Akagi
When discussing main characters who aren't really heroic and more antagonistic, I always hear two names get thrown around first, Shamo, and Teppuu. Teppuu is a manga that was cut short before it could really begin, and Shamo is something I personally haven't read yet. These are the popular, frequently said answers, and while good answers, one more needs to be thrown into the ring, Akagi. Fukumoto Nobuyuki's life work, the manga that escaped its niche magazine and entered a more observable sphere.
Akagi is all about Akagi Shigeru. The devil of gambling. A man who is unafraid to bet his own life and horrifyingly good at any games put in front of him. Akagi's main method of winning is his uncanny ability to read people and manipulate them. Putting them into a spiral of madness that inevitably leads to their own destruction. I'll leave it at this for now and talk about Akagi Shigeru as a character more later.
The manga Akagi is all about how good Shigeru Akagi is at riichi Mahjong in particular. If you don't know how riichi Mahjong is played, don't worry, I don't either. The manga at first doesn't explain much of the rules or what the tiles are, but as it gained popularity and started pulling in people outside of the mahjong magazine it was in to read, it starts to explain basic rules and what tiles are and anything you need to know about for what is happening on the page. Akagi can be fully enjoyed without memorizing Mahjong hands and the tiles needed to make them.
From the very beginning, it's clear that Akagi Shigeru is someone who is missing something. He played chicken in the form of braking a car before running off a cliff and simply didn't brake at all. It's a blatant disregard for his own life. On that same day, Akagi Shigeru walks into a Mahjong parlor, avoiding the cops, and just decides to play Mahjong for a huge sum of money. Whether Akagi Shigeru can feel fear at all is totally unknown. His focus and attention is always on what's right in front of him. A gamble. He rarely speaks at all during games as well. We even more rarely as readers see his insight as to his thought process for winning games. More often, we see the games play out from his opponents perspective. Akagi Shigeru is so intimidating while playing Mahjong that sitting silently looking at his hand is enough to psyche people out. Him looking up is enough to freeze his opponents in place with fear. Describing it this way may make it seem like Akagi Shigeru is hardly main character material, but that isn't the case. Akagi is a force of nature when gambling, a genius, a prodigy, and that's exactly where his faults lie. It's all he knows how to do. Akagi winning so much genuinely causes problems for him. He gets hunted down by people thinking his wins are all cheated, or that he's just someone who can memorize Mahjong tiles easily, or that his silence and willingness to play so much is all bravado. Akagi Shigeru sees his life for what it is. It's just the life of some gambling addict. Fraught with danger and constantly having to run away. Akagi Shigeru can only gamble. He'll live gambling every day. He'll die gambling everything away. Akagi Shigeru is no hero. He is a great character.
If the manga Akagi is known for anything, it's the arc that encompasses 75% of its chapters. Washizu Mahjong. A variant of Riichi Mahjong that has 3/4 of the tiles transparent. You also have to wear a glove on one hand. I'm convinced Akagi started a trend with this. Washizu Mahjong starts on chapter 66 and doesn't conclude until chapter 300. In real life, this arc spanned 20 years of writing for Fukumoto Nobuyuki. The arc follows Akagi as he tries to gamble against one man's vast wealth, Washizu Iwao. That's really it for the basic premise. It's Akagi Shigeru vs. Washizu Iwao for most of the manga. Considering how I described how good Akagi Shigeru is at gambling, how does this 1 game last for so long without getting stale? I'll leave that question for you to answer by reading the manga yourself. To say it simply, Washizu Mahjong is one of the best arcs of manga i have read. Fukumoto Nobuyuki is amazing at embodying the madness and despair attached to gambling in his art. The faces of characters as they win or lose or something unexpected happens really sells the moment. Akagi's blank face as Washizu thinks about what to do. Washizu's various expressions when his luck of the emperor pulls through or gets exploited. The tension in each round of the game, what each character needs to do to win. It's all crafted expertly and carefully to be entertaining without having asspulls to have Washizu lose or Akagi win. Them winning or losing is due to their own skill or luck. Washizu Mahjong is possibly one of the best manga arcs there is, much more in the sphere of gambling manga.
Akagi is a great manga. I've made that much clear, I hope. It's easily a favorite of mine. If ever you were to take a gamble on reading something unknown, place your bets on this manga. You'll win big guaranteed.
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