"Any card—so long as it exists—has a power that is needed."

Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters GX Episodes 85 and 86 Subbed (Finalized)

(Previously: Episode 84 Subbed [Finalized])

(Check out my Subbed!GX Stream Masterpost!)

TURN-85: A Wielder of the God Card The Divine Winged Dragon of Ra?!

A researcher named Franz appears before Judai, who learns from Pegasus and Hayato Maeda–who rushed over from I2 (Industrial Illusions, Inc.)–of his employment with I2 and the threat he poses by using a copy of the strongest card, The Divine Winged Dragon of Ra. Judai and Franz duel, and right as they start, he summons The Divine Winged Dragon of Ra. By all rights, he should incur a punishment from the God, but he controls said God with the Mound of the Bound Deity Magic Card he himself created. It all comes down to the Skyscraper 2 – Hero City Field Magic that Hayato designed for Judai.

TURN-86: The Runway of Dueling

Just as Judai laments his lack of competition, a drum is suddenly struck amid a flurry of cherry blossoms–from which a pro duelist named Kabukid enters the scene, clad in kabuki clothing, and challenges Judai to a duel. Claiming that pro dueling is about dueling to entertain the audience, Kabukid activates his Kabuki Stage – Great Bridge Field Magic to set a flashy stage. Harboring some doubts about such flashy dueling, Judai…

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(EDIT, 1/21/23: Reuploaded 86 with an additional card error fix, as I missed an earlier instance of Dramatic Pose in Kabukid’s hand after its activation that should’ve been New Year Drum; see #3 in the list below if curious.)

Just narrowly missed getting these out in time for Christmas, but episodes 85 and 86 are finalized! Hope everyone’s having a gentle holiday season, and hopefully these help a bit as these are two of my favorite episodes in Season 2. 85 I definitely remember being pretty hype with Ra–copy or not–showing itself in GX, and both the OST and Pegasus reappearing (as well as some coloring choices in a lot of the scenes to give things a bit more of a grim look [which we saw some of in 82, but it does feel as though the art quality starts to pick up a bit here]) definitely helps add a bit of weight to it. 86 is also a fun one with quite a few Japanese references, and specifically to kabuki theater–so much so that I’d actually popped onto some Japanese-learning forums when first working on 86 back in 2011 for help to decipher some–and has Judai meet someone who’s so into his craft for others that he hadn’t thought of enjoying the process for himself. Definitely is a shame the dub does away with most of the culture nods, understandable as it might be, since the original sound design also adds to the fun feel of the episode, with the drums and vocal interludes here/there, but making Orlando a Broadway actor is probably the best way to adapt Kabukid’s character (though it does make the kabuki callbacks with his deck fall a bit flat). Also got us an OP update as of 85, featuring a disappointed not-Principal Chronos after Samejima’s return [I’ve been waiting to use that new clip since translating the names in the OP as I started finalizing Season 2], as well as one of the few episodes where Judai properly uses Bubbleman’s two effects correctly in 86, lol.)

Interesting as both episodes are, equally interesting (on some level) were some of the animation/card fixes I worked on for them; I fixed up nine errors in 85 and 12 in 86. List below the spoiler, as usual, for the curious! Also including some Translation Notes for 86, as there were a couple of cultural nods throughout.

Enjoy! Next time, it’s a Judai VS Manjoume rematch as Judai tries to undo Saiou’s hold on him, with some help from the O[jama]-Heroes! Shouldn’t stain their friendship too much, hopefully.

Fixes/Edits! (85)

