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Episode
GuideEpisode 156: Fate of the Pharaoh, Part 1 (Yugi vs Rafael's Iron Wall Guardian Deck)
Duke's car zooms across the desert, flying over rocks, as Joey and Tristan urge Duke on. He tells them to hang on, shifts up and floors it, and the convertible takes to the air again. When it lands, Duke asks them if they're still in one piece... but they're gone. Saying he told them to buckle up, Duke searches the desert behind him with binoculars. Joey and Tristan are running towards the car, looking a little ragged.
Meanwhile, Rafael waits for the Pharaoh, thinking it will be the Pharaoh's final duel. Yami arrives on the mesa opposite, and says "Let's do this!" He rides the horse down the steep walls of the mesa, then dismounts and walks across the suspension bridge towards Rafael.
Rafael says that while his associates are satisfied with stealing the souls of Yami's friends, he's not. Yami says he's kept his part of the bargain, now Rafael must release the Professor. Rafael says he's already been set free—but since Yami's come all this way, he might as well stay awhile.
Rafael flings off his cloak, then lifts a pair of axes and throws them towards Yami. They pass narrowly on either side of him and hit the posts of the suspension bridge, cutting the ropes so that the ladder falls, trapping Yami on the mesa with Rafael. Rafael says he needs to capture the soul of the Pharaoh himself, so he can save the world. (Japanese Rafael says they don't need any paths of escape from their duel. As a True Duelist, he feels honored to duel Yugi.)
Yami's skeptical. Save the world? Doesn't Rafael see that what he's doing is going to destroy the world? (Japanese Yami says, how can Rafael be a True Duelist? If he were a True Duelist, he wouldn't use the monsters in an evil way.) Rafael says Yami's blind to what's going on. The world is a dark and lonely place to live, poisoned by mankind. All he's trying to do is fix what's been ruined by people like Yami. And he'll do it by locking Yami's spirit away forever. He says his name's Rafael, and he has called Yami there to duel. (Japanese Rafael says if he's evil, what is the Pharaoh's justice? He says they each walk on the road they believe in, and have their own justice in mind. Which direction does Doma go? Justice or evil? Only history will tell. All they can do at the moment is bet on their own justice.)
As the sun rises beyond the mesa, Yami says Rafael has given him no choice. But in the end, righteousness will prevail. Rafael says that's just what he's hoping for. (There's no dialog in the Japanese.) They activate their Duel Disks and prepare to duel. (This shot of Yugi telling Yami to be careful, as Rafael isn't an ordinary man, is cut from the US version. Yami says he knows.)
Yugi tells Yami that something seems different about this guy, and Yami agrees that Rafael has some kind of hidden power.
Rafael begins the duel by playing a magic card, Guardian Treasure. It allows him to draw two new cards and discard the five already in his hand. In addition, it allows him to draw two more cards every round. Yami realizes that Rafael is searching for the Seal of Orichalcos. Then Rafael sets a monster in defense and one card face down and ends his turn. He tells Yami he's given him a head start—since he played two cards, he had nothing left in his hand.
Yami draws Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts, then plays Polymerization to fuse Gazelle and Berfomet to form Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast (2100 ATK), and uses it to attack Rafael's defense monster. The monster, a huge blue demon, grabs one of the horns on each of Chimera's two heads, and Rafael laughs. His Backup Gardna has 2200 defense points, more than enough to stop Chimera. Yami loses 100 points, and Rafael's defenses remain intact.
Rafael draws two cards, and plays the magic card, Gravity Axe, which allows him to summon Guardian Grarl (2500 ATK). Then he equips Gravity Axe to Guardian Grarl, increasing its attack by 500 points to 3000. (In the Japanese, Rafael equips Gravity Axe to Backup Gardna before summoning Guardian Grarl. Then he uses Backup Gardna's effect to switch Gravity Axe to Guardian Grarl.) Rafael attacks Chimera with Guardian Grarl, destroying it and reducing Yami's life points to 3000. But Chimera's effect allows Berfomet to return to the field in attack mode (1400 ATK). Rafael's not impressed. He's got a deck full of Guardian monsters, each one more powerful than the next. (Japanese Rafael says his is a Guardian Deck. Each of his monsters will risk their lives to protect him, and he'll protect them, too.)
Back at the motor home, Professor Hawkins is still sound asleep. Téa thinks he's got the right idea, but Rebecca's busy doing research on the web with her laptop. She's found a strange article about a cruise ship that sunk about twelve years ago. (The article's headline is removed in the US version. It reads "Mirdcleux revenues.")
