#it's not that he wants to beat diva himself it's that he wants atem to come back. i;m gonna eat glass

[kaibacorpintern]

in DSOD, when diva shows up again to interrupt kaiba and yuugi's duel, his arrival cuts the power, and the puzzle clatters to the ground (tiny triangle to the right of the cube). when we next see the puzzle, kaiba's holding it, which means that somewhere in the darkness and chaos of his and yuugi's duel against diva, he scooped it up and held onto it until he sacrificed himself to diva's attack

[yuujoh]

If you'd like for the ask meme: Mokuba for 4, 5, and 28 + Pegasus, and also Honda for 5 + 24 if you'd like. Thank you!

ohhhh! all my favorites, thank you! :-)

MOKUBA

4. Favorite Line:

Ohhhhh this is a really tough one! It's more than a line, but I adore the moment in the manga when after Death T, when he and Seto's goons are trying to beat up the gang and he puts a stop to it. His bristly little "That's Enough!" is so endearing to me. He doesn't want to seem kind or weak hearted, so he couches it in this "they won so there's no point in fighting" implication, but it was really that he truly just wanted the muscle to leave them alone! Similarly, the little expression on his face before he tries to leave without commenting on the fact that he saved Honda strikes me for the same reason.

5. Best personality trait

I think Mokuba's best personality trait is his resourcefulness. He is a really quick thinker and does his best to be helpful in a situation (swallowing the fake key in Duelist Kingdom, stealing the star chips to gain access to Pegasus, hiding information with the maid for Kaiba when he woke up, the way he cheats at Capmon, headbutting Diva when he jumps on the puzzle, etc etc). He's the younger Kaiba but it doesn't mean he should be discredited in any way!

28. How Mokuba feels about Pegasus

AHHHHH! GREAT ONE GREAT ONE! I think that to Mokuba, Pegasus is the absolute scummiest that scummy can get. He threatened the two singular things that Mokuba cares about: his brother and their company. (He was working overtime to give Pegasus a run for his money which I think is so absolutely courageous... he essentially spat in Pegasus's face when he swallowed that key. I don't think I'd have the guts.) I also think that to him, Pegasus is probably extremely scary. Not only does he not have a problem taking Mokuba from his own home and locking him up, he's been told by his brother, the strongest person he knows, that Pegasus is nigh invincible. And for Kaiba at least, this is objectively true. Seeing fear for someone in his brother has got to be a really uncomfortable feeling.

HONDA

5. Best Personality Trait

I think Honda's best personality trait is his kindness. He is always looking out for people. He cheers Jounouchi on and is sometimes a little mean, but he does it with the intent of protecting him and his feelings. He will go to bat for someone with zero expectation of reciprocation. (helping the Kaibas and going on a secret hunt for Shizuka, who he didn't even know about until a couple of months prior). I love that he feels deeply, too. when he cries when Jounouchi comes back and when he realizes that Atem remembers him... so cute!

24. Most annoying habit

I would say his helicopter parenting of Jounouchi! haha. His heart is in the right place, but I think sometimes in his effort to manage Jounouchi's expectations of a situation, he ends up kind of short changing him... if I'm remembering correctly, he does call himself out on this in Duelist Kingdom, though. In the anime, I'd have to go with whatever he has going on with Shizuka and lying about being good at duel monsters or whatever that was. One of the most infuriating subplots probably in the entire series. Why would you lie about that, king.

[ygo-is-gayer-than-i-remember]

Yugioctober Day 30: I Want to Be With You Forever

(Prompt list)  (Read it here on Ao3!)

Summary: Yugi finds out about Atem's return and he has some thoughts to share with his other half.

This is a sort of character analysis piece about how Yugi would feel if Atem were to return post-DSOD (probably a year or more after the events of DSOD to be specific)

Yugi gawked at Atem sitting by the window in the Ishtars’ parlor.  When he had gotten the call, he was almost certain it wouldn’t be what he imagined, just some sort of weird magic thing again.  Yet, there he was.  It was true.  He was back...again.

A million emotions crammed in Yugi’s mind, strangled his heart, beat against the walls of his veins in a vicious war against him and one another.  He barely heard their hosts excuse themselves to give them some privacy, not that it mattered.  From the moment he saw the pharaoh, it felt like they were the only two people in the world.  Atem smiled--gods how he’d missed that smile--and approached him with open arms.

Yugi stepped back.

Atem froze.  “Aibou...?”

“Don’t.”

Aibou...partner...what a fucking joke.

Fury burned under his skin, turning him bright red and making him feel like he might spontaneously combust.  For years, Yugi had thought if Atem came back, everything would be perfect.  Everyone would celebrate and he could finally be truly happy again.  No more therapists, no more days spent in bed, no more dreams where he’d wake up crying and grasping at his pillows, longing for his other half to hold him and tell him everything was going to be alright.  Now Atem was here and all bets were off.  He couldn’t pretend like things were alright anymore.

“Yugi, what’s wrong?”

His emotional dam crumbled.

“What’s wrong?!”  Yugi barked out an incredulous laugh.  “You left, that’s what’s wrong!  You left and you came back and not even for very long, just a few fucking minutes!  And then Kaiba travels to the afterlife to see you and I hear from him that you don’t want me going there because it’s dangerous!  Then you have the audacity to show up and...and just waltz right back into my life like nothing happened?!”

Atem stared at him like a deer in headlights, unsure of what to say.

Yugi, however, knew exactly what he wanted to say, and nothing was going to stop him from saying it.

“When I saw you standing there after the duel with Diva, I knew you couldn’t stay long.  I knew you were only there because I was in danger, so I smiled and acted like I wasn’t hurting so fucking bad knowing you would have to leave again.  You were there because I needed you but god damn it I always needed you!”

Tears cooled his feverish skin and his throat was sore from yelling, but he plowed ahead with his cracking voice.  “I grieved for you for so long, grieved for what we could have had if you stayed, and then you fucking...you show up just as I was starting to move on and give me false hope only to get destroyed by the message you gave Kaiba and now you’re here again and…”  Atem flinched at the wild, miserable glare in Yugi’s flooded eyes.  “And how the fuck am I supposed to know if you’re staying this time?!  What if the gods decide to take you back or whatever machine brought you here malfunctions or, or...o-or you get sick of living with me and go back anyway?!  What the fuck am I supposed to do then?!”

The last of his anger poured out leaving only his fears and pain behind.  His knees gave way beneath him, plopping him down on one of the sofas in a blubbering heap, his face in his hands.

“I-I can’t...I can’t grieve anymore, Atem...I just can’t!  I can’t ta-ake it!  I love you...I...I love you more than anyone else in the world, but please, please, don’t do this to me...!”

The only sign he got that Atem had heard him was the dip in the cushion and the hands pulling him into a warm embrace.  He collapsed into the hug, sobbing against Atem’s shoulder and clinging to him in the very real fear that he would disappear again if he ever were to let go.  It took some time before he was able to calm himself down enough that Atem felt he could respond.

“Yugi, do you remember what I told you that night in your room when I was thinking about my missing memories?”

“Y-you…”  He choked on a whimper.  “You said you...wanted t-to...be with me fore-ever…”

Atem sat back to look Yugi in the eyes and cradle his face between his hands.  The pads of his thumbs were pleasantly smooth as they wiped the tears from Yugi’s cheeks.

“I still want that.  I never stopped wanting that.  That’s why I returned, I did everything within my power to come back to you.  If I could have done so sooner I would have, but…”  His head sunk, the weight of his guilt boring down on him.  “It has been difficult for me too, being apart from you.  But you’re right, I never thought how my coming and going might affect you.  I’m sorry, it wasn’t my intention to hurt you.”

Yugi leaned forward enough to rest his forehead against Atem’s.  “Just...promise you won’t leave again...please, stay…”

“I promise, by my honor as a Pharaoh, I will never leave you again.”  Hearing him sniffle, Yugi glanced up to see pools in his ruby-red eyes, eyes that watched him with pure adoration.  “I love you, Yugi, the light of my soul...my aibou.”

