Konami released an exciting animated teaser featuring a lot of references to Yu-Gi-Oh!’s vast lore, which excited many fans. With this teaser, many fans hope that Konami will maybe release a new Yu-Gi-Oh! anime focusing on the many stories its card game’s art has hinted at. Given how many snippets of lore were shown in the teaser, there are a myriad of directions this anime could take.
Yu-Gi-Oh!’s trading card game treats its lore differently from how Magic the Gathering or Pokémon do. Instead of all its art being snapshots from the same world (or multiverse in Magic’s case), Yu-Gi-Oh! features stories and characters from a variety of different worlds. Some of these stories can be connected into overarching sagas such as the various archetypes forming the World Legacy or Fallen of Albaz storylines. Others can just be standalone concepts such as the Kaiju archetypes being an homage to real-life films like Godzilla. Various archetypes and stories are referenced in the teaser.
The Anime Monsters
Yugi, Kaiba, and Joey’s Classic Cards
The teaser opens by featuring some of the classic monsters featured in the original Yu-Gi-Oh! anime. Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl are shown first, being the main monsters of the protagonist Yugi, but they are soon joined by Blue-Eyes White Dragon and Red-Eyes Black Dragon, the ace monsters of Kaiba and Joey respectively. While these monsters only tenuously share some lore in the show itself (Dark Magician and Blue-Eyes White Dragon are both tied to specific ancient Egyptians) they transition into the first showcase of an actual archetype.
Blue-Eyes’s Extended Lore
The Iconic Card Gets Some Upgrades
As the Yu-Gi-Oh! card game expanded, it introduced new monsters related to Blue-Eyes White Dragon, two of which are referenced in the teaser. The Maiden With Eyes of Blue is shown calling forth a sort of alternate form of Blue-Eyes called Azure-Eyes Silver Dragon. It seems like they may be walking in the ruins of the Dragon Shrine, hinting at a disaster that may have occurred there. The Maiden With Eyes of Blue is likely partially based on the dark origin of Kaiba’s monster in the original anime, but this teaser hints at a separate lore for the iconic card.
The Spirit Charmers
A Familiar Set of Monsters
The teaser next cuts to the Spirit Charmers practicing together. Hiita, Eria, Aussa, and Wynn all control the elements of fire, water, earth, and wind respectively, and possess familiars to help them. The two other Charmers, Dharc and Lyna, are shown separately implying that they aren’t friends with the main quartet. All of these charmers are shown as children, but the cards associated with these characters track their growth over time, implying that there is more to their story than this teaser shows. Exploring Eria could also allow the anime to tell the story of Gagagigo, her iconic companion.
The Ice Barrier
The Start of Duel Terminal Lore
The teaser then shows various Ice Barrier monsters trying to contain the powerful dragon Trishula which has been sealed away. These include Dai-Sojo taking the lead along with quick appearances of the Medium, Geomancer, and obscured figures who may be Cryomancer, Revealer, or Dance Princess as part of the spell. Unfortunately, this fails and Trishula wakes up, ready to cause chaos. The Ice Barrier monsters are one of the many archetypes involved in the epic Duel Terminal storyline, so this clip opens up the possibility of seeing groups like the Flamvells and X-Sabers eventually animated as well.
Melffys
Adorable Creatures of the Forest
Cutting away from serious storylines, the teaser then shows the adorable Melffy monsters playing in the forest around the fruit stump from the artwork of Joyous Melffys. All of the current main deck Melffy monsters are featured, although the Xyz monster Melffy Mommy isn’t shown. This section shows Rabby get on the favorite stump mentioned in its flavor text and look directly at the viewer. There isn’t a major storyline featuring the Melffys yet, but they are absolutely adorable and the cutesy animation style Konami used to mirror their card artworks shows this gorgeously.
ZEUS and TYPHON
Epic Mech Battles
The next sequence took place in space, featuring a mech battle between Divine Arsenal AA-ZEUS – Sky Thunder and Super Star Slayer TY-PHON – Sky Crisis. This is one set of lore that fans know the least about given how new the cards are. However, it makes sense that these two monsters would be on opposite sides just like their mythological namesakes. While TY-PHON is able to serve as an out to ZEUS in the actual game, here they are more evenly matched, with ZEUS evading TY-PHON’s serpentine attacks (a cool reference to the mythological Typhon).
The Six Samurai
Awesome Samurai Action
The teaser then cuts to Shien’s Dojo, where the Legendary Six Samurai are training. Mizuho is shown first in front of the Dojo’s Gateway before cutting to Shinai who was used in conjunction with her to pull off a powerful combo in the card game. Kageki is shown training on his own and Enishi is battling Kizan. Their battle gives way to the leader of the Six Samurai Shi En, who makes his iconic pose shown on his card. There are more Six Samurai if Konami wants to make a series on them and Shi En’s journey is particularly fascinating.
The Live/Evil Twins
VTubers by Day, Thieves By Night
The teaser then shows the VTuber pair of Live Twins Ki-sikil and Lil-la who are having fun in a livestream. However, when the Secret Password appears on-screen, they sign off and transform into the daring thieves known as the Evil Twins. They dodge around the cops and then join up to make the pose shown on the card Evil Twins Ki-sikil & Lil-la, which is one of the bosses of the archetype. Unfortunately, the Trouble Sunny doesn’t make an appearance, but this teaser still shows that the lore behind the Evil Twins could make a fun heist series.
