#arc v sound duel 4

[kaiowut99]

ARC-V “Dub-Uncut” Series Masterpost - A Lance99 Project

Ladies and gentlemen! (And all in between!)

Thought to get a little masterpost going for this [mini?-]project and compile stuff as more ground gets broken on this, lol. As mentioned in my release of episode 1, this is a project that's been on the backburner for a while as I worked on other things (and dealt with a drive failure in '22 that made me have to restart)--the original catalyst being an attempted Dub/JP OST edit years back with episode 10 [being a fave of mine] that I got up to the eyecatch with prior to stuff like UltimateVocalRemover providing much cleaner vocal isolation--and after working on/off on it for a while, I dipped into it more over the past few months to finally get it polished and finished up.

If you were around for my little 5D's "dub-uncut" mini-project working off the erroneously-uploaded-without-music episodes uploaded to the official Spanish YGO YouTube channel a few years back (and if you weren't, do feel free to check it out!), the concept here is pretty much the same: I find that there's some potential in the 4K/KCM dubs, but overall it's usually hampered by the dub's music [which especially hurts for ARC-V given the solid Japanese score by Kotaro Nakagawa], some writing/voice-direction choices, and other little oddities/cuts; the goal is to re-score the dub with the Japanese soundtrack, while also modifying the dialogue in spots to be closer to the Japanese dialogue while editing it to the Japanese footage (using either dialogue from other episodes or Duel Links/Cross Duel voicelines as needed)--oh, and also fixing "Zuzu" back "Yuzu" bc why. There may be some scenes where I'll have to use the Japanese audio with subs if 4K cut something and I couldn't quite work enough editing magic to make something work, but we'll cross that bridge when we get there. And I'm hoping to do a fair amount of episodes, but would love to work on the whole series if able.

Along with the more accurately-paced dialogue, I’ve also translated the OP/EN (using the singable translations I've worked on for the lyrics), the title cards, and previews (where I also threw in the corresponding lines to the Japanese preview from the next episode, if able) to give this an actual “What if they actually did this uncut” feel, along with some visual translation edits to that effect as feasible. I also commissioned voiceover artist mattsindt over on Fiverr to provide narration for the pre-OP prologues used throughout ARC-V that weren't dubbed, and I love how they all came out. I'll be going into more of the specifics with each episode’s own release post, as I did with episode 1's, so check out the tag here to see what I’ve done with them! If you’re curious about how things look/sound as I edit everything, check out the work-in-progress videos and posts I’ve done here.

Footage-wise, I chose to work off the raw DVD video I've had for years (encodes for episodes 1-4 provided by GX_ST), largely because they have touchups done to the art/animation after the episodes' airings on TV that aren't used in the CR/Amazon TV masters that make up the 1080p downloads available. (I do think the dub itself works off the DVD masters overall, and I may see if it's feasible to try and splice that footage as needed with the 1080p downloads, since the DVD masters are unfortunately not at their total best for a show that aired in HD... pls save us Discotek].) (That said, I might shift to those in mid-Synchro since that's about as far as the saved DVD footage I have goes, so... we'll see, lol.)

I'll also be posting these over for download over on NeoArkCradle (where I also share my GX subbing work), with both a) the more hardsubbed video using the translated OP/EN and visual translations and b) dual-audio .mkv files using Crunchyroll's subs as edited by me for the JP audio (funny how I said years back I wouldn't sub ARC-V since CR took the wheel on it, but with the revisions I made/will make to be more faithful, I guess I am in some way lol), along with "Signs/Lyrics" subs for the dubbed and Japanese audio, which may also contain dub corrections as needed depending on how later episodes go.

Anywho, the show must go on, so check these out below! And always check this original post as episodes are added or in case any of the links break! Note that season breaks are denoted like this; arc breaks are in italics.

Current Update (11/27/24): Project launch! Episode 1 is now live below.

Pre-Maiami Championship Arc

A Trail of Light -- The Pendulum Summon (Swing Into Action)

[number-1-kuaidul-fanboy]

Yugioh Best Friends Ranked

So YugiohEverything did this recently and I’ve ranked both the protags and the main girls so I figured, why not? I need something quick and easy to write this morning. Also, since there’s some debate on who counts as the best friend character in each show and I have some notably weird opinions on this, I’ll say right out of the gate which characters I’m including: Joey/Jonouchi, Sho/Syrus, Crow, Shark, Gongenzaka/Gong, Soulburner, and Luke. (Of whom I’m going to use whichever name I’m more to used to using.)

7 Gongenzaka

Honestly, Gongenzaka being the lowest here isn’t a slight against his character at all. There isn’t a bad character from this set to me. Gongenzaka is definitely the weakest but I’ve actually really grown to respect him. I think his style of duelling was really cool, especially the growth of him learning synchro summon despite it being against the traditions he was brought up with. That’s really neat. And the one time he ever did use an action card was against Z-Arc, in an attempt to save his friend, which is a really compelling moment. The only reason he’s the lowest is because I don’t feel like his personality is all that interesting, I definitely like him more for his duelling. He is a very good friend to Yuya though, as I’ve also come to appreciate in my most recent watch of Arc V. So just know, I respect Gongenzaka, I just like these other characters more.

6 Sho Marufuji

Betcha didn’t see this placement coming. I go on and on about how much I love GX and for every other character ranking, GX’s pick would be near the top, if not the top. Sho meanwhile… I do really like him, especially his relationships with Judai and his brother, Ryo and his growth in the series, especially season four but I like the other characters much more.

Still, people dunking on Sho is news to me. People really hate this guy?! Jeez, what did the dub do to him to make him deserve this? (Okay, maybe it is based on the sub but considering how the GX dub is and that it’s one of the more watched dubs, it definitely stands to reason that the dub just screwed him over.)

5 Luke

Luke is a weird one because I feel like he’s probably more like the rival character but out of the main friend group, Yuga undeniably has the closest connection to Luke. So I’ll count him as the best friend. Luke is a lot of people’s favourite character from Sevens and while I do prefer Yuga and Romin, I do enjoy Luke’s dorkiness and even some of his more arrogant moments when they’re done right. It is annoying that he basically never loses but I guess it’s to counteract Yuga, who loses and wins quite evenly. So overall good character.

4 Shark

Yeah, I’m counting Shark as the best friend instead of Bronk. Because Shark is far more prevalent, far more interesting, has more development and purpose in the narrative, and it’s his connection with Yuma that’s given the most focus in the climax of Zexal II. In my mind, Kaito is the rival, he just got screwed by part two. And you know what? I think Shark is a really neat take on the best friend character. He’s definitely Yuma’s friend, and shows that care often, if begrudgingly or in a strange gruff way and that’s really fun and a great counterpoint to Yuma. Also, do I even need to talk about their final duel? Feels out the wazoo.

Honestly though if “main girl” wasn’t a stupid arbitrary category for these shows, I’d argue Kotori is Yuma’s best friend because they actually have a really good platonic dynamic and they make a point of her mere presence boosting Yuma up in the final part of the Barian arc. But for this list, I say and argue Shark.

3 Joey Wheeler

Man, how I’ve grown. Once upon a time, a young man was in quarantine with his younger sibling and, being very bored and needing a distraction, the man agreed to watch a few episodes of this show his sibling liked, of which he’d only ever seen memes of and thought sounded stupid as shit: Yugioh Duel Monsters. On that first watch, the man could not stand Joey, due to his voice, inflated ego, and lack of duelling skills and while the man did grow to respect Joey as a duellist later in the show, he could never bring himself to like his character. Now, two years later, I question what the hell I was thinking because Joey is easily one of the most compelling characters from the original series. Out of everyone on this list, he’s easily the most supportive as a friend. He always has Yugi’s back, up to and including jumping off a cruise ship to save Yugi’s Exodia cards and sacrificing his life for Yugi’s after he breaks free of Marik’s mind control. Heck, he’s willing to die for Mai as well in Battle City and his whole motivation in Duelist Kingdom was to use the prize money to afford his sister’s eye surgery so she wouldn’t go blind. He is such an ideal best friend it’s hard not to respect him, especially my absolute favourite moment of his: surviving the full force of the Winged Dragon of Ra and coming out of it still on his feet. Joey is literally just an average scrappy guy with a deck he threw together and some street smarts and he is duelling on the level of gods. It’s hard not to admire that.