A wet laugh escaped Yugi, and he yanked Atem into an overdue kiss.  It was messy and desperate and a little salty from the tears that slipped between their lips.  In other words, it was everything Yugi had dreamed of for so long.  He couldn’t fully shake the fear of Atem having to leave, but this time felt different.  There was nothing they needed to do, no one they needed to save or protect the world from.  He’d gotten to say all the things he never thought he’d have the chance to say and still, Atem was here, kissing him, holding him close enough that Yugi could feel his beating heart.  He was here.  He was warm and alive and here and with him.

Somehow, sitting next to Atem with eyeliner smeared everywhere felt as close to the beginning of “forever” as they could get.

[sevi007]

Sevi experiences YGO: DSOD

 Promised a rambling, and ramble I will! Took notes of what stood out to me while watching, so, have a jumbled of hyped thoughts here guys! =D:

* The animation is so amazing! I love it!

 * More grown-up Yugi looks so much like the pharaoh – but somehow still like himself – it’s like… a mixture. Makes me both nostalgic and so very proud of Yugi. He used to be this nervous, chubby-cheeked kid, and now he’s… all grown up! He’s even holding a SPEECH! Boy’s a man now! So proud. =D

 * It’s kinda weird to here Tea and Joey call the Pharaoh “Atem” now – they didn’t get to use his name for long before he left, it’s still so new to me that hearing it like that is… weird XD  

 * Diva – or Aigami – has an interesting design, looks-wise as well as his drive and goal. It especially the later reminds me of Yami Bakura (initially) and Marik both. Poor kid who wants to change the world with his power, wants the pharao’s power for it? Yeah, I see both of them in there. The mix makes it just unique enough to be interesting though. (Also, his powers are quite unique. I like them!)

  * I actually love that the dreams and goals of the characters from way, way back in the series were picked up again and it shows them going for them after the whole Millenium Battle is over. Tea becoming a dancer, Ryou living his life without a ghost taking over all the time, Tristan working with technical stuff, Joey still a passionate duelist all the way, Yugi planning to design games… I’m so happy they focused on that. It all was ignored completely during the series - predictably, but still, it made up a lot of their character, and that was just never developed during the series… I’m happy they are doing it now, at least.

 * Kaiba is still… well, Kaiba. It’s actually kinda reassuring to have his snark and pride right there – refusing even to be sent into a different dimension by magic by just… not wanting to. (Okay, by his new technical advancement, but you know what I mean.) Or calling back a god who was not even supposed to exist anymore. “It’s no monster – it’s a god!” Nice to see some things don’t really change. XD

(You know, at least he finally accepted the magic, the pharaoh and Yugi being two different entities, and so on. That took a whole damn long time, okay.)

  * Dimension summoning? Really? Hello? They just made up an entire new duel monster summoning for one movie instead of a whole series. Okay then. (I like it, I was just speechless for a second.)

  * Nice to see that Bakura’s trauma of having been the vessel to a murderous ghost – forced to kill people with his body, but no chance of stopping it – is actually addressed. Painful to watch, but very nice that it isn’t just glossed over. (Also, Ryou is just… so sweet and good. There’s a guy trying to kill him, and he… feels sorry. Com’ on, give the guy some slack already!)

  * Not really happy how they turned the story of Bakura’s father though – he was supposed to be just a naïve guy who didn’t know what the Millenium ring was and ultimately, a good guy. Here he was… just a crazed, greedy dude, asking for the ring even when his worried son was right beside him. And anyway, wasn’t Shadi still alive much later? He met Yugi – a teenage Yugi – before he was killed. I am confusion  

  * Pharaoh not only appearing in the great finale, but also to help Joey out… you know what? I’m gonna go ahead and think he’s just constantly watching over his friends, only appearing to help when it’s absolutely necessary – choosing to let them handle it themselves as long as they can because he believes in them. (It’s also interesting to note that in Ancient Egypt, pharaohs who went to the afterlife were believed to become gods – so technically? Atem’s a god now. Basically explaining why he can still influence the living world if he wants to.)

  * “Back off, or we’re gonna have a problem!” – can I once again point out how proud I’m of Yugi? Yelling at Kaiba? Threatening him? Making him chance his mind? (That’s like a miracle in itself) I want to hug Yugi. HE’S SO GROWN UP NOW

  * I like how Yugi’s – and Kaiba’s – monsters are still the same at the core, but got a little glow-up fitting for the new animation and new story. Nice mix of nostalgia and hype for the new stuff!  

  * Does “Cool motive, still murder” apply to Diva, too? I see where’s coming from – I feel sorry for him - but if someone has the power to chance reality itself why go around and send “bad people” to another dimension, instead of going around and bringing good things into existence? I’m just saying. (Shadi, I’m looking at you, too. Never really liked your methods, either.)

  * Kaiba not realizing that Yugi is right there and he could have him as his rival – the guy who beat the pharaoh after all – is also… just very Kaiba. It took an entire series of over 200 episodes for him to accept that there is magic, there are rebirths (he was one of them) and now it takes kicking his ass for another few years until he realizes that Yugi is the rival he is looking for. Sigh. XD

  * “You really hate dragons, don’t you” – no I more hate that Kaiba gets the funniest lines all the time. XD

  * Yugi solving the puzzle and nothing happening… I think what hurt the most was that Yugi didn’t look surprised. He was absolutely calm. He knew all along. He knew very well, because he was the one who felt pharaoh’s passing the most. He had to live with that every day and he had accepted that all along. Not like Kaiba, who was still chasing after – well, a ghost.

That was so well done – especially given that the series was sometimes unnecessarily dramatic. Here, it wasn’t. It was completely silent as it told you “He’s not coming back (fully) guys”.

  * “Well, he has looked better” – “I’m getting really tired of that laugh” - again, Kaiba with the freaking lines.

  * Kaiba sacrificing himself to have Yugi win – look, sometimes I want to slap him, but honestly, he’s not that bad of a guy. How many times has he done something like that now? He always comes through in the end.

  * Not even embarrassed to say I had tears in my eyes when Atem made an appearance. I was a kid when I watched the final episode. Seeing him return in such a fashion - in almost complete silence, no words needed there, not fully returning, but only a support for Yugi – I’m emotional, okay. That’s my childhood coming by to say hello. (Also, Yugi wasn’t just along for the ride – they were doing this together. Made it even better.)

  * “How is he doing?” – that’s probably the best reaction they could have had to that. Not “Is he coming back?” or “Will we see him again?” Nah, just is he okay?

  * EVERYONE GOT THEIR NEW BEGINNINGS and Kaiba literally just went back in time. Is there anything he can’t do? Is there someone who can stop him? AND HE JUST SAID THANK YOU TO MOKUBA. Out loud! On cam! He has lost his mind! Where will this madness end?! XD (I’m kidding)

 Ah well. I’m happy everyone is gonna be alright and happy. This was a fantastic way to say hello again and goodbye to all of them at the same time. I’m absolutely hyped and delighted by this entire movie. =D

[demonicsinc]

Double feature pt 2

Dark side of dimensions. Ok first, i need to gush MAH BABIES GREW UP! YUGI’S GOING TO BE A GAME MAKER JOEY’S GOING TO BE A PRODUELIST AND TEA’S GOING TO BE A DANCER T-T. AND DUKE WHAT HAPPENED?! YOU HAD YOUR OWN SHOP NOW YOUR A WAITER! T-T

ok so what happens in this? Seto kaiba is obsessed with getting atem the spirit of the puzzle back to beat him...and maybe other reasons. He finds and gets the destroyed puzzle and starts to piece it back together, While this is going on, a boy named Agami shows up and no one can seem to remember him, he makes some bullies disappear and plans to do the same to all our heros. turns out he is an adopted child of everyones favorite spirit of the millennium key Shadi. so as it turns out Yami Bakura (was he ever given an actual name? oh right he was a part of zorc necrophage) when first inhabiting our beloved brittish japanese abino boy straight up murdered shadi! i do have to mention now that this movie is based on the manga, which actually followed the rules of the game and was very different. pegasus is dead. but uh, this also takes place after atem went to the afterlife, so it is with deepest regrets that i inform you THIS BASTARD IS HARD AS HELL TO GET RID OF!

