History YMMV / Kaiji

* HoYay: Murakami's undying loyalty to Ichijou has made them a popular pairing among fans. Kaiji is commonly paired with Endou, Kazuya, Sahara, or [[FoeYay Ichijou]].

* MagnificentBastard: Tonegawa. Despite [[spoiler:having cheated his way through the E-Card game]], in the end he still comes off as noble and ultimately ''badass''. Even more so Hyoudou.

* EnsembleDarkhorse: Mikoko Sakazaki has become really popular on the Internet, which the creators are apparently aware of. Tonegawa also qualifies because of his badass [[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech speeches]] on society, and for being a MagnificentBastard in general. Then there's the [[Creator/FumihikoTachiki narrator]]...

** Yugo Kanno of ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'' fame was the one to helm the three live-action films, and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QG5FTZsoqM4 his main theme]] just makes your heart warm inside and fill itself with the prospect of victory for our protagonist.

** Yugo Kanno of ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'' fame was the one to helm the three live-action films, and his theme just makes your heart warm inside and fill itself with the prospect of victory for our protagonist, especially with [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QG5FTZsoqM4 the main theme]].

* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: Oh yeah, tons of it. ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meBzDGG7WeU Wish]]'', ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eHRes2_wZE4 Kaiji's Theme]]'', ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhNm19gVw60 This World III]]'', ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njUrn6wbc2I Beginning]]'', ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6AcB1eJfHs Transparent]]'', ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQzkQmxmieU Law Breaking Theme]]'', ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P62vPjg7DBg Bassment]]'', ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcGHbsDLyz4 Max Zawa]]'' and ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAlXRgcPHlc Hakairoku Theme]]'' to name a few.

* AccidentalAesop: Although it's long since move passed it thanks to SerialEscalation, the first arc also serves as a cautionary tale reminding readers and viewers to not co-sign for a loan that you can't pay off yourself.

** Comparing Taro Otsuki' resemblance to UsefulNotes/HugoChavez is pretty common.

** Comparing Taro Otsuki' resemblance to "UsefulNotes/HugoChavez" is pretty common.

* EarWorm: It's near impossible to get ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMztjxYKSDw Numa]]'' out of your head.

* CompleteMonster: [[BigBad Kazutaka Hyōdō]], a wealthy socialite and [[CorruptCorporateExecutive president of the financial consulting firm Teiai]], is a man driven mad by money and power whose only enjoyment in life is to see the lower classes of society struggle for their lives and money in illegal gambling tournaments. In Part 1, Hyōdō has a group of his debtors gamble in a ship, collecting badges from each other. Those who lose all their badges are transferred to an underground mine where they are forced to work for their money in horrible conditions, most of them dying due to work-related injuries or breathing problems caused by the smoke. In Part 2, Hyōdō forces another group of debtors to walk on a narrow plank ten meters up the air, and in order for them to win, they have to push down others, breaking their bones while doing so. After [[ActionSurvivor Kaiji]] and a handful of others manage to walk on the other side, they are then forced on a similar plank which is electrified and hundreds of meters up the air. Kaiji, being the sole survivor of the second part, is then obliged to duel against Hyōdō's right-hand man, [[TheDragon Yukio Tonegawa]], and [[SadisticChoice choose]] either his {{eye|Scream}} or [[EarAche eardrum]] as his stake. After Kaiji wins, Hyōdō proves [[BadBoss how cruel he is to his subordinates]], forcing Tonegawa to kneel for a minute on a scalding platform. Briefly appearing in Part 3, Hyōdō is seen drinking the blood of his victims, while treating his other subordinates with similar cruelty. A truly despicable old man, Hyōdō is the living incarnate of {{greed}} and cruelty in a [[CrapsackWorld world where people are willingly to do anything in order to pay back their debts]].

