"Kaiji" tells the story of Kaiji, a dull, heavily indebted man who, due to his debts, becomes embroiled in a gambling event sponsored by the Teiai Group. There, he develops his talent for gambling and competition. But what really stands out in this series are the famous quotes uttered by the characters. Gambling, where the stakes are either big wins or ruin, often reveals memorable lines that explore the essence of human nature and emerge from tense psychological states. These quotes can deeply impact us and even influence our lives. Today, I'd like to introduce some of the famous quotes uttered by the characters in "Kaiji."
1. "Life should be treated more carelessly! Life, life... If treated too carefully, it will rot!" - Kazutaka Hyodo
This famous quote was spoken during a gambling game between Kaiji and Tonegawa, when Tonegawa praised Kaiji for his reckless and selfless gambling. Kaiji is playing a risky game where he could lose his life or win a huge fortune, but he doesn't give a second thought to his life. A normal person in a situation like this would typically prioritize themselves, adopt conservative tactics, and safely secure a profit. However, even if they win, they will barely gain anything. To achieve great things, humans must embrace risk. This quote is a reminder of that. When people treat their lives carelessly and take a bold step, they become more vibrant and radiant. Kaiji also lives a miserable life, but when it comes to gambling, he has flashes of inspiration that ordinary people wouldn't even consider. We're often told to cherish our lives, but this quote really brings home the obvious fact that victory cannot be achieved without taking risks.
2. "Money is more important than life...!" Yukio Tonegawa
This famous line was spoken in the second gambling game in Kaiji, "Bremen Road," as if scolding the debtors who were reluctant to participate. In response to the debtors' complaints about the injustice of risking their lives for money, Tonegawa continues, describing the social system in which "we sacrifice our lives in exchange for money." If you think about it, there's no need to risk your life for money, but we work every day, exhausted, to earn money. In other words, as Tonegawa says, we sacrifice our lives to earn money. When you think about it that way, the phrase "money is more important than life" becomes more persuasive. It's often said that nothing is more important than life, but that's a myth. It's no exaggeration to say that everything in modern society revolves around money, and there are many cases where life is disregarded for money.
3. "Don't start working hard tomorrow... Just work hard today...! Tomorrow will only come to those who work hard today... Only to those who start working hard today...!" - Team Leader Otsuki
Kaiji is taken to an underground forced labor facility. Despite the daily hard work and meager wages, they plan to save up enough money to purchase a pass to go outside. However, they succumb to the allure of the snack bar held within their group and spend lavishly, leaving them no time to save. Seeing this, Squad Leader Otsuki left these words: Many people often procrastinate, saying, "I'll start tomorrow," or "I'll try my best tomorrow." However, only those who have already started can continue to persevere. Putting it off will never achieve it. These words remind us that the first step is important, and that by working hard day by day, the future will open up.
4. "Don't hope for a miracle! 'Winning'...isn't something you pray to God for...it lies beyond concrete odds...it's reality...! You must win if you are meant to win...!" " Kaiji
After defeating Chief Otsuki in a game of chinchiro, Kaiji earns the right to return to the surface. With his time on the surface limited, Kaiji searches for a gambling game that will earn him a large sum of money in order to pay off his remaining debts. Along the way, he encounters Uncle Sakazaki and the Pachinko Swamp. When Sakazaki's plan to conquer the swamp collapses, he becomes desperate and tries to gamble away his remaining money. Kaiji stops him and says these words. This reminds us that strategy is paramount to success and winning, and that diligently executing that strategy is essential to victory. Leaving the outcome of a game to chance, good fortune, or other fate is the height of foolishness. This quote reminds us of the importance of a winning strategy and the need to chart a course to victory.
5. "Everything I've ever lived through was completely real...!" - Yukio Tonegawa
These are the words Tonegawa and his friends uttered as they watched the debtors try their hand at gambling. There are often people who slack off on their efforts, harboring naive hopes that exciting things will happen in their lives and that they will achieve success beyond their imagination. But as time passes and they grow older, it's already too late. And when they finally realize it, it's too late to realize that their life up until now has been the real thing. This quote is a must-read for anyone who can't seem to take life seriously or who lives without a sense of reality. It reminds us to take a step forward and take on challenges before it's too late to live life.