1. As Judai and Franz begin their duel, setting up their Disks on a split-screen, there are several frames (except for one) as their screens split apart where there’s a gap between their actual screens and their borders–all the while Judai’s screen has a bit of a gap under him where they didn’t fill him out so the trees behind him are visible.  Fixed in Sony Vegas by first cropping the split-screen so that the gap under Judai is gone, then moving Judai and Franz’s screens up to the borders in each frame with the error.
2. As Judai braces for his first attack coming from Ra, there’s a black hole on his Disk where Neos should be; it turns to normal as he moves to brace for impact.  Fixed first by blanking that spot into a regular Monster Zone in Photoshop, then applying a proxy in AfterEffects.
3. A unique error happens in the eyecatch, as the show’s logo appears statically a few frames before the usual sparkles appear, which the logo then fades from as normal.  Fixed this in Vegas by first redoing Franz and Judai sliding across the screen during the frames before the sparks light up to create the logo, then redid the sparkles over those frames 1) using a template video that I applied a chroma-keyer effect on to remove the black background and 2) masking the sparkles to just the thin area they first appear in, then expanding the mask a bit as more appear.  Looks pretty good in motion.
4. After Ra destroys Neos, Judai takes damage from Mound of the Bound Deity, but has another black spot on his Disk, this time where a Defense-Mode Card Gunner should be.  Fixed in AfterEffects by applying a proxy there.
5. As Franz boasts about how Judai’s mere tricks won’t work on a god, he loses his mouth for a quick frame before he starts chuckling as he starts his next turn.  Fixed in Vegas by just keeping his closed mouth from the previous frame there.
6. As Judai tries to attack Franz’s 1 LP directly with Glow Moss for game, Franz counters by using Fusion Undone to undo his point-to-point-transfer “fusion” with Ra–but the ATK counter that appears shows Ra’s ATK dropping from 4400 to zero, and not 4499 as it was previously shown to be at.  Fixed in Vegas by masking in its ATK counter from the scene showing it rising to 4499 as Franz joined with it, made easier since the border/colors on this ATK counter don’t change like they usually do, lol. (This is one of the errors I’d have expected to be fixed on the DVD release, and the dub didn’t pick up on it, either.)
7. After Glow Moss’s attack connects with Ra, we see it being destroyed and Franz’s LP dropping, but there’s an outline for a card where Ra was on his Disk.  Since Ra was being destroyed here, I fixed this in Photoshop by removing the outline and making it a normal Monster Zone, over the handful of frames as the shot fades from the Ra closeup to showing Franz.
8. After Franz thinks that he’ll be able to use Revival of the Dead (Monster Reborn) to resurrect Ra, Judai opts to activate his Necro Illusion Quick-Play, but a few things happen: 1) just before Necro Illusion appears on the field, we see a yellow and orange rectangle on his Disk where Glow Moss and Neos should respectively be, and 2) Judai’s half of the split-screen, which Franz slides onto eventually, has a sudden background change as Franz’s starts to slide back up and Judai starts to declare that he’s reviving Ra.  Fixed first in AfterEffects by applying Glow Moss and Neos proxies over those rectangles, fading them out as Necro Illusion appears, then in Vegas as I simply masked in the changed background behind Judai from later in the shot to keep it consistent throughout.
9. After Judai brings back Ra to his side of the field, Franz stares it down–but for some reason, Ra is on his Disk despite it being on Judai’s field.  I originally thought to fix this by wiping that Monster Zone clean on one of the last frames of the shot and then re-do the gaussian-blurred zoom-out that happens, but that proved to be a bit difficult–instead, I fixed it by using Photoshop to blank the Monster Zone over the 14 frames it’s in, then reinserting them into the footage in Vegas, maintaining the gaussian blur.  I think the Zone still looks consistently edited in motion, for the short shot it is.

Fixes/Edits! (86)

1. As Kabukid and Judai begin their duel, setting up their Disks on a split-screen, their screens split to reveal Shou and Kenzan looking up at Chronos and Napoleon’s picnic-viewing setup, but Judai’s side takes two frames longer than Kabukid’s to leave the screen.  Fixed in Sony Vegas by timing his split to Kabukid’s, then holding the full shot of Shou/Kenzan/Chronos/Napoleon over the extra frame or two saved.
2. As the group looks on while Kabukid mentions that his Kabuki Stage – Great Bridge lets him summon a Level-4-or-below Monster from his hand, the split-screens split to show Kabukid about to summon Ben Kei–but while he’s placing Ben Kei in his fourth Monster Zone, we see his Yoshi Tsune in Zone 2 when it’s shown later to be in Zone 3, and his mouth is also missing initially during the screens’ splitting.  Fixed first in Photoshop as I blanked Monster Zone 2, then in AfterEffects as I applied a Defense-Mode Yoshi Tsune proxy in Zone 3, and then finally in Vegas as I held his closed mouth over the frames where it was missing.
3. (EDIT, 1/21/23: After Kabukid notes that his Great Bridge Field Magic’s effect forces Wildman into Attack Mode, he then notes that Ben Kei can attack as often as the amount of Equip Cards on him; we get a glimpse into his hand and see that, along with his Shizuka the Heavenly Dancer, it has a copy of Dramatic Pose in it–except Dramatic Pose was already played, and he plays New Year Drum in a couple of scenes from his hand. Fixed in AfterEffects by applying a proxy for New Year Drum over Dramatic Pose, slightly touching up the artwork I grabbed from the scene in which he activates it which is the only spot it’s visible in, and masking in Kabukid’s thumb and Shizuka’s card over it, as well as the original card’s outline to blend it in.
   
