I have to confess, I was mildly surprised that it didn’t bother me that much to see Yuzu’s duel be skipped entirely for the sake of Reiji’s duel. His match against Academia’s Barret made me feel anxious till the very end due to not knowing what Academia is truly capable of. The startling part of their duel was the fact they were both inflicting real life damage to one another, along with experiencing actual pain when an effect is inflicted onto them. This was no solid vision duel, this was a full blown duel sparking the dimension war that is slowly but surely making its way to the Standard Dimension. We were given a glimpse of the brutality of the battles, such as Barret’s eye injury after having been caught in an explosion related Trap Card while raiding what had appeared to be Heartland City. He is a man with lots of field experience, and Reiji could have very well been defeated by him had he not had the Pendulum Cards up his sleeve. With his father running Academia, there is no doubt in my mind that they have lots of information on Reiji, knowing that he can do all the summoning techniques. What they lack information on is the Pendulum Summon which Reiji utilized to his advantage. With Pendulum Summon being new to the Standard World, the information of how it works or be shutdown is limited until one experiences or witnesses the duel with one as such involved with it. Sora’s memories of watching Yuuya Pendulum Summon will prove to be vital to Academia’s limited knowledge of how Pendulum Summoning works.

Yu-Gi-Oh ARC-V Ep 40 Img 0025Nevertheless, it was immensely satisfying to watch Reiji catch his opponent off-guard and drop some witty lines throughout the battle, a side of him we haven’t quite seen before. It was an ‘oh snap, would you like some ice for that burn?‘ moment when Reiji ended up gaining 7000 LP and finishing Barret without a hitch. I also appreciated the fact they kept the summoning to the minimum, sticking to only Fusion, Pendulum and XYZ and save Synchro for another day.

I found it interesting how Serena (Fusion!Yuzu) and Barret have been going around targeting strong XYZ Duelists in the Standard World.  they have been selecting their targets by observing the MCS Tournament (which I have to say, was a clever idea). Hokuto as we know as LDS’ XYZ Ace was one of the targets that was taken down and disappeared after having encounters Serena. What struck me however was the uncertainty whether or not he and Serena had dueled as she had walked right up to him and poof he’s gone (most likely trapped in a card like Shun had been doing). When Serena tried to lure another participant who uses XYZ Summon, Reiji beat her to the punch by luring her into his trap.

Serena’s bracelet’s piece is revealed to be purplish-blue, and they made sure to make it known by smacking it into our faces three times. It definitely makes me curious of what to happen in the future because the OP shows her piece to be black, so I wonder if something will happen to make it that way- OR, I could be over-thinking it as it could simply just be a coloring error, ahaha.

Yu-Gi-Oh ARC-V Ep 40 Img 0032I was incredibly relieved to see that Yuzu (just barely) had won her match and will see her proceed to the third round. With her duel having been skipped, it is safe to say that the third round will most likely be a major one. But depending on her opponent, she may end up losing due to the plot’s default. With the majority of the competitors introduced in the OP already passed, we are left with Shun, Yuuya, Yuzu, Gongenzaka, the concealed Knights, and the foodie duelist, Michio. If these are in fact the remaining six competitors that we know of (other than Sakuragi the character who served as Reiji’s bait), then there is a very high chance that Yuzu, Yuuya or Gongenzaka will be facing against one another. Since Yuuya and Gongenzaka (along with Michio) already faced off I would say it’s safe to cross them off. It will also be interesting to see whether or not Yuuya will actually win the whole thing, because the match-ups are getting more and more complicated.

Yuuya VS Shun | Yuzu | Knights
Yuzu VS Yuuya | Shun | Gongenzaka | Knights | Michio
Shun VS Yuuya | Yuzu | Gongenzaka | Knights | Michio
Gongenzaka VS Shun | Yuzu | Knights | Michio

Next week we are to learn more about Reiji’s relationship with Serena, a reunion from three years ago (still yet to be determined whether or not it’s their reunion or someone elses’) and see Yuuya get back to his usual self. It made me happy that it was Yuzu who reminded him of the joy and beauty of entertainment dueling, and it made me even happier that Yuuya remembered Yuuto’s words.

