Yu-Gi-Oh Workout

Summer is officially here! While you might not realistically get shredded between now and when pool/beach season ends, it's always a good idea to get moving and work on mobility and strength. While I didn't care for Zexal and Arc-V, the Yu-Gi-Oh franchise is a perfect choice for exercising along with one of our exercise games. So turn to the original Duel Monsters anime on Netflix, Hulu, or Tubi to get moving with Yugi and his friends (or maybe Jaden at Duel Academy).

Disclaimer: While I am a licensed physical therapy provider, I am not a personal trainer or a medical practitioner. Partner as necessary with your doctor prior to engaging in any diet or excise programs. If any of these exercises cause increased pain, stop the exercise immediately.

• Theme song - Plank
• Duel begins - Seated Good Morning 10 reps 
• Duelist draws a card - Lateral Raise 10 reps
• Someone activates a spell card - Thoracic CARS 10 reps 
• Someone activates a trap card - Prone Press Ups 10 reps 
• Someone special summons - Prone Hip ER Lift 10 reps 
• Someone activates a monster effect - Toe Yoga 10 reps 
• Direct attack! - Prone Hip CARS 10 reps 
• Duel ends - Squeeze Bridges 10 reps 
• Someone uses ancient/mystical powers - Lunges 10 reps 

***This workout is intended to work without any equipment, but feel free to add small dumbbells or bands as you're safely able.

Training to look like Elemental Hero Wildheart

Geek Tech 101: Duel Disks

As long as the card game and anime exist in some form, there will always be memes about the fate of the world being decided by a children's card game on Yu-Gi-Oh! I still love the mythology of the series (though I didn't care for how it changed during Zexal and Arc-V) but the series would not be near as engaging if the card game was played on tables and mats, like in the real world. That's why Kaiba's innovation of the duel disk is iconic and revolutionary for the purposes of the series.

Before the Duel Disk

Prior to Kaiba's innovations, it seems that Duel Monsters was played on regular playing mats and tables, like in the real world. It's actually funny to see Bandit Keith dueling in front of a crowd with a little table. But by the time the series begins, Kaiba had already developed his first holographic stadium. This technology was stolen borrowed by Pegasus for the Duelist Kingdom tournament. Imagine trying to install all those random stadiums throughout the island. Silly Pegasus, doing things the hard way. Meanwhile, Kaiba had already begun improving the holographic system with his first frisbee-like duel disk. Like Duelist Kingdom itself, the first duel disk made for some strangely unique rules. Of course it wasn't until Battle City that we got some more standardized rules for the card game.

Battle City's Innovation

At first it seems duel disks were exclusive for Battle City Tournament participants. Duelists weren't limited to the need for a stadium if they wanted a fancy holographic battle. Instead, the Battle City duel disks had holographic projectors that launched and created a stadium anywhere (though it seems like the flying projectors were phased out later on). Finally duelists could play wherever they wanted, including the park, the street, an aquarium, or on the top of a blimp. Dueling would never be the same.

Alternative Duel Disks

Despite the innovation of Kaiba's duel disks, it wasn't long before others would develop their own. During the Orichalcos arc of the anime, Dartz and his minions had their own alternatives to Kaiba's duel disks. He had to make them look extra freaky though apparently. By the time Kaiba opened Duel Academy and Jaden's cohort was in attendance, there was a new duel disk that seemed to be specifically for Duel Academy (though plenty of others had similar ones). Throughout Yu-Gi-Oh GX, we saw plenty of other weird duel disk variations from the Shadow Riders, duel spirits, and some of the transfer students. At some points it seemed like every new character had a duel disk customized for their deck.

Duel Runners and Beyond

After Yu-Gi-Oh GX, all bets were off with duel disks. By the time Yusei had his duel runner, the standard duel disk was a thing of the past in many ways. Dueling on motorcycles was the way to go. But if you weren't a turbo duelist, you still had your regular duel disk that detached. In later seasons, we saw plenty of duel disk variations throughout the multiverse. It kind of makes me sad though... later series like Zexal and Arc-V take the innovation of the duel disk for granted. It was a big deal when it first showed up during Duelist Kingdom and Battle City. A game changer! And we all wanted a duel disk in real life (I had two: original Battle City and the Orichalcos version). Now if only the real ones projected holograms like on television....

