#(which isn't to say that i think s2 aki is written bad still btw. i still think she's equal to the guys' writing in s2)

[team5ds]

after toying with ages for the team catastrophe duel with the question of "how would i approach the same prompt with the outcome of 'aki temporarily loses her powers' and write in a way that feels more satisfying to watch", i found the answer.

aki's powers could've gone haywired under stress & fear of letting yusei duel against this guy with powers like hers. it matches with previous explaination that her powers are ruled by her emotions, and stress could've been a good reason for them to suddenly fizzle out when dueling an opponent that reminds her of herself as the black rose witch.

in my ideal world, team catastrophe would've been the point where aki grapples with her past. esp since we got that for jack, yusei, and crow in later duels in the same fuckin tournament. it feels like a natural place for aki to sit with the fear her powers had caused, the stress it put her opponents under, and the new drive to protect her friends. it would even be fine if she didn't beat the whole team too. it would've also been a great point to swap jack and aki as riders, with aki going first and losing to the second rider, which gives jack a chance to finish the duel and win on his own for once

this also allows for a chance for aki to be the one to decide that she needs a moment away from the tournament and swap back with crow on her terms, rather than the choice being actively taken away from her. it opens up her ruminating on the stadiums she'd destroyed, and the fact that she doesn't quite have the control she thought she did.

this also solves neatly the "why do aki's powers suddenly work perfectly" issue that comes up since aki's struggle with her powers gets solved entirely off screen. she could decide a break from the tournament while she works on her emotional control to better control her powers could be in order, especially now that she can't access them at all.