Hell yeah, give me a couple of guys turning each other into toads! These past couple of days have been kind of stressful for me, with some unexpected issues with the house and more work piling into my inbox than is leaving it, so I could use a good distraction. What are we looking at? A Sword and the Stone type deal with shapeshifting antics, or sparking wands and snake-talk?
Is it strange that I'm glad we didn't have to trudge through the rest of proto-Kaiba's lesson duel? As hilarious as Setos with egg on their faces is, it does get tiresome after a while.
That's Mahado kneeling up there, and he says as the head of the Royal Tomb Guard, he's going to take command of the soldiers stationed up at Akhenamkhanen's tomb. That should go without saying, of course. Yami says that thief!Bakura could reappear at any moment, so he's expecting Mahado's best effort, and authorizes a buttload of soldiers at his disposal. According to Siamun, thief!Bakura slipped right past their most ingenious traps in the tomb, so repairing the traps won't really be enough to prevent a repeat performance. Mahado assures him that they have a NEW trap that can catch any thief, though.
Scoffing, Priest Seto warns Mahado that he won't get a second chance, and the next time that tomb is raided, he'll get his title stripped. Goodbye priesthood! As Mahado remains placidly speechless, Siamun reminds Priest Seto that this is a decision for the PHARAOH to make. Maybe don't be TOO eager to indicate how badly you want to be in charge, dude.
Anyway, Yami urges Mahado not to be blinded by guild, and just concentrate on doing his damn job. Mahado addresses Yami with reverence, and Yami thinks at him REAL HARD to just protect his father's tomb.
Out in the street, someone calls for the troops to be assembled outside the palace when they're ready. Then we cut to Mahado leading parallel lines of men who drag a slab behind them, until Mahado catches sight of a certain amphora off to the side of the road. He tells the men to go on ahead, then approaches the big pot, crossing his arms. He calls for "Mana" to come out, and after no initial response, says "Mana" cannot hide from him. I'm about to pronounce him out of his gourd when a sign of surprise comes from inside the pot.
This is apparently some kind of game of hide-and-seek, because she says Mahado always finds her as she climbs out of the pot, calling him "master". He's not amused, lecturing her (apparently not for the first time) that the palace isn't her playground. She claims she's not playing, but instead that she came to see him off to his job in the Valley of the Kings today. He asks sternly about her magic practice, but she just raises a hand and announces she'll do it later. Mahado tells her she'll never become a full sorcerer like that, but Siamun walks onto the scene to suggest Mana can miss ONE day of study.
Mahado acknowledges Siamun's presence with alarm, as Siamun recalls how mad Yami's dad would get when HE used to hide in the pots as a kiddo. Mana giggles behind her hand, Mahado trailing off in a protest. Siamun says he came here to say one thing: Mahado's duty is to inspect and reinforce the guard at the Valley of the Kings to prevent thief!Bakura from getting in there as easily, and THAT'S IT. Essentially, Mahado is being discouraged from pulling stunts to redeem himself. Mahado pouts.
Siamun looks at him sharply, saying he knows what Mahado is thinking, but insists his spirit is not strong enough to defeat thief!Bakura. Sheesh, at least Priest Seto didn't SUGARCOAT calling him weak. Siamun says they need the combined power of Yami and all the priests in order to defeat this particular foe. With a glare, Mahado slowly reminds Siamun that he said the demons in a person's soul can grow stronger with hatred, like thief!Bakura's. Siamun adds that it's not just hatred, but the strength of heart that strengthens the creatures.
I'm surprised Mana what refused to do her damn homework doesn't start singing "Mahado and Nameless Pharaoh, sitting in a tree..."
I know I am.
Mahado goes on to reiterate that this all happened because of his failure, and says Yami swallowed his pain at the insult done to his father to forgive him, sparing his life. Guy just loves to wallow, but it's not like I can talk, since I have the same bad habit. Siamun just stares in response, as Mahado promises to stake his life on carrying out his duty. Then he excuses himself, stalking off, Mana looking after him in a weird hunched pose as he does so.
The reason for the pose becomes apparent when she whirls around and with her fist curled up and yells at him for saying what he did about her master's spirit being too weak. She declares in anger that her master's magic is incredible. Siamun says he knows this, considering Mahado was selected to be a priest for his magical abilities. Mana tells him that Mahado hasn't used his other magic since a certain day, having sealed it away inside him, using from then on just the regular summoning magic the other priests use. Siamun asks her which day that was.
Oooh, secret powers!
Mahado strides off, and we meet him again in the Valley of the Kings, where his men are informed that he himself will guard Akhenamkhanen's tomb until dawn. They're instructed not to let any living creature near this holy place. Mahado himself stands stoically peering off into the distance, the Millennium Ring around his neck surrounded with spectral fire. The burn means it's working. Mahado wonders where thief!Bakura is.
This is the face of a man who is pretending the snack he's biting into is actually that other guy.
Take that how you will.
