I KNEWWWWWW ITTTTTTTTTTT!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We were gifted with yet another incredibly epic and (duel-less) episode that delved straight into the details of the plot, and laying out exactly what we are in store for this arc. (Also can we take a moment to appreciate the animation, it was super fun to watch!!!!!!)
You know how we have been asking for a serious villain? Well look no further than Lightning, this guy is an antagonist through and through. He not only confirmed he was the mastermind behind the attack on the Cyberse World to get his point across, he has been developing an AI Army, and he has also been working on a project of pushing the evolution of AI to the next level. Bit and Bot were his prototypes for the first generation, Haru was second, and Bohman is the third generation, and is said to be close to the perfection Lightning has been working towards all this time. What’s crazy about this, is because Lightning considered himself flawed, and wanted to take measures to prevent the Ignis from fighting amongst each other as Humans do, he created Bohman with the intention of making him their ‘Master’, who will unite all the Ignis into one, and push their evolution even further. To do so, he chose Yuusaku and Ai as his model because they are unpredictable. This explains why Bohman’s personalities were always changing, and why Windy cooperated with him in the first place. It also confirms Lightning’s abilities of fabricating data, turning them into memories by playing with his own imagination, as he had tried to dupe Yuusaku into thinking his true self was sealed away in the database.
But to take it a step even further, he intended to eliminate his fellow Ignis if they thought differently than him, specifically Flame, Ai, and Aqua. He sees them as “Unique Error Codes”, a maturation that adds unpredictability to their evolution. Naturally both Ai and Flame were extremely upset to hear this, because they both thought Lightning was their friend, yet he wants to kill them off because they had a different opinion that he didn’t agree with. How messed up is that?
Speaking of the ‘Unique Error’, it is actually quite interesting how Flame and Ai have developed such unique personalities (perhaps even Earth and Aqua could be included as well) where they developed sympathy and a unique connection with their Origins. They have diversity that Windy and Lightning both lack, which perplexes them because they don’t understand why that is. For starters, one of the most apparent observations we can make is how Ai, Flame, Aqua and Earth all possess qualities of being able or were able to learn how to be empathetic not just among their own kind, but Humans as well. This is why they are supporting co-existence. Lightning’s cruelty and lack of care for Windy’s suffering seem to indicate that he lacks such traits. Windy could also be factored into that as well, as he nonchalantly attempted to murder his Origin because he ‘wasn’t needed’.
We were also given an explanation of a sorts of why Lightning took the approach of robbing Jin of his consciousness. First off, this was a demonstration of a sorts of how Lightning intends to control humanity (by wiping their memories, and sealing away their consciousness so they will simply follow their orders). And second, he provided us further explanation about how Ignis and Origins can’t help but affect each other. Among one of the ways that happens is through the ‘Link Sense’ they share. This why is Yuusaku has such ability, and is able to track Ai down. This is the unique connection Lightning speaks of. I am curious to see though, whether or not there are more variations to it, varying on the nature or relationships of the partnerships.
Speaking of Jin, this guy…. he can’t catch a break. First he is imprisoned in his own room, because he was too terrified to go outside, and then when he finally goes outside to undergo therapy, Bohman shows up and robs him of his consciousness, and seals him away. Now he is a puppet for Lightning to use, and the worst part, he may be able to hear the entire conversation, yet is unable to speak, which is absolutely horrific no matter how you look at it. The amount of trauma this kid is being put through, honestly I don’t now how he is going to turn out after all of this…
The New ED Theme seems to indicate there will be an alliance of a sorts formed between the Hanoi Knights, Akira’s Squad, and Playmaker’s team. As Revolver so eloquently put it, “The enemy of our enemy is our friend”. This probably means he probably won’t pursue Ai and Flame since they are at least proving themselves to be docile and on the side of Humanity, and Lightning even regarded them as “Unique Errors” that he wants to erase himself. Lightning and Windy are obviously the most dangerous ones of the bunch, so they must dealt with sooner than later.
And then we have the third party that has been benched on the sidelines, SOL Technologies. It is honestly hard to say what kind of role they will have as the corporation that runs Link VRAINS, in this war. Akira and his Bounty Hunters can hardly be considered part of SOL Technology’s efforts, because what we want to know more about is what the higher ups would want to do in this situation. Obviously the Ignis (specifically Lightning and Windy) needs to be dealt with, but then what? We have met one of the higher ups (Queen), but she hasn’t actually revealed any particular details about her role or the company’s intentions. Regardless, Link VRAINS is about to become a dangerous place for Humans to be, because it will no longer simply a place to play the game. It is about to become a genuine battlefield, where Human lives, and freedom, will undoubtedly be on the line. It will be interesting to see whether or not they will attempt to prevent users from logging in, something they did not do with the Hanoi Knights’s goons were running rampant, attacking players left and right, but its something I suspect Windy and Lightning would probably be able to over-ride.