A boy saved himself by swimming to an island, where he spent three years all alone. According to the article, he did nothing but practice Duel Monsters until he was rescued—and his name was Rafael! It's the guy who's dueling Yugi. (Japanese Rebecca says that she found an article about a cruise ship that sunk ten years ago, with only one survivor. This article has reminded her of rumors she heard when she became Duel Monsters champion of the US, that the real champion was a boy who never dueled in public, named Rafael. This must be the duelist who's challenging Yugi.)
Rebecca jumps up to run off, but Téa grabs her arm, telling her to relax—Yugi can handle that guy. (Cut from the US version is this shot of Rafael from the article, followed by a close-up of present-day Rafael.)
Rafael tells Yami he could never understand the connection he has with his cards. Yami says he's mistaken—he also shares a bond with his deck, trusting and respecting every one of his cards. Rafael picks up his two monster cards and shows them to Yami, who sees that the cards are almost worn out. He's played them hundreds of times, says Rafael. Even though they're falling apart, he'll never replace them. He's sworn to protect them the way they've protected him. Twelve years ago, these monsters saved his life. (Japanese Rafael says he's replaced the backs of these cards so they won't be recognizable when face down.)
Rafael tells his story. When he was a kid, he says, he was fooled into thinking that the world was a happy place, but then he discovered the truth—nothing's fair, and no one gets what they deserve. Yami thinks that's pretty sad, and Rafael insists that life is sad, and the sooner Yami realizes it, the better off he'll be. Rafael says that he used to have everything a kid could ever want, until one day.... (Japanese Rafael says that ever since he heard of the Pharaoh, he's had a strange feeling about him. He says they're both men who've been used by fate.)
In flashback, a cruise ship moves across the ocean. (Cut from the flashback is this shot of a waiter picking up a tray and setting a plate of food on a table.)
Aboard are Rafael and his family having dinner. His little brother gives him a birthday present—a Guardian Eatos card. Little Rafael is thrilled. His little sister says he had to go to eighteen stores before he found it. She tells him not to forget to make his birthday wish, but he says he already has everything he needs.
Suddenly, there's a rumble, and the table is shaken, spilling the plates. Little Rafael jumps up and runs from the dining room out onto the deck. (Cut is this shot where little Rafael's brother and sister, Julien and Sonia, run after Rafael. Thinking Rafael's playing, they grab him and laugh, saying, "Caught you!" Then little Rafael says, "What's that?")
Present-day Rafael says they were headed straight for a tidal wave, and there was no turning back. The ship tosses in the huge waves, and little Rafael's brother and sister are swept away as he calls for them. He says that was the last time he saw his family.
Little Rafael is washed up on the shore of an island. Rafael says his family made it onto a rescue boat, but he was left behind. (There's no voice-over in the Japanese.) Little Rafael, lying in the sand, looks up to see Guardian Eatos standing over him. But then the Guardian disappears. He jumps up, thinking his mind is playing tricks on him, and begins to run, searching for anyone else who might have ended up on the island. But soon he realizes he's alone. (Japanese Rafael says that the accident happened so suddenly, fate took everything from him in one moment.) Weeping, he wonders who will watch over him now. All he has are the clothes on his back and his Duel Monsters cards. (Japanese little Rafael asks the Eatos card if it was she who protected him.)
Rafael says that he knew he had two choices—sit around and feel sorry for himself, or toughen up and move on. If he wanted to survive, there was no time for weakness. He learned at a young age that the world was cold and lonely. He lost his childhood, but he gained an undying trust for the only family he had—his three Guardian cards. (Japanese Rafael says that he thought that since he was alive, maybe his family was, too. He lived on the island alone, but with hope. He asks Yami if he could live for three years without talking to anyone, in complete isolation.)
Flashback shows young Rafael kneeling before his three cards, as a sudden wind sweeps them away and drops them into the ocean. He dives in after them and retrieves them, drying them out by a fire. Rafael says those cards kept him strong and sane, and he owed it to them to save them. They shared a powerful bond. Guardian Eatos, Guardian Grarl, and Guardian Kay'est saw him through the hardest years of his life, and they continue to protect him.
Yami asks Rafael, if he truly respects his cards, why does he use them for evil? Rafael says that what Yami thinks is evil, he looks at as saving the planet from falling apart at the hands of people like Yami and his little friends. It's his destiny. (Japanese Rafael says that human beings can't resist their fate, and he's seen fate in person.)
