#he has a marik themed retainer

[sesshy380]

Decided to go through and organize my picture folder (it's such a mess ahhhh!) and forgot that not only did I have a ton of screenshots from FFXIV, but that as soon as male Viera were playable I made Bakura because one of the hairstyles just told me I had to lol.

Pics below the cut for those interested.

So Kura started out as a Summoner because I wanted to be in the Limsa starting region for when he hit level 10 I could switch him to Rogue/Ninja. Yes, I gave him a TKB scar.

His original Rogue/Ninja look.

Glam upgrade so he could have a pretty pendant (closest I could give him to a Millennium Ring QQ).

What would he be without a certain tomb Keeper? Used Mariku for retainer name because 'Marik' and 'Malik' were taken. If you look close enough, Mariku has a 'Millennium Rod' on his side.

And more GPose spam because what's FFXIV without glams and GPose?

[entamewitchlulu]

Hey so fun food for thought

What would you say the themes of each yugioh series (thst you've watched) are? Leaning on sub versions since dubs tend to change the themes pre-Zexal. I thought it'd be a fun essay question to compare and contrast the different messages each show aimed for. All have elements of coming of age/maturity which tends to come with shounen.

For exanple some of my thoughts (which tell me if these are huge misreads lol):

DM is heavily about finding one's own identity and learning how to come to terms with the parts of yourself that are affected by other people, GX is learning to grow up without succumbing to the existential pressures that come with being an adult, etc. Obviously there are more minor themes that are fun to dissect too, such as Jounochi's personal arc about overcoming a dysfunctional family situation to become a better person and help his sister.

that's a really great question! (also hi!! nice to hear from you! I hope you're doing well! :) )

I really agree with you on the first two! I think DM's story is very much about identity and striving for your best self. There's a quote I'm gonna mangle from the early manga because I'm too lazy to look for it lol, where Jonouchi tells Yugi that you become friends with people because it helps you to like yourself more, and you grow from that. I think a lot of the cast of DM struggled with liking and caring about themselves in one way or another; Yugi let his shyness hold him back, Jonouchi struggling with self-loathing from his family situation, even Anzu let herself drift apart from Yugi before high school and seemed to sort of resent herself for it. Villains fall into this pattern too; Marik, I think struggles a lot with self-hatred that he turns outwardly into hatred against the world, but he's also struggling with what looks to me like survivor's guilt and a complex about himself and his worth from his childhood.

While as you said there's definitely a lot of mini themes and arcs in there, most of DM I think is about learning to like yourself and becoming a better person overall. Yugi and Atem, as the main characters, learn a lot from each other to become their full formed selves by the end: Yugi, who retains his kind heart but has learned to back it up with confidence and strength, and Atem, who retains his confidence but has learned to temper it with kindness.

GX is definitely a coming of age story probably even more so than DM; while DM feels to me more of a "starting at the bottom but crawling up to the top to become the person you want to be" kind of story, GX is more of a traditional kid becoming adult story, and what is gained versus what is left behind. GX is really the only one of the series to actually focus on the fact that its characters are in a school setting, so that adolescent coming of age feel is very much front and center, and it becomes even more vivid in the last season where all of the main cast start to poke around at who they're going to be in the future and what kind of adult they want to become, but also dealing with, like you said really well, those "existential pressures" just as much as the internal ones. DM doesn't really address anyone's desired futures (except for Anzu with her dreams of Broadway), at least not until DSOD and its brief dabbling with the cast talking about what they'll do after high school. GX is much more focused on looking to the future and dealing with the externalities of growing up and the world not always being what you want it to be -- and then dealing with the fallout of what you turn into because of it, and how to reconcile with that.

