FKMT

MANLY MONDAY – “Death Pie”: Like James Bond with Mahjong

/ ElenaDS / Leave a comment

T4.png

There are many niches in the manga world, and one of the most unique ones is the “mahjong manga”. The monthly magazine Kindai Mahjong by the publishing house Takeshobo first hit the shelves in 1972 as a text magazine, and a manga magazine followed in 1980. Ever since then it has brought many interesting beloved series to the world, and even kickstarted the career of Nobuyuki Fukumoto, who would gain critical and popular success with his two hit series Akagi: Yami ni Oritatta Tensai and Ten: Tenhou-doori no Kaidanji.

Now, the idea of a mahjong magazine seems odd: All the manga that are released here have to feature this game of tiles – something not everyone is familiar with, especially outside Japan. It poses a simple yet deserved question: If everything is centered around a single game that must be the focus, doesn’t it get awfully stale or boring really fast? Surely the authors must be limited in their choice of stories and characters, right?

Surprisingly, this is not the case.

In fact, if one looks at it closer, it gives a lot of freedom. There must be mahjong in it, surely, but the rest can be chosen freely and this has led to some amazing series: Akagi and Ten both combine yakuza and villain plots with deep human drama, Tetsunaki no Kirinji by Uhyosuke is about a divorced single father dealing with his online mahjong addiction to take care of his daughter, Getter Robo High! mixes Go Nagai mecha, mahjong and high school, and Legend of Koizumi by Hideki Oowada is, well, world politics on crack.

12928-620x-snapshot20100102011631

If you haven’t seen Legend of Koizumi, I highly recommend that you do.

The best proof of this freedom is that Kindai Mahjong is not only still going after 38 years, but also that it has spawned many spinoff magazines with different readerships. Kindai Mahjong is not one of the biggest magazines out there, but it enjoys its stable cult status and continues its run.

I wish to present one short series from this magazine, to show what is possible within this mahjong frame: Death Pie by Kazuhiko Shimamoto, from 1989.

img000001 (1).png

Death Pie is the story of Tobioka Tsuboshi, an ex-cop fighting against drug cartels, who plays mahjong against big yakuza clans and defeats them monetarily. Of course, more plot threads will open: undercover missions, secret infiltrations, backstabbings and fights for life and death with tiles and guns. It feels distinctly “James Bond” in its story beats, but in its look and characters as well:

Smooth manly men in suits, good-looking classy women, overly evil villains, capable dangerous henchmen, high stakes gambling, secret casinos, action scenes and explosions in helicopters, cars and ships – everything that simply says “007” is here. Despite its yakuza setting, it borrows the feel of a Western style action film, and it fits.

img000007

img000022

img000028

A very rad action protagonist. Who also plays mahjong.

The look of the series brings me to another great quality this manga has: the art by Kazuhiko Shimamoto. He is mostly known for his “Blazing Transfer Student” series, but also other series that feature flames and blazes in the title, such as the autobiographical “Blue Blazes” (which has a fantastic TV adaptation) and “Burning Pen”. “Blazing Transfer Students REBORN” also received a Netflix live action reboot/revival in 2017, which I also highly recommend.

And as you can probably tell from that selection,  his series are characterised by BURNING PASSION and HOTBLOODED ACTION. Here you will find big emotions, huge clashes, and energetic characters who will fight for what they believe in. This is reflected in his artstyle, which is drawn with the same amount of power. Shimamoto does not only tell stories with fire, he IS the fire.

x16

Shimamoto explaining HOTBLOODED DRAWING.

In his making-of/behind the scenes manga Burning Pen he describes his approach to drawing: Have the same amount of passion as your characters, and bring that directly onto the paper. And it shows, with heavy contrast, stark brushstrokes modeling his characters, and thick outlines that make objects and sound words come alive.

z15

z16

z19

That’s one way to end a mahjong pool party.

I wish to especially point out the use of ink brushes, especially to draw the male characters hair, which gives everything a great sense of movement. The linework is outstanding, and gives the whole series an immense energetic feel.

r1 (1)

Of course, as Death Pie is very short, with only 9 chapters, I do not wish to talk a lot more about the story, and as I already said earlier, the plot feels distinctly James Bond, with the personal touch of Shimamoto.

But how does mahjong fit in with all of this?

The underworld and gambling go together hand in hand already, and so it does in this story as well. But Shimamoto’s presentation lifts it to another level. Most mahjong manga have intense games with outlandishly gigantic imagery, such as the visual metaphors in Akagi, or the special attacks in Legend of Koizumi, and Shimamoto’s trademark HOTBLOODEDNESS brings it’s own visual look to the table.

DLge8gjVwAAkUFt

For comparison: Nobuyuki Fukumoto’s Akagi…

a2829e3e8e5173ed190b69585bf65c801.jpeg

…Hideki Oowada’s Legend of Koizumi…

X23.png

… and Kazuhiko Shimamoto’s Death Pie.

And for those worrying about not knowing the rules of mahjong, this series does not put an immense focus on it. It is rather the surroundings and settings that make it fun, as well as the villains. The serious action film look with the over the top presentation of the mahjong manga creates a fantastic feeling, that is worth reading this series for. The plot can get a bit convoluted, or you may lose track of some characters, but in the end, it is all worth it: for the artstyle, the character design, the drawings, and the fact that one of the henchmen is Mahjong Bruce Lee.

img000020

Death Pie is a little gem that I would like to recommend to everybody. With its very short run of 9 chapters, you can easily read it in an afternoon and enjoy it to your heart’s content.

There will be something for everyone in here, be it the thrill of mahjong, the energetic artstyle, the larger than life characters, or simply the interest to check something out from a decade long past, in a niche manga magazine that has lived for many years and will for many years to come.

img000011.png

The End.

Sources: Wikipedia: Kindai Mahjong, MyAnimeList: Death Pie, Mahjongkrazy Scanlation Notes

MANLY MONDAY – “Buraiden Gai”: The Unique Shonen Outlaw

/ ElenaDS / Leave a comment

wwwww

It is a good time for Nobuyuki Fukumoto’s works. Gin to Kin and Akagi both have successful TV dramas, the Kaiji manga has started a new arc, Zero is getting a steampunk TV adaptation, and the highly anticipated Tonegawa anime is on the horizon, with a release scheduled for July 2018.

In this big “Fukumotoverse” with its prequels, sequels and spinoffs, lies one smaller work that is on its own. No continuation, no adaptation, there it stands, alone and completed – fitting for its own story, themes and characters.

This is the manga Buraiden Gai, or “Legend of Outlaw Gai”. This manga was published from 2000 – 2001 in the Weekly Shonen Magazine, (not related to JUMP) which has more popular and successful series in the past and present than you might think: Devilman, Ashita no Joe, Hajime no Ippo, GTO, and recently, Koe no Katachi, Fairy Tail and AKB49.