so bakura is the second victim but then Yami Bakura shows up and kinda highjacks the movie for a second before dropping out again, joey his first victim is only a victim because he associates with yugi and bakura. poor dumbass. atem shows up and pulls a total bro move to save joey which is the first of this heavenly pharaohs meddling in this movie. Atem proves himself to be a great guardian angel to these kids even from the great beyond. so Diva steals two pieces of the puzzle after kaiba literally pulls obelisk the tormentor out of the GROUND WHERE DID THAT COME FROM!? and gives one to his sister who is, awesome and far wiser than diva ever was. she gives hers to yugi who i can only say has ptsd flashbacks to all the hell he went through in the final bits of his adventures with atem. its not shown but felt as he just stares at it for a second. and kaiba, like the nutjob he’s become announces a new tournament with only THREE people! Diva Yugi, and himself. he wants those puzzle pieces and wow its creepy how much kaiba spies on domino city Yugi challenges Diva straight up IGNORING kaiba and telling him to wait his damn turn! and takes him down quite well. he infinitely loops him until he’s defeated. a tactic atem used to get Slifer the executive producer. so, we get to the duel with yugi and kaiba. and uh....its awesome but holy crap kaiba just talk to someone, we know you had a hate crush for atem but move on man. kaiba does have some of the funniest lines in this movie and not just for his hate on for atem. like as yugi’s about to win he just goes “you really just dont like dragons do you.” kaiba is the best writen character in this because of his sass. so after yugi proves to kaiba that atem isnt coming back and wins the duel Diva comes back fused with you guessed it Yami bakura, so now its on as yugi and kaiba team up. Kaiba as they both have life points depleted quickly sacrifices himself for yugi to get him just a couple extra turns, on his last turn. yugi passes out mid draw. and suddenly a beam of golden light shoots down as ATEM arives delivering the final shot to diva as kind of a “IM SICK OF YOUR SHIT” move to both diva and yami bakura before going back to the great beyond taking the puzzle with him. the movie ends with kaiba saying i told you so. and then making a machine to either go back in time or get into the afterlife cause he literally goes to fight atem! kaiba, we get it you love atem just say it already!

i adored this movie from top to bottom, i even liked the moment where atem came back and dealt the final blow. a lot of people said it undermines yugi’s progression but no. what it does do is enhance atems devotion to his friends. not only did he show up to save joey, but then shows up to save the world. if you’re a yugioh fan pick it up the movies about 10 bucks at walmart and you get a promo card with it. i got obelisk. seriously kaiba where’d that come from?

whats next. well seeing as im in kind of a duely mood. why dont i do some of my first yugioh games next? then maybe i’ll go back and review the individual seasons of the anime/manga next time the weirdly made and weirdly hard yugioh sacred cards and its sequel reshef of destruction

[thewittyphantom]

DSOD Review/Thoughts

Watched DSOD in full, and I’ll stick most of my thoughts under a Read More. Overall, while it’s a spectacle for the eyes and parts of it were very vibrant, as a whole I think it’s just okay. The parts that work work well, but the rest I find  confusing, a bit hard to follow with the various plot threads all happening at once, and very saddening in terms of favorite characters and the series as a whole. I kinda wish it’d been a slice of life movie with duels on the side XD;

The numerous retcons and inconsistencies with the manga AND anime can make following it hard even if you have read/watched all of the original story as well, particularly involving the new villain Aigami, Ryou Bakura, Shadi, and Yugi’s final duel with Atem.

Another thing to note is how the movie was made in the first place. DSOD was commissioned without the creator's involvement originally, but upon being asked to work on it he agreed and took control of the project, being solely responsible for the script, story, and designs. Also, originally it was going to star Seto Kaiba alone, without Yugi or his friends showing up, but adding Yugi and co. made it 3 hours long so an hour had to be cut from the script, which may explain lack of exposition regarding certain plot points. A prequel manga called Transcend Game fills in some of the gaps but seems to have been made back when it was Seto Kaiba: The Movie, as several characters act differently than they do in this movie and Yugi and co. don't appear at all.

While Yugi and his friends have returned to a peaceful life, Seto Kaiba is determined to see and duel the Pharaoh no matter what by excavating and completing the Millennium Puzzle, and both sides are menaced by Aigami, a mysterious classmate of Yugi's with magic powers who is determined to stop the Pharaoh's resurrection even if it means killing Kaiba or Yugi. Yugi's friends mainly have a supporting role, with the exception of Ryou Bakura, who has a role in Aigami's backstory. Nothing of the cut-short Ancient Egypt arc is mentioned, and while Kisara appears in the prequel manga she isn't seen or mentioned in the movie itself. Pegasus does not appear as he was killed in the manga, and the Ishtars only appear in a flashback. The animation quality and music is the best Yu-Gi-Oh has ever seen, and hearing the old voice actors in English and Japanese again was a treat. Aigami also has a very good design and voice, as do his sister Sera and confidant Mani. However, some of the plot threads as presented in the movie don't align with the manga OR the anime, particularly with Shadi, the Ring, and Bakura. Those three are probably the biggest outliers in the movie for several reasons, listed below:

Shadi's appearance is changed slightly, he raised Aigami, Sera, Mani, and the planners, and he has powers he's never had before in any continuity, such as wielding the Quantum Cube, which can directly erase people from existence, grant teleportation for one’s self and others, and send people to other dimensions. He can also transfer these powers to others, which will activate upon the Pharaoh leaving, but they will lose them if the Pharaoh is reborn into the world a second time.

Bakura's father got the Millennium Ring from Shadi instead of from an antique shop/bazaar in Egypt, and was killed by it despite being alive to curate the museum in the manga, which allowed the Millennium World to happen. Bakura himself also tagged along for the trip, despite it being implied in the manga and stated in the anime that he got the Ring when his father returned.

In the manga it was stated pretty clearly that as long as Bakura didn't wear the Ring it couldn't do any harm, but in this movie it corrupts several people without the need to wear it, in Aigami's case without even needing to touch it.

The climax has the Millennium Ring corrupting others, and bonding with Diva to create a reality-warping monster, but how it does so with Zorc and Yami Bakura gone is never explained, nor is it explained who/what the resulting monster is.

Characters who were very active in the manga, such as Joey, don't get to do much at all, with Joey even wearing a dog suit like in an anime arc infamous for putting him down. Ryou Bakura also gets the short end of the stick despite his backstory role, as he doesn't have a dream for the future, nobody asks him what it is, he gets stuck in another dimension for the last third of the movie, and his father is also apparently dead despite being alive in the manga and anime. While Mokuba Kaiba gets some time to shine, his relationship with Seto isn't as close as it was, as Seto is mainly focused on seeing and dueling Atem. Tea and Tristan are mostly filler, but they get off relatively easy, while Yugi himself tends to react more to what Kaiba and Aigami do than act on his own.

How Aigami's powers work is a mystery even if you have read the prequel manga, and if you haven't, then how Kaiba's VR tech works--by constructing solid images and transcending dimensions through his brainwaves and a collective consciousness of duelists--will be hard to follow. Aigami's motivations and methodology in the Japanese version revolve around quantum physics, which are also hard to understand, and his goals sound noble but are pretty selfish, as he wants to remake the world into a place of beauty as fits his desires, get rid of anything in his way to keep his powers, and believes so much in better worlds he feels Yugi’s is static, meaningless, and hateful.

