(kodoani.com)If fans need more action after the hit Netflix game Squid, Kaiji is exactly what you’re looking for.
Squid Game became this year’s hit movie, quickly becoming one of Netflix’s most watched shows of all time. However, there is currently no news of a second season, so those who want more deadly survival games will need to find something else to fill the void. So – Kaiji is the perfect anime for fans of survival games.
First appearing on the pages of Weekly Young Magazine in February 1996, Kaiji was written and illustrated by Nobuyuki Fukumoto. The series was originally a short story. However, after Fukumoto had problems reducing the required story size, he decided to turn it into a serialized manga. This decision turned out to be a great one, as Kaiji is already incredibly popular. Since then, the manga has spawned a number of sequels and spin-offs, as well as being adapted into anime and live-action films. In fact, as of 2019, there are 21.5 million Kaiji volumes in circulation.
Kaiji follows Kaiji Itō, a man who struggles to find steady work even after moving to Tokyo. Kaiji’s poverty often annoys the guy, and he becomes a bit ignorant to make a quick buck. However, Kaiji’s depressed life becomes even worse when a loan shark named Yūji Endō shows up at Kaiji’s house. Endō stated that he was there to collect the money, as Kaiji co-signed a loan for a colleague; Due to a colleague’s default, Kaiji now has to pay off the debt.
Endō gives Kaiji a choice: spend ten years paying off his debt or enter an illegal underground gambling contest held on a ship. Seeing no better solution, Kaiji opted for the latter – and quickly discovered that while the on-board rock-paper-scissors tournament seemed outrageous, the losers suffered a terrible fate. Kaiji quickly learns that this isn’t the only round of high-stakes gambling in the world, throwing the guy into a game fraught with risk and pain as he tries to clear his debt while winning cruel games that he won’t be able to. he was forced to participate.
In 2007, the series was adapted into an anime called Kaiji: Ultimate Survivor. The series is animated by Madhouse and produced by VAP and Nippon Television Network. The 26-volume series recounts the first season of the manga and proved to be hugely popular with both manga fans and new viewers, earning critical acclaim. A sequel that included a story sequel, titled Kaiji: Against All Rules, was released in 2011. Madhouse once again returned to animate the show, along with most of the season’s cast. firstly.
The film was released in the US. It was originally streamed on the now-defunct Joost platform before being picked up by Crunchyroll. However, in 2020, Sentai Filmworks announced they had acquired the license for both the anime and in 2021, and released it on Bluray.
Kaiji is a fascinating anime series and, for fans of survival games, explores how the human soul can distort and contort under pressure. Like Squid Game, the anime shows that desperate people are easily taken advantage of by those with money and power. Kaiji’s status as a perpetual loner struggling to overcome makes him both a believable protagonist and the perfect vehicle for exploring this unusual world. So, if you are looking for something to fill the hole left by Squid Game, then Kaiji is the perfect anime for you.