Predictions and Observations:
Keith's Machinations I -
Yugi vs. Pegasus: Match of the Millennium I

Keith's Machinations I | Keith's Machinations II |
Best of Friends, Best of Duelists I | Best of Friends, Best of Duelists II |
Yugi vs. Pegasus: Match of the Millennium I

Keith's Machinations I - 3/10/07
“Dork. Of course we’re friends.”
How did Mai know that Joey needed an entry card? Hang on—I was going to say, no idea, maybe Tea told her, but actually we *do* know how she knows! She overheard Yugi and Joey on the boat there, and knows that since Joey had to get a star from Yugi, he would have needed a card, too. But, hang on; she saw Yugi give Joey the Glory card in The Night Before, right? Or did she already leave? Gah! I’ll have to check. But even then if she had known that Yugi gave Joey his card, how would she have known that Keith stole it or otherwise that Joey didn’t have it? Did she see him tearing up half the castle in search of it, perhaps?

Pegasus doesn’t look happy at all that Joey made it in time. I’d been wondering a lot during these episodes whom it was Pegasus was hoping to have win. It’s possible that Pegasus was hoping for another chance to humiliate Keith, which could have proved to be some fun. Maybe that was why, but after all of the other crazy things Yugi’s gone through (most of them sent his way by Pegasus), he couldn’t possibly think that Keith would even pose a challenge for Yugi. So Keith wouldn’t have had a chance to duel Pegasus anyway unless he could get past Yugi. I would think that Pegasus would have been hoping Joey would win from the start of this match, just because Joey presents a unique challenge to Yugi by definition, just as Kaiba did. Incidentally, that’s almost poetically interesting. It seems to me that after sending all of these other obstacles at Yugi, Pegasus would delight in encouraging another one. Then again, all of these other things were sent before Yugi really discovered the power of the Puzzle and decided to trust Atem. It could be that, now that Yugi’s discovered what Pegasus wanted him to, Pegasus just wants to make sure that they duel. That would fit with the theory of “A Millennium Item can’t be won in a duel until the wielder knows how to use it”. That could be a reason Pegasus didn’t look to happy when Joey got there on time: Joey would add ambiguity to the game whether he has skill or not, especially after what Yugi did in his recent match with Kaiba. Keith would get creamed easily. But why, then, would Pegasus have been pleased that Joey pulled it out even though Keith was cheating? He did seem sincerely congratulatory on that count.

There were only two sets of Glory cards in these finals; both Joey and Keith crashed the tournament. Speaking of which, there have been an awful lot of tournament-crashers over the years; I hadn’t noticed it until now. In Duelist Kingdom, there were Joey, Mokuba, and Keith; in Battle City, Joey again, Bakura, and the Rare Hunters (most likely not invited); in KCGC, Weevil and Rex; and in Gx, Blair is the only one I can think of.

The title is a bit of a pun (these wacky episode-namers LOVE their puns…); ‘machinations’ are also sneakiness and manipulation and so forth, which makes the title refer to Keith’s monsters, his cheating, the fact that he stole Joey’s card, his head games…it’s a good title. Quite inspired.

Keith's Machinations II - 3/10/07
“ I got news for ya, pal, even if you beat me—which you won’t—Yugi’d cream ya. And you know why, hotshot?… People like you never win. Sure, your tricks might get you a little ways, but only until people with good intentions show up! Like me! And like Yugi, too!”
“Sure your tricks may get you a *little* ways, but only until people with *good* intentions show up!” Ooh! Slam! And what it really reminded me of was GX’s Pro League. Come on! Show up, people with good intentions! The pseudo-sport of Duel Monsters needs you desperately!

Joey’s beginning to show the trademarks of his dueling style. He’s already getting to be a natural at bluffing (“Oh, and it’s a trap, so don’t bother attackin’”) and games of chance. This is the first duel in which both of those aspects of his style are fully formed and kicking. Before now, he seems to have been playing the shy newcomer in the dueling world (as much as Joey can be shy anyway), each duel hanging by a thread because of his lack of experience or his lack of knowledge about certain cards. This duel had something else to worry us: that Joey couldn’t win because Keith was cheating. However, if we get past that, we see that Joey is in really good form by now. I was very impressed. However, why? Did having reached the castle give him new confidence in his abilities? Was it Keith and the fact that he had been asking for it for a while now? Was it that he had clearly in mind (as Pegasus so handily discovered for us) what he was fighting for and what was supporting him? Was it the extra nerves of dueling a pro like Keith that caused him to keep the Heart firmly in mind? Was it confidence gained from his tag-duel with Yugi and the Paradox Brothers?