2 Crow

This one and the last one are honestly kind of interchangeable. I like Joey’s role in the narrative better than Crow’s as I will concede that Crow too often took the spotlight away from other characters. This didn’t really annoy me that much outside of WRGP which was just terrible on literally every front and either way. Personality wise however, I do prefer Crow. He is an absolute sweetheart and his backstory was honestly heartwarming, especially that part in the dub where it’s implied he didn’t have a name so one of his first friends named him after one of his cards. I know I’ve brought that up before but it honestly is one of my favourite moments from 5Ds, and Crow is one of my favourite characters in 5Ds. Heck, I even love him in Arc V, despite him being notably more aggressive there. I think it makes sense considering the change to his backstory, which is still really cute, though I will admit his 5Ds backstory is better. I might also be a little biassed because I watched Arc V before 5Ds so Arc V was my first exposure to Crow and I loved him there.

1 Soulburner

Hahahaha, I’m gonna get burned for this one :)

I’m so sorry.

I debated whether I wanted to include Soulburner or Kusanagi on this list because there are good arguments for either of them being the best friend. However, I decided to go with Soulburner since A) I prefer his character and B) 5Ds has been the top pick for one of my lists like this before. So here we go, Soulburner. The adorable sweet dorky bean who sucks at technology in a technology based show and is the one horrifically traumatised character in VRAINS that got proper closure and whose backstory was one of the biggest tearjerker scenes in VRAINS for me and that is saying something considering how much this show made me cry. I really love his dynamic with Yusaku, of being one of the first people Yusaku trusts and of course, Soulburner and Flame are adorable. I love their sassy back and forths and Flame’s death tore me to shreds partially because of just how hard Soulburner took it. Soulburner is just so… outwardly positive and sweet that seeing him break hurts me so deeply, and gets me more invested in his character. I relate to him in a lot of ways, from his little quirks to the way he reacts to those traumatising events he was put through. Also, I didn’t talk about it when I first saw it (because I was still so broken up over Roboppi and was anxious about Ai) but Soulburner vs Revolver is one of the best duels in VRAINS and was a really good resolution to Soulburner’s character arc. So overall, Crow and Joey are probably better best friends but I personally like and relate to Soulburner more so he gets the edge here.

[pinkprimrose05]

VERY CURIOUS ABOUT "Dungeons and No Dragons" AND "Operation: Touch Grass" 👀👀👀

Dungeons and No Dragons: Series piece alert!

This one has actually been in WIP jail since the last ARC-V Month... i.e, 4 months ago. It's part of an AU where the ARC-V cast goes through the plot of GX with a few twists here and there (more prominent appearances from the duel spirits, for one, because I love tinkering with those sillies).

The particular piece is set midway through season 3, feat. Yuuto and Yuugo's Very Fun Time imprisoned in the dungeon beneath the Supreme King's castle, copious mentions of all the archetypes I arbitarily decided should live in the Dark World, an unexpected game with the aforementioned Supreme King, and an attempt at psychoanalysis of questionable success, courtesy of our resident eggplant.

I expect it to be around... 3k words? There aren't exactly that many scenes, but who knows really. Unfortunately, like most other wips, I can't make any actual progress until I'm out of highschool, but I hope to retain the passion to finish it as soon as I can!

For now, here's your teeny tiny snippet:

"That's a rather bold move," Yuuto notes, outwardly calm even as his mind races to think up a way to counter the oddly aggressive opening. He pushes another pawn forward. "Is this how you usually start a game?" He's never seen someone move their king so early in. Is there some kind of statement to be made here? Could this be a bluff? Overconfidence, perhaps? A nonchalant hum sounds in response to his query. "Maybe, maybe not." The king says, idly twirling a pawn between his fingers as gold eyes survey the board in what has equal chance to be disinterest or veiled consideration. Yuuto can't tell. (He hates that he can't tell. He hates it so, so much.)

______________

Operation: Touch Grass: This is a silly found family piece- quick, everyone act surprised!

The Stellaron Hunters from Honkai: Star Rail simply refuse to leave me alone. I love them a very normal amount and would die in shame if I never write them into one of the many silly scenarios I keep thinking up :)

So basically, Kafka conspires to bully everyone out of their rooms for a Free Day™. Said free day includes, but is not limited to: a self-care session, a bunch of board games, sing-along time, and a noble attempt at nuking the kitchen making dinner, among other things.

This could very well range from 2k to 10k depending on how many ideas for shenanigans I'll add and cut, but I don't think I'm physically capable of writing actually long fics lol.

Now onto the snippet:

"Hol'up." Silver Wolf snatches the phone, scrolling up and pointing at a particular spot as she hands the device back. "This one looks good." Kafka turns in mild surprise, eyeing whatever the younger pointed at with interest. She lets out a pleased hum shortly afterwards, "A nest braid sounds lovely, Wolfie, but unfortunately we can't pull off this particular style with short hair-" She suddenly pauses, as if struck by an epiphany... and then, slowly, in oddly perfect sync, two sets of expectant stares lock onto him. "Unless, of course-" "Absolutely not." Ren grits out immediately, because if he doesn't stop Kafka right then and there, then he'll be at the mercy of whatever foolish plans she and Silver Wolf may have for Aeons know how long. He would much rather die. (Not that he doesn't want that already.)

[chromsai]

Speaking of Sound Duel 4, that’s basically all I’ve had on loop since I got it this weekend and I just do not tire of it ever.

A quick review:

Pros: It’s fucking brilliant. Every single fucking track on here is unique in its own way and has something to give you chills from. For the most part, they chose to include more of the heavily orchestrated tracks from the later half of the last third of Arc V, but they all have their own particular rhythm and tension and each evoke not only just one unique emotion; their tones are diverse and versatile: one moment the tune will start building you up for an intense unleash of power and yet the very next brings in the soft but reassuring keys of a piano to slow you down so you can reminisce and build even more confidence, as just one example. It’s amazing to hear a story being told to the fullest in each track, and yet each track also builds up into an even grander story overall. I think Sound Duel 2 was closest to having its tracks meld as well together as this, but Sound Duel 4 definitely takes the cake in that cohesive respect. 

Cons: Oh man... we’re missing some tracks here. Leading up to its release, I had imagined this would be the case, given Marvelous hadn’t released an Arc V soundtrack in almost 3 whole years. It is sort of a shame that some tracks didn’t make it on here because there are definitely some iconic ones I would have loved to have in HD, but I naturally figured we weren’t gonna get everything we’d heard in the show since about early/mid-Synchro arc began, unless they had made this a 2-disc release. Don’t know why they decided against that, unless they plan to release a Sound Duel 5 in the future (which is very very VERY unlikely given that SD4 included Pendulum Beat + Dashing Pendulum & released it along with Arc V’s Vocal Best, which usually marks the end of a soundtrack era). I always believed in Sound Duel 4 happening, but I don’t have any hopes for a Sound Duel 5— I’m just being realistic. That said, if they decide to continue milking Arc V’s soundtrack for another quick buck and do something as out of the blue as a SD5, I am all for it and will be pre-ordering immediately once again (*cough cough js Marvelous/NAS/Konami*). For now, I guess I’ll just have to keep on rewatching those episodes that contain the few tracks I’m missing on here...

Now for the real question:

“Was it worth the almost 3 year wait?”

My answer is: 95% YES, and 5% no. ‘Yes’, because I’m in love with this soundtrack and I can’t stop listening to each track and I keep getting chills from it and listening to it out of context (as I’m driving or just out and about or doing whatever, rather than hearing them through the show) gives me another perspective of them and I appreciate the work put into the composition of the music and the OVERALL Arc V soundtrack as a whole. Kotarou Nakagawa knows how to capture the perfect mood for a multitude of scenarios and I can definitely hear all the attention to detail to Arc V’s themes and story throughout the trajectory of this set of tracks, and their part in the show as a whole. And ‘No’ just because... well... I wanted MORE, lol. All that said and done, I am overall pleasantly satisfied with the tracks we did get on this ultimate Sound Duel 4. Sincerely and truly impressed. 

My Top 3 from this Sound Duel:

1. Track # 4: “Intense Back-And-Forth”. I’m ngl, this is the one I wanted to hear the most in HD... I’m a sucker for simple yet intense beats that call for battle.

2. Track #6: “Fighting Bravely”. Not a track I was exactly waiting to hear in HD, but now that I have, I have a whole new appreciation for it and I am utterly obsessed with that mid-piano bit call back to Swing! Pendulum of Souls!. The attention to detail and the added care means a lot and makes it insanely memorable. I’ve already been hearing it in my dreams. It’s stunning.

3. A hard tie for me between Track 15 “The Duelist Reiji” and Track 23 “A Fierce One-on-One Battle”. For one, Reiji absofuckinglutely deserve that grandiose, boss ass theme. But on the other hand, Track 23... that IS the definitive endgame boss battle theme of Arc V. Give them both a listen to, I’m sure you’ll understand my conflict. Both amazing in their own rights.

