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Episode
GuideEpisode 16: The Scars of Defeat (Fierce Battle! Blue Eyes vs. Red Eyes)
Pegasus speaks to his coconspirators, Kaiba Corporation's Big 5, on the big screen in his dining room. With Kaiba reeling from his loss to Yugi, one of them tells Pegasus, it's the perfect time to seize control and restore the company's reputation. (Japanese Pegasus says, so Kaiba is coming to his island? The Big 5 tell him not to worry, they'll attack immediately and Kaiba will never make it to Duelist Kingdom. Pegasus tells them they must not attack, and they react in consternation, asking why.) Pegasus, sipping his glass of wine, er, fruit juice, tells them to have patience. Once he defeats little Yugi, Kaiba's company will become theirs. The Big 5 point out that if Pegasus had disposed of Kaiba as he'd promised, they would have already assumed power. But they'll finish what Pegasus started. Pegasus insists that they not lay a finger on Seto Kaiba. They're worried that if Kaiba rescues his younger brother, they'll lose their only tie to the Kaiba name. Pegasus reassures them their plans to use Mokuba as a figurehead won't be jeopardized. He has his own plans for Seto Kaiba. They warn Pegasus not to fail them. He stands, toasting them with his wine, er, fruit juice, telling them that they're all about to become obscenely rich. (Japanese Pegasus tells the Big 5 that once he beats Yugi, their contract will be concluded. At that time, Kaiba Corporation will belong to them. The Big 5 says, Heh. Pegasus goes on to say that Kaiba's genius will also belong to them.)
Pegasus walks to the window, and looks out at the moon shining in the sky. As for Seto Kaiba, he says, their partnership is just beginning. (Japanese Pegasus tells Kaiba he's looking forward to seeing him.)
Meanwhile, Kaiba is piloting a helicopter towards the island. (Cut from the US version are these shots of Kaiba's briefcase in the copilot's seat beside him.)
He's thinking that he can't believe his business associates would turn on him after a single defeat. Then again, losing to Yugi has shaken his self-confidence, too. (Japanese Kaiba thinks, Yugi's strategy was perfect.) He remembers Yugi playing Exodia, and wiping out his Blue-Eyes White Dragons, then telling him that he plays only for power, and that's why he lost. (Japanese Yugi tells him that no matter how powerful a card is, it's meaningless if you don't put your heart in it. If your heart is united with your cards, a miracle will occur.) He wonders whether Yugi might have been right, but he can't start second-guessing himself now, when Pegasus has kidnaped his little brother, Mokuba. If he's going to face off against Pegasus, he has to rely on his old dueling instincts. That's the only chance he has of freeing Mokuba. Once Mokuba is safe, he'll unleash his wrath on the men who tried to take over his company. He'll see to it that they all regret ever crossing Seto Kaiba. (Japanese Kaiba thinks that he really wants to duel Yugi again, but first he must see if his Duel Disk system can beat Pegasus. This shot of Kaiba glancing at his briefcase is cut from the US version.)
(In order to preserve Kaiba Corporation, he must defeat the man who stands behind the rebels and rescue Mokuba. Pegasus J. Crawford—Kaiba must beat him with his own hands.)
On the island, Joey and Tristan are sleeping on the ground beside a tent, snoring, while Téa sleeps inside. A little way off, Yugi's sitting with Bakura, asking about the Millennium Ring, which is glowing, and one of its little pointy things is pointing towards Pegasus's castle. Bakura says his Ring did this once before, on the day he met Yugi. He'd just been transferred to Yugi's school, and was introduced to the class. Later, he was watching Yugi and Joey playing Duel Monsters, when his Ring started to glow, and pointed towards Yugi's Millennium Puzzle. Yugi says those pointers are somehow able to zone in on other Millennium Items. It's pointing to the castle because of Pegasus's Millennium Eye. Bakura thinks it's all kind of scary—Pegasus stealing souls with his Millennium Eye, while his Millennium Ring took them all to the Shadow Realm. (Japanese Bakura wonders what the Millennium Items are, and where they came from.)
Bakura goes to sleep, but Yugi lies awake, using his backpack as a pillow, wondering why it is that the more involved he gets with Pegasus and this tournament, the more it all seems to be connected to the Millennium Items. (Japanese Yugi thinks that it seems that his Millennium Puzzle isn't the only Millennium Item.) First, there was Pegasus' Millennium Eye, and then Bakura's Millennium Ring. And, of course, his Millennium Item. Ever since he first solved the ancient Puzzle, playing Duel Monsters has never been the same. Every time he duels, he can feel a strong, courageous presence within him. (Japanese Yugi thinks that ever since he solved the Millennium Puzzle, there's been "another me"—mou hitori no boku—inside his heart. He doesn't refer to dueling, and, in fact, in the manga, Yugi doesn't begin to play Duel Monsters until sometime after solving the Puzzle. Yami's image is superimposed across the moon in the US version.)