Red-Eyes got Summon the Dragon again.

Joey got a tad overconfident after defeating Barrel Dragon.

Pegasus doesn’t mention Keith is cheating. I suspect that he’s keeping quiet because he wants to see if Joey can pull it out anyway. After all, they’ve shown their dueling skills to be about even, so it doesn’t matter too much to him who faces Yugi. Then again, more likely it would make all the difference in the world, because there’s the chance, especially after it happened with Kaiba, that Yugi might end up losing in a way that has nothing to do with skill. Still, Pegasus also loves entertaining duels, and probably just wanted to see if Joey could win anyway.

Best of Friends, Best of Duelists I - 3/17/07
"How amusing. The same best friends who would do anything to help each other have now become archrivals, pitted against each other in a desperate match that can boast but a single winner! Oh, what a splendid show this should make!"
There’s something special about the rain. For one, this is the only tournament duel that has ever been rained on, period. Both other days of Duelist Kingdom were bright and sunny, as were the entireties of Battle City and KCGC. Gx was spread out enough that there could have been some of that that we didn’t see (*fume fume*), but this is pretty much it. Moreover, it seems like there’s something even more important about the rain. It was a fitting backdrop for a duel that everyone was so sure would be completely heartbreaking because Yugi and Joey had to fight each other. The rain began right after Joey destroyed Gaia the Dragon Champion, and a sort of silence fell. Joey was cheering that he actually pulled it off, and Yugi was just watching, silent. The rain begins with a big thunderclap. Joey decides that Yugi’s got his “game-face” on to keep him guessing, but Yugi replies that he’s just letting Joey enjoy his triumph over that move; it was a good one. And now, he’s going to play *his* good move. Perhaps the beginning of the rainfall represented that until this point, Yugi had been holding back a bit, giving Joey a last few rounds to get warmed up? That would seem evident in that he called a time-out to give Joey some advice earlier. By now, he’s seen that Joey can come up to a higher level and has given him cause to go all-out without worrying about it. Perhaps that silence was Yugi kind of letting go, the transition between Joey being sort of informally his student to being just another duelist. Joey showed here that he’s ready to go it on his own as a duelist, to find his own way. Though they’re still friends and allies, he doesn’t need Yugi’s guidance anymore. But then, why did it keep raining throughout the duel? Why not mark this some other way (unless I’m reading into it too much, which is very, very possible)? The second part of this duel is fast-and-furious, in which Yugi and Joey really show off their different skills and act entirely ass individuals. I think that perhaps the storm as a whole represents their relationship being in upheaval, changing a bit, because they assert in this that Joey is practically Yugi’s equal and that he’s “graduated”, so to speak. Therefore, their relationship and how they relate to each other was shifting somewhat; what now? And through all this they chose to keep their friendship as strong as ever it was and to consider themselves worthy opponents rather than occasional vicious rivals. The storm clears to allow an even brighter day to shine through. I also note that Yugi refers to Makiu the Magical Mist as enchanted rain later in the duel (as opposed to calling it mist, fog, or anything else).

The biggest duel monsters tournament that’s ever been thrown, Joey called Duelist Kingdom. He must mean in terms of fame, unless that boat could cram in over two hundred duelists. All of whom were eliminated within two days (man, those eliminators must’ve been working overtime…).

Summon the Dragon at the beginning of the duel, back-to-back with No Matter What.

“Anyone can score an early lead in a duel, but only a few can play well the entire match.” A favorite Bakura line of mine (Right up there with “There’s not much to eat in the Shadow Realm!” (The Final Face Off V)). But more than that; I’ve always thought of the timed duel in The Gauntlet is Thrown when I heard this line. Pegasus practically paraded his weakness, I thought to myself, in ending the duel before it would be truly apparent which one was the better duelist.

“That stare’s meant doom for many a duelist.” Has it ever!!

There are an even sixty different shots from several different episodes in the No Matter What montage, predominantly from Journey to the Duelist Kingdom and Double Trouble Duel I-III. If you’re wondering how I know that, it’s an amusing story involving a responsibility-free Saturday afternoon, note-taking supplies, lots of obsessive patience, and the recording in question.