Since the Plana’s powers activated upon the Pharaoh’s disappearance, it turns what was a bittersweet but powerful ending for the original series--Yugi defeating his other self, seeing him off, and proving he could be on his own--into a tragic moment as Yugi almost dooms the world by winning. The Pharaoh leaving causes the whole movie to happen, not only with Aigami's escalating war, but also Kaiba's plot to find and assemble the Puzzle, which is what starts Aigami targeting them.

More significantly, the final duel of the movie also breaks the lesson of the main story by having Yugi need help to win when he couldn't do it alone, despite his entire arc being about standing up for himself on his own and beating the Pharaoh to prove he was ready. (Making this worse is a comment from volume 8 of the bunkoban about a canceled YGO vs GX movie, where Takahashi said that reviving Atem, which he considered, would betray the themes of the original story.)

The movie kinda paints itself into a corner--Atem had to return to stop the Plana since him leaving started it, despite the movie also enforcing the idea that he couldn't return and everyone had to move on, including Yugi and Kaiba. And speaking of Kaiba, there’s the ending to the movie.

Kaiba spends much of the film in an obsessive state, trying futilely to see Atem while being told that he has moved on and isn't coming back, with Yugi recompleting the Puzzle to prove it. (Kaiba is crushed when this doesn't work.)  Throughout the movie Yugi and his friends have moved on from the loss, Yugi gives Kaiba a speech directly telling him to move on, and Atem himself takes the Puzzle to the afterlife with him. Kaiba  decides that if he can't bring Atem back, he'll meet Atem by going to the afterlife instead, leaving Mokuba to run his company in his stead. Whether or not he’ll return or can return is ambiguous, and the movie ends before the duel starts, figuratively leaving us in limbo.

I know all this harping on sounds like I hate the movie. I don’t. I loved hearing the old voice actors again and the new cast, the character cameos and call-backs were cool, the animation and music is amazing, and Yugi and his friends graduating and just hanging out and having fun is really sweet. DSOD is at its best in its joyful, quiet moments when the fate of the world isn’t on the line.

It’s just... When I get into a new series or rediscover an old one I want to learn as much as I can about it so I can fit all the pieces together, like a puzzle. I want to know why things are the way they are, not only out-of-universe, but in-universe. Before DSOD it was fairly simple--the manga did X, the anime did Y, the Toei anime did Z, the video games tend to mix the continuities, and spinoffs either follow the manga, anime, or are set in their own worlds. After DSOD, it feels like pieces are missing from the puzzle, and I’m frustrated by my lack of ability to comprehend it.

Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if it wasn’t set after the ending and thus necessitating new conflicts, or maybe I shouldn’t be writing this review at 7 AM after staying up all night. Maybe I will understand it someday, but for now my favorite YGO movie is still Pyramid of Light. (Joey getting to fight and duel plus Pegasus being involved helps. XD)

[sitabethel]

re corporate-conspireshipping, who did seto fall for first? was he aware of the conspireshipping going on in the background beforehand, or was he the 'first' of the harem (bc we all know ryou's in charge obvs) to appear?

I sort of answer that in this old post, but here’s an extension to the beginning bit. (So to sum up: he falls for Ryou first, but not until well into the RPG. Yes he knew about the the corporate fracturshipping going on beforehand. Ooops, I just realized that fracturshipping and conspireshipping are different ships [like just this moment realized you said conspireshipping instead of fracturshipping], but I already wrote this so, um, have an extra Bakura on the house?)

Card games, Seto wanted card games, but it was more than card games, Seto wanted the passion. He wanted to be challenged, he wanted the drive to push himself further than he’d ever had before and come through that trial of fire in a new transcended state, and one person had ever given him that level of intensity.

 Atem.

 Thus, Seto restored the Puzzle, fought Diva, acquired the Cube, and build a ship that would allow him to penetrate that impenetrable veil between this world and the Other. In that moment he saw him, the Pharaoh, rising up from a golden throne with an amused grin. There, in the land of gods and spirits, Seto had put everything on the line with a challenge to a card game.

 “If I win,” Atem said in a warning voice. “You can never come back. It’s not time for you to be here, Seto.”

 “Oh I don’t plan on returning.” Seto smirked. “Because after I win, you’re coming back with me.”

 Atem sighed as if he expected no less but didn’t have the heart to tell Seto that his desire to bring Atem back was impossible. Atem descended down the steps, a duel disk that matched Seto’s appeared on his arm. He stood in place- as fiery, determined, and set on winning as Seto remembered him.

 “Let’s duel!”

 Hours later … Seto won.

 And Atem came back.

 His idiot cheerleaders rejoiced. They thanked Kaiba, as if he did it for them. They recounted the old times and explained everything Atem had missed since he left, but Seto didn’t care about any of it. He wanted another match. He’d beaten Atem in one world, now he’d beat him again in this one. Their rivalry picked up where it’d left off, only far more fierce, until one night the tension broke when Seto slammed Atem against a wall and smashed their lips together with angry, graceless, force. Atem grabbed Seto by the hair and pulled them closer, breaking the kiss only to add bites to Seto’s throat.

 They wake the next morning sore, and scratched, and exhausted despite the hard sleep. They do it all again after the next card game, and the card game after that. It’s everything Seto ever wants.

 Except all the empty moments in between.

 The Pharaoh has many admirers, and he loves Yugi most. There are many nights without cardgames. Seto buries himself in work as usual, swears he’d glad for the opportunity to get things done, but there are too many long nights, and too much caffeine. Seto also finds himself being dragged to group gatherings, and he hates it. Seto often forsakes Atem altogether in those moments, and goes off to a quiet room to catch up on his emails via his cellphone, or take a powernap on a spare couch. During one such nap during Honda’s birthday party, Seto can hear voices entering the room. He’s a light sleeper, so it wakes him, but he doesn’t want to participate in the conversation, so he keeps his eyes shut in hopes that the speakers will see him and move on.

 “But how can you live with him? After everything he did to you?”

 It was Atem’s voice, so Seto cracks an eye open, wondering what the conversation is about. The next voice is Ryou’s.

 “I keep telling you, I didn’t bring back the Spirit of the Ring- Marik did. I was trying to rescue the Thief King.”

 “I thought they were the same.”

 “They are, and they aren’t, the spell made them two separate people, although they’re still a little connected. It’s complicated.” Ryou exhaled. “The entire thing was complicated, but no one was really happy until we all came together.” Ryou tapped the spot on Atem’s chest where the Puzzle used to sit. “Our own puzzle, all our broken edges fit together.”

 “But they said Bakura still has Shadow Magic.”

 “Quite honestly,” Ryou said in a straight, upfront manner. “I don’t think he’s completely human, not physiologically. He’s more of a chimera.”

 “Then how can you blame Yugi for asking me to talk to you?”

 “I don’t blame Yugi for anything. I know he’s concerned, and I’ve tried to assuage his fears on multiple occasions, and I do appreciate that everyone cares enough to worry about me, but I’m not leaving them. Atem, I love them all.”

 “But, Ryou-”

 “Oh look, Seto’s asleep on the couch.” Ryou walked over to the sofa and pulled the throw off of the back in order to tuck it around Seto’s body. “We shouldn’t wake him. Let’s go back to the party and finish this conversation later.”

 Seto shut his eyes when Ryou approached, so he didn’t see them leave, only hear footsteps. Before he opened his eyes again, he heard Ryou speaking directly to him.

 “Sorry to use you as a scapegoat, Kaiba, but I had that conversation with Yugi a dozen times already, and I just don’t have the energy for it tonight.”

 “You knew I was awake?” Seto opened his eyes.

 “Of course, unlike Atem I pay attention. I’m sorry if we woke you” Ryou dropped to the end of the sofa, leaning back, but keeping enough space so that he didn’t press too closely to Seto’s feet. “It’d be different if I was bruised, or hurt, or if I cried to them about being mistreated, but things like that never happen. They’re all very sweet to me, even Kek.”

