While live-action manga adaptations are known to have a bad rap, Netflix’s Trillion Game is quite entertaining. Striving to earn a million, maybe even a trillion dollars, is something that many people aspire to do, but the way Haru and the team do it is so unexpected. Ren Maguro keeps a great balance between Haru’s unpredictable yet charismatic nature, while Hayato Sano keeps the shyness of Gaku endearing. They go into the most random situations such as winning millions of yen in investments, going into a hacking tournament, and faking an AI. Is this really how aspiring trillionaires succeed? Maybe not, though they do teach some start-up strategies. But, it’s definitely still a fun ride as Haru bluffs his way into ballsy situations for Gaku to solve through computer engineering.
Synopsis
Two old friends go into business together – one's a master communicator, and the other's a great engineer. Their goal? To make a trillion dollars.
Storyline
Due to his lack of communication skills, reclusive tech nerd Gaku is unable to get a job anywhere, including the IT giant Dragon Bank. However, after a fight, his charismatic classmate Haru quits his job at this bank, and outlines a plan for them to make a start-up that will earn a trillion dollars.
TLDR
Oh, to have the audacity of Haru Tennoji…
What stands out
As a live action adaptation of a manga, there are inevitably certain scenes that lend well into real life filming over others, so sometimes adaptations would cut out less fitting scenes. That being said, Trillion Game makes excellent selections between what to portray as well as what to keep. Without spoiling too much, they matched that certain subtitle, as well as the window washing, but replaced the weightlifting with something more visually dynamic. And of course, they kept Haru’s long hair but not his ponytail. The series is able to keep the spirit of the manga while making its visuals and story more appealing for live action adaptation.