More Content You Might Like:

• "LDS Geeks Podcast #15: Yu-Gi-Oh Nostalgia" with Spencer and Joe
• Available for listening on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube

LDS Geeks Podcast #15: Yu-Gi-Oh Nostalgia

Back when I finished watching Yu-Gi-Oh Zexal and Arc-V after it, I struggled hard. Ever since, I couldn't decide if I enjoyed the original Yu-Gi-Oh for its content or if it was just the nostalgia. So Joe and I took up the conversation to decide which parts of the original Yu-Gi-Oh are quality content.

--Spencer

Friday Creature Feature - Dark Magician

I recently finished my trek through the original Yu-Gi-Oh anime (including the subpar Dark Side of Dimensions) and I keep debating within myself how much of the story held up and how much of it is nostalgia… but I guess if nothing else, the nostalgia was powerful enough for me to start watching GX again. But before I get into the story of Jaden and Duel Academy, I wanted to spotlight one of my favorite Duel Monsters. He was Yugi’s trademark monster right from his first duel with Kaiba. Yes, I’m talking about the Dark Magician.

Makings of a Magician

Featured in the "Dawn of the Duel" story arc, we see a version of the Dark Magician's backstory (though it might be slightly altered because of the time travel). As one of the Pharaoh's childhood friends, it shouldn't be too surprising that Mahad grew to become a member of the Pharaoh's court, wielding the Millennium Ring. So when the Thief Bakura started campaigning against the Pharaoh, Mahad tried to put a stop to it early on. 

In confronting Bakura and Diabound with his trusty Illusion Magician, Mahad nearly defeated Bakura, entombing him. But as the Thief King got the better of him, Mahad fused his soul with the Illusion Magician. The newly formed Dark Magician was the Pharaoh's faithful servant through the battle against Zorc and would be featured on the Pharaoh's Tablet for millennia to come.

The Return of the Shadow Games

As mentioned, Dark Magician was Yugi's most iconic card, right from his first duel against Kaiba, right through the Ceremonial Duel between Yugi and Atem (and onward into Dark Side of Dimensions, but I don't want to discuss that movie again). He appeared during major battles against Kaiba, Joey, and many other rivals. In addition, Yugi utilized him against villains the like of Pegasus, Marik, and more. As the journey continued, we got different variations and evolutions of the Dark Magician, like Dark Magician Girl, Dark Paladin, and more. I'll discuss some of my favorite variations at the end. 

Why I Love the Dark Magician

I entered Yu-Gi-Oh as I was still early on in my obsession with Harry Potter and was immediately hooked on spellcaster cards as a result. So when the protagonist of the anime had a wizard as his trump card, it shouldn't have surprised anyone that I'd gravitate to the "ultimate wizard". I even made up some cards for a fan fiction that involved Hogwarts characters and spells. My love for Dark Magician has only increased new support cards have been released. In my humble opinion, my spellcaster deck on Duel Links was phenomenal and could take enemies down like nothing.

Favorite Dark Magician Evolutions

As I mentioned earlier, the Dark Magician has a number of different "evolutions" and "variations" that have appeared throughout the anime and the card game. And the list has only grown over the years. It was hard to narrow down my list, but here are a few of my favorites. Other notable mentions include Dark Sage, Skilled Dark Magician, and Sorcerer of Dark Magic.

Dark Magician Knight

When Yugi and company are captured by Noah and the Big Five, Dark Magician was the easy choice for his deck master and he took three new forms against the Big Five. After Dark Flare Knight and Mirage Knight fail to finish off the Big Five, we got Dark Magician Knight. This has been a favorite variation of the spellcaster ever since I first got a copy of Reshef of Destruction. Something has always appealed to me about the warrior magician… that energy must have carried with me onto my mission when a companion nicknamed me “Warrior”.

Dark Paladin

During the Battle City Finals, it was only natural (as it was foretold) that Yugi and Dark Magician should face off against Kaiba and Blue-Eyes White Dragon. As Blue-Eyes took the form of the three-headed Ultimate Dragon, Yugi unleashed his latest Dark Magician form: Dark Paladin. And it was with this warrior magician that Yugi defeated Kaiba’s dragons. Again, we've got another warrior magician. 

Amulet Dragon

Taking a detour from the Pharaoh’s mission, Yugi and the Pharaoh gained possession of the Legendary Dragon Timaeus. With his power to fuse with any monster card, it should be no surprise that the two monsters Yugi fused it with: Dark Magician Girl and Dark Magician. The Amulet Dragon (Dark Magician + Timaeus) was used against Raphael and gained massive strength by clearing the graveyard of spells. Just like the Dark Magician Knight, there was something that drew me to Legendary Dragon cards, so to see them fused with my favorite card was wonderful (I once made up a fusion of Hermos and Dark Magician).

