Fandom 50 (1/50): Trillion Game
Mar. 9th, 2025 01:10 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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fandom50challenge even though I hardly ever post on DW! My first entry is about Trillion Game, a show that I got into the same way I got into Dr. Stone:
Step 1: fall randomly and deeply back into an old fandom of mine, Eyeshield 21. As you can imagine, 20 years on, this was an absolute ghost town. Understandable: the canon ended, it had its weaknesses that didn't entirely hold up over time, and American football is kind of lame.
Step 2: go questing for more of the same. Part of what intrigued me so much about Eyeshield 21 were a few specific characters and dynamics—and in 20 years, I don't think I ever found them done quite the same way elsewhere. So I went hunting for other things by the author, Inagaki Riichiro.
Step 3: profit??? This worked out once with Dr. Stone, which was fantastic! So I decided to try my luck with his current manga, Trillion Game.
Thank god Dr. Stone had some active fandom, because Trillion Game was even quieter than Eyeshield 21. Just… nothing. I could hardly even find the manga anywhere, but I lucked out that just as I was getting into it, Netflix released a live action adaption, which I've been slowly making my way through over the past several months. (It's not long, I'm just slow.)
One thing I love about Inagaki's work is how quickly the plot moves in unexpected directions. Kind of like in Dr. Stone where they're trying to build modern civilization from scratch through the successive advancements in science, Trillion Game is about two new grads who want to make 1 trillion dollars starting from nothing. They go through a variety of industries at blazing speeds, from e-commerce to AI to the news, and Inagaki is clearly unafraid to take wild leaps and do his research. Honestly, some of the things may not land, but it's okay because then we're on to the next thing and that's what makes the plot feel so fresh and unpredictable. I feel like there's a lesson here to take for my own work: to be less cautious, more creative.
He's also not afraid to reuse his favorite character archetypes, like the overly-moral stickler, the random cowboy in Japan, and the most selfish person in the world. Like ES21, the main character of Trillion Game is a timid guy (Gaku) who's really exceptional at the one thing he does but was never going to get anywhere in life until he met his counterpart (Haru), a wildcard with zero inhibitions who goes after whatever he wants without reservation. Part of what makes the combination work is that Haru can and will do just about anything to get ahead, but he also happens to think the world of Gaku, who society has deemed a loser.
Though Haru is incredibly selfish and dishonest, there's something trustworthy about that. He's direct and single-minded, and when I say he's not held back by anything, that includes his own well-being—he'll sacrifice himself equally in pursuit of his goal. I do love characters that aren't held back by doubt, shame, or fear of social stigma. He does exactly what he wants at any time, always scheming towards his own agenda—but as the story would have it, it's usually in a way that builds up the people around him, just by being on the same team.
Despite his self-centered choices, it's suspicious that they tend to end up helping others too—and somehow that means more. He's not helping to get on anyone's good side, or to be considered a nice person, or to feel moral. He's simply doing exactly what he wants to, don't look at him if that includes letting an ambitious developer finally make the game of his dreams, or a reporter tell the truth without pressure from the sponsors, or pushing Gaku past his inertia and past failures to actualize his dreams. One of my favorite moments is later in the series when they're doing yet another hard sell, and instead of protesting as usual when Haru talks up his skills, Gaku this time deadpans, "Yep, I am a genius." He's clearly not serious, but I love the idea that maybe he's internalized Haru's faith in him just a little bit.
As always, I'm hyper attuned to the power dynamics of the story, and Haru inverts them in interesting ways. The main characters are always the underdogs, always trying to get funding or recruit help or avoid getting crushed by the established players in the industry. Haru should be on the wrong side of the power imbalance here, but it never feels that way. At one point in an early conversation with an investor, he literally says he's willing to offer his body for the funds. He often has to adopt a super polite customer service voice, and smile, and bow. And as the other characters comment, he's constantly lying, and puts on whatever persona he thinks the audience will respond to best, as smoothly as second nature.
But the weird thing is, it never comes across as a position of weakness—needing to bend himself to others' will or barter with what he has or carefully read other people's reactions to stay on their good side. Instead, it's his superpower. He loves the game, and he's so good at it. He'll put on whatever mask is needed because he knows the moves it takes to win, and by playing them, he knows he'll get what he wants.
Haru is a rocket that Gaku's chained himself to, a selfish liar who will take on any giant, against the odds and common sense, and propels Gaku into really thriving for the first time. But Haru also… did nothing until he met Gaku either. Something about Gaku inspires him to all this. We kind of see events through Gaku's eyes, but I feel like Haru's perspective would tell a different story. That he sees his talents as empty: bluffing, charming, lying through his teeth. While Gaku is the one who has actual tangible skills in hacking, who's actually making things happen.
A lot of the plot is driven by Haru, coming up with outlandish ideas and making them come true, because he's a genius, and because he's willing to do what it takes, no matter how morally gray.
But in the same way the main characters can keep on the path of the righteous because Haru is there to get his hands dirty, he also feels the reverse. "I can do the messed up things because I have you," he tells Gaku late in the show. It feels like because he's found someone he trusts so much to steer the ship toward the light, he can devote himself to the shadow work it takes to keep moving forward.
fandom50challenge even though I hardly ever post on DW! My first entry is about Trillion Game, a show that I got into the same way I got into Dr. Stone:Step 1: fall randomly and deeply back into an old fandom of mine, Eyeshield 21. As you can imagine, 20 years on, this was an absolute ghost town. Understandable: the canon ended, it had its weaknesses that didn't entirely hold up over time, and American football is kind of lame.
