Forum:Allusions in Yu-Gi-Oh! anime series

Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL

There are a lot of allusions to various other Yu-Gi-Oh! series within several episodes of Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL. Despite this, there are no actual plot points in ZEXAL relating to the other three shows, which differs from them (as the other three shows had clear points of continuity and direct references with each other).

Yu-Gi-Oh!

• Episode 15 features a Deck of Statue monsters that are based on monsters from the original series, like "Dark Magician" and "Blue-Eyes White Dragon".
• Tori Meadows has a lot in common with Téa Gardner, wherein both are kind-hearted, strong willed and supportive. Both cheer their friends and stand up for what they believe in and will do anything to help their friends. Both are shown to get easily jealous when others (Mai Valentine (initially), Vivian Wong and Rebecca Hawkins for Tea, with Cathy Katherine for Tori) flirt with the one they love (Yugi Muto for Tea and Yuma Tsukumo for Tori), sometimes to the point where they have an explosive outburst. Despite their strong bonds with their friends, they are not above keeping the others (mainly Joey and Tristan for Tea; Bronk, Caswell, Flip and Yuma for Tori) in line when they get out of control or act foolishly. Both are protective and fiercely loyal to the one they love and both admire their unwavering will and determination. Both are shown to worry about the safety of the one they love when they are in danger. Both show an extremely strong resolve and can be unrelenting at times.
• Yuma and Tori's relationship shares many similarities with Yugi Muto and Téa Gardner's relationship.
• Astral and Yuma's relationship shares many similarities with Pharaoh Atem and Yugi Muto's relationship, with the Emperor's Key taking the place of the Millenium Puzzle.
  • Don Thousand, the God of the Barian World, was defeated by Astral thousands of years ago and sealed away, much like Zorc Necrophades was sealed away thousands of years ago by Atem.
  • The Millenium Puzzle, much like the Emperor's Key, was also purloined or taken away from the main protagonist on several occasions.
  • The final duel between Yuma and Astral is similar to the Ceremonial Battle. Astral used the "Numbers" and "Utopia" while Yuma used the "Syllables" and a new ace card: "Number F0: Utopic Future", just as Pharaoh Atem used the "Egyptian God Cards" and "Dark Magician" while Yugi used monsters with toy themes, monsters that grow over time and a new ace card: "Gandora the Dragon of Destruction". Both Duels resulted in the defeats and departures of Yugi's and Yuma's partners.
• Kite Tenjo's will to protect his younger brother Hart is similar to Seto Kaiba's desire to protect his brother Mokuba.
  • The bond between the Tenjo brothers is similar to that between the Kaiba brothers.
• Kite Tenjo signature card, "Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon", has a lot of similarities with Seto Kaiba's signature card, "Blue-Eyes White Dragon": they both have same name structure; are Dragon-Type, LIGHT Attribute monsters with 3000 ATK and 2500 DEF; and have three-headed versions of themselves with 4500 ATK as Extra Deck counterparts ("Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon" and "Neo Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon"). Both also have similar attack names ("Burst Stream of Destruction" for "Blue-Eyes White Dragon" and "Photon Stream of Destruction" for "Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon"). Additionally, they both have a ritual monster that can be used to summon them (which have both been used in their respective series): "Paladin of Photon Dragon" for "Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon" and "Paladin of White Dragon" for "Blue-Eyes White Dragon".
• Shark has a lot in common with Joey Wheeler, wherein both bully their respective series' protagonists, Yuma and Yugi, early on in the series, but then later become good friends.
  • Both have sisters who were in hospital (Rio Kastle and Serenity Wheeler).
    • Both were shown to love their sisters (despite any disagreements they ever had).
      • Joey kept a picture of his sister in his wallet, while Shark wears the rings his sister made for him as a reminder of their bond.
        • Joey often states that Serenity was his biggest inspiration throughout Duelist Kingdom and Battle City. Rio was Shark's inspiration to enter the National Duel Circuit and the World Duel Carnival.
          • Both entered to either ensure their sister was cured (Serenity)/avenged (Rio).
• Rio Kastle has had bandages on her eyes, similar to Serenity Wheeler.
  • Bother were shown to be loving and loyal to their brothers (despite any disagreements).
  • Just as Serenity was close to Téaa, Rio was close to Tori.
  • Like Tristan Taylor and Duke Devlin, who developed crushes on Serenity after she recovered, Bronk developed a crush on Rio when she returned to school.
• Flip Turner shares many personality traits with Weevil Underwood. Also, both cheat when they Duel by messing with their opponent's Decks beforehand.
• "Gagaga Magician" and "Gagaga Girl" are similar in appearance to "Dark Magician" and "Dark Magician Girl", respectively.
• Number 96 shares a similar role to that of Yami Bakura, an evil entity that dwells within an artifact which is important to the plot. Also Number 96 is a part of Don Thousand just like Yami Bakura is a part of Zorc Necrophades.
• The World Duel Carnival shares a lot in common with the tournaments of the Yu-Gi-Oh! second series anime.
  • It is the first tournament in Yu-Gi-Oh! anime history since Battle City to require participants to collect what are essentially pieces of a puzzle (in the WDC, Heart Pieces, which are needed to power the Duel Coasters; in Battle City, Locator Cards, which contain pieces of a map) in order to enter the final round.
  • Furthermore, during the second round of the World Duel Carnival finals, each Duel is held on a different field with its own unique characteristics, similar to the KC Grand Championship, and somewhat antithetical to Duelist Kingdom, where the finals were held in the castle on a normal field and the remaining Duels were on special fields.
  • Similar to how Seto Kaiba started the Battle City tournament to claim the remaining Egyptian God Cards, Mr. Heartland and Dr. Faker started the World Duel Carnival to claim the remaining Number cards.
• Yuma and Kite's Tag Duel against Trey and Quattro is similar to Yugi and Seto's Tag Duel against Lumis and Umbra. Both Duels had the lives of the rival's younger brother at stake (Mokuba and Hart)
• Mr. Heartland's group of Number Hunters is similar the Rare Hunters who appeared during the Battle City arc.
• "Rank-Up-Magic Barian's Force" is similar to "The Seal of Orichalcos" by how the the logo on the cards appear on the foreheads of the people who use it, make monsters stronger by dark magic, used by the main antagonists and appear in season 4 of their respective eras.
• Vector using an alternative name to gain the trust of Yuma and his friends is similar to how Marik Ishtar used "Namu" to deceive Yugi Muto and his friends and how Yami Bakura used Ryo Bakura as a masquerade to hide his true goals.
• Astral being controlled by the power of Chaos is similar to how Yami Yugi was corrupted by darkness when he played the "The Seal of Orichalcos".
• The way Vetrix used Hart as a shield against Kite is similar to the way Noah Kaiba used Mokuba as a shield against Seto.
• The way Astral took the hit from Number 96 for Yuma and later Eliphas sacrificing himself to destroy Numeron Network is similar to how Yugi pushed Yami out of the way when Yami's soul was going to be taken by "The Seal of Orichalcos" and how Shadi sacrificed himself to save the Pharaoh from Zorc Necrophades.
• Don Thousand orchestrating the death of the Seven Barian Emperors for his sake is somewhat similar to how Dartz manipulated some events just to recruit Raphael, Valon and Alister.
• Yuma using "Number 54: Lion Heart" to free Alito from Don Thousand, Alito using "Number 64: Ronin Raccoon Sandayu" to free Girag from Don Thousand, and Kite using "Number 46: Dragluon" to restore Mizar's true memories is a lot like how Yugi used "Red-Eyes Black Dragon" to free Joey from Marik.
• Before Dumon was absorbed by Barian World, he used "Sacred Shield" card to boost "Number C103: Ragnafinity", having trust in Marin. This was a similar scene when Kaiba activated "Wish of Final Effort" to boost Yami Yugi's Life Points before his soul was taken to the "Seal of Orichalcos".
• Thief King Bakura sacrificing himself to summon Zorc is similar to Vector releasing Don Thousand.
• Mr. Heartland's Duel against Kite is similar to Noah's Duel against Seto. Both rivals of the respective series were incapacitated by their opponents (Noah turned Seto to stone, while Kite fell unconscious partway through the Duel, due to the strain of the opposing attacks), while the main protagonists, Yami Yugi and Yuma Tsukumo arrived to take their place with the same amount of Life Points. The protagonists combined the rivals' cards with their own, and used the rivals' ace cards (Kaiba's three "Blue-Eyes White Dragons" and Kite's "Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon" in the second series and ZEXAL, respectively) to finish off their opponents.