Dark Magician of Chaos

While the ritual monster Magician of Black Chaos first appeared in Duelist Kingdom, he was never "technically" a Dark Magician card. Though, when he appeared alongside Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl in the Virtual World against Noah, I flipped out. Later, after Yugi retired from dueling (probably) his deck was on display at Duel Academy. Some punk stole his deck and pretended to be him. But at least we got the Dark Magician of Chaos, who doesn't just look as cool as Magician of Black Chaos, but he's easier to summon and he has an awesome card effect.

Orichalcos: The Underrated Yu-Gi-Oh Arc

After I wrote my complaints about Yu-Gi-Oh Arc-V, I decided it was time to go back to the start and see if the original series held up, or if it was just nostalgia. The jury is still out on that one, but I have some other thoughts as I enter the final season.

“Waking the Dragons” was one of my favorite story arcs in the original series. Better known at times as the Orichalcos arc, I feel like it’s vastly underrated by Yu-Gi-Oh fans, as it deviates from the plotline of the Pharaoh’s memory. But as you can guess I’m going to tell you why I loved it anyway.

The Problem with Filler Stories

It has no basis in the Yu-Gi-Oh manga and is 100% unique to the anime. For some, this is off-putting, just like with Noah’s virtual world. Maybe it’s because the arc deviates from the Pharaoh’s overall arc, like I mentioned before. A perspective like that can make this whole story arc seem a bit like filler. However, instead of filler, adding another story arc into the mix of what the manga shows actually avoids fillers. Plenty of anime are known for drawing out their seasons (almost every season of Digimon and Sailor Moon had at least 50 episodes). Instead of throwing in random episodes about random kids at Yugi’s school, we get a concise story with minimal filler.

Unlike storylines like GX’s graduation duels, 5D’s CrashTown arc, or ZEXAL’s Duel Carnival, we have a clear start and finish. From the first three episodes of the Orichalcos arc, we know what the bad guy’s end game is and nothing in the story deviates from that mystery, even with flying halfway across the world. And finally, by the end of the season, the Orichalcos mystery and plot have been resolved (except for flying home… but the following story arc takes care of that small detail). 

Dark Yami Yugi

Another gem from this story arc is Yami Yugi’s corruption by the Orichalcos. Other than the undubbed Toei series, which isn’t in the same canon as the first dubbed series, we don’t get to see Yami being “Dark Yugi”. It adds more complexity to his character. Like his counterpart Yugi, he has a noble streak that keeps him the hero of the story. Even in his darker moments, like ordering Celtic Guardian to knock Kaiba off Pegasus’s castle, he was acting out of desperation and misunderstanding, not darkness. On the flip side, we often see the anti-hero side to Kaiba, Chazz (GX), and even Yusei (5D’s). It makes him less three-dimensional and more relatable. 

The Legendary Dragons

I’m also a big fan of the Legendary Dragons themselves. Unlike the Egyptian God Cards that were immediate heavy hitters, the Dragons took some strategy and they were more versatile. I mean just think about when Joey first used Hermos to create the Time Wizard Mallet and his jaw dropped in disbelief. Of the three, Hermos has been my favorite for years, but I love the versatility of Critias, fusing with spell and trap cards, and I would have loved to see more Timaeus fusions (but Yami defaulted to Dark Magician Girl multiple times and he was unable to use Timaeus for a time… so there’s that).

Dominion of the Beasts

The Orichalcos arc also delved into the mythology of the monsters themselves. Like the "Dawn of the Duel" arc that followed shortly after, we see more than just holograms and Shadow Games in this story; we get living, breathing creatures that appear in “real life”. We also get an explanation of their origin, possibly related to how they ended up in Ancient Egypt too. Their realm, the Dominion of the Beasts, is another part of the Yu-Gi-Oh multiverse I suppose and it got even more exposure (or at least I assume it’s part of the same world) in the later seasons of Yu-Gi-Oh GX. But perhaps we’ll address that more if/when I rewatch GX. 

So while others may scoff at this story arc (or maybe not as much as I suspect), it’s still one of my favorites. Be it the Dragons or the monster mythology, I can’t recommend this arc enough. If you’re rewatching Yu-Gi-Oh, please don’t skip over this arc. It’s well worth the watch. 