Step 2: go questing for more of the same. Part of what intrigued me so much about Eyeshield 21 were a few specific characters and dynamics—and in 20 years, I don't think I ever found them done quite the same way elsewhere. So I went hunting for other things by the author, Inagaki Riichiro.
Step 3: profit??? This worked out once with Dr. Stone, which was fantastic! So I decided to try my luck with his current manga, Trillion Game.
Thank god Dr. Stone had some active fandom, because Trillion Game was even quieter than Eyeshield 21. Just… nothing. I could hardly even find the manga anywhere, but I lucked out that just as I was getting into it, Netflix released a live action adaption, which I've been slowly making my way through over the past several months. (It's not long, I'm just slow.)
One thing I love about Inagaki's work is how quickly the plot moves in unexpected directions. Kind of like in Dr. Stone where they're trying to build modern civilization from scratch through the successive advancements in science, Trillion Game is about two new grads who want to make 1 trillion dollars starting from nothing. They go through a variety of industries at blazing speeds, from e-commerce to AI to the news, and Inagaki is clearly unafraid to take wild leaps and do his research. Honestly, some of the things may not land, but it's okay because then we're on to the next thing and that's what makes the plot feel so fresh and unpredictable. I feel like there's a lesson here to take for my own work: to be less cautious, more creative.
He's also not afraid to reuse his favorite character archetypes, like the overly-moral stickler, the random cowboy in Japan, and the most selfish person in the world. Like ES21, the main character of Trillion Game is a timid guy (Gaku) who's really exceptional at the one thing he does but was never going to get anywhere in life until he met his counterpart (Haru), a wildcard with zero inhibitions who goes after whatever he wants without reservation. Part of what makes the combination work is that Haru can and will do just about anything to get ahead, but he also happens to think the world of Gaku, who society has deemed a loser.
Though Haru is incredibly selfish and dishonest, there's something trustworthy about that. He's direct and single-minded, and when I say he's not held back by anything, that includes his own well-being—he'll sacrifice himself equally in pursuit of his goal. I do love characters that aren't held back by doubt, shame, or fear of social stigma. He does exactly what he wants at any time, always scheming towards his own agenda—but as the story would have it, it's usually in a way that builds up the people around him, just by being on the same team.
Despite his self-centered choices, it's suspicious that they tend to end up helping others too—and somehow that means more. He's not helping to get on anyone's good side, or to be considered a nice person, or to feel moral. He's simply doing exactly what he wants to, don't look at him if that includes letting an ambitious developer finally make the game of his dreams, or a reporter tell the truth without pressure from the sponsors, or pushing Gaku past his inertia and past failures to actualize his dreams. One of my favorite moments is later in the series when they're doing yet another hard sell, and instead of protesting as usual when Haru talks up his skills, Gaku this time deadpans, "Yep, I am a genius." He's clearly not serious, but I love the idea that maybe he's internalized Haru's faith in him just a little bit.
As always, I'm hyper attuned to the power dynamics of the story, and Haru inverts them in interesting ways. The main characters are always the underdogs, always trying to get funding or recruit help or avoid getting crushed by the established players in the industry. Haru should be on the wrong side of the power imbalance here, but it never feels that way. At one point in an early conversation with an investor, he literally says he's willing to offer his body for the funds. He often has to adopt a super polite customer service voice, and smile, and bow. And as the other characters comment, he's constantly lying, and puts on whatever persona he thinks the audience will respond to best, as smoothly as second nature.
But the weird thing is, it never comes across as a position of weakness—needing to bend himself to others' will or barter with what he has or carefully read other people's reactions to stay on their good side. Instead, it's his superpower. He loves the game, and he's so good at it. He'll put on whatever mask is needed because he knows the moves it takes to win, and by playing them, he knows he'll get what he wants.
Haru is a rocket that Gaku's chained himself to, a selfish liar who will take on any giant, against the odds and common sense, and propels Gaku into really thriving for the first time. But Haru also… did nothing until he met Gaku either. Something about Gaku inspires him to all this. We kind of see events through Gaku's eyes, but I feel like Haru's perspective would tell a different story. That he sees his talents as empty: bluffing, charming, lying through his teeth. While Gaku is the one who has actual tangible skills in hacking, who's actually making things happen.
A lot of the plot is driven by Haru, coming up with outlandish ideas and making them come true, because he's a genius, and because he's willing to do what it takes, no matter how morally gray.
But in the same way the main characters can keep on the path of the righteous because Haru is there to get his hands dirty, he also feels the reverse. "I can do the messed up things because I have you," he tells Gaku late in the show. It feels like because he's found someone he trusts so much to steer the ship toward the light, he can devote himself to the shadow work it takes to keep moving forward.
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Date: 2025-03-10 06:58 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-03-11 03:48 am (UTC)But surely he is Hiruma III, we must reserve Hiruma II for Science Hiruma from Dr. Stone!
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Date: 2025-03-11 04:01 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-03-11 04:06 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-03-13 02:32 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-03-15 05:38 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-03-24 09:00 pm (UTC)I laughed at the random cowboy! Details, particularly on the cowboy and the most selfish person in the world? (is the most selfish person Hiruma?)
(also I think Inagaki should do a Dracula story at some point... it's fate at this point!!)
The power dynamics and the relationship sound really interesting! (and I'm looking forward to more of your fandom50)