Final notes: I feel like a lot of the fandom takes this soundtrack for granted. I’ve heard the dub, I know a lot of you have heard the dub. I love the dub and all for it’s own dubious charm, but this show doesn’t feel the same without the soundtrack. You can certainly grasp the message and themes without the soundtrack, but the soundtrack is a major part of what helps Arc V feel grand and unique. I hear a lot of soundtracks in anime a lot, of course, and many shows have wonderfully composed soundtracks. The problem, though, is most have rather generic tones conveyed and are easily spliced and adapted from one anime to another. It’s hard to create a soundtrack that’s very distinctive in a sea of anime produced by talented but often seasonal-outlook-only studios. Nakagawa definitely understands the identity of a show and conceptualizes personalized music that will not only help define its greatest moments but also grasps the flare of that particular show, elevating it into something more— something that leaves an unforgettable impression not only on your ears, but on your mind and heart as well.

[peppermint-shamrock]

Found Arc V Sound Duel 4 on Youtube if anyone wants to listen to it. It’s good quality, too, not one of those recordings with talking in the background.

[lilias-amell]

@god thank you for yugioh arc v and the yugioh arc v soundtrack

[darkvalkyria]

refia i gotta ask... what's your top 5 fav tracks off the arc v soundtrack??

askin all the important questions thank you sai

edit: i am so sorry for this i never meant for it to be so long i am just a wordy hoe

soundtracks for visual media are always important to me because i’m a longtime musician myself, and while arc v isn’t my favorite yugioh ost it still has a lot of gems and tracks that i’ve bookmarked and listen to regularly.

for anyone that hasn’t listened to the soundtrack i’ll tell you that it greatly enhances the arc v experience because the show is lazy in its musical execution and draws from very little of the soundtrack Nakagawa scored for the series. don’t let his work go to waste! it provides great entertainment.

all of the following are from the Japanese OST composed by Kotaro Nakagawa. for links to the audio click the numerals/titles!

also i’m not including any of the op/ends (because all of them are gorgeous within their own right and have their own rankings).

i’ll include sound duel 4 tracks using their unofficial titles because a certain multinational corporation hasn’t released it yet 👀 #marvelouslyhackkonami

also i’m including hella honorable mentions that no one asked for because upon re-listening to the soundtrack it turns out i appreciate a lot more tracks than i originally thought.

so buckle up and get your headphones,

5. “Sakaki Yuusho - Unreleased OST” (SD4)

listen, i have a lot of feelings and at the same time no feelings for sakaki yusho but i consider him solid husband material after hearing this. the energy from this is uplifting and hopeful af and it’s so refreshing from the otherwise suspenseful, hell-ridden season 4 tracks. the first seconds of this track (and then the reprise at 2:03) are my favorite. the crescendo perfectly captures the spirit, soul, and confidence of entertainment dueling and it’s HAWT. the execution of this track is brilliant, yusho and yuri’s duel was so memorable and exciting to me and it’s also one of my favorite tracks to hear in yuya’s last couple redemption duels which are just a sight to witness on their own.

4. Something to Protect (SD3 - Track 16)

the part that puts this track above many others similar to it is the choral line starting at 1:05. the arc v soundtrack, unlike any of the other yugioh ost’s, does a great job of using choral solos and themes melodically (that seem to be primarily celtic in nature). the voices are always tempered and drawn out, they have amazing melody and resolution, and when those solos hit those upper registers it’s soulful far beyond the extent of the show. the theme that leads into the choral uptake starting at (0:27) captures the sentiment of protecting someone, or preparing for an upcoming battle. the theme is repeated with a great accelerando at 1:40 with added string syncopation in the background that makes the situation more urgent. i can’t remember where in the show this is used but for some reason i feel like it was at a yuto/ruri moment? that just makes it all the more real, dude

3. The Duelist’s Determination (SD3 - Track 12)

*insert good shit meme* THIS TRACK RIGHT HERE! this is some LEGIT FANTASY SHIT™

i was pleasantly surprised when i heard this in the ost, probably because i never remember hearing this at all in the anime? this melody is one of my favorites in the ost, and is one that is unique to this track only. the orchestration of this track is fantastic to me. this is one of the few really full, properly orchestral, compositions that Nakagawa has included in the arc v soundtrack that are beyond the scope of anime and could be included in a fantasy rpg or something. from the solid intro featuring the trombones to a full orchestral climax and then stripped back to trumpets, piano, and strings… then there’s syncopation from the percussion and a key change, it’s just so good. i can only dream of how much more epic this would sound rerecorded with a real orchestra rather than synth.

2. The Light of Hope Doesn’t Arrive (SD2 - Track 20) & “Crimson Soul - Unreleased OST” (SD4) & “Lancers Final Gambit - Unreleased OST” (SD4)

okay this is 100% cheating but you can not make me choose between these three so i’m sorry

“The Light of Hope Doesn’t Arrive” is my preferred pick of the three because it conveys a different mood than the other two (also it’s actually has an hd release *cough*). this is another one of those few tracks on the ost that Nakagawa went ham on in terms of a full, well-rounded composition, and with a title like “The Light of Hope Doesn’t Arrive,” how could you not? one thing i love about the arc v soundtrack is that it utilizes slower tempos throughout to convey completely different moods. for an intentionally heavy track like this one it just does wonders. the intro to this track makes you think it’s going to be a lot faster than it is, and then it strips back into the marcato strings and then a slow af, really paced and dignified piano… and then a harp that pulls along a lagging melody… bitch?! are you trying to kill me? and then i LOVE the short piano outro. this track is used in the first season for some baby!yuya flashbacks, left out in the later seasons, and brought back during yuya’s therapeutic zarc flashback during his last duel with reiji soooooo whoever controls music placement is definitely playing with my life.

as far as “Crimson Soul” goes, just listen to this thing! why does jack get all the good themes fam… his 5ds theme is stunning as well. this theme plays during yuto’s turn while he duels ruri and serena, YUTO’S FLASHBACKS OF RURI, and of course while jack duels zarc, and probably during a lot of other epic moments as well. this track has such good energy and confidence within the melody and orchestration. it also has strings and a great percussion line AND THEN THERE’S TWO KEY CHANGES the last of which has choral backing- this was written for me. when you listen to this, you can feel yuto’s determination to save ruri and you can feel jack’s determination to defeat zarc and reach yuya and you can feel the RISK that both are taking.

cause of death: “Lancers Final Gambit”                                                       LISTEN Y’ALL. WHEN YOU HEAR THIS THEME SOME DRAMATIC DEFINITELY SCARY SHIT IS GOING ON. the intro of this track never fails to get my heart pounding. and then the string melody with the brass support murders me. it’s hard to hear in this extracted version but there’s also slight choral backing which is the icing on the cake. this track is played when yuto takes his turn vs. ruri and serena and WHEN YUYA KILLS YURI AKSJDHLWAUHLDKSJHLIUEAS ENOUGH SAID

1. Baby Reira’s Laughter Yuto’s Passionate Soul (SD3 - Track 18)

yeah that’s right. you all saw this coming. this shit right here = some good ost shit. this is the track that caused me to look up the arc v soundtrack because to me it’s the most emotionally powerful song on the record. i would go as far as to say this song serves as the bulk of yuto’s characterization on the show by adding to his character a whole world of depth that we as viewers are supposed to feel rather than see or interpret. i think it really does genuinely speak to yuto’s soul, and what a passionate one it is indeed.

i think Nakagawa tried his hardest to put a lot of strife and resistance into all the XYZ-centered themes and this is no exception. this track just has the added vocal that is completely INSANE in terms of triumphant reprises. (some people argue that this theme should be yugo’s because it’s used more often when clear wing is summoned, even in yuya’s last duel with reiji, but i think this was a grave execution error on part of whoever places the music in the episodes because thematically this is clearly supposed to be associated with the xyz themes. in the case of summoning odd eyes wing dragon you could see it as yugo and yuto coming together however.) when used in the show they play around with which version they use (sometimes without one of the choral lines) and i have to say my favorite version, and unfortunately the one we’ll never get, is the choral only version that plays during yuto’s death scene. the use of this version was more emotional than yuto’s death to me and i think it was the best use of an ost throughout arc v, and therefore one of arc v’s most powerful moments overall.

Honorable Mentions;

The Gears of Fate Begin To Turn (SD3 - Track 20)

the track that sounds exactly like what the title says. everyone get out your duel disks and kiss your cards because war is upon us. at 2:00 the string ensemble is magnificent, suspenseful, and the chord progression is orgasmic. this song makes me pray for the safety of my bbys.

Take a Step Forward! (SD1 - Track 18)

the first arc v track i liked. some confident, sexy shit. great intro and ending. made me respect band.