The Problem with Yu-Gi-Oh! Arc-V

The name of this blog post was originally going to be “Why I Stopped Watching Yu-Gi-Oh!” I’ve been watching Yu-Gi-Oh! Arc-V and I was going to wait to write this post until I was done… but I couldn’t wait any longer. Last year I wrote that Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal was my least favorite of the franchise so far… but I think Arc-V may have overtaken it there. I mean, what was with duelists ALWAYS clasping their hands together whenever they fusion summon? But anyway, onto the real rant… and then a couple things I’ve liked I guess.

First off, the duels felt really drawn out and they overlapped with other duels at weird points. Maybe the original series did this and I just don’t remember, but there was literally a duel with Yuri vs. Yugo happening simultaneously with Yuya vs. the Professor. The only times I remember this happening in the original series or GX was when the second duel was only minor action. We didn’t see a play-by-play, just the highlights. As a result, some of these duels ended up taking multiple episodes. Not just a two-part episode, but they’d go on for a while. In the original series, Yugi fought with Marik for five episodes at the end of Battle City, but that was the big bad of the story arc, not some random underling.

The whole concept of “dueltaining” bugged me. With technology that allowed the duelists to physically interact with their monsters, I suppose it’s a natural progression of the game. It’s not just about competing, but it’s about being an entertainer… kind of like pro wrestling. However, the problem I had was Yuya’s determination to end the interdimensional war by entertaining everyone so much and teaching them to have fun. When he met the Professor, I was seriously worried he was going to beat him by entertaining him. Unfortunately, not everyone can be talked down. Not everyone will listen to reason. I had this same problem with 2021’s run of The Flash and Supergirl. Barry Allen literally talked down four god-like forces of nature. Yeah, that’s the ideal resolution to a conflict, but it’s not realistic. 

I also didn’t care for the reinventing of previously known characters. I actually enjoyed the idea of this multiverse (but I’ll talk about that in a moment), but we had variations of Jack Atlas, Aster Phoenix, and others from across GX, 5Ds, and Zexal. It was cool to see some new doppelgangers of them, I suppose, but it felt unnecessary. Why not just include Jack from 5Ds and expand the story? Why make Kite, Jack, and the rest go through the same character development again?

As promised, I will address a couple things I liked. Despite what I said about doppelgangers a couple seconds ago, I actually really liked the concept of the multiverse. Digimon did it. DC and Marvel do it all the time. It gives a franchise the freedom to reinvent itself, but keep within the same continuity. I’d have liked it better if the Fusion Dimension had been the original and GX series, the Synchro Dimension the 5Ds series, and the Xyz Dimension the Zexal series. But I already addressed that above. And the general concept of the split dimension being reunited is very much like "Crisis on Infinite Earths" (maybe even inspired by it?). But a great idea… poor execution.

I also really liked how this series included all current summoning methods. OG Yu-Gi-Oh and GX only had fusion and ritual summoning (did everyone just forget that ritual summoning is another unique method of summoning? There was no Ritual Dimension), 5Ds had synchro summoning, and Zexal had Xyz. However, right from the start (even before the multiverse arrived) we had all the summoning methods featured. For all its faults, this fact showed continuity in the franchise… even though I still don’t like how they reinvented the doppelgangers.

Anyway, I still have 10ish episodes left of Arc-V. Because of my personality, I’ll finish out the series (otherwise I’d have stopped 20 episodes ago). But I’m not gonna continue with VRAINS or Sevens. At least for now. In the meantime, I’ll go back to the original series and watch some Duelist Kingdom and Battle City. Maybe revive my interest in the franchise. I guess we’ll see.

The Problem with Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal

A few years back I wanted to get back into Yu-Gi-Oh. I got some new cards and I started watching the anime again. I started up with the original series and just recently I finished Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal, the fourth anime series in the franchise. There were definitely high points of it, but it’s also my least favorite of the franchise so far.

Before I get into what made it subpar, I want to discuss what I liked. First off, it was a breath of fresh air to see a protagonist who wasn’t a naturally gifted duelist from day one. Yuma loved dueling, but he kind of sucked at it. As opposed to Yugi, Jaden, or Yusei who were dueling prodigies from episode one, we got to see Yuma grow and learn from Astral as the series progressed. By the end of the series, he was a formidable duelist on his own, but it took work, just like real life.

