two have interest in Kaiji because of his willingness to sacrifice everything to get what he wants, but I like to think that interest also comes from his reluctance to give up on others.

Both Tonegawa and Hyodo have pointed out Kaiji’s sentiment to be a weakness, and in some ways they’re right. When you think about it, Kaiji really could’ve cured his debt once he left Espoir, but him constantly thinking about achieving victory for him, Furuhata and Ando, is what led him to miss that chance as the ladder two would both betray him. I mentioned he was unable to push the competitor off the first bridge race, but his pleading to Tonegawa during the second challenge because of everyone around him dying is what caused him to not get the 20 million yen the first time. After he beat Tonegawa in Emperor, he could’ve left Starside Hotel with the 20 million yen as well. Instead, his sympathy towards Tonegawa’s embarrassment under Hyodo, as well as a feeling of unresolved revenge for Ishida and Sahara fueled him to start a raffle with Hyodo; his loss at the expense of that 20 million yen and his fingers. Every time he gambles, his compassion always causes him to lose something. He’s definitely realized this, but he still doesn’t let go of it. All of this is a great way of challenging his character, and makes Kaiji himself so interesting to me.

I also find Tonegawa himself to be a great character. Mainly for how hypocritical he is. During his speeches, he talks about how you can’t waste your life away; that you need to take your chances because they'll never come again regardless of the risk. He boasts during the Emperor game about using experience to read Kaiji's plays. But it's revealed that he's been cheating with the watch and once exposed we see him play worried and double guessing himself a ton. I see this paralleling real life; how people ascend to higher positions through deception and cheating. When that rug is swept under them, when they can't rely on safety and security, they crumble. He does show some pride in losing near the end, though, which makes Kaiji respect him even a little bit.

Wanna talk about the art in this series too. It's really clean in many places. The art style, I thought at least, would take time getting used to, but I found the way the characters looked to be charming. Also, Fukumoto's really good at capturing character's emotion through the panels. My favorite example of this is when Kaiji gets outfitted by Tonegawa during Emperor. Not only can you see in his face that he's distraught, but the panels surrounding him wobble all over the place; it's like we're seeing a window onto Kaiji's worldview via the paneling. I can post some of my other favorite panels as well so it's easier to see what I'm talking about. A quirk of his I enjoy is when he depicts panels detailing a hypothetical scenario with dotted lines. It's nothing crazy but I just find that so charming.

Overall, I loved it. It's not every day a series can invest me so quickly with its world and characters as Kaiji does. I can't wait to see what part 2 has in store

10/10

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