That duel was so horrific. I remember watching it when I was 9 years old with weird subs. Even when I couldn't understand what was being said by characters, I could still feel what was happening from the visuals. It made me so uncomfortable because, like Trueman said, O'Brien made the decision to let his mother burn in order to save his father. He was a kid who didn't deserve to be put in such a position and manipulating him like that to the point he made a misplay in the final turn, lost and accepted that he should've died with his parents in that fire was unhinged. This duel alone is why Trueman is one of my favorite villains. Even Marik and Bakura didn't torture their opponent so much that they were wishing death.
I love the idea that Kaiba is so good at dueling that Truman or Nightshroud could not actually beat him in a game. Not to mention this isn't Kaiba's first shadow game rodeo.
I agree,Axel really blamed himself not to mention that he truly felt the weight of the past in that duel haunt him,even in Duel Links we hear both voices in JP and Dub voice their sadness when they use Volcanic Queen card!
Is there any reason why people keep dragging Duel Links character reaction as some sort of canon stuff? I've been seeing several similar comment lately.
GX had a lot of dark moments, like remember that time when Jaden went nuts, commited war crimes, and started killing his friends? Like yeah, if you only remember the first seazon it's silly light hearted shenanigans for the most part, but by the end of it the protagonist literally has PTSD. I maintain that GX is the darkest series in the franchise
I still remember the ending because of that. Jaden finally got to duel with Yugi, but after all the PTSD, fusing with Yubel, and all the horrific events that happened to him, he was treating this duel like another chore he has to do. But during the duel with Yugi, that shell Jaden put around himself for protection started to crack. Jaden was starting to smile, to laugh, and to enjoy himself again. The whole point of that duel wasn't about who won or who lost, it was about Jaden finally being able to enjoy playing the game again. It didn't matter who won; Jaden was actually happy again. And it's a shame that too many people only cared about who would have won instead of the joy of playing the game itself.
@@SoulHero7I think they only cared about it that much because at the beginning of GX Jaden was aiming to be the next king of games. They could’ve made the finale into a 2 part have Jaden lose but still learn a lesson. Or have him win then have him realize he finished his dream of becoming king of games as his old goofy self again.
@@khiarieverett9658 That is fair, but I'm glad that we're never gonna get a clear answer about who won, cause I still feel that anyone who's asking for that is missing the point. Healing takes time and one duel is not gonna fix all the mental scarring Jaden had regardless of the outcome. But at least he can finally start healing thanks to Yugi.
@@khiarieverett9658I actually think Jaden changing his goal from becoming the next king of games to another goal at the end really shows how far he matured and grew up by graduation. After all the horrible events that happened to him all he cares about is spending time with Yubel and helping other people deal with seeing duel monster spirits like he could as a kid now that he understands them a lot better. This is why I think GX is the darkest series. Because there are actual consequences for Jaden’s choices and the narrative has serious weight on him for the rest of his life. While in the other Yugioh series it feels like they brush off the big threats and the toll they take on the protagonist too quickly while GX goes fully through with it
I think an honorable mention goes to Nasch vs Vector simply due to Vector summoning Durbe and Merag's Chaos Numbers and using them against Nasch, which is the Yugioh equivalent of flaunting a loved one's corpse before trying to beat you with it.
Vector is by far one of the characters i hate the most. Every barian is honored and strong. Vector is just coward and sick. I love to hate him but man he does some sick stuff.
This was truly peak writing. It’s really crazy that out of all the overseas academia students O’Brien ended up being the one who was the most fleshed out despite seeming the least important to the plot when he was first introduced. He was so cool that Judai actually stayed in contact with him post duel dimension arc and that’s peak cinema honestly. If you ever covered more duels a video about Ryo vs Sho/Yubel or Edo vs his adoptive father would be fire
To be fair, he always had potential. He pretty much would’ve beat Judai the first time they dueled. I’m not gonna say that’s foreshadowing or anything but it does make sense that out of everyone, he’d be the one to be able to stop the Supreme King just based on that, but when I first watched I was surprised they actually gave him the draw against a mega amped version of the MC. And then his return in S4 was great…just unfortunate for him in lore
Worst part there was another choice Axel could have made and if he attack’s the other monsters on trueman field, he would have dealt 1000 point with his Doomfire effect. But Trueman manipulated axel into attacking volcanic Queen causing him to face the same regret when he couldn’t choose to save his mom.
This duel hardly ever gets talked about and it is so so good. thank you for bringing light to one of the best/darkest/most impactful duels of the entire franchise.
It's a weird situation because the sub light arc and the final season are absolutely amazing, but the other seasons are so bad that it also makes sense that it's considered one of the weaker series. Now I don't dislike Gx by any means, but the goofiness of the dub kind of carries the first season, and then Yubel arc after those first two seasons is kind of a mess until right about Zane vs Jesse Yubel, since things get good once Yubel is more directly involved (the sub is phenomenal between the music and Yubel's unstable emotions at this point.) Idk, Gx good, but the lows are just too low for the highs to make up for it, but it's still not the worst either.
