"Yuma got more personal development in the first 15 minutes of episode 1 than any of the three in a seasons worth of content" That must be the funniest Yugioh burn I ever heard
One of my favorite moments in all of YGO is when Yuma was about to face Asteral and he breaks down because he can't play Duel Monsters for fun. He ALWAYS has to duel for the fate of the world and to see that it gets to him so much is such a nice and refreshing change of pace. I can see an actual kid having the same kind of break down.
It's literally the same thing as Judai. Except Judai didn't break down, but both forgot dueling is supposed to be fun. If you ask me, Yuma shares the personality traits of all three protagonists in some way while still retaining his own personality that makes him different enough to be enjoyable.
@@OutwardLyric Though Yuma felt it more while Judai just became more focused on winning just because he lost why he was so strong until the end of GX when he Dueled Yugi in the past.
lol no. vrains is bad. bad character development, some main character get shifted to minor character, the bohman arc and ignis/robopi arc litteraly the same, and yusaku never lost a single duel.
Tbh, i can see where most of the Zexal haters are coming from. The answer is, that we all grew up. Most of us are late teens, early twenties - who grew up watching DM, GX and 5Ds. If Zexal was realeased when we were younger, we'd love it.
I was born in 2007 meaning I was to young to watch gx and I didn’t have the ability to watch 5ds so I was stuck with dm on Netflix until zexal was released onto Netflix and I loved it
@@JustRhino I think the ending was more just of a reason to show how everyone is buddy buddy and how they can all be a great team more then a oh wow new dark foe
I actually just finished watching Yugioh Zexal today and I honestly have to say that it was a lot better than from what I have heard from others. The character development in this series was actually really well done. I honestly think that Yuma and Astral’s relationship with one another and their growth together was done so much better than Yugi and Yami. Astral was more of a teacher to Yuma in the beginning, but over time they bonded more and more and to the point to where Yuma was able to duel on his own and where they could be more than just teacher and student but friends that could have fun together and bond more. The villians, Ryouga, Kaito, and pretty much most of the characters were really well written. My only real complaint would have to be just like with Arc V, there were things that were left unanswered or that there could have been more after the show had finished. Things we didn’t get answered was how did both of Yuma’s parents get to the Astral World and how was Yuma sent to the human world after Astral and Don Thousand’s battle long ago. I wished they had gone a little bit deeper with that, but hey what are you going to do about. Other than that, this was a really good Yugioh series to me and Yuma is by far the best developed protagonist in the Yugioh series because we get to watch him grow from an amateur duelist to being able to stand at even grounds with Astral and Ryouga. I’m going to miss this series a lot and I honestly do hope that if they somehow come up with a really good plot line, I would love to see them make a movie that connects the three more recent Yugioh series together like they did with Bonds Beyond Time.
Finally a review have something good to say for Zexal I love Zexal and I hope others like it too but all I heard was hate about it and it saddens me a bit
Honestly the reason why I think people hate zexal is that Yuma changes the card at the end of season 2 every one was like that’s bull shit he broke the rules and I’m like guys I’m pretty damn sure that all the other protagonists in yugioh broke the rules.
I love ZeXal. I couldn't agree more with you about GX. Every season in GX has 0 buildup because almost nothing was planned before its creation. 5Ds becomes that after Dark Signers, but DM and ZeXal are different. Things were planned, and like you said, everything builds up to the ending. Amazing.
Zexal did have the best narrative, and the final arc is what really sealed it to me as the best, I mean, it fit cohesively and nothing felt like that big of a retcon or real change, and it worked. Yuma basically had to suffer and watch from the sidelines as all his friends were pretty much killed trying to protect him. He has to fight his former friends, and by God...the moment where Astral died...then he comes back...then the episode where Shark died. I literally couldn't even form a response just...wow. That's why Zexal's ending works because well, we do want them back. Kaito, Shark, the Tenjo's, they did such a good job at making us care about them...and that's where it counted.
Comment 3 years late Shark's death after losing to yuma is probably the only scene in the yugioh! franchise that has got me in tears, especially after what shark said to yuma
I liked how Zexal was very consistent from the start. We spent watching episode by episode to see what was the thing Yuma will lose after accepting the power of Zexal until it was finally revealed in the last episode. The writers did an amazing job raising our anticipation and it truly made me want to watch it until the end
"Yuma gets more character development in the first 15 minutes of episode one than any of the other three did in entire seasons worth of content." You just triggered the entire fan base by saying that. LMFAO. I'm not complaining though because Zexal is my favorite Yugioh show.
@@tfcbioshock But Yuma does grow a lot as a Duelist too, and he teaches Astral a few things too, which is the point as much as anything. And you see too when Yuma does do things on his own in some Duels, like when he Dueled Cathy because he thought Kotori/Tori was in trouble, he really can shine without needing help from Astral too.
I think you're confusing character development for a character arc, not that I think you're lying. Yugi and stem have a linear character arc where they're core values don't change but the story revolves around how they affect the other characters and world. In this case Yuma has a negative character arc where his values Change from wanting to have fun to only dueling to save the world. Development is just learning about the character and frankly all of yugioh does that pretty well.
Yuma really reminded me of Joey in the way he learned to play the game and got better at it over time, which I really liked. I think that's the reason I didn't mind that Yugi won most duels without much struggle in DM: Joey was struggling and getting better, so I could go to those duels (rather than to Yugi's) to watch strong character progression. Edit: I agree with all of your other points. I loved this series.
This series was honestly more closer to the original heart the first YGO series with own original twist. Yuma and Astral's bond, the mysterious Pendent, Rio was an improved version of Serenity/Shizuka, Kaito protecting his brother etc. Zexal has the everyday life moments that I like in the YGO manga. So many characters no matter how small are memorable and unique. The villians and henchmen included. Why people hate Zexal is beyond me, it's definitely the most Kazuki Takahashi (the mangaka) like out of all the Spin offs. It's also the last YGO series Kazuki provided character designs and a concept for. I think part of the reason Arc-V fails is because it doesn't have that touch that Kazuki gave to each series DM, GX, 5DS and Zexal. I have the Duel Art book and you see the love he puts into drawing Yuma and Astral. Plus the addition of Xyz Summon felt like a natural progression of the game while Pendulum Summon felt straight up like cheating. I really enjoyed the series and loved watching all the characters grow, it was a very fun ride.
@Jack-of-all-trades @Jack-of-all-trades I believe it was DSOD the that the staff were working on, it's been awhile so I don't remember. But scattering the staff certainly feels like it had an effect on the show. In Vrains you could tell the show was going in almost three narrative directions and then the staff was rushed the wrap up of the series. Seems with Sevens the staff is just enjoying themselves and having fun. It feels like a more relaxed atmosphere. The episodic feel has similarities to Season 0 but instead of horror it's comedy. It seems that they needed to just find their footing without Kazuki and just took them a little time.
@Jack-of-all-trades I've been loving Sevens so far. I've loved ALOT of YGO OPs and EDs but I just sing and dance to Sevens everytime. Love the fact that the school anthem is the ED. I don't mind the non Kazuki art style because it still feels like YGO to me. Btw DSOD is definitely worth the watch, it's a good end to the manga and the art and animation is beautiful. Easily the best animation in the whole franchise actually. I recommend either dub or sub both are good.
@Jack-of-all-trades I've had Vanguard Cardfight recommended to me a few times and since I'm nearing the end my anime watchlist I'll probably check it in fall. I don't like watching to many series at once, too much of a headache. As for DSOD, look Kazuki already made a nice ending for series once and quite frankly the fact he could pull it off twice is a miracle most authors wish they could do. If OG YGO has a special place in your heart it's worth the watch, if only for Yugi and Kaiba having a little more finality in their arcs. If not don't sweat it, the original ending anime or manga is pretty solid. I might not be the biggest fan of Arc V but I can understand your reasoning for not wanting to watch DSOD because of how it affected the staff. My brother enjoyed Arc V despite the fact he wished Yuto got his body back. We both watched DSOD in theaters and loved it and he suggests you should still give a go because it's pretty good. You can still like the movie and acknowledge the role it played in Arc V's production. I feel similarly about the manga, Kazuki wasn't able to make several chapters that would've showed more Kisara and Priest Seto but time constraints prevented him from doing so. The anime could've rectified this but...that didn't happen. Anime/Manga Staff will always have obstacles but we can still enjoy the stuff that comes out of it.
Zexal is a really fun yugioh season, Yuma wanting to have fun instead of needing to save a world is pretty believable thing for a child protagonist. Yuma being a kid lends well to his ineptitude of dueling to become a real competent dueler. Number hunting is straight forward and interesting, Yuma’s flaws are a well welcomed aspect of his protagonist title, characters work really well off each other, kite and shark are great foils to Yuma’s goals and personality. Zexal made every character feel important and time on them never felt wasted, zexal I think is one of the better Yugioh series and I think it’s treated unfairly because it’s targeted demographic moved away from the kids who grew up watching the previous series and it has a very different cast from the previous series, way more lighthearted and fun instead of being more gritty or having some out of nowhere magic evil to beat
It is even more crazy when you realize how dark it got, but in japan I wouldn’t be surprised if cursing, blood, and people dying was normal pg in japan, the same place with mangas like violence jack and Berserk, straight out of the blue inappropriate things.
Thanks again for doing this video! I'm so glad someone finally opened a more positive note to the ZEXAL series. Not many people do this, and I will certainly take my approach on this topic at some point in the future. I can already see people's comments being EXTREMELY negative on this video, and it's a shame that some people just can't see what you and I see in this series. Hopefully this will make people think twice and maybe go back to watch it (in Japanese with English subs) just to see what are these elements you spoke of. I know the hate will still be strong, but hopefully you can save a few souls lol Great vid bro!