Now for the downside… First off, the series felt disjointed. We started out with a simple premise with Astral needing to gather the number cards to regain his memories. And even in the first half of the series, even when filler hit, it brought us closer and closer to the confrontation with Dr. Faker, who was also hunting number cards. However, by the second half of the series things weren’t so straightforward. At first it was about fighting the Barians. Then it was about the Barians’ memories. Then it was about Don Thousand. Also Shark was a Barian all along? It felt like the second half of the series didn’t know what it wanted to do. I felt like I was getting whiplash sometimes.

I also didn’t like how Zexal seemed disconnected from the rest of the franchise. Yu-Gi-Oh and Yu-Gi-Oh GX both felt like they were taking place in the present day, so it was relatable. Almost as if I could picture myself dueling in Battle City or studying at Duel Academy. Even with Yu-Gi-Oh 5Ds, it was established that New Domino City was in the same universe as the previous series, just set in the future. It gave a sense of continuity. So what’s the deal with Zexal then? There were references to legendary cards like Blue-Eyes, Dark Magician, and Flame Wingman, so it kind of acknowledged the previous series… but it was still unclear what was up. Was it in the future past 5Ds or was it in an alternate timeline? Digimon did similar things when they would start a new continuity each season.... but at least those alternate Digimon timelines were set in the present day still.

Now for my final gripe: What even was the Power of Zexal? Was it just about getting the power of that “shining draw” or something? Yugi and Joey were able to do that by calling it the heart of the cards. Yuma and Astral got a weird Power Rangers suit, but what did the Zexal Morph even do? The series was named after the power, but the power felt essentially useless. I just don’t get it.

Overall I’m glad I watched it, but mostly because it gave me a base understanding of Xyz monsters. Although those were kind of odd too.

Friday Creature Feature - Duel Monsters

Back when the blog first started as "Mormon Geeks" Joe did a series of blog posts about different creatures from different fandoms as kind of an educational piece. Since I've needed something to occupy my mind during all this time at home, I figured I'd revive the Friday Creature Feature.

I want to start out with the monsters from the Yu-Gi-Oh anime. The card game is a different story, I suppose, and even within the anime (especially with all the spin-offs over the years) the mythology of the monsters (often referred to as "duel monsters" in the show) is complex and ever changing. So for now, I'm just going to talk about the origin of the Duel Monsters card game as set forth in the original Yu-Gi-Oh anime. (Certain monsters have more specific origins, but I'll save that for another time)

Back in the day, in 3000 BC (1000 BC in the original Japanese), monsters and monster spirits are found and discovered and captured in Ancient Egypt. It's not the first time this kind of thing happened (see "Waking the Dragons" arc for more of that) but it's the basic backstory of Yu-Gi-Oh. At that time, Egyptian priests and royalty (and other magic users, like the Thief Bakura) engaged in battles for power and these fights threatened the destruction of the world (see "Dawn of the Duel" arc for that one). In the end, these monsters and the powers that released them are sealed away.

Fast forward to present day (probably more like early 2000's when the series came out), Maximilian Pegausus, a game designer, finds the stone carvings of these monsters and Shadow Games. The rest of the original Yu-Gi-Oh series follows this plotline. The "revival" of these monsters through the Duel Monsters card game and the rise of the Shadow Games intermittently means these monsters take physical form (not just holograms).

The monsters differ in their powers vastly. We get little fluffy creatures like Kuriboh that explode on contact. We also get mighty dragons and sorcerers like the Blue-Eyes White Dragon and Dark Magician. On the extreme end there are also monsters based off the Egyptian Gods with world-breaking power. Although, for the most part, without powers from the Shadow Realm, these monsters' powers are limited to holographic game play.

The largest exception to that rule is the occasional Duel Monster spirits. They were occasionally see in the original Yu-Gi-Oh series (like when Yugi and Raphael interacted with Kuriboh and Eatos respectively). The concept of these "Spirit Partners" is expanded on a lot more in the first spin-off, Yu-Gi-Oh GX. Multiple characters in GX have Spirit Partners (like Winged Kuriboh for Jaden, the Ojamas for Chazz, and the Crystal Beasts for Jesse) and it's not unusual to see other monsters spirits cross over into the human world to duel (like Jinzo). The concept of spirit monsters fades into the background a bit as other spin-offs happen (currently watching Zexal and I don't know that I've seen any), but it was a cool concept at the time.

Did you watch Yu-Gi-Oh growing up? What "creatures" do you want to get featured in future posts?