5D's I feel like is harder to get a handle on its overarching themes because it feels like it has almost two separate stories without a lot of connection due to the director switch halfway through and the various other production issues. If I were to just take the first half, I'd say the major theme is about standing up for what you believe in and finding a found family that supports you. A lot of the characters in that show are isolated in one way or another: Yusei, while he has his friends in Satellite, is sort of aloof and feels abandoned by Jack. Jack, while he's the King of the city, is isolated from other people and doesn't really know how to connect with them. Crow has his kids, but he had to abandon his friends when things got too violent, and he feels that loss and like he has to shoulder things on his own. Aki has been specifically isolated by her abuser, and doesn't feel like she can trust anyone else. Lua and Luka's parents seem to be nonexistent, the two of them only having each other as they live completely alone on the top floor of an enormous building. The group slowly coming together as the Signers is them finding some sort of solace and freedom in having others to rely on. As cliche as it might sound, I do think the power of friendship is honestly 5D's most overarching theme, more so than even in other yugiohs, due to this simple fact that before the Signers, most of the cast really didn't have anyone - it's their bond that's the most important element of their story.

This...kind of gets mucked up by the second season, which kind of hit you over the head with its intended theme of "believing that you can make a better future with your own hands," and a lot of characters' previous isolation backstories being ignored or outright retconned. But I think the fact that Yusei, Jack, and Crow all live together now, that everyone forms a team, that we have that Kiryu arc in the middle there where Yusei proves to Kiryu that he doesn't have to be alone anymore, that supporting others is still at the heart of 5D's.

Zexal is kind of straightforward with its theme, imo; it's all about the kattobing, lol. Zexal's themes are about never giving up and believing in yourself and others, even if it could lead to your detriment, because it's important to you to be able to believe. Yuma's story is very much about getting burned by others, but deciding despite that to stay true to his values and his belief. He won't let anyone else undo his convictions, no matter how cruel they are to him - it's about not giving anyone the satisfaction of being able to stop you from being you. I think this sort of works in with Yuma's relationship with Astral, too; Astral doesn't have memories and barely has a personality to begin with because he was built to be a weapon, but through interaction with Yuma, Astral is able to develop a sense of self and conviction outside of that. There's a lot to point to Zexal being a pastiche of sorts of DM, so I think DM's themes of identity and becoming someone you can like have a lot of sway here too. I am having a little bit of trouble connecting the themes to the overall cast because....a lot of them are unfortunately a little extraneous; but i think if we look at characters like Shark and Kaito, we can see in them too that they are fighting for their own convictions even if it leads them to ruin, because that's who they have decided to be true to. So I guess in short, Zexal's about deciding on who you want to be, and fighting tooth and nail for it.

Now I could (and probably have) write an entire thesis about Arc V's themes, but I think it boils down to what its own summary says its theme is: "take a step forward with courage." Arc V is all about pushing forward, taking that next step, even if it seems terrifying. You can't go backwards, but you can fix what's broken right here in the now. I've already written in the past about how I believe an underlying theme of Arc V is about recovery, and I think that just slots in neatly with the tagline. Yuya and Yuzu are the literal fractured pieces of two people who then put themselves back together by the end, and Yuya has to face the lingering doubts and pain of his former self and come to terms with them in order to move into the future. Many of the characters in Arc V are dealing with some form of trauma, and are seen to face some of those elements of that trauma in order to find a way to the other side of it. It's about recognizing where you were wrong and what has caused you pain and then facing that so that you can feel and become better.

Pretty much every step of the way is about personal growth of Yuya or another character, or collective growth through the rebuilding of a society, be it tearing down the abusive system in Synchro or bringing the joy back to the wartorn Heartland. Sure it's a little neat and tidy, but hey, it's a show for nine year olds, lol. In the end, Arc V is about how recovering, choosing to get better, can be very frightening -- but having the courage to take that step forward is going to make a world of difference.