 Seto made an acknowledging sound to show that he was listening.

 “You know, we finished our last Monster World campaign last week, and next week we start a new one. You should come play with us.”

 “I prefer Duel Monsters.”

 “Yes, of course, and I normally wouldn’t invite you, but you see, our next campaign is a dragon universe, and I think you’d love it.”

 “… I’m listening.” Seto tried to resist, but couldn’t. Dragons were the one thing that could still distract him from anything, even Atem.

 Ryou shifted to his side so he could look at Seto. His left arm braced against the couch, making white hair spill down his left side.

 “It’s a world where characters form telepathic bonds with a companion dragon. It makes for an interesting battle system because each character has to play as their job class and as their dragon class, and there’s several species of dragons. There’s a species the size of a large house cats, it’s sort of meant for thief classes. The most common species is a type of wyvern the size of a horse used for knights and mages. There’s even huge, shapeshifting dragons that can masquerade as humans- which also means there are half dragon offspring of all the major races as well.”

 “That… does sound interesting,” Seto confessed. It sounded amazing, actually. Part of him felt like he did as an excited orphan hearing about the Blue Eyes White Dragon trading card for the first time.

 “Join our campaign. It’s only once, sometimes twice, a week, so you’ll still have plenty of time for card games.”

 Noise from the party that went on without them echoed through the closed door. Seto glanced at the barrier keeping Ryou and himself isolated from the rest of the group. Seto never really fully belonged in that group, and he supposed Ryou had always been standing on the edge of it as well.

 And dragons!

 That boyish excitement filled Seto. He could be a dragon knight on a white mount. He could bond with three dragons. Even if it wasn’t part of the campaign, he was sure he could figure out a loophole and do it. He could-

 Spend a night doing something that didn’t involve waiting on his royal majesty to grace Seto with his presence, something that wasn’t work or staring at the ceiling.

 “Okay,” Seto heard himself saying. “Next week. Give me your address and I’ll be there.”

[hiramiyugioh]

A thing I wrote almost a year ago but never uploaded because bleh, it was too short, rushed, unfinished and english is just my second language so I have no clue what I’m doing. If someone wants to pick up the rough idea and write it out, please go ahead~

3000 Years and 2 Dimensions

Set wasn't one to be easily impressed, but Atem managed to gain more than just his loyalty. They challenged, but also respected each other, forming a deep bond over the years.   “Promise me to take care, my pharaoh“, he said on that fateful day. But the odds were against them. Set held him, while Atem's eyes slowly fell close. Their hands connected, holding the millennium puzzle weakly between them. Atem had sealed the evil inside the puzzle, and with it, his own soul. A sorrowful growl escaped him while clinging to the lifeless body of his dear friend. He would see him again. If not in this lifetime, he'd wait for as long as it takes.

~ ~ ~

Set's soul wandered on earth for many years on. The circle of life had him reincarnate into countless bodies in various lands during different times.

It took three millennia of waiting. Three millennia for his soul to wander this world, following a feeling he couldn't quite grasp, couldn't quite determine what it was that he was longing for, looking for. It took 3000 years until their souls were destined to meet again. Finally freed of his sealing in the puzzle, the millennial curse had ended. Yami and Seto Kaiba, fate clashing them back together into a fierce battle, their string of fate pulling them close to each other again and again.

Seto Kaiba trusted no one, except his own brother. But this wild spirit fascinated him in his own intriguing way. That mysterious person that managed to see beneath his rough exterior  kept his mind on edge, pushing him in the right direction.  

It was a long way to the point where the young CEO was ready to listen to what the other one had to say. Not just hearing the words, but also accepting the meaning. He had learned to hold this wild spirit dear.

After many adventures, threatening challenges and bitter fights, Seto Kaiba made a friend, not that he would openly admit it. No one could deny that there was something that pulled Kaiba towards Yami.

But fate had other things in mind. The pharaoh who was now residing in another vessel, had his own destiny to fulfill. Without the knowledge of his friend, Yami departed into the afterlife.

It wasn't that he felt sad when he learned about Yami being gone. Even the usual anger that kept burning inside him had dissipated rather quickly. He overcame every hardship life threw at him. Not his parent's death, not the orphanage and not even Gozaburo's tyranny could stop him from striving towards his goals. He found a home, raised his little brother and after learning to accept his past, finally focused on his own future and dreams. Kaiba Land was a huge success, Solid Vision perfected by now, and his newest creation, the Duel Links system  had a promising future already.

But saying Seto Kaiba would be content with what he had would be naive. Because even if he tried hard, he couldn't deny that something was amiss. A certain challenge that made his blood boil in excitement. A certain feeling that only one person managed to provoke in him. Yami.

No... Atem.

It happened during one of his journeys through the virtual reality world of Duel Links. The vision of the Pharaoh flooded his mind, keeping him mesmerized. Ignoring the trembling in his limbs, he started reaching out, when a sudden tremor pulled him back violently.

Breathing heavily, heart beating frantically, Seto woke up, back in his virtual reality pod while Mokuba worriedly hurried to his side.

 In that moment Seto Kaiba knew what he had to do. Gathering the pieces of the shattered Millennium Puzzle, the young CEO was determined to bring Atem back.

 ~ ~ ~

Seto's eyes widened, unbelieving, teeth biting into his lips when he watched the last puzzle piece getting pushed into place by the former owner of it. Silence. Nothing happened. “He is gone“, Yugi whispered sadly. “He moved on to the afterlife“.... Anger and hurt flashed briefly through Seto's gaze. This was not an outcome he would accept. Never.

 Unknown to the two young duelists, an ancient soul watched the incidents taking place. He stayed close, sensing a darkness, yet another creature threatening  the balance of the world.

The sky suddenly faded into blood red, tinted with dark clouds. The grounds shook before the lights went off, wrapping the huge Duel Arena and all witnesses in darkness.

Kaiba instantly knew something went very wrong when a Monster emerged from the darkness, Millennium Ring clutched to it's front.

One bystander after the other collapsed to the floor, energy drained by the Monster making it's way over to the two Duelists.

Drawing one card after another, Kaiba called forth his faithful Dragons, battling together with Yugi at  his site, trying to eliminate the enemy's army of it's own monsters.  

They were fighting a losing battle, Kaiba had to grudgingly admit to himself. For every hit he endured, a bit more of his life energy was dragged out of him, pain streaking across his face.

When the final hit threatened to blow Yugi's life out of him, Kaiba didn't hesitate to sacrifice himself, knowing he was out of possibilities to turn the battle around.

Sinking to his knees, Seto tugged at the chain holding the Millennium Puzzle.

" him... Call him..." he whispered, holding up the ancient artifact, before collapsing unconsciously  to the ground.

 Kaiba didn't notice the golden light descending from the sky, crashing into the Puzzle like lightning striking a lonely tree. He didn't see the soul commanding mighty, ancient magic. He didn't witness Atem banishing the evil Monster into darkness for eternity.

  Seto blinked and slowly got on his feet again. The monster was beaten, as he expected. The souls of all the people in the arena returned to their rightful owner.

The young CEO knelt down, retrieving a small cube that lay secluded on the now again brightly shining glass floor.

All the puzzle pieces clicked into place. There was only one thing left to do.

 ~ ~ ~

 Kaiba let his gaze trail over the stunningly beautiful view of the earth outside the window once again. He was back on his space station. The Puzzle lay securely on the armrest of his VR pod. Next to it, another ancient artifact glowed in a soft orange light. Diva's cube was the last piece he needed to transcend dimensions.

Closing his eyes, a smile crossed his face, just before a bright golden light pulled his soul away.

  Crossing the desert, Kaiba made his way through the sand until he reached an ancient city. He knew the way like it was burned into his mind, secured somewhere deep in his soul. When Seto finally found his final destination, his steps echoed loudly through the huge palace hall.

Coming to a halt, he let his gaze drift over the figure sitting on the throne.  A soft smile crossed Atem's face when he finally took in the view of his long awaited guest.