The Start of Action Duels (SD1 - Track 7)

listen to the drum line at 0:27 and tell me this isn’t the most hype thing on this soundtrack. the melody at 0:42 is what i consider THE arc v theme, and what a gorgeous, uplifting one it is. i’ve severely neglected SD1 on this list but it actually has more tracks i like than any of the other sound duel volumes. sound duel 1 was also extremely underused in the anime so all of you have to listen to it right now because it’s brilliant.

A Promise With Dad (SD1 - Track 19)

the track that made me believe in yuya. the track that made me believe everything works out okay in the end. promises are worth it. life is blooming. love is real.

A Heart Made of Glass (SD1 - Track 12)

a heart made of glass? whose? *listens to downbeat* oh that’s right, mine. the first track that hinted to yuya’s inner turmoil. another one of the tracks Nakagawa really orchestrated fully. the only track other than “the light of hope doesn’t arrive” that can be called acoustic on this soundtrack. dat piano tho. oboes are lyfe. take away this melody it’s sad.

C’mon Let’s Duel! (SD2 - Track 3)

let’s duel? more like let’s pray to get out of this alive. i believe in male voices again. yugioh doesn’t use choir often but when it does it has great melody.

DDD (SD1 - Track 11)

the theme i don’t have to provide a link to because it’s that iconic. synth choir is okay this one time. the only theme other than the “main” theme that has several rearrangements (SD2 - Track 7 & “Reiji - Unreleased OST” that are also as good so listen to them). what a great theme for reiji and his three dicks.

Cheer Up (SD3 - Track 21)

“where tf was this track in the anime” pt. 2394812. yuya definitely needed a lot of cheering up and this song wasn’t there and should have been. im here for the pure melody that starts at 1:26. the last track on an official arc v sound duel i liked, and therefore the theme for what would have been many fans’ ideal arc v ending.

The Fun and Cheery Entertainment Duel! (SD1 - Track 4)

funkiest track on the arc v ost. 0:15 is life. arc v needs more latin beats. 1:40 is such a nice theme and mood change ill never be tired of it. the only time this soundtrack has used a guitar?

[scope-dogg]

Super Beast Machine God Dancouga: Final Thoughts

“It’s complicated” can be a big of a copout when you’re weighing up whether to recommend something or not. In the case of this show and its trio of follow-up OVAs, it genuinely is kind of complicated. There was a lot I already liked about Dancouga even before I started watching - several of its soundtracks have had pride of place in my music playlists for years now, while the robot itself has been one of my favourite super robot designs for just as long, that being mostly fuelled by the machine’s status as a long-time Super Robot Wars stalwart. The same series made me a fan of the head pilot Shinobu Fujiwara and his trademark warcry of “YATTE YARUZE.” That said, I already went in with my expectations tempered by other opinions I’ve seen the generally weren’t quite so favourable as my expectations might have been.

Well, now I’ve seen it. In many ways, I really did enjoy it - the music is even better in its proper context, it’s cool to see where all the moves that Dancouga busts out in SRW came from, and Shinobu and the rest of the cast are as entertaining as I might have imagined in the primary material. Above all else, it surprised me by throwing in some ideas that were pretty original by the standards of its time, and some that are unique even compared to the rest of the genre as a whole. I really did enjoy a good amount of genuine enjoyment from the experience.

That doesn’t mean, however, that I’m going to recommend it. In fact, I just straight up don’t.

You see, there’s a lot of bad to go with the good in the show’s original anime run, to the degree that calling it “a mixed bag” would be too disingenuous. A promising start with some pretty great animation and production values quickly gives way to a level of quality that ranges from mediocre to shockingly poor, not only by today’s standards but those of the time. I don’t know the behind-the-scenes story of the show’s production, but it’s blatantly obvious that they found themselves out of money hilariously quickly, and they end up limping along on a shoestring budget. Stock footage abuse, animation errors, and just cheap and shoddy-looking artwork in general pile up until the result is a production that looks genuinely amateurish at times.

It’s a shame, because it’s a disservice to a show that’s actually fairly interesting in a lot of ways. The premise of Earth being invaded by an alien empire isn’t new, but typically shows of this setup from this era of anime follow a predictable pattern - a squad of hot-blooded youngsters is promptly assembled, thrown into the show’s resident giant robot, and sent off to fight off the aliens for as many formulaic monster-of-the-week style episodes as necessary. Here things aren’t so simple - there is the requisite squad of plucky youngsters, but it takes time for the team to properly assemble and to master their machine - in fact, they don’t even combine into Dancouga until the show’s halfway in. That’s actually more interesting than it sounds, because it means that the individual machines that make up Dancouga get a lot more screentime than they otherwise would in a show like Combattler V, for instance, which is cool because each of the four different ones has a vehicle form, a bestial animal form, and a humanoid configuration. 

It also allows for the setting to be more interesting - humanity’s war against the Muge Zorbados invaders is more interesting than conflicts of this nature tend to be in old super robot shows. Instead of sending one gimmicky monster or robot at a time, the invasion comes in force, and the enemy takes over much of the world while the heroes of the Cyber Beast Force are still building themselves up. The war ends up being more of an asymmetrical war of resistance involving all of mankind rather than hinging solely on duels between the protagonists and the monster of the week. The invaders themselves are more interesting than usual as well, as the egos of each of the invading generals clash with one another. By far the most interesting villain is Shapiro Keats, a fellow member of the academy that the leads Shinobu, Sara, Masato and Ryo attended, whose megalomania leads him to betray mankind and defect to the aliens in a bid to elevate his own power and prestige and fulfil his own delusions of godhood. A lot of the challenges that the CBF face in the early parts of the show come more from Shapiro’s treachery and clever planning rather than gimmicky alien technologies.

However, while it has interesting ideas, the show never seems to be able to pull them off to their full potential. Ironically it’s Dancouga’s long-awaited and heavily-hyped arrival that heralds the death of much of the interesting elements to the story. In addition to being the biggest casualty of the show’s animation budget, Dancouga’s not implemented in a very interesting way in the show’s original anime run - whereas before battles were a test of the protagonists’ skill and strategy, Dancouga’s overpowering nature trivialises much of the action. It doesn’t help that its repertoire is limited to punching, shooting lasers, and on special occasions shooting a really big laser. As a result, the show loses momentum as it enters its final stages, as Dancouga just bulldozes over Muge Zorbados’ armies. It’s also around this time that the writers lose touch with what makes Shapiro Keats an interesting villain. He was compelling because of his sheer lack of redeeming features and total megalomania, yet more and more focus gets pushed onto his past romance with Sara, the show’s female co-protagonist. It seems like we’re meant to sympathise with him and her because of this lovers-to-anime arc, but Shapiro never ends up being anything less than a vile piece of shit with no redeeming features that leaves you boggling at what Sara could have ever possibly seen in him, and rolling your eyes whenever she’s shown to be struggling with having to fight him. Ultimately, the plot culminates in what must have been an awfully unsatisfying cliffhanger at the time.

However, that wasn’t the show’s real end, because it went on to spawn several OVAs. The first is Requiem for Victims, which portrays the final confrontation with Muge Zorbados. This is an immediate improvement in many ways, getting many things right that the show got badly wrong. First of all, the animation is far superior, as you might expect from an OVA - the difference is beyond night and day. Furthermore, it gives Dancouga some more interesting weapons and attacks to work with, and explores more of what makes it special as a machine beyond just being big and powerful. In spite of this, it also features the most fraught and exciting fights that it ever takes part in. Overall, it’s a massive improvement.

The peak, however, is probably the next OVA in line, God Bless Dancouga - taking place some time after Requiem, it’s got the best production values of anything with the Dancouga named attached. The story isn’t anything to write home about if I’m being honest, but it’s not bad either - if all you want is to see the characters interact with one another, then it ticks all the boxes. The animation is absolutely superb the whole way through, and while Dancouga doesn’t actually have a great deal of screentime, it makes it count big time when it does - chances are if you saw it use a cool attack in an SRW game, it got used first in this OVA.

I was really hoping that the OVAs could go three for three and pull off a great conclusion that’d make the time spent worth it, but that sadly wasn’t the case. Blazing Epilogue is a 4-parter that starts off promisingly plot-wise, but the production values are for the most part not up to the standards set by God Bless Dancouga or even Requiem for Victims - it’s not as bad as the original series, but it’s not especially good by the standards of 1990 when it was released. Worse is the fact that while the plot’s pretty good in episodes 1 through 3, it lets itself down for the finale, wrapping things up in an abrupt way that ended up making the whole exercise feel fairly pointless. It’s a total anticlimax and a weak way to wrap things up.