Thank you. Haters gonna hate but I really wanted to do this because the whole reason I started doing videos because I wanted to be the guy who stands up for the unpopular opinion
Zexal is my favorite series too. Yuma is also my favorite protagonist so far, but the new guy, Yusaku, from VRAINS, shows a lot of potential to be one of the best Yu-Gi-Oh protagonists ever
Utopic Lightning So far (from what I have seen of VRAINS) Yusaku seems to be just another Yusei. The only major differences between the two is that Yusaku is a pro hacker, Yusaku's sense of justice is his only flaw and Yusaku wants revenge. There's no way in hell that an older protagonist will be as good as Yuma, but I still hope that Yusaku will end up being a good protagonist.
I'm glad to see some positive YuGiOh! Zexal videos starting to float around here and there. Zexal was probably one of my favorite YuGiOh spinoffs, although to be fair I'm only a little more than halfway through GX and haven't watched 5ds or arc v yet. What I did take from it was that it was lighter and more colorful throughout but when it got through the darker parts it did crack down and take those good turns to make the plot feel natural. It would give you some room to breath between some of the bigger duels, like at the end of that arch with Haruto and Kaito, there was a great duel between duel between Yuma and Kaito and it felt natural and how it was supposed to be. Yuma didn't win just because he was the main character, but they took some realistic aspects and acknowledged that he still had places to grow. You're right, there is that buildup there, and it keeps getting bigger and bigger, but Zexal does keep it real when it really counts.
Just to let you know, the English Dub version of 5D's has ALOT of episodes missing from the Original Anime. So if you wanna see the true ending you'll have to watch several episodes with Subtitle unless you know Japanese. Plus there are filler episodes & some good Duels that weren't in the English Dub.
I'll definitely keep that in mind. I was planning on watching 5Ds subbed anyway because I knew that all the episodes weren't dubbed, and I want to get the full effect.
God, thank you so much for this! This is long but I don't talk about this a lot.ZEXAL is my second favorite yugioh, and only because the nostalgia for the first one still gets me. Yuma is my favorite protagonist because he reminds me of me as a kid, I had to make a lot of effort to do things right without screwing up. And the cast, especially the main three besides Yuma are so fricking beautiful and roundabout characters, I cried for them a lot while watching the series.Ryoga is definitely my favorite character, I felt such a pull towards him after the 12th episode that I couldn't help but root for him every time he wanted to protect Yuma or Rio. His arc in the Barian War broke me so much that I felt I was Yuma, I only wanted all of them to be happy and play card games like little kids (and Kaito's arc just made it worst).I'll admit, I almost dropped it once during the first filler arc of ZEXAL II, but Vector's reveal pulled me back so fast that I followed the series to the end.The story is not perfect, but it's in my heart for what it tried to do, especially after the disappointment that, in my opinion, was Arc-V. I have really great expectations for VRAINS, especially after seeing how different the first episode was (no goddamn cliffhanger duel, that's good!), and that Yusaku seems interesting (pls don't be a Kirito) enough to hold the show up.Well, I'm gonna subscribe to you, that's for sure. Once more, thank you so much for making this video.
Great to see more videos that recognize the greatness of this series! I love Zexal, it is legitimately one of my favourite anime. Yuma is an intensely complex character and as you say in the video, the first 15 minutes of the show are a tour-de-force in introducing his personality, his weaknesses, his conflicts and his surprisingly profound understanding of culture and philosophy. Not to mention the final arc. Barian Onslaught might be the best thing to ever come out of the YuGiOh franchise. Every episode an absolute banger, every death hits hard as heck. Really great series and I have to agree it is YuGiOh and perhaps just Shonen Anime in general at its most emotionally affecting and genuinely clever (seriously, the final Kaito VS Mizael duel is a fucking rubix cube of different emotional stakes and plotlines and the way it all comes together in the end is genuinely a triumph)
Haven't even watched it yet but have a like for sharing this. Zexal is my fave series to and I can sum it up in 2 words, Emotional Depth, no YGO series has had me so invested in the actual characters and story. I think one thing people don't acknowledge is the overall passage of time when Zexal came out, by the time 5D's ended, YGO had been going 10/11 years, that by default is classified as generation, so why not start targeting the new generation, with a protag around their age they can relate to, need to bring fresh blood to the game.
i am 5 years late, but thats what most old fans dont get imo I was new to yugioh at the time, and ik for sure if i watched something like 5ds, i wouldnt be all that interested
Also many years too late still i'll say, age of the protagonist matters not if well written. As an all time anime fan, I was "too old" to watch DM. Seen all ygo series except vrains and let me say this (and piss some people off). Although i enjoyed most of ygo (almost cause GX was some major bullcrap true and through), I consider Zexal not only my favorite one but the only objectively good one.
Yuma is one of my favourite protagonists. I looked forward for his duels because he loses and wins, which makes his battles go either way. Not like other protagonists who win all the time. And i also loved the fact that he started as a bad duelist who later on becomes a skilled one.
Exactly, and even that first Duel with Ryoga/Shark shows Yuma has a LOT of potential as a Duelist, even if some things would be seen as risky on his end, like the fact he opted to use Bye Bye Damage to protect Number 39: Hope, King of Wishes/Utopia from Leviathan Dragon rather than use his effect like Astral said, and how he did that to also be able to help him win the Duel by taking out Leviathan Dragon due to betting on and drawing Double or Nothing! to use with Hope's effect to end the Duel. It's that kind of thing I like about Yuma; while he DOES listen to Astral now and then, he still also tries to do his own thing because he is growing, and he also wants to still be himself no matter what. That's his greatest strength, and as much as others around him influence him, Yuma's heart, his actions, they shape the others he meets as well, and how he shines bright like the sun because of it.
6:15 There's actually a whole episode in season one where the conflict centers around this. Yuma's friends start saying he's only winning duels because of his new Number cards, so Yuma challenges Shark to a duel where he promises not to use the Numbers because he wants to prove he can still win without them (and because he wants to help Shark get back into dueling). But then during the duel, as he's loosing, he justifies it to himself and breaks his promise, summoning his ace Number (Utopia), and then he still looses, and his friends are pissed at him because of it. Then he learns from that and realizes that he needs to keep his word and to not abuse the Numbers just because they're powerful. In the whole rest of the show, he never uses the Numbers unless the duel he's in has serious consequences (which is pretty often because anime, but still). A moment of character progression like that is the type of thing that just doesn't happen in other yugioh animes.
Zexal is to Yugioh what black and white is to Pokémon. Everyone hated black and white but years later everyone realized how based it was and how previous generations really only stood up because of nostalgia. I hope in a few years Zexal gets the appreciation it deserves.
OMG THANK YOU!!! :D I LOOVE Zexal! It's a beautiful show that ultimately teaches about not giving up with believing in yourself and those around you. Yuma is an angel of a character. He goes through so much growth and so much development that it's hard to listen to those that say otherwise. Astral is a beautiful soul. He is NOT a carbon copy of Atem. He is a being who though at the beginning was very single minded grew into this character who uses his wisdom in so much more then a card game. There were great characters, there were characters that could have had more development. Overall it was really about the characters and the message. It's kind of hard to describe unless you've seen it, so I would advise anyone that if they can to go and watch it. It needs so much more phrase that it's getting here. Side note, Zexal is actually really popular in Japan. Also yes, Yusei became very bland as 5Ds went on and I am so glad you said it. He was basically 5Ds Jesus. He was too perfect. I love the idea of Yuma and Yuya meeting one day. I know for a fact that Yuma could teach Yuya so much and be an incredible friend toward him. ♡♡♡ *Whispers* Also really love them as a couple. ^-^ Best YGO spinoff ever. Hands down my #1 fav.
@@mansti9775 probably as well, but I think it's mostly 5Ds fans. I think they were really disappointed when zexal started because 5Ds and Zexal are so different. You just have this mature storytelling and then it kinda shifted to a "kiddish" show. I believe Zexal was meant to be like that in the beginning because the protagonist will experience great development later on. Also I noticed that in most Yu-Gi-Oh anime fans they either love or hate GX and Zexal there's no middle ground which is kinda interesting.
@LuvApink that's good to know. I understand you too since I used to have a massive ego and the only thing I have in mind back then is to keep winning and keep being the best. After watching Zexal, I realized that I'd rather be a Yuma (weak, immature childish kid that will have a good development and will be one of the strongest one day) than be a Ryo Marafuji (so strong, so intimidating at the beginning but lost his mind at the process and became hell bent on winning when he was defeated in a row). Being the best at the beginning is not healthy, since you had high expectations to yourself and you began to fear failure and defeat, you will also avoid to listen and learn more since you think highly of yourself. I wish you the best, have a nice day.
glad to see another fan of zexal - i remember watching the series back when it was airing, and i never understood the blatant hatred (well, i KIND of do - but it seems mostly unjustified, ie: picking on yuma for not being a master duelist or "annoying". i actually liked the fact that he didn't start off as a master, it gave room for legitimate development). then again, i havent seen every yugioh series in their entirety. zexal is the only season i managed to complete due to it airing at the time. i tried getting into arc v, but something just... didn't feel the same. zexal was charming because of the juxtaposition between a bright, beautiful setting and a looming darkness. there's something that probes your interest, making you want to come back for more. of course, the series has its problems; such as the rocky beginning and numerous amounts of filler, but you can blame basic shounen/kids anime tropes for that. however, i thought zexal had key plot points from the very beginning - instead of going back and forth, it stuck to a linear timeline that progressed and developed the characters. this sense of growth and realistic interaction is what made the finale so pleasing. i'll admit it, though - i'm biased towards yuma. i hated him at the beginning, but the kid grew on me, so much so that i consider him my favorite yugioh protagonist. i feel like many fans forget that hes just a kid - he's going to make mistakes, and hes going to be stubborn or bratty from time to time. this personality works, however, because he grows and changes due to astral, shark, kaito, etc. i suppose the biggest issue in this series is the throw-away side characters - but i think that's an issue ALL yugioh series have. i also disliked the lack of female dueling as well, there was so much potential for characters like anna and kotori... but konami has this issue against developing girls, i guess.
