Audience reviews
20 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
MrMaha
They drag pachinko episode too long, that i lose interest on this anime, unlike card game machine game are less interesting to watch and they drag that like what 8 episodes? It get boring real fast. Repetitive, get tired of waiting because for one the art style is not my favorite to begin with but season 1 got interesting plots so i try to watch till end anyway.. but season 2? starting with this pachinko machine, i get boring, every next episode i question myself how many time they want to drag this?
Recommended? not really
Not recommended? also not
It is up to your personal taste, but seriously if you like Haruhi Suzumiya loop episodes, maybe you can finish this season with ease.
Read at the sourceiabod10
believe it or not. This is the best thing I have ever watched. Everything is great except kaijis tringle nose.
You must Watch it, Masterpiece.
Story 10/10
Characters 10/10
Unique blend of psychological thriller and gambling elements, making it stand out in the anime world.
Fans of the psychological thriller and gambling genres are likely to enjoy Kaiji
The art style suits the gritty and intense atmosphere of the story
The characters react to their insane situations in ways that feel all too human – from desperation to cunning to downright panic.
Read at the sourceShiftshaper
Season 1 worked extremely well because it allowed for the exploration of the human psyche by pitting the most broken and desperate men against each other with their lives on the line, perfectly providing the opportunity to display the main character's ironclad desire to never let these evil games of chance turn him into somebody he's not, while showcasing deep strategy from the smartest players who best all of the systems they're forced into at all odds.
Simply put, Season 2 handles this poorly.
Throughout this 26-episode season, Kaiji only plays two games of "chance," with only one of them being against another human.
The first arc starts off slow due to our rather despondent Kaiji following the events of season 1, but ultimately returns to a satisfying battle of deception in the end as…
Read at the sourcewhiteflame55
It's more Kaiji, so that's automatically a major point in its favor. The characters still work their magic in the same way, but, and this is weird to say for a series where each decision is drawn out to extract its full agony, the pacing of this season drops considerably. The first arc actually works quite well, evoking a lot of the same feeling as the first season while adding something new an interesting in how they tackle the problem. The second arc takes up the rest of the series, and while it has its moments, it has a hard time holding your attention all on its own. It can only draw your attention with the same method so many times before it starts to feel absolutely absurd. It's still worth the watch, but the enjoyment factor dropped considerably.
Read at the sourcesolrules
1. This wasn't needed after S1. It's stupid comedy masquerading as psychological genre.
2. Kaiji is a fucking moron. He sees no character development, keeps making the same mistakes and expect us to feel pity for his sorry ass. Nobody is this retarded. His character is forever trapped in an endless loop of blunders and betrayals.
3. The narrator is damn annoying. Not only does he take the audience for fools but also spoil some scenes before they even happen.
4. There's no character you want to root for except for Miyoshi.
5. After dragging it on for what seems like an eternity, the show ends abruptly and leaves us hanging without a proper ending.
6. There are several illogical plotholes. For example, the underground casino has a rule that says if you tamper/damage the bog, you'd be forbid…
Read at the sourceMER0S
*sniff* this is pure ideology, but you know *sniff* the good kind of ideology.
If you want an anime that's not always going the path, you expect it to do i think Kaiji is something that you could like.
Kaiji is every single one of us. He is a loser... Of course he had his potentials when he was younger, but capitalist world brought him into his misery. He for sure is an intelligent guy, but his kind-hearted personality denied him access into a wealthy life and the story is going to show you exactly this. Multiple times. You're the loser, if you're altruistic, if you're self-sacrificing. But if you go on and complete this series you will soon realize, that this world is much more than just living a successful life, although it's the hard way of life. I hope i convinced just a single pers…
Read at the sourcecameronrb24
Quick Thoughts:
Promising start marred by pachinko.
