Touhai Densetsu Akagi: Yami ni Maiorita Tensai

While mahjong is a game that is often played with family and friends, it is also a game that is played in the darkest corners of society. Nangou is a compulsive gambler who has accumulated debt over three million yen. In a last ditch attempt to clear his record, he decides to wager his life on a game of mahjong with the mafia. Unfortunately, as the game progresses, Nangou only moves further from the prize and closer to death.

When all hope seems lost, the game parlor is suddenly intruded upon by Shigeru Akagi, a young boy on the run from the police. Desperate to turn the game around, Nangou hands the game over to Akagi after teaching him a few of the rules. The mafia can only smirk as Akagi sits down to play. However, they soon come to learn that Akagi is a natural-born gambler. An imposing figure who does not fear death. One who is destined to become a legend.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Akagi, Shigeru Main

Hagiwara, Masato Japanese

Washizu, Iwao Supporting

Tsukayama, Masane Japanese

Hirayama, Yukio Supporting

Sato, Ginpei Japanese

Ichikawa Supporting

Tanaka, Hideyuki Japanese

Ryuuzaki Supporting

Nakata, Kouji Japanese

Nozaki, Osamu Supporting

Satou, Yuudai Japanese

Narrator Supporting

Furuya, Toru Japanese

Yasuoka Supporting

Genda, Tesshou Japanese

Nangou Supporting

Koyama, Rikiya Japanese

Urabe Supporting

Kazama, Morio Japanese

Maruyama, Masao Producer

Tamura, Manabu Producer

Nakatani, Toshio Producer

Shinohara, Akira Producer

Reviews

Jun 14, 2024

Dompa112

Recommended

Who knew Mahjong could be this intense. Im only really familiar with it through the Yakuza games where ive spent quite alot of time playing it. But by no means a pro and in need of some in game help to go by.

But yeah as expected from the creators of Kaiji Ultimate survivor heres another intense show where the MC is up against the odds and in need to topple his opponents through wits.

The show is made up of pretty much 4 different games and opponents. I think the first few episodes were a bit slow. Ofcourse being introduced to characters. Getting some ... pointers about Mahjong. Its really only halfway through when stakes get higher show really gets going.

Im not good enough to know if everything really is as smart and tactical as it sounds or if the show is a bit pretentious but in the end i dont think it matters. Its entertaining. The tension. The narration. The characters really grow and are very likeable.

I think Kaiji might just edge it by a bit but ended up really enjoying this.

Reviewer’s Rating: 8

What did you think of this review?

Nice 0

Love it 0

Funny 0

Confusing 0

Informative 0

Well-written 0

Creative 0

More reviews by Dompa112 (98)

Show all

Read more

Show less

Open

Gift

Report

Jul 19, 2025

KrenZane

Mixed Feelings

*Brief Review-Reflections*

~~

My status as an ignoramus negates any credibility to my opinions on Akagi's true value. For what it's worth, what's fascinating about extracting the essence of mahjong gambling for scrutiny in affiliation to death's inevitable coming is the unadulterated access to macabre drama. The 26-episode run utilized untapped darkness through an amusing mix of ornate epical narration and DBZ-styled commentary. From the eyes of one without mahjong knowledge it's a fairly descriptive anime; I'm actually tempted to call it a visual novel due to the dense script, the absence of complex movement, and minimal environmental manipulation.

Akagi is unfettered when it comes to plunging ... deeper into the edgy, mirroring the titular character's eccentric quirk of fearless risk-taking that embodies the spirit of gambling found nowhere except for a few, ironic to be found in a youth--the symbol of burning life. It was a refreshing watch for the occasional subversion of my discipline in experiencing art made more pleasing by the protagonist's charisma (of course the lunar-shaped guy must be involved with psychological schemes on top of it) and the adventure in the dark not occasioning an excruciating cruise at all.

Reviewer’s Rating: 5

What did you think of this review?

Nice 0

Love it 0

Funny 0

Confusing 0

Informative 0

Well-written 0

Creative 0

More reviews by KrenZane (62)

Show all

Read more

Show less

Open

Gift

Report

Sep 12, 2010

Darklonestrife

Not Recommended

Oh, Akagi... Akagi, Akagi, Akagi... What can I say? This is the first Anime that I have ever seen that dealt with gambling. The means of gambling is with a game called Mahjong. I did not know the fundamentals and basic rules of Mahjong when I watched this. Looking back at it, I certainly wished I had taken the time to learn Mahjong. The reason for this is because all Akagi did was left me with numerous boring moments, frustration, and a bitter taste in my mouth. And maybe, just maybe I could have appreciated and enjoyed Akagi a little bit more, but it's just ... not that great folks. I'm sorry. On to the review...