Then there is also the factor of how this war between AI and Humans will transcend the virtual world to the real world, where we have seen what the Ignis species are capable of, such as Windy hijacking his origin’s car and attempted to murder them. Worst of all, and I think a lot of people are forgetting about this possibility, I wouldn’t be surprised if Lightning and Windy were to take advantage of the AI’s installed in players duel disks. It could prove to be a very effective way to swiftly rob the Humans’ of their consciousness, and turn them into a vessel that will follow their orders, just like Jin.
Overall this was yet another fantastic episode! I love how they are prioritizing resolving the mysteries and establishing the plot without having a duel take place in the middle of the conversation. It’s a great way enable them to get straight to the point! I also absolutely loved the analogy Bohman used, “Can Humans and Monkey’s share equal rights?” to compare Humans to AI/Ignis Species, because my god, that was deep. It is actually quite sickening because of just how true that statement is, on so many levels. It’s a chilling one to say the least.
But now that we know neither Bohman nor Haru are victims of the Lost Incident, this means we have yet to meet Aqua’s and Windy’s origins (though Windy’s partner may have actually been killed off). For Aqua’s case, it will be interesting to see whether or not she is already with her Origin, and if not, what became of her partner? Are they no longer part of this world, or do they simply not want to be involved with the Ignis, period. I wouldn’t blame them if it’s the later.
I am so excited for next week’s episode. The preview seems to indicate for the first time, it’s going to be Yuusaku providing Ai support and comfort he needs. That cute little smile he gave him was so precious, I can’t want to know the conversation between them. It really shows how far these two have come, and the special bond that has been formed between them. Bohman has also made a deal where if Yuusaku were beat him, he will disappear, and force Lightning’s plans to at least stall out for a bit. But if he wins, then Yuusaku must turn over Ai. (Hahaha, poor Ai, always the bargaining chip.) With so much riding on the line, it’s a fight they need to win in order to stall out the inevitable war.
Wonderful! As soon as VRAINS entered the hype train it crashed itself AGAIN for the 100th time. This vicious cycle never ends!
I’m saying this because the episode was hard to digest. I knew that Lightning had this superiority complex to the point he forged Bowman to be a vessel to eventually unite all Ignies, but I hated that they purposely dragged the episode out just to hear Lightning’s personal speech that quickly grew thin on me and the whole “Battle Royale” situation was just Blood Shepherd and Go’s minions fighting countless Bits & Boots even with Revolver’s merciful attempt to spice things up. What irked me the most was at the end where we have ANOTHER PLAYMAKER VS BOWMAN DUEL! Enough with that, their previous duels were so unmemorable I couldn’t even take Bowman seriously at all especially when he’s still sticking to Hydradrives. At least SoulFucker is in hot pursuit of Jin/Lightning and hopefully this is where he gets taken out for good.
(Speaking of which, still no whereabouts of Ghost Girl and Akira didn’t even give us an insight of what happened during her encounter with Blood Shepherd. Or it’s simply Shin Yoshida butchering women AGAIN, fuck him.)
No new opening was annoying, BUT this new ending must be among the worst Yugioh endings I’ve ever listened to, didn’t like it at all.
Okay will you please knock it off. You’re free to dislike a character but actively hoping Soulburner dies is not only dumb from a fan perspective since you are wishing the death of one of the protagonists of a fictional series, but from a plot perspective too. If Soulburner dies, Lighting gets Flame, and if he gets Flame, he’s one step closer to subjugating humanity.
And the Playmaker Bohman duels aren’t even repetitive when each time Bohman is technically an entirely different character. First time he was an Amnesiac and did as he was told. Second time he was arrogant and angry due to thinking Playmaker stole his life. This time he’s more a prophet acting under Lightning’s ideals but still respecting Playmaker.
Also, something in regards to your Gary Stu comment last time. Neither Soulburner nor Playmaker are Gary Stu’s. The official definition of the term is
“A male version of a Mary Sue. seemingly perfect character with no flaws, or who always overpowers other characters.”
Except both have been present with clear flaws, and haven’t beat everyone.
Soulburner is impulsive which can get him into trouble, such as his knocking Playmaker out of Blood Shepards trap rather than just grab him. He’s also horrible with tech which is bad in a VR series, and lets his fanboy tendencies distract him. Duel Wise he didn’t beat Blood Shepard, and if he was to be believed, Blood Shepard’s trap would have screwed over Soulburner.
Playmaker is heavily antisocial and let revenge dominate his life for around 10 years, and even after getting past his revenge, he still has great difficulties empathizing and working with others. Duel Wise he’s drawed with Revolver twice.
Ending wise, I admit music subjective, but I disagree on this being the worst Yugioh Ending. That honor belongs to Arc-V Ending 5.