Story:
Season 2 picks up some time after the end of the 1st season, with more debt accumulated. A familiar face picks him up and drops him off at an underground camp to work off his debts. This arc lasts about nine episodes and the second, and final, arc takes up the remaining 17 episodes. I think the first arc was solid; we get all Kaiji's mindgames, scheming, trickery and charisma displayed in full effect. The second arc was the worst in the entire series in my opinion, mainly due to its pacing issues. The first few episodes provided good setup/backstory, but main conflict was drawn out way too long. It didn't help that the type of gambling being done wasn't particularly interesting either. I thought the ending was good though, very fi…
Read at the sourcerenua123
There are some decent points to the story that are overshadowed by the drawn out filler. Most of the bog episodes until the end can be skipped because they amount to rolling pachinko balls over and over with an obnoxious narrator telling the viewer the obvious. Character development was non-existent from the previous series, would have liked to see more interesting arc from Kaiji. Minor point, but the crying and melodrama took me out of the anime time and time again. Worth addressing that many compare this show to Kakeguri. I find that comparison to be unfair since Kakeguri is more of a modern creation. With that said, shows like Kaiji could benefit from the direction modern anime has turned. We rarely see such filler in modern anime and story is often more self-contained in shorter 2-3 ep…
Read at the sourceWhiteWolfKiba
Studio Madhouse has done it again in the 2nd season of Kaiji! This is a 10/10 gambling anime. Kick Kakegurui to the curb, cuz there are no moe character designs or forced romantic relationships to be found in THIS gambling anime!
Story: 10/10. The stakes have never been higher in season 2 as Kaiji finds himself basically a slave working in a labor camp to pay off his massive debts. If he raises enough money he can buy his freedom and rejoin society above ground! How's that for motivation? There's a small moment I need to mention where Kaiji can finally afford a decent meal for himself after months and months, and when he takes a bite it brought a legit tear to my eye. Kaiji has always managed to make the small moments feel big, too, y'know? The first 10 or so episodes revolve around high…
Read at the sourceEuphemius
(Since it would be useless to write a different review for the second season, I just copied the review for the first season here. I only have to say that I find the first season a little better, despite the fact that the art of the second is superior).
Kaiji is the perfect anime if you are looking for something about gambling and that it feels realistic and crude.
Because Kaiji is not simply an anime about someone who gambles - but about how bad it can be, to be a gambler in a world full of sharks ready to bite and drown you when you're weak.
Kaiji is set in Tokyo, Japan, during the second half of the 90s, when Japan was in recession, known also as the Lost Decade. Ito Kaiji is a guy in his twenties that is unable to find a job and tries to get some money by winning some poker match. His…
Read at the sourceOptigisa
Kaiji’s second season is not as good as Kaiji’s first season. While it has a stronger start than the former, and while it is littered with better animation and more charismatic characters, there is something about it that just doesn’t hold up to the first.
The concept of the arcade machine is intriguing and the tactics used in that arc are nothing short of brilliant, but it is the fact that the arc dragged on for so long and the episodic structure became about finding a way to beat the machine and the old man, that it became redundant to sit through. The first season of Kaiji, while having a weak start, managed to flip everything on it’s head and change it’s formula multiple times so that it could become a refreshing ride. This stuck with one thing and repeated it over and over again unt…
Read at the sourceKuta1
(Spoilers incoming) If you like engaging, binge-worthy, edge-of-your-seat shows, you'll love Kaiji.
Story: 8/10. I found the motivations for Kaiji in this season to be stronger than those in Season 1, and it really helped establish Kaiji's character a bit more in this season while making all the risks he took seem organic and believable. There was an unbelievable sense of catharsis watching the show, perhaps one of the strongest I've felt in watching any sports anime (I consider Kaiji comparable to other anime of the sports genre despite gambling not being a sport persay). The story's nothing deep (win money and escape forced labor), but that doesn't hold down the show at all.
Really, the bulk of the story can be condensed into two situations: Kaiji escaping the underground and Kaiji re…
Read at the sourceRage-The-Dragoon
Tension and Tedious are 2 completely different things!
and it's clear Kaiji season 2 feels there is no distinction between the two.
Unlike season 1 this addition just drags...and drags...and drags! on and on and on.
Everything Else in the show is perfectly fine. the score is intense, the animation is crips clean, the voice acting is solid. but the single deathblow season 2 has is it's TERRIBLE dragged out pacing. it's not that noticeable in the first half of the season but it really begins to show during the second half.
And this is where the Tension vs Tedious bit comes into play. The big final gamble of the series which starts around halfway the season and goes on all the way to the end. and every episode from this point on consists of only 2 things. 10% of the episode is dedicated to…
Read at the sourceZephSilver
Are you suffering from an absence of GAR and strategy in your life? Already burn through your reserve JoJo's and No Game No Life strategic asspulls for a rainy day? Well, I got just the fix!
