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

xiranjayzhao:

The creator of Yugioh, Mr. Kazuki Takahashi, has passed away at age 60. He was found on the shore of Nago, Okinawa in scuba diving gear, though the circumstances of his death are still under investigation.

Rest in peace, legend. Thank you for giving me so much, more than you ever could’ve known.

ngl, I’ve had the browser tab in which I saw this under the #yugioh tag open since the news broke, mainly because I was so busy with work and work on my finalized subs that I couldn’t post, but also I suppose in a way because I had to process this for a bit.  I actually found out while waking up an hour before my alarm on Thursday, seeing a notification from a friend DM’ing me about it before I went back to sleep, and I spent most of the day seeing all the condolences and bittersweet/warm thoughts about it on Twitter, the NAC Discord, and elsewhere.

Letting it sink in sometime after some coffee on Thursday, it really is tragic, for one–just given his impact on the broader YGO fandom and culture in general–but also just hard to really imagine, especially with it being an accident as it seems to be.  It’s true that people we like in media or culture being gone at any moment is bound to happen with life being as short as it is (people like Betty White come to mind), but there’s no underselling how much of an impact Takahashi’s work and story/art have had on millions of people.

I know I definitely wouldn’t be who I am or–being the shy kid I was for most of junior and high school not unlike Yugi–have had the friendships I’ve had if I didn’t have the anime/card game based on his manga to grow up with and come of age with, or have the spinoffs it inspired to draw lessons from and get just as attached to in their own ways.  We’ll still have his art and everything to look back to, which is the silver lining here (especially since I still have the rest of the Battle City finals and onwards to read in the manga), though I did always love popping onto his IG to see new art he’d drop or learning about what influence he’d had on the spinoffs as they went on.  It’s comforting to know that he was able to have a major hand in producing DSOD and giving his original story closure, and his cut of Yugi setting up his Duel Disk vs Kaiba will continue to look so good.

Rest in power, king. 👍🏽 And thanks for giving us everything–that which we can see and yet not see.  All our stories end in light–but they’re also all just beginning.

Also, Konami, pls don’t pull a Nickelodeon/Stephen Hillenberg with DM going forward thx (unless it’s reanimating the manga in full or even adapting YGO R ofc)

Phew, finally finished re-finalizing my finalized GX stuff so far!

Over the last few weeks well I guess months–initially while I waited for some potential editing help for 65, then [once I canned the last fix I’d planned; sorry to those I may have slightly annoyed with my casual reblogs about it] just to get it all done while in Rome before double-releasing 65 and 66–I’ve been giving my scripts one final look-through to fix any consistency or formatting issues with my newer stuff (things like my starting to use “Fusion Undone” as De-Fusion’s translated name before accidentally going back to “Fusion Cancel” or turning “Miss Asuka” back to “Asuka-san” since I’d meant to use that whenever “Asuka-sama” was used, or the way I’d italicize contractions or capitalize things), and also to sort of go and do things I should’ve done initially (like translating Daitokuji’s nyas into meows, the logic being that it’s what we’d hear in English anyway; hopefully this is one that goes over well?).  Basically just to cross them off my list so I don’t go back to them at all.  The plan is also to work on new finalized MKV softsubs that I’ll release on NAC for those who’d like ‘em, since Zeratul (who’d provided them before) hasn’t in a long while, and once I do them for 1-66, they’ll be a thing going forward.

While I was at it, I applied some other animation/footage fixes to things I hadn’t picked up on in my initial finalizing run-through as I started doing them, or polished a couple that I did.  Some might wonder “why put in the effort for quick shots or at all no one cares,” but as I’ve mentioned before, as someone who loves GX with some [I think good?] skills using Photoshop/video editing and an eye for detail, I figured if I have time to improve it for people (especially those who might notice the same errors I did) where the staff didn’t take the chance to do so on the DVDs (where they usually would), then why not? (I was actually inspired to do it by KaiserNeko doing the same for DBZ during DBZ Abridged.) The fixes I work on are done for both my hardsubs and the DVDRips I release with the scripts over on NAC, and there’s a thread there with the original DVDRips I work off of as well, in case anyone doesn’t like them (most/all of my finalized Season 1 scripts were re-timed for them by someone there, but I’ll take some time out to do it myself too now that I’ve re-finalized them), along with the CR subs which I’ve said should be shown love too.  I’ll list these new fixes out below by each episode, for anyone super curious about the details; some are kind of interesting, lol. (Did my best to format it so it’s readable, too, lol.)

