Stocks Down After Late M-League Finish

The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down and the S&P 500 falls into correction territory after the M-League game that started on February 22 finished around 40 minutes past midnight in Japan.

Early reports indicate that workplace productivity was down and absences spiked throughout Japan after sleeplessness befell the country. In North America, more employees were reported to be late to work.

In contrast, taxi services are recording record profits after many were left stranded after train service had ended. Vending machine data shows that late-night coffee sales were up as well.

Suzuki Taro, who played in the late-night game, still managed to do a livestream game review in spite of the late finish.

Top economists agree that this event was just a one-time event and is unlikely to occur again. However, mahjong experts agree that if a team can get 4th in 37.50% and has more 4ths than 1sts and 2nds combined, then anything is possible.

In other news, there was an major increase in the number of people trying to claim a senior’s discount after the years of COVID and the February 22 game gave people the sense that many years had gone by.

M-League 2021 Week 19: Positioning

Standings are changing. Players are battling. Points are being exchanged. Teams are securing playoff spots.

In the 19th week of M-League 2021, teams are trying to put themselves in a good position as the end of the regular season approaches. Some are putting themselves in furiten to try to gain a more valuable hand. Others are rejecting a tsumo to gamble getting a bigger win. Even others are chasing rare yakuman! With all this action, let’s get right into it, shall we?

Intro | Highlights | Results | Standings

M-League 2021 Week 18: On the Horizon

In the distance, we see the finish line. On the horizon, we see the goal. Though we may not be there yet, we know that it is coming. The end of the 18th week of M-League 2021 means that in around a month, in 28 days, the regular season will be over and the six teams that will move on to the semifinals will be decided. With end coming in the near future, teams are figuring out their game plans. With winning streaks to yakuman chasing to tricky riichi calls, we saw a lot of movement in the standings. With that, let’s get right to it, shall we?

Intro | Highlights | Results | Standings

M-League 2021 Week 17: Value

The main objective of most games and sports is to get the most points. Riichi mahjong is no different. From building yaku to getting uradora, the value of a hand changes with each draw and discard. And when enough han is gained, the big limit hands are won. In the 17th week of M-League 2021, many hands of value were won. With the value of the single han of ippatsu, mangan hands were turned into haneman hands. With the value of uradora, mangan hands were turned into baiman hands. And with limit hands being won back-to-back-to-back-to-back-to-back, players win big points. With all that, let’s get right to it, shall we?

Missing From M-League

For the past few weeks, both Asakura Koushin and Ishibashi Nobuhiro of the U-Next Pirates have been missing from M-League. In an interview with Mizuhara Akina and Tweets from the players, it was revealed that both of them are in poor physical condition (their exact ailment is currently unknown). With the two of them being away, both Mizuhara and Kobayashi have been playing for the past few weeks and possibly for a bit longer.

For the Konami Mahjong Fight Club, Takizawa has missed a few days and will be expected to miss a few more due to a positive Coronavirus PCR test (though he physically feels fine).

Daisuki!

This week, Sony Assurance released 8 new commercials starring M-Leaguers. These 8 commercials feature a staged M-League clip and the starring player saying “Daisuki!” at the end. These commercials join 8 commercials that were released earlier this season. You can see all of them here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLGw85KePU-QYKpEaUNiukQwjRU9LAynXg

Intro | Highlights | Results | Standings

M-League Named World’s Most-Watched Literary Event

M-League, a Japanese mahjong sports league, was recently named the “World’s Most Watched Literary Event”.

Having a viewership of hundreds of thousands to over a million viewers every game day, it easily beats any other televised literary event in the world. In 2021, the Booker Prize only had around 12,000 and the Nobel Prize for Literature only had around 90,000.

In a recent interview with Fujita Susumu, M-League chairman and recommender of Kobayashi Go’s mahjong book, he cleared up some misconceptions about M-League.

Many people think that players play for their teams so they can win the championship and prove they’re the best. In reality, players try to win their games so they have a chance to show off their books. And they do try to win the championship, but mostly to get money so they can quit their day job and have more time to write.

Fujita Susumu

Kadokawa, a book publisher and the owner of the Kadokawa Sakura Knights, has taken full advantage of the screen time, advertising every second they can and even making an official M-League Guidebook.

Despite this title, many viewers simply do not believe that the focus of M-League is not mahjong. As proof that M-League is actually a book event, both Mizuhara Akina and Sonoda Ken have both advertised their books in their post-game interviews. Players from opposing teams help advertise the books. Even the Unlucky Mopheus song “‘M’ Revolution” has more references to books written by M-Leaguers than mahjong terms.

It is expected that the awards ceremony for this award will be named “The World’s Most Watched Event about the World’s Most Watched Literary Event”.

In other news, Kobayashi Go is rereading his book “Increase your win rate by 5%” after almost discarding a tile that would have brought his win rate to 0%.

M-League 2021 Week 16: Crisis Averted

Sometimes in mahjong, you make moves that you regret instantly. You discard a tile that you weren’t supposed to or you make a call that ruins your hand. But when you catch yourself at the last minute, you end up avoiding the disaster that could have been. In the 16th week of M-League 2021, a crises were indeed averted. From a 16,000 point choice almost becoming a -20,000, to comeback wins from skillful plays, to finally getting your team into playoff contention, we see how volatile a single play can really be. With all that, let’s get right into it, shall we?

Intro | Highlights | Results | Standings

M-League 2021 Week 15: Holding On

In mahjong, you hold things for different reasons. If you hold onto a tile, you can accept certain tiles and prevent someone from winning. If you hold off on calling riichi, you can improve your wait, add more yaku and have the ability to defend and In the 15th week of M-League 2021, holding was the theme. From holding onto a dangerous tile and eventually winning, to holding off on calling riichi to get sanshoku and win on ippatsu, to holding onto hope and winning a comeback, patience paid off for players. With all that, let’s get right to it, shall we?

Intro | Highlights | Results | Standings

M-League 2021 Week 14: Redemption

A bad discard. Some unlucky draws. Losing streaks. In mahjong, things don’t always go your way. Even when you try your hardest, you just can’t get the points. But when the moment is right, when your mind has a revelation, when the tiles perfectly perfectly align, the win that you desperately need comes to you. In week 14 of M-League 2021, players and teams traveled on the road to redemption. From the first win of the season to the first time being on top of the leaderboard in 800 days, these teams and players came back to prove their worth.

We also had some surprise dora, an unexpected comeback and some strategic tenpai wins. With all that, let’s get right into it, shall we?

Intro | Highlights | Results | Standings

M-League 2021 Week 13: Rough Start

A new year is usually a fresh start, a new beginning. With how things have been going for the past two years, sometimes these new hopes for the future are dashed. In the 13th week of M-League 2021, players and teams seemed to get off on the wrong foot. From a grievous mistake, to having an unfortunate dealer turn, to 6 teams having negative performances, it seems that the new year was just as unforgiving as the last. However, we see slight optimism in the two successful teams this week, some expert plays and the fact that M-League is still going on! With the lows and the highs, let’s take a look at all the action this week, shall we?

Intro | Highlights | Results | Standings

M-League 2021: Last Games of 2021

As December draws to an end, so does the year. On December 27th and 28th, the last 4 games of 2021 took place. In this shortened M-League week, players made sure they ended the year with a bang. This time, we saw a yakuman chance, two big baiman wins and a rare ryanpeikou. There were also quick hands, dora-filled hands and some missed hands. With four action-packed games to disect, let’s get right into it, shall we?

Intro | Highlights | Results | Standings