I haven't seen enough of vrains so I won't try to speak on that! I'll leave that to its fans

As for Sevens, its not over yet, and it's a little haphazard imo, but I think it's really just about finding happiness and excitement in your life. Yuga's goal is to free the world from restrictive dueling rules so that everyone can have fun. And a lot of the other characters in the cast have been holding themselves back from truly enjoying themselves for one reason or another. Asana is trying to stay true to what she thinks her ancestors' beliefs are, Neil has been by himself in a basement with only a massage chair for company for years, Roa has been stewing in jealousy over not being 'chosen', Romin has struggling with her self doubt, Gakuto has been stuck in a rut of sticking to the rules, etc. And Yuga comes along and shakes up what everyone's ideas of what the world should be like; it doesn't have to be safe or perfect or all according to plan, it should just be fun. You should be enjoying yourself! Most of Yuga's antagonists have a "oh" moment when they realize that they're enjoying the duel and having fun with Yuga's new Rush Duels. Different doesn't mean bad, it can mean something new and exciting. Sticking to the same old roads all the time because they're safer is a boring and unfulfilling way to live. Exploration, experimentation, and trying new things is integral to finding happiness. And I think that's a really cute theme!

Whew! Okay that was long! Sorry it took me a few days to get to this; it was a lot of thinking to do haha. Thank you for asking such an interesting question, and I'd be curious to hear your or anyone else's thoughts too!

[stellar-chrondrite]

Ref sheet for Malefic Monster Kaiba, a design for Seto Kaiba based on the Malefic Blue-Eyes White Dragon being his ace monster. Keep reading for the details.

Nickname: Malefic Monster Kaiba

Malefic Monster Kaiba retains the height, weight, voice, blood type and food preferences of his usual self. Here is Seto Kaiba’s wiki page.

Physical Characteristics:

Sidebangs are noticeably longer and reach down to the bottom of the collar. They are slightly messy like the rest of the hair.

One strand of the fringe falls forward on the right side. This always stays in that position.

Pupils are thin and sharp like a cat’s eyes. There is a slight marking under each corner of the eyes, reminiscent of Marik’s eye markings.

When drawing the mouth, it can be drawn with fangs or no fangs.

Definitely smiles a tad more than Seto Kaiba does.

Right-handed, like his usual self.

Mental Characteristics:

Laughs a lot in triumph.

Cold and calculating; will not hesitate to harm if the situation calls for it.

Ethics are warped; will now tolerate stealing - though the only stuff that gets stolen is electronic equipment.

Doesn’t remember Mokuba whilst like this.

Often refers to himself as just Kaiba, and completely dismisses the Seto name. As such will not respond to ‘Seto’; only to ‘Kaiba’.

Powers:

Electrical magic due to the bond between Kaiba and the Blue-Eyes as well as the bond between himself and the Malefic Blue-Eyes. This magic can be wielded in many ways, but is often used as a form of direct attack.

Can summon Malefic BEWD wings from the back to fly; rarely uses this as the BEWD jet exists and it drains a lot of energy. Will use it if feeling dramatic / want to make an entrance or exit.

Strengths:

Very powerful; Deck consists of the usual Kaiba deck with the substitution of a Malefic BEWD, which is the ace monster.

Retains usual self’s skills and athletic abilities.

Stealthy; can sneak into high-security areas and swipe items without being detected.

Weaknesses:

Mokuba can reverse the process and bring back his stone-faced brother by touching both lockets together. The strong brotherly bond dispels the darkness of the Malefic Blue-Eyes until it next returns.

Although attempts are made to steal Mokuba’s locket, cannot be brought to take own locket off.

Can be too prideful and show off before a victory is secured; this leads to most of the defeats.

The remaining Blue-Eyes secretly disobey and have been known to destroy themselves to avoid being used for evil. This is not the case for the Malefic BEWD.

Theme Songs:

Move This Mountain - Sophie Ellis-Bextor - I like to imagine that Kaiba is battling with the Malefic Monster when listening to this. Near the end Mokuba’s calls drag him free from his evil self’s clutches and he is able to prevail once more.