So, yeah–keep an eye out for the links to actually-final 1-64 on my stream masterpost to be updated along with 65 and 66 once I post them (probably tomorrow), I’ll be updating the links in my NAC thread to the hardsubs and scripts I’ve re-finalized along with any DVDRips updated with the fixes below, and as I get work going on 67+ (which I’ve started a bit of) I’ll work on batches of the softsub MKVs for folks.  For people looking forward to my 65 and 66, really appreciate the patience the past couple of months; hoping to work on some double-releases to make up some time.

Keep reading

sienasiesta-deactivated20210225:

ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME GX

homura-bakura:

One year ago today, Yu-Gi-Oh! Arc V came to a close.  One year ago today, it we had reached the end of the first show I had ever followed so closely, the only show that I stayed up until 3 or 4 in the morning to watch it air without subtitles in Japan, the show that, to this day, I still say with no exaggeration probably saved my life.

I had had other big favorite shows before Arc V.  But none of them have stayed as long, or as deeply, as this one.  This was the first show that grabbed me by the heart and refused to let go, the first one that gave me characters that I resonated with so deeply that I knew I’d never untangle myself.

So here’s to you, Arc V.  It’s been a year, and I still miss the rush of excitement that came with waiting for each Sunday for whatever would come next.  It’s been a year and I still haven’t let go, and I don’t think I will.  It’s been a year and I still find myself coming back every single day and finding something new, still finding something that even in my lowest points makes me want to get up and keep walking.

Here’s to you, Yuya, the first character that I felt such a deep kinship with; you suffered with so much of the same feelings that I did, and your journey was one that gave me the strength to believe that I could make it through, too.

Here’s to you, Yuzu, you’re still my favorite female protagonist, and your determination and initiative inspired me to believe in myself, too.

Here’s to you, Reiji, you’ve become one of my ultimate favorites in such a deep way over the last few months and seeing you try so hard during every rewatch while knowing what you’re going through in full, now, is something that won’t leave me.

I wish I had the time and breadth for a personal remark on every single one of these characters, because there’s barely a single one that didn’t reach me right down to my heart and leave me changed.  So here’s to every one of them, I love all of you and what you brought to the story.

Here’s to the writers, who put their all into creating such a long, single story arc that all came together in such a beautiful way by the end.  For giving us characters that were so artfully and subtly made that even without direct screentime, so much of who they were could still be understood.

Here’s to the character designers, who left us with my favorite aesthetics and designs in anything I’ve every enjoyed, characters so distinct and beautiful that I can’t forget even one of them.

Here’s to the animators, who worked so hard and created some truly stunning episodes and sequences, even with the added stress and obstacle of the other problems in the studio and the extra work that had to be done on multiple projects.  Your hard work truly shines through.

Here’s to the voice actors; this show had some of the most raw and emotional voice work I’ve heard, and every character felt so real.  Your love of your work and your characters were visible.

Here’s to the composers, Arc V’s music touched me so deeply and there are still tracks I can’t get out of my mind.  I’m looking forward so much to the release of Sound Duel 4 and Vocal Best, and I can’t wait to have the fruit of that labor in my hands.

And to everyone else who put their time and hard work into this project, here’s to you, too.  Something so big as a long series anime takes so much effort and teamwork to pull off, and something truly beautiful came of everyone working together.  Even if it’s just the job, something truly incredible was made here, something that transcends the glorified card commercial that the franchise could have been.  Every Yu-Gi-Oh has been such a labor of love that I never would have expected from a franchise made to sell trading cards, and yet every time I’m blown away by the extra effort that every part of the production process puts into it.

