I’ll divide the review in 2 parts, first without spoilers, then with some spoilers.
Akagi talks about a genius kid disillusioned with life which stumbles in the underground Mahjong scene. High profile Yakuza matches are the only things that can bring him to feel alive, going so close to death.

Akagi is a genius but he’s as much brilliant as he is completely insane: this is clear to the viewer within a minute of this character’s first appearance.
That’s not someone you can easily relate to, not on that level at least, but he is interesting at least for how unusual he is. I don’t think this anime is for everyone, I’m going to say it now. That isn’t because it is dedicated to Mahjong, but because most people probably cannot stand Akagi as a person and that’s okay. The good thing is, you’ll probably decide if you like him or not in the first two episodes at most.

also let’s address this elephant in the room. The art style.

If you don’t get killed by their nose, you’ll get used to it.

It’s not “pretty”, but I think that’s fine, it gives personality to the characters, it’s bold and hard, like the world and the events it portraits and that’s all there really is to say on that. I wouldn’t say this anime is about mahjong as much as it is about the twisted gambling of Akagi, but yes, they play a lot of mahjong, so knowing a bit of the rules does help follow. This doesn’t mean you need to know mahjong to follow the anime. If something cool happens, don’t worry, they will let you know. Same goes for things that are improbable or crazy, this anime makes it a point to let you know that whatever they’re throwing on the table is the stuff.

Now, I’d like to talk a bit more freely, I’m not going to spoil major stuff and I’m not going to make names, but you know, if you want to watch this anime knowing nothing more than the synopsis that’s cool, I’ll tell you in a moment where to stop. Do I suggest this anime to you? For sure, just watch a few episodes, see if you’re hooked and then come back here and let me know what you think. If you want to read a bit ahead, I honestly think that what I’m going to say isn’t going to influence much your enjoyment of this show, in any case, warning for spoilers in 3,2,1…

First of all, I must admit, it is a weakness of mine, I actually like overpowered characters. If in a story I see someone that is so far ahead of everyone else that it isn’t even funny, I’ll probably like them, wanted to get this out of the way so you know I’m a bit biased.
This anime honestly can and will lose the thrill for some people when you realize that Akagi doesn’t lose. That’s part of the fun of it, and is basically the premise of the show, but still, some parts would hit a bit harder. If you played Mahjong any amount of time you would know that winning as much as Akagi is so improbable that it’s laughable. Also there is no way that you become as good as he does in the first night of playing ever. But if you can stomach the premise that Akagi is that strong, you might just enjoy that and this anime might have something to teach you.
Akagi isn’t just strong because he wins. Akagi is strong because he has an extreme personality, and what I like about this anime is that his opponents are very strong personalities too. Akagi uses his knowledge, intuition and acuity to completely break people. The Mahjong is really the background, the mental battle is what’s really up in this show.
And that’s why Akagi cannot lose. He is the personification of the gambler. This series will often ridicule players that play by logic and probability, because it wants to be really clear that the reality of the Akagi universe isn’t about that. It’s about the essence of the gamble.

The essence of a gamble is to die a meaningless death

Throwing away everything is the only way to be free of its weight. Sometimes this anime is right, in both good and bad interpretations of this way of thinking.
You shouldn’t gamble, because it can lead to your demise and it makes, on a risk reward level, no sense. But if you do play some gambling high stakes game, like Mahjong, you’re going to lose if you make the consequences weigh on you. Playing recklessly, isn’t right, but this is not what Akagi does. What Akagi does do, is pick difficult choices as if they were the most natural thing to do. Because they are, you just can’t see that if you put the wrong weight on what’s in front of you.

With this attitude, Akagi will go on and become an underground Mahjong legend and … well yes actually the anime just ends like that, in the middle of an high stakes match. That’s kind of underwhelming but still, I don’t think it’s too bad. Without really talking about the fact they really couldn’t wait the 12 years that the manga took to end the high stakes match I was talking about. This anime already told you what it is about, and I think it culminates and at that point, it’s better it just cut off without dragging along too much.

If you’re interested in a show that talks about Mahjong you really don’t have much choice, there is this one and then there’s Saki, which really isn’t comparable. Even so, I think Akagi would stand on its feet anyway, given the masterful building of tension and the unique personality of Akagi. This show made a lot of people start playing Mahjong, which tells us two things: The first is that a lot of people watched and enjoyed this show without knowing how to play, and the second is that it made Mahjong feel actually epic without using special effects or moves, just expert staging of the games and a lot of character.
I’m sure not everyone will enjoy this anime, that being for the art, for the characters, for the mahjong. But I do think almost anyone could enjoy, there isn’t a demographic that I’d just exclude, so I suggest giving it a try!