Top TV Dads

Happy Father's Day! To complement my Mother's Day post from last month, I wanted to do a Top TV Dads. Too often fathers are degraded and viewed as unimportant in the media, so let's celebrate the ones who were actually good.

Takehiro Matsuki (Digimon Tamers)
To be fair, he was a bit of a permissive dad at times, seeming to want to appease his son Takato. However, he also proved to be a big support throughout the season. When Takato's mom was frantic about the Digimon, Takehiro was level-headed and trusted Takato to be safe and smart and mature. Even before he knew about the Digimon, Takato was seen having a friendly, healthy relationship with father, talking to him about school and everything.

Prince Charming (Once Upon a Time)
He missed the first 28 years of his daughter's life due to a magically-induced coma, but after the curse was broken he strived his hardest to be a good father to Emma. He struggled with the idea of having another child, causing him great fear, but he seemingly conquered that fear (despite leaving Neal behind during various adventures). Despite being the same age physically as his daughter, he and Emma were shown to have many heart-to-heart moments, including when she was grieving over the loss of her boyfriend.

Joe West (The Flash)
Let's start with the fact that he was a single father after his wife walked out on him. For years he cared for Iris on his own, being a solid male influence in her life, leading to healthy dating relationships for Iris. Now let's fast-forward to when he became foster-dad for Barry, after the death of his mother and incarceration of his father. Sure the transition was bumpy, but he developed a great relationship with Barry, supporting him, even though he didn't understand Barry's wild tales about the Man in Yellow. Their relationship was solid enough that Barry brought him on to Team Flash not long after donning the red suit. Finally, decades after his wife left, he met his son Wally. It was rough at first, trying to parent too fast, but after slowing it down, Joe was able to be a solid influence for Wally as he became Kid Flash.

Jack Geller (Friends)
While his wife is a piece of work, Jack was very compassionate and loving towards his two kids. Granted, sometimes this compassion bordered on cluelessness. While his wife was a bit more nasty towards Monica, his negligence was a bit more passive. All the same, despite his faults, he genuinely loves his children. No moment portrays this more than when he came to comfort Monica after her break-up with Richard.

Cory Matthews (Girl Meets World)
After seven seasons of life lessons of his own (plus 14 unseen years), Cory became a bit of a mix of his young adult self, his father, and Mr. Feeny. Not only was a loving father (albeit crazy and quirky) to his own children, but as a teacher he was also a father-figure to some of his daughter's friends, especially Maya. Like Mr. Feeny before him, he tried to teach life lessons all the way along through middle school and into high school.

Pete Tyler (Doctor Who)
We've got two incarnations of this character to look at, both amazing fathers. The original Pete, Rose's biological father, was a bit of a clever airhead, schemes running through his head and driving his wife crazy (not that she needed help). When adult Rose showed up suddenly with the Ninth Doctor, he was willing to sacrifice himself to set the timeline straight, all for the sake of his daughter. Now jump to the parallel universe, Pete Tyler never fathered Rose, but he became the adoptive father for her after the Battle of Canary Warf. During the battle, he risked his life to save Rose from falling into the void, despite the risks to the universe.

Solomon Moto (Yu-Gi-Oh!)
We don't particularly know what happened with Yugi's parents (his mom briefly appeared in a Japanese episode once), but Grandpa Moto seemed to raise Yugi through his teenage years (if not even earlier). Despite all the crazy battle (and all the times his soul was trapped), Solomon stuck it out for his grandson and his friends. Perhaps it was his understanding of the Egyptian origins of it all, but he was surprisingly trusting of Yugi running into battle at least half a dozen times between Battle City and the Memory World.

Who's your favorite TV dad?

Spoiler-ish Yu-Gi-Oh Dark Side of Dimensions Review

In a world that is eating nostalgia up faster than popcorn during movie theater trailer, it’s not surprising to see so many franchises from the past 20 years and longer trying to make some sort of comeback. Power Rangers is doing that this year, Digimon started celebrating their 15^th anniversary a couple years ago, and we’ve already gotten 2 seasons of Fuller House on Netflix. So I was excited to see Yu-Gi-Oh’s 20^th anniversary movie this weekend, but I was underwhelmed and disappointed.

