Netflix’s Bet is one of those rare shows that feels like it knows exactly what it is, and has no intention of pretending otherwise. Set in Hyakkaou Private Academy, a school so elite it makes most prep schools look like playgrounds, the students here don’t rise through grades, gold stars, or extracurriculars. Instead, they gamble. Ruthlessly. Whether it’s poker, Russian roulette with a twist, or downright deranged original games, Bet introduces a world where power isn’t given, it’s won, and just as easily lost.
Enter Yumeko Jabami, played with eerie charm and unapologetic intensity by Miku Martineau, a transfer student who walks in with wide eyes and perfect posture, only to flip the entire school system on its manicured head. She doesn’t gamble for power or prestige. She gambles for the thrill, the chaos, the crackle of unpredictability. And that alone makes her dangerous in a place that thrives on control.
Watching Yumeko in action is like watching a storm flirt with calm waters. Her smile is too sweet, her strategy too slick, and her opponents too smug to see what’s coming. That unpredictability becomes the show’s pulse. With each episode, the games become more outrageous, and the stakes more brutal, not just financially, but emotionally and psychologically. Debt here doesn’t just mean you owe money. It means you’re branded, publicly shamed, and essentially enslaved by the elite. This is not your average teen drama.
What’s especially intriguing is how Bet balances absurdity and tension. The stakes are undeniably high, but the execution is campy in all the right ways. The camera doesn’t just observe it lunges, swirls, zooms dramatically on a smirk or a flicked card. Every gambling match feels like a miniature opera, filled with dramatic lighting, sinister monologues, and enough slow motion to satisfy even the most indulgent of anime fans. If you’re not into that stylized flair, this may feel excessive, but if you lean into it, it’s a wild, intoxicating ride.
Martineau as Yumeko is the glue holding the chaos together. She straddles the line between curious and unhinged, delivering lines with a softness that belies her next explosive move. There’s something about her gaze fixed, too long, a little too delighted that hints Yumeko might not just be playing the game. She might be the game.
Around her is a cast of well-dressed frenemies and power-hungry council members, each trying to unseat her or understand her. Some standout characters include Mary Saotome, the reluctant ally whose own descent into this twisted system mirrors Yumeko’s rise, and Kirari Momobami, the icy Student Council President who watches it all unfold from the shadows, sipping tea like a villainess out of a gothic fairytale.
Still, not everything in Bet hits the jackpot. The middle episodes wobble a bit. Some of the games, though designed with visual flair and plenty of tension, drag on longer than necessary. There’s a tendency to over-explain the rules, which can bog down the momentum. And while the stylization adds personality, it occasionally sacrifices emotional depth for aesthetic spectacle.
There’s also a slight over-reliance on dramatic exposition. Characters often speak in riddles or reveal their inner thoughts out loud, which, while true to its anime roots, may not always translate well in live-action. You’ll either find it wildly entertaining or mildly irritating, depending on your appetite for dramatics.
That said, Bet isn’t trying to be subtle. It’s not trying to be realistic either, and that’s precisely its strength. It thrives in its exaggerated universe where teens gamble fortunes, reputations, and their very freedom like it's casual lunchtime banter. The show’s tone doesn’t waver, and that commitment to its brand of madness makes it memorable.
Beneath the games and glossy uniforms, Bet is also about rebellion. Yumeko doesn’t want to win the system. She wants to burn it down. Every bet she places is an act of defiance, a lit match in a room full of gasoline. Something is refreshing about a protagonist who isn’t driven by revenge, romance, or recognition, but pure chaos, unclouded by morality. In a TV landscape cluttered with heroes trying to fix broken worlds, Yumeko simply wants to break one more.
In the end, Bet is stylish, strange, and satisfyingly savage. It’s not for everyone, especially if you like your high school dramas grounded in reality, but for those craving a series that dares to be weird, this one’s a win. It’s flashy, theatrical, and full of deliciously twisted mind games that will either leave you hooked or horrified, probably both. It’s a gamble.
Final Score- [7.5/10]
Reviewed by - Anjali Sharma
Follow @AnjaliS54769166 on Twitter
Publisher at Midgard Times