Yu-Gi-Oh Manga: 054 The Millennium Enemy, Part 5

Uuuugh... I want to apologize to everyone ahead of time, because I think my margarita had way more tequila than mix last night. I have quite the hangover, and even my fingers on the keyboard are causing me to flinch. I had to turn the brightness down on my monitor to almost nothing too, but I didn't think a reduction in brightness would make the image here so grainy...

Wait, are those ENGLISH sound effects? Is this a scan of the official translation?

Am I going to get sued for this???

Oh well, my head hurts too much to worry about it. Let's just get this over with. Yes, Other Bakura, that IS another Yuugi, and he's here to hand you your ass. I still don't know why he's surprised by the fact that there's another Yuugi, when he's essentially another Bakura, which is why I haven't been calling him Bakura this whole time, but hey... I wonder why people are surprised by anything in this story by this point.

Someone, though I don't know who, tells Yami that their lives are in his hands so he HAS to defeat Zork. This translation spells Zork with a "c" but I'm just going to keep spelling it the way I have, because this bitch IS loyal. Yami says that he'll give it his all while Yuugi and the pet monster he tamed two chapters ago stare. The monster is confused by how there's two masters now. Who's soul is in that thing? A dog's? Or is he just talking because it's cute and Takahashi didn't think about it?

Yuugi and Yami continue to stare at each other, each realizing that the other is their other personality.

Look at these fuckers communicating telepathically! Unless those thought bubbles stopped being thought bubbles at some point. You never know WHAT'S being said out loud in this comic.

Yuugi affirms his bravery, which is SUPER humble of him. Sorry, my sarcasm can get out of control when I've got a hangover. Anyway, Yami is now glaring across the table at Other Bakura, who FINALLY figures out that Yami is the spirit of the puzzle like he's the spirit of the ring. STUPENDOUS. Yami thinks about how he has to save his friends by defeating Zork and release the souls trapped in those game pieces. Sounds like a plan. Do that.

Other Bakura types on his laptop as he suggests they get on with their game. Other Bakura's dialogue is again in the double-lined speech bubbles as he informs Yami that he will be rolling for and controlling the entire adventure team now. However, if Yami fucks up and whittles down the game pieces' hit points down to zero, the soul in that piece and its corresponding body will perish. No pressure, though. Yami just glares.

Sure you can, Honda. You just don't WANT to. There's a difference.

Yami reminds himself that the outcome of the game will be determined by his dice rolls, and he has to find a way to put an end to Other Bakura's string of criticals. Just believe in the heart of the... dice, Yami! That's a thing, right? Though your friends souls are in game pieces rather than the dice, so it's not a perfect analogy or anything.

Other Bakura announces that a new round in their continuing battle is about to commence. Zork doesn't seem all that injured by the loss of his hand, and in fact the discarded hand might still be an asset to the demon god thing. The pieces for Jonouchi and Yuugi stare at the hand as it begins to smoke and writhe, urging the others to stare too. It sprouts a whole slew of new tentacle-like appendages and an eyeball, in a move that is described by someone as mutation. I don't know if that word accurately describes the fuckery that is this transformation.

In fact, it splits itself into several different NEW monsters, all of them looking rather hungrily at the pants-shitting adventurers noting aloud this turn of events. Zork states that any flesh cut from his body is still under his command, and he can transform it at will.

Yuugi curses, because of COURSE Zork gets to continue to have control over severed parts of his body. Yuugi's new pet says that Zork is the source of all darkness, and as such, his spawning of monsters doesn't stop until one finds a way to kill him once and for all. Okay, so dismemberment is out. How else does one murder this monster god thing?

The monsters defer to Zork, asking him to leave the adventurers to them. Zork turns around, telling them to do their thing. Yuugi asks Zork if he's really running away, and demands that he come back and face them. That's a big mouth you've got for such a tiny boy, Yuugi. Zork looks back at him to tauntingly say that he's prepared a different place for them to fight, and Yuugi should look for him in his castle if he manages to survive the attacks of his monsters, with any gumption remaining. With that, Zork flies away toward the castle, laughing, which Other Bakura narrates while typing on his laptop.

Jonouchi shouts at Zork that he's all kinds of shameful things, and promises that they'll all make it to the castle and take him down without fail. Yuugi is worried that they're all playing into Other Bakura's script, and without any other choices, because they're stuck in that game world. Yami agrees, thinking about how Zork appeared when the players' guards were down, for the sole purpose of taking their souls and sealing them in the lead pieces with an element of surprise - WAIT. Those pieces are made of LEAD?? As in that neurotoxin that is classified as a dangerous poison that most recently was one of the biggest pollutants of the Flint River and Flint Michigan residents? THAT LEAD?

Bakura, even if your friends' souls weren't being taken by the Millennium Ring, they would have gotten seriously sick from playing this game anyway. Don't you know better than to fuck around with LEAD???