In Buraiden Gai, the eponymous Gai, a young 13 year old schoolchild, is running. Running away from the police.

x14

And so, he is cornered in a dead end street.

The city is in chaos, the media is all over the place and the police is unable to cope with all this confusion. Why is everybody on their feet trying to catch this young boy?

As it turns out, he murdered an older man. Not any man, however, but the patriarch of a big and influential yakuza clan. As Gai faces the overwhelming police force with nothing but his bare fists, he proclaims: “I was framed!”

x28

Of course, no one believes Gai.

The evidence points absolutely against Gai: his fingerprints are on the murder weapon, on the body, at the site and his escape from the crime scene is recorded on a security tape, directly after the point of murder.

After a long verbal battle and a short physical one with the police inspector, which Gai surprisingly wins despite his age and size, he is arrested. Too young to go to prison, he will be sent to a youth rehabilitation facility before his trial. However, as he arrives, he finds out that this is not better than prison, in fact, it’s worse.

x8 (2)

Something is fishy. Especially the visual historical weight of those uniform designs, if you look at them more closely.

This is more than prison, this an institution of cruelty with one goal only: turning young people into honourable and upright citizens, with any means necessary. It immediately becomes clear to Gai: He has to get out of here, but more importantly, he has to prove his innocence. The police officer believes him, however, there is no proof that the evidence is forged.

And so, the adventure of Outlaw Gai begins: Regain your freedom, fight for justice, crash the abusive system of the adults. “Prison Break Plot” meets “Philosophy Hour”.

Inherently, this sounds like a very Shonen plot, but the seriousness and intensity of Fukumoto’s Seinen spirit shines through, which I will not spoil here. The way the young prisoners are treated is very violent and shocking, and the themes he addresses are important to anyone, not just teenagers who are the target group of this manga. And it is definitely not for the faint of heart. There will be violence and questionable “education” methods, ranging from physical discomfort to psychological terror.

We see several themes in this manga: What is “freedom”? What is “strength”? What does it mean to “grow up”?

x5 (4).png

School settings are rare for Fukumoto, and thus very welcome.

Gai is a great protagonist for this story: young, with a clear, straight outlook on life, and he does what he thinks is right. He receives a proper backstory as well, which fleshes out his character even more – a rare thing for Fukumoto, who normally does not give big flashbacks to his protagonists, as they are characterised by their actions in the present, such as Kaiji, Akagi or Kurosawa. For Gai, it fits, as we see him in his middle school days, struggling with the decisions of life before he was thrown into the prison setting.

And much like Kurosawa, Gai uses predominantly his fists to solve problems. Fukumoto’s intense, visceral, sharp style lends itself perfectly to these violent outbursts that carry gravitas within the story.

x1 (3).png

Smash the system. Right in the face.

If there is one word I can use for Buraiden Gai, it’s “condensed”. With its 5 volumes and 38 chapters in total, it is one of the shortest series Fukumoto has ever done, some of his series have been going for over 20 years – and yet, it brushes and discusses a lot of topics, through flashbacks, monologues and dialogues, all neatly woven into the story, which is equally busy: a prison break and a yakuza crime story all rolled into one.

From my research, I could only find information that the series was cancelled by the Weekly Shonen magazine, and that Fukumoto was unhappy with the ending he had to re-write, but nothing very concrete or any reasoning behind the decision to scrap it. As it stands, I like the ending, but one can feel the change in direction in the story. After about 3/4 of the chapters, the focus shifts and the narration speed slows down for a few chapters, only to pick up again – most likely to steer into the direction of the new finale.

It is a bit sad that Buraiden Gai was not allowed not fully unfold itself, as the potential is there. A young hero with a no-nonsense direction but lacking life experience and maturity, against a smooth-talking villainous prison guard who thinks his own askew methods of education are right. In addition, the Hirata Clan, the powerful yakuza family, is maybe holding more threads than they seem.

x18 (2).png

Everything is connected. Is there a way out for Gai?

Even if the story is cut short, it still delivers the themes and questions it wants to. One can only wonder what it would have looked like if Fukumoto had the time to give it the vision he intended. Buraiden Gai could have been a big epic about the struggle of growing up and wishing for independence, as well as the conflict of generations. But as it stands, it is now a short, quick Shonen that delivers its punches and disappears again into the night, to leave you with its thoughts. Other Shonen might have pushed the boundary already what goes on in the genre, from Go Nagai’s Devilman to Hajime Isayama’s Attack on Titan, both violent and intense as well, but Buraiden Gai manages to even stand out among these. If a series can make me actively queasy with its ideas without being too graphic, then we got something unique here.

You can read all of Buraiden Gai in one or two days, maybe even in one sitting, and I highly recommend doing so. Not only for its intense story and philosophy, but also for Fukumoto’s artstyle. His longer stories rarely change settings, but Buraiden Gai displays a surprising amount of setting changes, brought to great effect in great spreads.

x5 (8).png

x14 (2).png

Some double-spreads are absolutely beautiful.

Buraiden Gai is the unique little Shonen outlaw in Fukumoto’s catalogue, without gambling themes or spinoffs, and I highly recommend reading it – for seeing what can be done in a Shonen Magazine, and for its philosophic content that it delivers with a sympathetic, strong and likeable protagonist.

The series had no time to show its true potential, but what it did was great, and it can nicely sit with all the other Fukumoto series in a big serious universe full of intense life stories. Will Gai break out of the youth detention prison? Will Gai defeat the yakuza? And will Gai find what he wants in life?

Give Gai a chance, he won’t take much out of your time, but I’m sure that he will stay with you for a longer while.

bura

The End.

PS: And once you’re done, check out this fantastic mock-up of an Anime OP, in the style of the Death Note OP2.

Sources: Wikipedia entry: “Nobuyuki Fukumoto”, MyAnimeList entry: “Weekly Shounen Magazine” and “Buraiden Gai”

MANLY MONDAY: “LifE”and “Confession”- Fukumoto Double Feature

/ ElenaDS / Leave a comment

Nobuyuki Fukumoto, or nicknamed “FKMT” for short, is most known for his unique, sharp expressive artstyle, and hard-boiled underworld stories, that cut to the core of human emotions.

Since the 90’s, he is a successful mangaka, with several long-running series, that are all beloved by critics and fans alike. But one of the downsides would be that therefore his work is not easily accessible. His manga are fantastic, but insanely long -“Kaiji” and “Akagi” have both been running for 20 years now, and other series have had spin-offs, parodies, prequels and sequels. The “Fukumotoverse” is immensely big and vast, yet so very lovely to get lost in. Intense long stories all around.