Let's be honest. Season 3 of gx was basically "Depression and psychological damage, the story arc". Season 4 was just the continuation of 3. 5ds is yugioh, but social critique, and half the time in dm, you nitice takahashi liked writing horror like season 0.
Greiger getting hanged by a spider string to be reincarnated as a Dark Signer, Kalin dying from starvation and while holding a grudge from his friends who think they sold him off Leo died while Luna LP drop from heartache from losing her brother Bruno and Aporia dying while trying to save Z-one Yeah, a lot of deaths of the last arc
5Ds subbed had some pretty wild stuff in particular Carly being blasted from a building and falling to her death and crying for Jack to save her But the moment that kinda got me thinking it was gonna get pretty gritty was episode 5 (or 4) right after Jack runs into Yusei who got through the tunnel and they start their duel. Mina is walking down the hallway with Rex and she tells him about Jack’s whereabouts and he just pins her to the wall while choking her.
O’Brien is one of the more tragic GX characters by far. Raised to be a soldier, had to make a life or death decision when he was a child, and ran away from an actual war happening in front of his eyes.
Absolutely agree.this is easily in my top 5 favorite gx duels and my 2nd favorite duel in season 4. I love how psychological and unique this duel becomes(especially since it features o brien who has been raised to always show bravery and remain calm under pressure) and it really interesting how much of an effect the accident on the mountain had on him. Also it is a pretty big plot twist taht trueman ended up winning and i love when important characters lose duels with avtual stakes on the line instead of being unbeatable
Great video brother. Stories shine the brightest when characters have to make difficult choices and live with those choices. Axel's guilt and cruel circumstances brought me to tears. These videos are what I hunger for.
What about in 5D's when Carly gets pushed out of the building in a duel where she falls into her death bed, and you see her die until she is resurrected by the darkness and you see her innocence stolen when they show her cute fairies turn to something more "sinister", a symbolism of coming of age after death
If Carly had remained relevant after that duel then that could have been the darkest moment of the series. It unfortunately the narrative tossed her and Jack’s romantic subplot aside and she just became another member of Jack’s harem for the second half of the series
@@MrBlink622 regardless if she became relevant or not after that duel, I honestly think it was the darkest moment in the series. Trying to uncover the truth only to find herself as another one of their victims, being tossed out of a high altitude, landing to her deathbed, watching her life leave her eyes on screen, being resurrected the second right after her death, and as previously mentioned, her joyful cards transforming into something more "sinister"....that's pretty dark as heck, if you ask me.
Honestly, Kaiba not having trouble was just fanservice. Someone like Kaiba would easily fall for Trueman's tricks. I can see Yugi and Joey resisting to the manipulation, but Kaiba ? Easiest target ever.
also ontop of that this is anime kaiba that went through basically the same schtick with noah in the virtual world arc. that guy is completely at peace with his demons more or less
Nah, that would be like Babidi trying to control Vegeta. Would work initially, but then Kaiba just being Kaiba and pull the middle finger to darkness. That man has long been passed his obsession with Atem.
Disagree. Kaiba was one of the few persons who could handle playing an egyptian god card without it dooming him. Not only that, he sacraficed this powerful egyptian god in a duel where he was, in his pov, one attack away from winning because he trusted his trump card more. Post tournament Kaiba is mentally strong af
What makes this even worse is that first of all, I never watched that far into the series since it never got dubbed, but ever since season 3 I’ve felt bad for axel, he always seemed to focused on what to do, he seemed stressed or like he has anxiety but he doesn’t show it because he doesn’t want to seem weak in-front of others. This makes my feel ever worse knowing that he has been traumatized and that’s why he acts the way he does, not his father’s training but how he really is
I'll throw out here, does anyone remember the ArcV duelist who was a double agent? How he got so into the role he played that when he was confronted by the cast he turned his duel disc on himself rather than his opponent? Genuinely, so many duels in that series could've been replaced with guns and have the same plot beats.
GX goes from trying to catch a sandwich thief to Jaden being tricked into turning his friends into human sacrifices, going evil and commiting a genocide
I like how GX starts out light hearted with its first season then it has some dark moments sprinkled in season 2, but with season 3 and 4 there is an almost complete tone shift. Kind of the opposit of 5d's which started out dark and got light hearted by season 3.