Whatever, I guess that's not the most pressing problem right now. Yuugi knows that whenever Other Bakura rolls the dice, he gets a critical, so he wonders how they're going to win. Yami is convinced there IS a way as he picks up the dice. Other Bakura shouts that it's Jonouchi's piece's turn to attack, and Jonouchi tells Yami to let him at those finger monsters. Yami tosses the dice up and down while Other Bakura urges him to roll, reminding him that if he rolls a 99, Jonouchi will die. Yami just smiles and yells as he throws the dice. They spin on their tips for a moment until, to Other Bakura's shock, they land on those double zeroes.

Jonouchi's piece leaps forward and slashes and eyeball monster right in half with an Energetic Slash. Energetic indeed. Everyone praises Yami for his amazing command of the dice and criticals, while Jonouchi sulks that no one is praising his command of his little lead sword. Yami chuckles as he glares at Other Bakura, who gasps and can't finish a thought for how flabbergasted he is. Can he what, Other Bakura?

Other Bakura is frozen in his shock for a moment, so Jonouchi reminds him that he cut his enemy in half, asking what happens next. Other Bakura hums dumbly before continuing his narrative, tapping the laptop keyboard. He says, with no small amount of annoyance, that the next monster was so shocked by its companion's death that it hesitates, and the next attack is Yuugi's. Yuugi plans to make as many monsters his allies as possible before heading into that castle, so he picks out a dragon-like creature for its strength. His monster pet offers to hold it down as Yuugi announces that he's going to capture the arm dragon.

Yuugi reminds the audience that he needs the dice to fall below ten in order to be successful. Thanks for that, kiddo. But he believes in Yami to toss those dice well, so he's not worried. Yami smirks as he throws the dice. The red die lands on an eight, so Other Bakura thinks there's no WAY Yuugi can pull off this brainwashing, but his eyes widen in surprise. The white die that was still spinning knocks the already landed red die out of its position and essentially rolls it again. Other Bakura grits his teeth as he wonders what kind of technique this is.

Oooh, looks like Yami is convinced that Other Bakura hasn't been playing the fairest! Yami's trick roll turns up a 02, which Other Bakura recognizes as another critical with a gaping mouth. Yuugi reiterates that he'll get to get his brainwashing skills on with this monster, and uses those magic training hands on the snarling dragon.

Just remember that powder puff there is always the first pet. And Yuugi's favorite.

Other Bakura is stewing in his disbelief that Yami knows that "double hit" trick with the dice. Jonouchi is indignant that Other Bakura has been cheating to get his criticals this whole time and asks Yami if it's true that their opponent has been able to control his dice rolls during the game. Yami confirms this, explaining that the ten-sided dice, shaped like flowers with five "petals" on each side, are even on one side and odd on the other. The trick with double-hitting is to spin the dice with the even side on the top, so that the odds of rolling an even number or zero are much better, only one in five, as Yuugi says with a frown.

Putting a strong spin on the die that represents the ones column is another subtle trick so that if the tens die stops on an undesirable number, the stronger spinning die can hit it and change the roll. When Anzu asks how the stronger spinning die hits the slower die when desired, Yami answers that shaking or vibrating the table slightly can change the trajectory the way you want and in that manner, you should be able to change your roll as much as is necessary.

Man, cheating is COMPLICATED.

Well said, Yami. Other Bakura glares for a second, before demonstrating how they should roll the dice by simply dropping them from their hands, prohibiting spinning. Yami agrees with this stipulation, and Jonouchi's piece suggests that if Other Bakura cheats in the future, he should also be turned into at piece. Since he's the one taking peoples' souls to put them in the pieces, I kind of doubt he'll be CAPABLE of that, but otherwise, great idea, Jonouchi. Other Bakura demands they get on with the game, considerably less jovial than before.

He narrates how the adventurers continue their journey after dispatching Zork's servants.

Nicely done, Yami. Now all you have to do is defeat a demon god of some sort. Simple.

So, what did I think of this chapter overall? I should thank Takahashi for teaching me how to cheat at games with ten-sided dice. In all seriousness, though, I would be too lazy to practice that fairly complicated trick. Also, I doubt I'd have much time to PLAY a game like this nowadays, let alone cheat at one.

I do appreciate how much thought was put into the explanation as to how Other Bakura was cheating, though. I was afraid it was just a magical weird thing that wouldn't have any basis in fact, but I'm glad it wasn't like that at all. He's having to use techniques and strategies just like anyone else, and I appreciate how that's not a side-effect of the Millennium Ring as well. One super soul-stealing power is quite enough, thanks.

I admit, I didn't believe Honda in the last chapter when he kept insisting that he wasn't scared when he rolled the dice, because I thought he was just trying to save macho face. Now, though, I'm much more inclined to believe that a combination of psychology and table-shaking from Other Bakura produced his bad roll.

And, of course, just a tad bit of fear. Who wouldn't be a little afraid in a situation like that? Come on.