So, is there a way to get a glimpse of his work, for a newcomer for example? A “snack-sized” FKMT story?

There are two short stories written by him, illustrated by Kaiji Kawaguchi (Ha! Kaiji!), that are short, intense and have all the traits of the author. These two manga are “LifE” and “Confession”.

LifE

“LifE” or “Seizon Life” is the story of Masao Takeda. His wife died after a hard and long fight with cancer, and now, he has been diagnosed with the same cancer as well. Devastated and emotionally destroyed, he wants to take his own life.

But as he steps up to the noose to hang himself, his phone suddenly rings.

edc3852bbddba4e00c5b07e9ec84adb20ac74559e7af3b86bd7e3656369bc8121cb8d8403866c552b16846a90aeff2b6

They found the corpse of his teenage daughter, Sawako, who went missing about 14 years ago. As he goes to the police station, and finally sees his daughter, he asks if the murderer can be found. He is informed of a crucial fact:

The “statute of limitations”. When 15 years pass, a case is dropped and closed, even when the true culprit has been found. Sawako has been found after 14 years and 6 months. In 6 months time, the killer will walk away unpunished.

Takeda cannot accept this. He waited so long for the confirmation of his daughter’s death and the finding of her body to give her a proper burial. He wants to take action. He will find the killer. Come what may. Yet his doctor is not ok with this.

f17a7b4c41d57d671309870e1c66196e57644cda74f144a838ac1f41a25641706314630e914f5c38a5451e46ef699be0

He hands in his resignation and walks away.

6 months until his death. 6 months until the murderer is free. This cannot be a coincidence, he thinks. And so, he goes on his very last mission: Find the killer of his daughter.

life-1

He is somewhere. Out there. A free man, unpunished.

The story unfolds, and reveals single pieces of mystery and detective work, as Masao Takeda tries to walk the same path his daughter did on the fateful day she died. As he retreads his memories, Takeda sees himself as a bad father during her lifetime. He was too cold, distant, didn’t really care for her interests and hobbies, and was always at work.

But now, all he can and even must do, is to look at her life and interests.

5f210497582ad7896b38455dbcbb10c22ded9dac1720c6afa021f2ddbff3090f

And so, they reunite from beyond the grave to find the killer and their lost time – together.

A big criticism of FKMT’s body of work has always been that he doesn’t include romance or important female characters in his stories. While largely true, this does not impact the strength and importance of his work. It is not his focus, and it may also be his way of breaking with his “Shoujo Manga Artist” past. He was once an artist who wrote and drew romance, even winning awards with it, but it left him unhappy. It was not what he wanted to do. So, he left the magazine he worked for, and went to a tiny Majongg manga magazine. And this is where his career took off. But now, it is nearly impossible to find his old work before he started doing Seinen.

Instead, he has found his way. He understands and paints “relationships”, especially between male characters, more than any other: be it top-down unbalanced friendships, true friendship, naive falling for fake relationships, false admiration, extensive villainy, a mix of all of them, or in this case: Family. And as he has shown in other works – most noteably in Kaiji Part 4 – that “family” is theme he can do perfectly. It’s even a more rare case here: The bond between daughter and father – a theme way too often overlooked and underexplored in media. “LifE” shows it in a beautiful, strong light, that may bring a tear to your eyes and make your heart swell.

Takeda only has 6 months to solve the case, and to live on this planet. It is his last stand and final action. The clock is ticking. 15 years are a long time. Many things have changed. This is not going to be easy.

life-3

It’s like finding a needle in a haystack. Or a clue in a junkyard full of cars.

Complementing FKMT’s writing is Kawaguchi’s artwork, a very detailed, but still slightly cartoonish look, that gives it a strong sense of realism. A special focus should be put onto protagonist Takeda. His grave, sad, expressive face is what carries this manga. In addition, cancer is eating away at Takeda’s general health, meaning that he becomes more and more thin and gaunt the more time passes. The visual clock of his well-being is ticking away too.

Takeda must also walk the fine line between “handing the murderer to the police”, and “not turn into a raging vigilante”, which is also a theme in the story. When sadness and grief builds up for so long, it can cause immense damage.

6835e044630dc80e5712e1fe08129e08

“Shining Justice” certainly looks different.

While this story seems inherently sad from the outlook and may scare some readers away, I can more than recommend it for its intense detective/mystery story, but also for the heartwarming moments. “LifE” is a story of hope and sadness, reuniting of a family, the bond between father and daughter, and the race against death – for one last act of justice.

“LifE” is concluded in 3 volumes, and would make for a really good movie length-wise. FKMT’s writing and Kawaguchi’s artstyle really compliment each other and create a strong, emotional impression, with a touching story and expressive art.

57706141800f05de310aee185008a893

After this heartwarming/breaking story, let us focus on FKMT’s other short story and main strength: Intensity and Thrill.

Confession

“Confession” or “Confession: Kokuhaku” is the story of two friends, Asai and Ishikura, who go hiking in the snowy mountains, but get lost in a snowstorm.

31903dcad677faf541906944f8298dc4

Now, you may look at this cover and think, “Man, why would you write such a spoiler on your cover?” There is a point to that. It is the initial setting.

5f94a67af7da8b95876aa7a9af32177d49bdcd676c8eea469eb7ad1ff9a160a578ebf42a56d54be2bb04414b6d76a2e0

This happens in the first 15 pages.

Ishikura confesses that he killed one of their friends during a past hiking trip. He is certain that they will both die in this snowstorm together, so he wants to confess his sins, to, at least, die in peace.

Asai is understanding in this extreme situation. How can he deny his dying friend’s last wish?

But as Asai gets up, for a desperate try to look for help, suddenly:

ea6259b60fcfee2f484a3ca95179bbbc214272010ad5b46da5eb8044ac1aa436

They weren’t far from their original destination, a mountain lodge.

Saved! They are not going to die out here in the cold! So, he simply needs to carry his wounded friend up there and call for help! Everything is going to turn out ok, is it?

fce7cf159e3bdf36e8387eb9261192ce

…

No.

In fact, everything has become worse. Ishikura just confessed a murder. And he survives. His dying wish has turned into a massive regret. Maybe into something more.

19da7d7b98e747ae25e1e7256fbdaa95733c225803a84d2eb29d3ce7ff2b96ab

Something is not alright.

And so, the manga starts. 2 days until help arrives. 2 men in a single room. One of them is a murderer, who just confessed. But he is hurt, so he cannot move.

What to do now?

6c9057b9d60e4aaacc4e5774d235d68b

They wait.

Kawaguchi’s artstyle really shines in this story, as he also shows a stylistic preference and focus that FKMT prefers in his manga: Eyes.

eye

confession

Eyes say more than a thousand words.

