WARNING! This article contains spoilers for Bet’s season 1 finale!Netflix’sBethas finally arrived, returning anime fans and new viewers alike to the prestigious halls of an exclusive school where the next generation of rich and powerful figures gamble their way to the top. However, the show also brings several changes that add new dimensions to the story and layers to the characters.Netflix’s latest anime to live-action translationisbased on the 2017 anime adaptation ofKakegurui, which brought Homura Kawamoto and Toru Naomura’s manga to screens.Betreimagines the world ofKakeguruiin a Western setting, focusing on St. Dominic’s, a boarding school for wealthy children.
Much like the anime andprevious Japanese live-action adaptations ofKakegurui,Betis led by Yumeko (Miku Marineau), a recent transfer student with a passion for gambling. As she gathers an ensemble of friends and allies, she sets out to disrupt the social order of the school through its high-stakes underground games and gambits.Season 1 adapted Yumeko’s induction into the school setting, as well as her first conflicts with the student council, but made several changes that greatly changed where the series may go next.
7Yumeko’s Motivations Are Shaped By Tragedy
Yumeko Is On A Quest For Revenge
Within the originalKakeguruimanga and its adaptations, Yumeko is a thrill-seeker whose motivations are driven by her love of high-stakes gambling, no matter what the stakes may be. However, inBet, Yumeko is also driven by a desire to avenge her parents' deaths, determined to bring whoever killed them to justice. As such,Yumeko is a more tragic and cunning figure who has been molded by and continues to carry the weight of her past, as opposed to past retellings' reckless risk-taker.
6Yumeko’s Family Has A Greater Impact
Yumeko’s Family Haunts The Narrative
Furthermore, as revealed at theend ofBetseason 1, the death of Yumeko’s parents, Keiko and Jo, marks a major deviation from the source material that recontextualizes where the story could go next. Within the manga and anime, both of Yumeko’s parents are killed by unknown assailants for unclear reasons, while the Netflix adaptation sees them murdered by the Kakegurui Club after they devise a way to redistribute their wealth. However,in another major twist, it is suggested that Keiko may still be alive,which may leave Yumeko rethinking her priorities in future seasons.
There is no counterpart for Souko inBet, with the tragedy of the Jabami family being more centered on Yumeko’s parents' deaths.
Another change to Yumeko’s past is the absence of her sister, asBetestablishes her as an only child. InKakegurui,Yumeko has an older sister named Souko, who finds herself in crisis after losing a betthat results in her losing her position as head of the Jabami to their aunt, Tsukigo, with her anguish being furthered when another wager leads to Yumeko being adopted by the Tsuibami family. As such, there is no counterpart for Souko inBet, with the tragedy of the Jabami family being more centered on Yumeko’s parents' deaths.
5Yumeko’s Friend Group Has Expanded Stories
Each Ally Has Their Own Struggles
Alongside reworking Yumeko’s past,Betchanges her close companions at St. Dominic’s. Ryan (Ayo Solanke) is inspired by Ryota from the source material, but rather than just acting as an audience surrogate,he is given his own storyline that involves him trying to escape the influence and legacy of his parents and chart his own path. In episode 1’s ending, the pair are joined by Mary (Eve Edwards), a former Student Council member who finds herself becoming Ryan’s Housepet after losing to Yumeko. Mary hopes to regain her position in season 1, and receives her own new romantic arc.
However, the trio is also joined by the book-smart and tech-savvy Michael (Hunter Cardinal), who finds himself becoming the bookie for the off-the-book side bets that take place at St Dominic’s. He quickly finds himself becoming an ally to Yumeko in her early scuffles with the Student Council, though his family’s murky history with Yumeko’s leaves his true allegiances complicated. However,Michael has no counterpart in the original series and is a new addition for the Netflix series, and will likely play a larger role in potential future episodes.
4The Housepet System Has Different Rules
Kakegurui’s Terrifying Hierarchy Is Made Simpler For Bet
InKakegurui, the Housepet system is devised by the Student Council to control even those with immense power behind their names, locking them into servitude by amassing immense debts that are nearly impossible to escape. Due to this, those trapped in the Housepet system and are unable to escape their fate are locked into servitude even beyond their time at school. Meanwhile,Bet’sHousepet system is a far simpler hierarchy, which determines the council membership where the loser is seemingly just locked into serving the winner,which, at the time of writing, removes much of the overarching tension.
3Kira’s Character Has A Complicated Backstory
Kira Is A Far More Empathetic Villain
At the top of the St. Dominics hierarchy sits Kira (Clara Alexandrova), the head of the Student Council and heir to the Timurov family, with her father Arkadi sitting at the top of the school’s board. Kira is a cold and calculating leader who is determined to maintain control and live up to her family’s legacy. As such,her main concern with Yumeko and her group is how they have the potential to disrupt the hierarchythat she has instilled upon St. Dominics.
In contrast, Kira’s Japanese counterpart, Kirari, is depicted as a sadist with no regard for anything but her own pleasure. Kirari in the anime and manga is a darker parallel of Yumeko with her own passion for gambling and high risks, though much of the pleasure of the latter comes from seeing people suffer as their lives shatter, confident that she will always land on top. As such,Bet’sKira is a somewhat more sympathetic figurethan her anime counterpart.
2The Student Council Has Been Reshuffled
Several Council Members Are Folded Into New Characters
Alongside Kira, St. Dominic’s is run by the Student Council, withBetseason 1 focusing on Kira’s sister Riri (Anwen O’Driscoll), Vice President, Dori (Aviva Mongillo), Suki (Ryan Sutherland), Chad (Dorian Giordano), and Runa (Lara Afelskie). While Riri, Dori, and Runa are direct adaptations of Ririka, Midari, and Runa, Suki is a gender-swapped amalgamation of Itsuki and Yumeni, taking the former’s place in the story and the latter’s backstory. Meanwhile,Chad is seemingly also an original character toBet, and the other four members don’t receive a focus within the season.
1Bet’s Ending Leaves Threads For A Potential Second Season To Pick Up
The Conclusion Allows Netflix To Take Its Own Path
With each of these changes,Betinevitably has an ending that has strayed far away from where the first season of the anime left its core cast.InKakeguruiseason 1’s finale, everything comes to a head as Yumeko and Kirari sit down for their own gambling match, with the stakes being that the loser will be expelled. However,the pair end their game in a draw, but walk away with a better understanding of one another, as Kirari dissolves the council, and Yumeko continues to gamble at the school.
WithBet’s higher stakes and complicated motivations, having killed the man who she thought killed her father, Yumeko shifts her sights to taking down the rest of the Kakegurui club while finding out the truth of what happened to her mother. Kira is also set on her own path, as she seeks to unseat Riri as student council president, taking back her throne and position in the family. As such,Bet’sending is a far more open-ended conclusion that not only sets up a second season but alsoleaves the potential for Netflix’s adaptation to go further down its own path.