Great video man. 5D's is my favorite but zexal is so good. I never really understood the hate this series gets. Also the duel between Kaito and Mizael in the freaking moon is absolutely legendary.
In my opinion Zexal had the best and most consistent storytelling of any of the Yu-Gi-Oh! shows. When it comes to some main plot points, no stone is left unturned and not much was scrapped as it was with the other shows. Now as much as I love 5Ds, it sadly deteriorated during its second half. A lot of plot points get retconned or resolved offscreen. Like Yliaster going from a cult to some Illuminati from a robot apocalypse future that makes no sense especially ripping off Terminator. The Arcadia Movement issue gets resolved by having Sayer get arrested offscreen. Which gets told to us in the 10th anniversary guidebook, if we didn’t have that, then we wouldn’t even know what happened to him after the Dark Signers arc. Which Aki really needed a character arc for herself because she was great in the first half only to be reduced to the sides in the second half! I hated that! At least it wasn’t as bad as what Yuzu got in Arc-V. But still Aki and the rest of the Yugioh girls deserved better. Zexal also had this problem but to a much lesser extent. The first half slowly worked its way up to Tron and Faker being the main villains. While I find Faker to be bland and forgettable, the plot of the first half at least makes sense and ties everything together from up to that point. Vetrix was wronged by Faker and wanted revenge, but Faker did what he had to do negotiating with the Barian Vector in order to protect Hart. Which then ties into the second half being all about the Barian emperors and Don Thousand. It all flows together nicely and cohesively which not a lot of Yu-Gi-oh! shows are able to do these days. Plus the animation and art style is pretty good! This is probably due to the fact that at the time, there were probably no production issues in Studio Gallop. It was also not in the middle of an anniversary and they weren’t showing any signs of franchise fatigue anytime soon during this era. This fluidity and consistency of the animation and art style is what really makes Zexal stand out as it shows that the animators put a lot of time and care into this series. Not to mention the director of this series Satoshi Kuwahara, was also the same guy who directed the Dark Side of Dimensions movie, go figure. And that’s what I liked that this guy had a sense of direction! Unlike Katsumi Ono who directed both 5Ds and Arc-V didn’t! Because it was all Style over substance for him. While as Kuwahara had a balance of both style and substance and it worked! That’s why he succeeded while Ono failed because he had no sense of direction. And I hold no grudges against Ono but I think he should never direct another Yugioh series again unless he learned from his mistakes. But yeah Zexal is a great show regardless. And I think a lot of people should give it a chance as well as the benefit of the doubt.
Also people need to watch sub rather than dub for this one specifically. It makes the first 1/3 of the series more bearable and carries you into the REALLY good parts that make it, dare I say, better than DM, GX, and 5Ds.
I agree yugioh zexal is underrated. Plus if people watch the final duel between yuma and astral he actually took the time and thought into constructing a deck by himself
I just found it fun to watch Yuma develop. I found myself during the middle of Yugioh Vrains, to be skipping episodes with Blue Angel or Flame wielder. I don't like how the Yugioh series crams useless characters and tries to make them look important with them being useless in the end.
I never understood the hate this series gets? It’s not terrible yet it’s not perfect. Also I pretty much agree with all your points about this series. At first I was skeptical about this series after finishing 5Ds. I was like the rest at first but I gave it a chance and I was blown away by the end of this series. I’m not going to lie either that this series does have better consistency than most of the YGO series. Despite its flaws. In fact I liked that it handles its plot better than most of the other series. Now 5Ds is my favorite Yugioh series however I’m not going to call it the best because favoritism doesn’t equal best…Sorry not sorry. Like you with the Yubel stuff I could never get into the whole Z-One/Meklord plot because it came out of nowhere plus it wasn’t established correctly. Not to mention it’s basically a terminator knock off plot! The thing that I liked about 5Ds is that it was based on Incan mythology especially during its opening, I really loved the Dark Signer Arc it wasn’t perfect but it was better than the later stuff that we got at the end. I mean I did enjoy it but there were plenty of things I was disappointed about towards the end of 5Ds. I didn’t like the lack of Incan mythology which the series was heavily based on! The Meklords don’t fit with the theme and come off as generic. Plus it felt ODD seeing the ANCIENT power of the Crimson Dragon battling robots from the future. Plus the MANY plot holes that were left out! Also the character development felt stagnant and regressed. The Arc Cradle arc…people say it’s the best arc but I felt it was mediocre at best. It was all spectacle over substance. Full of McMuffins! Like throwing things at us with little to no explanation. The only part I liked was Bruno’s part (Which was the best part of the Arc, IMO) while the rest was meh. Z-One was such a lackluster final villain. Plus I didn’t like the ending that much, I don’t think it’s terrible but it felt hollow to me. But I prefer 5Ds ending better than Arc-V’s any day even if I don’t like 5Ds ending that much. However with Zexal at least they give us something new. Plus you are right that most of the characters are relevant when it comes to the story and not only that but I like how emotional it got during the final arc. I say the Barian War arc blows the Arc Cradle arc out of the water because of its culmination of everything that came before it. Plus the ending was very good even though it had that open ending feel at least it gave closure to most of the characters in the series. I’m not saying Zexal is the best Yugioh series but I think people need to give it a chance since it’s not as bad as people make it out to be. Overall, great job on the video.
People wanted the 13-14 year old yuma to be as good as the card game and as a character as the 18-20 year old yusei I'm not saying zexal is the best anime I am saying zexal is underrated
I'm glad that I am not the only one that appreciates Zexal for what it was, it was the reason I got into Yu-Gi-Oh in the first place and still play it. I loved Zexal from day 1 when it first aired
I think the reason i liked Zexal the most is because im a younger person i was only about 8 when zexal was released and it was the first yu gi oh series i've ever watched so i got used to it and now i can't stop re-watching it all over again! Plus i got into zexal and tbh the theme song is lit but many people dislike zexal for Yuma being a weak protagonist in the beginning, but i'm not going to lie when yuma lost duels and i knew the solution I did get quite irritated but Yuma's personality is what stops me from giving up, he always has a way to feel the flow and high five the sky, he is really influential and unselfish that's why i love this series so much.
I remember seekng a random episode on TV when i was like 9 and when i finally watched Zexal completely i could still remember that episode and if something like that happens then you can be sure that that series stuck with me the whole time. I was so happy to finally being able to watch it because i love Yugioh (GX is my favorite btw) and can proudly say that Zexal is my second favorite Yugioh series.
I was curious on your thoughts about Yuma’s school group of friends (the ones who rarely dueled in serious moments). A lot of fans disliked them, with Kotori especially being considered more hated than Tea/Anzu. Did you feel they detracted from the story or did you think they added an element to the story of Yuma having a normal life?
I never really disliked any of Yuma’s friends. In my opinion, I think Tori is way better then Tea because it feels to me that Tori really likes Yuma for him and only him, while when I watched Duel Monsters, Tea seemed to only be interested in Yami. Of course that’s just my opinion. My favorite in his friends group would have to be Cathy tho.
I just felt they had too much screen time compared to their lack of relevance. I do like the focus on Yuma's normal life though, makes the world feel a lot bigger compared to Vrains
They have their contributions to supporting Yuma but to be honest, I cannot stand the constant >Yuma Takes Damage >"Noooo Yumas getitng his ass kicked" >Yuma makes a good play >"Go Yuma, you got this" Every duel when they are present. Its just annoying
The relationship between Astral/Yuma is so much better than yugi/atem. You actually get to see Astral and Yuma grow and develop as a team and friends. Zexal transformation is the perfect cumulation beteeen these 2 different being having spent some time together and friend and understanding each other. It’s beautiful. Yugi/atem doesn’t have that because atem overtakes Yugis soul when dueling. The final duel between the two is strong and I love it but it isn’t as impactful because we haven’t been watching yugi on his own duel throughout the show. This opinion usually gets yugiboomers on my ass despite myself havingg experience og Yugioh when it premiered
Zexal happened to be the Yu-Gi-Oh that I started on and grew up watching, and I get nostalgic for it, and that's something I feel influences which one is your favourite (the one you grew up o and the one you started); I also remember think this show was really dark for a show airing on CN. It was around late-2013 where I started getting into what I call "childhood anime". Another anime I was watching was the Beyblade Metal Saga, and that's another franchise where people argue which is the best series
Zexal will always be underrated. Can't stand fanboys of any fandom who hate on an underrated gen or sequel for crap like oh It's not dark enough, it's not the one I grew up with, it's too bright, he relies on this too much.
Any Yu-Gi-Oh series is good on it's own. However, ZEXAL is the greatest in my opinion because it has good story line ( where you can see the character development of each characters) and each characters connections to one another deepen ( Why it has an awesome emotional attack ). It also teaches practical lessons like " Heroes are not born they are made ( you can't be good from the very start but you will be great as you fail, get back up, fight till you succeed) " and "Choosing to respond positively or doing the right thing even how bad the situation is or no matter how evil the people around you ( Vector/ Shingetsu ), then someday it will have it's fruit.' Yes, ZEXAL is not perfect...it has a lot of down points but its good factors overlaps the imperfection, the best of all Yu-Gi-Oh series still ( in my opinion, respect)!!!