Eva

Blogging Anime since Summer 2009, & Founder of AngryAnimeBitches Anime Blog ...I may or may not be addicted to writing

This Post Has 12 Comments

  1. elhienn

    Today’s trivia will beeeeee!!!!
    Did you know that Serena and Yuzu share the same VA? Damn, japs sure are skilled!XD
    I’m surprised that you didn’t mention how Yuzu’s duel made Yuya recover his cheerfulness again, the way Yuzu looked at him and Yuya giving the most precious smile was adorable, I swear I melted!
    Aldo, DAT Hand holding on the preview! I swear, it’s been a while since I saw a beautiful relationship like Yuya and Yuzu share, and I don’t even need to take it on the romantic side, damn! I don’t want to imagine how Yuya would break if they manage to kidnap Yuzu, he and Yuto will be livid!(Speaking of that, if Yuto doesn’t get out of Yuya’s body, then we don’t need to be conflicted between YuyaxYuzu and YutoxYuzu anymore right? 8D*Kicked*)
    Reiji is a troll, remember when he joked that Shun must have liked the field(Heartland) that he prepared for him? Also the ONE pendulum card(to use the effects well you need at least 2 pendulums cards) to Shun? LOLOLOL, Also, I don’t know why they always focus on his damn sockless ankles.
    Interesting what you pointed, Reiji will probably try to mass-produce duel disks like Yuto’s to fight against the invaders, and they announced new characters, so maybe they will appear on the net rounds?
    Yuzu is doing well, it was nice to see Crystal Rose again, now the only thing I need is for Yuzu to beat a boy/man duelist with importance and then she will be the best female duelist on the franchise.
    I seriously hope she pulls a Joey and gets to be at least on the semi-finals, I love her too much and her deck too! Please Konami, continue to produce Melodious Cards, they are amazing;w;
    Yuu Sakuragi was the winner of last year and he defeated Isao, because of that he’s on the Youth tournament, so he would duel our protags(Another ‘Yu’ character, damn, Arc V love their Yus!)
    BTW, I don’t why, but I’m already shipping Serena with Reiji XD

    1. Eva

      LOL I did in the last paragraph XD “It made me happy that it was Yuzu who reminded him of the joy and beauty of entertainment dueling”. It was a precious moment.
      I think Yuzu would make it to the semi-finals, but it will ultimately depend on who her next opponent may be. In fact, there’s a possibly that with that handshake, she and Yuuya may be up against each other and are determined to put on a memorable show that will make everyone smile again. Actually, when I think about it, I wonder what would happen if a duel in the tournament ended as a draw. Hahaha, I think that’d be precious if Yuzu and Yuuya end up competing against each other.
      Yuu Sakuragi is probably the most handsome random character we have seen, so I am curious to see whether or not he will be given a bigger role. There’s him and another X character that exists in the tournment, so someone is going to up against a minor/background character. It will either be Sakuragi or one of the mains.
      I think I’m possibly shipping Reiji x Serena too- have you seen the fanarts? They are freaking adorable!!! ; v ; BUt there’s a theory going around that Serena is his sister- and I’m starting to wonder if Reiji is one of the alternative world’s Shun. (It crossed my mind when I thought about their red scarfs). SO LOL, WE WILL HAVE TO WAIT AND SEE XD