Yu-Gi-Oh! Capsule Monsters

• The ZEXAL powers that Yuma and Astral use to combine into one are similar to the way Yugi uses his duel armor powers to merge together with his Capsule Monsters.

Yu-Gi-Oh! GX

• Both of the protagonists, Yuma Tsukumo and Jaden Yuki have energetic, cheerful and easy-going personalities but become very furious and serious when their friends are put in danger.
  • Both characters also sport red attire and are known to not do so well in school.
• Astral and Kite's rivalry, at least prior to the WDC, is similar to Jaden's rivalry with Zane Truesdale, in that the protagonist loses the first Duel (almost loses, in Astral's case, as the Duel is interrupted) and ties the second Duel.
• In episode 1, Yuma was rushing for being late for school at the start of the series is similar to Jaden rushing to the entrance exam, due to being late for it.
  • Later on, while Yuma continued running to school, he bumped into a Litterbot, causing his cards fall out from his messenger bag and scattered on the ground is just like Jaden collided with Yugi Muto, which also caused his Deck to be scattered on the ground while rushing.
• In episode 17, Fortuno kidnapped some of Yuma's friends and placed them atop a pillar where Fortuno casts an illusion that they are standing atop lava; this is very akin to when Jaden first Dueled Nightshroud in a volcano by which beforehand, Nightshroud abducted two of Jaden’s friends, Syrus Truesdale and Chumley Huffington, whom are subsequently plunked in a protective globe in the vicinity around actual lava.
• Yuma and his friends going to the Barian World to save Ray and later Yuma going to the Astral World to save Astral is similar to how Jaden and his friends went to the Duel Monsters Spirit World to save Jesse Anderson.
• Yuma and Shark's Duel in episodes 61 and 62 has many things in common with Jaden's Duel with Chazz in GX episodes 87 and 88. Both Jaden and Yuma Dueled Chazz and Shark, respectively to snap them out of brainwashing and succeeded. Also both Chazz and Shark used a card that made their Life Points drop to zero so that Jaden and Yuma could win.
• How Girag brainwashed multiple students and sent them to attack Yuma in episode 85 is similar how the Yubel-possessed Marcel transformed most students of Duel Academy into Duel Ghouls.
• The way that Dr. Faker making an agreement with Vector for the sake of healing his son, Hart Tenjo is very similar to Thelonious Viper desperately helping Yubel who promised to raise his son, Pierce from the dead.
• Dumon giving power to Vetrix for getting revenge on Dr. Faker is similar to Yubel giving the power of "Exodia" to Adrian while trapped in the alternate dimension.
• The Seven Barian Emperors trying to obtain the Mythyrian Numbers is somewhat similar to the Shadow Riders trying to obtain the Spirit Keys.
  • Furthermore while Jaden and co. were assign to protect each key, each Number has a guardian of its own.
• Astral being corrupted by Number 96 is similar to how Jaden was corrupted by Yubel, turning him into the Supreme King.
• In episode 76, a boy is seen in the background that resembles Chazz Princeton.
• How Quattro and other people before him being absorbed into the Barian World is similar to how a Duelist who lost a Duel in the Dimension World was "sent to the stars" (killed in the original version).
• Yuma getting the Duel Sanctuary Deck and combining it with his own is a lot like how Zane took the "Underworld Deck" and combined it with his. However, Zane forcefully took the Underworld Deck from Chancellor Sheppard after a Duel with him, while Yuma fairly received the Sanctuary Deck from Roku.
• Both Yuma and Jaden, at the end of the series, had been through so many Duels where lives and worlds were at stake that they stopped enjoying Dueling towards the end of their respective series.
  • They both reacquired their love for Dueling during the final Duel of their respective series, dueling with the duelist that started their adventure (Yugi for Jaden, Astral for Yuma).
• Like Zane Truesdale's battle with Jesse, Kite died of too much strain on him during the duel with Mizar. However, both were revived.
  • Unlike's Zane's case, Kite actually defeated Mizar before passing away.

Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's

• Both protagonist's respective fathers are lost in a different way (Dr. Fudo died after the Zero Reverse incident and Kazuma Tsukumo was trapped in the Astral World). Both fathers also helped the protagonist at their time of need.
  • Yusei's and Jack's signature cards each have at least one upgraded form, and all of those upgraded forms (not including their /Assault Modes) are Synchro Monsters. Yuma and Shark's upgraded monsters follow a similar principle, but as Xyz Monsters.
• When Kite is Dueling, after his outfit changes color, he bears a striking resemblance to Jack Atlas.
• When Kite prepares to Xyz Summon Neo Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon, he gains power from the Barian World, causing a red aura to glow around his body. Similarly, whenever Jack prepares to Synchro Summon Red Nova Dragon, he utilizes the power of Blazing Soul, causing him to be enveloped in a red flame.
  • Neo Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon and Red Nova Dragon are also similar in that both monsters have effects that allow them to increase their ATK by increments of 500.
• The first stage of the Duel Coaster and Girag sending many brainwashed students to get Yuma and Shark's numbers is similar to the Battle Royal that Primo conducted in 106.
• Mr. Heartland's group of Number Hunters is similar to the Dueling Assassins who were sent by Iliaster.
• Yuma, Kite and Shark Duel Dr. Faker in similar conditions to Yusei Fudo, Jack Atlas and Crow Hogan's Duel with Rex Goodwin.
  • Both Goodwin and Faker undergo changes right before their Duels begin, causing their bodies to significantly increase in mass and size.
  • Their ace monsters (Earthbound Immortal Wiraqocha Rasca for Goodwin and Number 92: Heart-eartH Dragon for Faker) both have very low ATK (1 and 0 respectively) but boast extremely powerful effects.
• Rio Kastle and Luna share common traits with each other; they both have older twin brothers and they have connections to two different worlds: the Barian World and the Duel Monsters Spirit World.
• Both Vector and Antinomy first appear double agents that pose as their respective series' protagonists friends under aliases (Ray Shadows and Bruno respectively), only to reveal later that they were secretly allied with their respective series antagonists, Vector with the Seven Barian Emperors and Antinomy with Iliaster.
  • Both Vector and Antinomy have a change of heart after realizing that their respective series' protagonists are their friends, then immediately die leaving them devastated.
• The main antagonists of the second season of ZEXAL are the Seven Barian Emperors, similar to the antagonists of the second arc of 5Ds being the seven Dark Signers.
  • Both groups' members undergo a death and resurrection to become said antagonists.
  • The way the Heartland City citizens were sacrificed to the Barian World for Don Thousand's ambitions is similar to how residents of Satellite, New Domino City and Grieger's village were sacrificed to summon the "Earthbound Immortals"
  • Their Number 10X cards are similar to the "Earthbound Immortals". The "Number 10X" cards suppressed the Emperors' true past memories, while the "Earthbound Immortals" gave the Dark Signers the will to live on, even after their death.
• Eliphas views Rank-Up as the only way to make the Astral World pure, much like the Accel Synchro Summon is seen as the key to saving humanity.
• The Fortune Cup was held to gather the Signers in a similar way that the World Duel Carnival was held to gather the "Numbers".
• Don Thousand's Duel against Mizar is similar to Z-one's duel against Aporia. Mizar and Aporia, the antagonists of their respective past arcs, have had a change of heart and confronted the main antagonists of their respective series. Both Duels ended in their losses and deaths. In addition, both Z-one and Don Thousand were able to activate the effects of Trap Cards from somewhere other than the Field or Graveyard (with Z-one activating them from the hand and Don Thousand from the Deck) during their respective duels.
• Nash's appearing along with the spirits of his fallen comrades when using the effects of the Over-Hundred Chaos Numbers is a bit similar with Z-one's Duel with Yusei where the latter would recite the summoning chant for each Signer Dragon along with its correspondent owner.
• Also how Nash used each of the Over-Hundred Chaos Numbers to play "CXyz Barian Hope" is similar to how Yusei used his friends' Signer Dragons to play "Shooting Quasar Dragon".

Yu-Gi-Oh! 3D Bonds Beyond Time

• How Number 96 stole Yuma's Number 69: Heraldry Crest and Number 92: Heart-eartH Dragon from his Extra Deck and ranked up them into their respective "Number C" form with Chaos Field is similar to how Paradox stole cards throughout time and corrupting them into "Malefic" monsters.

Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V

Multiple series

• Yuya Sakaki's ace monster, "Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon", has 2500 ATK, like all of the previous protagonists' ace monsters. Like all of the ace monsters since GX, "Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon" has 2000 DEF. It is also Level 7 like Yugi's "Dark Magician" and Jaden's "Elemental HERO Neos". It also follows the rotation of Attributes and Types that started from the first series. However, it is the first to have the Attribute of one previous ace monster and the Type of another, in this case the DARK Attribute of "Dark Magician" and the Dragon Type of "Stardust Dragon" (since Yuma's "Number 39: Utopia" had both the Type and Attribute of "Neos").
  • The shared traits of the ace monsters (as well as the character's name starting with "Yu") extends to Yuya's Dimensional counterparts. As such, since "Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon" doesn't have a level, it shares the Rank and Xyz material requirements with "Number 39: Utopia".
• As with all series since GX, the protagonist's Deck focuses on monsters from the Extra Deck (though here they don't start out there) and like all series since 5D's, the monsters (including the protagonist's ace monster) are a new type of card introduced in that series (though Jaden did introduce Contact Fusion).
• The Duel Disks used in the series seem to be a hybrid of previously mainstream Disks from most of the previous series:
  • The Disk's card table is composed of Solid Vision energy, very similar to the Disks used by the Three Pure Nobles as well as the Disks used by Duelists in the said trio's alleged future of which Synchro Summoning dooms the human race.
    • The said card table is also in a very strikingly similar shape to the original Kaiba Corp Duel Disks first utilized in the Battle City.
  • The touchscreen computer portion of the Disks as well as the Deck slot locations also strongly mirror each respective component seen in the D-Pads in Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL. Also, the Disks are used for communication in a similar fashion as the Duel Gazer.
    • Indeed, this portion of the Disk is colored red in Yuya's (main character in ARC-V) Disk, similar to how Yuma's (main protagonist in ZEXAL) D-Pad is red-colored.
• The first Duel of the series has the opponent use a monster with 3000 ATK (though for the first time its ATK is raised beyond that) and it is defeated by using an (if not the) ace monster and altering the ATK of one or both monsters.
  • The opponent is a strong figure (in at least some respects), which draws attention when they lose. As with the original series and ZEXAL, the opponent is a known Duel Monsters champion, and as with GX and 5D's the opponent is not the protagonist's rival, but simply someone with authority in the matter of the Duel.
• As with all previous series, after the protagonist's premiere victory, the next Duel and/or episode takes a step back and shows a different result. In the original series, episode 2 features Yugi/Yami Yugi being defeated by Pegasus due to a timer. In GX, Jaden just barely doesn't defeat Chazz because the Duel was interrupted. In 5D's, Yusei is first shown losing to Jack in a flashback and then partakes in the first regular Duel of the series. In ZEXAL, Yuma outright loses to Caswell after realizing he doesn't possess the Numbers anymore and Astral is nowhere to be seen. Here, Yuya loses to Zuzu Boyle by putting himself in a tight spot to try Pendulum Summoning and not being able to do so.
• Shay Obsidian, Reginald Kastle and Joey Wheeler mirror each other with the fact that all three fight for the safety of their younger sisters (Lulu Obsidian, Rio Kastle and Serenity Wheeler, respectively).
• Declan Akaba, Kite Tenjo and Seto Kaiba also mirror each other with the fact that all three share a strong bond with their younger brothers (Riley Akaba, Hart Tenjo and Mokuba Kaiba, respectively), as well as a vendetta against their fathers (Leo Akaba, Dr. Faker, and Gozaburo Kaiba, respectively, although Kite and Dr. Faker eventually reconcile).
• Yuya's "Rune-Eyes Pendulum Dragon" and "Beast-Eyes Pendulum Dragon" are similar to Yusei's "Shooting Star Dragon" and Yuma's "Number C39: Utopia Ray V" in several ways:
  • All of them are the result of infusing the protagonists' ace monsters with power from the enemy (Yusei learned Accel Synchro Summoning from Bruno/Antinomy; Yuma obtained "Rank-Up-Magic Limited Barian's Force" from Vector; and Yuya learned Fusion Summoning from Zuzu, who had learned it from Sora Perse, meaning that knowledge was passed down from Duel Academy).
  • "Rune-Eyes" and "Shooting Star Dragon" are both able to attack multiple times.
  • "Beast-Eyes" and "Utopia Ray V" are both able to inflict effect damage as the result of a monster's destruction (albeit by different ways).
• Awakened State is similar to The Gentle Darkness in Yu-Gi-Oh! GX and Dark ZEXAL in Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL. Each case is due to the wielder being affected by (or combined with) a counterpart of theirs, which overwhelmed their minds to some degree (The Supreme King took advantage of Jaden's insecurities after losing his friends in order to possess his body, Astral was corrupted by the darkness inside him, making him the only one in control of Dark ZEXAL instead of Yuma, and Yuto's memories of his homeland being invaded by Duel Academy were too much for Yuya to bear). This affected the wielders' personalities negatively, causing them to develop aggressive Dueling styles.
  • Like Jaden, Yuya turned into an antagonist when the darkness took over his body and had to be defeated by his former allies in order for him to come to his senses.
• Like Téa Gardner and Tori Meadows, Zuzu Boyle is a childhood friend of the main protagonist and like Alexis Rhodes and Akiza Izinski she Duels alongside him as part of a group dealing with the events of the series. As with all of them, she has strong feelings for said protagonist, which are not expressed directly and are seen through similar circumstances in each series (e.g. worrying about them when they're missing and/or in danger, getting angry when others fawn over them, etc.).
• Like Jaden and Yuma, Yuya begins the series as a cheerful and positive person who Duels only for fun, but as the series progresses and he watches others continuously risk their lives, he slowly becomes colder and less optimistic, and finds it increasingly harder to enjoy Dueling.
• The Four Dimensions serves as an alternate version of the past four series.
  • Standard Dimension serves as an rehash to the original series
  • Fusion Dimension serves as an rehash to Yu-Gi-Oh! GX where they both have schools that is located in mysterious island while the GX Duel Academy trains students about Duel monsters and to compete in Pro League someday while the ARC-V Duel Academy trains students to become soldiers to invade other Dimensions. Like GX this dimension mainly focus on Fusion Summon.
  • Synchro Dimension serves as an rehash to Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's where people duel in their Duel Runner and the City serves as an alternate version of New Domino City and both City and New Domino City shares a lot in common. Like 5D's this dimension mainly focus on Synchro Summon.
  • Xyz Dimension serves as a rehash to Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL and it contains an alternate version of Heartland City that appears in ZEXAL. Like ZEXAL this dimension mainly focus on Xyz Summon.
• Yuya and his counterparts serves as a foil to the past four protagonist representing their dimension in terms of their personality.
  • Yuya is cheerful and energetic while Yugi was shy and timid but gradually became more serious.
  • Yuri is ruthless and cold while Jaden is cheerful and friendly.
  • Yugo is short tempered and talkative while Yusei is Calm and sensible.
  • Yuto is calm and collected while Yuma is cheerful and clumsy.
• Like Yami Marik, Sergey Volkov uses a Deck that has cards based on torture devices. Like Yami Marik and Yubel, Sergey is a sadomasochist, as he enjoys the pain he himself suffers during Duels.
• Jack Atlas and Crow Hogan from 5D's returned to ARC-V as alternate versions of themselves.
  • Other characters from 5D's also return as alternate versions of themselves such as Hunter Pace, Rathie, Sayer, Hippies, Don Piero, Dobocle, Lazar, and Dexter.
• Kite Tenjo from ZEXAL returned to ARC-V as a alternate version of himself
  • Other characters from ZEXAL also return as alternate versions of themselves such as Spencer and Devon Knox
• Alexis Rhodes and Aster Phoenix from GX returned to ARC-V as alternate versions of themselves.
  • Other characters from GX also return as alternate versions of themselves such as Zane Truesdale.
• Declan's "D/D/D Super Doom King Purple Armageddon", "D/D/D Super Doom King Bright Armageddon", and "D/D/D Super Doom King Dark Armageddon" bear striking resemblances to past Yu-Gi-Oh! main antagonists.
  • "Purplish Armageddon" resembles Zorc Necrophades and Nightshroud from Yu-Gi-Oh! and Yu-Gi-Oh! GX respectively because of its extra dragon head and wings. Fusion Summoning was also the only Extra Deck Summoning method at the time of both series.
  • "Whitest Armageddon" resembles Z-one, as its overall appearance resembles Z-one's armor. Synchro Summoning was also prominent in Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's.
  • "Darkness Armageddon" resembles Don Thousand, as its horns resemble the Barian Emblem and its tentacles reference Thousand's initial form. Xyz Summoning was prominent in Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL.