Of course, that wasn’t the absolute end, as the show got a modern sequel in the shape of Dancouga Nova in the 2000s, but I’m saving that for another day - it features all-new characters and is by all accounts very different from the original. As for the original Dancouga saga, like I said to open - it’s complicated. Personally, I think I enjoyed myself more than I didn’t - but I also don’t think that’d hold true for most people. I came to this already endeared to the robot, characters, and certain aspects of its presentation to the degree, and that helped me to power through a lot of the rockier moments in this so that I could see them in their original incarnation. For other people who aren’t super robot addicts like me, I just think the lows are too low and the highs aren’t high or numerous enough to warrant it being worth most people’s time.

[baddyzarc]

Any theories on when Sevens will get subbed or when the OST will be released?

Hm, can’t say for sure tbh. The track with the OP/ED was released mid-September about 5 months after airing but it wasn’t an official Sound Duel really. 

If we look at Vrains, they’re first Sound Duel wasn’t released till over a year, like about 18 months, after the original airdate, but they got Sound Duel 2 in another 4 months. 

Arc-V got their first Sound Duel in about 4 months after airing and Sound Duel 2 about 5 months later.

Zexal got Sound Duel 1 in about 5 months from air date and Sound Duel 2 after an additional 12 months. 

The time usually spanned from 4 months to, like, 3 years (looking at you, arc v sound duel 4), but there isn’t a clear record on release dates aside from the occasional 4-5 month pattern.

Since the studio changed, I don’t know how they are handling the release of sound duels or if they’re even going to continue releasing them in this format. But if I were to guess, Sevens Sound Duel 1 will be released sometime around early April. A year would’ve passed since the show started airing, and assuming that each Sevens arc is around 13-ish episodes, the current arc will come to end at around 40 episodes, amassing enough soundtracks to justify a release. It might be a good time to enter a new season with a new opening/ending and completely new soundtracks too, but who knows. 

As for subs, theres a good chance that an official Sevens subs will never get released. The company that is doing it is Crunchyroll (theyre subs are alright but they exist). So far, they subbed every show except Zexal and Sevens, and they also ran Vrains as a simulcast. The fact that they didn’t pick up Sevens for the 2020 Spring lineup and have yet to sub Zexal despite having the rights to stream the dub for YEARS, I feel like it’ll never come.

Sevens might not have a chance, sadly, but we still have some great fansubs available. 

[sparrowsabre7]

Say Something Nice About Every Star War part 4 Revenge of the Sith

The opening crawl starts with a fun single exclamation. “War!”

The silent shot of the Venator class Star Destroyer over Coruscant*, followed by drums and then the interceptors flying over its bow and spiralling into chaos remains I think my favourite opening of any Star Wars film. Yes, A New Hope’s is more iconic and is still great, but ROTS’ is the perfect synergy of all of that.

I love the design of the interceptors, I like that they are almost like the bastard children of A-wings and TIE fighters. The ARC-170 is cool too, making that classic warplane noise with its engines.

The duel with Dooku parallels Luke vs Vader in Return of the Jedi very nicely. Anakin and Luke are both faced with the same decision, being goaded by Palpatine, but while Anakin gives in to his anger, Luke ultimately rejects it. 

“His fate will be the same as ours” is such a great foreshadowing line. Like sure, it’s weird Lucas dialogue, but it works here. 

General Grievous is a great design, though I wish he had been a bit more like his Clone Wars (Tartakovsky) counterpart. 

Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen are finally allowed to sell the friendship in this one. No more chiding master and unruly student, they work together well, they bounce off each other, we get the sense they are seasoned veterans now. 

We have another moment in Padme’s apartment where Anakin lays his feelings bare. It’s interesting that the two times he’s most honest about his emotions is when he’s in Padme’s bedroom. 

“Hello there!” 

Obi-wan’s pose in the Grievous duel.

Shorter than it should have been but the duel is still fun to watch

Anakin’s conversation with Palpatine in the squid lake opera is moody and atmospheric and Ian McDiarmid sells this moment really well. Yes, he’s being very blatant about his Sith knowledge, but I feel like that’s deliberate. He wants Anakin to figure it out, he wants him to come to him of his own accord. 

The Battle of Kashyyyk is very nicely laid out with the trenches and the droids emerging from the water. Just visually very interesting, a lot of stuff going on. 

The silent (or it was silent until the blu-ray release) scene of Anakin and Padme staring across Coruscant to each other is probably the most soulful and thoughtful scene Lucas has filmed since Binary Sunset. This notion of the separation between them and how this moment is not centred on love but uncertainty. I feel this would probably have hit better on Padme’s end if the Rebellion senators subplot was left in as that also contributes to their division.

I like the little flickshot hidden lightsaber reveal from Palpatine. Something about it just satisfies me. 

Mace Windu finally gets a duel, even if it is a little leisurely paced

Though it sort of stumbles in the final moment, all the steps to get to Anakin’s turn worked for me: it came from a place of good intentions, but those intentions were clouded by jealousy and fear. With the puzzle pieces put in place from Attack of the Clones it’s reasonable to me that Anakin would want to save his wife from death.

Circling back, I like that when Anakin says Padme will die, her first reaction is “and the baby?”. And Anakin doesn’t seem to care at this point, he’s so focused on keeping Padme, he doesn’t want to lose the thing he has, not what he might have. That right there points out this drive to save Padme is not driven so much by love, but by selfishness.

Order 66 montage is crushing and John Williams does not let up. 

Yoda riding Chewbacca’s back is funny. 

Ewan McGregor trying hard not to laugh at “killing younglings.”

The dual duels are both really fun to watch. No they don’t always make sense from a choreography point of view, but they are entertaining. 

Yoda vs Palpatine still makes the 7 year old in me go crazy.

Yoda’s “failed I have” sounds so broken. 

Though it’s cheesy as hell the whole lead up dialogue to Obi-wan vs Vader still hypes me up each time. 

“YoUr nEw EMpIRe!?”

Ewan sells the “your were my brother” dialogue, even though some of it is a little Lucasian.

Intercutting Padme’s death with Vader’s birth/Anakin’s death with the twins’ birth is a nice parallel. 

That *wheeze* THUNK noise when the helmet goes on. 

Padme’s funeral with the japor snippet is nicely framed

The Harry Potter scene at the end apes Binary Sunset in a satisfying way to end the Lucas saga that brings it full circle. 

*Does this actually make Coruscant the only planet to be featured in the opening crawl pan twice? I - Naboo, II - Coruscant, III - Coruscant, IV - Tatooine, V - I think nothing at first before getting to Hoth, VI - Forest moon of Endor, VII - Jakku, VIII - D’Qar, IX - Mustafar

[elemental-daddy-neos]

Hows about asuka?

A rare girl ask

Why I like them/why I don’t

So my opinion on Alexis was heavily influenced by her dub incarnation at first since the dub of GX is what I watched first, and god did I not like her in the dub at all. GX’s dub makes her really... really bland and bitchy, and she never really changed from that.

Asuka, however, is a lot more chill in the sub, and while I haven’t watched more than... 20 something episodes in the sub? I still find her a lot easier to watch than I did in the dub. They really are like two different people.

Alexis bad, Asuka... alright.

What I like about their appearance

I’mma keep it real with you chief, I really Don’t like her design in a lot of aspects, so I’m just gonna talk about my problems with all of this instead.

1. What is that right angle on her hair supposed to be? (Yes very original to complain about dumb hair on a Yugioh character, but it looks weird okay.)

2. Following in Tea’s footsteps, they had to make Alexis their next female love interest with giant tits, and I really hate how many shots of her in the anime call attention to her chest, especially when it’s drawn the way it is. Clothes don’t... Work like that. That isn’t how shirts over tits are supposed to look.

3. Another thing on the sexualization of this 15 year old girl, whyyyy did they feel the need to make her skirt as short as it is? It barely covers her ass when you look at where it cuts off, and the fact that this is supposed to be a school uniform? Really hate that.

Now that I’ve gotten my complaints out, I’ll go ahead and say that at the very least, she does have a nice smile.

Do I prefer their dub names or original names?

I think that Asuka is the prettier sounding name tbh, I just tend to refer to her as Alexis since the dub names are usually more well known. 

OTP

As far as GX goes, I never did ship Alexis with anyone. The romance they tried to push for with Jaden really never got beyond a few thoughts Alexis had, and that boy is gay in my eyes so I’d never go for it. There wasn’t anyone she really seemed to connect with, despite having at least two one off characters that were interested in her.

However.

I’m here for whatever you call Asuka/The nameless purple haired girl in Arc V that she stole a boat with. Really is sad that they didn’t even give her a name despite giving her this very gay scene in the anime, she’s just referred to as “an academy student” in the wiki. Rip purple chick.

