What Made Kakegurui Famous Three Years After Its Release

 In the last few weeks, Kakegurui seems to be getting all the recognition and attention it deserves. New fans have embraced the show as the high-stakes anime has grown in popularity. However, it is quite strange that even though the manga first came out in 2014, the anime adaptation only got famous in 2017. The story revolves around the protagonist Yumeko Jabami who takes part in gambling as part of the high school’s strange hierarchy. One can only climb the hierarchy of the school by gambling. Since they are children of Japan’s wealthiest families, it does undoubtedly help them immensely. However, if a student falls into debt, he ends up becoming a pet to other students. Depending on the gender, one can either be a Doggy or Kitty. 

The debt is not to be taken lightly and can follow a student even after graduation. Although most students want to gamble for connections and popularity, the protagonist, Yumeko, does it for its amusement. Since she is a compulsive gambler, she can’t help but crave the feeling that comes with gambling. She takes part in increasingly riskier games so that she could satisfy her craving for the activity.  

One of the biggest reasons for the sudden rise in popularity of Kakegurui is the accessibility. Most anime fans use Funimation and Crunchyroll to stream anime, but the show is not available on either one of them. Netflix has the streaming license of Kakegurui, so the fans cannot watch it anywhere else. However, specialist platforms are great for watching anime since most series are available for free, and one only has to wait a little for the newest episode; other than that, they are the best option for watching anime free-of-cost. So, people who don’t have access to Netflix can easily stream their favorite anime for free.

However, if a series is not available on one of the specialist platforms, one is left with a few options. Watching the shows on an illegal, shady website can be dangerous since they are riddled with viruses. Then there is the option of reading the manga, but it can be cumbersome, and most fans, therefore, don’t have the time to read it. It is much easier to watch the anime since it demands less time commitment.

Another big reason is probably the fact that Kakegurui is gambling anime. Most popular anime genres include shonen, isekai, mahou shoujo, and battle, and most foreign fans don’t even know that gambling anime exists. Moreover, gambling is illegal in most places outside Japan, so understandably, anime fans would not even contemplate that such a genre exists. However, pachinko parlors are everywhere in Japan, which can be attributed to Kakegurui’s appeal. So, someone who is not familiar with Japanese culture might not consider gambling anime worth looking into.

Although the show did get popular over time among a niche audience, it was not as well-known until the big celebrities gave it a push, and now the show has come to the mainstream. It is not new for shows or products to get more attention once a celebrity endorses it since the fans want to be just like their idols. So, it is not hard to understand why they would choose to watch the show. Social media these days plays a vital role in making a series popular with a foreign audience. 

Since tons of shows are released each year, it is obvious why very few get to be as popular as Kakegurui. The abundance of options makes it difficult for the fans to keep up most of the time; therefore, sometimes, even good shows go unnoticed. People who are not nearly as interested are even less likely to watch series that are released recently. Most popular series get the attention right out of the gate and since they are not expected to get noticed otherwise. Hence, Kakegurui is lucky that it has gained so many fans even after three months of release. 

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