ZAWA ZAWA ZAWA ZAWA ZAWA
Story: 9/10
You'd think the novelty of high gambling will be dull after 26 episodes right? But Kaiji's sequel not only delivers yet again but surpasses expectations! But it's not all a win. The story pits Kaiji into an underground camp as a slave laborer in order to pay off his debts. As in typical Kaiji fashion, it's not all as it seems. As Kaiji butts heads with his 1st antagonists and the 1st story arc deals with the struggle of who'll come out on top. The script delivers yet again with the stakes matching the given level of risk. The psychological element is still there…
Read at the sourceDeXeTer
Gyakkyou Burai Kaiji: Hakairoku Hen is the second season of kaiji ultimate survivor which continues from where the first season left of.
Story 8/10 The second season starts of with Kaiji wondering around japan looking for ways to earn money.
Wile he sees an familiar face Endoh from the first season which somewhat helped him with his debt problems in season 1 eg The gambling ship this time though Kaiji is kidnapped by Endoh and forced into slave labor to pay off his debt with very harsh living conditions. Now what l like to say about the first half of season 2 it has a lot of suspense to it rivals the first season's and the antagonist in both half's are great the problem is with the a second half the bourge arc. Which is basically impossible pachinko each episode does drag on with this…
Read at the sourceTHEAnimeHERO
Kaiji season 2 offers a solid conclusion to the anime series however the series itself is a decrease in quality from season 1 Kaiji Ultimate Survivor.
Taking place a few months after the first arc, Kaiji is taken underground to pay his debt by manual labor which will take him around 15 years to complete his sentence. After a few months later, Kaiji is then allowed to be outside for a few days in which he hears about a casino with the infamous pachinko game "The Bog" which if Kaiji wins can pay off his entire debt.
The differences in this season being the 3rd series of the Kaiji manga include the lack of psychological thrills & games revolving around quick cunning & dangerous high stakes. This part only features a total of 2 games while the first part consisted of 4, plus the gambles in s…
Read at the sourceplatformerbg
I take it that the people who are going to watch this have already watched the first season. I am going to try to base my review on that. So basically we once again meet with Kaiji. As always he is broke. He once again is put to a test. The first part of the series concentrates in a another place (that I won't mention so there aren't any spoilers), but basically he has to gamble once more. To be honest the reason I think this season is better is since Kaiji has become more and more of a hero. Even though the flow of the series moves rather slow (there wasn't enough material in my opinion for 26 episodes), but Kaiji now more resembles a figure that I myself would admire. He is more dependable. The art is as always interesting. When I rate the art I don't rate it for style but more like the…
Read at the sourceifaistos
Hi,
The story that surrounds this anime is awesome. Truth and the meaning of life is in continues battle with those things that most people believe that make us different from animals.
If u don't want or tired just to watch anime for fun , you must surely watch this.
Just try to keep up with the script meanings and try to search inside your heart/brain and think what will u do in the same place of Kaijis. ( main hero)
U will definitely win some things after watching this.
arigato.
Read at the sourceDanno
This series is pretty suspenseful and will give you a similar type of enjoyment to the first series, but I gotta say it's not as good.
First off, Kaiji 2 is not a psychological battle. It also doesn't have much philosophy in it. It vaguely contains that sorta stuff, but it's really faint. I loved the first series of Kaiji so much for the constant risks, trust, betrayal, scams, elaborate schemes, exposure of human emotions, putting human character into question, and Tonegawa's philosophical speeches. Kaiji 2 doesn't really have such concepts in it. Both of his gambles are pretty much won simply with logic and careful planning; the goal is to scam the scammer. This isn't a bad thing, but it wasn't as exciting as it could've been, or maybe I'm just being unfair since I thought the first sea…
Read at the sourceCEMPUNK
Ok this is my first time to write a review so please go easy.
Let me start by saying I'm a huge fan of psychological thriller series and I must say Kaiji is one of the best there is in that aspect. Season 1 was just amazing, keeps you thinking and surprises you with the twisted outcomes. In Season 2 Kaiji has done it again, each episode keeps getting better and better makes you at the edge of your seat hunger to know whats will happen next.
If your a fan of Psychological thrillers such as Death note or Liar game, Kaiji is a must watch for you.
Story: The story continues after the incidents from season 1, Kaiji has been taken to work in an underground facility to work in hard labor so he can pay off his debt, however he then finds out that there is a dark side inside the underground wh…
Read at the source