This would be the third time they Duel. Honestly, I’m not expecting much from this Duel because, come on, Bohman has been defeated two times before. There’s a saying that “third time is the charm”, but I just can’t think that way right now, not especially when Yusaku/Playmaker has higher stakes in this should he lose. Unless Bohman manage to win but someone interfere the Duel to save Yusaku and Ai before Bohman can take the latter. I want to believe in the preview that Yusaku is giving comfort or encouragement for Ai. That will strengthen their friendship and further proving that Lightning and Windy are wrong about coexistence being impossible. Watching Flame believing in Takeru/Soulburner is also one of my favourite parts in this episode!
And from the looks of it, since Takeru/Soulburner and Flame are chasing after Lightning and Jin…could it be that there’ll be a Duel between them?! If it’ll truly happen, then I’m looking forward to see what kind of Deck Lightning and Jin will use! XD
I like the new ED. It gave more refreshing feeling, especially near the end where everyone is shown together at the park. Although, the lack of Firewall Dragon makes me wondering if it has been demoted from being an ace monster. Since Aqua now is confirmed to have chosen coexistence, Earth will most likely choose the side of humanity since he is very devoted to her even though he had tried to follow as she told him to determine his own choice with his own judgment instead of just following her.
with so much in stake and if bohman lose he will disappear I think this should be their final dual
Ooh good point. What happens if Lightning were to completely lose Bohman? Well… actually, I wonder if he has a way of making sure Bohman doesn’t betray him or go astray. O-o
I’m more curious to see if they will completely switch up Bohman’s deck. I would be a lot more interested if they do, especially since there’s little point of re-using the failed strategy over and over and over again. Since Lightning ‘hyped’ him up to be close to perfection, I am inclined to expect something will change, but even so I’m not holding my breath for it. I just hope they make it a lot more interesting because all of their duels so far have been incredibly boring.
As for Lightning VS Flame, I honestly have my doubts that the duel will actually take place. I feel like this might actually be an opportunity given to Haru to finally get involved. The guy hasn’t actually contributed to the fights at all yet, and is just a bundle of mystery. If Bohman were to go down and go MIA, it makes you wonder if Lightning will use Haru as his back-up, or else be forced to make a 4th Generation.
You know what I said about Flame being a villain? I take it all back. I want Flame, Soulburner, Ai and Playmaker to KICK LIGHTNING’S ASS INTO OBLIVION! Other than that, I think Lightning is a good villain because he’s so unique. You’d never expected one of Ai’s friends to be a villain and someone who wants to subjugate you because they don’t follow your opinion. He’s very sociopathic and toxic.
Jin really needs a break. He got kidnapped at six, got therapy for ten years, and then once the incident that haunted him came to a close and started to make a recovery, his Ignis decides to take his consciousness and subjugates him against his will as a part of his plan. However, it seems that his consciousness is only imprisoned. Since he can still hear and probably see, he’ll probably break free early, but Lightning will probably subjugate him again. Once Jin is rescued, Kusanagi seriously needs to buy him a taser. I won’t be surprised if Kusanagi starts brandishing kitchen knives at potential enemies just to protect his brother. JUST LET THE KUSANAGI BROTHERS BE HAPPY! WHY IS THAT SO HARD, VRAINS?
So, Bohman will disappear if he loses this time. I feel like this will be the outcome. Three is a core number used in VRAINS, so the third battle will probably be the end. There were three Revolver vs Playmaker duels back in season 1, so they’ll probably do the same with Bohman and probably Lightning as well with Soulburner dueling him once, Playmaker once and then probably a PM and SB vs Lightning as a final duel.
PROTECT JIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Seriously, I don’t know what to expect of him when they finally save him. He has been through so much. This is only going to take his PTSD to the next level, unless he were to lose all his memories and gain a fresh start. As tragic as that would be, that seems to be the only feasible solution at this point….
This was an entertaining episode to say the least. It was nice to get confirmation about a lot of things, such as Lightning being the mastermind behind the destruction of the Cyberse World, a nice call-back to Season 1 where Lightning revealed that he was the one who saved Yusaku and Ai from their fall after they defeated Spectre along with the revelation that Bohman and Haru are AI’s, which just now leaves the question of who the Origins of Windy and Aqua are. My money is still on Queen being Aqua’s, but I’ve been proven wrong before so we’ll just have to wait and see.
I’m not sure how I feel about Yusaku fighting Bohman for a third time, granted Yusei fought Tetsu three times within twelve episodes back in 5Ds, and it feels just as tiresome here as it did there. I’m especially not sure how I’d feel if Bohman was the one to hand Playmaker his first defeat, however Bohman might just surprise me in this next duel and pull out all the stops for a victory, but seeing as how there is a new Cyberse Synchro monster coming out it wouldn’t surprise me if that monster ends up being the key to Yusaku’s victory in this duel. Personally feel it would carry more weight if Yusaku fought Lighting/Jin and they were the ones to defeat him, and be interested to hear your thoughts or anyone else’s on this Eva.