Yu-Gi-Oh!

• Yuya's pendant causes his gaming ability to evolve and win the current Duel, but does not allow him to remember. This is similar to the earlier occurrences of Yami Yugi taking over for Yugi and Yugi would have no memory of his actions.
  • This is furthered mirrored by the Awakened state that occurs when Yuya and/or any of his dimensional counterparts clash with the effect causing a shift in how they duel and leaving them with no memory of what happened (even more so for Yami Yugi's earlier appearances where he would take aggressive measures against those he fought). This is further evidenced when Yuya and Yuto combine to cause this effect much like Yugi and Yami Yugi.
• Like Yugi, Yuya is bullied and belittled by others prior to the start of the series, but gains the respect of others due to the powers of his pendant.
• Both the original series and ARC-V open with the protagonist dueling his best friend at a school.
• Yuya's first (full) Duel of the series is against the reigning champion and is Dueling due to his father's absence and uses the Duel to show the kind of Dueling he wants everyone to experience and use. This mirrors Yugi/Yami Yugi's Duel against Seto Kaiba for the sake of his grandpa and tries to teach Kaiba about respecting the cards and Dueling with heart. In both cases, when they lose doubt, they remember what their respective family said to them about Dueling (and essentially life) and draw their last card of the Duel, which allows them to win in one-shot using five monster cards in a way that had never been done before.
• Gong Strong, Yuya's best friend, uses a "Superheavy Samurai" Deck that functions as a monster only Deck. This is similar to Joey Wheeler, Yugi's best friend, making his earliest Deck (as seen in episode 2 of that series) entirely out of monsters though for different reasons. In both cases the main character consults them on this to understand their Dueling better (and in Yugi's case to develop Joey's abilities) in very similar settings.
• Sylvio Sawatari kidnaps Yuya Sakaki's friends like Marik Ishtar kidnaps Yugi Muto's friends in order to force their respective opponents into Dueling them.
• Declan Akaba shares a lot in common with Seto Kaiba
  • They are presidents of prominent gaming companies (Leo Corporation and KaibaCorp respectively)
  • They both own three copies of their ace-monster
  • Declan's apparently testy relationship with his father appears to be similar to Kaiba's relationship with his stepfather.
  • Both of them are the rivals of the main protagonists, Yuya and Yugi, respectively
  • Both of them have younger brothers who they care about them deeply
  • Both of them are very skilled Duelists
  • Also, Leo Institute of Dueling is owned by Leo Corporation, like Duel Academy is owned by Kaiba Corp.
  • It may be moreover implied that the Leo Corporation is a successor to Kaiba Corp, seeing as how both business conglomerates possess a de facto influence on the Dueling industry in each respective series. The Duel Disks that presumably were also made by Leo Corporation, are also very similar in appearance to the ones initially fabricated by Kaiba Corp.
• Like Maximillion Pegasus, Shay Obsidian, Kite Tenjo and Duel Academy have the ability to seal people into cards with the frame of a Normal Monster card.
• Like Dartz, Leo Akaba operates out of an island base and has Duelists seal people into cards to further his goal and is after protagonists of the show in particular as part of a set and is met with opposition by his family (more specifically, his child). Also, he ran a major corporation at one point.
• The Arc League Championship finals taking place through out the city is similar to how the Battle City tournament was held.
• Sylvio Sawatari also shares some similarity to Joey Wheeler both of them started of as a bully to the main protagonist of their respective series and eventually becoming good friends with them.Their personality are also very similar both of them are hot-headed who are underestimated by several characters of their show
• Aura Sentia is very similar to Rebecca Hawkins. Both are short, young female characters with a degree of "telepathy" in their personalities (the former a fortune-teller and the latter formerly carried a stuffed teddy bear around, thinking she can talk to him.) Both also initially had a fostered grudge against the main character of each respective series, only to fall head-over-heels in love with said character after their Duels with them.
• Similar to how Yami Yugi is able to take control of Yugi Muto's body, Yuto has the ability to take over Yuya's body.

