Trivia / Kaiji

• Defictionalization:
  • The Bog is now a real life pachinko machine that can be seen in action here.
  • The official Kaiji exhibition, held from March to May 2024 featured recreations of the Bog (albeit unplayable), Brave Men Road, 17 Steps, Salvation Game, the Tonegawa grill, and the room in which Kaiji is placed in after losing his funds in Restricted RPS. The beer and yakitori that Kaiji eats in the underground mines were also available as a meal.
• Distanced from Current Events: The scene of Kaiji being swept away by tide in the manga was changed to him being swept away by gusts of wind in the anime following the Sendai earthquake.
• No Dub for You: Despite being released in 2007, the first season of Kaiji did not receive an English dub until 2022, and season two still does not have a dub.
• Playing with Character Type: Masato Hagiwara, who voices Kaiji in the anime, is a professional mahjong player outside of acting. He also voices another one of Fukumoto's gambling protagonists- mahjong player Akagi Shigeru.
• Series Hiatus: The Kaiji manga is currently on hiatus for Fukumoto to focus on other works.
• Write What You Know
  • Prior to working as a mangaka, Fukumoto worked as a construction foreman, similar to Sakazaki. This is likely where the inspiration from the idea to tilt the building during the Bog arc originated.
  • In his youth, Fukumoto went backpacking throughout China and the Philippines, which is why Chang and Mario are from their respective countries.

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