NOTP

Valentineshipping. See the post I made on Chazz for the reasoning, since I talked about it there first.

OT3

I can’t come up with one here, since I’ve never shipped her with anyone until Arc V.

Favourite card they use

I just think it’s a really cute card is all.

Favourite moment they were in

I liked the duel she had against this gambler who stole her mother’s scarf from her when she was little. Seeing her destroy the man who took it from her was pretty satisfying. 

Least favourite moment

Probably the scene in season 4 when she slapped Jaden for trying to make Atticus wake up when he wasn’t well. Granted, Jaden was acting up and needed to chill, he wasn’t blameless in this, I just didn’t like seeing him get slapped is all.

Would I fuck, marry or kill them

I don’t hate Alexis so not kill, but I’m not really attracted to her in any sense, so... Can I just marry her to the purple chick in Arc V? 

[kaiowut99]

OP literally waited two years to release a soundtrack with a bunch of A+ tunes only to leave out some of the more iconic ones from the last arc and 40+ tunes unreleased altogether instead of just doing 2CDs to cover more and the skipped OP/EN but go off i guess

[twinsky]

best year for my writing so far, 4 months, 4 uploaded fics, 2020 may suck but im killing it writing wise. take another arc v fic.

edited by apple!

-

Title: little children, little children

Wordcount: 2k+

Summary: Yuya had always known that his mother had not given birth to him, that there was no blood between him and his parents. He didn’t really care, they loved him all the same. What Yuya didn’t know, was apparently that wasn’t the case for everyone.

(Or, four kids have a conversation on where babies come from)

(ao3 link)

Sawatari sighs, sprawled across the table with his head pressed against the table moaning woefully about… something. Yuya was kind of tuning him out, he didn’t really seem too upset as much as wanting to complain, so it was probably fine. Serena gave him a disgusted look, which he might’ve found kind of funny in any other situation, before shifting her gaze back out the window watching who knows what.

He reaches up to grab his pendulum, resisting his own urge to sigh. While it was well and good that Crow had offered them a place to stay it doesn’t change the fact that they’re pretty much lost here. They don’t know where the others are and have no idea what they’re supposed to be doing here. Reiji had told them to find allies but… where do you even start with asking someone to join an Interdimensional War? Yuya would rather not involve anyone but Reiji is right, just the nine of them could never hope to take down the entirety of Academia.

And that’s an important issue, and Yuya definitely plans on figuring out… something on that end but if he’s honest right now he’s more worried about Reira right now. The poor kid seems heartbroken about not being with Reiji, and sitting on the couch curled up around a donut Shinji had all but forced into their hands, they seem deceptively smaller than usual.

How’s Yuya supposed to fix things if he can’t make one little kid smile?

Reira, as if sensing Yuya’s thoughts, looks up at him meeting his eyes for one drawn out moment before sinking right back down. This time, he doesn’t stop the sigh.

Maybe he’ll join Sawatari in bemoaning his life on the table and it’ll make Serena mad enough to like, throw them out of the house or kick them both maybe. That’ll shake him out of his funk. Of course, sadly expressing his woes won’t bring joy to anyone, so that doesn’t seem useful.

A duel? Sawatari can be over the top but he does enjoy the good spirit of an entertainment duel. The kids will like it, maybe it’ll even get Reira to forget about Reiji and everything else for a second.

His thoughts halt as Serena speaks, eyes still turned towards the window. “Hey,” she says, gaze finally flickering away from the window and to them, “Do you think Crow and Shinji are dating?”

“Huh?” Sawatari says, sitting up to stare at Serena.

“I mean,” she says, voice pitching oddly, “they’re just really close, no one in Academia ever hung out that closely together. But I’ve heard the other kids mention dating before so I thought maybe…”

“You don’t know what dating is?” It’s not like Yuya has a wide range of experience with it, but he at least knows what it is.

“A soldier has no need for romance.” Serena says, in that tone of voice she gets where it sounds like she’s reciting something rather than speaking.

Yuya doesn’t know what to reply to that, and Reira lets out what sounds like a whine.

“Well!” Sawatari says, hands landing a bit too harshly on the table and all eyes shoot to him. “If they were it’d be a gain for gay men everywhere, they are quite handsome.”

“You think so?” Serena replies, squinting her eyes as she stares back out the window, Yuya suspects by now that she is creepily spying on them. Should he tell her to stop?

“I know so,” Sawatari says, nodding sagely, “shame for all the cute babies that’ll never be born if it’s true.”

“What?” Yuya asks, brows furrowing, “What do babies have to do with them dating?”

The look Sawatari sends him is incredulous but Serena looks just as confused. “You’re joking right?”

“No” he says, in the same moment Serena says; “I don’t get it either.”

Sawatari shifts uncomfortably but Serena is now watching him intently, taking a seat at the table. Even Reira, whether through interest or just noticing everyone else is, joins as well.

“Well, well you need a mother and a father to have a child!” He blusters, cheeks burning red.

“Why?” Serena asks as Reira leans forward, the same question clear on their face. It’s the most non-panicked active Yuya has seen them since they got here.

“Don’t you guys have parents to explain this to you?” Sawatari whines.

“I was raised in Academia, I’ve never had ‘parents.’” Serena replies easily, saying the word ‘parents’ with the same amount of confusion Yuya gives to his vocab words in English class.

“The Akabas found me.” Reira says quietly, hands clutched together and Yuya leans over to put a hand on their shoulder. They still for a moment before relaxing a bit.

Sawatari turns pleading eyes on him. “You’re just running a joke right? For the entertainment value? You know what I’m talking about, don’t you?”

Yuya shrugs, “My mother said I was left on their doorstep in a basket with nothing but a duel monster card.”

“And you believed her?”

“Well, yeah, why would she lie to me?” He shrugs again, “Besides, isn’t everyone like that?”

“What?” Sawatari sputters, “Of course not.”

“I think that’s what happened with me.” Serena says, looking pensive.

“See,” Yuya says proudly, “It was like that with Yuzu too.”

“That’s not normal,” Sawatari hisses, still looking like he’s waiting for someone to jump out and call the whole thing a joke, “how are all three – four if you count Yuzu – believing this.” His gaze flickers to Reira, “Well, Reira’s a kid so that’s fine I guess.”

“Why’s their age make a difference?” Serena asks and Sawatari flushes.

“Because… Because! Seriously how do neither of you know this.”

“Where do babies come from then?” Reira asks, looking at Sawatari with wide curious eyes.

Sawatari’s face somehow flushes an even deeper red, as he buries his face in his hands.

Yuya clears his throat, well, if Sawatari won’t say it then he will.

“Babies are brought by the stork when parents are ready.” He says sagely, “my mother still has the basket I came in.”

“Really?” Reira asks, something close to childish wonder in their expression and it kind of makes Yuya want to snap a picture.

“Yeah! I’ve seen it before, I think it’s still in the attic.”

“Then where are my parents?” Serena asks, looking more considering than concerned.

“Maybe the stork dropped you by accident.” Reira offers softly as Serena nods.

“That would make sense, I suppose it’s good that the professor found me then.” Yuya wouldn’t say that’s a good thing, but it’s better than just being lost all alone.

“Are all of you crazy?” Sawatari groans, throwing his hands up, “Who told you this? How old were you?”

“Uh, seven or eight?” Yuya replies thinking back. “It was some school assignment, to get to know each other or something? We were supposed to present it the next day, I think. It asked what hospital I was born at and that’s when she told me I wasn’t born in a hospital.”

“What a pointless assignment.” Serena mutters and Yuya nods absently.

“Yeah, mom just stared at it for a real long time before she shook her head and told me that the stork brought me to her and dad.”

“And the next day?” Sawatari asks weakly, once again slumped over the table. “When you went to school and everyone presented?”

“Oh! Uh, I didn’t, mom took me to Yuzu’s the next day and we presented to our parents. That’s how I know Yuzu’s just like me, I heard her say it!”

Sawatari groans as Reira and Serena nod.

“I wish the stork left me somewhere nicer.” Reira mumbles, and Yuya’s hand, still resting on Reira’s shoulder, curls a bit tighter.

“Well you’re here with us now, right?” Yuya says cheerily, “So maybe the stork always knew you’d end up here.”

“That’d be nice,” Reira says, ducking their head, “You guys are all really nice.”

Yuya grins, and then grins even wider when Serena and Sawatari sputter and blush.

“Whatever!” Sawatari exclaims, throwing his hands up, “Fine, you’re right! We all get left on doorsteps by some stork or whatever. I give up!”