Best of Friends, Best of Duelists II - 3/17/07
“You fought a valiant duel, my friend, and this is the hardest move I’ve ever had to make! But this ends now.”
“It doesn’t matter to *me* who wins or loses, because in the end it is I who will emerge victorious!” WHAT?! Okay, now I’m *really* confused! What gives, Pegasus?! This whole time Pegasus has been throwing challenges at Yugi, coaxing him, I think, into actually tapping into the Puzzle’s power consciously, and now he’s looking forward to a real duel with him. He’s made it so that Yugi will essentially come at him with everything he has, and he’s confident that that won’t be enough, but it *will* be incredible to see. What’s the deal with his saying this? What about winning the Millennium Puzzle? What about KaibaCorp? Then again, with both Kaiba and Mokuba out of action and not likely to be found anytime soon unless our heroes have something to say about it, to whom would its leadership then pass to? The Big Five, most likely, because there are no other Kaiba family members that aren’t…well…virtual. But the Big Five still required that Pegasus defeat Yugi or the equivalent; in Duel With a Ghoul the impostor specifically stated that Pegasus could have KaibaCorp if Yugi lost the duel, and since nobody knew (except Pegasus and Kaiba himself) that that wasn’t Kaiba, that statement would have offered a way around that. However, if Yugi had lost this duel right here, he would have been defeated by Joey, not Pegasus, and therefore Joey would have unwittingly pulled off what Mokuba was attempting in Everything’s Relative. Then again, even without defeating Yugi, Pegasus may have been able to “persuade” the Big Five to merge with Industrial Illusions anyway, considering the fact that he has the power to bring Kaiba *back*…Anyway, my point is that this entire time Pegasus has been focusing on Yugi, and in addition to that has several good reasons to defeat him specifically. Why on Earth, I ask, would he say now that he doesn’t care who wins this duel?!

“Now I gotta depend on luck, not dueling skill, to find his Dark Magician!” Well, Joey, you *are* the duelist who has a thing for games of chance! No prob!

“Whenever a duelist gives Yugi time to recover, he always comes back stronger.” Very true. And for some reason I really like that line.

“That’s the way life goes, Joey: never as you’ve planned. The world is a very arbitrary place, isn’t it? It’s a place where you can be locked in battle with your dearest friend, for stakes neither can afford to lose. Oh, I know you’d like to think that your friendship would be enough to sustain you through any mishap or misfortune, but that’s not the way the world works. No, the world is a place where Fate intervenes when you least expect it, with consequences that can turn your world upside-down. Just when you think that you’ve etched the perfect portrait of your future, and your life couldn’t get any better; just when you let down your guard at last and open your heart; when against all odds, you’ve found that one special person in all the world that fills your heart with joy, the person you know you are destined to spend the rest of your life with; that’s when tragedy strikes. When Fate hits you with a cold slap of reality and shows you who’s boss. Yes, the world has taught me that only the strong and the ruthless survive. In memory of all I have lost, I fight on with all I possess, and I intend to win!”
That’s quite a monologue right there. I doubt I could do it justice, especially since my accent is atrocious (lol), but the next time I’m in desperate need of an audition monologue…maybe.
Anyway, I also noticed something else about this monologue, specifically that its subject is Fate, and Pegasus has another monologue toward the *end* of the series that offers a very different perspective on the subject. I believe that I’m correct in saying that they were meant to contrast, and I know I’m right in saying that they do, and that their doing so shows us firsthand how “Not only have all these people helped *Yugi*, but in turn, Yugi touched each of their lives as well.”
I also noticed that it is a continuation of Duelist Kingdom’s theme that the ruthless and vicious and overall not-nice are the winners, and softer duelists are crushed. Other references to this include “If I’m going to stand any chance at all of beating him, I need to play by my own ruthless rules, not his!” (Kaiba, The Scars of Defeat, re Pegasus); “Panik is brutal, ruthless, everything the ultimate duelist needs to be.” (Mai, Winning Through Intimidation); “If Yugi had just done what needed to be done, he’d be entering the castle, not me. But he was too weak to follow through on his play!” (Kaiba, Face Off III); “That punk Yugi could’ve won the match, but he threw it away to Kaiba! Whoever heard of a *duelist* doin’ *that*?!” (Bandit Keith, also Face Off III). Anyway, it seems to me that in winning this tournament through honor and heart, Yugi proves them all wrong and makes the dueling world overall a nicer place to be. You all probably know by now what I’m about to say next: why on Earth did Yugi retire from dueling by GX? The entire dueling world has descended back into the dark ages!!