 3000 Years. 3000 Years of waiting, fighting, longing, hurting, searching. 3000 years until their souls were finally reunited.

Seto still couldn't believe it when he felt the soft hair tickle his face after he wrapped his arms around the slim form of the young Pharaoh.

He had just reacted on instinct when Atem stood in front of him. He made his way over with big steps, roughly pulling the other one into his arms, making sure this was real. He was real. They were real.

 It took 3000 years and two dimensions. But he would do it again, over and over, until he found this soul and held him in his arms again.

[moonlights0nata]

25 with puzzleshipping ♥ good luck! Hope this helps~

Thank u for all the prompts nonnie ! I’m mega Slow but I’m having fun w/ them 8′)

25-where is my mind

DSOD spoilers !!

It always felt like there's somethingmissing. A voice in his mind, the weight of the puzzle against hischest, another room in his soul. Yuugi didn’t think he could ever getused to not having another door opposite of his soul room. Didn’t think he could get used to how quiet his thoughts felt to him now, noone to reply to them but himself. He missed the comforting weight ofthe chain around his neck, being able to reach and touch the puzzlefor reassurance.

Sometimes he searched for that missingthing, like a puzzle piece that's missing from the picture, evenknowing it's pointless, even knowing it's over, that it's gone,the voice, the room, the soul. There's no more shared space. OnlyYuugi, alone with his thoughts. His mind never felt so lonely, soempty.

Even though Atem was not here, and heknew, he knew, and he had told Kaiba as much, that Atem was gone, there's a part of him that still reached; reached for cornersof his mind, trying to grasp something, anything, tryingto find a mark that says Atem was here. It often felt like alltraces were gone.

But they were not, even when he often forgot; the way he stood firmly, the way he walked without hesitation and sure step, the way hetalked, confident, barely any traces left of the shy, self consciousboy of 16 he was when he and Atem had first met. In a way, Atem gave himall those things. He'd changed, he'd grown. They both had, by the endof their journey, having learned from each other.

When he saw himself now, he couldn’t help but wonder if Atem would be proud of him. Even when the loneliness andthe sorrow felt like they could eat him whole, his thoughts drifted toAtem, and he remembered his deep voice, how it'd soften when talkingto him, saying his name, smiling and looking at him with somethingbright and warm in his eyes. The ache in his chest, when heremembered, the way his heart thrums, was a mark Atem was here too.

He had come to accept seeing him againwouldn't happen, but then Kaiba dug out the puzzle, put it backtogether. Yuugi had one of its pieces back in his palm. And he can'tdeny, during his duel with Kaiba, he felt a small flicker of hope whenhe put the piece where it belonged, that maybe Atem would come. Buthe knew, knew that was impossible, and the silence in his mindremained. Holding onto that hope was pointless, yet Kaiba persisted,he refused to believe him. And Yuugi couldn't blame him.

But when everything felt like it waslost, his consciousness threatening to slip away in his duel withDiva, it happened. The only feeling he could relate it to was beingstruck by lightning, taking his breath away. Itfelt almost like arms were catching him before he toppled over, andthat familiar warmth came back in a rush, the missing piece fittingback into place. Atem was here. He was here, and the feeling wasalmost overwhelming, enveloping him, protective.

And then, in the safety of theirsouls, words felt almost futile. Yuugi could see the pride and lovein Atem's eyes for him, speaking more than anything could, felt thesoft touch of his mind against his. They smiled at each other, amillion things and questions left unsaid, yet they both got all theanswers they needed. Having been connected for so long, they knewwhat the other was thinking by now. 

Yuugi merely took a step towardshim, just as Atem did the same, and they sighed, resting theirforeheads together and linking their hands. Yuugi squeezed them, met deep crimson eyes for a moment before they closed their eyes,relishing in the contact. Yuugi felt so light, like his soul was backwhere it belonged. 

The moment felt so vibrant, so bright, neitherwanted to break the spell, but they knew they had to. That it wastime.

Their eyes openedand they looked at each other, the unspoken prompt hanging in theair.  Yuugi nodded, and Atem copied the gesture after a beat. Theirhands let go, fingers lingering in their touch for a moment, beforeAtem rose his hand and placed it over the puzzle, his parting smileas blinding as the light that came afterwards.

When he came to,the first thing he noticed was the weight of the puzzle against hischest. Silent. Atem was gone again. He reached out to it, cradling itin his hands close to his chest. No, he wasn't really gone. The warmththat'd enveloped him, Atem's touch, his smile; all ofthose things, were real.

Yuugi couldn't helpthe smile that pulled at his lips, even when tears threatened to spill down his cheeks. That piece that'd been missing—where, where had itbeen?-- it'd come back. It'd never really left. It had always beenhome, in his heart, in his mind, in his soul. A piece, a mark, thatAtem was and would always linger close to him.

[yugioh-thoughts]

DSOD made me think a lot and here’s me trying to put it into words

I don't know if anyone else has overanalyzed this already but a piece of DSOD that really, really mattered a lot to me is how Yugi effectively defeated Kaiba, and most importantly how Kaiba reacted to that. Sure, his life points didn't actually hit 0, but he lost.

And yet he seems to accept that. The Kaiba we always have seen up to now would have never acted like that to losing. He didn't seem angry about it, he didn't confront Yugi openly after. When has Kaiba before ever lost and not had an immediate aggressive reaction? Accepting his loss like that to me shows two things, respect and maturity.

Respect for Yugi, because if Kaiba really considered him just "a simple minded child" he wouldn't have let this pass that easily. Yugi defeated Atem in the Cerimonial Duel, and just minutes before his duel with Kaiba first he stood up to him, and then he defeated Diva, who Kaiba had almost lost against. Kaiba is aware Yugi is a great duelist, and he trusted Yugi to bring Atem back when he sacrificed himself (and when has Kaiba ever trusted someone?). Kaiba treated Yugi like an equal there.

Personally speaking, I think Kaiba dismissed Yugi at the beginning of the movie because Yugi has qualities that would make him weak in Kaiba's eyes (his kindness, his desire for friendship) and yet he did what Kaiba wasn't ever able to do and defeated Atem. Kaiba didn't give him importance because Yugi was a contradiction. He was what Kaiba considered weak, but he was also stronger than him. Kaiba couldn't accept someone other than him being able to surpass Atem, let alone Yugi, so he tried to dimish his character to reassure himself, somehow. I believe that when Yugi showed that stronger, determined side, ordering even Kaiba around and dueling Diva like that, all because he wanted to bring his friend back, that was the moment when Kaiba started to finally understand that Yugi was a force of his own. He dueled Yugi and Yugi fought back and eventually defeated him, and Kaiba was able to accept it because he had seen Yugi's strength and that this was what had let him win even against Atem.

I also talked about maturity, because Kaiba has matured. Yes, he is more dramatic and emotionally repressed than ever, but would have a DM Kaiba ever been able to give Yugi that respect in the first place? I don't think so. DM Kaiba would have shouted and screamed and demanded a rematch instantly, no matter who his opponent was. He has matured from the end of the series, enough to be able to accept that he might not always be the winner.

But, you ask, what about the deal with Atem then? Why, if he had matured like that, would he have wanted that bad to bring him back to defeat him?

Because it wasn't just about defeating Atem. It was about Atem, about him. He wants to get revenge against him because anger and resentment is the way he has of dealing with all of his feelings, of any kind. He does want to defeat Atem, that's for sure, but it's not just that. There is something deeper about that, his "bond" with Atem. And I'm not just going at this from a shipper point of view, there is the fact that Atem came and completely destroyed everything Kaiba was or knew. He met Kaiba at his worst and he went to the point of painfully shattering his self and having him reconstruct it from nothing, he defeated Kaiba over and over, he challenged and destroyed every idea Kaiba had of life and strength, he showed Kaiba how his hate and anger were ultimately pointless, and then? He disappeared, and since we are considering the manga ending he did so without even saying goodbye to Kaiba or giving him any sort of closure.

