Synopsis: Andou takes a card from Furuhata and loses pushing him, Furuhata and Kaiji into a corner. But Kaiji has a plan.

Furuhata tells Kaiji that he is starting to have hope. Kaiji, however, thinks that nothing has changed. He notices Furuhata’s cards. It looks fewer than it was before. Furuhata tells Kaiji that Andou wanted to hold on to one so he gave it to him. Kaiji is shocked. Andou currently has two stars and no cards. With one card, the situation could change for him. Kaiji tells Furuhata that they have to find him.

They manage to find Furuhata but he is about to go on a match. Kaiji calls out to him but a guard tells him not to interrupt. Andou’s opponent shows a scissor. Kaiji thinks it would be a draw but the card that Furuhata gave Andou was their sole paper card. Andou loses and is stripped of a star.

Popularity: 5% [?]

Synopsis: The games begin and Kaiji is at the brink of losing.

Tonegawa instructs the participants to open their envelopes. Inside it are three stars which will be attached to the plates they’re wearing. As they play the Restricted Rock-Paper-Scissors, they will wager those stars. Once two persons want to play, they go into “Check”, preparing a single card each. Then into “Open” where the cards’ faces are revealed. If it’s a draw, none of them loses or gains a star but if someone wins, he will gain the opponent’s star. Contestants can freely choose their opponents and repeat the process. Cards that have been used will be discarded. They will be tallied by an electronic scoreboard. Since each person has four rocks, papers and scissors each and there are 103 participants, there are 412 cards of each kind. As long as one can maintain three stars regardless of the means he uses, he wins. However, one must use up all of their cards. Simply disposing it is not allowed. At the end of the game, those with fewer than three stars or those who have more but did not use all their stars, are ultimately lost.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Synopsis: Itou Kaiji, a bum, gets in trouble after the friend whom he cosigned a credit for disappeared. Is there hope for him aboard the ship Espoir?

I never expected I would be blogging about Kaiji. First, I don’t like the graphics and second, I am not into gambling. usagijen suggested that I give the series I try. Well, I did and though it isn’t something that I would rave about, the plot is pretty decent. Kaiji is one fresh alternative if you’re sick and tired of the schoolgirls of this season. I also found out the manga won in the 1998 Kodansha Manga Award under the General category. Basilisk won the same award in 2004, Mushishi in 2006 and Ookiku Furikabutte this year.

Popularity: 3% [?]