Either way I’m brimming with anticipation for this upcoming arc, and I look forward to seeing you all there next week.
I agree, it would be a lot more significant for Yuusaku to go up against Jin/Lighting, but I think they are post-poning that because they want to save it for the big fight. I highly doubt Takeru and Flame are actually going to be able to duel Lightning, the guy got his priorities straight at the moment, and should Flame insist on fighting, I wouldn’t be surprised if he summoned Haru to deal with them. We haven’t seen that guy fight yet, so it would be a good way to prevent that from happening.
Like the others are saying, this is probably going to be the last time Yuusaku will fight Bohman. The question is whether or not he will simply go MIA for a while, or actually be eaten by Ai. (The later I’m not so sure about tbh).
What Bohman said is all interesting and dramatic. The problem is I don’t believe any of that because it’s Bohman who said it. All that could be another bullshit Lightning fed him again.
Last time he said he’s the real Yusaku. Turns out he’s not.
This time he said he’s the 3rd generation Ignis offspring. Why would it be true this time?
Last time he said he’ll return Jin’s consciousness if he lose. He just ran away.
This time he said he’ll disappear if he lose. I’ll bet good money that he’ll just run away again and return with another backstory in the future.
LMFAO!!! Fair point, I got too caught up in the winds of excitement and forgot about that AHAHAHAHA! A good twist to that would perhaps be Haru actually being the true “master” being groomed to unite all— considering he witnessed Lightning screw Bohman over time and time again with resetting his memories AKA Data. After-all, all he has been doing is observing on the sidelines, which gives him an advantage of constantly obtaining data. It is rather bizarre how Haru is CONSTANTLY an observer. There must be a bigger purpose for it.
That, or what Lightning really intends to do, is BE the master, but use Bohman as a figurehead/representative, while he is the one who gives out the orders.
the 2 previous times he was during his awakning this time he almost completer so i can believe at least about the generation thing
This episode was mind-blowing! I knew the hints of who the mastermind was pointing fingers towards Lightning! Although it was still pretty shocking to get confirmation Lightning committed treason against his own kind by destroying Cyberse World and almost killing the others. How could he!? He’s twisted in every sense of the way, yet he still wants to recruit Ai, Flame, and even Playmaker to his cause. He even showed that he was actually kinda fond of Playmaker because he enjoys talking to him and doesn’t mince his words.
There was just so much to learn about what happened with possibly minor plot points such as who sent the data storm that saved Playmaker and Ai when they almost fell down the bridge in episode 39. I couldn’t believe that was Lightning! And Ai’s right. I don’t think that deserves gratitude from Playmaker and Ai. He was just using them to do the dirty work for him. And he was surprised Ai called him a villain? He is a villain, a malicious, twisted villain more specifically. Everyone was quite shocked Lightning shamelessly admitted he was the mastermind that destroyed the Cyberse World. Even the Hanoi lieutenants were too shocked for words upon learning that it was ironically an Ignis that caused the destruction of the Cyberse World.
I’m quite disgusted with Lightning! He’s willing to kill his Ignis comrades if they don’t agree with him. His idea of uniting the Ignis together is quite sickening in my opinion. It’s also quite creepy Ai said he was a smooth talker after hearing Lightning accuse Revolver of trying to smooth talk him! Come to think of it, Lightning is quite suave in trying to persuade Ai and Flame to join him. He’s unfailingly polite even towards his enemies like Revolver, speaking in a gentlemanly manner. Ai and Flame have a good reason to be infuriated! I can totally understand how Ai and Flame feel about their leader they thought was a friend and ally upon learning this shocking revelation. Flame seemed to be the angriest of all and Soulburner was almost as furious too. Soulburner, help Flame take down Lightning for his acts of treason. He needs to be brought to justice!
This episode was even more plot thickening than I wanted, but that’s a good sign. So Jin truly has been brainwashed and can’t cry for help. Playmaker was surprisingly a little more polite towards Jin than he usually is towards others around his age, using “kimi” instead of “omae” when addressing Jin and trying to get him to snap out of it. I feel somewhat sorry for Windy. I don’t believe anyone deserves to be almost brutally killed like that. And using Windy even when he’s feeling sick was incredibly cruel of Lightning even if they are comrades in the newly declared war.
OK, onto the new ending. The new ending was really good! It looks like Aqua will be appearing in the present day soon and will join the side that wants to coexist with humans. And it seems like Earth will do the same because Aqua is. I can’t imagine Aqua will want to be on Lightning and Windy’s side after what happened in today’s episode and this applies to Earth especially if they learn Lightning was the one that caused their world to be destroyed. Now it seems like the Ignis in terms of siding with humanity and turning against them is 4-2.