Liar Game: A high-stake contest fueled by the darkest sides of human nature. Greed, deceit, betrayal, and lies are what rules these games. Do anything you can to win, or it's your head on the chopping block. What would you do?

I had picked up this manga on a whim some time ago, looking for something interesting that had good reviews. As many of the other reviews say, this is the type of manga that keeps you engaged from beginning to end. The story revolves around the main character Kanzaki, who has been sucked into the Liar Game and must now participate in an intricate series of games. Picking up the help from an ex-con, Akiyama, we watch the Liar Game unfold at the hands of a mysterious organization.

As most can probably tell based on the cover of the first volume, the art in this is somewhat different, and it takes a while to get used to. It seems the biggest thing the art focuses on is facial expressions. Throughout the series I found myself trying to mimic their expression when something shocking happens, because they're so full of emotion and detail, which was sometimes funny. There were also a few times where the faces people made were creepy, and freaked me out to the point where I was dying to flip the page. I think if art can effect you in that way, it's something noteworthy. Even aside from that though, art was good and always very clean.

One of the series' greatest strengths is it's character development. From the first few games, Kanzaki is practically useless, dependent, and hopeless when it comes to deceit and lying. She is continuously described as "foolishly honest" due to the fact that she lets people deceive her, and is far too trustworthy. Towards the middle of the series, however, Kanzaki becomes practically a different person. She develops into someone who is still honest, but much more analytic. She makes it her mission to to free all of the players from debt, and stop the organization from holding the Liar Game, with the help of Akiyama. The development in this character is phenomenal, and the growth in the supporting cast is also impressive.

The best part of this manga, though, are the games themselves. Each one is so carefully crafted and enticing, and beautifully considered. The psychological and strategic elements is where this manga really shines. The strategies are insanely complex and unique, as there is always a way to completely turn a game around. I was constantly thinking to myself, "how do they come up with this? How do people write something so intricate?", and that speaks volume. There were plenty of moments where I was physically anxious, excited, smiling, and nervous, because I was never left unsurprised.

I've been wanting to review this for a while, but decided to wait until I finally finished the series. Liar Game was a total thrill ride, a shining example of what a 'psychological' manga should be like. You may be wondering, "why aren't they giving this a 10/10?". Well, besides a few minor flaws, the main reason it's not a 10 is because of the ending. For a manga that was full of plot twists and surprises, I found the ending to be rather anticlimactic, especially for a manga that has been publishing for ten years.The secrets of the game and the organization weren't revealed until the very last chapter, along with a set up for a cliff hanger, which seemed rather rushed.

But regardless, a 9/10 is an excellent score, and the series deserves it. Liar Game is a wonderfully crafted manga, leading the way for many in its genre, and easily becoming one of my favorites.

Story: 9/10
Art: 8/10
Character: 9/10
Enjoyment: 10/10
Overall: 9/10