6. "If my heart is filled with true remorse, I'll kneel down anywhere, even on a hot plate where flesh burns and bones scorch..." - Kazutaka Hyodo
These words are a famous quote from Kazutaka Hyodo, chairman of the Teiai Group, which has grown through its consumer finance business. I've seen many people who have tried to default on their debts, and one thing they all have in common is that they act truly sorry before borrowing the money, but when it comes to repaying it, they only apologize formally, and many even harbor hatred for the debtor in their hearts. To address this issue, I devised a system called "yaki-dogeza" (glory groveling) to allow people to demonstrate their true apology, rather than just in their hearts. As the phrase suggests, if you are truly sorry, you can do so even on a hot iron plate, making this a thought-provoking scene about apologies. We've often seen lukewarm apologies that are merely formalities. But how many of them actually truly feel remorseful? Yaki-dogeza makes this clear, and it forces you to express your apology. It's a statement that only a chairman with a wealth of life experience could make.
7. "The only one who can save me is myself!" Kaiji
When Kaiji is challenging himself to a "limited rock-paper-scissors" game on the Espoir, he is tricked by Funai early on and finds himself in a difficult situation. This is the phrase he speaks to himself at the time. Up until this point, Kaiji has trusted Funai's every word, leading to his being tricked. In other words, he has completely dumped his victory on someone else. However, in a competition, the only person who can make you win is you. Therefore, you must never rely on others and must find your own path to victory. In the end, the only person you can rely on is yourself. These are words that you should always keep in mind.
8. "Puff up your chest...!It's when you suffer a painful defeat... that you should hold your head up...!" Kaiji
When Kaiji loses a gambling match against Chairman Hyodo and has to have his finger amputated as a result, a normal person would be terrified of losing his finger and want to expose his shameful appearance and beg his opponent to stop. However, Kaiji doesn't do that. This shows Kaiji's determination to never lose his pride, no matter how many times he loses or how deep he hits rock bottom. If he loses this pride, he'll probably lose sight of his next victory. This quote shows Kaiji's determination to stick to the golden rule of gambling: accepting his loss and moving on to the next one.
9. "It's okay to be weird, but it's no good if it's not weird... You can't kill the devil unless you're crazy, if you're deviant...! Only by going beyond the norm can the path to victory open up...!" Kaiji
While Kaiji and Tonegawa are playing a game of e-cards, Kaiji executes a bizarre tactic: cutting off his ear and disconnecting the heartbeat system attached to it. At first glance, such an insane act may seem like he's gone mad, but it's actually an important form of camouflage. It confuses his opponent and makes it difficult to understand his movements. This phrase teaches us that when we find ourselves in a difficult situation and our path to victory seems blocked, ordinary methods are simply not viable, and that to find a breakthrough, we must take extraordinary actions.
10. "In life, you have to win...!" " Yukio Tonegawa
These are the words he spoke to the debtors gathered on the Espoir. He preaches to the debtors, who had not taken life seriously and had been losing all this time, the importance of winning. There are many ways to live life, but no matter how you live it, it's difficult to escape competition, and winning that competition is the only way to enrich your life. These words convey this obvious truth in a powerful tone. I'm sure many people have reconsidered their lukewarm lifestyles after hearing these words.
11. "When they touch my broken leg, it hurts him...but it doesn't hurt me...!" - Kazutaka Hyodo
After clearing "Bremen Road," Kaiji prepares to challenge Tonegawa to an e-card game when Chairman Hyodo appears before him. Nearby are the debtors injured in the first crossing. The chairman poked the debtor in the injured area with his cane. These are the words he spoke, and they convey the message that, ultimately, humans are incapable of understanding others. People are bound together by vague terms like trust, friendship, and love, but these bonds are often only formed through mutual benefit. These words reflect Chairman Hyodo's philosophy that we cannot understand the feelings of others, and that it is arrogant to think we can.
12. "You can't trust someone who's weak at the last minute...! In other words, that's a man who can manage but can't win... He might do his job well in normal times, but he's completely useless in an emergency!" - Kazutaka Hyodo
These are the words that Tonegawa spoke to Kaiji after losing the final e-card game. Tonegawa has always been an elite, winning various competitions and achieving his current position. However, these words demonstrate that even such a man is powerless in an emergency. No matter how talented a person is, it is often not their usual excellence but their sudden inspiration that enables them to escape from a difficult situation. These words are unique to the chairman, who recognizes that such talented people who wait for instructions are inherently weak.
Summary
The many famous quotes uttered by characters in Kaiji are so compelling that they make us reexamine our everyday thoughts and actions. Kaiji, which leaves us with many deeply moving words about the essential aspects of human nature and winning, is no exaggeration to say that it is a textbook on life. If you're interested after reading this, I highly recommend you read Kaiji.