      1. elhienn

        *Facepalm* Wow! How I didn’t read that? Damn, I need to wash my eyes XD
        Yeah, I agree, Yuu Sakuragi is one of the most handsome random character ever, but there ware other background characters with nice looking design, and Reiji goons’ who appeared on episode 24 were handsome too XD
        I hope Reiji isn’t her brother, it would be awkward to ship them later. Sure, I can ship Serena with Yuri because he’s her Dimension’s Yuya but still, I want all the Yuzus to here personal harems XD.
        Speaking of that, I hope we see Yugo again, I hope he meets Yuzu or Serena so he can act surprised and mistake them as his Yuzu and reveals her name so we know what we can call her.
        Yep, I saw the fanarts, I was browsing Pixiv, depending of next week’s episode it can explode like YutoxYuzu MWHAHAHAH XD

        1. Eva

          LOL well to be fair, I don’t think many people would think I would add a bit about the present episode as soon as I start off my last paragraph with NEXT WEEK!” ahahahaha!
          ALL HAIL THE YUZUS OF ALL WORLDS HAREMS!!!! <3 <3 <3 I am still getting a kick out of how she has harem.
          I'm excitedly waiting for Yugo to make a comeback, with this dorky entrance. I expect it to be a humorous one!

      2. Chris Marshall

        Yuu Sakuragi really is hot…I mean….I literally had to pause the video just to get a full glimpse of that handsomeness 0_0. Either ways, hope he gets shown in the next round because I love Spellbooks. All that’s left is having a player with Ghostricks. Anyways….something has been bugging me, exactly how old is Meiru? Because she looks young enough that she should have been in the junior child’s division of the tournament…what’s weird is that her ninja opponent looks like someone that belongs in the older teen division.
        At this point I want Yuzu to win the whole damn thing just to rub it in the faces of those who still don’t care much for her character. Considering the Real World Yugioh community is still is composed of a lot of sexist idiots.

        1. Eva

          Is it weird that when I first saw him, I thought, “Cardfight Vanguard?” I have no idea WHY i thought that, but I just did. 0_o;;
          (GHOSTRICKS FTW, i have a couple of the cards = v =, I don’t have them all yet though). Meiru is probably the same age as Yuuya and Yuzu, she’s just short with a baby face.
          Yuzu winning the whole thing would be the ultimate surprise!

          1. Chris Marshall

            When I first saw him I immediately thought Free!….and then him in a speedo….*ahem* Its his hair! His hair isn’t crazy enough to belong on this show! And one thing I forgot to mention…Yuzu, why the heck was your Canon in attack mode? Did you not think to use its effect to switch her to DEF?

  2. nanon

    I laughed when they showed us what Sakuragi’s given name was. It was like they went “ah. we ran out of name suffixes. let’s just call him Yuu. Genius.” It’d be nice to see him again, and also a duel!! since they gave him popular archetype and all (and such a put together appearance lmao)
    And at first, I was a bit put off when I realized that they were pretty much skipping over Yuzu’s duel, but then forgot about as I got more engrossed with Reiji and Barrett’s duel. Like I figured they wouldn’t make Reiji of all people be defeated in a duel to show how strong Academia was, but WHAT IF?? I spent most of that duel going “Reiji’s actually going to win right….. right….?” and then he won!
    ((also that flat “I know.” from Reiji when Nakajima phoned in to say the newcomers were from Fusion lmao. Good job Nakajima, he’d never would have figured that out without you.))
    But Yuzu’s dueling exciting the crowd and cheering up Yuuya was amazing! I loved how even though Mikiyo had so many supporters through sheer popularity, the audience was still engaged with her side too and looking forward to seeing what Yuzu would do. All those ‘kitaaaa!’s and ‘I’ve been waiting for this!!” when Yuzu pulled out Bloom Diva were great! I hope we see more of her future duels, maybe she’ll even get one of those avenging duels where she returns the favour against an opponent who knocked one of the nakama out of the tournament.
    And it was so sweet when the crowd’s reaction managed to pull Yuuya out of his funk, reminding him what his goals and ideals were. I’m really looking forward to seeing them next episode – that handshake in the preview! Those smiles! Yuzu and Yuuya are so supportive of each other, I really like how they both go out of their way to help each other with their worries.
    As for Reiji and Serena, I’m one of those who think Reiji is Serena’s brother or something. And now I also think there’s more merit to that theory that Reiji was originally from the Fusion Dimension. They didn’t show a reaction from Serena when Reiji said he was going to Fusion summon, but when she saw what monsters he was using she was surprised? Like she expected something different? To me, it looked like she expected Reiji to have a different archetype, so maybe the DD/D’s might be something new he developed for the war when he moved to Standard??? BUT UNTIL NEXT EPISODE…