Yu-Gi-Oh! GX

• The anime setting is primarily in You Show Duel School, similar to GX's Duel Academy.
  • The class system of the schools in ARC-V (i.e. Leo Institute of Dueling in comparison to You Show Duel School) mirrors the class system trichotomy that the Obelisk Blue, Ra Yellow, and Slifer Red dorms respectively embody.
  • Yuya (the main protagonist in ARC-V) sports a red shirt as part of his attire and attends a school that seems to be the lowest on the "totem pole," similar to how Jaden Yuki (the main protagonist in GX) wears a red jacket that is reflective of his dorm, Slifer Red, of which is the most pauperized of the three dorms.
• Silvio's personality is similar to Chazz Princeton's. Both Duelists are arrogant and believe that strong and rare cards can win Duels. They swore revenge on the main protagonists of their respective series after being defeated by them.
  • Both have influential older family members.
  • Both were, at one point, also accompanied by a few toadies.
  • Both lost in episode 4 of their respective series to the respective protagonists by cards they considered weak.
  • The next time they Dueled, they also both almost completely altered their Decks from newly introduced cards to cards from an archetype established in the previous series with a few additions to it (Chazz from using mostly Fiends to the "VWXYZ" cards whereas Silvio switched from the "Darts" cards to the "Monarchs") and completely clear their opponent's field in their last turn before losing an exactly zero loss. They then Dueled the series' main protagonist in a "school Duel" using cards they received from the school that have effects to clear the opponent's field ("Armed Dragon" for Chazz and "Yosenju" for Sylvio).
• In episode 8, the ID sent elite Duelists from their school to the You Show Duel School to Duel students from the latter as a sort of "punishment" to rectify Yuto's (who they think was really Yuya) actions in the previous episode. This is similar to how Jaden Yuki and Syrus Truesdale were forced to Duel the Paradox Brothers (the latter characters touted as two of the most elite Duelists in GX) as punishment for illegally entering the Abandoned Dorm.
• Both Yuya and Jaden use archetypes that focus on animal-looking monsters (Jaden's "Neo-Spacians" and Yuya's "Performapals").
• Both Yuya and Jaden have a monster that is based on an animal with the name being friend + animal name starting with the letter 'd' (Yuya's Performapal Friendonkey and Jaden's Wroughtweiler (Japanese name "Friendog")
• The series acknowledges the existence of Fusion Monsters as monsters only the elite use.
• Like Sartyr, Reed Pepper's Deck is a cooking theme.
• Like Bob Banter, Pierre L'Supérieure's Dueling style involves a quiz theme.
• Aura Sentia is an expert in fortune telling like Sartorius.
  • In addition, she uses Arcana Force cards as her Tarot cards, since the Arcana Force represent the Tarot.
• Yuya's strategy of swarming the field with monsters via Pendulum Summoning is just like Jaden Yuki's strategy of bringing Fusion Monsters with relative ease.
• The ARC-V Duel Academy bears many similarities to the GX Duel Academy.
  • Both places are based on an island with no other land in sight.
  • People in both places wear Red, Yellow, and Blue blazers.
  • An elite force of Duelists in ARC-V are called the Obelisk Force in reference to the highest ranking dorm in GX.
    • Obelisk Force is seen using "Ancient Gear" monsters, which were previously used by Vellian Crowler.
  • The Duel Disks used at both Academies resemble each other.
• Like in Yu-Gi-Oh! GX, characters from past series will make reappearances. In GX, Yugi Muto, Solomon Muto, the Paradox Brothers, Maximillion Pegasus, and Seto Kaiba appeared as supporting characters. See below for reappearances in ARC-V.
• Alexis Rhodes searching the Whereabouts of her missing Brother Atticus Rhodes with the help of Zane Truesdale is a very similar way in which Shay Obsidian is searching the whereabouts of his missing sister Lulu Obsidian with the help of Yuto.
• Leo Akaba has several similarities to Viper.
  • Both characters force the students of an academy to duel in order to further their goals.
  • Both characters cause the students of an academy to come into contact with different dimensions.
  • Viper is a professor, while Leo Akaba is referred to as "Professor".
  • Leo wishes to unite the Four Dimensions, just as Viper's partner Yubel wished to unite the twelve Duel Spirit dimensions.
• During Yuri's duel with the students of the Fusion Dimenson You Show Duel School, each student used cards that Jaden's friends used in GX. One student used Chumley Huffington's "Big Koala", "Des Kangaroo", and "Master of Oz", while another used Syrus Truesdale's "Steamroid", "Submarineroid", "Drillroid", and "Super Vehicroid Jumbo Drill". Three students used Chazz Princeton's "Ojama" and "VWXYZ" monsters in separate Decks.
• During a flashback to when Alexis was still a student at Duel Academy, two people with hairstyles very similar to Bastion and Zane were shown.
• Like his GX counterpart, the ARC-V version of Aster initially worked with the main antagonist (Sartorius in GX and Leo Akaba in ARC-V), even clashing with the main protagonist during his duties (Jaden in GX and Yuya in ARC-V). During his last Duel against Yuya, the ARC-V Aster experienced a change of heart after learning that he was doing unsavory acts for Duel Academy, similar to how the GX Aster learned that he was being manipulated by Sartorius and the Light of Destruction.

Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's

• Just like Turbo Duels, Action Duels require a Field Spell Card to be activated before the start of the Duel that sets rules on a specific type of Spell Card (and also Trap Cards here) that are unique to those Duels. Also, the Duelists riding around on their monsters within the field can be seen as an evolution of using Duel Runners.
• Both Yuya and Yusei Fudo have a similar strategy: swarming the field with monsters that are generally low in power/Level, but have beneficial effects to compensate for low power, while setting up for their respective aces to deal the final blow.
• Yuto has an ability to inflict real damage, destruction and pain, which is similar to both Psychic Duelists and Shadow Duels.
• The series acknowledges the existence of Synchro Monsters as monsters only the elite use.
• Yugo, a Duelist from the Synchro Dimension, uses a Duel Runner. Furthermore, his ace monster, "Clear Wing Synchro Dragon," has 2500 ATK and 2000 DEF and is a Dragon-Type WIND Attribute Synchro Monster, like Yusei Fudo's "Stardust Dragon."
  • In addition, Yugo sharing Yuya's appearance as a Turbo Duelist is similar to Z-one copying Yusei, which was revealed in Z-one's flashback. Plus, both Yuya and Yugo share the same color opposition with Yusei and Z-one: red and white.
  • Yugo's childhood is also similar to Yusei's as a difference between social classes seem to exist much like Satellite and New Domino City.
• Yuya's experiences following his arrival in the Synchro Dimension mirror the events of the first arc of 5D's:
  • He is repeatedly hunted by Security until he is captured and taken to the Facility.
  • On his first day, he Duels a seasoned prisoner and befriends him as a result.
  • After leaving the Facility, he is given an invitation by the Director of Security to participate in a Turbo Duel tournament, in which he will have to opportunity to Duel Jack Atlas.
• Declan insinuating an evolution in Pendulum Summon to Yuya is very likely similar to Bruno showing further evolution in Synchro Summon to Yusei. In both cases, while the protagonist attempts to learn the new evolution, they Fusion Summon for the first time using their ace monster and one of their other signature monsters of the same card type (though it was only the Monster Type that was needed) as the materials.
• Declan using the Arc League Championship for his Lancers Selection to fight his father is similar to Rex Goodwin using the Fortune Cup to assemble the Signers to have them fight his older brother after both were told of what was to come years before by their respective family member.
• Declan's Deck reflects Jack Atlas' as both revolve primarily around Fiend and Warrior type monsters, use multiple Extra Deck summoning methods that can lead into each other, have a "ruler" theme, use Spells and Traps to use their monsters to summon and strengthen their stronger monsters as well as circumventing card costs by using the opponent's moves to their advantage.
• The Action Field where Gong Duels in episode 39 resembles "Ecole de Zone".
  • Similarly Trick Tagart hiding from Gong in the Duel is similar to how Sherry LeBlanc tried to hide while Dueling against Crow Hogan and Akiza Izinski.
• Yuya and his counterparts being linked through their ace dragon monsters is similar to the Signers and their dragons in that Dueling each other causes a reaction through their connection that is strongest when their respective dragons are summoned and when they battle each other.
  • Yuya's Berserk State is visually similar to the effect Yusei and Jack experienced when they first saw the Crimson Dragon. Ironically, both cases involved one member of the respective group summoning another's dragon during the duel.
• The Arc League Championship mirrors the World Racing Grand Prix in that both feature a Battle Royal across their respective cities part way through the tournament where duels are continuously joined and/or interrupted. Both Battle Royals are arranged by one of the people responsible for the tournament and do so for the sake of attempting to further their goal.
• Yuya's second Duel against Sora ended very similarly to Yusei's first Duel against Andre.
  • Both protagonists faced 3 high ATK monsters but were able to overpower at least one of them, and both duels ended right before the play that would determine the winner resolved due to the duel's time limit expiring.
• Turbo Duels have been played in 5D's and ARC-V.
• The Duel Chasers finally made their appearance after being mentioned by Tetsu Trudge in 5D's.
• A similar introduction to 5D's last season opening regarding Turbo Duels and Duel Runners appears in ARC-V after the Synchro Dimension is first visited. Additionally, in that same sequence, the monsters appearing strongly resemble "Stardust Dragon" (in bluish green) and "Red Dragon Archfiend" (in orange).
• Zuzu Boyle's experience on riding a Duel Runner is similar to Akiza Izinski's, as both did not take part in a Turbo Duel while riding them, while the main riders (Yugo and Yusei, respectively) were Dueling for their safety.
• The Security is an alternate version of Sector Security. They are similar in that they both chase down and arrest anyone who tries to cross the upper class from the slums. While Sector Security confiscates all Dueling-related possessions of prisoners (Duel Runners and Decks) upon arriving at the Facility, Security simply confiscates the inmates' Duel Disks, but allows them to keep their cards. Said cards could be used to bribe guards into getting out of unwanted situations in a similar way of Sector Security taking their prisoners' cards.
• The City is an alternate version of New Domino City and the two have similarities.
  • Topsiders and Commons being separated from each other is similar to the people of Satellite and New Domino City. Tops and New Domino City were considered the luxurious and top-class part of their respective areas. Both looked down upon residents of the Commons and Satellite, respectively. New Domino City is an upper class residential area, but Tops in ARC-V is a magnificent cityscape built high above the slums. Satellite is a city on a island while Commons is the slums of the City.
• The Lancers escaping the Facility and being forced to duel in the Friendship Cup is similar to Yusei's escape from The Facility and being forced to duel the Fortune Cup.
• During the Friendship Cup Yuya rides a Duel Runner near identical to Yusei's Yusei Go prior to its upgrade for the WRGP. Both are red and have white accents. Yuya's Runner lacks the curved back portion used by Yusei's and like most Duel Runners in the series uses the holographic Card Zone.
• When Jack Synchro Summons "Tyrant Red Dragon Archfiend", the Crimson Dragon can be briefly seen during the Summoning sequence, alluding to his 5D's counterpart's association with the Signers.
• In Jack's advertisements the word 'Satisfaction' is used, this could be a reference to the fact that in Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's Jack is a part of The Enforcers which is known as Team Satisfaction in the original.

Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL

• When Yuya draws the card he needs to turn a Duel around, the card gives off light which is similar to that of a Shining Draw.
• Similar to how the Number user will lose their "Number" when they lose. Yuya, Yuto, Yugo and Yuri will lose their dragon if they lose to the other.
  • In this case, they will also lose their "Life". Albeit only if their dragons is defeated by another's and the damage from it caused thir LP to be 0.
    • However, none of the duel conducted by Yuya and his counterparts against one another ends properly without the defeat of other's counterparts at the hand of their opponent's respective dragon. (Yugo against Yuto, Yuri against Yugo and Yuya against Yuri).
  • Similarly "Number" cannot be destroyed by battle, except against "Number" monster.
• Similar to how Number 100: Numeron Dragon is the result of the gathering of all "Numbers", "Supreme King Dragon Zarc" is the result of gathering the Four Dimension Dragons.
• Similar as to how Yuma Tsukumo didn't have any of the new kind of monster (Xyz Monsters) at the start of ZEXAL, Yuya began the ARC-V series without any Pendulum Monsters.
  • In fact, both characters first obtained their first said monsters by supernatural means during their first full Duel of the series (Yuma obtained "Number 39: Utopia" after first using the Emperor's Key to open The Door, which in turn, scattered Astral's remaining memories ("Numbers"), leaving the said card behind, whereas Yuya attained "Stargazer Magician", "Timegazer Magician" and "Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon" after his pendant glowed for the first time).
• Yuto, Yugo, and Yuri mirroring Yuya's appearance is similar to Number 96 taking Astral's form.
  • Indeed, Yuto uses a monster that uses a similar effect to Number 96's ace.
• Yuya and Yuma Tsukumo own special pendants that were given to them by their fathers.
  • Their fathers also gave them advice to motivate them in life - Kazuma taught Yuma "kattobingu", while Yusho taught Yuya to laugh when he felt down. The fathers also disappeared prior to the start of their respective series.
  • Both Yuya and Yuma also regard Dueling as something intended for fun, rather than revenge or war.
  • Yuya's "Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon" (a Pendulum Monster) which is an upgraded form of his "Odd-Eyes Dragon" (an Effect Monster), mirrors Kite Tenjo's "Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon" (an Effect Monster) and "Neo Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon" (an Xyz Monster), as both pairs are "Eyes" Dragon-Type monsters of which each said Effect Monsters' first upgraded forms are of the new kind of monster in each respective series.
• The series acknowledges the existence of Xyz Monsters as monsters only the elite use.
  • Furthermore all Xyz Monsters featured in the Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V anime thus far use the two colors from the "Number" Overlay Network together for a slightly altered appearance (similar to the additions to tuning for a Synchro Summon).
  • However, it is implied that Leo Institute of Dueling had no knowledge of Rank-Up Xyz Evolution prior to the duel between Sora and Shay.
• Like Kite Tenjo Dueling Yuma Tsukumo at their first encounter, Declan Dueled Yuya in two episodes.
  • In first episodes, both Kite and Declan Summoned significant strong monsters quickly ("Numbers" for Kite and each type of Extra Deck monsters showcased in the previous episodes for Declan) before sacrificing them to be able to play their 3000 ATK point monsters.
  • In the second episodes, Kite and Declan proved to be a match for Yuma and Yuya, then left the Duel unfinished due to something happening with someone they need to check on and leaving their opponents shocked and despondent.
• Declan's father, Leo Akaba, bears similarities to Dr. Faker.
  • Both are fathers to the archrivals (Declan and Kite) of the main protagonists (Yuya and Yuma) in their respective series.
  • Both serve as the first primary antagonists in their respective series.
  • Both of them have done things that they believe to be noble, albeit through questionable methods. Leo has been attacking cities in an effort to unite the Four Dimensions, while Dr. Faker tried to destroy Astral World in order to save his son Hart Tenjo.
  • Both of their bodies have been mechanically enhanced in some fashion (Reo has a device implanted in his head; Faker has a robotic body).
• Yuto and Yugo's confrontation in Heartland shares similarities with Yuma and Kite's first Duel as well.
  • The location where Kite and Yuma's Duel took place strikes resemblance to the devastated location where Yugo and Yuto were.
  • Yugo's clothes are the same color as Kite's.
  • Lastly both battles were interrupted and both Kite and Yugo left on a motorcycle.
• Sora's personality is similar to Quattro's. Both Duelists hid their malicious personalities underneath a kind facade until the time was right for them. Their Decks also included horrific monsters.
  • Sora mirrors Vector as both are both from another dimension who joined the protagonist's group by acting overly friendly and following them around everywhere in order to progress their fight against another dimension and end up providing the protagonist with a card that led to an upgraded form of their ace monster. Both of their true natures are revealed during a duel where they openly and sadistically mock their opponents who both use two Rank-Up-Magic cards to upgrade their ace monsters.
  • Additionally, both Yuma and Yuya try to repair their friendship with Vector and Sora respectively and convince them that their acts were actually their real selves.
• The Action Field Neo Heartland City is based on Heartland City, where The Resistance lived before being attacked by Duel Academy much like the characters from ZEXAL.
  • The Action Card, "Mirror Barrier" has the same appearance as the Sphere Fields.
• Shay uses Rank-Up-Magic cards like Yuma, Astral, Eliphas, the Arclight Family, and the Barians.
  • In particular, he refers to his Xyz Evolution as a Rank-Up Xyz Evolution like Eliphas did.
• Yuya's "Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon", Yuto's "Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon", Yugo's "Clear Wing Synchro Dragon", and Yuri's "Starving Venom Fusion Dragon" resonating is similar to Kite's and Mizar's "Galaxy-Eyes" monsters resonating.
  • Mizar and Yuto gave a Dragon-Type Xyz Monster to the main characters of their respective series (Mizar gave "Number 100: Numeron Dragon" to Yuma, while Yuto gave "Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon" to Yuya) just before they vanished before the protagonists' eyes. Also, Kite, who Mizar had brought "Numeron Dragon" for, appeared to Yuma before he summoned it much as Yuto did with Yuya.
• Using Duel Fields for the Arc League Championship finals is similar to how the finals for the World Duel Carnival were held.
• The Interdimensional Domination is a crisis that spans through different dimensions and serves as the main conflict of ARC-V like the Interdimensional War in ZEXAL.
  • The 2nd Ending Future fighter! actually contains the phrase "Interdimensional battle" in its lyrics.
• Allen's name and Deck may be a reference to the Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL character Anna Kaboom, who was called Anna Kozuki in the original Japanese version; Anna also used railroad-themed monsters in her Duels.
• Yugo and Yuri using "Extra Shave Reborn" against each other is similar to Yuma and Kite using "Xyz Double Back".