With a live version of the popular manga Kakegurui already streaming on their channel, Netflix found that it was high time for an updated version. BET is a Western version of Kakegurui featuring Miku Martineau as Yumeko Jabami, a mysterious student who transfers to Saint Domonic’s Prep School in search of a good gamble – and revenge.
You can BET it all when this series premieres May 16 on Netflix!
So, what did you think?
As you can see in the trailer, BET uses the same aesthetics as the Japanese drama version such as lighting, tone and use of split screens. But that’s where the similarities end. This version of Yumeko is different from that what fans are used to. Her gambling impulses remain intact while her personality appears to have been altered. Her reasons for gambling were for the sheer joy of it. Now she bets it all on revenge for her murdered parents who have also attended the school. This is somewhat of a departure from the manga where Yumeko uses her winnings to take of her sister who has been in the hospital for some time. Sadly, BET might likely follow the path of the Western version of Death Note by Americanizing the names of known characters in the manga. Ryota Suzui who becomes friends with Yumeko may go by simply “Ray” or Kirari Momobami could be called “Karrie” for this new adaptation. I may be spit balling, but I could also be right about the name because trust me, they are going to be changed. As a fan of Kakegurui, I will not shoot this show down without giving it a chance. Who knows, it might surprise me, good or bad. It could be like the Death Note series where the only redeeming quality is Willem Defoe as Ryuk. Trust me, if he wasn’t there, I wouldn’t have bothered. With that being said, I’ll see how this turns out.
Until then, see you “On the NXT LVL!”