Albaz and Ecclesia
One of Yu-Gi-Oh!’s Largest Storylines
The teaser then shows the beginning of one of Yu-Gi-Oh!’s longer storylines, showing Dogmatika Ecclesia watching as Fleurdelis fights the giant dragon Titaniklad as it falls through a dimensional rift above the Dogmatika nation. She rushes to where the dragon lands but finds a boy named Albaz instead, brandishing her hammer as she does in Dogmatika Encounter. Their journey together ties together multiple different archetypes like the Springans and Tri-Brigade monsters and causes both of them to grow as they face the insidious threat at the center of the Dogmatika hierarchy. This story is one that deserves an adaptation.
25th Anniversary Cards
New Monsters to Celebrate 25 Years
The teaser then briefly shows two cards releasing for Yu-Gi-Oh!’s 25th anniversary, Magicians of Bond and Unity and Dragon of Soul and Pride. These monsters are largely gimmicks focused on the number 25, but they also pay homage to two of the most iconic types in the game, namely spellcasters and dragons. They also help transition the teaser from longer animated clips to smaller teases of other stories that Konami could potentially animate. Some of these stories are on the same level as the Albaz and Duel Terminal stories hinted at earlier.
Exodia
The Forbidden One Unleashed
The teaser then shows Exodia, who here is called a “Guardian God of the Palace”. This is an interesting framing of the monster, whose sheer power is often emphasized over the role it plays. This role was alluded to in cards like Exxod Master of the Guard, but since it is mentioned here it may mean that an anime featuring Exodia might dive more into its backstory and why it acquired such power in the first place. Since Exodia is one of the most retrained cards in the game’s history, there are certainly enough forms to build a compelling storyline.
Visas Starfrost
An Interplanetary Storyline
The teaser then shows Visas Starfrost, who is the focus of the card game’s latest long-running storyline. Visas is tied to a variety of different archetypes, including competitive ones like Tearlaments and Kashtira. In each of those archetypes, he appears in a different form. These forms often appear to fight each other, such as in the art of Kashtira Big Bang, implying that Visas is traveling the multiverse seeking alternate versions of himself. Visas’s story is potentially far from over, as it is likely there will be 6 archetypes associated with him, one for each attribute.
Fire Kings vs Atlanteans
An Old but Iconic Pairing
The next brief tease showed Fire King High Avatar Garunix facing off against Poseidra, the Atlantean Dragon. These two monsters are the bosses of two structure decks that were released around the same time and have previously been shown to come in conflict on the card High Tide on Fire Island. Based on this, the Atlanteans and Fire Kings probably fight whenever the tide brings Atlantean territory onto Fire King Island. Not much is known about their war, but fans will find out more if it gets animated.
Diabellstar
The New Major Storyline
The teaser then showed Diabellstar the Black Witch sleeping, with her mask off and Snake-Eyes Poplar sitting next to her. Diabellstar seems to be the protagonist of Yu-Gi-Oh!’s latest overarching storyline, although it is still too soon to know much about her. It seems that she uses powerful tools known as the Sinful Spoils and she is wanted by the authorities. Currently, her storyline seems to be on a smaller scale than those of Albaz and Visas, but it could easily become something grander as it continues.
Dragon Rulers
Powerful in the Game and the Lore
The teaser then features a shot of the four Dragon Rulers, Blaster, Redox, Tempest, and Tidal. Each of these Dragons is a master of a given element and is thus incredibly powerful. It is unclear from the teaser if they are fighting each other or teaming up against an external threat. It is also unclear what could reasonably threaten these Dragons, given their high power level, which was reflected in the card game with the strategy almost becoming a tier 0 deck. Konami has recently released new support for this strategy, so maybe their storyline will be animated as well.
Magistus
The Ultimate Spellcaster Guild
The teaser then showed the various spellcasters making up the Magistus archetype. Most of these powerful mages have their own archetype associated with them, with Crowley creating the Invoked monsters, Rilliona leading the Witchcrafter guild, and Endymion becoming a master of using spell counters. Zoroa, the apparent center of the Magistus is the only one who doesn’t have a separate archetype associated with him, implying his relevance ended after he combines with the dragon Vahram. An anime could further explore both Zoroa’s fate and how his guild mates became the specialists shown in later lore.
Solfachord
Cute Music Makers
The last of these brief teases was for the Solfachord monsters a series of cute fairies who each represent a note. All of the Solfachords were present except for Musecia. While their leader is officially Coolia, young Cutia taking the lead here, maybe hinting at a storyline involving her learning how to conduct the others in harmony. It is also fitting that these monsters closed the main trailer as it is natural for these performers to give a bow and that also served as a thank you to the legions of fans who have played Yu-Gi-Oh! over its 25 years.
Sky Strikers
The Most Likely Adaptation
After a thank you to fans, the teaser ended on a surprising note with the Sky Striker Ace Raye confronting her rival Roze in a desert. Raye and Roze are both Sky Striker monsters who can use a variety of mecha suits to fight. They are also the focus of the first arc of the OCG Stories manga, which would make their storyline a natural place for a potential new anime to start. The fact that this teaser was separated from the rest and didn’t feature its own title seems to support this theory further.
Yu-Gi-Oh!’s Next Anime Is Full of Possibilities
Konami Has Many Options
This teaser featured a lot of major and minor storylines from Yu-Gi-Oh!’s long history, but surprisingly there are many iconic storylines it didn’t include. The World Legacy storyline has a similar scope to the Albaz and Visas plots but was noticeably absent here. Still, Konami has given fans more than enough to think about here with these various hints at storylines that may soon be adapted. If Yu-Gi-Oh!’s next anime does adapt its lore, all of the references in this teaser show that it has no shortage of great stories it can produce.
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