“What do you give up on?” Crow’s voice comes from the doorway, watching them with mild suspicion.

“Crow!” Sawatari exclaims, gesturing at the other dramatically, vigor restored. “My saving grace, my heaven-sent angel, you’re an adult you know the truth, right?”

“What.” He says flatly.

“We’re talking about where babies come from.” Serena offers and they watch in transfixed fascination as Crow’s face goes slack, nearly dropping the bags he’s holding as he stumbles back. Shinji, coming in at the same moment, catches him by the shoulders and steadies him.

“Why are you talking about that?” Crow asks, voice thin and high.

“Sawatari said that you and Shinji couldn’t have babies together.” Serena shrugs which seems to confuse Crow even more and even Shinji turns a light shade of pink.

“I didn’t say that!”

“You basically did.” She says as Reira nods in agreement.

“Et tu, Reira?” Sawatari bemoans clutching a hand to his chest in a way Yuya can’t help but laugh at.

“Ignore him,” Serena huffs, “answer the question.”

“Storks.” Shinji says flatly as Crow chokes. “I mean, just look at all these kids we’re taking care of. The stork left them by accident and we had to pick ‘em up.”

“Oh my god.” Sawatari moans, collapsing onto the ground.

“I told you!” Yuya says, moving to crouch beside Sawatari, patting him gently on the back. “Told you my mom wouldn’t lie to me.”

“No, no, you’re right, of course how could I be so mistaken.” Sawatari mumbles into the wood. “Of course I’m wrong, a stork left me on my parents doorstep because that doesn’t make sense. But that makes perfect sense because nothing about anything right now makes sense so nothing ever should, be it past, present, or future.”

“Sawatari?” Yuya asks hesitantly, just a bit concerned.

Sawatari shoots up, displacing Yuya’s hand with a yelp and clasping him by the shoulders. “I get it now Yuya, I’m just never going to question anything again, that’ll make this whole thing easier.”

“Er, okay?”

“Great!” He says with a grin, “Now that that’s settled, let’s figure out what we should do, because I don’t think I can sit around here anymore.”

“Now you’re talking,” Serena says with a wide grin, “I need some action.”

“You all are a weird bunch.” Shinji says with a sigh, Crow still standing still and straight beside him.

“A weird bunch called the Lancers.” Sawatari says proudly and Reira’s eyes shine a bit at the reminder of their brother’s team.

“Whatever.” Shinji says with a dismissive wave, just as Crow snaps back into reality.

“Plan your stuff later, it’s almost dinner time and if you’re staying you gotta help.” He says and it makes the two of them sigh but move over without argument.

Yuya stands with a groan, stretching his legs as he moves to walk over to the rest of them, but a tug on his shirt stops him. He looks over his shoulder, spotting Reira holding it loosely between their fingers.

“Reira?”

“… Thanks”

“Oh! You’re welcome,” he says automatically, then pauses, “for what?”

Reira shrugs, not lifting their head. “Just thanks.”

Yuya grins, “Any time, now come on let’s see how we can help.”

There’s still a lot of questions, still a lot they don’t know. But for now they have each other, and hopefully soon the rest of them and together they’ll figure something out. No need to worry too hard until then.

   -

  (Later, much later, as everything races towards the end and the Professor looks down at him with unyielding eyes as he calls him a demon, tells his father he’s not Yuya’s father, he lets the words slide off. It doesn’t matter if it’s true, if Yuya is a demon or whatever, his parents love him, they’ve cared for him. And his mother has always told him that blood is not the definition of family, it is love and care. Whatever Yuya is and isn’t is up to him, and Yuya is no demon. He is the child of two parents who love him and friend to so many who have supported him.

In the end, that doesn’t stop everything from happening, but in the moment, it’s all the support he can ask for.)

[pinkprimrose05]

Warning: Long Post, contains spoilers.

As promised, ladies and gentlemen, here's your lorewise with a dash of gameplay analysis of the newest wave of cards from Age of Overlord!

(Oh, you thought I was only covering ARC-Ray? Haha, nope! I don't call myself the resident Supreme King enthusiast for nothing, you know).

All credits go to YGOrganization for the card images and translated names... and with that out of the way, let's head straight in!

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1) Haoumon no Majutsushi / Supreme King Gate Magician

As the artwork and name suggest, this is a retrain of Astrograph Sorcerer that now falls under the Supreme King series and acts as the lynchpin of the Deck; where upon its summon, it searches for any card -except a Spellcaster like itself, the OG Astrograph, and Chronograph Sorcerer- that mentions Supreme King Z-ARC in its text. A pretty neat piece of support that has nice synergy with older cards like Darkwurm, but is ultimately lacking in references compared to the others.

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2) Haoukenryuu Lightwurm / Supreme King Dragon Lightwurm

Poor thing got Mike Wazowski'd by the YGO trademark lmaooo

Now this guy actually has something to dig around for- several things, in fact. Aside from the obvious reversed stats of Darkwurm, its monster effect is a very funny anime reference, because lo and behold, it actually enables the loop of two Darkwurms into any Supreme King Dragon!

... well, almost. Upon summon, this card allows for an immediate Synchro/Xyz summon of an SKD, which can later tag out into a Lightwurm and Darkwurm, for a repeat of its effect to renew the loop. This also has the niche use of becoming a quick Raigeki effect if you're able to make Clear Wing with its effect, which- huh. Noice.

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3) Pendulum Evolution

Hmmm... this looks kinda familiar, don't you think?

Yeah. Exactly.

Gorgeous artwork aside, the card's second effect is a nice nod to another continuous spell under the same archetype, namely Soul Pendulum (or Pendulum of Souls in the OCG). The effect in question lets you perform an extra Pendulum summon in the same turn you summoned a Pendulum from the face-down Extra Deck (which, in the scope of this Deck, would be either Z-ARC or ARC-Ray), which, while not as amazing as it sounds, is still immensely satisfying to pull off. Trust me. I've collected enough counters on Soul Pendulum to recognize the dopamine rush of making the pendulum swing twice in the same turn, and this card even has the added benefit of a recycle/search effect, and a minor boost to your final board's offensive power in the form of more possible attacks to push for game.

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4) Kouyoku no Ryuu / The Light-Winged Dragon

I spy with my eye one, two- no, three references in the artwork. You have the four orbs following the dimension dragons' designated colors, the background bearing resemblance to the ARC-V reactor, and most subtle of them all, the shape of a four-petal flower made by the terminal. Neat. Very, very neat. The effect itself is a general search like that of Gate Magician/Darkwurm/Lightwurm, so nothing of note there aside from Lightwurm synergy- but man, I love how simple yet layered this card's art is.

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5) Haouryuu no Kiseki / Miracle of the Supreme King

BOY, this card goes just as hard the one right above. For starters, it depicts the purification of Darkwurm and Z-ARC, in a way very similar to the En cards' effect in the anime- but that's not the kicker, no. The kicker is the Duel Disk...

... whose blade happens to be of the same color as Yuuya's, and also fairly close to the signature neon gradient of the Supreme King series. Note that it's also called the Miracle of the Supreme King, paralleling the Miracle of Light in Pendulum summoning...

Excuse me as I go and process this in a corner, because I think I'm experiencing what could be called a reference overload.

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6) Haoutenryuu no Tamashii / Soul of the Supreme Celestial King

Nevermind, I'm fine.

Yet another parallel to a similar trap in the same series; this time being Soul of the Supreme King. This card, however, is far closer to anime Astrograph's effect than it is to SoSK; you tribute a Spellcaster with 2500 ATK (like Astrograph itself, or Gate Magician, or Xiangke Magician- hell, even Dark Magician works somehow) to Fusion summon a Z-ARC by banishing materials from... literally anywhere. Hand? Check. Field? Check. GY? Check. Deck? Check. Extra Deck? Check!

Crazy stuff, honestly. It's really funny that we've reached a stage where a card like this can be released at 3 and still not see any competitive play- but ignoring that, it's still a solid starter if it goes off, and the art is straight up awesome. I adore the full arc of light Gate Magician is drawing over there; the position looks identical to Yuuya's pendulum summon, too, which is fitting because he's the one introducing us to....

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7) Haoutenryuu Odd-Eyes Arc-Ray Dragon / Supreme Celestial King Odd-Eyes Arc-Ray Dragon

... One, two, three, four, five- Good Lord, the card is fucking stacked. Where do I even begin with this??

1) The artwork features distinct references to the four dimension dragons' designs. The Pendulum scale-looking gems with the same combo of red & green as Odd-Eyes' heterochromia (and I think the horns also have those colors), Dark Rebellion's red circles over a black background, Clear Wing's pristine white/teal mix for the wings, and Starving Venom's red orbs.

