Inuyasha Manga: 156 Youkai Blood

Some experimentation has provided evidence against all of us being descendants of youkai during one of my outings yesterday. Goshinki asserted that youkai derive a great pleasure from tearing people apart, but I don't even sort-of like making my local deli-worker's job a tad harder by asking for biodegradable packaging for the cheese I buy. If there is a small smidgen of youkai blood in me, it was all spent on grumbling about how grocery chains should be infuriated by paying out the ass for the LIE that the literal trash they buy, styrofoam and cling wrap, is somehow contributing to public health and safety. I didn't inflict my boiling attitude on anyone but myself, though, so it may not count.

Oh well, I guess we can't all be raging assholes monsters, huh?

Goshinki bragged about how his teeth are a bit stronger than a dog's, but he seems to have the same inclination to chew on important, expensive things.

He lunges fast at Inuyasha again, who barely has more time for anything but shock before he's knocked back by a powerful blow to the chest from Goshinki, blood splattering everywhere. Kagome calls Inuyasha's name in distress as the rest of her friends gape at the scene in horror. Inuyasha lands in the dirt, Tessaiga flying from his hand and rattling to the ground a ways away, transforming back into its rusted blunt form. Inuyasha's eyes have once again become blank, though they are still open wide. He has been thoroughly fucked for the second time in a very short period of time.

Goshinki chuckles some more, this time over how Inuyasha's mind has gone all white at this point. He wonders aloud if this is just despair at losing Tessaiga, or if he's just straight-up dead. It's a fair assumption, to be honest, the way Inuyasha is laying face-down in a pool of his own puddle of blood and dirt. This scene is a repeat of when Sesshoumaru showed up the second time, but Goshinki doesn't look like he's going to back off like Sesshoumaru did. Why should he? Tessaiga isn't much of a threat at this point.

Kagome bolts for Inuyasha, screaming his name with tears in her eyes, though Miroku warns her to get back. Too late, since Goshinki has got speed on his side.

Even though this blow to Miroku is identical to the one Inuyasha caught, Miroku isn't bleeding out, probably because he didn't already have a severe injury from the previous battle. He does look to have been knocked out, though, as Shippou and Sango rush to his side and call out to him. Kagome twists to stare over her shoulder at him and her friends while Goshinki advertises his thoughts about sucking up the enemy in his Kazaana, even if it kills him. The Saimyoushou hover behind Goshinki as backup, even if it doesn't seem to be necessary anymore. Goshinki bids Miroku not to be in such a hurry to die. He looks over at Kagome, staring back at him open-mouthed, and announces that he's planning on eating all of them one-by-one anyway.

Meanwhile, the kids that DIDN'T run away yet kneel next to Inuyasha, the boy leaning down to ask him quietly if he's dead. Inuyasha doesn't answer, but the sound effects indicate a stir of power, so... no? He's taking his sweet time intercepting Goshinki, though, who is bearing down on Kagome, declaring her first to be eaten. All she can do in her frozen state is think Inuyasha's name, but Goshinki begins to chastise her for thinking about a guy who's already bitten the dust.

BEGINS, but doesn't finish, because he's distracted by something it looks like he didn't count on, looking around behind him. It seems he's picked back up on Inuyasha's mind, and a confusing emotion: joy. This is followed by Inuyasha himself hurtling through the air toward Goshinki, face shadowed.

Is Inuyasha's penchant for cutting off arms because he likes to issue a message not to underestimate him to enemies before out-and-out killing them, or is it just another indication of how poor his aim is?

As the ogre's arm falls to the ground, Inuyasha's face remains shadowed and obscured. He asks Goshinki what the matter is with him, another stir of power issuing from him. Kagome stares, sweating and staring, because her first good look at Inuyasha after his comeback is... a little unsettling.

That little boy gives bitchin' makeovers.

Miroku has come to, leaning up with Sango and Shippou, who says Inuyasha's name tentatively, all gaping at Inuyasha's new look. Kagome thinks that it makes him appear like a real, honest-to-goodness youkai, and her heart skips a beat, but not in the good way. In the "I'm going to shit my pants" way. Big distinction.

Goshinki complains that he just doesn't get why this transformation even happened. You'd think a guy who just got his arm chopped off might be asking fewer questions and doing more screaming, but hey, I'm always down for a little Monty-Python-esque absurdity.

Inuyasha scoffs, admitting there's no way for him to know why it happened either. He advises Goshinki not to worry too much about it, and spend his energy instead on prayers. Inuyasha declares he's going to send Goshinki safely to hell. Minus, the arm, I guess. I would argue that missing body parts do not constitute a safe delivery, but accidents happen sometimes.

Especially when your aim is fucking terrible.

Goshinki is spending a lot of time trying to puzzle out Inuyasha's change of mind to match his change of face. Inuyasha's attitude has done a complete 180 degree turn, no longer having any trace of sadness or fear, or even anger. Joy is all Goshinki can detect, at Inuyasha's anticipated murder of him. Goshinki curses this damn hanyou,but Inuyasha lunges forward again, flexing his lengthened claws and beginning a characterization of the youkai blood flowing through his veins. As opposed to the stuff that leaked out onto the ground before, mind.

What? Not going to bring it back around to how a dog's blood must be better than an ogre's? Not going to go for the obvious insult that Goshinki just HANDED you earlier? You disappoint me.

My disappointment MIGHT be misplaced, though.

... Well he has acquired some serious eye-liner game, I'll give him that.

So, what did I think of this chapter overall? It smacks of RT kind of writing herself into a corner and wiggling out of it. This is another solution similar to Kagome's "big soul" in the last arc, wherein an innate specialness is the only thing that managed to get the gang out of trouble. On the edge of complete destruction, Inuyasha pulls a power from inside and uses it to turn things around from the brink. Again, we don't exactly get a "victory" vibe from this ending to Goshinki, though he is far more thoroughly defeated than Naraku was last time. Inuyasha's transformation has evoked a sense of nervousness, like he's become someone, or someTHING, else altogether, and it's kind of disturbing.

But it also differs from Kagome's pull-through in the previous arc in these same ways. The size of Kagome's soul isn't really explored to my memory, it's just taken as a given, which makes it seem a tad lazy as a fixer in the past two instances. Inuyasha's transformations are not only given attention and explanation, but become something of an unsustainable solution every time he uses it, not to mention just plain scary after a couple of times. This ending and the feeling of uneasiness and wrongness with the situation is an indication that RT is not willing to use this as a fixer in the future. It's already presenting itself as a problem, the strength coming with a drawback, which Kagome's does not have, so it doesn't feel as cheap.

Not that Kagome's large soul has a $1 price tag on it, or anything, since it still didn't win the day. But it also didn't create any lasting effects on Kagome's character. Inuyasha's struggles really start to multiply from here, and he doesn't get this one for free. By the last panel you can see the transformation comes at a larger price, though we're not exactly sure what it is yet.

And we're not sure if there's a money-back guarantee like with Kagome's either.

Yu-Gi-Oh Manga: 214 Family of Revenge!

I believe that there are a few cautionary tales about families who feud for revenge all the time. One of them you might have heard of; that one with the Montagues and Capulets? They sure did hate each other, and everyone had to avenge everyone else, for some slight so far in the past before the actual story that none of them actually knew what the hell their ancestors were so mad about. Now, I'm not claiming that Ishizu and Yami are engaged in a love affair that will end in tragedy because their family/friends around them can't stop hating each other, although that might be pretty compelling now that I think about it.