My friend you said the truth, that's the best ptsd representation in surrealism ever. Congratulations and all of the respect for saying that! YOU SHOULD BE PROUD! 💪 AND I AM GRATEFUL YOU DID ! THANKS 🙏
I dont remember axel being tricked into believing his mom died, i was pretty sure it just ended up that she survived but the real damage was already done. He couldnt take that he still made the choice to save his father even if it all worked out
Initially that was the case, but there is a point where you can notice that Trueman convinces Axel that his mom had died that day, which is why it hurts him even more to even think of destroying Volcanic Queen. This in turn creates the illusion for the audience that that's what happened because it's never actually stated that she survived until the big reveal at the end of the episode
In my opinion the darkest moment in yugioh comes from yugioh 5ds specifically kalin’s backstory and at the end of his backstory he literally starved to death before he became a dark signer
Thank you! GX so damn dark at points, mostly s3, even before they got transported there was viper(?) who died trying to resurrect his child, not to mention zane
Not a duel but a dark moment I do remember that sticks in my mind to this day is learning how the millennium items were created and Bakura watching his people being thrown into the pot to create them.
Season 4 of GX is underrated, it definitely dove into more mature themes of the series. While I feel like the Yubel arc was like the climax/peak of the series. Season 4 had that more subtle creepiness to it that was more tame compared to the craziness of season 3.
It's so criminal that Season 4 never got a Dub primarily because of Duels like this that deserve far more recognition for the storytelling involved. Hell, on a much lighter note, I would just love for more recognition to be paid to Duels like Chazz VS Aster from that same season, if for no other reason than just how pro wrestling the whole thing was, haha.
Going to the shadow realm sounds like losing your soul. So that would infact be many multiple times worse that i cant even comprehend. But we can understand the phychological trauma of guilt and then relivving such guilt in a different tense. That aside if its a game where the opponent loses the soul, Fair enough, i agree with you.
I still think Kalen from 5d's killing the sector security officer with a pipe then starving to death cold and alone in prison is still the darkest Yu-Gi-Oh moment.
To me it’s always been the 1 v 3 in 5ds were jack, Leo, and Luna all have a monitor over their heart and starts digging into their chest with needles the more damage they take. It eventually drops Leo’s life points to zero and it pierces his heart and he dies, then you see his sister stressing a lot and goes to the ground, starts having a panic attack and you can see her life points going down by the second when she only had 100 left. Yeah after trap he had left triggered and brought him back with 100lp and somehow came back despite it piercing his heart, but that was hard to see too. They were just kids man.
I remember the duel from this episode so vividly, even though I had only really seen it once. When GX season 4 was being posted online when the new episodes came out. It really is 1 of those moments that you just never forget. Although, I will admit that I did forget the full truth explained at the end of the episode. But, still was an amazing episode. And we don't really see anything on that level again in the rest of the series. With the possible exception to the Lost Incident in VRAINS.
And what makes it worse is that even though both of his parents live he believes it will always damage and shatter his own soul for how he blames himself.
But the one hit for me is Yusei vs his own friend that passed and resented him for it especially when people say he's "just someone that wins duels" but I know that even if he wins duels just like his card Stardust Dragon they sacrifice themselves to save others and sadly he's the one who he couldn't save.
The Darkest Moment was when Yugi finished the millenium puzzle, and the Pharaoh immediately challenged his parents to a shadow game, won, banished them to the shadow realm, and then erased their memories from Yugi and his Grandpa.
@@SalazzleDazzle Z-one had no connection to the Zero Reverse incident. He tried to recreat it by crashing Future Neo Domino into Past Neo Domino but in the end he changed his mind. 0 lives were lost to it. Well besides his own. Maybe you're confusing Zero Reverse with Meklord Emperor Genocide.
@@SiNKarnageZ-one caused the Zero Reverse incident. The guy Three Wise Nobles erased from the timeline in the episode where Sherry got lost in the time stream literally looks like the guy who told Godwin's brother to look into the reactor, and even if it wasn't him it's specifically stated that the silhouetted guy was sent by Iliaster, so it was undoubtedly Z-one's doing. The show says that straight up.
@@SiNKarnage Goodwin did it, yes, but he was manipulated by iliaster, which was entirely controlled by z-one. So yes, he didn't directly caused it, but he was behind it from the start
I find some of the darkest moments in the show to come from Arc V myself. The inter-dimensional war stuff got pretty intense at some parts. Then again, Yusei’s dead friend coming back to haunt him in 5D’s was pretty dark too.
It kinda makes sense. Nightshroud comes from a world where human suffering fuels the life of his planet. He knows what buttons to press on order to make his opponent break. But even using brainwashing is something i would have never expected.
Jesus Christ 😳, I had watched the final season a long time ago but maybe I just couldn't read the subs fast enough or forgot over time but THAT never fully hit me till this video 😳
Ah yes, beside dead and world domination There's a weapon that could turned a good person into someone else's either silently logical or psychopath with ideology.... *Trauma*
Im pretty sure Dartz revealing what he did to his minions was much worse than this. He violated their lives entirely that they grew up messed up with Trauma
This isn’t as bad as I expected, considering how GX can be. Seems like you’re hamming it up with editing and voice acting, which is cool I guess. Anyone know if this is the end for Axel story or if there’s some sort of comeback where him and his family are okay in the end?