History:  The Malefic Monster existed in a previous life - as Christian Seto Rosenkreuz. After his ultimate plan failed, Rosenkreuz went into hiding so his magical powers could regenerate. He was able to elude King Henry’s armies for a long time, all the while trying to come up with a plan for revenge. During his time in hiding he scoured England for a way to come up victorious and he eventually came across a legend.

“Thou who masters the darkness of light Shall be bestowed the greatest might.”

Doing some research into the legend, Rosenkreuz discovered that it was linked to an ancient card that had been hidden away in time. His smart mind allowed him to decipher the hiding place of this card and he claimed it as his own.

By this point, however, Henry’s armies had finally caught up to him. Before he could unleash the terrifying power of this new card, he was captured and sentenced to death by magic. Rosenkreuz didn’t go down without a fight and pulled out the card, which was hit by the powerful spell. It ended up trapping a fraction of his very soul inside the card, effectively killing him ... for now.

Centuries later, Seto Kaiba came across yet another Blue-Eyes monster that he had to own. He managed to acquire it through a negotiable business deal - but once the card hit his hands, the trouble truly began.

Rosenkreuz’s influence took over Kaiba’s body, much like how the Yamis did. When the evil hit the brunet’s heart, he could feel power and a lust for revenge ... and an evil smirk adorned his face. 

Rosenkreuz’s influence held onto control for a while, giving Kaiba the powers of the Malefic Blue-Eyes White Dragon. When he came across Yugi and the gang, the fraction of the soul mistook the King of Games for King Henry and attacked. The gang were lucky to escape, as Kaiba finally managed to retake control of his body - though he was completely unaware of what had just happened.

After the confusion had settled, Kaiba decided to place the Malefic Blue-Eyes away in his safe - where the rest of his Blue-Eyes archetype cards were kept - so that no-one could get their hands on it. Unfortunately, Rosenkreuz’s influence still resided in Kaiba’s body, out of sight for now but not out of mind. From beyond the grave he despised how his soul’s new host had hidden his precious card from the world and swore to make his life hell until he changed his mind ... somehow.

With a new dark path ahead of him, Rosenkreuz wanted to eliminate the last remaining trace of his old life and so took on a new name for whenever his soul’s influence took control - the Malefic Monster. 

From that moment on, he resolved to punish his ‘Seto’ and become the new ‘Kaiba’, the one that should have remained all those years ago. The evil within Kaiba’s mind was now ready to start plotting all sorts of dastardly schemes ...

Trivia:

Started life as a design challenge; also partially inspired by Cynder’s TLoS: ANB (The Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning) look and role.

Likes listening to music in private. Will have a little dance every now and then. He likes the sound of modern music.

Has a pair of BEWD headphones with a microphone to send taunting messages to enemies, especially Yami / Atem.

Quite worryingly, he’s getting skilled with modern technology, despite his medieval history, and is loving the ease it provides. 

Has a DSoD design.

Isn’t fully destroyed until very late in Kaiba’s life. Defeat comes from the hearts of Atem and Mokuba as they banish the darkness forever. With the evil from the Malefic Blue-Eyes removed from Kaiba’s subconscious, the Malefic Monster can no longer influence or take control of him; therefore he ceases to exist.

When summoning electricity, will click fingers and produce a dragon-shaped lightning bolt the size of his palm.

Has been known to create massive displays with electric magic.

Joey was the one to come up with the nickname of Malefic Monster, to which Rosenkreuz took a liking to when he thought about it.

In a TLoS / YGO crossover AU Marik is the one to turn Kaiba into the Malefic Monster. Rosenkreuz has nothing to do with this version of the Malefic Monster; it is purely evil that corrupts and controls Kaiba.

Refers to Kaiba mostly as ‘goody-two-shoes self’ or, very rarely, by ‘Seto’ because he refers to himself as ‘Kaiba’.

Malefic Monster Kaiba has his own tag - #malefic monster kaiba. Include it in the tag section and my name ‘stellar-chrondrite’ in the description and I’ll be sure to have a look!

All areas will be added to over time.