Lyman Banner

Lyman Banner, known in Japan as Daitokuji-sensei (大徳寺先生), is a teacher, a fabled alchemist, as well as a member of the Shadow Riders under the name Amnael, Banner largely supports the protagonists for most of the first season of the series, though he is directly responsible for numerous events meant to orchestrate the revival of the Sacred Beasts.

In the English dubs, Banner is voiced by Wayne Grayson, while Kappei Yamaguchi takes the role in the Japanese version.

Character design


Banner's character design was overseen by Kenichi Hara. His usual outfit consists of a white shirt, black pants, belt and necktie. His black hair is tied back in a ponytail. Throughout the entire series, Banner's red eyes are constantly hidden behind their lids and a pair of square-lensed glasses, except during the second half of his Duel with Jaden.

The concept illustrations for Banner's facial expressions were identical for both Amnael and Banner.

Character biography
Banner was working on his alchemic research long before his arrival at Duel Academy, intent on creating the legendary Philosopher's Stone. His studies led him to discover an ancient tomb during the same period of time when Pegasus first discovered Duel Monsters. Within, he unearthed three stone tablets adorned with the likenesses of the Sacred Beasts. In the English dub, he was cursed for this intrusion, while in the Japanese version he would later be stricken with a fatal illness. To prolong his life, Banner developed a homunculus in his own image to transfer his soul into. His new body, however, began to crumble, so he resolved to joining the Shadow Riders as its seventh and final member in order to attain the power of the Sacred Beasts to fulfill his dreams of creating the Philosopher's Stone, and use it to obtain immortality.

Banner was eventually hired as an alchemy professor of the Slifer Red dormitory at Duel Academy. While there, he lured several Obelisk Blue students including Atticus into the abandoned Obelisk Blue dormitory, where they disappeared. He would resume his job without coming under suspicion, ultimately charged with watching over Jaden, Syrus, Chumley, as well as the rest of the students of Slifer Red.

Using the pseudonym of Amnael (アムナエル, Amunaeru), Banner systematically defeats Alexis and Chazz when the Shadow Riders put their plans into motion, taking their Spirit Keys to open the gate behind which the Sacred Beasts are sealed. He locks Alexis, Chazz, and Atticus within his Shadow Charm, the Emerald Tablet, and guides Jaden to his lair with his sigil to challenge him to a Duel. Upon his defeat, Banner gives Jaden his Shadow Charm, and with it, the card, Sabatiel - The Philosopher's Stone. His original mummified body and homunculus vessel then dissolve into dust. From then on, his soul resides within the body of his pet cat, Pharaoh, though he would return on occasion in subsequent seasons to assist Jaden.

Banner's personality varies greatly from his original Japanese counterpart in terms of his actions and intentions during the Duel with Jaden. In the English dubs, Banner lies about having rigged all of Jaden's duels so that he would be chosen as one of the Key Keepers, and later on confesses that he joined the Shadow Riders to prepare him for the final battle against Kagemaru. In the Japanese version, Banner never does this, but instead views Jaden as a "fusion genius" who must face adversity head on in order to learn the secrets of alchemy which have allowed him to triumph.

When Jaden Yuki was constructing his deck on his fourth duel against Chazz Princeton his spirit had survived and he led Jaden Yuki to the Ojama Trio to Construce his Ojama Heroes deck. Then his spirit went back to Pharaoh and then Pharaoh ate his spirit at the end of the talk.

Voice/Mannerisms
In the English version, Banner has an German accent, referencing the fact that Japan was a notable site of prolific alchemic research in the past, while his original series counterpart instead ends the majority of his sentences with "nya" (Japanese cat onomatopoeia).