I feel like this moment would have hit harder if he didn’t have experience the previous season with fumbling at the last minute in a duel which leads to his “death” (that he comes back from). The whole time I was just like “yeah this is really sad and surprisingly fucked up for this show but he’s gonna come back for sure. If being sent to the stars didn’t really do much, this probably won’t either.”
Fuck the mind games, I would have flipped at how broken the unchosen one is rather then to have to chose between monster mommy or monster daddy. Monster reborn, raigeki and harpies feather duster in one card, imagine the top deck.
GX season 4 was honestly one of the more depressing seasons in yugioh overall Jaden basically lost the joy he had in dueling after what happened in Season 3 with Supreme King and Yubel. His conversation with Kagemaru and Satorius showed just how he blamed himself for how things went and nearly cost his friends their lives
Kaiba is always one step ahead of people outside of the card game like it’s chess, how is anyone surprised? He’s done crazy things and had been the most clever strategic character in the series with the most guts and prob had a plan to take them out already if they lost. Also at that point he’s way better at the game than the GX villains
Then you got Yugioh ArcV. They kidnapped main dude's girl, tortured her while making him duel the Girls of his other selves (who are all twins btw) and he had to violently beat them to win.
Everyone but Kaiba because he refuses to lose to 3rd rate duelists with 4th rate decks.
EXCELLENT SANS LOGIC WORK.
Try putting jack atlas and kaiba in the same room😂😂😂
What happened to Yugi
That duel was so horrific. I remember watching it when I was 9 years old with weird subs. Even when I couldn't understand what was being said by characters, I could still feel what was happening from the visuals.
It made me so uncomfortable because, like Trueman said, O'Brien made the decision to let his mother burn in order to save his father. He was a kid who didn't deserve to be put in such a position and manipulating him like that to the point he made a misplay in the final turn, lost and accepted that he should've died with his parents in that fire was unhinged.
This duel alone is why Trueman is one of my favorite villains. Even Marik and Bakura didn't torture their opponent so much that they were wishing death.
That’s why he is trueman, man of truths
Wiping the parents memory was the most foul whipped cream to top that
@@lifedeather
He spoke the true true
Oooooooooohhhhhh that’s rough
Kid shows were so much darker back then. I miss that.
I love the idea that Kaiba is so good at dueling that Truman or Nightshroud could not actually beat him in a game. Not to mention this isn't Kaiba's first shadow game rodeo.
I agree,Axel really blamed himself not to mention that he truly felt the weight of the past in that duel haunt him,even in Duel Links we hear both voices in JP and Dub voice their sadness when they use Volcanic Queen card!
Trueman messed with his memories so thoroughly for that duel
@homerman76 I know!!!! It was scary,but we all had one thing in common in that moment we are trying to cheer Axel on to win
Is there any reason why people keep dragging Duel Links character reaction as some sort of canon stuff? I've been seeing several similar comment lately.
@Kisamon it is the creators of Duel Links confirm that DL is cannon to the anime Timeline
@@Kisamon Duel Links uses lines from the anime. That's one of the main draws of Duel Links.
GX had a lot of dark moments, like remember that time when Jaden went nuts, commited war crimes, and started killing his friends?
Like yeah, if you only remember the first seazon it's silly light hearted shenanigans for the most part, but by the end of it the protagonist literally has PTSD.
I maintain that GX is the darkest series in the franchise
I still remember the ending because of that.
Jaden finally got to duel with Yugi, but after all the PTSD, fusing with Yubel, and all the horrific events that happened to him, he was treating this duel like another chore he has to do.
But during the duel with Yugi, that shell Jaden put around himself for protection started to crack. Jaden was starting to smile, to laugh, and to enjoy himself again.
The whole point of that duel wasn't about who won or who lost, it was about Jaden finally being able to enjoy playing the game again. It didn't matter who won; Jaden was actually happy again. And it's a shame that too many people only cared about who would have won instead of the joy of playing the game itself.
I mean technically he only killed one of his friends the others were already dead and it was his fault… actually that doesn’t make it better
@@SoulHero7I think they only cared about it that much because at the beginning of GX Jaden was aiming to be the next king of games. They could’ve made the finale into a 2 part have Jaden lose but still learn a lesson. Or have him win then have him realize he finished his dream of becoming king of games as his old goofy self again.
@@khiarieverett9658 That is fair, but I'm glad that we're never gonna get a clear answer about who won, cause I still feel that anyone who's asking for that is missing the point. Healing takes time and one duel is not gonna fix all the mental scarring Jaden had regardless of the outcome. But at least he can finally start healing thanks to Yugi.