2) The card's title of Supreme Celestial King (alternatively translated as Heavenly Supreme King) is a direct callback to the theme of the four dimension dragons- or the four heavenly dragons, as Zarc himself calls them. And as it so happens, it also shares this with his magician version's name, Performapal Celestial Magician (again, alternatively translated as Heavenly Magician).

3) ARC-Ray's Pendulum effect allows it to special summon itself from the Pendulum zone for basically nothing, which is both a nod to anime Z-ARC's Pendulum effect, and lowkey crazy because it gives you a 4000 ATK/DEF beatstick and extends combos by clearing up the other scale (and potentially summoning something else beside it from your Extra Deck- yes, you're mainly supposed to use this with Z-ARC for a board wipe and double big dragons. No, I didn't just realize this right now after making a comparison between the two).

4) The pronunciation of its name is actually a sort of weird pun; so when you say the name, the S from Odd-Eyes (pronounced as a Z because vowels and all) connects to ARC-Ray, and you know what that reads now?

Zarc-Ray.

I would like to applaud whoever it is in Konami that decided to push the ship through the power of vocal portmanteaus, because holy shit, that guy is one hell of a brilliant bastard.

5) The card's first monster effect treats it as Supreme King Z-ARC under all conditions, which makes it an Odd-Eyes card in name only. I think this is very fitting with the narrative pushed in the last few episodes of ARC-V; where Yuuya comes to realize that, while he carries his predecessor's power and will, he and Zarc are not quite one and the same.

They are both their own person, with unique ideals and methods of achieving said ideals, and while those tend to overlap a lot by virtue of their very similar personality, there's still a lot that sets the two apart and makes them who they are. And it is only when he accepts that fact and applies it to his actions that Yuuya manages to reach his true potential, as an entertainer, a Duelist, and most important of all- a person.

Very fitting, indeed.

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Phew, that was... a few hundred words longer than I expected. My hand definitely slipped a little over halfway through, which I will shamelessly blame on the amount of thought put into the cards and what they reference.

Once again, ARC-V strikes with a staggering amount of deliberation and detail put into the smallest of things, and once again, I am left with so, so many thoughts about it. Suffice to say that I'm not just impressed; I'm positively floored (in a good way, of course).

Congrats Konami, you did right by the show this time around. Now please keep this up whenever you decide to remember that Melodious is an archetype that exists.

Breaking my hiatus to scream and yell a little because hoLY FUCK IS THAT ZARC ON THE MAIN SET COVER???!!

This feels surreal, but it's very much real.

It's happening.

They did it.

My prayers have been answered.

Oh my God I think I need to sit down for a moment.

[chromsai]

so Arc V Sound Duel 4 is set for release on March 28 (as stated on Amazon Japan)

[merryfortune]

Day 4 / Paradise

Fandom: YuGiOh Arc V

Ship: Asuka/Gloria

Word Count: 1,170

Rating: T

Tags:  Pre-Canon, Canon Compliant, Angst, Prose

  The definition of “paradise” kept changing for Asuka and she very much detested that very much.

  According to the Cambridge English dictionary, paradise was defined as what follows: a place or condition of great happiness where everything is exactly as you would like it to be.

  The most common example of “paradise” was the idea of the tropical. A holiday getaway of sugar-white sands, palm trees, of fruity, coconut drinks on the beach. It was certainly her brother’s idea of paradise and Asuka had to admit, from the very first moment in which she set foot on Duel Academia, she was inclined to agree. From the free, sprawling breezes carrying the vivacious scent of the breeze to the technical aspects of the school, Asuka did, indeed, think this place a paradise and she had more than earned her place both in it and within its most prestigious ranks.

  But as much as beaches and libraries were paradise to Asuka, she had also heard that other people could be paradise as much as they could be perdition. Loved ones, specifically, could be paradise. The good place. And Asuka had her friends, she had her brother, and there was someone special to her as well.

  Gloria Tyler.

  She was resplendent, in silver and violet, with an ethereal presence about her. She was striking. Animalistic and yet elegant. Asuka was helplessly attracted to her, allured by her, from the moment their eyes met across the tiles of the ballroom in which the Professor held his soiree for students who had earned his favour.

  Asuka felt privileged to have the Professor’s acknowledgement and yet, it paled in comparison, became as feeble as dust mites drifting in a sunbeam, in comparison to holding Gloria’s gaze as she sauntered closer. And when she smiled, Asuka’s heart stopped and she became enthralled in the aura of Gloria Tyler.

  The pleasure was all Asuka’s when Gloria introduced herself, but, of course, her reputation preceded her but Asuka hung on tightly to every word which dripped from Gloria’s mouth like a rivulet of molten gold. She was everything she was promised to be and more. She was charming and her etiquette was immaculate. Her laughter was like the tolling of bells and there was this sharpness to her eyes. It wasn’t human. It was vaguely cruel but Asuka couldn’t tell for she was lost in trying to unravel whom she thought she saw before her, as perfect as the marble the most legendary sculptors would bring to life to the finest, most beautiful detail.

  For just like Asuka was promised, there was a mystery about whom Gloria Tyler was exactly. What she knew. What she would tell others. And Asuka... Asuka was incurably learned and wanted to be yet even more so. It was her most important hunger. Hence why she found paradise in libraries and books and, apparently, people who resided inside secretive inner circles.

  And Gloria Tyler was the most perfect person for her in that regard. She was so controlled. She gave away plenty of details about herself and yet remained detached. Elusive. Difficult to truly know, unless you were her sister but Asuka deemed that cheating and such beautiful insanity came in twos with twins, anyway.

  Asuka spent splendid afternoons with Gloria, thereafter. In bed together, sometimes studying literature and poetry, sometimes studying each other with bated breath. Slowly drawing closer and closer until they touched. The sparks were magnificent and Gloria’s feline eyes gleamed. Asuka swallowed and she kissed back. Hard. Mad. She was in love with the enigma which was Gloria Tyler.

  It was on her bed, kissing her, that Asuka realised that paradise didn’t just have to be people. It could be a person. One sole person and she thought that Gloria might have been that person for her.

  Despite being so close, as they kissed, they had never felt far apart. Asuka’s heart pounded as she tried to conceive every fathom which belonged in the liquid gold of Gloria’s eyes and the cyanide of her hair. She couldn’t, of course. It was impossible. So, she let the beauty of her lover bathe over her, awash with the sunlight streaming in from outside in the dormitory which the Tyler sisters belonged. A dormitory unlike any other.

  It was violet.

  A colour which was neither blue, yellow, or red but rather some putrid mix of them all. Its own colour. Vibrant, like a gash or other open wound. Not like the flowers but rather like carnage.

  Violent.

  There came another night in which the Professor held one of his finest feasts for his finest students and it was there, he unveiled his Arc Area Project and Asuka listened intently whilst Gloria held her hand. There was a fang to her smile whenever she glanced longways at Asuka. Asuka who absorbed it all, with a heart willing to believe in perfection which could be achieved, as she was allowed a glimpse into the beautiful mechanisms of the Professor’s mind before all her other peers who did not belong to this violet (violent) faction inside the school.

  It sounded sublime. Wonderful. Like paradise.

  Paradise was the Arc Area Project. It was the point of origin. Like the Garden of Eden from whence Adam and Eve had been rejected. It was a return to the natural state of being: Standard, Fusion, XYZ, and Synchro, all returned to one, whole world.

  It was not simply like paradise. It was paradise and the smiles which streamed from the faces of those who became the foot soldiers of the Professor, of Academia, confirmed it for Asuka. At least not until those smiles became streams of tears from a dear friend. A dear friend who took her hands and begged her to escape because she didn’t want Asuka to do horrid, evil things in the name of paradise.

  And thus, paradise’s definition changed once more.

  Paradise was not a place achievable by any actionable means. It was not an island laced with gorgeous, white sand beaches and surrounding by sparkling, sapphire seas. Paradise was not a school which promised all which Asuka loved. Paradise was not people. People were masked and made to do evil things in the name of righteousness. Paradise was not the Arc Area Project either. The alpha and omega were removed from each other for a reason and those other dimensions did not deserve to be destroyed.

  There was one more definition of what paradise was not or perhaps should have been, as well that Asuka grappled with as well.

  Paradise was not a single person. A lover. Paradise was not Gloria Tyler.

  Those afternoons of splendour, enjoying each other’s company, studying the academic greats and each other, turned sordid with what Asuka knew now.

  Gloria Tyler’s paradise was poison. A propagandistic perdition. Yet despite knowing that, that did little to quell the heartbreak which Asuka grappled with as she tried to rest in new quarters which promised, at the very least, food and a smile...