This is peak FKMT writing: Psychological warfare with real physical threat between two characters. We see both sides and it has the genre of a “chamber play” – a whole story that plays out in a single room. His writing influences the artstyle as well, a lot of reaction panels, atmospheric shots and internal monologue that just flies by. His writing is so smooth, you won’t notice going through many, many pages.

268b50cef47e51940c15cd8b352bd580

I do not wish to tell you more than this setting, because this story is best experienced blind, without prior knowledge. Just let it be known that FKMT is a master of dialogue, suspense and Thriller.

“Confession” is only one volume, about 300 pages long, and yet it has you on the edge of your seat at every page turn.

Conclusion

If you ask me personally, I prefer “Confession” over “LifE”, as it had me cling to my table while reading it. This does not mean that “LifE” is bad, far from it. Both works are brilliant short pieces, but fundamentally different in tone and narrative structure, so that it comes down to personal preference. While “Confession” glued me to the pages and sucked me in with pure intensity and rough power, “LifE” made my eyes teary in empathy and understanding.

Both stories have aspects that many fans and critics love about FKMT’s writing: Heartwarming and heartbreaking moments, raw emotion, intruiging characters, difficult and interesting relationships, unique situations, psychological aspects and intense atmosphere.

If you are a fan of FKMT already, these stories are interesting additions to his canon and great observations about his writing, to see it detached from his unique, yet “something-to-get-used-to” artstyle.

If you haven’t read anything by FKMT yet, or have been put off by his artstyle, this may be your chance to check him out as an author and see the appeal that his trusty, long-living fanbase loves him so much for.

The End.

“Kaiji” – An Introduction to One of my Favourite Anime

/ ElenaDS / 1 Comment

kaiji-and-group.png

Genres: Seinen | Thriller | Psychological | Gambling

Rating: R (17+)

Studio: Madhouse

Year: 2007 (Season 1) | 2011 (Season 2)

Streaming License: Crunchyroll

What is this?

“Kaiji” is an adaptation of the manga by the same name, by author and mangaka Nobuyuki Fukumoto. “Kaiji” is his highly regarded, most popular manga. Running since 1996 and still ongoing today, it is a very influential piece and a beloved franchise. Like other long-running series, it is split up into story parts. The manga is currently in Part 5, and Part 1 and 2 were adapted into anime by Studio Madhouse, with Season 1 and 2 respectively.

Story

In the financial crisis of 90’s Japan, Kaiji, a young good-for-nothing guy, is failing at life. Accumulating small gambling debts, drinking and smoking, being jobless, living alone in his tiny apartment – he lives a sad life that he wants to change. Due to a stroke of tragic destiny, he suddenly gains a lot more debt, as he absent-mindedly signed a contract for one of his co-workers a few years ago. Now a mafia loan-shark stands in front of him, telling him that he is 3,850,000 Yen (~35,500$) in debt. And they want their money back. Now.

Thus starts the adventure of Kaiji, through a lot of manly tears, addiction, hype, tragedy, happiness, gambles, pain and twisted gameshows.

kaiji-cry

Eh.

What?

I have seen this, I don’t like the art style. It looks ugly.

Don’t worry, there are perfectly good reasons for the art style to be like that.

Firstly, this is Fukumoto’s style. His character design is sharp, angular and instantly recognisable. And Madhouse did a fantastic job of brushing up his style and giving it a fresh coat of paint. Here is a comparison between the first chapter of the manga (1996) and the first episode of the anime (2007).

00.png

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Sharper, cleaner and more modern, while keeping the spirit.

They made the initial artwork more accessible and more timeless, the same way Studio David Productions handled the modern adaptation of Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure.

Secondly, this style fits perfectly for the stories Fukumoto is telling. Kaiji is a story of the lowlifes of this generation, the ones without hope and money, the shady business of loan sharks and the dark empire of the yakuzas. This is not a pleasant world, and the art reflects that. It is not supposed to be beautiful. The creators were in on the joke for Season 2 and straight up advertised it as “It’s the anti-moe anime.”

You will grow to you like it, once you see it in context and motion, trust me!

Characters

The main protagonist is Kaiji Itou, a man in his early twenties, our first grade procrastinator and overly emotional underdog. He may be one of the most relatable characters, without being a self-insert MC. Today’s anime landscape is saturated with overpowered light novel edgelords and insanely dense harem “comedy” protagonists, who can’t express any emotions except embarrassment when confronted with any form of sexuality.

Kaiji is emotional, he cries a lot, but he is annoyed by this fact – he doesn’t like it. He wants to change his life, he wants to do something! But life is not that easy sometimes. Some obstacles are thrown in his way, some obstacles he creates himself.

Significant to notice is: He is emotional, not whiny.

His emotional range goes both ways. From happy to sad, from destroyed to gleeful, this man has everything. He is expressive and vivid, in Season 1 and even more in Season 2.

kaiji compo v2.png

Season 1

kaiji compo 2

Season 2

Kaiji as a protagonist is an outright joy to watch, and that paired with the intense, unpredictable, serious Seinen plot, makes an emotional rollercoaster. Will he win? Will he lose? Will his plans work out for him?

When he is thrown into this unusual situation of fighting to survive, kill or be killed, he will reach his limits; but here is the important fact: He will not give up, he will fight. The harder he is pushed, the harder he will fight back. Even if that means suffering and dealing with the consequences of lost gambles.

And the yakuza do not take kindly to people screwing with them. Believe me, there is a reason “Kaiji” is rated R. Expect physical and psychological violence. This series gets intense. Manly tears shall flow.

tumblr_mkz5tcLoLO1r5kw8so3_1280.png

Life isn’t all sunshine and rainbows.

Voice Acting

What makes Kaiji also work as a protagonist is not only the story and the characterisation; it’s also the voice work of Masato Hagiwara as Kaiji. He is not a voice actor, he is a film actor – often playing roles in drama and thriller movies. He is able to pull this emotional range off, and give it a realistic, non-anime touch. The main character breathes and comes to life.

The other important character is the “Narrator”. With a big, booming voice, he will explain and announce, and sometimes even have his own monologues. Over the top and full of ham, this performance is pure fun. You may recognise this voice: It’s Fumihiko Tachiki a.k.a. “Gendou Ikari” from Neon Genesis Evangelion.

This rift between realism and overstatement creates both moments of comedy and drama. Having these two voices clash is bliss.

stare.png

The narrator knows what’s up!

Soundtrack

Absolutely fantastic. As this anime is mostly about mind-battles and has heavy use of internal monologue and dialogues between characters, you need something to accompany this mass of words. And the OST by Hideki Taniuchi is stellar. You could watch this series for its soundtrack alone.

