Kubernetes init containers play a critical role in setting up a pod environment before the main container starts, but they can introduce additional points of failure during the pod initialization process. Init containers are designed to prepare the necessary environment, such as downloading large datasets for a large language model, and must successfully complete before the main container begins. If an init container fails, the pod might enter a CrashLoopBackOff state unless the restart policy is set otherwise. Troubleshooting involves examining logs and resource usage, and ensuring fixes are correctly applied through redeployment and monitoring. Even after addressing init container issues, other risks such as the main container failing due to issues like ImagePullBackOff can still occur, highlighting the importance of resource management and reliability practices in Kubernetes deployments. For a more comprehensive understanding of Kubernetes reliability and risks, resources such as eBooks and blog series from platforms like Gremlin are recommended.