What Happened to Kurt, Reina, and Kite's Friends in Hunter X Hunter?

Full post title: some thoughts / analysis / discussion about some of the characters in the Chimera Ant arc of Hunter x Hunter, particularly Kurt, Reina, and Kite’s friends.

Kurt and Reina are these 2 kids from NGL (Neo-Green Life autonomous region). You know what happens to them?

(*Warning for possible spoilers from the Hunter x Hunter 2011 anime (#ad) and manga series by Yoshihiro Togashi)

They die. No, they don’t just die. They also get eaten. By the Chimera Ant Queen. But, before that, we were introduced to them first. We saw these 2 little kids and how close they were and how they lived a simple, peaceful life with their mother.

We saw how Kurt tried to protect his little sister, Reina, and how he tried to keep her safe. And then they die. Just like that. I know, I know. They had to die because it serves to show just how much of a threat the Chimera Ants are.

And, naturally, the children had to be introduced for a bit before they get killed and eaten to make it hurt even more for us, the audience / viewers, when they finally die. It’s meant to tug at our heartstrings.

When we first saw those 2, I just knew that something was going to happen to them. And I didn’t want to care about them because I knew they were gonna croak it anyway. Of course, it’s hard not to when you see them.

They were living such a nice life. They were so innocent, and they hadn’t done anything wrong. Then they just die. And, man, how is that fair, right? Where’s the justice in that? And they’re so young. Too young to die. Sigh.

Honestly, I even thought that Kite’s friends (Spinner Clow, Monta Yuras, Lin Koshi, Stick Dinner, Banana Kavaro, and Podungo Lapoy) would die (if not all of them, then, at the very least, one or some of them).

I mean, we spent all that time being introduced to each and every one of them and being told their names and none of them died. I was pretty much expecting them to die sooner or later and was very much surprised when that didn’t happen at all.

TBH, I kind of wish that one or all of them had died instead of Kite. When they didn’t die, I had to wonder why. Like, what was that all about?

Why were we even introduced to them? Because it wasn’t like they really did much of anything at all. I thought they were being introduced just so they could be killed off later on like with what happened to Kurt and Reina.

But, then again, considering how I care more about Kite than these people, maybe that’s why they didn’t die. I mean, I only saw Kurt and Reina for a short while, but I didn’t want those 2 to die.

I wish those 2 didn’t have to die. Kite’s friends had more appearances, but none of them were all that memorable.

We got their names and everything, but I could hardly tell them apart or match the name to the proper face. If they’d died or suddenly disappeared, it wouldn’t have mattered much.

It’s different with Kite though. I didn’t want him to die. I found him interesting, and I really wish that he’d been able to escape from Neferpitou. Sigh. Maybe that’s why he died, huh? LOL.

So, what do you think about all this? Feel free to share your thoughts and opinions by leaving a comment below.

*Notes:
- Pic is from Amazon.com; link shown above
- This was previously published on my Soyuz Mir Tumblr blog on September 22, 2015 at 11:06:25pm

Hunter X Hunter: Does Senritsu Know Where Kurapika Is?

The full title of this article is: "Does Senritsu / Melody know where Kurapika Kurta / Kuruta (#ad) is during the Hunters Association 13th Chairman Election arc?"

(*Warning for possible spoilers from the Hunter x Hunter 2011 anime and manga series by Yoshihiro Togashi)

Kurapika is nowhere to be found during said arc, which is really something to wonder about. Even Leorio Paradinight wonders where his friend is.

But is there really no one who knows anything about Kurapika’s current whereabouts? What about Senritsu? Doesn’t she know anything?

During the Hunters Association 13th Chairman Election arc, Gon Freecss is heavily injured thanks to what happened in the previous arc with the Chimera Ants. Many of his friends show up to visit him and try to help him in any way that they can.

Kurapika is notable for not showing up to see Gon even though he should have been one of the first ones there since he’s one of Gon’s dearest friends. Leorio tries to contact the blond, but he doesn’t get a response.

But you know who else was around during this arc? Senritsu. We see her with Leorio and the others. I have to wonder if Leorio talked to her and asked her about Kurapika’s whereabouts. He should have, right?

Because, if anyone would know where Kurapika is, it would be Senritsu, right? Both of them work for the Nostrad / Nostrade family, so, shouldn’t that mean that Senritsu would know Kurapika's location and what he’s up to?