I'm just saying that sustained grudges don't really work. Remember, the family that revenges together... never actually revenges together, because someone is always gone in order to justify the revenge. And they're not coming back regardless. Sorry.

No matter how much damage the giant scorpion does. And 2500 points is quite a bit, for sure.

Jonouchi looks like he's about to shit his pants while regarding the terrifying scorpion monster, which is totally understandable. Meanwhile, Rishid characterizes Selket as the card in the box's, Ra's, guardian. Whether this is out loud or not is unclear, but Jonouchi is too busy contemplating his doom to notice anyway, in my opinion. He knows he doesn't have a lot of life points left, only 50, to be exact, and he's pretty damn sure he doesn't have anything that can defeat such a strong monster. Still, he ruminates helplessly on what to do.

The spectators are alarmed and losing hope, Honda asking Yami if there's any possible way for Jonouchi to beat this guy. Yami acknowledges that the monsters Jonouchi currently has out can't defeat Selket, grinding his teeth anxiously. Furthermore, in Jonouchi's upcoming turn, the Swords of Revealing Light are going to disappear, so if Jonouchi doesn't do something then, his monsters are going to be royally fucked.

SOMEONE isn't quite up to speed on what's going on though. Shizuka calls out for her brother not to worry and attack that monster. Incredulous, he tells her not to say stupid things, because just LOOK at that scorpion. Mai doesn't pay this exchange any attention despite her normal advocacy for Shizuka, because she's busy asking Yami a question: just what IS in that box, since Selket is its guardian? Yami says he was thinking about just that himself. Mai lets a guess about what it could be trail as Yami thinks of a god card.

What is the connection between that fun friendship riddle from the beginning of the manga and the god card in the box? Damned if I know.

Cut to Marik, staring at the duel with his arms crossed. Unlike in the last chapter, I'm pretty certain that the sentence Rishid is thinking is a telepathic communication, because it is a direct question about why Marik put the god card in his deck. Marik answers that Rishid is his shadow and double, so he HAS to have a god card to complete the illusion of being a doppelganger. Rishid seems to have some indescribable criticism of the card sitting in the shrine box, so Marik articulates it for him. It is ALSO a double, a mere copy. Big surprise there, given that he runs an operation making illegal copies of rare cards.

Still, Rishid looks mighty uncomfortable with this information. Marik rambles on about the Ghouls' ability to make tons of copies of the Ra card, and that the genuine article is with him, of course. Rishid continues to look like he is REALLY not okay with this, brows drawn down, "gogogo" sound effects and everything. Marik tells him not to worry, claiming that the copy of the god card brings about different PUNISHMENTS for different users. PUNISHMENTS? And for some reasons Rishid should NOT worry about this??

Marik, let me try to explain this to your totally unempathetic ass - people generally don't want to be punished, especially for actions they were forced into by an authority. It's not a fun time. Just, for two seconds, could you maybe imagine yourself in such a situation and imagine how unfair that would seem? No? Of course not.

No, he just launches into a detailed description of the results of some experiments the Ghouls conducted in using these copy god cards. Some of them went mad, some became "vegetables", some of them out-and-out DIED. He assumes all of this is because of the god's anger, but he doesn't really know for sure. Great, I'm sure Rishid is really glad to know he's yet another guinea pig for you to fuck with.

All this aside, though, he says they did realize ONE thing at the end of all this torture experimentation.

So, you're able to determine THIS conveniently reassuring fairy tale, an intangible connection between card and heart, but you couldn't figure out if the god was pissy with the card copy or not? Sure, okay, that totally doesn't sound like you're talking out of your ass at all.

After a moment of contemplative silence, staring down at his Duel Disk, Rishid closes his eyes and offers a demure apology to Marik. When he snaps them open again, he asserts he can win this duel without the potentially damaging assistance of fake Ra. Good on you, man! No need to follow orders that are dangerous and harmful so your senior chief Marik can set you up for failure. Authority figures who bully their inferiors into troublesome bullshit should fuck right off and step on an ocean of Legos.

Not that I or my family have any personal experience with that, or anything. *Ahem*

Anyway, Rishid ends his turn, and for good measure, reminds Jonouchi that the Swords of Revealing Light are at this point going away. Jonouchi groans at the disappearing swords, which leave all of his monsters without their glittering barrier. Yami and Mai freak out, the former calling Jonouchi's name, the latter echoing Honda's question earlier about there being any possible way to defeat Selket. Jonouchi draws a card in response, noting with horror that this new card is neither a high-level monster or a magic card that can return a card from the graveyard.

So, without any other option, he puts all his monsters into defense, even though the cards already were turned on their sides. Oops. Well, I guess the only actual action Jonouchi is taking here is ending his turn. Rishid says it's his turn, and Jonouchi maintains his pants-shitting expression, Jinzo highlighted behind him. As the visual indicated, Rishid orders Selket to attack Jinzo. Its claws shoot out to seize Jinzo by the arms.

Oh man, the only thing more disturbing than that monster death is the expressions from the peanut gallery. For fuck's sake, Shizuka looks like Cathy from the Sunday comic strips!

Ack indeed!

Rishid acknowledges that this killing was rather frightening, and says it's Selket's special effect. Jonouchi repeats the term in alarm and disbelief, so Rishid elaborates that when Selket swallows a monster like that, it takes on half of the devoured monster's attack points. Jonouchi is in even more shock and disbelief after the explanation, as Selket's attack updates to a whopping 3700 and it seems to stand up, growing an eye on a stalk from the middle of its head. Jonouchi stands horrified by this transformation, both in power and physical appearance.

While Honda reiterates the terrible fact that Selket has the ability to absorb attack power in question form, Mai shouts at Jonouchi to take that thing down before it becomes too powerful. Mai, I don't know if you noticed, but Selket now has 3700 attack points. I think one could argue that it's ALREADY too powerful. Yami has nothing to say except Jonouchi's name in distress. Again.

Jonouchi draws another new card at the beginning of his next turn, which also turns out to be a dud. Sweating and hunched, Jonouchi is sure this is the end, unable to do a thing this turn as well. He ends his turn, and again, Selket comes to absorb the powers of another of Jonouchi's monster's with an attack of which the translator can't decipher the name. Selket stuffs the Legendary Fisherman's killer whale down its gullet, as it holds the little man in its claw.

Groaning again, Jonouchi apologizes to a mental image of Ryota for dragging his precious card into this. Once more, the spectators crow from the sidelines, calling his name and demanding that he believe in the next card he draws. Poor Shizuka, tears in her eyes, buries her face in her hands for an inability to watch this massacre any longer.

But when Jonouchi looks over and sees this, he shouts at her not to run away and keep her eyes firmly on him. She pulls her fingers down so she can look at Jonouchi again, to see him admit that in truth he might lose. Still, he implores her to watch him all the way until the conclusion. She begins to put down her hands, wiping away a tear as she goes, while Jonouchi tells her not to run back to the dark when she's only just found the light of courage. After a pause, Shizuka nods with determination.

Rishid is watching too, as Jonouchi gives his sister a thumbs-up. He ponders one of the phrases Jonouchi used, light found in darkness. Get ready for a sprawling flashback, my friends.