Kaiba may be a genius and a strong duelist and person but under all of that he is emotionally vulnerable and confused, and Atem managed to worm his way under each and every one of his shields, and Kaiba can be more mature but he is still Kaiba. He doesn't have an healthy way of dealing with anything that affects him on an emotional level. I've seen critics about how Kaiba doesn't get his closure in DSOD, and on one side yes, we don't see him having one, but I don't think he would have really been able to have a closure without meeting Atem again.

Also, on a side note, the fact that he goes back to Atem doesn't mean Kaiba hasn't started seen Yugi as a rival. As I said, Kaiba understand now Yugi strength. He accepted his loss, yes, but I believe firmly that when things will calm down and he'll truly absorb everything that happened Yugi will be his new goal. Because Yugi is the strongest, and Kaiba still wants to be the strongest too. But Kaiba also knows Yugi can beat Atem, and that if one can beat Yugi they can beat Atem too. And Kaiba never beat Atem. So I like to think that after he and Atem manage to sort things out, Kaiba will be still trying to defeat Atem, but together with his will of beating Atem there will also be his desire to have what it takes to beat Yugi, as well.

[nenya85]

Kaiba and Yugi’s Duel in DSoD

Kaiba and Yugi’s duel is another example of how beautifully Takahashi crafted Dark Side of Dimensions while keeping it completely open-ended.  

My thoughts on the duel are below the spoiler cut.  As Takahashi has said, they are one a thousand possibilities.

Kaiba is down to 100 life points when the duel is interrupted.  He has a face down card on the field and he smiles.  

This is often interpreted as him being okay with losing to Yugi and it is seen as a sign of character development.  I agree about the character development, but I think it’s possible that he’s smiling because he’s about to win.

First, I don’t think that it’s inevitable that Kaiba will lose any duel against Yugi or Atem.  Atem tells Kaiba at Alcatraz that they are equals, but that Kaiba lost because he needs to defeat his own demons of anger, bitterness and hatred first.  This implies that if Kaiba can get a handle on his own inner demons, he could win.

And I think a victory here would fit with how duels work in Yu-Gi-Oh!.  Duels are an integral part of Yu-Gi-Oh!  They carry the themes of the story forward. Kaiba, in particular, explicitly frames each duel he participates in or watches in terms of the philosophies being tested. Many of these duels revolve around the power of friendship - and specifically in the case of Yugi’s duel with Malik, whether that power is strong enough to produce a miracle, which is precisely what Kaiba is looking for now.

In the tournament, Yugi insists on dueling Diva first to recover Bakura.  Kaiba allows this change.  This is partly because he has no option: he wants Yugi’s Puzzle piece and Yugi has made it clear he’s not surrendering it otherwise.  But given that Kaiba views duels as ways to test beliefs and determine future paths, I think he might have another motive.  

Kaiba is trying to do something everyone considers impossible – and Yugi is proposing a duel to determine if wanting to connect with someone badly enough will allow you to succeed.  Yugi wins.  This has to confirm Kaiba in his belief that he can find a way to see and duel Atem again.

In Yugi’s duel with Diva, Yugi was fighting to save his friend.  There was a stark contrast between right and wrong in his duel.  But once that duel was won and Bakura was free, what exactly were the stakes in the duel between Yugi and Kaiba?  When Yugi interrupts their duel to put the final pieces in the Puzzle, he is acting it out of concern for Kaiba and it’s one of the most powerful, beautiful and loving moments in the movie.  Yugi’s advice comes straight from his own knowledge of what he himself needs to do.  Yugi has already dueled Atem and has achieved a measure of closure.  Now, he has to accept the result and move on.  

But however heartfelt Yugi’s words are, should they be binding on Kaiba?  Yugi has already gotten the very thing Kaiba is trying so hard to find – closure through a duel.  Does anyone have the right to tell him to abandon that quest? What would a victory for Yugi mean?  That Kaiba should grieve at the same pace as Yugi?  

Yugi himself recognizes that Kaiba needs to grieve in his own way, even if that way isn’t Yugi’s, even if it seems impossible.  Yugi himself doesn’t believe in the message his victory would send.  And Kaiba is proven right.  He risks his life in the belief that Atem can return even briefly and he is rewarded.

In the face of that, I think Kaiba’s victory would further the theme and complete the healing message of the story.  Yes, real life doesn’t work like this, but elevators don’t go into outer space, either.  And Yu-Gi-Oh! has always been more concerned with emotional truth than with reality.

Kaiba’s reaction to his impending victory shows character development.  He’s not gloating.  He’s not taking the victory of a sign of his superiority.  He starts the duel viewing Yugi as an obstacle and ends by viewing him as a partner he respects.  He’s also able to put aside the duel before its conclusion.  Winning is no longer important to him.  Defeating an obvious menace and seeing Atem matter more than beating the duelist who defeated Atem.  

And that is an enormous step forward.

[silverwindsblog]

Film analysis of Yugioh Dark Side of Dimensions

This is my analysis of Yugioh Dark Side of Dimensions. I will discuss the themes, motifs, and the goals that the film attempts to achieve. This is not a review of the film. I will make a separate post on my opinion on the ending of the film, the characters, and Seto’s relationship with Atem. I watched the subs with the dub script and used both Japanese and English names.

The plot focuses on the duel between Yugi & Seto as well how Atem’s departure impact them and introducing a new villain. The main goals of the movie are to bring the nostalgia back to those who are familiar with the original Yugioh characters, advertising the Yugioh series, and to wrap up any loose ends in how Yugi & Seto dealt after Atem’s departure. Some of the recurring themes in the movie from the Yugioh series are fate (or destiny) cannot change, it is impossible to change the past, fear leads to hatred, and how reminiscing the past can strengthen or hinders you.

Some of the motifs of the film are the importance of friendship, how memories fuels the person’s motivation to strengthen you or consume you with obsession, and technology advancement. While the film achieved its goal to bring back nostalgia for the fans, promoting the Yugioh franchise, and bringing closure to the main characters, the film did not flesh out characters who are not the villain or the main character, fails to acknowledge Seto’s character development and achievements of overcoming his past, getting over his father, becoming a kinder person, and instead emphasizing one trait for the sake of the conflict: His determination to defeat Atem no matter what. Furthermore, while the villain of the movie is interesting, his story of fear, hatred, and revenge is nothing new in the Yugioh series considering that Malik’s story revolves around it. Despite that friendship is the prevalent theme of the Yugioh series, the movie poorly shows it among Yugi and his gang.

How reminiscing the past fuels Seto’s motivation to duel Atem

One of the main themes of the film reminiscing the past can either strengthen or hinders you. Seto’s conflict was to duel Atem again because he saw Atem as a worthy duelist and was extremely upset that Atem did not choose him for the final duel. What Seto wanted more than anything in the world is to duel Atem again because he missed the thrill of having a duel with a worthy opponent and the exciting moments from his past. To him, Atem is someone he wants to experience with and only Atem can offer the same type of thrill and memories to Seto. Now that there is no one that he believed is a worthy duelist, Seto is not satisfied with living in the present. To him, the present does not offer anything that can fulfil his wish. He relieved part of his past by creating a hologram of Atem and have a duling simulation. However, he cannot accept that Atem is dead and that his wish cannot be fulfilled. Seto knew that no matter how much effort he made to create a hologram of Atem, the hologram is not the real Atem.

"It's still not the real Pharaoh, so I still didn't beat him, and until I do, my scars of defeats continue to burn."

This quote highlights Seto’s obsession of his failure to duel Atem hinders him from moving on from his bitterness of defeat. To Seto, dueling is his life and pride and to simply accept that he is the second best is not acceptable. His stubbornness and his reminiscing to his past motivated him to attempt bring back Atem, regardless at the cost of his character development and the world. The memories of Atem fueled his motivation to the point of obsession instead of strengthen him as a person. His accomplishments of getting over his anger of his adopted father, building an amusement park for children, etc are glossed over and Seto ended up experiencing the resentment for not dueling Atem just like his resentment towards his adopted father.

