Recently, many celebrities have cosplayed as the character Yumeko Jabami from Kakegurui. Around Halloween, YouTube pop star Poppy cosplayed as the character at NXT's Halloween Havoc, while popular rapper and celebrity otaku Megan Thee Stallion posted pictures of herself cosplaying Yumeko. It's hard to deny that Yumeko's life of excitement makes her an appealing character -- she might not be a role model, but she's definitely entertaining.
Yumeko Jabami is a student infatuated with gambling. While some would see this gambling world and its potential downfalls as troubling, she finds pleasure in the thrills of the situation. For the most part, Yumeko is able to uncover the tricks that her gambling opponents have up their sleeves. However, even in situations where Yumeko doesn't win, she never regrets gambling in the first place. She handles her losses so well that it doesn't seem to be a genuine "loss" to her.
While Yumeko may feel like an untouchable free-spirit in the gambling world, she despises fixed situations that deny her gambling risks. Midari Ikishima, a member of the student council, attempts to put her life on the line against Yumeko in a game that incorporates elements of Russian Roulette. Midari is a gambler who loves putting her life on the line, to the point where she will lose rounds for the sole intent of getting her next big emotional high. Upon uncovering the extent of Midari's plans to have herself get shot, Yumeko despises Midari and berates this member of the student council for the match that was fixed against herself.
To say that Yumeko is purely interested in her own excitement from gambling would be an understatement to her character. Leaders naturally possess a sort of charisma to them, something which spurs people to follow them. While Yumeko's charisma doesn't necessarily fall strictly under this form, the fun that she has from gambling's emotional stakes often involve other participants of her gambling fun. Whether it be in Yumeko's collaborative work with Mary Saotome or pulling Ryota into certain games, she allows for others to be fully invested in her games.
It's a pleasant surprise how popular Kakegurui has become with these celebrities, given it's far from the most mainstream anime out there. Megan Thee Stallion is known for her love of anime, even collaborating with Crunchyroll on a clothing line, and her recent cosplay gives us some further insight into her tastes. Poppy might relate to Yumeko because of how her celebrity persona has been built with a sense of mystery, similar to how a sense of mystery is built into Yumeko's character.
Ultimately, Kakegurui draws in crowds with how Yumeko either overcomes or deals with the outcomes of her various games. It contains its own fair share of thrills that come from Yumeko's uncovering various schemes. It's not as complex as other gambling anime like Kaiji: Ultimate Survivor, but it's an enticing series that's easy to see why it's attracted so many famous fans.