Joey’s such an amazing bluffer. That rocked. Sorry, Yugi, but you got toasted right there with the Kunai With Chain!

Why d’ya think *Yugi* originally had Time Wizard in *his* deck?

For some reason, the Dark Sage reminds me of what Bakura said earlier about Yugi’s having more experience. The Time Wizard gave Joey’s dragon size and power, but gave Yugi’s Magician wisdom and experience. If I really want to go nuts with this (and I do), I’ll say that the Time Wizard sorta represents the tournament itself. Yugi gave Joey Time Wizard, and he “gave him” the tournament by giving him a star chip; the course of the tournament has strengthened Joey as a duelist and transformed him from a novice into a true contender, but it’s also changed Yugi, who was already quite strong, in that he’s become aware of the Millennium Puzzle, its power, and its spirit, and learned some valuable wisdom along the way. This tournament also really got the ball rolling for the rest of his adventure, in which he would become even stronger and learn more, they both would. The Time Wizard changed the field like Duelist Kingdom changed Yugi and Joey, is what I’m trying to say.

I was noticing that Flame Swordsman and Dark Magician never end up going toe-to-toe, but then I realized that Red-Eyes and Dark Magician did. Moreover, it was Black Skull Dragon, the monster that represents Yugi and Joey’s strength as a team because they can only build it with both of their monsters. The main thing I noticed regarding that was that Yugi could have won without resurrecting Black Skull Dragon, but chose not to. The explanation, strange as it is, that occurred to me was that it symbolized that Yugi’s victory was one for both of them, which it ended up being. Dark Magician represents Yugi alone.

Mai’s Glory card sure seems to have a lot of meaning to it now. It started out as Mai’s and she gave it to Joey, and then Joey tried to give it to Yugi but Yugi gave it right back. If I had to go super symbolic on this mess, I’d remember that each time someone gave this card to Joey, it had been when he was losing hope of saving Serenity, and say that the card itself would represent hope.
And Glory of the King’s Opposite Hand is even a bit more interesting, because it sets Yugi apart from the other competitors. Throughout the playoffs, when asked to show their entry cards, all three of the other finalists showed Glory of the King’s Hand, but Yugi was the only one who showed this card. In fact, he was the only one who both had it and had a real use for it. He and Mai were the only two finalists who were invited to the tournament and thus had entry cards, and Mai had no real quarrel with Pegasus. Keith did, but in retrospect he couldn’t have challenged Pegasus anyway.

“I’m just here to save my grandpa, and the Kaiba brothers.” I have to wonder, when this first showed, if anyone heard that and went, ‘wait…WHAT?!’

By the way, I was working on some other stuff today and I realized something interesting about the red and black creatures on the tournament tree in Duel Identity I: on the right, a black dragon breathing red flame, and on the right? It has feathers; perhaps a phoenix? My first inclination would have been a winged horse, sorta. I dunno. That would have made more sense.

Yugi vs. Pegasus: Match of the Millennium I - 3/24/07
"I think--oh wait, I know you’re just beginning to comprehend my power. Do you now realize the magnitude of the jeopardy you’ve put yourself in by accepting this duel? How can you defeat not only the creator of Duel Monsters, but a duelist who can read your every thought? I can see everything in your mind-- your hopes, your dreams, even your fears, and what you fear most right now is me, and with good reason: you know my mind-reading abilities give me an unbeatable advantage!”
Why was Yugi going through the door to the balcony? Wouldn’t he be entering at the ground level, into the arena itself? Wouldn’t that have been out of the way, considering the route that the four finalists took in Duel Identity I, which was nowhere near (Tristan, Tea, and Bakura were surprised that Joey showed up on the balcony instead of staying where he could more easily go into the arena)? Yugi couldn’t have been nervous enough to choose the wrong door, right? Did he have something else in mind? Was it just a goof on the part of the writers?

This episode included Millennium Battle, of course, and also some Summon the Dragon.

