Robin Moon
The year is 2002. Tony Blair is the Prime Minister, Nokia bricks are all the rage, and Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (the 4Kids English dub localisation) has just started airing in the UK. And four-year-old me is… not watching it.
There were many TV shows and films that passed me by when I was a kid, and Yu-Gi-Oh! was one of them. I was distantly aware of the card game, but it existed outside of my bubble, along with the show, until recently. My partner loved the show as a child and on re-watches as an adult, and so it has become our most recent shared TV show to watch while we eat.
Side note before I get into it: if you, too, feel you’ve “missed out” on certain shows, films, books, etc. that came out when you were a child, and don’t see the point in watching them now you’re no longer the intended audience, DO IT ANYWAY! Yes, the experience is different, and yes, it may not have the impact it would have years ago, but there is still so much value and joy to be found in it. At the end of the day, art is for everyone to enjoy, and I’d encourage you not to be put off by something labelled as “for children”. Hey, in the current state of the world, I think we could all benefit from something more light-hearted.
Yu-Gi-Oh! is set in a world where a card game (the eponymous Duel Monsters) is essentially the most important thing that exists. To simplify it, the game involves drawing from your deck of cards (monster cards, trap cards, and magic cards) and using strategy to attack your opponent’s Life Points (2000 total in Season 1, 4000 from Season 2) that must be reduced to zero in order to win. Children and adults alike play Duel Monsters, with many competing in seemingly endless tournaments to prove themselves as the greatest duellist of all time.
Our protagonist is Yugi Muto, a high school student whose grandfather gifts him an ancient Egyptian artefact called the Millennium Puzzle. When completed, the puzzle unleashes a thousands-of-years-old pharaoh who frequently possesses Yugi, often during duels. With the aid of his friends, Joey, Téa, and Tristan, Yugi participates in many high-stakes games to defeat various bad guys (who are ALWAYS cheating, by the way. There are supposedly referees in at least some of the tournaments, but they’re all terrible at their jobs).
Now, one thing to note about Yu-Gi-Oh!: it makes ZERO sense. If you think about the mechanics of the card game for more than five seconds, it completely falls apart. In so many duels, one of the players will just happen to have a card relevant to the specific situation that is never seen in subsequent episodes, the rules change constantly, some cards are so ridiculously overpowered that they’re banned in the real-life version of the game… Don’t even get me started on trap cards and magic cards in Season 1. But if you suspend your disbelief, you’ll have a real fun time. Probably by design, the wild inconsistency just adds to the drama and entertainment of the show.
The English dub of Yu-Gi-Oh! is not only different in regard to voice acting, but also in considerable edits that were made from the original Japanese version. The most significant example of this is much of the physical violence being cut or changed to make the anime more “child-friendly” for Western viewers; e.g. clips of characters being punched are removed, and, hilariously, guns are replaced by finger-guns (I know). The Shadow Realm, a kind of parallel world that characters can be banished to due to shadow magic from the Millennium Items, was invented purely for the English dub, as characters from the original series are killed or seriously injured as a penalty for losing a duel instead. It makes parts of the show rather laughable to watch, as much of the dramatic tension and stakes are undercut by the edits.
Adding to the entertainment factor are some fantastic characters in Yu-Gi-Oh!, including one-episode wonders as well as the main cast. Most of the duelists’ decks and aesthetics are suited to a particular theme, such as Weevil Underwood, whose monsters are bug-themed, and Mako Tsunami, whose cards are—you guessed it—sea- and water-themed. As mentioned, the villains, whether short-term or bigger bads, are always pulling some stunt or bending the rules to gain the upper hand. An early antagonist (who soon becomes a reluctant ally) is Seto Kaiba, owner of billion-dollar corporation Kaiba Corp, who is guilty of using underhanded tactics, or simply having the money and power to get his own way.
To balance these characters out, Yugi is a wholesome (albeit naive) protagonist who insists on duelling with honour, choosing to believe in the “heart of the cards,” as his grandfather taught him. What is the “heart of the cards,” you ask? It’s not so much a tactic, more so a combination of self-belief, the power of friendship, and sheer dumb luck. In the Yu-Gi-Oh! universe, this is the ultimate recipe for success, and I gotta say, it has me hooked. I have no shame in saying I love the power of friendship trope, even when it’s on the nose. Yugi and Joey’s friendship especially is one of mutual support that enables them both to take on formidable opponents and make it out of the other side. Is Joey’s deck almost entirely luck-based? Sure. Could he win half his duels without Yugi’s advice from the sidelines? Arguably not. But believing in each other enables them to believe in themselves, and thus become stronger duelists as a result. If you think that’s immensely cheesy, you’re right, but if you’re a cheese-lover like me, then this is absolutely the show for you.
The friendship between Yugi and his pharaoh alter-ego Yami is another central, compelling aspect of Yu-Gi-Oh!. At first, we don’t know much about Yami, other than that he looks like an older, cooler, badass version of Yugi that takes over during card games for some reason (and that no one seems to bat an eyelid every time he transforms). Although he shares Yugi’s sentiments about playing fair, Yami does have a slight ruthless streak, and is much more composed (and sassy) than Yugi. Towards the end of Pegasus’s tournament in Season 1 is the first moment of proper conflict between Yugi and Yami regarding how much mercy to show an opponent, which adds depth to both characters. After this, they grow closer and more cooperative as well as communicative with one another. Yami shifts focus in Season 2 to learning more about his personal history, and how events from ancient Egypt have influenced Duel Monsters as we know it. I’m intrigued to see Yugi and Yami’s development further into the show!
Currently, I’m about halfway through Season 2, well into Battle City (Kaiba’s tournament), and I’m a little astounded by the hold Yu-Gi-Oh! has on me. I went into it thinking it would be a fun, easy-watching show, which it definitely is, but I’m also genuinely rooting for the characters and hooked by the plot as well as having a blast.
As an additional, mini-recommendation, if you do watch the English dub of Yu-Gi-Oh!, please watch the Abridged series. Bear in mind it began in 2009, so certain jokes haven’t aged well (the creator has since apologised), but as a whole, it’s a hilarious parody that pokes fun at the many glaring holes in the show while still showing a lot of love for it.