Whatever that presence is, he prays it will help him save his Grandpa. He misses him so much. (Japanese Yugi thinks that he wants to understand that puzzle. If he does, he might be able to save his Grandpa from the dark world. He tells his Grandpa to wait for him.)
Yugi's reverie is interrupted by the sound of a helicopter.
On his balcony, Pegasus waits, thinking, Kaiba's coming. He can sense it. (Japanese Pegasus simply chuckles to himself.)Yugi and Bakura both sit up, as the helicopter rises over the cliff near the gang's campsite. Its noise and lights awaken the rest of the gang, and Joey complains about having his sleep interrupted, as Téa peers out of the tent. They all gather to watch helicopter land, and Kaiba steps out, briefcase in hand. Joey wonders what he's doing here, and Tristan says he doesn't know, but it looks like he means business.
Yugi runs up to greet him, and Kaiba says he hasn't seen Yugi since their duel. Yugi nods, then remembers—he's still got Kaiba's deck, which he'd retrieved after dueling the fake Ghost Kaiba. He gives it back to Kaiba, telling him to think of it as thanks for that duel he helped Yugi win. Kaiba takes it with grudging thanks, telling Yugi he'll be compensated for his trouble, and starts to walk away. (Japanese Kaiba says he must thank Yugi.) Yugi suggests that Kaiba stick with them, since they're all headed to Pegasus's castle. Of course, Kaiba will need some Star Chips.... Kaiba tells Yugi not to be naive—this isn't just a game for him. He's going against Pegasus to save his brother, not so he can win some silly prize. He tells Yugi to have fun with his tournament. Yugi starts to protest, but Kaiba ignores him and starts to walk away again. (Japanese Yugi asks Kaiba if he's learned to understand the heart of the cards. Kaiba says that he can't answer that now; he has to go and defeat Pegasus. Japanese Kaiba is much less snotty at this point than US Kaiba. He doesn't bother insulting anybody, he just isn't interested in anything but his own plans.)
Joey's pretty steamed by Kaiba's attitude. He runs after him, and stops him, grabbing him by the lapels. He says he can understand Kaiba wanting to get his little brother back, but Kaiba shouldn't go thinking he's the only one with a noble cause. They've all got something worth fighting for, and if he wants a piece of Pegasus, he'll have to get in line. But Kaiba just grabs Joey's wrist and tosses him to the ground.
Bakura says that was uncalled for, and Yugi runs to Joey to see if he's all right. Bakura says to check his pulse, but Joey gets up, telling them to relax, he's fine. (Japanese Bakura and Yugi both call out, "Jounouchi-kun!" Jounouchi gets up, saying, "Kuso!" which means, "Shit!" The shot of Joey lying on the ground is repeated in the US version, before and after the commercial break.) Kaiba says he'd not going to let their little tournament delay him from finding Pegasus, but Joey tells him to forget Pegasus—now he's got Joey to deal with. Joey tells Kaiba to bust out his cards and let's get it on! (Japanese Kaiba says, so Jounouchi's in this tournament, too. Jounouchi tells Kaiba not to look down on him—he was in the top eight!)
Téa can't tell if Joey's being really brave, or nuts. (Japanese Anzu reminds Jounouchi he was only top eight in the local town competition.) Kaiba tells Joey to forget it—he ought to go find an opponent he can beat, like an infant, or a monkey. Joey's really mad now, and Tristan adds that that monkey thing gets Joey every time. Kaiba says he doesn't have time for Joey's nonsense, calls him a loser, and starts to walk away again. (Japanese Kaiba says that if Jounouchi's a competitor in this tournament, the level of play must be pretty low. Jounouchi jumps up, ready to fight, and Honda tells him to stop. Kaiba says, hmph, and starts to walk away.)
Joey's not about to let Kaiba walk away now. He taunts Kaiba about his loss to Yugi, calling him a coward and a washed-up has-been. Yugi warns Joey to be careful—Kaiba may be a creep, but he's still considered the top duelist in the world. But Joey says, not any more. (Japanese Jounouchi says he's a better player now, and Yugi tells Kaiba that it's true—Jounouchi beat Kujaku Mai and Dinosaur Ryuuzaki.)