The whole OST is an effective blend between “hype”, “melancholy” and “INTENSE” . I can only call this OST “depressingly uplifting”. It fits the tone of the show like a glove. (I do not wish to spoil the soundtrack, but here is a selection if you want to check it out beforehand.)

Hype

Fate | Wish | Don’t Give Up | High Max

Melancholy

Beginning | Regret | Elegie | Child’s Mind

INTENSE

Middle Zawa | Black Sun | Prologue | ZAWA ZAWA~

What is this “Zawa”?

As most long-running influential series, some aspects gain a form of an iconic status.

For example, in Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure, it’s the use of  ゴゴゴゴゴ, the “menacing” sound effect used by Araki. Fukumoto also has his own sound effect that he uses: ざわ‥ or “Zawa…” meaning “unnerving/muttering/whispers/uncomfortable”. Madhouse, like David Productions, incorporated these sound words into the anime, and in this case, even into the soundtrack. It has a unique effect in creating an uneasy atmosphere.

kaiji.png

ZAWA…

Any downsides?

The animation is not the most mindblowing of all – it is solid, sharp and polished, but it takes a backseat compared to the dialogue, the characters, the intrigue and the soundtrack. Sakuga moments do exist, and they are great, especially in the realm of character acting – but most are reserved for big reveals and story twists. The use of CGI is unfortunately there, a bit more so in Season 1 – but it is mostly used as a 3D camera for establishing shots and sweeping shots through rooms and across tables. But: CGI is never used on characters or crowds. They are always hand-drawn, which is a big plus.

Another thing would be the sort-of slow beginning. Season 1 does not immediately start with life-or-death scenarios and Kaiji, the old procrastinator, needs a good slap in the face before he gets going. He needs to understand his position first. But once it gets into the hype flow, you will be binging this series. His character development is beautiful to watch.

Season 1 is great, but Season 2 clearly outshines it, with better soundtrack, better animation, better characterisation of the villains and even more intense mind battles. Fukumoto gets better with every part, in his writing and his artwork, and it shows.

Also, Studio Madhouse made a season 2 for once, hurray! Therefore, Season 3 never. But you can immediately pick up the manga for Part 3 after finishing Season 2, if you so desire. The adaptation is very faithful.

(And stay away from the live action movies. They’re bloody awful adaptations. But that is a rant for another day.)

Influence and Conclusion

ka

Kaiji was highly influential for the mid-nineties, by having a humane main character, who has his own flaws and occupies the position of an underdog. He is not overpowered, he has to work, scheme and think hard in order to win. And there is no way to tell if it will work out.

The ending for Season 1 conveys this feeling quite beautifully. The slow walk with a grave, Western style song, that nearly feels tarantino-esque, is delightfully elegant. Simple, yet effective.

In contrast to other gambling manga from this time period, Kaiji’s gambles are all original games. There is no Poker, Uno, Roulette, or Black Jack – everything and anything can be a gamble. This makes it easier for the audience to understand the situations, as no previous knowledge is needed and we, the audience, can figure out a way to beat the game with Kaiji together.

And little references to “Kaiji” are still present in anime today, either in direct form or as parody. Kaiji recently even got a “Monster Hunter” DLC, complete with little word clouds of ZAWA that surround your character. (Trailer, Attention: Little visual spoilers for Kaiji!)

It is a cherished franchise, still today, after 20 years.

“Kaiji” is a unique, intense, historically important manga, winning the Kodansha Manga Award in 1998. It has been treated and remade with great care and love in anime form, and I think that you will enjoy it. Both seasons have great ratings, but they are criminally underwatched. Maybe it’s your turn to check them out!

Watch this if…

– you like Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure. As already mentioned above, it’s an old manga series that has been brought to life again with a lot of care and love for the influential, beloved source material. The mix of intense battles and manly emotions is similar – just with a lot less muscles and longer hair. Important: If you loved the D’Arby Brothers fights in “Stardust Crusaders”, this is absolutely for you.

– you like Gen Urobuchi, especially Madoka Magica. Yes, you read that correctly. Both series share a common theme of likable characters going through a lot of pain and suffering. You might like Kaiji if you enjoyed Madoka for this melancholy feel. Get ready for another form of despair: Urobuchi is more tragedy and personal destiny, while Fukumoto is more human drama and moral dilemmas. It’s different, but in the same tradition.

– you like Sports Anime: Gambling is a sport! Just with more “card-throwing” and less “ball-tossing”. Some episodes feel as if only 5 minutes had passed. The hype soundtrack and insane cliffhangers will have you on the edge of your seat, as per usual for the genre. I can’t possibly fathom how people could have watched this series while airing. Kaiji is highly binge-watchable.

– you like Mind Battles: “Death Note” or the manga “Liar Game” are some examples that fit the genre. They are cat and mouse games, where the roles can easily switch from the hunter to the hunted.

– you have been feeling down lately. There is nothing more cathartic and supportive than watching a character who is in an equal, or even worse position than you are. You are not alone. Aren’t we all procrastinators? Do you also just work when somebody forces you, or gives you a deadline? Haven’t we all got hope that our lives get better? Instead of looking for escapism – go for confrontation.

TL;DR Kaiji is a long-running manga, starting from 1996 and still ongoing today. It currently has 5 parts, Part 1 and 2 both got an anime series. Kaiji has ludicrous amounts of debts that he has to pay back to the yakuza. Join him in his adventures and his life-or-death gambles to get money. It’s a depressingly uplifting tale, with an endearing, overly-emotional protagonist who is all too relatable.

UPDATE July 2023: Kaiji was mentioned as one of the main influences on the Netflix hit series “Squid Game”, and the anime has a US Bluray release! Please enjoy!

kaiji-and-group

The End.

The Anime of Second Chances – Finding your “Want” and “Need”

/ ElenaDS / Leave a comment

We are in a good time of anime. The slice of life genre flourishes, there is a newly-found appreciation for animation and love of sakuga, independant studios and kickstarters can produce unique and interesting works, and the possibilities of legal streaming have opened the doors for a whole new set of fans.

One could say that all seems fine and dandy in this age of japanese animation. But I see a worrying trend in the choice of stories that get anime adaptations.

I call them “The Anime of Second Chances”.

They are things the audience “wants”, but not necessarily “needs”. More on that later.

Let us start by looking at them first: They can be broadly split into two groups: “The Change of Setting” and “The Past Redone”.

Unbenannxxt-1.png

The Change of Setting

Mostly a trend with light novels, this type of genre takes a protagonist and throws him into a new world. As a blank slate ha can start a new life, make his own adventure, and have many girls fall for him. No ties to the real world will hold him back, he is the protagonist. Maybe he even gets plot armour, that protects him from all harm. The nerd is victorious.

