In this post, I’m going to discuss the Japanese anime Kakegurui, which seasons 1 and 2 are now available on Netflix.

If you’re a watcher of anime, you are more than likely aware of their hyper, over the top characters, and ridiculous scenarios.  Some can be playful and innocent like Pokemon or My Hero Academia, while others can be dark and twisted like “Akira” or “Ghost in the Shell”.  The medium itself offers a whole gamut of genres that cannot be considered “for kids”, and Kakegurui is no exception.

Kakegurui Manga Origin

In 2017, the manga was developed into an anime and an abridged live-action version was released in 2018.

Originally based on a manga series in 2014, the story follows the transfer student Yumeko Jabami – a compulsive gambler.  She enrolls into Hyakkaou Private Academy: an elite high school for the over-privileged.  Your status in the school is determined by your win/loss ratio in games of chance and your monetary contributions to the student council.  If you acquire debt, you become a house pet (aka slave) to the rest of the student body, and if the amount is insurmountable, are given “life schedules”. (pre-determined life path including political marriages, essentially using lives to pay off their debt)

Dangers In a Game of Chance

Some of the costs to these games of chance are demoralizing, while others are physically painful.  There’s a version of Russian Roulette and another game where the winner claims the fingernails of the loser.

The school is ripe with cheaters who have scammed their way to the top of the student council.  All of these characters have become the target of the new transfer student, who has remarkable memorization and reasoning skills.  Yumeko uses her talents to dismantle the cheaters at their own games, openly taking on all comers.

Kakegurui NSFW

Although the series can be heart-pounding, there are many NSFW themes, including sex, rape, and dismemberment.  Strange “only in Japan” moments also pepper the anime, like Yumeko’s entry into a music idol competition.  The original 12 episodes in season 1 can be a bit uncomfortable to watch, and the games can get confusing, but, it keeps you on your toes.  Even though Yumeko comes out of season 1 unscathed, it’s questionable if the same will be in season 2.  Will there be any real losses that will make us consider the actual risks to these games?

Right now Kakegurui, the anime, seasons 1 and 2 are available for streaming on Netflix.  The live-action series is also available on Netflix here.