So the concept is solid: Pharaoh Atem’s spirit has been released for a while, but Kaiba having the big head that he does can’t leave it alone. He is determined to bring the Pharaoh back and duel him to settle his score. Next enter a new villain who has a vendetta and of course Yugi ends up right in the middle of it. While I liked the concept (the idea of bringing the Pharaoh back was intriguing because both Yugi and Kaiba were struggling to come to terms with his departure), the actual execution of this plot was not well done. And then in the end it was all wrapped with a deus ex machina that didn’t even get an ounce of explanation. So while Yugi and Kaiba got closure, I didn’t.

One thing I liked about this movie was bringing back the entire
gang back together again. Regardless of my other critiques,
the characterization of each of these were on point.

In a way the plot and mechanics of the movie were a little over-complicated. Instead of just a villain and a vendetta, we got oodles of backstory that I didn’t even care about. I mean, some villain backstory is necessary, but I felt like we got too much. Besides all that, the villain’s method of dueling was bizarre. If it had been properly explained, it might have been fine. Instead, things were brushed over. Also there were a lot of new cards added (mostly support cards for Blue-Eyes and Dark Magician) that I knew nothing about, so I was lost as far as exactly what they were doing. Granted, unlike in the TV show, the effects were written on the cards, but I don’t think split second shots to read card effects is sufficient.

Speaking of cards, I also didn’t care for the redesign of some of the cards. Dark Magician and Obelisk the Tormentor looked way too different from the original anime. Now if 100% of the cards had changed, I’d have been more okay with it. Instead, Dark Magician Girl and others looked exactly the same. I don’t know if it was to make the tone of the movie darker or what, but I didn’t care for it much. I certainly didn’t care for the inconsistency.

Dark Magician was the same in the card, so
why did the hologram change?

I’m also a bit sick of Kaiba’s overly prideful attitude. He’s always been obnoxious and a jerk (and a bit delusional), but I’d have thought after his experience in the Memory World and the final duel between Yugi and Atem (granted, that only happened in the anime, not the manga) that he’d be a bit humbler. Nope, instead he developed a god complex as he developed his new tech. Like I said, delusional.

One final critique: As much as this movie tried to tie up some loose ends regarding Bakura and Shadi and giving closure to Yugi and Kaiba, it left me with more questions, regarding the nature of the Millennium Items, the fate of the Pharaoh, and Shadi’s past (never mind that ending). I understand that this movie wasn’t planned when the original story was written, but the added details didn’t sit too well with me. It felt like there was inconsistencies in the story…. And having been a huge fan of Once Upon a Time and Lost, I have proven that I can handle inconsistencies and plot holes.

The movie had some good themes. The idea of fear and hate not being able to fix anything or make a better world is perfect for our world today. Like I said in a previous post, I see a lot of us vs. them going on (and Facebook is just a small microcosm of that) and it’s not going to solve anything in the world. A world of peace CANNOT be created through fear and anger.

As much as I have my issues with this movie, it was nice
to see Yugi finally face Kaiba all on his own.

Honestly, if this movie had been a trilogy or something, it might have been better, kind of like how Digimon is doing six movies for Digimon Adventure Tri. If we’d had more time, we could have gotten used to Dimension Duels and we could have had more time to develop the villain and we wouldn’t have had to rush through the duels we had.

All in all, there was nothing wrong with the movie… just hard to follow and process. Maybe if I watch it a second time I’ll feel differently, but I was frustrated enough with this that I’d rather not buy the movie. I’d rather watch one of the other two movies (“Pyramid of Light” or “Bonds Beyond Time”); they’re not perfect, but they were a lot more self-contained than this one.

Anyway, I’m done ranting. If you’ve seen “Dark Side of Dimensions”, let me know what you think. Would you recommend it? Do you disagree with me or am I on point?

Good Geeky Things Coming in 2017

Happy New Year! Now that I’ve stayed up til midnight to celebrate 2017 beginning (side note: New Years is much more anticlimactic for me than it was as a kid; anyone else feel that way?), it’s time to look ahead (and away from 2016) at what the new year has for us Geeks. By no means is this a comprehensive list, but it’s what I’m looking forward to.

Yu-Gi-Oh! The Dark Side of Dimensions (January 27)

A welcome addition to the Yu-Gi-Oh franchise, we’re gonna get a new adventure with Yugi, Kaiba, and the original Duel Monsters gang. If I understand correctly, it’ll be shortly after the end of the original anime series, after releasing the spirit of the Pharaoh. Not much was explicitly shown in the trailer, but I’m looking forward to seeing some of these original characters back, as well as some (likely) supped up versions of their classic monster cards.