Look man, I know it's ゼアル in Japanese so "zaeal" is the right way to say it, but zexal just sounds more right in English. Zaeal is like trying to pronounce "zeal" but something goes wrong along the way
Zexal is what got me back into the YGO franchise, about three years after the heavy disappointment I got from 5D's. I love this anime, regardless of its flaws, and I'm confident in saying that it's my favorite series(and I was a huge DM fan for the longest time). p.s.: yuma's is great, f*ck you fight me (ง •̀_•́)ง
I saw one of the first episodes on TV once and I remember enjoying it quite a bit, but I never remembered to watch it. I guess now I should check it out!
All YU-Gi-Oh series are good, however I find it ironic that most Zexal haters don't criticize Yusei's character. One of the biggest Gary Stu's in fiction is supposed to be a "deep" character?
I think Yusei actually did get character development. At least in the sub because in the dub it just felt like he was angry etc. There was this on scene (i don't remember where it was) where Yusei basically had a whole emotional speech about how he really feels and he finally understands that not everything is his fault. He basically opened up to his friends in that moment but in the dub this isn't existant at all. I still think that Yuma and Judai had the most amount of character development though.
Also i think that Yusei showing vulnerability in his character doesn't really make him a Gary Stu. Yes, he did win a lot of duels but not every single one of them and as a character he did have at least one breakdown somewhere in the anime so for me at least he isn't a "perfect" character because he does have his weaknesses.
My favourite series is the original one. I absolutely loved the ancient Egyptian thing they had going on throughout and I think it's a shame it hasn't really appeared in future yugioh series.
Yuma is such a likeable character. The first yugioh I watched was zeal. Then I watched the original, go, 5ds, and half of arc v. But overall ZEXAL is the best. When I first started watching this, Yuma was very relatable and the closest to my age. I was about 8. I still love it now. Unfortunately it’s not on Netflix anymore and season 3 is unavailable unless I buy it.
Thank you! I never thought you'd actually deliver! I know I was once one of the people that requested this video, but anyways,I can't really respond since, it was by yugioh Zexal is when I stopped caring for Yugioh. I just felt like Zexal is so painfully slow and predictable at times, plus, besides the Barians, none of the characters ever grabbed me personally. I only went out to try Arc V when I heard about it being good and having all of the summoning techniques (so it managed to rekindle my interest in Yugioh). So yeah, right after the Dark Signer arc, I just really... stopped, watching any Yugioh shows. Well, I just got to ask, when exactly did you saw Zexal become "good". Mainly because I think I stopped by episode 10, and just watched a few Zexal 2 episodes. But, as someone who plans on finally finishing it... Just, tell me what episode is the first episode that wowed you?
Kind of with episode 10, when Ryoga beat Yuma. The duel was executed really well and I loved the way Ryoga pushed him into summoning Utopia, only to beat it in a way that made perfect sense. Everything else in that mini arc was presented insanely well and everything else afterword's just continued to get better. Also sorry it took so long to get this one out, I needed the time
Zexal is my favorite series. It was the first one I watched and I loved it. Of course by the time I started watching season one was over but it got me to love the yugioh franchise.
I love Zexal out of all of the Yugioh series, I watched it when I was in middle school like 6th grade and I was still a kid so I related with Yuma who acted very much like a kid.
"Yuma got more personal development in the first 15 minutes of episode 1 than any of the three in a seasons worth of content" As somone who watched all main series, ot only do I agree. I am one upping that. Yuma did Yugi's character arc better. Yugi started a prodigy with no friends and gained them, then basically did fuck all till the final act. Yuma SUCKED as a Duelist and had no friends. We watched that growth, he did the majority of the legwork. Astral helped and taught him and they became partners. We saw this kid go from loser to one of the Legends, one of the best duelists in his age. And... Yuma is literally the only protagonist who got with his love interest in the end. That alone is a CHAD move.
I'm glad to hear people talking about their love for Zexal. But I will say that the idea of "Win this card game to save the world." was almost entirely a DUB thing, especially in the early Duel Monsters show. In the original japanese, the stakes of duelist kingdom, battle city, and even filler arcs like virtual world and grand prix being almost entirely about PERSONAL stakes. With only the Atlantis and Memory World arcs having fate of the world stakes and even then, the personal goals were emphasised. The dub inserted "Save the world" into every season though, even when it did not fit, and erased massive amounts of dialogue that developed character (Because yes, developing character through the duels was the POINT of Yu-Gi-Oh! going back even to the first chapters of the manga that introduced the game). The best example of this is Yugi vs Kaiba in Battle City. In the original duel, THE FATE OF THE WORLD WAS NOT AT STAKE. Marik was NOT seeking to rule the world, he was just a lunatic who liked torturing people. Yugi wanted the Egyptian Gods because he wanted to get his MEMORIES back. And THAT is what the duel with Kaiba was about. Kaiba was Yugi's antithesis in that he rejected his past and sought to leave it behind in favour of the "Light of the Future". He saw Yugi's search for his lost memories as a representation of a worldview stuck in the past, while Yugi saw Kaiba rejecting the past as him running away and being untrue to who he really was. The duel became a clash of philosophy. Of ideaology. In the dub... "I must beat you to save the world!" "Blah! Blah! Blah! PRIDE! Blah! Blah! Blah! MAGIC'S NOT REAL! Blah! Blah! Blah! I DON'T CARE ABOUT THE WORLD!"
![Was Yuma About To Defeat Kite? [Kite's Plight]](/img/n.gif)
"Yuma got more personal development in the first 15 minutes of episode 1 than any of the three in a seasons worth of content"
That must be the funniest Yugioh burn I ever heard
except for judai
Green Arrow in S1 tho
One of my favorite moments in all of YGO is when Yuma was about to face Asteral and he breaks down because he can't play Duel Monsters for fun. He ALWAYS has to duel for the fate of the world and to see that it gets to him so much is such a nice and refreshing change of pace. I can see an actual kid having the same kind of break down.
Yeah, that kind of suprised me. All the important characters dueled for keeps and not for fun. It really took a toll on Yuma.
It's literally the same thing as Judai. Except Judai didn't break down, but both forgot dueling is supposed to be fun. If you ask me, Yuma shares the personality traits of all three protagonists in some way while still retaining his own personality that makes him different enough to be enjoyable.
@@OutwardLyric Judai broke down. So down in fact that he became the Supreme King.
@@OutwardLyric Though Yuma felt it more while Judai just became more focused on winning just because he lost why he was so strong until the end of GX when he Dueled Yugi in the past.
@@Aldiyawak True, but the all the "reincarnation of a long lost prince, yubel, and isekai" business kinda overshadowed that
Zexal is a good series. Every Yu-Gi-Oh! series is good, despite having flaws.
Well that comment hasn't aged well 😅.
No offense to anyone who enjoys sevens
@@_DonMon_ sevens has no problems for me so far
@@_DonMon_ sevens is good
Do you think Arc V beginning is better while the middle and end is worse but in the last 2 i Prefer legacy characters
lol no.
vrains is bad.
bad character development, some main character get shifted to minor character, the bohman arc and ignis/robopi arc litteraly the same, and yusaku never lost a single duel.
Tbh, i can see where most of the Zexal haters are coming from. The answer is, that we all grew up. Most of us are late teens, early twenties - who grew up watching DM, GX and 5Ds. If Zexal was realeased when we were younger, we'd love it.
Age doesn't matter if it is good I like it still and I'm older then most haters
I don't even watch yugioh that much tbh I kinda think some shows are ass
I grew up watching zexal on vertex on the cw
I was born in 2007 meaning I was to young to watch gx and I didn’t have the ability to watch 5ds so I was stuck with dm on Netflix until zexal was released onto Netflix and I loved it
Shu Reborn lucky now netflix only has DM and Arc v now hulu has them all
Zexel isn't slow it doesn't take 4 episodes to complete 1 duel
That one episode call mission astral did tho
The ending is such a cliffhanger that will most certainly wont not be explained
@@JustRhino I think the ending was more just of a reason to show how everyone is buddy buddy and how they can all be a great team more then a oh wow new dark foe
@@exencite965 ye i guess but the 'new dark foe' seems pretty cool
Truth
I actually just finished watching Yugioh Zexal today and I honestly have to say that it was a lot better than from what I have heard from others. The character development in this series was actually really well done. I honestly think that Yuma and Astral’s relationship with one another and their growth together was done so much better than Yugi and Yami. Astral was more of a teacher to Yuma in the beginning, but over time they bonded more and more and to the point to where Yuma was able to duel on his own and where they could be more than just teacher and student but friends that could have fun together and bond more. The villians, Ryouga, Kaito, and pretty much most of the characters were really well written. My only real complaint would have to be just like with Arc V, there were things that were left unanswered or that there could have been more after the show had finished. Things we didn’t get answered was how did both of Yuma’s parents get to the Astral World and how was Yuma sent to the human world after Astral and Don Thousand’s battle long ago. I wished they had gone a little bit deeper with that, but hey what are you going to do about. Other than that, this was a really good Yugioh series to me and Yuma is by far the best developed protagonist in the Yugioh series because we get to watch him grow from an amateur duelist to being able to stand at even grounds with Astral and Ryouga. I’m going to miss this series a lot and I honestly do hope that if they somehow come up with a really good plot line, I would love to see them make a movie that connects the three more recent Yugioh series together like they did with Bonds Beyond Time.