“Sword Art Online” may be the crowning jewel and starting point for this genre – as most setting changes involve “getting trapped into an MMORPG” in some form.

The more recent adaptations try to show faults and mistakes of the protagonists, making them a bit more grounded, but one thing never changes: They get a second chance at life. Without any merit, rhyme or reason, a person who has failed at life gets a new start.

Wouldn’t it be so much more fun to press the reset button and start anew, with your knowledge intact? With a whole new world to explore, far away from the shackles of reality? To use your nerdy wisdom, that is practically useless in the real world, in order to succeed? And have all the girls fall for you, just because you are you?

No matter how you twist and turn it: It is pure wish-fulfillment.

Is that bad? Well, we humans do love escapism! Switch your life off, and switch another one’s life on. Imagine yourself as the self-insert protagonist and come back refeshed. And as I have gathered from most discussion forums, it is a guilty pleasure for a lot of people. The genre tropes are obvious and play by the numbers, although with some variation. It is easily digested entertainment. Blazing action, juicy fanservice, intersting story, and a familiar, yet newly done setting of MMORPGs. Of course a lot of anime fans will watch that. It appeals to the “nerd” demographic.

These animes are the equivalent of Hollywood entertainment, and they will always exist. One can easily avoid these series if you don’t like them. (You will just run into a Kirito and Asuna couple-cosplay in every convention. That is unavoidable. It is a rule of the universe that you will run into them! It must happen!)

But those are obvious “wish-fulfillment” series. The next one is more subtle.

Unbenaxxxnnt-2.png

The Past Redone

This is another form of “Second Chance”, but this time, the setting stays the same. Through to some plot convinience and supernatural/technical/medicinal help, the protagonist gets a chance to change the past, in order to succeed in the future. Go back to the past and fix the mistakes.

But I have this odd feeling that these kinds of anime series are not there to show growth or understanding for one’s current situation. They just give a second chance, in real life, and that is even more wish-fulfillment than the first case. It still has an element of video games: Are you stuck in that visual novel we call “Real Life”? Just reload one of your saves and make some other decisions! Maybe you’ll get the “good ending” this time! Haha!

Instead of dealing with the consequences of the choices the protagonist has taken, he or she can redo all of the past! It is escapism done wrong: running away from your problems and the decisions that led up to it. Smash it all, do it again.

I was tricked twice by the current season of anime, Summer 2016. I rarely read any of the descriptions for upcoming anime, maybe I’ll watch the first PV but nothing more, I want to jump in as blind as possible. And I was taken aback by two series: “Orange” and “ReLife”.

“ReLife” was obvious, right from the title. Our failed twenty-something protagonist gets a second chance at high school, he takes a pill from the government, gets younger, and gets to relive the glorious days of high school, hopefully getting a job at the end. Am I interested in this? No. For me personally, going back to high school would be hell on Earth. I am happy being in university and doing the things that I like. This is not my dream, nor my kind of show.

“Orange” was the one that made me want to write this article. I only knew that this was going to be a character drama with a group of friends. Having enjoyed “Kiznaiver” just a season earlier, I was on board to give it a shot. And it threw me off within the first minutes.

I was terribly excited to see 26 year old protagonists, digging out a time capsule, with letters from their 16 year old selves. Would it show the rift between the ages? Would it have clashing world views and futures? How are these friends doing now? What happend in the past and how does it look now? I want to know!

Finally! Some characters that are not … in … high … school. Oh.

It was a flash forward. The series actually plays in high school, with the female protagonist getting letters on how she can improve her future life by taking different decisions.

That was not nice, “Orange”. Not nice. Now I am stuck with an high school anime again. I know, you are probably a good series, I will probably continue you, but don’t throw a curveball at me like that!

Maybe if you like high school, this show is for you. But this setting has been done to death for me. Most series are fueled by this nostalgia that high school was the greatest time of your life – romanticising the setting through the heavens and beyond. And if you have no nostalgia for it, just experience it again as somebody else! Get the first love you never had, meet with your group of friends or join the club that you never dared to go to.

Go back, reload the old save file! Come on!

But there are no secondary save files in the “Real Life” VN.

Unbenaxxxnnt-3.png

The Twenty-Somethings and Consequences

One vital part of growing up is taking responsibility and facing the results of personal decisions. Understand consequences and learn from them. Yes, you will fail in life sometimes, but you will learn from these experiences.

And there is anime about exactly that. Two series that are very close to my heart for this very reason are She and Her Cat: Everything Flows and Kaiji.

maxresdefault

“She and Her Cat: Everything Flows” is a short format 4-part OVA series that ran in March 2016. It’s the story of a young woman, living with her cat that she had since childhood. She is struggling with life, going from job interview to job interview, being alone, finding a new appartment to live in, and having arguments about her future with her single mother. And it is all told from the perspective of the cat.

The cat understands her emotions, but not the reasons, as he cannot understand human speech. It is a reduced story with a small focus, but it will aim straight at you and your position in life. A soft, emotional, heartwarming series, that will move you to tears.

i want to live 2

“Kaiji” is the story of eponymous Kaiji Itoh, a young man being a failure at life. He is in his early twenties and lives alone in a tiny apartment. With huge gambling debts and no job, he is suddenly forced by loan sharks to take care of his life. And he does so by entering the underground gambling world of the yakuza. He finally wants to take his life into his own hands. But this world is not beautiful. Every decision he takes will have consequences, ranging from “very good” to “hellishly gruesome”. He portrays life struggle like no other protagonist. He must take every step on his own responsibility, and the result will be even more emotional, as it was all his personal decision, consciously taken and planned.

Combine this intense concept with an overly emotional, possibly depressed, underdog protagonist, that you will root for and suffer with, and you have a series full of hype and melancholy. It will hit you hard, reminding you of the real world through a mirror of visual and narrative expressionism.

–

Both series were intensely supportive and have taught me something about myself. They had relateble protagonists without being self-inserts and they were both in insecure positions in their lives. But they fight, onwards, no matter what the future may hold. I don’t want to go back into the past, I have already learned from it. I want to look into the future. I am not a teenager anymore. I am 24. Life goes on and so do you. And you are not alone.

Maybe I am just getting older. Or maybe I just need more Seinen and Josei in my life.

I still haven’t seen “The Tatami Galaxy” and “Welcome to the NHK” yet. From what I’ve read, I’m already sure that I will love them. And they will give me something in return.

Conclusion – “Want” and “Need”

If “The Anime of Second Chances” help you in your life, that’s great. But the “teenage fulfillment” and “high school nostalgia” may just not be enough – without the audience noticing. And as the anime fanbase gets bigger and, consequently, older, I see an upcoming niche that nobody notices was there before.

In the end, it all boils down to a question of “Want” and “Need”.