Off to a great start, I see.

He begins an extremely abbreviated history of his time with his adoptive family, starting from when he was four laying on a slab-like bed, overhearing a conversation between his parents about the family's destiny. This destiny apparently include the two Millennium Items that were sleeping in the darkness with them, displayed as the necklace now worn by Ishizu and the rod now wielded by Marik.

What Rishid picked up from the conversation about this was the patriarch planning to perform a particular ritual on Rishid at 10 years old, if his wife didn't have a male son by that time. Mysterious rituals aside, it seems pretty flexible of him, and a little progressive to consider his adoptive kid as his. Still, the silence Rishid's dad exhibits after his declaration seems... a little sulky? I don't know. Little Rishid thinks about this ritual with some curiosity.

A year after this event, a baby girl is born, which apparently affected his parents greatly, despite how it's never discussed how exactly. Instead the next panel deals with four years after THAT, when his mother died giving birth to a new son, Marik. We're treated to an image of perpetually-cloaked daddy holding baby Marik up to the light pouring down from the open well. He looks like a pretty happy baby too, smiling as his dad cradles his biological son and the one who bears the blood of his clan. There goes that mildly progressive attitude, I guess.

The translator is unsure of their translation of the descriptor of baby Marik as "dark's counterpart" surpassing time, but there's not much time to dwell on what this means, because we just plow straight ahead with this flashback to where younger Marik reads in what looks like a small library, Rishid holding a book himself as he stands off to the side. Marik snaps his book shut and asks Rishid if he knows about the ritual. Rishid answers that he doesn't, prompting Marik to ask in turn if he's seen their father's back.

Boy oh boy, doesn't THAT sound fun?

Unsurprisingly, Marik is not looking forward to it when he turns ten, because that is an insane thing to do to a ten-year-old, what the actual FUCK? Cradling his head in one hand while pounding the table with his other fist, Marik expresses his fears about how painful it'll be, and how that pain would last about a month. He wonders aloud why he has to suffer, and the answer is clear - misery loves company.

Marik turns a pointing finger toward Rishid and suggests HE should take the ritual instead, since his job is to take care of his younger brother. Rishid doesn't appear to answer, but Marik claims that the matter is settled, because it would make Rishid an actual member of the clan. Then, as if only NOW he seems to give a shit what Rishid thinks about this proposal, Marik asks him. Rishid remains silent, with a straight face.

Next panel is a random shot of their underground ruins, overlaid with a shocked and outraged quote questioning Rishid's desire to do the ritual. Head bowed to his becloaked father, he affirms his request, asking to be the one to protect the clan's secrets. His father asks if Marik put him up to this, but Rishid lies and says it was his idea. The response is a somewhat disgusted statement that Rishid is but a servant. Rishid presses on, expressing a want to be able to call his father his father after this ritual is complete.

Daddy-sama isn't very happy with this suggestion and demands that Rishid stop this nonsense, disabusing him of any ambition to be the clan's inheritor. He warns Rishid that if he keeps talking about this clan's secrets like he's entitled to them, Daddy-sama's going to cut out his tongue and kill him.

You know, I thought giving his father that name was a funny little BDSM joke, but it suddenly became a LOT less funny. Rishid's expression here is half-shocked and half-devastated.

Not to expand on the misery here, but the next panel depicts baby!Marik with his bare back exposed to someone heating a knife in a torch flame. The panels afterward are pretty explicit, so I'll only say they also show Marik biting down on something, crying, sweating, and moaning with pain. I'll leave out the actual torture, though. As it's happening, Rishid sits outside the door and holds up his own glowing knife as he considers his little brother.

When it's all over, a heavily bandaged Marik hunches out of the room to where Rishid sits in the dark, asking to be told, for some reason, who to hate. He forgets the weird question when he catches full sight of Rishid's face, eyes wide.

Hoooo... That's... Wow...

Marik is absolutely horrified by the sight, but Rishid states his purpose in this; he can't take away Marik's pain, but he CAN use his own ritual to declare his allegiance to his brother and the clan.

Revenge? Is that what you're calling this? Don't know if that's the right word...

So, what did I think of this chapter overall? There wasn't much by way of the duel that wasn't par for the course, so those parts came across as a little boring in comparison with the interaction, past and present, between Rishid and Marik. There was a LOT to unpack with these, despite how little content there actually was, which is a little impressive to be honest. Rishid just really blew through his early life in order for KT to fit everything into the chapter, making the detail sparse. And yet, the lack of detail just added to the horror of the thing.

Because the three characters, Rishid, Marik and their father, represent three very distinct aspects of the same abuse. Obviously, the father was put through the ringer when he was young, in order to continue the tradition of the family, which is just plain violence. It was likely started in an attempt to show that the successor was worthy or strong, but it continued in a perverse desire to inflict the same misery on the younger generation that the older generation had to go through as an expression of trauma. A lot of families and institutions have "rituals" like these that supposedly show strength and build character, but all it really does is allow the once abused to justify it by continuing the cycle, pretending it's necessary to become a patriarch, to become a man. If it doesn't happen to the next generation, then it didn't have to happen to the previous, and then it starts being a source of regret rather than pride.

This is why you see so many older men decrying the "pussification" of young men these days. It's also why Marik comes out of the experience asking who he should hate, because he doesn't want to hate his father for just making him do the same thing that happened when his father was a child too. His father before him had to do it too, so someone else outside of the cycle of violence must be benefiting from it. But Marik also never seemed to move past his unempathetic isolated childhood, either, so his ideas of what is right and wrong are a bit on the simple side. The only other kids he grew up with were his sister and a "servant" that was supposed to protect him. That "servant" lived in his important shadow ever since he was born, as Marik points out above, both laughing and crying. Both their purposes, Marik to be the bearer of the pharaoh's history, Rishid to be his servant, are tragic and comic at the same time. It's absurd and devastating that the two of them should have to suffer so much just to show a bunch of scars, the manifestation of their bonds by pain.

So the goal here is to break those bonds, introduce the trauma to the source of it instead of on the next generation. Marik's goal here, and by extension Rishid's, is now pretty clear: they can only be free of their abuse by inflicting it on the very guy who started the cycle in the first place. But, this of course, just continues the cycle. As said above, it's just a justification of all the pain they suffered if they can inflict it on someone else. It's no longer senseless if they can introduce someone else to it and call it "character-building" revenge. And now they get to be the abusers, the ones with the power.

The wheel keeps turning-turning, folks.

Inuyasha Manga: 155 Goshinki

The pattern of names beginning with "K" has been broken, it seems, and it's not the only one. I've recently had to reevaluate the choices I've been making in multiple facets of my life, and among the things that aren't working are certain facets of this project. They're facets for which I handed over control from the beginning, and I'm contemplating how to take that back. The thoughts I put down here are important to me, as is the way I share them, and I'm not comfortable with the idea that an outside entity might dictate new ways to use my thoughts in a way I myself do not intend.

Since we're talking about mind-reading monsters and everything.

At least you don't use that mind-reading power to project advertisements back at people for inane bullshit all day long, like another "G"-name I could mention. Yikes, maybe I prefer the rash of "K"-names to this...