@@khiarieverett9658I actually think Jaden changing his goal from becoming the next king of games to another goal at the end really shows how far he matured and grew up by graduation. After all the horrible events that happened to him all he cares about is spending time with Yubel and helping other people deal with seeing duel monster spirits like he could as a kid now that he understands them a lot better. This is why I think GX is the darkest series. Because there are actual consequences for Jaden’s choices and the narrative has serious weight on him for the rest of his life. While in the other Yugioh series it feels like they brush off the big threats and the toll they take on the protagonist too quickly while GX goes fully through with it
I think an honorable mention goes to Nasch vs Vector simply due to Vector summoning Durbe and Merag's Chaos Numbers and using them against Nasch, which is the Yugioh equivalent of flaunting a loved one's corpse before trying to beat you with it.
Vector did some pretty f-ked up stuff. He be getting into the genocide hall of fame.
VEEEEECTOOOOR!
Vector is by far one of the characters i hate the most. Every barian is honored and strong. Vector is just coward and sick. I love to hate him but man he does some sick stuff.
This was truly peak writing. It’s really crazy that out of all the overseas academia students O’Brien ended up being the one who was the most fleshed out despite seeming the least important to the plot when he was first introduced. He was so cool that Judai actually stayed in contact with him post duel dimension arc and that’s peak cinema honestly. If you ever covered more duels a video about Ryo vs Sho/Yubel or Edo vs his adoptive father would be fire
To be fair, he always had potential. He pretty much would’ve beat Judai the first time they dueled. I’m not gonna say that’s foreshadowing or anything but it does make sense that out of everyone, he’d be the one to be able to stop the Supreme King just based on that, but when I first watched I was surprised they actually gave him the draw against a mega amped version of the MC. And then his return in S4 was great…just unfortunate for him in lore
Worst part there was another choice Axel could have made and if he attack’s the other monsters on trueman field, he would have dealt 1000 point with his Doomfire effect.
But Trueman manipulated axel into attacking volcanic Queen causing him to face the same regret when he couldn’t choose to save his mom.
You can see him realize his mistake the instant after he declares his attack.
Wowwwwww ok thats insane poor guy didnt just pick axel apart he compleatly destroyed him thats crazy
Completely agree, this duel was done completely differently to any that came before it & I loved it
This duel hardly ever gets talked about and it is so so good. thank you for bringing light to one of the best/darkest/most impactful duels of the entire franchise.
Yeah the duel
With O’brain vs Truman was so creepy.
The whole time I was like “WTF”
GX is an underrated gem. You really see how brutal it gets in the final season though.
It’s not underrated lol most fans know it’s one of the best series
@@KodexKat For sure not most
It's a weird situation because the sub light arc and the final season are absolutely amazing, but the other seasons are so bad that it also makes sense that it's considered one of the weaker series. Now I don't dislike Gx by any means, but the goofiness of the dub kind of carries the first season, and then Yubel arc after those first two seasons is kind of a mess until right about Zane vs Jesse Yubel, since things get good once Yubel is more directly involved (the sub is phenomenal between the music and Yubel's unstable emotions at this point.) Idk, Gx good, but the lows are just too low for the highs to make up for it, but it's still not the worst either.
@@homerman76sub season 2 is much better with edos character arc and just better dialogue overall.
@@homerman76season 3 is the best arc in GX
1:19 Oh ofcourse he didn't get Kaiba
I think this is the Axel's real test.....Fight against his own darkness
Literally💀
alright bro ur not funny
Let's be honest.
Season 3 of gx was basically "Depression and psychological damage, the story arc". Season 4 was just the continuation of 3. 5ds is yugioh, but social critique, and half the time in dm, you nitice takahashi liked writing horror like season 0.
I agree, damn i remember this.
This is a duel even 4kids couldnt have handled...
Plus 5ds has dark moments (sub)
Greiger getting hanged by a spider string to be reincarnated as a Dark Signer, Kalin dying from starvation and while holding a grudge from his friends who think they sold him off
Leo died while Luna LP drop from heartache from losing her brother
Bruno and Aporia dying while trying to save Z-one
Yeah, a lot of deaths of the last arc
And yet they can somehow handle animating the various things baxter Stockman went through working for Shredder in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
5Ds subbed had some pretty wild stuff in particular
Carly being blasted from a building and falling to her death and crying for Jack to save her
But the moment that kinda got me thinking it was gonna get pretty gritty was episode 5 (or 4) right after Jack runs into Yusei who got through the tunnel and they start their duel. Mina is walking down the hallway with Rex and she tells him about Jack’s whereabouts and he just pins her to the wall while choking her.
@@jackychen8143Kalin was being beaten by the police too.
It’s canon that every dark signers died before they get their marks so…
It should be illegal that this last season wasn't aired
Axel has it fucking bad bruh...from just being in the presence of the Supreme King to this.
