Gambling Apocalypse: KAIJI, Volume 1

Keep releasing these, I'll keep buying them. I've been reading fan translations for this series online for years, I want to own every volume.If you haven't read the manga, watch the Anime, you'll still want to read the manga.

I feel like the Kaiji series has enough of a pedigree by now to need no introduction, and in case I'm wrong, I'm sure other reviewers can provide ample coverage of its greatness. So I'd like to talk about its presentation here, as Denpa is a publisher I've never heard of before this series.Despite the numerous delays this volume experienced, which shook my confidence in their capabilities, I must confess that this blew me away. The book is nice and large, and the paper is of decent quality. The covers are folded inward, like Vertical's Monogatari novels, and they appear to be made of rather sturdy material. It's definitely more pleasing to the touch than the cheap productions of companies like Yen Press, and I feel confident that the book will resist the unsightly warping that cheaply-made ones are prone to.As for the translation, I am again pleasantly surprised. Whoever did it (it's credited as a company, so I can't put a name to the text) clearly knew what they were doing, as they've deftly captured the tone of the world Kaiji lives in, not afraid to use stronger language when the situation calls for it, and the little note about Fukumoto's zawas on the inside cover was a lovely touch that shows an intimate knowledge of the series. The translation also appears accurate to the original text, but I can't say that for sure, as I don't have the Japanese version of the series. (It's long, okay?)The typesetting is also good, beating out a few other companies in terms of how well text is placed in the bubbles (seriously, some publishers seem to struggle with this), and font choices are mostly on-point, though I do think the one they used for the narration is a bit of a chore to read. There are a few misused commas and some missing punctuation here and there, but that does little to dampen my enjoyment of this quality release.It's clear to me now that the delays in this book's publication were a product of Denpa wanting to get it right, and that's exactly what they did. Kaiji is a fantastic series, and it deserves every bit of love they're giving it. If this is the sort of quality we can expect from future releases, I think we're in for a real treat.Incidentally, Denpa... any plans for my boy Akagi?

ZAWA ZAWA P.S.Fukumoto sensei, Please update Kaiji manga since 8 mouths passed and I NEED Kaijinium to KEEP my SANITY STABLE

Fukumoto's entry point, if you enjoyed the societal aspect and critique you should try to read Strongest Man: Kurosawa and Buraiden Gai, if you liked the gambling you could try Akagi and Ten.

This manga is basically about three things:1) The psychology of losers, in particular, of desperate gamblers squirming under mounting debt2) The ways they can be cleverly and ruthlessly squeezed by organized crime3) Gamblers' struggle to cope with the strategic dimensions of an ingenious and nefarious new high-stakes game put on by the mobIt goes for broke with these 3 priorities, to the exclusion of pretty much all else. The mood is one of constant, ratcheting tension. The biggest surprise was how deep it goes into gambling strategy. You are IN the game, grappling with some seriously bedeviling problems along with the players. The strategic ideas are real and subtle even if the analyses are not conclusive (necessarily so, since they have a strong psychological aspect).If that sounds good to you, you should like it.

Very great premise for a story

I've only watched the anime series by madhouse (an excellent adaption) and this manga volume meets my expectations. There are no awkward translations, memes or anything. All dialogue feels natural and lines up well with the anime or some fan translation of the manga to this point. Kaiji is one of the easier works Fukumoto to follow since it is not reliant on knowing Mahjong or other japanese gambling games (well the first few arcs anyway). Hopefully this does well and we can get kurosawa, akagi and other fukumoto works.Season 3 never.

Kaiji is an excellent series that I can’t recommend enough. One of my all time favorites and definitely a must watch/read!Side note about the order: My copy arrived with some minor scratches but it’s not too noticeable.