STORY... As mentioned earlier, the plot revolves around Mahjong. There are a total of 3 arcs, if I remember correctly, and within each arc, the ante is raised to a higher level which keeps things interesting. The setup of the plot to me was great, but the execution of the plot was not well done. There are numerous instances wherein there is internal dialogue. It happens when the players are thinking to themselves. For example, what's their opponent's next move, what's the best move for them, and when they start panicking. Now, these are great ways to build "on the edge of your seat tension" and it works for the first few episodes, but they just overdid it with the rest of the episodes. Imagine taking 2, sometimes even 3 whole episodes just for a single round. There were so many times I tried so hard not to fall asleep while listening to the characters' internal dialogue. It's slow paced. Eventually, you'll come to find out it's not if Akagi will win, it's HOW he will win, meaning you know what's going to happen= predictable. And to make matters worse, Akagi has a very UNSATISFYING ending. Let's go to the next category before I start ranting on other details as to why I dislike Akagi. Haha...

ANIMATION... I had no particular problems with the animation. It takes some getting use to, but it's quite good. The character designs appropriately fit the dark gambling atmosphere and great detail was put into the Mahjong tiles, giving viewers a better feel for the game of Mahjong. The movements of the characters is also fluid such as when slamming Mahjong tiles on the game table. That's pretty much it.

SOUND... The soundtrack is actually quite decent. The opening theme is just alright, but the first and second ending theme are definitely much more likeable. The background music also appropriately fits the dark gambling atmosphere. The producers did right in this category.

CHARACTERS... This is THE ONLY strong point of the series. The main character Akagi is actually quite really cool. He has a natural born instinct for gambling and he has this dark aura about him that terrifies his opponents. Maybe it's because he's emo? Just kidding. Haha... It's probably due to the fact that Akagi is never satisfied with just winning. He always wants to bring about the demise of his opponents by mentally breaking them down and then taking absolutely everything the opponent owns until there's nothing left. It's play hard, gamble harder. However, the series does not go into any background information as to why Akagi is the way he is nor does he undergo any character development. But I get the feeling it'd be wrong for me to hold that against this series, so I won't. There are some side characters, but they are totally insignificant.

OVERALL SCORE: 4/10= Below Average

STRENGTHS
+ Likeable main character.
+ Animation is fluid.
+ Decent soundtrack.

WEAKNESSES
- Predictable.
- Incredibly slow paced.
- Too much internal dialogue.
- Horrible ending.

Note: You can still somehow enjoy Akagi without completely knowing Mahjong, but good luck to you. If you're curious about Mahjong, then be my guest and watch this. But if you're just a regular viewer, (such as myself) take my word for it and avoid this one. There is another gambling series that is so much better than Akagi. It was made by the same producers- the series is called Kaiji. Read my review on Kaiji and see the difference. I recommend this series ONLY to viewers who are curious about Mahjong.

Reviewer’s Rating: 4

What did you think of this review?

Nice 0

Love it 0

Funny 0

Confusing 0

Informative 0

Well-written 0

Creative 0

More reviews by Darklonestrife (7)

Show all

Read more

Show less

Open

Gift

Report

Mahjong Soul - Event Characters

by SHIZA_KAISER

7 Entries · 6 Restacks

One Main Character (3)

by Gino99

50 Entries · 40 Restacks

Visually Distinct Anime

by Monitor

19 Entries · 127 Restacks

Japan Red Cross To Distribute a PR Poster for Blood Donation Featuring Akagi

According to the official website of Comiket, Japanese Red Cross will distribute special posters to blood donors in donation sites in Tokyo. Among bishoujo adult gam...read more

Jul 31, 2012 8:05 AM by dtshyk | Discuss (19 comments)

	Poll: Akagi Episode 26 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) zq - Oct 18, 2007	124 replies	by Zarutaku »» Jun 5, 12:34 PM
	Poll: Akagi Episode 1 Discussion ( 1 2 ) zq - Oct 15, 2007	60 replies	by Blackpenredpen »» May 20, 3:25 AM
	Poll: Akagi Episode 3 Discussion zq - Oct 15, 2007	36 replies	by Jacksnapp »» Jan 25, 1:12 PM
	Poll: Akagi Episode 4 Discussion zq - Oct 16, 2007	35 replies	by defaulticus »» Jan 19, 7:22 AM
	Poll: Akagi Episode 24 Discussion zq - Oct 17, 2007	32 replies	by JoaoPedru »» Jun 27, 2024 2:25 PM