“Maybe I need to keep a vow of my own, Pegasus.” Was that just the reason Yugi was giving Pegasus? To me it seems that not only was that a reason for Yugi to insist that Kaiba and Mokuba be freed also, but also it was that Kaiba had been fighting for the same thing he was: whatever else, they were in the same boat, and knowing that Yugi had a great deal of sympathy for Kaiba and Mokuba. However, even without that, it seems unlikely to me that Yugi would have turned his back on anyone in Pegasus’ clutches any more than he’d leave them to any other fate. What would Yugi have said to Pegasus had he not made that promise to Mokuba so long ago? I’m also reminded of the other time this question was asked of Yugi: Noah asked a similar question, after Kaiba and Mokuba were turned to stone in virtual world and Yugi took up the duel. Yugi replied that he and Kaiba were alike in that they both duel with honor. The courage and determination Kaiba showed in his duel with Pegasus would also most likely have shown that.

Why did Roland mention that Yugi could take over Industrial Illusions or so forth? Wouldn’t it be better not to draw attention to things like that? Then again, Pegasus isn’t even vaguely planning that he may lose; he doesn’t care *what* his opponent asks for. However, those may not have occurred to Pegasus’ opponent, and, if Pegasus *had* somehow lost to anyone else, that would have been very interesting and really not good at all. But Yugi just wants Pegasus to release his prisoners. Pegasus should consider himself lucky that the one person who could have brought a lot more crashing down had more important things to fight for. Then again, this may have just been said to call *our* attention to the enormity of the stakes on both sides: Pegasus’ plans are all going to be sealed with this one victory, but if he loses Yugi can demand anything from him. Yugi has been fighting to get here this whole time, but if he loses, his soul gets captured and the world is in danger. Actually, the stakes are somewhat similar: everything they’ve been working for to gain, and everything to lose. Perhaps that’s the real significance of the Glory of the King’s Opposite Hand, because it represents what happens if either loses.

Bakura doesn’t remember that Tristan left-- why would Yami Bakura have prompted Tristan to leave? What caused him to decide to go look was Bakura’s concern that Pegasus’ prisoners could end up also being hostages and it wouldn’t matter if Yugi *did* win, basically. Why did Yami Bakura choose to say this, since Bakura doesn’t recall this conversation? Was he intending, perhaps, to send Tristan searching for Kaiba and/or Mokuba, and if he managed to find either, Yami Bakura would know? That would explain why he kept an eye on Croquet; as head of security (Pegasus stated so back in Double Trouble Duel I, I believe), he’d be notified of any such activity. What if, however, Tristan had gotten back with Mokuba’s shell *without* being detected? Yami Bakura could probably have taken over the shell without being noticed, especially if Yugi and Pegasus, the two people who might have stopped him, were currently occupied dueling. I d assume that that was, perhaps, what Yami Bakura had been planning, but then Tristan triggered alarms, so Yami Bakura decided to go help him out a bit.

“So courageous. So defiant.” I’m reminded of a similar quote of Pegasus’ from their last duel: “Ah, Yugi-boy. You really are quite entertaining; the way you scow and sneer, so defiant and yet helpless, and so completely ignorant of the power of your Millennium Puzzle!”

“Yes. But this is the biggest gamble I’ve ever seen anybody take on Duel Monsters.” This is BAKURA who’s saying this? Well, hate to say it, pal, but, considering what you’re wearing around your neck, get used to it. That goes for pretty much everyone else as well. That gets to be par for the course after a while.

“Oh, Yugi. You just can’t lose. If you did, I’d-- you just have to win! You have to!!” *cough cough*. I’m kinda curious as to what Tea’s feelings are for Yugi before it’s really known that there are two of them. It’s clear that she’s very protective of little Yugi, and is the whole time. It seems likely from Face Off I that she already suspects that there are two, or that something strange is going on. It’s pretty clear from this particular quote, or at least it’s foreshadowed heavily, that Tea has feelings for him. It was already apparent, from the events of Face Off III and Shining Friendship, to cite a few examples, that she cares deeply for Yugi-- either or both.

There was quite a bit of talk about Pegasus’ “collection” -- it occurs to me that the capture of a soul as powerful as Yugi’s would, by the laws of shadow magic we’ve sorta learned by now, provide a good deal of power. I wonder, is *that* why Pegasus set Yugi so many obstacles and challenges? It’s made him a stronger person, and therefore a stronger soul; he’d provide more power.

Pegasus still seems very interested in KaibaCorp, “and all of its inventions” , especially.

The Big Five seem a bit easier to tell apart this time.