    1. Eva

      We can never get enough of Yuzu x Yuuya’s authentic relationship. It is so sweet and precious, and well balanced. They support each other so well. ; v ; My heart!
      Yeah I have a feeling that Reiji might have originally came from the Fusion Realm, but then we are left not knowing who Reiji of the standard world is- unless he is deliberately replacing Standard!Reiji, or worse case scenario, the guy is dead.. Gotta love the mysteries revolving around the realms and its characters. XD

      1. nanon

        I’m always flip-flopping over whether I like Yuzu/Yuuya or Yuzu/Yuuto more OTL.
        I’ve found that I have a weakness for Yuuto’s knight sort of character, and I love how Yuzu calls him out on the ridiculousness/narrow-mindedness of his over-protective stalking sometimes even though he makes her heart go dokidoki at the same time. I like how Yuuto grows to see Yuzu as someone separate from Ruri (as does Yuzu with Yuuto to Yuuya) and who is trying to protect what she loves, and not someone he needs to hide from the world.
        But I love the back and forth between Yuzu and Yuuya and how they look out for each other and watch each other grow, and how they take such pride in each other. It is sweet! No matter how their relationship goes, I hope that support never goes away.
        I’m guessing that maybe he’s like the fusion!Shun? A defected fusion!Shun who is slightly less melodramtically gung-ho? If Reiji was really replacing standard!Reiji/standard!Shun, he would have tried to make contact with Yuzu before this, would he.. unless he was already keeping tabs on YouShow in general before that three on three fight. Hm.
        But wow. if there is a standard!Reiji (and he isn’t already dead…), maybe the reason we haven’t seen him yet has something to do with why Yuzu’s dad doesn’t have an answer to where the bracelet came from in the first place? And yes, so many questions and theories and we can’t even name all the characters involved yet pffft

        1. Eva

          It’s so hard to choose between Yuzu x Yuuya and Yuzu x Yuuto. ; v ; They both have their individual charms as a ship *SOBS* A shipper’s torment!!!!
          I have also been considering Reiji is Fusion!Shun after taking notice that they both wear red scarfs. However we could be wrong because up till now, with Yuzu and Yuuya, their parrallel world selfs share identical faces. But glasses can really change one’s appearance so i think we need to see Reiji without them on to get a better glimpse of whether or not they share a similar face.
          You know to be honest, in the back of my mind, I have been half waiting for Yuzu’s dad to suddenly reveal that she’s adopted and say, “we found you and the bracelet together” LOL!!! I won’t be holding my breath for it now that Serena has been introduced as Fusion!Yuzu. I would laugh if it were to actually happen! PFFTH!
          But in all seriousness, what I find the most bizarre is that Yuzu doesn’t appear to know much about her bracelet’s origins. She doesn’t seem to have a clear idea of how long she had it, when it was given to her, and if so, who given it in the first place. And if not received, then the question would be how she obtained it. Was she born with it as she had suggested irrationally while lashing out? Was it found on the whim and then gifted to her by her father, unaware of its special properties? So many questions! But we do know one thing for sure, her arguement with her father has been overshadowed by the present events regarding Yuuya and the Alternative Worlds, but it is bound to resurface eventually when it returns as the frontrunner of the progressing plot.

  3. Perry Tanko

    Yu-Gi-Oh never gets old, Never.

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