Finally a review have something good to say for Zexal I love Zexal and I hope others like it too but all I heard was hate about it and it saddens me a bit
Desmond Malone I love ZEXAL too!!!
Desmond Malone I love yu gi oh Zexal too!Yu gi oh Zexal is my favorite yu gi oh series!
I love zexal too and it triggers me when people say it sucks and stuff.
Honestly the reason why I think people hate zexal is that Yuma changes the card at the end of season 2 every one was like that’s bull shit he broke the rules and I’m like guys I’m pretty damn sure that all the other protagonists in yugioh broke the rules.
I love ZeXal. I couldn't agree more with you about GX. Every season in GX has 0 buildup because almost nothing was planned before its creation. 5Ds becomes that after Dark Signers, but DM and ZeXal are different. Things were planned, and like you said, everything builds up to the ending. Amazing.
Zexal did have the best narrative, and the final arc is what really sealed it to me as the best, I mean, it fit cohesively and nothing felt like that big of a retcon or real change, and it worked. Yuma basically had to suffer and watch from the sidelines as all his friends were pretty much killed trying to protect him. He has to fight his former friends, and by God...the moment where Astral died...then he comes back...then the episode where Shark died. I literally couldn't even form a response just...wow. That's why Zexal's ending works because well, we do want them back. Kaito, Shark, the Tenjo's, they did such a good job at making us care about them...and that's where it counted.
Comment 3 years late
Shark's death after losing to yuma is probably the only scene in the yugioh! franchise that has got me in tears, especially after what shark said to yuma
I liked how Zexal was very consistent from the start. We spent watching episode by episode to see what was the thing Yuma will lose after accepting the power of Zexal until it was finally revealed in the last episode. The writers did an amazing job raising our anticipation and it truly made me want to watch it until the end
"Yuma gets more character development in the first 15 minutes of episode one than any of the other three did in entire seasons worth of content."
You just triggered the entire fan base by saying that. LMFAO. I'm not complaining though because Zexal is my favorite Yugioh show.
Is it not true though? It took Yusaku 3 seasons to realize one thing. Yuma seems to learn something every arc or episode.
@@中华民国万岁-c4g really? Because Yuma seemed to constantly not learn a thing in duels for most of the first few arcs, astral was more of the learner
@@tfcbioshock But Yuma does grow a lot as a Duelist too, and he teaches Astral a few things too, which is the point as much as anything. And you see too when Yuma does do things on his own in some Duels, like when he Dueled Cathy because he thought Kotori/Tori was in trouble, he really can shine without needing help from Astral too.
I think you're confusing character development for a character arc, not that I think you're lying. Yugi and stem have a linear character arc where they're core values don't change but the story revolves around how they affect the other characters and world. In this case Yuma has a negative character arc where his values Change from wanting to have fun to only dueling to save the world. Development is just learning about the character and frankly all of yugioh does that pretty well.
Yuma really reminded me of Joey in the way he learned to play the game and got better at it over time, which I really liked. I think that's the reason I didn't mind that Yugi won most duels without much struggle in DM: Joey was struggling and getting better, so I could go to those duels (rather than to Yugi's) to watch strong character progression.
Edit: I agree with all of your other points. I loved this series.
I'm gonna give Zexal a chance just because you likened Yuma to my boy Joey.
This series was honestly more closer to the original heart the first YGO series with own original twist. Yuma and Astral's bond, the mysterious Pendent, Rio was an improved version of Serenity/Shizuka, Kaito protecting his brother etc. Zexal has the everyday life moments that I like in the YGO manga. So many characters no matter how small are memorable and unique. The villians and henchmen included.
Why people hate Zexal is beyond me, it's definitely the most Kazuki Takahashi (the mangaka) like out of all the Spin offs. It's also the last YGO series Kazuki provided character designs and a concept for.
I think part of the reason Arc-V fails is because it doesn't have that touch that Kazuki gave to each series DM, GX, 5DS and Zexal. I have the Duel Art book and you see the love he puts into drawing Yuma and Astral.
Plus the addition of Xyz Summon felt like a natural progression of the game while Pendulum Summon felt straight up like cheating.
I really enjoyed the series and loved watching all the characters grow, it was a very fun ride.
@Jack-of-all-trades @Jack-of-all-trades I believe it was DSOD the that the staff were working on, it's been awhile so I don't remember. But scattering the staff certainly feels like it had an effect on the show. In Vrains you could tell the show was going in almost three narrative directions and then the staff was rushed the wrap up of the series.
Seems with Sevens the staff is just enjoying themselves and having fun. It feels like a more relaxed atmosphere. The episodic feel has similarities to Season 0 but instead of horror it's comedy. It seems that they needed to just find their footing without Kazuki and just took them a little time.
@Jack-of-all-trades I've been loving Sevens so far. I've loved ALOT of YGO OPs and EDs but I just sing and dance to Sevens everytime. Love the fact that the school anthem is the ED. I don't mind the non Kazuki art style because it still feels like YGO to me.
Btw DSOD is definitely worth the watch, it's a good end to the manga and the art and animation is beautiful. Easily the best animation in the whole franchise actually. I recommend either dub or sub both are good.
@Jack-of-all-trades I've had Vanguard Cardfight recommended to me a few times and since I'm nearing the end my anime watchlist I'll probably check it in fall. I don't like watching to many series at once, too much of a headache.
As for DSOD, look Kazuki already made a nice ending for series once and quite frankly the fact he could pull it off twice is a miracle most authors wish they could do. If OG YGO has a special place in your heart it's worth the watch, if only for Yugi and Kaiba having a little more finality in their arcs. If not don't sweat it, the original ending anime or manga is pretty solid. I might not be the biggest fan of Arc V but I can understand your reasoning for not wanting to watch DSOD because of how it affected the staff. My brother enjoyed Arc V despite the fact he wished Yuto got his body back. We both watched DSOD in theaters and loved it and he suggests you should still give a go because it's pretty good. You can still like the movie and acknowledge the role it played in Arc V's production.
I feel similarly about the manga, Kazuki wasn't able to make several chapters that would've showed more Kisara and Priest Seto but time constraints prevented him from doing so. The anime could've rectified this but...that didn't happen. Anime/Manga Staff will always have obstacles but we can still enjoy the stuff that comes out of it.
To this day Zexal is the only Yugioh series I have been able to completely follow.
Zexal only yugioh that fun
same
Zexal is complete
EPIC HANDS DOWN MY FAVOURITE YGO SERIES CHANGE MY MIND
Sorry its just not possible
change "OUR" minds
Zexal is a really fun yugioh season, Yuma wanting to have fun instead of needing to save a world is pretty believable thing for a child protagonist. Yuma being a kid lends well to his ineptitude of dueling to become a real competent dueler. Number hunting is straight forward and interesting, Yuma’s flaws are a well welcomed aspect of his protagonist title, characters work really well off each other, kite and shark are great foils to Yuma’s goals and personality. Zexal made every character feel important and time on them never felt wasted, zexal I think is one of the better Yugioh series and I think it’s treated unfairly because it’s targeted demographic moved away from the kids who grew up watching the previous series and it has a very different cast from the previous series, way more lighthearted and fun instead of being more gritty or having some out of nowhere magic evil to beat
It is even more crazy when you realize how dark it got, but in japan I wouldn’t be surprised if cursing, blood, and people dying was normal pg in japan, the same place with mangas like violence jack and Berserk, straight out of the blue inappropriate things.
Thanks again for doing this video! I'm so glad someone finally opened a more positive note to the ZEXAL series. Not many people do this, and I will certainly take my approach on this topic at some point in the future. I can already see people's comments being EXTREMELY negative on this video, and it's a shame that some people just can't see what you and I see in this series. Hopefully this will make people think twice and maybe go back to watch it (in Japanese with English subs) just to see what are these elements you spoke of. I know the hate will still be strong, but hopefully you can save a few souls lol
Great vid bro!
Thank you. Haters gonna hate but I really wanted to do this because the whole reason I started doing videos because I wanted to be the guy who stands up for the unpopular opinion
Legendary Duels I love ZEXAL!!!!
Marjay McCool You're awesome 😎
You're awesome too!!!
CardMaster123 It's a sad crime. They are missing out on epicness 😔
Zexal is my favorite series too. Yuma is also my favorite protagonist so far, but the new guy, Yusaku, from VRAINS, shows a lot of potential to be one of the best Yu-Gi-Oh protagonists ever
Utopic Lightning So far (from what I have seen of VRAINS) Yusaku seems to be just another Yusei. The only major differences between the two is that Yusaku is a pro hacker, Yusaku's sense of justice is his only flaw and Yusaku wants revenge.
There's no way in hell that an older protagonist will be as good as Yuma, but I still hope that Yusaku will end up being a good protagonist.
I'm glad to see some positive YuGiOh! Zexal videos starting to float around here and there. Zexal was probably one of my favorite YuGiOh spinoffs, although to be fair I'm only a little more than halfway through GX and haven't watched 5ds or arc v yet. What I did take from it was that it was lighter and more colorful throughout but when it got through the darker parts it did crack down and take those good turns to make the plot feel natural. It would give you some room to breath between some of the bigger duels, like at the end of that arch with Haruto and Kaito, there was a great duel between duel between Yuma and Kaito and it felt natural and how it was supposed to be. Yuma didn't win just because he was the main character, but they took some realistic aspects and acknowledged that he still had places to grow. You're right, there is that buildup there, and it keeps getting bigger and bigger, but Zexal does keep it real when it really counts.
Just to let you know, the English Dub version of 5D's has ALOT of episodes missing from the Original Anime.