What do you want in an anime? Action, fanservice, high schools, violence, splatter, romance, mechas, idols, moe, tsunderes, danderes, yanderes, harems, manservice…

What do you need from anime? Emotional catharsis, support, help, understanding, advice,  happyness, companionship, courage, sympathy…

Knowing what you “want” is easy. You know the genres and tropes you love. But you have to know yourself well in order to figure out your “need”. Be honest to yourself. Outside of that pool of same genres lies something that you didn’t know you needed. Once you are ready for it, you will be happier and learn something about yourself.

Watching a series that you “want” is not wrong, absolutely not! For godness’ sake, I am watching “Baki: The Grappler” right now, because I “want” more manly men, as Jojo Part 4 once a week does not fill the quota of manly manlyness. I don’t “need” it, but I sure as hell “want” to watch it.

But right now, most new anime only give the audience what it “wants”. More light novel adaptations, more manga that redoes the past, more shows that tick all the popular genre boxes.

My opinion on the matter? Maybe, what we need in anime is a bit less “wish-fulfillment” and tiny bit more “confrontation”. For example, this season’s “Sweetness and Lightning” came to my surprise. A story about a single father raising his daughter, struggling after his wife’s passing, but giving his best. He deals with the consequences life has thrown at him – and the portrayal is realisticly melancholic, yet intensely heartwarming. It was not a show I wanted, but once I started watching it – I knew that it was a show I needed.

…

That “Real Life” VN is going on right now.

You only have one save file. Use it well.

continue.png

My 3×3 Favourite Anime

/ ElenaDS / 2 Comments

mosaic23cb9526a46e7711e81413c3071f852802708cca

This is my 3×3 of “My Favourite Animes”. What are they and why do I love them? What makes them special to me? Here are my thoughts, come and join me!

Kaiji

tugeCq9

I have a weakness for remakes and old mangas getting new adaptations. Seeing classics being brushed up, cleaned and given a fresh coat of paint makes me happy. It often shows how timeless a series really is, how it precisely captured a zeitgeist, or what beauty is hidden under timely dust. “Kaiji” is one of those.

In the financial crisis of 90’s Japan, Kaiji, a young good-for-nothing dude, is failing at life. Racking gambling debts with friends, drinking and smoking, jobless, living alone in his tiny apartment, he lives a sad life that he wants to change. Due to a stroke of tragic destiny, he suddenly gains a lot more debt, as he absent-mindedly signed a contract for one of his co-workers a few years ago. Now a loan-shark stands in front of him, telling him that he is  3,850,000 Yen (~35,500$) in debt. And they want their money back. Now.

Thus starts the adventure of Kaiji, through a lot of manly tears, addiction, tragedy, happiness, gambles, pain and twisted gameshows. It’s a depressingly uplifting tale, with an endearing, overly-emotional protagonist who is all too relatable. Aren’t we all procrastinators, who will only work if pushed to the extreme?

Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure

maxresdefault

Another classic in a new dress. From the 80s, that brought you the manly action genre starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Silvester Stallone, comes this blast from the past.

Stretching many generations and many story parts, the Joestar family will be involved in bizarre incidents, starting in the 1800’s in Victorian England. From there, we will see vampires using ice powers, undead Mayan gods being incredibly fabulous, a French muscly man wanting to be a mangaka, Japanese high schoolers solving crimes Scooby-Doo style, Italian mafia with superpowers and all-female prisons with Spiderwoman. And that’s not even all the parts and settings!

The series knows exactly what it wants to be, and has gigantic amounts of fun rolling around in its lore. It works simultaneously as a parody of Shonen, while also being a straight-up Shonen. And its importance for the whole manga and anime, and even beyond that, towards fashion and video games, is mind-blowing. It’s fun, it’s fabulous, every part is different, and there will be a big universe for you to dive into.

Kill la Kill

36918_kill_la_kill

This series refuelled my love for anime. I came back to anime in 2013, and this was the hype-filled beauty that I didn’t know I needed.

Poking fun at anime tropes and fanservice, while slowly evolving from a simple revenge story to a Greek tragedy was beautiful. The characters, from their designs to their story arcs, were all fascinating to watch. The middle part dragged on a bit, but the ending picked itself up so well, that I was literally on the edge of my seat. Trigger has become my favourite studio next to Madhouse for making this series. A satisfying ending, and a lovely final OVA make this series a round, well-polished treasure.

Saint Young Men (The Film)

tumblr_static_tumblr_static__640

Jesus and Buddha, after hanging out for millennia in the afterlife, are best friends – as Nirvana and Heaven just happen to be next to each other. They want to take a break from all this being-gods business, and take a vacation on Earth. So, they decide to live in Tokyo, as they are so many Shinto gods there, they’ll surely don’t stick out, do they? (Also, Buddha gets ill from the water in India and Jesus cannot live without a decent internet connection – well, Japan it is.) Living together in a little flat as roommates, we will see a whole year in the life of Jesus and Buddha on Earth, from spring to winter.

The main strength of this film is the double lead of the two gods – as they are canonical to their religious selves. Jesus is a man of simple carpenter background, a happy-go-lucky bachelor, who writes reviews of TV shows on the internet, loves Santa, and is generally outgoing and caring. He loves people and people love him. (He is also often confused by people for being Johnny Depp.) Buddha is an aristocrat, who threw his privileged life away in order to become in ascetic. He is very calm and overly caring, very careful with money, prefers loneliness and meditation, and is a vegetarian, as he can command all animals, even if he doesn’t want to. Both protagonists respect each other, admire each other’s approach to life in general and support each other. For example, Jesus takes loneliness-loving Buddha to Disneyland for a fun day and Buddha has to stop tech-happy Jesus from buying a new gaming PC. (Heaven has a tight budget, you know?)

It’s a beautiful friendship, two foreigners discovering the culture of Japan, and an acoustic soundtrack that is so soothing, you want to smile through the whole day. The sketchy artstyle with strong colours paints a dazzling, gorgeous image of Tokyo. This is one of the most heartwarming slice-of-life masterpieces I have ever seen.

One Piece: Baron Omatsuri and the Secret Island

mni-one-piece-movie-6-baron-omatsuri-and-the-secret-island-720p-mkv_snapshot_00-06-52_2015-02-21_16-28-19

“One Piece” has been a big part of my life. I discovered the anime and then the manga, and I have been in love ever since. I own all the books, including all the making-of books and some artbooks, and I am intensely proud of my collection. It is my #1 manga of all time.

One day, young teenage me discovered that my local anime/manga store had a section on Japanese DVDs. I went through it and saw some One Piece movies. Overly happy with joy, I picked the one with the pretty flowers on the cover and went home, in order to watch some new Strawhat Pirate adventures! Hurray!