That finally gets to Kaiba. He stops and turns, while Joey goes on insulting him, saying that ever since Yugi wiped the floor with Kaiba, he bets Kaiba can't even lay a trap card without flinching. (Japanese Jounouchi challenges Kaiba to a duel, saying if Kaiba wants to beat Pegasus, beat him first.) Now Téa, Tristan, and Bakura all run up to Joey to try to stop him from picking a fight with Kaiba, but finally, Kaiba agrees to the duel on one condition—they'll use his new holographic dueling system. (Japanese Kaiba says it's interesting. He'll break Jounouchi's confidence into pieces. Then he tells Yugi not to worry, he won't duel for Star Chips.) He holds up his briefcase, explains that it's a new high-tech dueling device that allows players the realism of arena matches in any setting. (Japanese Kaiba says he wants to use Jounouchi's energy to test his new Duel Disk system.) Joey says it looks like a regular briefcase to him. Kaiba kneels down to open the briefcase, calling Joey a moron and saying it's in the briefcase. Inside are Kaiba's stacks and stacks of rare and expensive Duel Monsters cards, and two disk-shaped devices. He tosses the one of the disks to Joey, who says it looks like a flying saucer. Kaiba says this is the most state-of-the-art display modulator every built, so if Joey thinks he has what it takes to handle it, he should just strap it on.
Joey straps the deck holder to his wrist, while Bakura holds the Duel Disk, which is attached to the deck holder by a cord. Kaiba tells Joey to insert his deck into the drive recognizer, demonstrating with his own disk. A life point counter will light up, he explains, automatically keeping score throughout the match. Then, select a card to play and put it on the digital card reader. The rest will explain itself.
Kaiba starts the duel, placing his Battle Ox (Minotaurus) (1700 ATK) card in the center of the Duel Disk, and tossing it out in front of him. It lands between him and Joey, and a fountain of sparkly lights rise over it. Téa thinks it's pretty—until it resolves into a huge hologram of the Battle Ox. Yugi exclaims, that's a hologram? Kaiba says it's a hologram of unprecedented realism—it breathes, it snarls, the Duel Disk even simulates its odor! Joey says that thing really stinks—good thing it won't be around for much longer. He sets his card on his Duel Disk and throws it out, and Armored Lizard (1500 ATK) appears.
Kaiba orders his Battle Ox to attack, and Battle Ox swings its axe into Armored Lizard's neck. (This close-up of Minotaurus' axe sinking into Armored Lizard's neck is cut from the US version.)
For a moment, it looks as though Armored Lizard might withstand the attack, but Kaiba tells Joey to look again. (Again, the close-up of the axe cutting through Armored Lizard's neck is cut from the US version.)
Armored Lizard is destroyed, and Joey's down to 1800 life points.
Joey can't believe it! That overgrown Ox cut his Lizard in half! Kaiba says this new technology isn't for the faint of heart. It's intended to force duelists to think on their feet. If it's too much for him, maybe Joey should give up now.
Fat chance, Joey says, as his Duel Disk flies back to him on its cord. He tells Kaiba not to worry—he's a quick learner. Next, Joey summons Flame Swordsman (1800 ATK) and attacks. Yugi tries to warn Joey that the Battle Ox is resistant to Fire-type creatures (the real Battle Ox isn't), but it's too late—Flame Swordsman, too, is destroyed. Joey's down to 1600 life points. (In the manga, it's explained that Fire attacks lose 300 points against Minotaurus, so Flame Swordsman's attack goes down to 1500.)
Kaiba does a little taunting, saying maybe Joey should let Yugi make all his moves for him. Or better yet, Kaiba says he'll teach Joey some of the advanced moves of the game. He plays Polymerization, fusing Mystic Horseman (Centaurus) with Battle Ox to form Rabid Horseman (Minocentaurus) (2000 ATK). (Hey! Kaiba's wearing a Dueling Glove in this frame! Continuity error! Also note the redesign of the Polymerization card.)
Joey says he's not afraid of that deformed pony, and attacks with Swamp Battleguard (1800 ATK), Axe Raider (1700 ATK), Battle Steer (1800 ATK), Garoozis (1800 ATK), Smashing Rock, and Rude Kaiser (1800 ATK) in rapid succession, all of which fall to the Rabid Horseman, leaving Joey with 500 life points. (Continuity error here—before this barrage of monsters, Joey had 1600 life points. He's down to 700 life points after Garoozis' attack. Then he attacks with Smashing Rock, and it's destroyed, but he doesn't lose any life points. Rude Kaiser's takes another 200, bringing him to 500. So... what happened to Smashing Rock? It isn't a real card, and in the Japanese, he calls it Ogre Rock, which we know Joey has in his deck, but Ogre Rock only has 800 attack points, and Joey would have lost the game right there if he'd attacked with it. It appears they got a little excited and stuck an extra monster in there.)