* CompleteMonster: [[EvilOldFolks Kazutaka Hyo(u)do(u)]] is the BigBad of the entire series. A wealthy socialite and [[CorruptCorporateExecutive president of the financial consulting firm Teiai]], Hyodo is a man driven mad by money and power whose only enjoyment in life is to see the lower classes of society struggle for their lives and money in illegal gambling tournaments. In Part 1, Hyodo has a group of his debtors gamble in a ship, collecting badges from each other. Those who lose all their badges are transferred to an underground mine where they are forced to work for their money in horrible conditions, most of them dying due to work-related injuries or breathing problems caused by the smoke. In Part 2, Hyodo forces another group of debtors to walk on a narrow plank ten meters up the air, and in order for them to win, they [[SadisticChoice have to push down others, breaking their bones while doing so]]. After [[TheHero Kaiji]] and a handful of others manage to walk on the other side, they are then forced on a similar plank which is electrified and hundreds of meters up the air. Kaiji, being the sole survivor of the second part, is then obliged to duel against Hyodo's right-hand man, [[TheDragon Yukio Tonegawa]], and choose either his {{eye|Scream}} or [[EarAche eardrum]] as his stake. After Kaiji wins, Hyodo proves [[BadBoss how cruel he is to his subordinates]], forcing Tonegawa to [[ManOnFire kneel for a minute on a scalding platform]]. Briefly appearing in Part 3, Hyodo is seen drinking the blood of his victims, while treating his other subordinates with similar cruelty. A truly despicable old man, Hyodo is the living incarnate of {{greed}} and cruelty in a [[CrapsackWorld world where people are willingly to do anything in order to pay back their debts]].

* DarknessInducedAudienceApathy: With most (if not all) Kaiji's victories being either temporary or [[PyrrhicVictory too nominal and costly to be celebrated]], and most losses resulting in permanent injury or unrecoverable consequences, many viewers wonder if it's reasonable to cheer for protagonist who appears to be doomed from the start.

* HandWave: The way Kaiji managed to miraculously restore himself after [[spoiler:losing an ear and four fingers]]? An underground surgeon somehow reattached everything back.

* {{Big Lipped Alligator Moment}}: In Chapter 7 of Series 3, we are left on a cliffhanger [[spoiler: with Kaiji staring at a box of Uno cards in a way that suggests it may be the next game. The President talks about it in a way that also suggests it, but Kaiji quickly declines, and by the third page of Chapter 8, it is a distant memory, never to be mentioned again]].

* CrowningMusicOfAwesome: Oh yeah, tons of it. ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meBzDGG7WeU Wish]]'', ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eHRes2_wZE4 Kaiji's Theme]]'', ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhNm19gVw60 This World III]]'', ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njUrn6wbc2I Beginning]]'', ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6AcB1eJfHs Transparent]]'', ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQzkQmxmieU Law Breaking Theme]]'', ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P62vPjg7DBg Bassment]]'', ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcGHbsDLyz4 Max Zawa]]'' and ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAlXRgcPHlc Hakairoku Theme]]'' to name a few.

* {{Anvilicious}}: The manga keeps driving the point to not rely on luck. The gambling industry is ''not'' trying to help you. It only wants your money and ''will'' take advantage of your hopes and desperation. That said, this ca also be an example of SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped, with how popular gambling has become.

* {{Anvilicious}}: The manga keeps driving the point to no rely on luck. The gambling industry is ''not'' trying to help you. It only wants your money and ''will'' take advantage of your hopes and desperation. That said, this ca also be an example of SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped, with how popular gambling has become.

* AccidentalAesop: Although it's long since move passed it thanks to SerialEscalation, the first arc also serves as a cautionary tale reminding readers and viewer '''don't co-sign for a loan that you can't payoff yourself.'''
* {{Anvilicious}}: Don't rely on luck, never resort to magical thinking, and for the love of God, quit while you're ahead.
** The gambling industry is ''not'' trying to help you. It only wants your money and ''will'' take advantage of your hopes and desperation.
** That said, SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped.

* TheWoobie: Some will argue that the whole point of this series is to see Kaiji lose tremendously, get back up in an inspiring and heart-winning manner...then lose even more tremendously. In the end, you just want to give him a hug or buy him some drinks after all that's happened to him (losing scads of money, betrayal and bullying, [[spoiler:maiming, losing his comrades, being forced into slave labor, being harassed by a girl he doesn't like]]...the list goes on). Many fans will argue that Kaiji is indeed "moe", or moeGAR.

** Also, the series has a recurring theme of "trust no one". Most of the characters are desperate enough to constantly exploit each other to get a leg up, and any allies Kaiji makes end up being fair-weather friends in the long run.

** Also, the series has a recurring theme of "trust no one". Most of the characters are desperate enough to constantly exploit each other to get a leg up, and any allies Kaiji makes end up being fair-weather friends who end up betraying him in the long run.

** Also, the series has a recurring theme of "trust no one". Most of the characters are desperate enough to constantly exploit each other to get a leg up, and any allies Kaiji makes end up being FairweatherFriends who end up betraying him in the long run.