As Inuyasha's companions run up to the scene, Kagome trails off a comment about an observation she's made, probably to let Miroku mansplain it instead. A spider-shaped scar is clearly visible on this ogre's back, just above his tail. Miroku pronounces this to be the third youkai offspring of Naraku. The ogre turns to chuckle at Miroku now, affirming that he is indeed his father's son, not just with a straight assurance. He claims in the midst of an introduction that his elder sisters Kanna and Kagura are minor characters since he's shown up on the scene. Don't flatter yourself, honey.

Inuyasha scoffs, calling Goshinki a talkative monster, and raises Tessaiga over head to carry out an intention to see how much power he really has. Inuyasha's sword crashes down into the ground where Goshinki was standing but a moment ago, to his confusion. Next thing he knows, he's gaping through his periphery to where Goshinki has appeared behind him, reminding Inuyasha that he can read minds.

And yet you were the first one to jump on board with Inuyasha rushing over here to fight this unknown threat, Miroku. Funny, that.

As Inuyasha bounces on the ground into a clutter of rubble nearby, Miroku rips the sealing beads from his right hand. Predictably, Goshinki is far from intimidated, repeating Miroku's obvious thoughts of sucking him up in the Kazaana back to him. He's suddenly surrounded by the figures of floating insects - three guesses as to what THOSE are. Kagome gets it right on the first try when she sees the giant wasps; the saimyoushou. Miroku balks, twisting the beads back around his hand.

Goshinki tells him that it's no use, because he knows all their weaknesses. He advises a gaping Kagome not to try and shoot an arrow, for how he would kill her before she could draw the bow. He similarly addresses the incredulous Sango riding astride Kirara, telling her he knows she can't move or fight because she was hit with her own weapon. When he turns to Shippou, who sweats in anticipation, he just as quickly turns his back without saying a damn thing. Shippou jumps onto Kagome's shoulder, barking about being the only one ignored in this little list of shortcomings. Seems to me like this should make Shippou feel better, but he's all kind of offended. Kagome looks at him with raised eyebrows as Miroku assures Shippou that he shouldn't worry about it, given that it's just an attempt to rile him up.

Meanwhile, Inuyasha is pushing himself to his knees, and in the process sees out of a surrounding mist or dust (it's not easy to tell) two little figures. It's the kids he distracted the ogre from earlier, and he begins to reprimand them for not running away when he told them to. But they're not ready to leave behind crucial pieces of their parents.

Woah. That's some Devilman shit.

But it does beg the question: does Goshinki not eat heads? Is he just awfully picky, or can those giant teeth just not crack open a skull?

Inuyasha asks if these were their mother and father, to which the boy can only give a slight nod in response. Putting on a new glare and clenching his teeth, Inuyasha stands with Tessaiga slung over his shoulder to greet again the approaching Goshinki, the kids staring up at him. Goshinki giggles, mockingly parroting Inuyasha's thoughts about how he won't be forgiven and how Inuyasha will waste him. The ogre says this makes him laugh, then moves along to how Inuyasha is a hanyou. He comments on how though Inuyasha's blood is half-youkai, he still doesn't seem to know the pleasure of eating people. A harder-core youkai would say Goshinki doesn't seem to know the pleasure of eating heads. There are just certain things everyone doesn't like to eat, my dude. 

Inuyasha, of course, tells him to shut his trap, which is a much more economical comeback than mine, to be sure.

You'd think Inuyasha would be a little apprehensive about using this move again after what happened the last time, but I admire his courage. Gets right back on the horse, this one does.

But his mental description of the Kaze no Kizu as the technique that draws out the Tessaiga's ultimate explosive power is a bit problematic. No doubt we can all guess why. Goshinki reminds Inuyasha that he KNOWS that Inuyasha intends to blow him away with Kaze no Kizu, but Inuyasha's retort is that Goshiki should prepare to die if he knows so damn well. He's in shock when Goshinki thrusts right through the place where the youki collides at him. Kagome and Sango also gape in disbelief, with Sango even characterizing this as a break through the Kaze no Kizu.

Wait, how would YOU know? The only on here who can "see" it is Inuyasha. Keep your literally impossible observations to yourself, Sango!

Inuyasha has recovered from his shock fairly quickly, though, because he calls Goshinki a fool who will just get ripped apart directly now. Goshinki scoffs, pretty unconcerned as he identifies Tessaiga as a mere dog's fang before catching it between his own teeth. He chuckles around the blade while chomping down. HARD.

Well shit.

Double shit.

So, what did I think of this chapter overall? Not up to RT's general standard of action, honestly. Usually she packs a lot into a chapter with a rapid succession of blows, much closer to the time in which it might actually take. This time Inuyasha's fighting was slowed down, especially in the middle of his attempt at Kaze no Kizu. There shouldn't have been room for as much dialogue as there was in the middle of a single leap like that, and it really threw me off. I know anime and manga does this a lot, actually, inserting a ton of expository dialogue in the middle of a move, but one of the things I love about Inuyasha is that it doesn't pull that crap often. RT generally lets her art speak for itself, and the action flow from it. I REALLY appreciate that practice in an action scene, which makes me miss it all the more when it's so conspicuously absent. What happened there?

And furthermore, what happened with Sango commenting on the state of Kaze no Kizu in relation to Goshinki? I know, one could argue that Sango heard from the banter that Inuyasha was planning on using Kaze no Kizu and guessed that Goshinki just charged right through it, but I would have appreciated her qualifying the guess as one, if that were the case. More so than that, though, I just don't think she should have said more than Kagome. Her comment was also right in the middle of that single leap, and it just drew more attention away from the action and into the peanut gallery, supplementing the perfectly adequate pictures with needless dialogue. If anyone HAD to say it, I think it should have been Inuyasha. But that's only if anyone HAD to say it, and I would argue that it didn't NEED to be said at all.

But I liked the kids holding the heads. It was both heartbreaking and chilling at the same time, which is a bit confusing, but in a good way. A complex mixture of feelings doesn't often come out of comics like this, but I dig it.

Yu-Gi-Oh Manga: 213 An Unexpected Card!

Another one? I was already blown away by KT's unexpected payoff on the Jinzo card in the last chapter. What's next? The windy dueling and spectating conditions ironically blowing one of Kaiba's crucial cards straight into Jonouchi's hand? Wouldn't be any less believable than having a dueling platform on top of a blimp in the first place, and imagine the fallout. For the first time ever, Kaiba would be attempting to enforce some RULES in this tournament. He might even throw a tantrum. I think I could dig that.

If I didn't die laughing first.

As "Marik's" trap monsters explode into holographic smoke, Jonouchi informs him that Jinzo is in fact the reason they're all going poof. "Marik" shields his face from the imaginary debris with an arm, and identifies Jinzo as a high level monster that can destroy trap cards. Yeah, no shit, Sherlock. Hopefully you would have figured that out from the context if you weren't able to just recite a Duel Monster's dictionary of cards. That aside, "Marik" seems a bit surprised that Jonouchi would have a card like Jinzo in his deck.

Jonouchi barks a laugh and, pointing, states that Jinzo is the natural enemy of "Marik's" trap deck. I should have known that Jonouchi would have to one-up Rishid's Captain Obvious-ship. "Marik" bows his head in defeat, possibly as much in capitulation to Jonouchi's skill as Mr. Duh as the good play. Honda and Mai cheer for Jonouchi, Yami standing between them with a smug smirk on his face. He's thinking that those who duel on this platform will have become stronger than at the beginning of the tournament. At least, that's what I THINK the reference to a "duel's deck" making people stronger means, because the phrasing in the translation is a tad puzzling.