And finally, here’s to you, the friends and people I’ve met through or because of this show.  Staying up on steams with you guys, circulating speculation posts, crying and loving our faves together, making content and sharing the love for everything this show was for us, I wouldn’t trade it for anything.  Your enthusiasm and love helps mine never flag, and all troubles that plague every fandom aside, I wouldn’t trade y’all for anything.  Thank you <3

Arc V was the story that I wanted and the story that I needed, and I legitimately don’t know who I’d be without it.  It’s become so much a part of me now.

So thank you, Arc V.  I wasn’t going to make such a long, sappy post, but I can’t help myself. and once I started, I just couldn’t stop.  There will probably be another on the anniversary of your airing, but for now, here’s this one.

It’s been a year since you ended, but I don’t feel that it really ever ended.  Thank you, and here’s to every year after that I’ll still be here, loving every bit of Arc V. <3

iamcelestos:

I probably talked about this ages before, but I’m not sure if I did so hey let’s talk about it again, this time with screencaps (thanks @alicethedragonvalkyrie, and I think those are @kaiowut99​‘s subs). I thought about the Dark World arc and specifically, the creation of Super Polymerization (Super Fusion). The way in which it was created made me think, and I’ve come to some… interesting conclusions.

This relates to episodes 134 onwards.

The five Wicked Doctrines/Runes/curse marks were implanted onto Judai’s friends, each representing one of five negative emotions: anger, sadness, anguish, hatred and doubt. These, as are sacrifices in general, are said to be critical to activate Super Poly:

Most important here is the fact that there are FIVE of these runes, and all five appear to be needed for Super Poly’s activation.

Now, clearly, issues arise with the gathering. The five runes all attach to different hosts, but the absence of one causes problems. Manjoume, Asuka, Fubuki and Kenzan are captured by Brron’s men, but Shou (the fifth) is missing.

During his duel with Judai, Brron then attempts to use Super Poly, despite having a missing component:

Of course, as we know, Brron does not succeed in using it, and even as Judai gains it post-duel, it does not seem to be complete. Haou/the Supreme King, within Judai, is aware of the card being incomplete:

Considering there was such emphasis on the 5 runes and their hosts being sacrificed, why is it that suddenly, the focus has switched to sacrificing anyone that dares to oppose Haou?

There were five components to activate Super Poly: the five hosts of the five runes. Five ‘special’ souls. One is missing, so… perhaps, it looks like the countless ‘ordinary’ souls of those in Dark World appear to be the replacements for that one ‘special’, marked one.

Shou, interestingly, never seems to be aware of this, and he never notices his own mark. This is in line with the other four who were sacrificed - none of them seemed to notice that they had been marked, and did not pick up on the emotions the runes were drawing out of them and emphasising. Instead, Shou does what he feels he can do: run, survive, and gradually come to accept his role as an observer in the game of life (I may discuss this in another meta post - Shou’s behaviour in later S3 is so so fascinating).

Either way - five special souls, or four special ones plus as many mundane souls as is needed to replace the fifth. How many souls became the replacement for Shou’s one, it is impossible to say, but it’s chilling to think it may have been as many as millions (as some fans have claimed). If Shou was unaware of his mark, then it’s likely that he never made the connection between himself and the fact that so many others had to be killed.

Still, that makes for some interesting thinking, in meta analysis and fanfic: how Shou would have felt, knowing the choice rested between either his one death, or the death of so, so many others - and the latter ended up being the case.

TL;DR - the countless civilian ‘deaths’ during Haou’s ‘reign’ in Dark World were due to one person’s absence. Shou himself may or may not have been aware of his position as a lynchpin, but it’s frightening to think what would have been going through his mind if he did know.

ghost-of-peppermint:

RIP YUUGO

hatefilledpoptarts:

I feel like Yugo went about it the wrong way, he tries to regain Rin by frantically showing her things they fondly shared, clear wing and their d-wheel. Yes the d-wheel is important and precious to them and the dragon was a card that brought them hope but he needed to face her head on because Yugo is the one she holds most dear. 

Like Shun, Yugo needed to get this feeling across of ‘I’m gonna get you back no mattter what’ in order to actually get some headway in the situation, feels like he may have just panicked too much in the heat of the moment.

Maybe this is just my appleshipper heart speaking.