Joey falls to his knees, exhausted from all the attacks, while Kaiba sneers, saying that's right, fall to the earth like a whimpering dog. (Japanese Kaiba laughs and asks Jounouchi if he's done.) Joey thinks that it took Exodia for even Yugi to beat this guy—he needs to come up with a kick-butt card. Téa urges him to come on, telling him he's the best at figuring out ways to come back from behind, and Bakura agrees. Tristan tells him to get up, and not let Kaiba get away with calling him a canine! (Japanese Honda tells Jounouchi he doesn't want to see him like this.) Joey gets back on his feet, saying no one calls him a whimpering dog! Once Kaiba sees what he has in store for him, Kaiba's going to be the one in the dirt. (Japanese Jounouchi says he hasn't lost yet. The duel's just starting.) He summons his best monster—the Red-Eyes Black Dragon (2400 ATK). It crushes Kaiba's Rabid Horseman, and Kaiba's down to 1600 life points. (In the manga, Yugi explains that, even though Red-Eyes Black Dragon has a fire attack, its attack points are still high enough to destroy Minocentaurus. Red-Eyes' attack becomes 2100, so Kaiba loses 400 life points.)
Kaiba's not shaken by the loss of a few points. He tells Joey it's just like a novice to rejoice when there's no reason to celebrate—the round may be Joey's but the duel is about to become Kaiba's. (Japanese Kaiba tells Jounouchi if he's so happy over winning just one turn, he must be the world's weakest duelist.) The Red-Eyes is a powerful dragon, but it pales next to Kaiba's beast. Yugi gasps—and sure enough, Kaiba summons his most powerful monster—the Blue-Eyes White Dragon! It destroys Joey's Red-Eyes, and takes the rest of his life points. Joey falls to his knees again. He lost.
Kaiba's merciless, telling Joey to stay down, like the sniveling, defeated dog Kaiba's turned him into. (This scene is added to the US version. In the Japanese, it goes right from Jounouchi's loss to Yugi and the others running to him.) Yugi runs to Joey, asking him if he's all right, with the rest of the gang following. Téa tells Joey it's all right. Kaiba says his Duel Disk program has proven quite effective—not only did its stunning realism jar Joey into submission, but now he's moping like a dog with his tail between his legs—which is exactly the way Kaiba intends to leave Pegasus. (Japanese Kaiba asks if dueling him has filled Jounouchi with fear, and tells him that it suits him to crawl on the ground. He's such a loser, he can't stand up. The word Kaiba uses is makeinu. Literally "defeated dog," it's an expression that means "loser.")
Yugi protests that this is Joey, and Téa calls Kaiba a jerk, asking if he had to take Joey's confidence away with his dragon. Yugi adds that beating him doesn't give Kaiba the right to humiliate him. (Japanese Anzu tells Kaiba he doesn't understand. He doesn't know what Jounouchi's fighting for, so he shouldn't talk. Yugi adds that Jounouchi is fighting for his sister's eyes.) Joey tells Yugi to lay off, but Kaiba's not through yet. Does Joey think Pegasus would be any more merciful to him than Kaiba was? He tells Yugi the "heart of the cards" might work for him, but he has to duel his own way. He can't risk trying something new—and maybe Joey shouldn't either, unless he likes life as a dog, scrounging on the scraps of past victories and begging for mercy from true duelists. (Japanese Kaiba says that even the weakest duelist has something he's fighting for. All that matters is if he's crushed, or if he can defend those things. Then he tells Jounouchi he should regret fighting him. Jounouchi's eyes are those of a frightened loser. He won't be able to stand up as a duelist any more.)
Yugi tells Kaiba that's just not true (Japanese Yugi asks Kaiba, why?), but Kaiba looks over his shoulder towards Pegasus' castle, saying that's the attitude you have to take if you want to stand a chance against Maximillion Pegasus. This is the man who created Duel Monsters. He has every card that's ever been made, and mastered every strategy that's ever been played. Pegasus always makes sure he has every possible advantage in his favor. If Kaiba is to stand any chance against him at all, he'll have to play by his own ruthless rules. (Japanese Kaiba says that Pegasus' castle is the goal for every duelist on the island, but for them, it's just a game.)