Jonouchi agrees internally, holding onto the image of Roba as he thinks he would surely have lost if he didn't have Jinzo. Indeed, this and other battles have made him generally stronger. Okay, KT, I'm really excited that you managed to create a compelling setup and payoff, but at this point you're inching dangerously close to masturbating over the successful execution of it. Thankfully, Jonouchi announces that he's about to come use his turn, so it looks like the wanking is already almost over.

Aaaaaaaand Jinzo's load is blown.

The dust that usually needs a panel to settle is already cleared by the beginning of the next page, where Jonouchi refuses to forgive "Marik" for controlling him to hurt his friend Yuugi. "Marik" of course remains silent on this matter, leaving Jonouchi to continue by saying he'll beat his presumed opponent. On the sidelines, Yuugi's specter appears next to Yami in order to encourage Jonouchi, though Yami remains stoic and wordless, staring intently at the duel.

When Jonouchi says that his turn is over, "Marik" starts his by reaching for a new card. We're back to the spectator pit behind the real Marik, who is no longer grinning. He is very disappointed that Rishid's points were injured at all by Jonouchi, but Rishid mentally asks him not to worry about it. He apparently has a way to deal with Jinzo, so he's not afraid. Marik shoots him a telepathic warning that if he loses, alternative plans will have to be put in play. Notice he doesn't say "plan B", because he's at this point already on "plan J". He's constantly having to readjust his crappy plans, because he NEVER gets what he wants.

If that's not an indicator of how this tournament is going to work out for him, I don't know what is.

Marik glances over to where the Kaiba brothers stand, specifically the elder. Turning his eyes back on Rishid, he reminds his #1 underling that everyone believes the owner of the god card Ra is standing on that dueling stage right now. Marik suggests that Rishid let everyone see said card.

The two on the stage stare each other down for a panel or two, with Jonouchi smirking smugly in the knowledge that "Marik" won't be able to use trap cards as long as Jinzo is active on his side. "Marik" announces that he's about to make a move, pulling a card from his hand and slapping it down. It's a magic card, Swords of Revealing Light. Oh, cool, we haven't seen those for a while! Classic. They surround Jinzo, immobilizing it, much to Jonouchi's surprise. In fact, he looks horrified that his monster cannot attack for three whole turns. Honda clenches his teeth at the wrench thrown into Jonouchi's play when he was so close to bringing things back into balance. Yami just comments that it looks like "Marik" has replaced his lost trap strategy with magic cards instead.

"Marik" ends his turn, so Jonouchi shouts that it's his now, drawing a card with aggressive flourish. He figures that if he can't attack, he'll just summon monsters, and lays down his newest acquisition, the Legendary Fisherman. The translator admits that they totally spaced on Ryota's name on the next line, Jonouchi attributing the card to him as his image is superimposed there. To be fair, I've had to look it up again this time too, so I feel that. Anyway, Jonouchi asks Ryota to lend him strength, like he's summoning an ancient spirit, which is also fair. Ryota is so... primal.

It's "Marik's" turn once more, and he announces a dramatic draw. The drama was warranted, to Rishid's shock, because when he looks at the card, he's in disbelief over the one it is. The real Marik seems to know which one it is, and I think we can extrapolate from there. Indeed, Rishid is wondering what it's doing in HIS deck, but hey, he's supposed to be "Marik" right now, right? Why wouldn't it be?

Rishid looks over at Marik, who remains silent in the face of an unspoken question. He does manage to think the answer at Rishid, though, admitting mentally that he added it before the duel started to make their little charade more believable. Predictably, Jonouchi doesn't have much patience for this silent conversation, and tells the "tattooed freak" on the other side of the stage to play a card already. In response, Rishid puts a card face down on his Duel Disk, and since it's not automatically destroyed by Jinzo, Jonouchi deduces it has to be a magic card.

Meanwhile, the silent conversation hasn't stopped.

Is it though? Everybody THINKS their favorite card/strategy is undefeatable until they get their ass handed to them, and given your track record...

Rishid is not any more convinced than I am, remaining speechless and sweating a bit, something that Yami notices from his spectator position below. He describes "Marik" as "wired" since he drew his last card, and wonders what that's about. Yuugi appears again to admit to Yami that he's pretty worried about that ornate box in the shrine behind "Marik", which seems to have small streams of wind flowing toward it. Yami reveals that he's also been a bit wary of it too, but he seems to know a bit more about what it does. In addition to allowing the player to set two trap cards at once, it provides a place for the player to shelter one card from the attacks of their opponent. Yami supposes there has to be something in there, and bids Jonouchi to be careful.

Impatient as ever, Jonouchi wants to know if "Marik's" turn is over yet, to which "Marik" responds that he hasn't SAID so yet. I don't blame him for being sassy, because I get just as irritated by little pricks hurrying me along at the damn grocery store. I'm not done checking out yet, douchebag, and neither is Rishid.

Well, there's something in the box NOW, regardless of what it is. The real Marik is very pleased by this, praising Rishid.

Jonouchi doesn't seem to notice that anything is amiss, announcing his turn, summoning Baby Dragon, and ending his turn in quick succession. "Marik" also only uses one panel in order to start his turn, place a card face down, and end the turn. Then Jonouchi shouts that it's his turn again. This is the quickest series of actions anyone has taken in this whole manga. I approve.

Spectators and duelists alike are on edge as the game drags on, until Jonouchi blurts his excitement that the next turn marks the end of the Swords of Revealing Light's effect. He literally points out that "Marik's" side of the stage is devoid of monsters, and if an attack comes, it's all over. "Marik's" glare shows not even a shred of worry as he assures Jonouchi that there's plenty of time, because he used Swords of Revealing Light to stall for it. This is somehow a surprise to Jonouchi, despite the fact that there is hardly a time when Swords of Revealing Light acts as anything BUT a stall for time. I might argue that the one exception was a bit of a hack job anyway, but that's just my opinion.

"Marik" indicates the cards he's already set, in hologram form in front of him, and says they've been placed to protect the card in the box in addition to summoning the powers of a god of protection. Jonouchi is a bit alarmed at this term, so "Marik" just tells him to take a look as he calls for his face down cards to be revealed. The three of them flip; a Holy Chalice card, what I believe to be a Crest of Selket, and then a Shrine of the Pharaoh. According to "Marik", when you assemble the Crest and Shrine, you can summon without a sacrifice out of the Chalice, which starts to issue smoke from within as "Marik" calls out the Holy Beast Selket.

Jonouchi finally seems to slow down and realize he's headed for disaster when he starts to see a mess of claws and limbs just off the panel. He asks what it is, classifying it as another weird monster, while Rishid thinks about the card he's still holding in the box at the back of the shrine. It is exactly the card you thought it was, clever one that you are: Ra.

Meanwhile...

I thought that scorpions couldn't get much scarier, but I was wrong. SO WRONG.

So, what did I think of this chapter overall? Apparently that there weren't enough good visuals in this chapter to include in the recap. Usually it's just that the panels are a bit more difficult to isolate, for KT's love of diagonal borders, but I find a way to make it happen if the image is really good. In this chapter, there just wasn't much to look at, which is a tad disappointing. The last page was a good one, but for the most part, most of the panels featured shots of the characters just talking and there wasn't much new or stylized to display there.