So if you wanna see the true ending you'll have to watch several episodes with Subtitle unless you know Japanese. Plus there are filler episodes & some good Duels that weren't in the English Dub.
I'll definitely keep that in mind. I was planning on watching 5Ds subbed anyway because I knew that all the episodes weren't dubbed, and I want to get the full effect.
Spin Offs? What makes you think that Zexal is a Spin Off man?
Toxik-Vermin idk
God, thank you so much for this! This is long but I don't talk about this a lot.ZEXAL is my second favorite yugioh, and only because the nostalgia for the first one still gets me. Yuma is my favorite protagonist because he reminds me of me as a kid, I had to make a lot of effort to do things right without screwing up. And the cast, especially the main three besides Yuma are so fricking beautiful and roundabout characters, I cried for them a lot while watching the series.Ryoga is definitely my favorite character, I felt such a pull towards him after the 12th episode that I couldn't help but root for him every time he wanted to protect Yuma or Rio. His arc in the Barian War broke me so much that I felt I was Yuma, I only wanted all of them to be happy and play card games like little kids (and Kaito's arc just made it worst).I'll admit, I almost dropped it once during the first filler arc of ZEXAL II, but Vector's reveal pulled me back so fast that I followed the series to the end.The story is not perfect, but it's in my heart for what it tried to do, especially after the disappointment that, in my opinion, was Arc-V. I have really great expectations for VRAINS, especially after seeing how different the first episode was (no goddamn cliffhanger duel, that's good!), and that Yusaku seems interesting (pls don't be a Kirito) enough to hold the show up.Well, I'm gonna subscribe to you, that's for sure. Once more, thank you so much for making this video.
No one replied so I wanted say nOice
@@jakhiplayzgamez3366 same
a lot is liked that you made in this comment
Great to see more videos that recognize the greatness of this series! I love Zexal, it is legitimately one of my favourite anime. Yuma is an intensely complex character and as you say in the video, the first 15 minutes of the show are a tour-de-force in introducing his personality, his weaknesses, his conflicts and his surprisingly profound understanding of culture and philosophy.
Not to mention the final arc. Barian Onslaught might be the best thing to ever come out of the YuGiOh franchise. Every episode an absolute banger, every death hits hard as heck. Really great series and I have to agree it is YuGiOh and perhaps just Shonen Anime in general at its most emotionally affecting and genuinely clever (seriously, the final Kaito VS Mizael duel is a fucking rubix cube of different emotional stakes and plotlines and the way it all comes together in the end is genuinely a triumph)
Haven't even watched it yet but have a like for sharing this. Zexal is my fave series to and I can sum it up in 2 words, Emotional Depth, no YGO series has had me so invested in the actual characters and story.
I think one thing people don't acknowledge is the overall passage of time when Zexal came out, by the time 5D's ended, YGO had been going 10/11 years, that by default is classified as generation, so why not start targeting the new generation, with a protag around their age they can relate to, need to bring fresh blood to the game.
i am 5 years late, but thats what most old fans dont get imo
I was new to yugioh at the time, and ik for sure if i watched something like 5ds, i wouldnt be all that interested
Also many years too late still i'll say, age of the protagonist matters not if well written. As an all time anime fan, I was "too old" to watch DM. Seen all ygo series except vrains and let me say this (and piss some people off). Although i enjoyed most of ygo (almost cause GX was some major bullcrap true and through), I consider Zexal not only my favorite one but the only objectively good one.
zeal has the best main villain ever in the form of vector.
I agree as someone who hates the marick kind of villain who is just stereotypical evil
Tron was kinda cool
At least Vector was a better villain than Z-One
Yuma is one of my favourite protagonists. I looked forward for his duels because he loses and wins, which makes his battles go either way. Not like other protagonists who win all the time. And i also loved the fact that he started as a bad duelist who later on becomes a skilled one.
I know write thanks for saying that.
Exactly, and even that first Duel with Ryoga/Shark shows Yuma has a LOT of potential as a Duelist, even if some things would be seen as risky on his end, like the fact he opted to use Bye Bye Damage to protect Number 39: Hope, King of Wishes/Utopia from Leviathan Dragon rather than use his effect like Astral said, and how he did that to also be able to help him win the Duel by taking out Leviathan Dragon due to betting on and drawing Double or Nothing! to use with Hope's effect to end the Duel.
It's that kind of thing I like about Yuma; while he DOES listen to Astral now and then, he still also tries to do his own thing because he is growing, and he also wants to still be himself no matter what. That's his greatest strength, and as much as others around him influence him, Yuma's heart, his actions, they shape the others he meets as well, and how he shines bright like the sun because of it.
@@BryonYoungblood Good Point
6:15 There's actually a whole episode in season one where the conflict centers around this. Yuma's friends start saying he's only winning duels because of his new Number cards, so Yuma challenges Shark to a duel where he promises not to use the Numbers because he wants to prove he can still win without them (and because he wants to help Shark get back into dueling). But then during the duel, as he's loosing, he justifies it to himself and breaks his promise, summoning his ace Number (Utopia), and then he still looses, and his friends are pissed at him because of it. Then he learns from that and realizes that he needs to keep his word and to not abuse the Numbers just because they're powerful. In the whole rest of the show, he never uses the Numbers unless the duel he's in has serious consequences (which is pretty often because anime, but still). A moment of character progression like that is the type of thing that just doesn't happen in other yugioh animes.
part of it is because of shark's taunting and blackmailing, similar to what kaiba did to win against yugi.
I think in the beginning of the tournament Yuma never actually used any of his numbers until the finals
@@Lulu-ew7oh yes, exactly! In the whole world duel carnival arc he never used the Numbers unless he was up against other Numbers or someone like Kite
@@sirkittens5445 which was cool because we got to saw other xyzs
@@sirkittens5445 thought I wish he had more extra deck variety
I'm still re-watching Zexal now in 2019. It's my favorite Yu-Gi-Oh series of all time. Love Ryoga, my best boy. 💕
Zexal is to Yugioh what black and white is to Pokémon. Everyone hated black and white but years later everyone realized how based it was and how previous generations really only stood up because of nostalgia. I hope in a few years Zexal gets the appreciation it deserves.
Finally someone who likes Yu-Gi-Oh Zexal as much as I do
Zexal is fantastic, and its a shame that most of the fanbase doesn't see this show for how good it truly is.
you also forgot to mention that in 3 or 4 duels, if yuma had followed astral's thinking he'd have lost the duel
OMG THANK YOU!!! :D I LOOVE Zexal! It's a beautiful show that ultimately teaches about not giving up with believing in yourself and those around you. Yuma is an angel of a character. He goes through so much growth and so much development that it's hard to listen to those that say otherwise. Astral is a beautiful soul. He is NOT a carbon copy of Atem. He is a being who though at the beginning was very single minded grew into this character who uses his wisdom in so much more then a card game.
There were great characters, there were characters that could have had more development.
Overall it was really about the characters and the message. It's kind of hard to describe unless you've seen it, so I would advise anyone that if they can to go and watch it. It needs so much more phrase that it's getting here. Side note, Zexal is actually really popular in Japan.
Also yes, Yusei became very bland as 5Ds went on and I am so glad you said it. He was basically 5Ds Jesus. He was too perfect.
I love the idea of Yuma and Yuya meeting one day. I know for a fact that Yuma could teach Yuya so much and be an incredible friend toward him. ♡♡♡ *Whispers* Also really love them as a couple. ^-^
Best YGO spinoff ever. Hands down my #1 fav.
"Most Zexal haters are just 5ds fanboys"
Me: Laughs in pure facts
Ps. All these years and that statement is still true.
yes
I actually think its gx fans,
@@mansti9775 probably as well, but I think it's mostly 5Ds fans. I think they were really disappointed when zexal started because 5Ds and Zexal are so different. You just have this mature storytelling and then it kinda shifted to a "kiddish" show. I believe Zexal was meant to be like that in the beginning because the protagonist will experience great development later on. Also I noticed that in most Yu-Gi-Oh anime fans they either love or hate GX and Zexal there's no middle ground which is kinda interesting.
@LuvApink that's good to know. I understand you too since I used to have a massive ego and the only thing I have in mind back then is to keep winning and keep being the best. After watching Zexal, I realized that I'd rather be a Yuma (weak, immature childish kid that will have a good development and will be one of the strongest one day) than be a Ryo Marafuji (so strong, so intimidating at the beginning but lost his mind at the process and became hell bent on winning when he was defeated in a row). Being the best at the beginning is not healthy, since you had high expectations to yourself and you began to fear failure and defeat, you will also avoid to listen and learn more since you think highly of yourself. I wish you the best, have a nice day.
I like zexal. Especially the relationship between Yuma and astral
Gigi Mcdonald Me, too. Their relationship is great.
glad to see another fan of zexal - i remember watching the series back when it was airing, and i never understood the blatant hatred (well, i KIND of do - but it seems mostly unjustified, ie: picking on yuma for not being a master duelist or "annoying". i actually liked the fact that he didn't start off as a master, it gave room for legitimate development).
then again, i havent seen every yugioh series in their entirety. zexal is the only season i managed to complete due to it airing at the time. i tried getting into arc v, but something just... didn't feel the same. zexal was charming because of the juxtaposition between a bright, beautiful setting and a looming darkness. there's something that probes your interest, making you want to come back for more.
of course, the series has its problems; such as the rocky beginning and numerous amounts of filler, but you can blame basic shounen/kids anime tropes for that. however, i thought zexal had key plot points from the very beginning - instead of going back and forth, it stuck to a linear timeline that progressed and developed the characters. this sense of growth and realistic interaction is what made the finale so pleasing.
i'll admit it, though - i'm biased towards yuma. i hated him at the beginning, but the kid grew on me, so much so that i consider him my favorite yugioh protagonist. i feel like many fans forget that hes just a kid - he's going to make mistakes, and hes going to be stubborn or bratty from time to time. this personality works, however, because he grows and changes due to astral, shark, kaito, etc.
i suppose the biggest issue in this series is the throw-away side characters - but i think that's an issue ALL yugioh series have. i also disliked the lack of female dueling as well, there was so much potential for characters like anna and kotori... but konami has this issue against developing girls, i guess.