What followed was one of the most harrowing experiences of my film life. It felt as if I was had been smacked in the face, with a unique artstyle, overwhelming sakuga, finest voice acting, an excellently executed story and some of the heaviest themes I have ever seen touched upon in One Piece. And that means something. Little did I know that this was the work of a certain Mamoru Hosoda.

I think this should tell you everything you need to know, as Hosoda also did my favourite Digimon film: “Our War Game”. This man knows how to add gravitas to a light-hearted series, keeping the spirit of the original without feeling like a grimdark rip-off. Thank you, Hosoda, for showing just how good anime can be.

Nichijou

37745_nichijou

Ah, Nichijou. You marvellous bundle of joy. Before I start talking about this series, let me tell you something about comedy.

I love comedy. I really do. I loooove it. Intensely. Monty Python and Edgar Wright are my personal heroes. I specified in comedy during my film theory classes, analysed many films, know a lot of theory, have written many papers on comedy, started playing improv at my university and read way too many books on the topic. But as it often is… if you specify in something, you become a snob. A big one. My taste has become extreme. Either I love the humour and it clicks immediately, getting gigantic laughing fits out of me, or it collapses right there on the spot, not even wringing a chuckle out of me. I noticed it strongly at a screening of the “Love Live: The School Idol Movie” at an anime film festival. Everyone was laughing and having a blast, and I am sitting there thinking: “Yes, I recognise that this was a joke. It fell flat because of reasons A, B, and C. It wasn’t funny. I am not laughing.” I laughed once during the entire film, due to a fantastic, unexpected line by best girl Rin. Rinse and repeat for other “comedy” series. I sit there like an addict: Only the really good stuff gets a reaction out of me. Which is a bit sad. But that reaction will be amazing. It’s hardcore black and white.

And then, I found the series which hit exactly that sweet spot of comedy that I had yearned for so long. It came in the form of “Nichijou”. The surrealism, the adorable characters, the slow twisting of loose story strings, the overstatements, the intense animation, the relatable situations, the perfect execution of comedic rules: it is a masterpiece. The laughing fits I had from this series were hysterical. The charismatic, heart warming cast of characters makes this anime shine like sun. The longer this show runs, the more you understand the universe, and the whole structure that keeps this world of “Nichijou” going. This is, to this day, my favourite show by Kyoto Animation.

Redline

1446257210-5a9e8468d1227862508b8657f11ee00e

Well, one of my favourite studio is Madhouse, as I already mentioned above. (Come to think of it, 4 out of my 9 favourite series are Madhouse. Huh.) And this may be one of the most visually appealing work of art they have ever done. If you were to ask me how much sakuga is in it, I would say: “All of it.” Every shot, every camera movement, every little character animation is filled to the brim with charm, talent, and pure beauty.

The story is simple, yet effective. A young man, called J.P., is the best race driver around, yet he cannot take off, as his friend and business partner is entangled into illegal betting deals. These races, akin to Star Wars Pod Races, just with more speed and hype, are the most watched sport in all the galaxy. The eponymous Redline race is the main event, but the film takes time to introduce all the racers and gives them personality and backstories. By the point the race actually starts, you know them all, and are in for the most hype ride of your life. See it in the best quality possible, with a dub, as you, believe me, do not want subtitles with this crowning jewel of animation.

Paprika

maxresdefault1

If there is one thing that a film student will go crazy about, it’s “editing”. Satoshi Kon was one of the greatest in this field, and his talent did not stop there. His scene transitions and shot compositions were nothing short of amazing, and his stories are in-depth character studies.

It is only natural that one of his films would feature a psychologist one day. But not any old psychotherapy is presented here, the central theme is dreams. The main protagonist enters her patients dreams to analyse and help them – but one day, one of the dream-entering devices is stolen. With this machine, it is possible to simulate dreams and making people think that they could do anything. What happens when the border between dream and reality is broken? What is real, what can be trusted, how does this dream logic work? How do you hold on to yourself? Can this power be used for good?

All these many questions are wrapped into a colourful, vibrant, eye-opening film which is so densely edited, that you have to give it several watches just to catch the whole scope of this movie.

Akagi

ba76c81e1aeb5b76037753fdcccb1c0c1378825468_full

Another Fukumoto adaptation? Another Madhouse series? Another character with a big nose? Didn’t we have “Kaiji” already?

Well, the 9th spot was hard to pick. My guilty pleasure “Symphogear” was a contender, but I haven’t seen the third season (GX) yet, and I have been told that all goes downhill from there. I have to watch it for myself before I can judge. Another runner-up was “Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu”. I acknowledge its beauty and narrative craftsmanship, but in the end, it felt like an extended prequel for season two, that got announced immediately after S1 finished. If season two continues with the same quality, it will catapult itself into the godly heaven of anime. Don’t screw this up, Studio DEEN!

Anyways!

“Akagi” is, to me at least, a little miracle. It should not work and yet it does. It’s Fukumoto at his best: angular artstyle, thick outlines, sharp character design, gambling, psychological and hard-boiled, serious Seinen. It’s essentially “Kaiji’s big brother”, from the source material to the anime staff. Both protagonists even share the same voice actor.

But it is so radically different. In post-WWII Japan, everything is awful. Gambling runs rampant, violence is in the streets, yakuzas control nearly everything, and politicians are corrupt and dysfunctional.

Out of a dark storm, in midst rain and thunder, a young boy, 13 years old, enters a Majong parlor. He doesn’t speak much, he is soaked in water, he has an uneasy vibe about him. And he starts obliterating his opponents in a game of Majong. This is no ordinary boy. This is Akagi. This is a demon. From there on, we follow Akagi, on his self-proclaimed quest to destroy the yakuza. He hits them where it hurts the most: their wallets.

This is how you do an “overpowered main character” right: By showing the surrounding people’s thoughts, not the MCs inner monologue. Akagi is flat out a creepy, scary character. Always speaking in monotone, with narrow, piercing eyes that will never let you go. He is screwed up, he doesn’t care about his own safety, and will always be cold and calculating. If he doesn’t risk his life, he is bored. This is the perfect character for this twisted setting and he is an absolute blast to watch. He makes Majong interesting. Full of hype, even. How does this even work? It does, with perfect characterisation, intense OST, and interesting mind games. I just never want to meet Akagi in person. He gives me shivers, guargh. With Kaiji however, I want to share a beer and give him a huge pat on the shoulder.

Conclusion

I love all of the above series and films, and they all hold a special place in my heart. This is just a little overview, as I could easily write full reviews on all of them, which I will hopefully do in the future! I hope you enjoyed this little overview of my 9 favourite series. I will continue watching anime and discover new favourites to love! Have a wonderful day!