The Big Five were planning to record this duel and broadcast it worldwide if Pegasus won. That means that, for the record, there was a full or at least almost full (depending on whether they pulled a School Duel and turned it off) recording of this entire duel, recorded for posterity unless of course they destroyed it. This explains how it was so widely-known, or perhaps it doesn’t. If they only would have broadcast it if Pegasus won, then it never got broadcast anywhere. Therefore, few would have known. However, plenty of people seemed to discover rather quickly that Yugi defeated Pegasus; who would have spread the word besides the few who were there to see? I’m not sure if it’s possible that Pegasus himself chose to broadcast it; he seemed to accept defeat with at least enough grace to keep his word and free the souls. I’ll be able to write with a bit more certainty in a couple weeks when I can actually see the episode that would be in question (Aftermath). It’s also possible, perhaps, that in returning to KaibaCorp, the Kaiba brothers broadcasted it. This may either have been in the name of honor, fair play, and gratitude (a bit hard to believe, but still), or possibly because word was beginning to spread that KaibaCorp was under new management, they needed to quash such rumors, and what better way than showing Pegasus losing the deciding duel? I can think of a better way: throw the Battle City tournament. No, just kidding. It would have worked, though-- it did for KCGC. Still, it seems a bit odd that word should travel so fast if the Big Five were in charge of the broadcast.

I note that in this duel special attention is paid to all formalities. Except, oddly enough, that of flipping a coin or whatever to determine who goes first. However, I’ve had a thought on that. I’ve wondered before about that and wondered if it was an unspoken rule of the challenger going first or some such. However, at this point I think that going first may be an act of guts: the first to put him- or herself out there. Therefore, it *would* be rather like cowboys in a shootout-- one of them has to decide to go first and begin the match, either forced to because the other won’t, or decisively choosing to be the first to take the plunge.

“You have come far, Yugi-boy, and learned much, as I wished. But you’re still a novice compared to me, for I have mastered the power of my Millennium item.” Yet more evidence toward this neverending question: WHY did Pegasus wish this?

“I. Won’ t. Lose. I can’ t lose!!” This is Yugi I’m quoting right here. I found it a bit hard to believe, and I have to wonder just how scared he really is and how far it’s throwing off his game. Let this quote be witness to the fact here that Yugi is still certainly not fully grown into his own yet; he still has plenty to learn that he shows mastery of in later duels. Such preoccupation with win-and-lose is usually one of the warning signs, no matter what the stakes. Yugi needs to remember not only what he’s fighting for, but what he’s learned to get there; Pegasus has, in spending the tournament building Yugi’s strength as a duelist and pushing him to unlock his potential, sowed the seeds of his own destruction.

Speaking of which, may I observe yet again (off I go on a rambling spree again) that Pegasus is an instrument of Fate. It was his delving into the world of Shadow-magic in determination to bring back Cecelia that brought him into the path of the Millennium Eye and showed him his first glimpse of the ancient shadow games. Inspired, he set out on his calling, re-creating the mythic battles in the form of a card game. I argue that this was not sinister by saying that Pegasus would have been captivated by the legends and stories of the mythic battles through the same trait of personality that pulls him to cartoons. That’ s something the two of us happen to have in common. However, I refute this by also noting that without any equivalent way of dueling, the shadow games would never have returned, and Pegasus could not have gained the power from them needed to bring Cecelia back. According to most accounts, the return of the shadow games was the key event that caused Atem to reawaken as well. To delve into other history, both Hawkins and grandpa were duel enthusiasts, and Hawkins discovered their cards’ twins in tombs in Egypt. Therefore, that connection is most likely what led Grandpa to go looking for that tomb in which he found the Puzzle, if it would add some additional weight to Hawkins’ embattled theory and perhaps provide irrefutable proof. He said that he believed that the tomb contained “the secret to the greatest game ever played.” That’s how he found the Millennium Puzzle. Pledging to always keep it safe, he brought it home, but was unable to solve it. One day he “sort of dared” his grandson, Yugi, to, and of course, Yugi figured it out. But back to Pegasus. All through Duelist Kingdom, Pegasus pushed Yugi to become a better duelist, probably for his own reasons, and also unwittingly provided a common foe that put Yugi and Kaiba on the same side. I’ve often wondered, had the events of Duelist Kingdom never happened, if Yugi and Kaiba would ever have become anything more than bitter rivals. In defeat, Pegasus conferred on Yugi the title he would become synonymous with, and made him world-famous, leading to many more adventures. He also unwillingly passed the Millennium Eye on to Yami Bakura, who would later hand it to Kaiba, whom it would lead to enter the final battle in the Ancient Past. In addition, Pegasus was driven to create the Egyptian God Cards. Pegasus unwittingly, sometimes indirectly, provided Yugi with the tools he would need to fulfill this destiny of his: the game of Duel Monsters (since Yugi’s not much of a fencer, that we know of, lol) and thus the discovery of the Millennium Puzzle’s resting place and its subsequent coming to Yugi, the Egyptian God Cards and thus also a trigger to the events of Battle City, the ability to make use of the Millennium Puzzle, Kaiba as an ally… those are the ones that come readily to mind.