Great video man. 5D's is my favorite but zexal is so good. I never really understood the hate this series gets. Also the duel between Kaito and Mizael in the freaking moon is absolutely legendary.
In my opinion Zexal had the best and most consistent storytelling of any of the Yu-Gi-Oh! shows. When it comes to some main plot points, no stone is left unturned and not much was scrapped as it was with the other shows.
Now as much as I love 5Ds, it sadly deteriorated during its second half. A lot of plot points get retconned or resolved offscreen. Like Yliaster going from a cult to some Illuminati from a robot apocalypse future that makes no sense especially ripping off Terminator. The Arcadia Movement issue gets resolved by having Sayer get arrested offscreen. Which gets told to us in the 10th anniversary guidebook, if we didn’t have that, then we wouldn’t even know what happened to him after the Dark Signers arc. Which Aki really needed a character arc for herself because she was great in the first half only to be reduced to the sides in the second half! I hated that! At least it wasn’t as bad as what Yuzu got in Arc-V. But still Aki and the rest of the Yugioh girls deserved better.
Zexal also had this problem but to a much lesser extent. The first half slowly worked its way up to Tron and Faker being the main villains. While I find Faker to be bland and forgettable, the plot of the first half at least makes sense and ties everything together from up to that point. Vetrix was wronged by Faker and wanted revenge, but Faker did what he had to do negotiating with the Barian Vector in order to protect Hart. Which then ties into the second half being all about the Barian emperors and Don Thousand. It all flows together nicely and cohesively which not a lot of Yu-Gi-oh! shows are able to do these days.
Plus the animation and art style is pretty good! This is probably due to the fact that at the time, there were probably no production issues in Studio Gallop. It was also not in the middle of an anniversary and they weren’t showing any signs of franchise fatigue anytime soon during this era. This fluidity and consistency of the animation and art style is what really makes Zexal stand out as it shows that the animators put a lot of time and care into this series.
Not to mention the director of this series
Satoshi Kuwahara, was also the same guy who directed the Dark Side of Dimensions movie, go figure. And that’s what I liked that this guy had a sense of direction! Unlike Katsumi Ono who directed both 5Ds and Arc-V didn’t! Because it was all Style over substance for him. While as Kuwahara had a balance of both style and substance and it worked! That’s why he succeeded while Ono failed because he had no sense of direction. And I hold no grudges against Ono but I think he should never direct another Yugioh series again unless he learned from his mistakes. But yeah Zexal is a great show regardless. And I think a lot of people should give it a chance as well as the benefit of the doubt.
Also people need to watch sub rather than dub for this one specifically. It makes the first 1/3 of the series more bearable and carries you into the REALLY good parts that make it, dare I say, better than DM, GX, and 5Ds.
I agree yugioh zexal is underrated. Plus if people watch the final duel between yuma and astral he actually took the time and thought into constructing a deck by himself
2022 and zexal still is my favourite
Zexal is my favorite because it’s relatable and mans never stops
I just found it fun to watch Yuma develop. I found myself during the middle of Yugioh Vrains, to be skipping episodes with Blue Angel or Flame wielder. I don't like how the Yugioh series crams useless characters and tries to make them look important with them being useless in the end.
I honestly don’t see much wrong with Yuma, especially in the original. His friends on the sideline and their constant involvement was my main issue.
his school friends were boring characters. othe than that the characters were all nice including yuma
I love zexal soo much and people don’t understand why
I never understood the hate this series gets? It’s not terrible yet it’s not perfect. Also I pretty much agree with all your points about this series.
At first I was skeptical about this series after finishing 5Ds. I was like the rest at first but I gave it a chance and I was blown away by the end of this series. I’m not going to lie either that this series does have better consistency than most of the YGO series. Despite its flaws.
In fact I liked that it handles its plot better than most of the other series. Now 5Ds is my favorite Yugioh series however I’m not going to call it the best because favoritism doesn’t equal best…Sorry not sorry. Like you with the Yubel stuff I could never get into the whole Z-One/Meklord plot because it came out of nowhere plus it wasn’t established correctly. Not to mention it’s basically a terminator knock off plot! The thing that I liked about 5Ds is that it was based on Incan mythology especially during its opening, I really loved the Dark Signer Arc it wasn’t perfect but it was better than the later stuff that we got at the end. I mean I did enjoy it but there were plenty of things I was disappointed about towards the end of 5Ds. I didn’t like the lack of Incan mythology which the series was heavily based on! The Meklords don’t fit with the theme and come off as generic. Plus it felt ODD seeing the ANCIENT power of the Crimson Dragon battling robots from the future. Plus the MANY plot holes that were left out! Also the character development felt stagnant and regressed. The Arc Cradle arc…people say it’s the best arc but I felt it was mediocre at best. It was all spectacle over substance. Full of McMuffins! Like throwing things at us with little to no explanation. The only part I liked was Bruno’s part (Which was the best part of the Arc, IMO) while the rest was meh. Z-One was such a lackluster final villain. Plus I didn’t like the ending that much, I don’t think it’s terrible but it felt hollow to me. But I prefer 5Ds ending better than Arc-V’s any day even if I don’t like 5Ds ending that much.
However with Zexal at least they give us something new. Plus you are right that most of the characters are relevant when it comes to the story and not only that but I like how emotional it got during the final arc. I say the Barian War arc blows the Arc Cradle arc out of the water because of its culmination of everything that came before it. Plus the ending was very good even though it had that open ending feel at least it gave closure to most of the characters in the series. I’m not saying Zexal is the best Yugioh series but I think people need to give it a chance since it’s not as bad as people make it out to be. Overall, great job on the video.
People wanted the 13-14 year old yuma to be as good as the card game and as a character as the 18-20 year old yusei
I'm not saying zexal is the best anime I am saying zexal is underrated
Finally. Do you know how hard it is to find someone else who feels this way?
Yes Yu-Gi-Oh zexal is my favourite Yu-Gi-Oh series
(Propably the best Yugioh series ever)
I'm glad that I am not the only one that appreciates Zexal for what it was, it was the reason I got into Yu-Gi-Oh in the first place and still play it. I loved Zexal from day 1 when it first aired
I think the reason i liked Zexal the most is because im a younger person i was only about 8 when zexal was released and it was the first yu gi oh series i've ever watched so i got used to it and now i can't stop re-watching it all over again!
Plus i got into zexal and tbh the theme song is lit but many people dislike zexal for Yuma being a weak protagonist in the beginning, but i'm not going to lie when yuma lost duels and i knew the solution I did get quite irritated but Yuma's personality is what stops me from giving up, he always has a way to feel the flow and high five the sky, he is really influential and unselfish that's why i love this series so much.
"He cant give up his Yuma-nity"...YEEEEEEAAAAAAHHH
zexal is my favorite hands down
Most people:
I don't like Yusei? Why? He wins too much.
Also most people:
I don't like Yuma! Why? He loses too much.
YUGIOH ZEXAL IS THE BEST.
PERIOD.
I loved Yugioh Zexal too and I totally agree especially when every character in Yugioh zexal appears in the finale
And I quote"the kids with the names with the numbers" for shame
I remember seekng a random episode on TV when i was like 9 and when i finally watched Zexal completely i could still remember that episode and if something like that happens then you can be sure that that series stuck with me the whole time. I was so happy to finally being able to watch it because i love Yugioh (GX is my favorite btw) and can proudly say that Zexal is my second favorite Yugioh series.
I was curious on your thoughts about Yuma’s school group of friends (the ones who rarely dueled in serious moments). A lot of fans disliked them, with Kotori especially being considered more hated than Tea/Anzu. Did you feel they detracted from the story or did you think they added an element to the story of Yuma having a normal life?
I didn't hate them because people like Kotori didn't try to duel. Its honestly make me hate Tea more because she dueled and then stopped.
I never really disliked any of Yuma’s friends. In my opinion, I think Tori is way better then Tea because it feels to me that Tori really likes Yuma for him and only him, while when I watched Duel Monsters, Tea seemed to only be interested in Yami. Of course that’s just my opinion. My favorite in his friends group would have to be Cathy tho.
I just felt they had too much screen time compared to their lack of relevance. I do like the focus on Yuma's normal life though, makes the world feel a lot bigger compared to Vrains
They have their contributions to supporting Yuma but to be honest, I cannot stand the constant
>Yuma Takes Damage
>"Noooo Yumas getitng his ass kicked"
>Yuma makes a good play
>"Go Yuma, you got this"
Every duel when they are present. Its just annoying
The relationship between Astral/Yuma is so much better than yugi/atem.