Sheer will cannot bring back the dead nor change destiny

Regardless of Seto’s willpower and determination to revive Atem by completing the puzzle, it is impossible to bring back the dead, change the past or destiny. One, the universal rule is that no one cannot bring back from the dead without any consequences, and two, anything that happened in the past cannot be changed. Both of these themes are common in other films and literature.

Throughout the film, characters talked about how destiny cannot be changed. For example, Shadi mentioned that he cannot interfered with Ryou’s father from obtaining the ring because the event serves as a chain reaction for Yugi to solve the puzzle and have him and Atem defeat Zorc. Another example from the film is when Yugi told Seto at a critical moment that Atem is not coming back because it is fate. What fate means in this case is something beyond human control already happen and it is impossible to change. Atem is already dead and is in afterlife, so he cannot exist in the world. However, he briefly returned from the afterlife to save the world and then goes back to the afterlife. What is interesting is that destiny and fate are used interchangeably. Fate is referred to an event that already happen while destiny is referred as an event happening in the future and the outcome cannot change. However, there are cases where characters defy destiny (Seto not believing Diva speech of defeating him and Yugi refuse to surrender to Diva).  

Fear and hatred

Diva, the villain of the movie seeks revenge for Shadi’s murder and his miserable past. His sense of justice became warped by taking extreme actions to achieve his goal to get rid of evil. Diva feared for the cruel world and is mistreated by the people that the death of Shadi led him to have a cynical perspective and pushing away from his sister Sarah, and his loyal friend, Mani. Of course, this theme already exist in the Yugioh series with Malik wanting to seek revenge because the world mistreated him and Malik pushed away from his sister and his loved ones. Both characters believed that the end justifies the means, are blinded by hatred that they forget their bonds with their loved ones and fell into despair due to their blind obsession with hatred.

How memories strengthen Yugi, Joey and Ryou

One of the major themes of the film is how reminiscing the past can strengthen or hinders you. Memories play a major role in revealing to the audience how the characters dealt with their past and how it impact them. At the beginning, Yugi examined at his deck and said to himself: “He is part of me” which refers to Atem. Despite his sadness for Atem, Yugi accepted that Atem is gone and that they went to their separate ways. Instead of letting the past consume him, Yugi accepted the results and grow as a person. Yugi became more outspoken and confident by volunteer to be a speaker for his high school graduation. He still remembers Atem, but unlike Seto, Yugi’s reminiscing of the past strengthens him. In a critical moment when Yugi completed the puzzle, Yugi told Seto in a solemn expression that “Atem is not coming”. This scene revealed Yugi’s character development that despite missing Atem, Yugi knew that he has his own life, dreams, and goals, and knew that Atem belongs in the afterlife. Even after the brief meeting with Atem and Yugi was happy to see Atem again, Yugi didn’t show any intentions to reach Atem again through supernatural powers. Yugi is able to cherish his memories with Atem as well able to move forward.

For Joey, he escaped the alternative world that Diva sent him through his memories with Atem, though it is very brief moment. Because Joey remembered his friendship with Atem, he was able to overcome his fear of disappearance. In Ryou’s case, his past haunted him and he has to confront it in order to move forward. Ryou was able to move on and face his fears with the help of his friends.

The role of friendship

Friendship is the prevalent theme of the Yugioh franchise and it is expected for the film to discuss about it, even if the main focus is how both Yugi and Seto dealt with Atem’s departure. Unfortunately, the film did a poorly job showing friendship and it is one of the weaker parts of the movie. Even Yugi’s line of being friends with anyone he dueled with felt tacked on in his confrontation with Diva. I personally did not feel a strong connection of friendship in Yugi and his gang, but friendship is still shown in the movie with Yugi & Atem, Ryou & Joey, and Seto & Atem. There were a lot of opportunities for the movie to display the strong relationships within Yugi and his gang as well with with characters. For example, when Joey disappeared from their world, the gang could have get together and remember the moments when Joey helped them to bring him back. Through flashbacks, it would been more effective to display their strong bond with each other and Atem. Even for non-revolutionshippers, Anzu clearly care about Atem at the end of the original series. Whether Atem reciprocated her feelings is debatable. It is rather disappointing for the film to not mention Anzu’s feelings. Even a brief moment of seeing Anzu holding her cartouche sadly is sufficient to display with her relationship with Atem.

In closing

The film strives to bring back the older fans with nostalgia through bringing back familiar duel monsters from Seto and Yugi as well having closure for both of the characters. Did it success? Yes, the film did bring the nostalgia back as well bringing the characters that older fans recognize and able to remember their personality. The characters that are not the main star of the show are remembered through their defining trait by the fans. For Joey and Tristan they are comic reliefs, for Anzu she is the eyecandy and Yugi’s childhood best friend, and for Ryou, a shy and awkward guy yet a caring and loyal person.

Did the film bring closure to Seto and Yugi? In my opinion, yes to Yugi, and both yes and no to Seto. While Seto get some closure since he gets to duel Atem again in the afterlife, the ending is left with whether Seto will continue to duel Atem again (continue to chase his dreams while forgetting the present) or if Seto decides he is satisfied with one duel and then moves on from his past. I will elaborate my thoughts on the ending in the next review. In conclusion, regardless of your feelings towards the characters, the villain, or the ending, the film achieved its goals with the themes and motifs to bring some closure to Yugi and Seto.

[hylianmaria]

Yu-Gi-Oh: The Dark Side of Dimensions

Reaction.

So I went to see the movie tonight and it was great! I think this movie was everything I expected it to be. The beginning reminded me of comic con when I auditioned for one of the extras and it was pretty cool. Plenty of humor to go around in mg opinion! Yes Kaiba he fought you with fruit! That was one of my favorites!

Here are the issues I had with it tho.

•Plot Hole #1.: They never explained why Kaiba’s technology was able to counter act “Aigami’s” cube magic

•Question 1: “How was Kaiba able to summon Obelisk the Tormentor? ”

•Observation 1: Atem coming back kinda defeats the purpose of the end of Duel Monsters because the whole point was for Yugi to show Atem that he could be better, to beat him in a duel so that his soul could leave the millennium puzzle and he could finally ascend so i feel like that was kinda like “whaaa?”

OTHER COMMENTS.

•The power of friendship is still not strong enough to save Solomon Mouto.

•Kaiba’s AI’s smart enough to know that it has to compliment his ego. I think the writers were having fun with that!.

•It sucks to work at Kaiba Corp if you can get fired for designing a can that can be bent.

•Many people were asking themselves how Kaiba was able to get an elevator to space. I think he just learned how to physically manifest his ego.

•"Are you fighting me with fruit?“ “My cardio’s really bad.” “You really don’t like Dragons do you?”*proceeds to summon a dragon* The dialogue in this movie is golden!

•Bakura finally gets screen time!

•Joey almost forgot about himself! But Diva(?) did say the dimension he was in was made of his memories so at least we got proof that he has something in there :D

•We got to see the characters with different outfits and it was beautiful!

•Mokuba’s growing up!! I felt that he had more confidence than he did in the original series.

•They wanted to bring back evil Millennium Ring spirit of doom but they just couldn’t so they settled for creepy blockhead mix dude who just summoned a bunch of monsters in one turn.

•I don’t ever want to see a cubic monster of any kind. Again, a bunch(6) monsters in one turn!

•What’s Sara’s original name?

•Kaiba:“You do realize this is my tournament!” Yeah but I don’t care.“ Yugi probably.

•How does Yugi know how to dimensional summon without any previous tutorial?

•Kaiba’s coat and Yugi’s hair continue to defy gravity after 15 years, even during severe rainfall.