In addition, I'm bumping back up against the speech bubble issue I've had for a while when it comes to this series, but with a new dimension. I can't really tell how much of the dialogue between Marik and Rishid is actual conversation and how much is just an isolated thought about the other. When Marik thought about how Rishid should show everyone Ra, it LOOKED like it was in the context of a telepathic talk they were having, but a few panels later, Rishid is completely thrown by drawing Ra. When it's already difficult to tell what is being thought or said by any of the characters, it's really not good news that your mind-reader/brain-washer character adds a whole new layer to the confusion. It doesn't help when the translation bleeds over the confines of the bubble so often either. Generally, this was one of the more difficult chapters to read, and I expect the next one to follow in that fashion, unfortunately.

Which is a shame, because I'm looking forward to seeing Rishid get Ra out. It's clearly not a move he's confident or even comfortable with, so he must know something we don't. Marik's lack of concern doesn't indicate a lot, considering how he failed to consult Rishid about this little add to authenticity in the first place. If Marik had to sneak the card into Rishid's deck, you can bet he knew Rishid would have put up some resistance to the proposition had it been posed. And if resistance were to be put up, it would have had to have been quite a hefty concern for Rishid to do so in the first place, given that they seem to be closer than Marik to his other minions.

Also, Rishid doesn't really seem like the type to voice minor concerns. He's a bit too quiet for that.

Inuyasha Manga: 154 The Third Youkai

Oh, I think there's WAAAAY more than three. More than half of the characters in this series are youkai, fractionally or whole. Every-damn-where you turn there's one of them coming at you! And they really are coming at you most of the time, trying to murder your face off. It's a wonder any human person managed to survive, let alone expand the population for 500 years into a sprawling metropolis like Tokyo. In fact, now I have to question whether any human person DID survive, for how unsustainable this siege on their communities has been shown to be.

Are all of us just... youkai? Did our ancestors just commit a horrible genocide on humans several hundred years ago, and are us modern people just the result of youkai filling in and exploding the niche human beings once filled?

... That might explain a few things. Actually.

Nightmare fuel aside...

If it makes you feel any better, Kagome, the only thing he got out of it was a load of patronizing bullshit.

Inuyasha seems a little subdued in greeting her, a sweatdrop on his forehead. Might be a result of how he thinks she's going to react, or it might just be that he's tired and in pain. Hard to tell. Kagome shouts his name as she sprints toward him, and makes a worried noise when he has to collapse into a sitting position in the grass. She kneels next to him, asking if he's okay, and he answers yes, then turns his head away from her conspicuously. Ahhh, someone's a little guiiiiiltyyyyy....

This is still a very inappropriate way of getting the guy to face you, though. Ouch, don't you think the guy is in enough pain?

Kagome demands to know if Inuyasha met with Kikyou, though she says she can clearly see it in his face. She's not talking out her ass either, because Inuyasha genuinely looks like he's preparing for a scolding. Kagome points out another clue is that he won't look her in the eye, exasperated that he always acts like this. She fails to mention that she always acts like a jealous girlfriend too, but I'm sure that's beyond her.

Instead of mentioning this, Inuyasha retorts that it wasn't like he snuck off to a secret tryst or anything. Was this wording supposed to make her feel better? Kinda missed the mark, there. While she comes to terms with the fact that he DID in fact see Kikyou, Kagome snaps that she KNOWS he wasn't sneaking to a tryst and calls him an idiot. I mean, is a guy in his condition really going to be able to... Never mind. I think I know a few guys who would die trying, so I can't very well make that argument.

This is where one of those guys I mentioned steps into the conversation, asking Inuyasha if he found out. Miroku is referring to Naraku's testimony that Kikyou gifted him the Shikon fragment in person, and asks if it's true. Inuyasha hangs his head and affirms this, so Miroku concludes from this information that Kikyou has joined forces with Naraku. Inuyasha yells a deefensive "no", to which Kagome looks shocked and taken aback.

Recalling Kikyou's request for him not to die before she removes Naraku and the Shikon no Tama from the world, and admits he doesn't know what her plan is, preparing anyway to deliver a "but". I would have been interested to know what it was, considering Kikyou really hasn't given him jack-shit in terms of reasons to trust her. However, before he says what's driving his acceptance of her story, Kagome storms right the fuck off, distracting him with a question of what the hell happened to her.

The guys he's asking aren't addressing the answer to him. Miroku and the Shippou perched on his shoulder stare after Kagome expressing pity for her, especially in this moment when she's most worried about Inuyasha's injuries. Inuyasha sits in the background with a bewildered look on his face. Dude, just put Kagome in YOUR place and Kouga in KIKYOU'S, and it might become a bit clearer to you.

Fair assessment, even if it isn't very generous. It's not like Inuyasha can just turn off the feels anymore than you can, girl.

Elsewhere, a village sits under a dark, cloudy sky. A couple of horses twitch in a barn, until a scream and a crunch ring out in the quiet. A couple of men charge out of a nearby house, wondering aloud what the hell is going on, and are confused by a looming shape next to the destroyed barn and the dead horses. Not for long, though.

What, the horses didn't do it for you? Gonna eat the damn BARN too?

Kagura is just as unimpressed as she looks, thinking that this monster is just a gluttonous talentless hack. Immediately afterwards, the monster snaps a glare onto her and accuses her of thinking just what she was. Oh, and he calls her his older sister, too. She looks rather more annoyed than surprised as she realizes that this brother of hers can read minds. Man, I don't envy her. Being an older sister sharing a room with her kid sibling for a time was bad enough for my privacy, so I can't even IMAGINE what it's like to have a little brother who can read minds.

Naraku's going to have a hell of a time as a parent now.

Back at the little broken-down shack, Kagome asks Sango if she can move. Sitting up, Sango says she's okay, expressing some concern that it may be dangerous for them to stay there. Miroku looks over his shoulder and voices the reason - Kagura is nearby. Not sure why Sango couldn't have been the one to say that, but hey, whatevz. She reiterates that she's okay, and leans forward to peer across the room where Miroku is the one slapping modern bandages on Inuyasha with a sad sigh. Sango suggests that maybe Kagome can go take care of Inuyasha instead, but Kagome sticks her nose in the air and says she doesn't need to do that. After all, Inuyasha seems to be able to walk around fine now. Ice cold.

Miroku tells a surly Inuyasha to apologize to Kagome, because this whole situation is a bit of an annoyance to him. He then proceeds to fantasize aloud about how nice it would be to massage SANGO'S sides instead, to which Sango replies that she definitely does NOT need a massage. Freezing cold. The ladies are not taking any shit today.

Suddenly, Inuyasha's nose twitches, and he twists to look at the door in worry. Miroku asks him what's wrong and Inuyasha says it's the smell of a corpse. Sango and Kagome are suspicious and concerned about this claim, respectively, but Miroku is greeted by the sight of a man stumbling over a nearby hill when he rushes out the door, followed by Inuyasha using the doorway to lean on as he looks beyond the curtain. The man haltingly says that an ogre came to eat all the villagers, and Kagome, now outside as well supporting Sango, repeats the word ogre like a question. So our man has to get a bit more specific with his description; the ogre had a spider on its back.