You actually get to see Astral and Yuma grow and develop as a team and friends. Zexal transformation is the perfect cumulation beteeen these 2 different being having spent some time together and friend and understanding each other. It’s beautiful. Yugi/atem doesn’t have that because atem overtakes Yugis soul when dueling. The final duel between the two is strong and I love it but it isn’t as impactful because we haven’t been watching yugi on his own duel throughout the show. This opinion usually gets yugiboomers on my ass despite myself havingg experience og Yugioh when it premiered
It was my first yugioh series, it will always be special to me despite it's flaws
This shows message of friendship moved me to tears, and kite’s character arc made me bawl. It’s my favorite as well
Dude the opening, the first opening, best shit ever
Zexal happened to be the Yu-Gi-Oh that I started on and grew up watching, and I get nostalgic for it, and that's something I feel influences which one is your favourite (the one you grew up o and the one you started); I also remember think this show was really dark for a show airing on CN. It was around late-2013 where I started getting into what I call "childhood anime". Another anime I was watching was the Beyblade Metal Saga, and that's another franchise where people argue which is the best series
Zexal is way better than Arc-V and Vrains.
Anything is better then Arc V just for that ending
For real arc 5 and brains r kinda trash
@@LuiVert6
Arc v yes
But vrains is great for me
Yuma is main character of Zexal and I do agree with you about Yuma
I loved everything about zexal except one thing, WHY DID THEY CHANGE THE THEME "take a chance" was and still is my favorite theme ever
Zexal will always be underrated. Can't stand fanboys of any fandom who hate on an underrated gen or sequel for crap like oh It's not dark enough, it's not the one I grew up with, it's too bright, he relies on this too much.
i like on how some ppl think yuma is annoying like bruh he is literally 13 we were just as annoying as him.
Zexal is my favourite series
But i aint gonna list them
ZEXAL's my fave too!!!
Zexal is the Wind Waker of Yugioh
Any Yu-Gi-Oh series is good on it's own. However, ZEXAL is the greatest in my opinion because it has good story line ( where you can see the character development of each characters) and each characters connections to one another deepen ( Why it has an awesome emotional attack ). It also teaches practical lessons like " Heroes are not born they are made ( you can't be good from the very start but you will be great as you fail, get back up, fight till you succeed) " and "Choosing to respond positively or doing the right thing even how bad the situation is or no matter how evil the people around you ( Vector/ Shingetsu ), then someday it will have it's fruit.'
Yes, ZEXAL is not perfect...it has a lot of down points but its good factors overlaps the imperfection, the best of all Yu-Gi-Oh series still ( in my opinion, respect)!!!
Look man, I know it's ゼアル in Japanese so "zaeal" is the right way to say it, but zexal just sounds more right in English. Zaeal is like trying to pronounce "zeal" but something goes wrong along the way
This show is so good I wish they made a show after the ending
They did. It's called Yu-Gi-Oh Arc-V.
@@adaurysantos he means a spin-off or a continuation
@@adaurysantos and when i mean spin off i mean another yu gi oh directly connected to zexal
@@someniggaonthetoilet3147 same
@@someniggaonthetoilet3147 Yu gi oh Pandora starting Yuma and Kotori daughters.
Edit: What do you think?
Not all characters were likeable but they and the world felt real. I also loved the darker twist it took
Zexal is what got me back into the YGO franchise, about three years after the heavy disappointment I got from 5D's. I love this anime, regardless of its flaws, and I'm confident in saying that it's my favorite series(and I was a huge DM fan for the longest time).
p.s.: yuma's is great, f*ck you fight me (ง •̀_•́)ง
lovinani7 I can’t fight you
I love Yugioh Zexal Sooo much✨✨
I AGREE WITH EVERYTHING YOU JUST SAID! Thank you!!!
"My Favorite Yu-Gi-Oh Series Is Yu-Gi-Oh Arc V Finale,Closely Followed By and 5DS!"
*Said No One Ever*
DUDE THAT ENDING TO ARC V SUCKED IF YOU WATCHED THE WHOLE THING YOU'D SEE WHY!
Where this series really shined for me was the concept of the other had great duelests out the gay , this was the making of a great duelest
FINALLY SOMEONE GETS IT.
I saw one of the first episodes on TV once and I remember enjoying it quite a bit, but I never remembered to watch it. I guess now I should check it out!
All YU-Gi-Oh series are good, however I find it ironic that most Zexal haters don't criticize Yusei's character.
One of the biggest Gary Stu's in fiction is supposed to be a "deep" character?
"A character who needs character development? This is shit." "A badass who has the same character for the whole series, who cares he is a badass."
I don't know, I didn't hate Yusei as much as I did hate Yusaku.
I think Yusei actually did get character development. At least in the sub because in the dub it just felt like he was angry etc. There was this on scene (i don't remember where it was) where Yusei basically had a whole emotional speech about how he really feels and he finally understands that not everything is his fault. He basically opened up to his friends in that moment but in the dub this isn't existant at all. I still think that Yuma and Judai had the most amount of character development though.
Also i think that Yusei showing vulnerability in his character doesn't really make him a Gary Stu. Yes, he did win a lot of duels but not every single one of them and as a character he did have at least one breakdown somewhere in the anime so for me at least he isn't a "perfect" character because he does have his weaknesses.
@@zail1679 Actually I don't think Yusei has ever lost except that one time the duel was canceled.
zexal is my favorite and the summoning mehanic was perfect
I initially hate Zexal at first, but now I’m more comfortable with XyZ Summons I’ll check it out
The English theme song for this is so good man best yu gi oh
This is my favorite yugioh series
Felt the same but after some time when his quest for the number cards really started then it was good to watch
My favourite series is the original one. I absolutely loved the ancient Egyptian thing they had going on throughout and I think it's a shame it hasn't really appeared in future yugioh series.
Yuma is such a likeable character. The first yugioh I watched was zeal. Then I watched the original, go, 5ds, and half of arc v. But overall ZEXAL is the best. When I first started watching this, Yuma was very relatable and the closest to my age. I was about 8. I still love it now. Unfortunately it’s not on Netflix anymore and season 3 is unavailable unless I buy it.
BoraCM 39 The dub is on Hulu
Thank you! I never thought you'd actually deliver! I know I was once one of the people that requested this video, but anyways,I can't really respond since, it was by yugioh Zexal is when I stopped caring for Yugioh. I just felt like Zexal is so painfully slow and predictable at times, plus, besides the Barians, none of the characters ever grabbed me personally. I only went out to try Arc V when I heard about it being good and having all of the summoning techniques (so it managed to rekindle my interest in Yugioh). So yeah, right after the Dark Signer arc, I just really... stopped, watching any Yugioh shows.
Well, I just got to ask, when exactly did you saw Zexal become "good". Mainly because I think I stopped by episode 10, and just watched a few Zexal 2 episodes. But, as someone who plans on finally finishing it... Just, tell me what episode is the first episode that wowed you?
Kind of with episode 10, when Ryoga beat Yuma. The duel was executed really well and I loved the way Ryoga pushed him into summoning Utopia, only to beat it in a way that made perfect sense. Everything else in that mini arc was presented insanely well and everything else afterword's just continued to get better. Also sorry it took so long to get this one out, I needed the time
Zexal is my favorite series. It was the first one I watched and I loved it. Of course by the time I started watching season one was over but it got me to love the yugioh franchise.
I love Zexal out of all of the Yugioh series, I watched it when I was in middle school like 6th grade and I was still a kid so I related with Yuma who acted very much like a kid.
god this is my favorite video ever
Still watching it!
I can see how people think part 1 was meh, but the plot really started getting really good when the barians came to earth with shark
"Yuma got more personal development in the first 15 minutes of episode 1 than any of the three in a seasons worth of content"
As somone who watched all main series, ot only do I agree. I am one upping that.
Yuma did Yugi's character arc better.
Yugi started a prodigy with no friends and gained them, then basically did fuck all till the final act.
Yuma SUCKED as a Duelist and had no friends. We watched that growth, he did the majority of the legwork. Astral helped and taught him and they became partners. We saw this kid go from loser to one of the Legends, one of the best duelists in his age.
And... Yuma is literally the only protagonist who got with his love interest in the end. That alone is a CHAD move.
zexal is my favorite too
I relate to you all-out. It’s super unique, and I don’t have a clue why haters for this exist.
FINALLY!
Someone who gets it.
I'm glad to hear people talking about their love for Zexal. But I will say that the idea of "Win this card game to save the world." was almost entirely a DUB thing, especially in the early Duel Monsters show. In the original japanese, the stakes of duelist kingdom, battle city, and even filler arcs like virtual world and grand prix being almost entirely about PERSONAL stakes. With only the Atlantis and Memory World arcs having fate of the world stakes and even then, the personal goals were emphasised.
The dub inserted "Save the world" into every season though, even when it did not fit, and erased massive amounts of dialogue that developed character (Because yes, developing character through the duels was the POINT of Yu-Gi-Oh! going back even to the first chapters of the manga that introduced the game).
The best example of this is Yugi vs Kaiba in Battle City.
In the original duel, THE FATE OF THE WORLD WAS NOT AT STAKE. Marik was NOT seeking to rule the world, he was just a lunatic who liked torturing people. Yugi wanted the Egyptian Gods because he wanted to get his MEMORIES back. And THAT is what the duel with Kaiba was about.
Kaiba was Yugi's antithesis in that he rejected his past and sought to leave it behind in favour of the "Light of the Future". He saw Yugi's search for his lost memories as a representation of a worldview stuck in the past, while Yugi saw Kaiba rejecting the past as him running away and being untrue to who he really was. The duel became a clash of philosophy. Of ideaology.
In the dub...
"I must beat you to save the world!"
"Blah! Blah! Blah! PRIDE! Blah! Blah! Blah! MAGIC'S NOT REAL! Blah! Blah! Blah! I DON'T CARE ABOUT THE WORLD!"
I recommend watching 10 episodes per day for a month. Congratulations if you can watch more faster.
Mission Astral Word is the best multiparter in all of Yu Gi Oh