Thief!Bakura watches while Mahado walks into the tomb, muttering to himself that it looks like Mahado is going to inspect the tomb. He counts five guards by the entrance and concludes this will be easy for him. Oh boy, if that isn't a bit of hubris peeking out right now... The guards are shown recoiling and their screams echo through the air as thief!Bakura presumably barrels over them. He walks down the entrance passage, his long robe hem fanning out behind him much like how Kaiba's coat does, but I don't think there's any kind of parallel here. Just a visual oddity.
Anyway, when he enters the first chamber, he's taken aback by something, gritting his teeth.
Ooh, hand caught in the cookie jar!
Mahado says he's been waiting for thief!Bakura, and thief!Bakura jerks around at at loud thunk behind him, which turns out to be a large boulder being rolled in front of the entrance to the tomb. The guards congratulate themselves on sealing up the entrance to the grave just as Mahado asked, claiming that now the thief can't get out. But... he's already shown that he and his Diabound can move through walls...
Another set of soldiers calls for the stone they were dragging behind them on the way there to be raised, pulling it up onto its end as per usual. One of them says that the tomb will remain sealed forever if Mahado's soul appears on the slab before the third sunrise, because it will mean that Mahado has died fighting the thief. Well, I'm glad they have a way to be conclusive about it, at least. My concern is if he manages to kill thief!Bakura within a few scant minutes - does he have food and water in there to wait out three whole days?
"I TOTALLY saw this coming, even though I didn't express any kind of skepticism about this situation beforehand. Trust me, I'm a smart boy!"
Mahado explains that he orders the former pharaoh's body has been reburied elsewhere, and that this is actually thief!BAKURA's tomb. Well, hey, it's a pretty swank place to rest in pieces for a thief, wouldn't you say, thief!Bakura? He laughs that Mahado shouldn't boast yet, asking if he really thinks HE fell for this trap. Thief!Bakura states that his objective coming in here was not to grind up a pharaoh's mummy, but to get the Millennium Ring hanging around Mahado's neck. Mahado tells him it's no use; even if he manages to get the ring, thief!Bakura will never leave this place alive, and this will be their grave.
Again, thief!Bakura laughs, restating the label he's slapped on himself as the "King of Thieves", as if he hasn't already made his self-imposed title abundantly clear. He also says he proved how weak Mahado was back at the palace, so he's confident this time Mahado is going to eat it. After a short pause, Mahado asks if thief!Bakura really thinks he can defeat him, to which question thief!Bakura reacts with indignant disbelief. With bit of spectral energy coming off his arms, Mahado claims he can unleash HIS true power without worrying about hurting innocent bystanders. This seems to shut up thief!Bakura, for the moment, as he watches power raising around Mahado.
Mahado says the Millennium Ring hides a dark power, probably having absorbed it from the last priest who wore it, and his magic keeps that evil at bay for now. The ring glows and shines as well, as he explains that anyone else's soul would spontaneously combust if they were to put on this ring, but the strength of his magic means he can keep that from happening to him. But he announces with complete confidence that the Millennium Ring is WAY too much for thief!Bakura to handle.
Diabound looks... different. Did it cut its hair?
Mahado is shocked by what he notices as a change in Diabound, and thief!Bakura briefly explains that Diabound evolves every time his hatred grows. This gives new meaning to that old adage about "feeding the wolf", but I'm also reminded of those digital pets way back when? It's probably nothing. Mahado says he'll release his magic heka as well, yelling at his spirit to come out as he throws his arms out and causes a big supernatural wind. Thief!Bakura's eye goes wide.
Somebody took a leaf from thief!Bakura's book.
So, what did I think of this chapter overall? Mahado's ability to adapt the concept of "strength of heart" that Siamun relayed to him is very well-portrayed here. At first, it's not clear how he's turning over this information in his head when he carefully tells Siamun that he has devotion to the pharaoh in place of his hatred, but this pays off at the end when he's summoned the Magus of Illusion, what looks a LOT less cartoony. A very clever application of "theory" to emphasize how professorial he comes off as, and one that incorporates Mana's information to Siamun and the audience, which plaed a much more crucial role than I had given it credit for at first.
Speaking of Mana, I'm sure the reason she resembles the Dark Magicial Girl so much is the same reason Mahado resembles the Dark Magician so much, so I'm anticipating tragedy in the future for the both of them. For now, though, I enjoyed her introduction, though it played more into Mahado's characterization than her own. She still shows plenty of personality; a sort of free spirit that is playful and wacky. Very unique for a female character so far, and kind of like a girl!Yuugi, with more charisma and spunk. She might already be working her way up the list of favorites in this comic, is all I'm saying.
I was kind of caught off guard by the "evolution" aspect that popped up here, though. I'm vaguely aware of an "evolution" mechanic in the actual card game, but this seemed more a call-back to previous games we've seen in the manga before, like the fighting monster contraptions and, as I mentioned, the virtual pets. OR, perhaps it's just highlighting the common elements of a lot of these games, intentionally or not.
Either way, I'm getting a lot of deja vu with these most recent chapters, and it's a good thing I don't read these things while high.
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