4. After playing Kabuki Stage – Cherry Blossom Mountain, Kabukid compares it to Mt. Yoshino in Nara, Japan, and its cherry blossoms, but as he does, we get a glimpse of his hand, and a repeat of #3 above with a copy of Dramatic Pose still there with his Shizuka–as before, Dramatic Pose was already played, and he plays New Year Drum in a couple more scenes yet.  Fixed in AfterEffects by applying the New Year Drum proxy over Dramatic Pose and masking in Kabukid’s thumb and the original card outline to blend it in.)
5. After Kabukid activates New Year Drum and Shou and Kenzan wonder about its effect, we see Judai contemplating things a bit, but the start of the panning shot here shows him above the bottom edge of the frame, so the cloud background behind him is visible.  Fixed in Vegas by cropping the shot slightly to remove that.
6. After the eyecatch, as Judai starts to question Kabukid’s style, the two are on a split-screen; as it splits to show Chronos and Napoleon wondering what he’s getting at, there’s a quick frame where the border between them pre-split is still visible between the two individual screens.  Fixed in Vegas by just masking the Chronos/Napoleon shot behind them over it.
7. After taking damage from Burstlady attacking Battle Claw Fox, Kabukid notes that now Burstlady will be destroyed during that turn’s End Phase, but his lip-flaps are out of sync with the line as spoken; there’s an audible pause after he says the “Burstlady” in the “And with this, Burstlady…” part, but the lip-flap pause happens earlier after he says “And with this…” instead.  Fixed in Vegas by moving the pause a bit later in time with the line.
8. A bit later, as Judai ends his turn and Kabukid notes that it’s time for them to part ways with Burstlady, we go over to Burstlady as Battle Claw Fox appears behind her, but there’s an odd gap in the neck/shoulder strap on her left that shows some skin.  As previous shots showed that the strap was a continuous red, I fixed it first in Photoshop by filling it in, then in Vegas by re-doing the panning on the shot, applying an initial bit of gaussian blur to the edit.
9. After Judai reiterates to Kabukid that he won’t lose as long as Kabukid’s not being serious, we see Chronos/Napoleon and Shou/Kenzan on a split-screen wondering about it, but as the screens split to show Kabukid about to question what makes him so sure, a few things happen: 1) an odd coloring glitch happens around Shou’s mouth, 2) the border on Shou/Kenzan’s screen cuts off along the top corner, and 3) the Shou/Kenzan screen takes a frame or two longer than Chronos/Napoleon’s to leave the shot.  Fixed in Vegas by first redoing the Shou/Kenzan screen’s split using a still without the coloring glitch, then masking on more of the border over the gap up top, while timing it to leave the shot with the Chronos/Napoleon screen.
10. As Kabukid shields himself from the impact of Neos’s attack on Genghis Ghan, his LP falling to zero, his Disk is missing the orb in the middle, which should be lit up red since his Disk is on.  Fixed in Photoshop by cutting/pasting the orb from a different shot and doing some editing to blend it in for the frames in which it’s visible (while also adding screen-blended layers on top to cover it up as the dust flies around), and then threw the fixed frames into the footage in Vegas.
11. After Shou and Kenzan cheer for Judai’s win, Judai turns to them and audibly says, “Sweet!”–but his lips don’t move.  Fixed in Vegas by adding two quick lip-flaps to him from a different but similar shot, adjusted to fit his face in this one.
12. After Kabukid and Judai have a conversation about dueling again sometime, Shou and Kenzan walk over asking if they can see one of his bits.  Judai looks up at them, and Kabukid agrees to it, reaching over to grab his wig–but as Judai turns back to him, two things happen for two of the movement frames involved: 1) his hair from the previous frames post-turning-to-Kenzan/Shou stays as his head rotates back to Kabukid, with a visible outline for the new hair, and 2) his hand holding the GeneX medal he won ends up behind Judai’s right shoulder instead of staying in front.  (I actually noticed this one as I was finishing revising the sub script, lol.)  Fixed this with a Photoshop/Vegas combo: first, I used the Clone Tool in Photoshop with the last frame after Judai turns back to Kabukid to add on more trees in the background around where Judai’s duplicate hair is in the earlier frames, which I then masked his new hair over using the visible outline for it–this got rid of the duplicate hair in both frames–and then, I masked out Judai’s hand and the GeneX medal, keeping them in view as I masked Kabukid grabbing his wig on top of it.  Now, Kabukid’s wig moves in front of Judai’s hand, while Judai’s hair moves normally!
13. For the preview, an error similar to #5 happens as Manjoume draws vs the pro he beats early in 87, except this time the character model gap happens on the right of the frame; fixed in Vegas for 87 proper by slightly cropping the shot accordingly, then applied the fix for the hardsub’s preview.
    

Translation Notes! (86)

• Kabukid’s Kabuki Stage – Great Bridge Field Magic is a reference to the fabled site of the battle between Benkei and Minamoto no Yoshitsune, one of the most famous samurai fighters in the history of Japan, at the Great Gojou Bridge in Kyoto–Kabukid’s Yoshitsune is based on the same Yoshitsune, while Armed Samurai – Ben Kei later appears playing the part of Benkei in Kabukid’s performance, all keeping in relation with with his Kanjinchō (a popular kabuki dance-drama)-themed Deck (as noted on Yugipedia, though it does seem to also pull from another play called Yoshitsune Senbon Zakura, since the New Year Drum card he plays later and equips to Shizuka is part of this one).

• 7:04: RE: Kabukid’s Warrior Monk Halberd, a souhei would be a monk soldier who used a naganata/halberd as their weapon of choice; it was equipped to Ben Kei to connect to how Benkei was a souhei himself.

• 7:12: RE: Kabukid’s Dramatic Pose card, a mie is a pose in kabuki where the actor freezes and poses to establish a powerful moment in the performance.

• 10:08: Kabukid compares his Cherry Blossom Mountain card to Mt. Yoshino, located close to Nara, Japan, which is famous for its cherry blossoms.

• 15:59: Genghis Ghan’s name is a pun off of “Genghis Khan,” the famous Mongolian warlord; the “gun” stored in its mouth adds another layer to it.