WARNING: The plethora of psychotic lesbians in this anime may be too much for the weak of heart to handle. Proceed with caution.
The male protagonist in the show is Ryouta Suzui. He's basically your average guy and falls under the "I'm useless and have to rely on the heroine to do everything" trope. His primary purpose is to serve as the juxtaposition to Yumeko's character so that her damaged psyche and general insanity is made more apparent. And not just her, but practically every other member of the cast as well, who all seem to add their own little bit of crazy to the show. Seriously, some of these characters make the infamous yandere Yuno Gasai look like a domesticated housewife in comparison.
Kakegurui's plot is really quite simple. There's no intricate story at play and characters (with the exception of the twintailed blonde Meari) don't receive much development. This anime instead focuses on a multitude of unique games played by the characters. Now these aren't fun family matches. They are games with high stakes played by demented yet intelligent characters, and it's just a thrill to watch.
Of course, these games are incredibly exaggerated in order to engross the show's audience. The producers are even able to make a basic game of rock-paper-scissors intense. Now while I'm sure this approach didn't work on everyone, it was enough to entertain me personally and keep me invested in the anime, so I'd say that Kakegurui's presentation was a success. The highlight of these gambling matches was when Yumeko managed to turn the tables on her foes with her amazing analytical skills and luck. It was so fun watching her completely own her opponents.
I just love the distorted faces made by the characters in this anime. Whenever they're experiencing a high or a low during a match, the characters always seem to have amazingly detailed and demented expressions. Their visages often made watching them gamble even more enjoyable and managed to make them seem crazier than they already were. The rest of the animation was often high in quality as well, and it assimilated with the soundtrack quite nicely.
I was really tempted to give Kakegurui a lower score. The story is quite simplistic (bordering the nonexistent range) and there really isn't an explanation on why the school is so fixated on gambling. Also, I found myself constantly wondering things like where the heck are the teachers? I guess they were massacred by the student council. I wouldn't put it past that group of psychos. The fact that only one character had any marginal development while the rest remained generally stagnant was also a negative factor against Kakegurui. But the show is just so damn entertaining. It's honestly one of the most enjoyable seasonal anime that I've seen in awhile. And while the characters aren't that developed, they make up for it with their eccentric personalities. Yumeko commanded my attention every time she appeared on screen, and the majority of her gambling matches were intense and fun to watch, even if they were over dramatized and often served no significant purpose.
Kakegurui is clearly not for everyone. In fact, from a technical standpoint, the anime is actually quite poor. But unlike many other shows that I've seen, Kakegurui was able to make me not completely focus on its shortcomings thanks to its its explosive cast and atmosphere. If you're into the game and/or physiological genre, then I'd recommend giving Kakegurui a chance. And if you have a thing for crazy women, then you don't want to miss out on this anime. Trust me.