Digimon Adventure Tri, Part 4: Loss (February 25)

I’ve gotten back into my childhood obsession of Digimon this past year, perfectly timed for Tri, the sequel to Digimon Seasons 1 and 2. Only Part 1’s dub “Reunion” was aired in US theaters this year, but all the way through Part 3 has been aired in Japan. Part 4, which I’m super excited for, is airing in February. Hopefully we’ll get the dub of Part 2 in American theaters soon as well.

Beauty and the Beast (March 17)

Now while Disney is kind of copping out by rebooting all their animated features as live action remakes (Maleficent, Cinderella, Pete’s Dragon, etc.) I’m excited for this one. In large part it’s because of Emma Watson playing Belle. Now I’m sure the fact that she’s my top celebrity crush helps, but with how intelligent she is (not just as Hermione, but in real life as well), I think she makes the perfect Belle.

Iron Fist (March 17)

In addition to “Beauty and the Beast”, we’ll also have Iron Fist coming out on March 17. Since I’m still very much a n00b when it comes to Marvel Comics, I don’t know much about Iron Fist except that he’s the last new Marvel Netflix character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe that will appear before he joins up with the others for “The Defenders” later in 2017, but more on that later.

Power Rangers (March 24)

After rewatching the original Power Rangers series recently (I’m currently working my way through Zeo and I’ll be into Turbo soon) it’ll be interesting to see the Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers rebooted as new versions of themselves. This version seems a bit edgier, so that’ll be different from the goody-goody versions in the original. I’m definitely looking forward to seeing Elizabeth Banks as Rita Repulsa.

Doctor Who Series 10 (April)

After a year away from new Who, it’ll be great to get more Doctor Who soon. After watching the trailer that aired with the Christmas special last week, I’m a little skeptical of the new companion, Bill, but I’m willing to give her a shot. She seems a bit obnoxious, but if I handle Leela and Amy Pond, I can stomach Bill. Plus it’s speculated that she and Capaldi will only be together one season.

Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol 2 (May 5)

It’s been a few years since Star Lord, Gamora, Drax, and Rocket teamed up for the first time. In just a few months we’ll see them back together again to guard the galaxy. I’m curious how this will lead up to “Avengers: Infinity Wars”. Maybe we’ll see another Infinity Stone? Definitely gonna get a bunch of Baby Groot at the very least.

Cars 3 (June 16)

I didn’t mind Cars 2, but I definitely didn’t expect a sequel. However, based on the trailers it looks like it’ll be a bit darker. I’m not sure what Pixar will be getting at, but I guess we’ll all see in time.

Spider-Man: Homecoming (July 7)

After seeing Peter Parker in “Civil War”, it’ll be interesting to see him in his solo movie. However, based on the trailers it almost looks like it’ll be “Iron Man and Spider-Man” instead of “Spider-Man”. If that’s the case I’m a little skeptical, mostly because of how irresponsible Tony was with Peter’s safety in Civil War. But this won’t stop me from seeing it, even if I am skeptical.

The Inhumans (September 4)

This minority of the human population was first shown in Agents of SHIELD in Season 2. Now we’re about to get a series all about them. This makes it kind of unclear if Agents of SHIELD will be done after their current season or if “The Inhumans” will air separate from Agents of SHIELD. Regardless, the pilot of “The Inhumans” will air in IMAX theaters on September 4 before it airs on ABC.

Thor: Ragnarok (November 3)

After all the confusion of whatever was going on with Thor in “Age of Ultron”, it’ll be nice to get some explanation. In addition to all of that, we’ve got Hulk and Loki appearing. Should be interesting. Plus, in general, I can’t complain about getting a third new movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Star Wars Episode VIII (December 15)

After flashing back to Rogue One, we’re going jump forward 30+ years again to sequel “The Force Awakens”. I’d expect some one-on-one training with Luke and Rey, some space battles, some Kylo Ren tantrums, and hopefully a fitting goodbye to Leia. Maybe in post-production they can lay her to rest, as a fitting tribute to Carrie Fisher?

Besides all these, we also have “The Defenders”, “The Punisher”, some more DC movies, a rebooted “Duck Tales”, and TV series for “Tangled” and “Big Hero 6” to look forward to. What have I missed? What geeky stuff are you looking forward to this year? What is going to make 2017 great for you?

Side Note for any David Tennant fans: Did you see who will
be voicing Scrooge McDuck in the new "Duck Tales"?