Of course, Inuyasha and Miroku are shown deducing that this might very well be a new offspring of Naraku.

That is the worst case of rabies I've ever seen.

Kagome seems confused that this man was dead from the start, even though Inuyasha specifically stated he smelled a corpse earlier. No matter. Miroku suggests that Kagura was manipulating the dead man with her Corpse Dance move. Inuyasha further speculates that Kagura is basically daring him to come and meet her new sibling. Kagome yells at him not to go, because his wounds haven't fully healed yet. I mean, the guy still needed to lean on the door frame a couple panels ago. I think it's safe to say he's not really prepared for a new fight.

But Inuyasha scoffs, snapping back that there's no choice but to go anyway. Sango agrees, pointing out that part of Kagura's message to them by sending the corpse was that she knows where they are. Kagome remains speechless as Miroku also claims that running would do no good. Why not? It might give your tank a bit more time to heal. Then again, it might rip back open those sensitive wounds too if you guys up and sprinted... It's a delicate balance that Inuyasha clearly can't keep. So, he's raring to go and encourages everyone else to follow now that they understand there's no point in delaying the inevitable.

Meanwhile, back in the slaughter zone, the ogre is ripping into a cow. All around him is the carnage from his previous snacks, including disembodied heads. Beyond the dining ogre is a small roofed shack filled with straw, emitting an ellipse, strangely enough. Another angle shows a little face scrunched just beneath a layer of straw, mentally begging the little girl Yuki he's cradling not to cry. He squeezes little Yuki tightly as he thinks that hiding in the straw will definitely keep the monster from finding them.

Of course, you remember the monster can read minds. He looks up sharply.

Why does he feel the need to parrot peoples' thoughts back at them like that? Does he think it makes him seem clever, or is he just trying to impress upon them how their thoughts have betrayed them? Either way, it's annoying, and I hate it.

Both kids scream bloody murder, appropriately, and the irritating mind-reader again repeats their thoughts of wanting rescue from their parents. He assures them that he's already eaten those parents, and his drooling maw starts to come down on the cowering tots, suggesting they'll see he's not lying by meeting their folks in his gluttonous belly again. Before he can make good on the threat, he glances into his periphery.

Hopefully those kiddos managed to get out of the way of sword, because the ogre certainly did. In fact, Inuyasha curses speed at which the creature managed to back out of its path. He addresses the two kids still holding each other in the straw behind him, silent in their everlasting trauma, and tells them to run away. Yeah, before some other weirdo attempts to murder you in awful ways. Run far far away.

Inuyasha turns his attention back to the ogre, addressing him as the third one in an effort to get an introduction going.

Poo, I've been able to do that from the START!

Wait...

So, what did I think of this chapter overall? So, this is where I feel that one of Inuyasha and Co's biggest weaknesses starts to really rear its ugly head, or at least starts to become that much more noticeable. Before this point, it's been fairly obvious how Naraku's traps have been somewhat inescapable for how they're built around unavoidable actions. Chasing Kohaku and going to rescue kidnapped Kikyou and bringing Koharu to a village. The battleground is often determined by the heroes' sense of responsibility to the people they care about, and Naraku manipulating the environment in which they carried out these responsibilities to his benefit. He's always the one who chooses where and how they fight.

This time could have been different. Yes, Kagura knew where they were. Yes, if they didn't go to Kagura, she would have brought her ogre brother to meet them. These are undeniable facts, but could they have not used that to their advantage? Go to an area and MAKE Kagura chase them to a place where they would have the upper hand? That seems like so much better of an idea than barging blindly into a situation they know nothing about.

It's just a tad disappointing, because Inuyasha's ability to strategize remains somewhat untapped if he keeps letting Naraku set the stage. Sure, he may not be able to Home Alone shit like Naraku (yes, I verbed that movie title, sue me), but he could at least have home team advantage and be able to use certain landmarks to his advantage given the chance.

Maybe it's just me who thinks that would be super cool to see, though. Hmmm....

Yu-Gi-Oh Manga: 212 Grabbing the Duel!

I can't help but cringe whenever a story about "grabbing" things is a thing. Yu-Gi-Oh isn't entirely to blame for this; for obvious reasons that we don't need to get into, my distaste for the word has grown over the past couple of years. But to be fair, I've always disliked it. It's never really been a word that one uses as a synonym for positive actions. Jonouchi may be "seizing the duel" like he might "seize the day", but the alternative term makes me question whether or not he asked the duel for its consent before he unceremoniously started groping it.

I mean, Jonouchi DOES have a history of some pretty questionable behavior when it comes to the opposite sex. He hasn't done anything in a while, but who knows, really?

At least they don't seem to have many "assets" for Jonouchi to latch onto.

He seems to recognize how bad he could be fucked up by them anyway, whether provoked by copping a feel or not. Rishid reminds him that he fell into an invisible trap, and proceeds to explain that upon Jonouchi's trespass into the shadowed area, he'll be surrounded by darkness, and the shadow will afterwards turn back into a trap? I'm, as usual, a bit mystified, but I'm sure I'll see for myself what all this is about pretty soon.

With 1850 life points to "Marik's" full 4000, Jonouchi is sweating a bit as he hesitates to choose a card from his hand. He eventually puts a card face down on his Duel Disk and ends his turn. He knows that if he attacks, he'll just be doing what "Marik" wants. It's like he's hearing alarm bells blaring at him. Honda shouts his name desperately from the sidelines, and Yuugi wonders aloud whether the trap monsters were "Marik's" aim to begin with. He says that the Magic Box's effect will end on the next turn, and if "Marik" attacks then, Jonouchi's monsters will be destroyed and he'll lose a ton of life points. Once again, I'm not sure how all of this works, so if we could move along to the courtesy demonstration, that would be just peachy.

Jonouchi stands among his remaining monsters as "Marik" glares, acknowledging that it's his turn.

You don't seem too sure of that, kiddo.

He reassures himself regardless with the knowledge that his face down card is Scapegoat, which provides him with four separate goats as a shield. Beyond that, though, he doesn't see any cards in his hand that can change this situation, so he has to wonder just what the hell he's going to do here. "Marik" orders his three avatar monsters to attack and the snake-things lunge at Jonouchi's side of the platform, which he instinctively flinches from. Yuugi calls out his name in desperation.

But Jonouchi chooses the last possible moment to reveal his Scapegoats, which pop onto the field in front of the avatars to float like fluffly curly-horned bubbles in their way. Jonouchi announces that THEY will take the damage of the snake-things for him, while his friends on the sidelines cheer him one-turn survival. "Marik" hums in what seems like mild defeat.

BUT LOOK AGAIN!

Fuck me, right?

Jonouchi's Scapegoats are fading away as fast as they appeared, and now he can do nothing but grit his teeth at the Avatars right in front of him. As they rush him, Yuugi's eyes are wide in disbelief, but mostly horror.

That looks like it's... uncomfortable.

"Marik" takes stock of the attack, which successfully destroyed Wyvern and Panther Warriors, and gave Jonouchi a bit of a lick in the process. Yuugi is calling out Jonouchi's name once more, because it turns out it was a bit more than a lick. Jonouchi has but 50 POINTS LEFT. He's kneeling on the platform, groaning, while "Marik" tells him that his technique won't defeat the current opponent. Jonouchi continues to hang his head, wordless.