Kaiba tells Yugi to open his eyes—even with his prodigious talents, he'll be defeated like all the others. When Pegasus duels, he uses much more than mere skill. Kaiba's seen him use a magic that's stronger than any card.
Kaiba goes on to tell Yugi about the Intercontinental Tournament in New York City. (The writing scrolling across the bottom of the stadium display screens is removed from the US version, even though it's unreadable.)
Kaiba was there as Pegasus's guest, and a skilled hotshot duelist called Bandit Keith had made it to the final against Pegasus. He was playing well, but Kaiba could see that Pegasus was just toying with him. But Keith had no idea. (Japanese Kaiba says it couldn't even be called a duel.)
In flashback, Bandit Keith sits in the center of a huge arena across a dueling table from Pegasus, who sits silently with his arms crossed. Bandit Keith says that if Pegasus asks nice, Keith will finish him fast. (Japanese Bandit Keith tells Pegasus it's an honor to duel him. After Keith's won, he'll be the number one duelist in the world.) A little boy in the crowd behind Kaiba says he wants to be a duelist like him! Keith draws, saying that this card clinches it for him, and asks Pegasus if he has any final words.
Kaiba says that Pegasus just stared into Keith's eyes with unnerving confidence. Then he scribbled something on a piece of paper, and called over some kid from the crowd. As the flashback continues, Keith protests that asking for help is illegal. Pegasus seats the boy in his chair, telling Keith that he doesn't need help—a child could defeat Bandit Keith, and he's going to prove it. The boy, Sam, says he just started learning to play last week. But Pegasus hands him the paper, telling him to follow these instructions and he'll win. Bandit Keith wonders what Pegasus is up to.
Pegasus goes over to the sidelines to sit beside Kaiba, saying he hopes he's enjoying the tournament so far, even though it must seem so crude to him—not like the holographic dueling stations Kaiba's company is developing.
Bandit Keith thinks that if Pegasus thinks he's going to throw off his game with his lame theatrics, he's dead wrong! He summons Garnecia Elefantis (2400 ATK). The kid says it's a good card. But the instructions say that when Keith plays that, he should play this in attack mode. (The card is Flying Elephant, 1850 ATK. The words "DUEL FIELD" are removed from the dueling mat in the US version.)
Bandit Keith exclaims, no way! while the kid says he thinks he just took all of Keith's life points. (I don't know how, since Flying Elephant's attack is 550 points less than Garnecia Elefantis'. It doesn't appear to be an effect monster. I guess it's one of those mystery rules they had back in the early days of the anime.)
Bandit Keith says there's no way the kid could have known he was going to play that card! He grabs the paper away from the kid, and is horrified to see that it's all there—the card he'd play, how to beat it—everything. (Japanese Bandit Keith looks at the paper and screams, "Oh, my God! Oh my God!" in English.) Pegasus holds the boy's arm in the air, announcing that Sam is the winner. (In the Japanese, the boy's name is Tom.)
As he packs away his Duel Disks, present-day Kaiba says he still doesn't know how Pegasus did it. He only hopes his new Duel Disk system will give him the edge he needs to beat Pegasus.
Yugi is reminded of his own duel with Pegasus, and how Pegasus always knew exactly which cards Yugi was going to play. It was like Pegasus was able to see all his cards. But, he tells Kaiba, that's still no excuse to take it out on them, and use Joey as his new system's guinea pig. Kaiba says that system could be his only way to beat Pegasus, and he had to test it. This is war, and Joey was a casualty. (Japanese Yugi says he's also seen Pegasus use that power. Then, he realizes that was why Kaiba wanted to try out the Duel Disks on Jounouchi. Kaiba says he has to get to Pegasus' castle and beat Pegasus, to get back what he lost.)
Yugi tells Kaiba that they may not agree with each other's methods, but they both understand that Pegasus must be stopped. As Kaiba walks away, Yugi says he hopes Kaiba succeeds in rescuing his little brother. (In the Japanese, Yami switches with Yugi to tell Kaiba that they're all alike—he and Jounouchi also have something important to protect. Yami says he's going to beat Pegasus. Yami's appearance is edited out of the US version, and replaced with previous frames of little Yugi.)
Kaiba turns to wishes Yugi success, too. But he hopes their paths don't cross again. (Japanese Kaiba says whoever gets to Pegasus first will beat him.) Then he heads off into the woods towards Pegasus's castle.
Pegasus stands on his balcony, laughing. He can sense Kaiba coming. But is Kaiba hunting him, or is he hunting Kaiba? (Japanese Pegasus says, "Welcome, Kaiba-boy.")