In flashback, young Rafael runs up a hill on his island. Rafael says he'd always wondered "why me?" and after three long years he got his answer. Young Rafael sees another island rising from the ocean near his, with a large city on it. How could he have missed it? He rows across on a raft, thinking that he's saved. But before he can reach the island, it sinks into the sea, and a huge wave swamps his raft. He floats down into the water, and sees the city beneath him. Beams of light glow around him. Surrounded by light, he hears the voice of Dartz telling him they'll soon meet again, and he wakes to find himself lying on his raft, with a boat coming to his rescue. (Rafael says he didn't understand the existence of fate. The voice of Dartz says, "Come back to me when you see everything clearly.")
He made the cover of newspapers and magazines around the world: miracle boy rejoins civilization. (The titles of the magazines are removed in the US version.)
(Cut from the US version is this scene from the flashback where young Rafael goes to the cemetery and stands before the gravestones of his family.)
But Rafael says the world he came back to was anything but civilized. His island may have been lonely, but at least it was a peaceful place to live. Unlike the outside world, there was no one on that island who could walk out on him, like his family. But he has a new family now. (Japanese Rafael says he came back to the world like a miracle, but he felt only despair. He couldn't find any trace of his family. Relatives had taken his father's fortune, and earned fame from Rafael's reputation. How could he survive in such a world? Rafael asks the Pharaoh why his soul has revived after thousands of years. Why did Rafael's family disappear in a moment? Why is Rafael alone in a world full of murderous feelings?)
Yami asks how Rafael can blame mankind for what happened to him. Rafael says that people are evil. But it wasn't always that way. Once the world was perfect. (Japanese Yami says nothing. Rafael says Yami can't answer his questions. There's only one way to answer fate.)
In flashback, Rafael stands on a pier with his Guardians. Once again, he sees the mysterious island city rise from the ocean, and hears Dartz's voice saying he told Rafael they'd meet again, and asking if he's ready to leave his old life behind. (Japanese Dartz asks if Rafael wants to know why he was left alone in the world.) Rafael nods, and a pathway of light forms, leading to the island. As Rafael walks down it, Dartz says that together, they'll rebuild civilization as it once was. (Japanese Dartz says come, and he'll guide him. In voice-over, Rafael says you have to accept your fate if you want to know the answer. Just look carefully where fate will lead.)
Yami says he doesn't know what lies Rafael was told, but no good can come from his plan. Rafael says Yami won't be around to see how his plan turns out. (Japanese Yami asks if Rafael is also a man who fights his own fate. Rafael says their fate will allow only one of them to survive. Yami says he doesn't want to disappear, and Rafael says he doesn't either.)
Rex and Weevil ride their bicycle over the cliff of the mesa beyond Yami and Rafael's duel, and plunge down the mountainside, landing at the other side of the broken bridge. They get up to watch the duel.
It's Yami's move. He draws, and plays the magic card, Five-Star Twilight, which, since he has a five-star monster on the field allows him to summon five new monsters, the five Kuriboh brothers (300 ATK each). The little monsters, each a different color, stand in a row, making little kree noises. Rafael says his cat's coughed up scarier monsters, but Yami says looks can be deceiving, and orders his Kuribohs to combine to form one big Kuriboh thing, Kuribabylon, with an attack of 1500. Then he plays Pump Up to double Kuribabylon's attack to 3000, and attacks.
Rafael activates Rescuer from the Grave, a magic card that emerges from his graveyard. Yami protests that he can't play a card from his graveyard, but Rafael explains that Rescuer from the Grave can only be activated from the graveyard. (Japanese Rafael explains that it's activated by removing five cards in the graveyard from play. Yami realizes that this is why Rafael discarded his first five cards.) It repels Kuribabylon's attack, turning it back into the five Kuribohs.
Rafael draws his two cards. He sets two cards face down, then activates the magic card, Purity of the Cemetery. This card inflicts damage of 100 points each turn for every monster in Yami's graveyard, and remains in play as long as there are no monsters in Rafael's graveyard. Then he tells Yami that he has no intention of playing his Seal of Orichalcos magic card. But Yami's fate is still sealed—he'll lose his soul by his own doing.
Rafael attacks Yami's 300-ATK Kuriboh with the 3000-ATK Guardian Grarl.
To Be Continued