The real Marik internally chuckles at Jonouchi's monsterless state and his low life points, fairly certain that Jonouchi will give up soon regardless of what Rishid does from this point. Rishid doesn't seem nearly as pleased as he closes his eyes and bows his head slightly, thinking it was all too easy. Kaiba wears a stony frown, disappointed that Jonouchi's level is so low. Meanwhile, Jonouchi continues to rest on one knee, hunched over in near defeat. Honda insists that he not give up while Mai urges him to get up, and Yuugi just keeps... shouting Jonouchi's name. Like it helps.

Jonouchi's expression looks a little out of focus, and he starts having fragments of thoughts that he's already had it, or there's no way he can continue. He hovers his hand over his Duel Disk, pretty sure that it's all over, until...

Oh yeah, she still exists! And she appears to be getting through to him too, because Jonouchi's eyes have got their focus back. Even Rishid is paying a little attention, particularly to what Shizuka is saying about being brought out of the darkness and into the light. Am I sensing a little bit of a parallel between these two starkly contrasted characters? THAT would be interesting.

Shizuka whimpers that even if Jonouchi loses, she still doesn't want to see him give up. Mai watches her say this with sympathy, then turns and yells at Jonouchi for being an idiot.

"No matter how much agony you endure, you'd better see this experience through, or you'll make your younger sibling slightly sad! How idiotic would THAT be???"

Jonouchi just continues to stare at the platform beneath his feet in response. At least he seems to have stood now? To top it off, "Marik" has a new question to ask him, and it seems somewhat civil. He just wants to know why Jonouchi entered Battle City in the first place. After a moment of hesitation, Jonouchi says that there's a person here to which he can't lose. Yuugi has a look of recognition for the obvious, and so does Yami's spectral form appeared beside him. Jonouchi says that he must get to where this not-so-mystery person is (because everybody wants a piece of Yami, duh), and in the meantime he's had to face a lot of opponents to get to this point. He claims this as HIS BATTLE CITY.

Weirdly possessive. But relatable.

Jonouchi finalizes this statement with the admission that this is PARTLY the reason he entered, but he's done explaining himself to "Marik". Now he has something to say: by the sound of "Marik's" softened communication, it seems to Jonouchi that he hasn't lost yet. His friends and sister grin up at him, calling his name in praise of that newly recovered drive to keep going. Jonouchi continues his inspirational monologue, claiming he wouldn't be able to face the guys he defeated to get here if he were to give up now. Guys like Esper Roba and Ryota Kajiki are superimposed into the background as Jonouchi waxes poetic about how they didn't give up, fighting to the very end. They didn't back down until they lost, and he doesn't intend to either.

But "Marik" states there's no way he can win, an assessment he doesn't appear to take ANY pleasure in. He even seems to implore Jonouchi to just walk away from this while he's still a duelist. What? Would losing this match not make him a duelist anymore? By that logic, the person behind this very tournament... Oh boy, no one tell Kaiba.

Jonouchi ignores "Marik's" argument and announces his turn, moving to draw a new card. He pauses before he does, though, acknowledging that the chances are VERY low he'll draw something useful. Still, he insists that his hands won't give up. Just ask all his female classmates.

Then THIS happens:

Man, I can't help but reminisce back on a time when these transformations between Yuugi and Yami were cooler, more expressive, and it didn't take me literally TWO MINUTES to figure out what was going on.

Jonouchi finally draws a card, enthusiastically despite his low odds, because of Yami's riddled encouragement. An almost telepathic continuation to that encouraging message overlaps Jonouchi's draw, in which it is claimed that a duelist's power comes from the complete faith in the unknown card that is drawn. It's very inspiring. Trust me.

Jonouchi looks at that card, places it and another face down, and his turn ends. "Marik" has given up his moment of empathy, scoffing at Jonouchi's pointless struggle because it can apparently be ended rather easily. To illustrate this, he sets his Avatars on Jonouchi once more, and as they charge at him, Yami sweats a bit at Jonouchi's unprotected stand against them.

But he's not unprepared. He reveals one of those face down cards to be a magic card called "Foolish Burial", which puts a card from his deck into "Marik's" graveyard. Then Jonouchi brings up his second card; Gravedigger. I'm sure you can guess what that one does to the opponent's graveyard. "Marik's" eye widens in stunned disbelief, a rare complex facial expression for him, no doubt. I wonder if it hurts his atrophied face.

The duel with Roba was actually important? Well I'll be goddamned and go to hell!

Also, either you or your trap/monsters sounded like wailing babies there for a second. Might wanna get that checked out.

So, what did I think of this chapter overall? The beginning was a bit of a struggle. This recent string of translations has been really difficult to understand in just a general way, and the readability is quite a bit less than that in terms of getting technical information from them. Translators can differ wildly in the way they interpret names, and that alone has made following what exactly it is that these Avatar trap/monsters DO difficult to follow. I'm still not entirely sure, so feel free to educate me in comments or email if you know more about the card than I do. I'm always up for a lecture.

But, as in most of Jonouchi's duels, KT seems to get that tension up pretty high, pushing the character to his limit. Bringing him down to a mere 50 points was necessary in order to bring his self-righteous goofiness down so we could engage with the actual struggle again. His constant comic relief antics in the face of someone he was supposed to think was a real enemy was a bit grating, so I'm glad we're past that noise and onto the meat of the thing - he's still learning what it means for him to be a duelist, still defining the whole concept for himself and spelling it out, one duel at a time.

Two new aspects of the definition just emerged for him in this one. The first is still a bit on the murky side, because it's linked to Shizuka and I don't know if it'll ever NOT be murky considering she's so easy to just ignore the presence of most of the time. It's not a nice thing, because I really wish she could have a bit of purpose outside of being Jonouchi's motivational doll, but she doesn't bring up a BAD point here. She walked right up to the edge of blindness, and Jonouchi was always encouraging her to never give up on her eyesight, winning the money for her operation and encouraging her to take off the bandages. It would be somewhat hypocritical of him to give up when it looks like he's going to lose an important thing to him as well, and a bit of a jerk move on her part not to return his constant advice to her.

The stronger take-away here was Jonouchi's realization that his relationships with the people he's defeated in the past carry over into the present. Notice how Haga was not present in his fond recollection of the other duelists he beat to get where he is. Haga is trash and we don't ever think about him ever, but more importantly, Haga did not build a positive relationship with Jonouchi at any point or bond with him on the level of a duelist. Haga had to impose himself (in an almost literal fashion with that parasite card) in order to stand on a level with Jonouchi and still lost. The other two opponents could have gone just as far as Jonouchi did, already at a level with him, but Jonouchi was the one who got to move onto the semi-finals, and they all accepted that no matter how much trash-talk they exchanged in the actual duel.

So this wasn't just a good setup and payoff in the sense that Jinzo has returned from the first duel Jonouchi fought in Battle City, but in the sense that it's the expression of a legacy. Roba passed the torch to Jonouchi, and Jonouchi is running with it because it's not just the trophy won in a prior match, but the baton of a teammate. Both Jonouchi AND Roba worked to get Jonouchi here, and the fact that this is manifesting in the way Jonouchi is honoring Roba's part in this duel is just swell. This is turning out to be a beautiful and profound definition of what it means to be a duelist.

I hope we get to see the Legendary Fisherman in this match too.