The uncanny Sir Tristan-- how on *Earth* did he get into that armor so fast?

Maybe it’s just because I’ve been working on some memorization in Yugi’s duel with Panik (Speaking of which, I noticed that Yugi started laughing when Panik referred to himself as “the big bad bogeyman”, because he “could see right through him”; that’s when it clicked, and Yugi realized that Panik was really all talk and flamethrowers.), but this really stuck out at me. I believe that Yugi actually is afraid in this duel, and with good reason, certainly, but it’s a bit of a stretch for me to really see Yugi as afraid. Somehow that makes this duel far more incredible than even it was already; as they say-- courage isn’t the absence of fear, it’s keeping on despite it. Yugi isn’t just worried that he’s fallen drastically behind; he’s frightened. At this point, Pegasus doesn’t even show any sign of weakness, anything Yugi might try to gain the upper hand, and every time Yugi stars trying to figure out a way, Pegasus distracts him by reading out whatever he’s trying to plan. It occurs to me that some of the greatest feats of dueling in this tournament have been byproducts of great fear. What about Joey, and his worry about Serenity’s eyesight? What about Kaiba, and his fear that he can’t save Mokuba? And now here’s Yugi, with everything to lose and everything to gain. The main difference is that this fear is for others’ wellbeing far more than their own. That they are and can be that deeply afraid on someone else’s behalf is, I believe it’s safe to say, among their greatest strengths as duelists.

The Eye is among the most powerful Millennium Items? What’s the most powerful? What about the least? Come on, Bakura, speak up—we’re dying to know! Also, Bakura mentioned that Pegasus can read anyone’s mind he chooses; does that mean that no other Item can give automatic protection (like Ishizu’s Necklace reportedly protected her from Yami Marik)? Keep in mind that I’m not counting the mind-shuffle in that-- that takes some ingenuity on Yugi’s part to act as a defense. But as I was saying, Bakura also said that he didn’t know “if any mere mortal could stand against it”. That probably excludes a couple more-than-mortals we know, but how would that help them defend against a Millennium Item? Then again, in Match of the Millennium III, Atem *does* manage to hold Pegasus off for a little while, while they come up with a plan.

Ah, Match of the Millennium-- the original Yu-Gi-Oh! finale duel, and an absolute classic. While other duels may have been with higher stakes, more devastating consequences, and craftier moves, this will always have a place in my heart. It’s hard to remember back now that Yugi wasn’t the King of Games; he was just a kid with a knack for Duel Monsters, going up against the creator of the game. Going into this match Pegasus seemed entirely invincible, and no one knew, Yugi himself included, whether Yugi could dream to come up to that level, whether anyone could. The world champion that Yugi barely held his own against was trounced like a novice while playing far beyond the top of his game and for just as noble a cause as Yugi is right now. The duel itself certainly commands attention even long after you know how it ends, because in addition it’s a constant battle of wills as Yugi fights to maintain his cool while Pegasus reads his mind like an open book. Meanwhile, there’s even more going on as Bakura’s less-friendly side, supposedly banished to the Shadow Realm, puts in a reappearance, and teams up with Tristan to rescue Mokuba’s empty shell and escape the guards. Moreover, both plotlines take all these twists and turns: Yugi discovers how to mind-shuffle, Pegasus takes the duel to the shadow realm; Yami Bakura shows up and shadow-magics the guards, and then turns on Tristan. It’s just so amazing to watch. We’re witnessing, for the first time in three years, the events that are central in dueling legend. I’d be willing to bet that, even in Jaden’s time, ten years or more after the fact, there is not a single duelist alive who doesn’t know the story of this match. It’s epic, pure and simple, and that alone makes it amazing to see.