O’Brien is one of the more tragic GX characters by far. Raised to be a soldier, had to make a life or death decision when he was a child, and ran away from an actual war happening in front of his eyes.
Absolutely agree.this is easily in my top 5 favorite gx duels and my 2nd favorite duel in season 4. I love how psychological and unique this duel becomes(especially since it features o brien who has been raised to always show bravery and remain calm under pressure) and it really interesting how much of an effect the accident on the mountain had on him. Also it is a pretty big plot twist taht trueman ended up winning and i love when important characters lose duels with avtual stakes on the line instead of being unbeatable
This sounds like a creepypasta. Like a haunted "Lost Episode".
But it is actually real
Great video brother. Stories shine the brightest when characters have to make difficult choices and live with those choices. Axel's guilt and cruel circumstances brought me to tears. These videos are what I hunger for.
What about in 5D's when Carly gets pushed out of the building in a duel where she falls into her death bed, and you see her die until she is resurrected by the darkness and you see her innocence stolen when they show her cute fairies turn to something more "sinister", a symbolism of coming of age after death
If Carly had remained relevant after that duel then that could have been the darkest moment of the series. It unfortunately the narrative tossed her and Jack’s romantic subplot aside and she just became another member of Jack’s harem for the second half of the series
You get it ❤
@@MrBlink622 regardless if she became relevant or not after that duel, I honestly think it was the darkest moment in the series. Trying to uncover the truth only to find herself as another one of their victims, being tossed out of a high altitude, landing to her deathbed, watching her life leave her eyes on screen, being resurrected the second right after her death, and as previously mentioned, her joyful cards transforming into something more "sinister"....that's pretty dark as heck, if you ask me.
Honestly, Kaiba not having trouble was just fanservice. Someone like Kaiba would easily fall for Trueman's tricks. I can see Yugi and Joey resisting to the manipulation, but Kaiba ? Easiest target ever.
GX Kaiba was there to say goodbye to the Pharoah, he got closure. A strong argument can be made that he would overcome Darkness
also ontop of that this is anime kaiba that went through basically the same schtick with noah in the virtual world arc. that guy is completely at peace with his demons more or less
Anime Kaiba made peace with his demons. Manga Kaiba mastered both tech and magic and could probably hold his own until Jaden resolved things.
Nah, that would be like Babidi trying to control Vegeta. Would work initially, but then Kaiba just being Kaiba and pull the middle finger to darkness. That man has long been passed his obsession with Atem.
Disagree. Kaiba was one of the few persons who could handle playing an egyptian god card without it dooming him. Not only that, he sacraficed this powerful egyptian god in a duel where he was, in his pov, one attack away from winning because he trusted his trump card more.
Post tournament Kaiba is mentally strong af
Kaiba be like “Screw soul stealing! I have money!!! Also get the fuck out of my building.”
6:18 OK. WHAT THE FU
😂that’s what I’m saying 😂yo wtflip
What makes this even worse is that first of all, I never watched that far into the series since it never got dubbed, but ever since season 3 I’ve felt bad for axel, he always seemed to focused on what to do, he seemed stressed or like he has anxiety but he doesn’t show it because he doesn’t want to seem weak in-front of others. This makes my feel ever worse knowing that he has been traumatized and that’s why he acts the way he does, not his father’s training but how he really is
cries in bowl-teardrop*
I'll throw out here, does anyone remember the ArcV duelist who was a double agent? How he got so into the role he played that when he was confronted by the cast he turned his duel disc on himself rather than his opponent? Genuinely, so many duels in that series could've been replaced with guns and have the same plot beats.
You talking about Dennis?
GX goes from trying to catch a sandwich thief to Jaden being tricked into turning his friends into human sacrifices, going evil and commiting a genocide
I love this breakdown. GX is wacky, but if you watch the sub, how it was meant to be, you get some eternal gems.
A choice made in times of desperation can always lead to haunting "what ifs."
Especially for a child in a situation he isn't meant to experience.
And the moment those "what ifs" become "if onlys".
I like how GX starts out light hearted with its first season then it has some dark moments sprinkled in season 2, but with season 3 and 4 there is an almost complete tone shift. Kind of the opposit of 5d's which started out dark and got light hearted by season 3.
My friend you said the truth, that's the best ptsd representation in surrealism ever. Congratulations and all of the respect for saying that! YOU SHOULD BE PROUD! 💪 AND I AM GRATEFUL YOU DID ! THANKS 🙏
I dont remember axel being tricked into believing his mom died, i was pretty sure it just ended up that she survived but the real damage was already done. He couldnt take that he still made the choice to save his father even if it all worked out
Initially that was the case, but there is a point where you can notice that Trueman convinces Axel that his mom had died that day, which is why it hurts him even more to even think of destroying Volcanic Queen. This in turn creates the illusion for the audience that that's what happened because it's never actually stated that she survived until the big reveal at the end of the episode
That ending is so F***ing extra. My guy, you already won! You didn't need to do that!
In my opinion the darkest moment in yugioh comes from yugioh 5ds specifically kalin’s backstory and at the end of his backstory he literally starved to death before he became a dark signer
Thank you! GX so damn dark at points, mostly s3, even before they got transported there was viper(?) who died trying to resurrect his child, not to mention zane
Not a duel but a dark moment I do remember that sticks in my mind to this day is learning how the millennium items were created and Bakura watching his people being thrown into the pot to create them.
Beautiful video 😔 this was definitely a sad duel and one of the most memorables moments from season 4!!!
OMG !!! That's horrifying. It's literally psychological torture.
I need to see it asap !
Season 4 of GX is underrated, it definitely dove into more mature themes of the series. While I feel like the Yubel arc was like the climax/peak of the series. Season 4 had that more subtle creepiness to it that was more tame compared to the craziness of season 3.
It’s not underrated just under known since it didn’t air in the west when we were kids. Season 4 is probably the most beloved season of GX.
It's so criminal that Season 4 never got a Dub primarily because of Duels like this that deserve far more recognition for the storytelling involved. Hell, on a much lighter note, I would just love for more recognition to be paid to Duels like Chazz VS Aster from that same season, if for no other reason than just how pro wrestling the whole thing was, haha.
Most likely this duel will be removed from the dub
You got me, yeah, this is definitely one of the darkest duels if not the darkest duel in all of yugioh
1:35 Axel's monster legit reminds me of Haxorus from Pokemon 😂
darkest moment in yugioh is still carly getting blasted out a skyscraper and getting shown hitting the ground
0:01 The entirety of season 0 is the darkest thing in Yugioh history.
Going to the shadow realm sounds like losing your soul. So that would infact be many multiple times worse that i cant even comprehend.
But we can understand the phychological trauma of guilt and then relivving such guilt in a different tense.
That aside if its a game where the opponent loses the soul, Fair enough, i agree with you.
I still think Kalen from 5d's killing the sector security officer with a pipe then starving to death cold and alone in prison is still the darkest Yu-Gi-Oh moment.
To me it’s always been the 1 v 3 in 5ds were jack, Leo, and Luna all have a monitor over their heart and starts digging into their chest with needles the more damage they take. It eventually drops Leo’s life points to zero and it pierces his heart and he dies, then you see his sister stressing a lot and goes to the ground, starts having a panic attack and you can see her life points going down by the second when she only had 100 left. Yeah after trap he had left triggered and brought him back with 100lp and somehow came back despite it piercing his heart, but that was hard to see too. They were just kids man.
god am having a creative attack rn
why am i mixxing the anime lore and card lore together in my head pls make it stop
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Season 4 was the darkest season in all of Yu-Gi-Oh
I remember the duel from this episode so vividly, even though I had only really seen it once. When GX season 4 was being posted online when the new episodes came out. It really is 1 of those moments that you just never forget. Although, I will admit that I did forget the full truth explained at the end of the episode. But, still was an amazing episode. And we don't really see anything on that level again in the rest of the series. With the possible exception to the Lost Incident in VRAINS.
The unchosen one is crazy 😭
I will forever love the fact thst Trueman just gets everyone except Kaiba. Even the actual darkness knows better than to try.
5Ds and GX are extremely dark. When I got older, I understood that it was truly hell for Jaden and his friends. No one had a good life…..
That's a cool effect with the video thumbnail. The image looks 3D!
The duel where Yugi spills high alcohol% vodka over a guy and sets him on fire while he's still alive.
Bro when I watched it for the first time I legitimately cried Axel/Obrian’s backstory was heartbreaking 😭😭😭
jaden literally saw his friends die becouse of this ego, and become the supreme king.
certainly my top dark duel.
I agree. That nose does indeed cast a long shadow.
My son...
And what makes it worse is that even though both of his parents live he believes it will always damage and shatter his own soul for how he blames himself.
But the one hit for me is Yusei vs his own friend that passed and resented him for it especially when people say he's "just someone that wins duels" but I know that even if he wins duels just like his card Stardust Dragon they sacrifice themselves to save others and sadly he's the one who he couldn't save.
Damn, yeah that duel was out of pocket.
Truman was basically another version of Johan (iykyk) making someone 100% believe something that never happened
Pretty sure bonz and crew never came back.
The Darkest Moment was when Yugi finished the millenium puzzle, and the Pharaoh immediately challenged his parents to a shadow game, won, banished them to the shadow realm, and then erased their memories from Yugi and his Grandpa.
Ion know I always found it funny how axel got gaslight to make a decision in a situation that didn't happen
You could also argue the duel with Yusei and z-one is dark too since thousands died in zero reverse
You're confusing Zone with Roman Godwin
@@SiNKarnage no I’m very well aware of what I said. Have a good day
@@SalazzleDazzle Z-one had no connection to the Zero Reverse incident. He tried to recreat it by crashing Future Neo Domino into Past Neo Domino but in the end he changed his mind. 0 lives were lost to it. Well besides his own.
Maybe you're confusing Zero Reverse with Meklord Emperor Genocide.
@@SiNKarnageZ-one caused the Zero Reverse incident. The guy Three Wise Nobles erased from the timeline in the episode where Sherry got lost in the time stream literally looks like the guy who told Godwin's brother to look into the reactor, and even if it wasn't him it's specifically stated that the silhouetted guy was sent by Iliaster, so it was undoubtedly Z-one's doing. The show says that straight up.
@@SiNKarnage Goodwin did it, yes, but he was manipulated by iliaster, which was entirely controlled by z-one. So yes, he didn't directly caused it, but he was behind it from the start
I dont see how the DUB was ever going to dub this duel alone
Episode so dark I want to convince myself it’s an errata, Axel actually lost to survivors guilt.
This is the darkest moment in Yu-Gi-Oh. I never seen this episode of GX before.
To me, the darkest moment will always be when you see Jayden and Yubel combine, and Jayden stops smiling
You know from the looks of it he could’ve saved both of them if he wasn’t inner monologuing
I find some of the darkest moments in the show to come from Arc V myself. The inter-dimensional war stuff got pretty intense at some parts.
Then again, Yusei’s dead friend coming back to haunt him in 5D’s was pretty dark too.
Remember when that one dude from 5D's you know what to himself in order to become a dark signer? That was pretty dark.
Saturday cartoons will forever be unmatched
Yeah we do things a little differently round these parts
We got Maddog, Lorenzo, Amber Mammoth
But then we got stuff like this
Yes I remember watching this duel for the first time when I was like 9 and it gave me literal chills
It kinda makes sense.
Nightshroud comes from a world where human suffering fuels the life of his planet. He knows what buttons to press on order to make his opponent break.
But even using brainwashing is something i would have never expected.
Jesus Christ 😳, I had watched the final season a long time ago but maybe I just couldn't read the subs fast enough or forgot over time but THAT never fully hit me till this video 😳
I remember seeing this as a kid and I was traumatized for 2 days
Ah yes, beside dead and world domination
There's a weapon that could turned a good person into someone else's either silently logical or psychopath with ideology.... *Trauma*
Darkest moment was kalin literally trying to kill a cop and dying in jail for refusing to eat after all those beatdowns by cops
Yugioh has such a weird way of showing emotion, character development, and world building, compared to most other animes, and I love it.
O'Brien and us didnt need to experience that traumatizing what if scenario tbh
Im pretty sure Dartz revealing what he did to his minions was much worse than this. He violated their lives entirely that they grew up messed up with Trauma
It gets talked about less because it pretty much negates half the point of that arc.
I dunno if it's the darkest, but it's definitely a highlight of GX.
holy shit, this hits harder than necessary
I thought the darkest duel in the franchise was in 5Ds when Carly lost against Gravity.
Nah I think Pegasus' eye being yanked out is worse.
This isn’t as bad as I expected, considering how GX can be. Seems like you’re hamming it up with editing and voice acting, which is cool I guess. Anyone know if this is the end for Axel story or if there’s some sort of comeback where him and his family are okay in the end?
The only problem of this duel is the fact that, In reality, he didnt had to chose which of his parents would die.
I feel like this moment would have hit harder if he didn’t have experience the previous season with fumbling at the last minute in a duel which leads to his “death” (that he comes back from).
The whole time I was just like “yeah this is really sad and surprisingly fucked up for this show but he’s gonna come back for sure. If being sent to the stars didn’t really do much, this probably won’t either.”
It’s not his death that they’re calling dark
Fuck the mind games, I would have flipped at how broken the unchosen one is rather then to have to chose between monster mommy or monster daddy. Monster reborn, raigeki and harpies feather duster in one card, imagine the top deck.
Axel’s duels were dark, take the battle with the supreme king as another example.
GX season 4 was honestly one of the more depressing seasons in yugioh overall
Jaden basically lost the joy he had in dueling after what happened in Season 3 with Supreme King and Yubel.
His conversation with Kagemaru and Satorius showed just how he blamed himself for how things went and nearly cost his friends their lives
Kaiba is always one step ahead of people outside of the card game like it’s chess, how is anyone surprised? He’s done crazy things and had been the most clever strategic character in the series with the most guts and prob had a plan to take them out already if they lost. Also at that point he’s way better at the game than the GX villains
Then you got Yugioh ArcV.
They kidnapped main dude's girl, tortured her while making him duel the Girls of his other selves (who are all twins btw) and he had to violently beat them to win.
show this to the people who dont think yugioh is that serious