Or, what, did she resign from her job? Or did Kurapika resign from his job? Did they part ways? What happened?

How come no one is asking these questions? Did Leorio even try to ask Senritsu about this? He totally should have since he even entrusted Kurapika to her, remember?

When they parted ways in York Shin City, we saw Leorio and Senritsu talking with the former asking the latter to take care of and watch over his friend and with the latter commenting on the former’s soothing heartbeat.

Does Senritsu know where Kurapika is or not? If she does, then why isn’t she saying anything about his whereabouts? If she doesn’t, then how come she doesn’t know if they work together?

So, what do you think about this? Feel free to share your thoughts and opinions by leaving a comment below.

*Notes:
- Pic is from Amazon.com; link shown above
- This was previously published on my Soyuz Mir Tumblr blog on 16 September 2015 at 11:03 pm

1 Thing to Hate About Sugar Sugar Rune Episode 6

Episode 6 of the Sugar Sugar Rune anime (#ad) and manga series by Moyoco Anno has best friends Chocolat and Vanilla trying to learn how to fence, so they could fight against Pierre Tempête de Neige, the captain of the fencing club. If they win, they’ll be allowed to join the club. What is there to hate about this episode?

Vanilla Practices Fencing

Vanilla Mieux / Ice tries her best to improve her fencing skills. She practices and works really hard, all so she can help her best friend win.

She stays up late at night and goes home early every day after school just to practice. Her actions are admirable, to say the least, especially since she's not doing this for herself. She's doing this for her best friend.

Chocolat Is Useless

Chocolat Meilleure / Kato was the one who wanted to join the fencing club, so she can get more hearts and eventually win the Queen Selection Contest.

And yet she isn't taking this seriously at all. She slacks off instead of practicing. While Vanilla is doing her best to practice, Chocolat is being useless.

Why It's Unfair That Vanilla Got Injured

If anyone should have the chance to fight against Pierre and possibly win the match, it should have been Ice since she was the one who was working hard and doing her best. She deserved a chance to shine and show how much she improved her fencing skills.

This is why I thought it was really unfair when Vanilla ended up injuring herself on the day of the match. What the eff? This is so horrible. Did I mention it's unfair how Ice won't be able to fight? :-( There are not enough sad emojis to show just how upsetting this is.

Think about how much Vanilla worked so hard and tried her best. She put so much effort into practicing, and for what? For nothing. Now, she can't even fight and showcase her skills.

Why This Scene Is Contrived

The worst is how this scene came across as completely contrived and unbelievable. I think Vanilla getting hurt happened just to set up the Pierre vs Chocolat match.

Sugar Sugar Rune is setting Pierre and Chocolat to be the main love pairing, even though it comes across as creepy, so, of course, it would try to set it up so that Pierre and Chocolat can fight without anyone else getting in the way.

Honestly, if they had no intention of letting Vanilla compete in the first place, then they shouldn't have let her do all that and made the audience believe that she would fight alongside Chocolat.

From the beginning, they should have just let the match be between Pierre and Chocolat so there won't be expectations that Vanilla would be able to join them.

One thing that really makes this scene come across as contrived was why couldn't they reschedule? Seriously, why couldn't the girls explain the situation to Pierre? Tell him Vanilla injured herself, so can they postpone the fight until she's all healed? This could give the girls more time to practice.

Chocolat-chan, I'm sorry
- Vanilla

Vanilla apologizes to Chocolat, but she has nothing to be sorry for because this entire thing was totally contrived.

Your Thoughts and Opinions

What about you? What do you think about this? Feel free and welcome to share your thoughts and opinions by leaving a comment below.

Note: this is another unfinished post that I found in this blog's (Anime Meta (Anime Archives)) drafts list. The post's last updated date is listed as May 14th, 2016 11:01:08pm. Yep, this has been sitting on my drafts list for practically forever already. It's definitely time I got 'round to publishing this.

Besides, like I mentioned in my other blogs, I have a lot of unfinished posts stored on the drafts pages of my numerous blogs (particularly Tumblr and Google Blogger). I'm now trying to finish all these articles, so I can publish them already and decrease the number of my drafts.

*Notes:
- Pic is from Amazon.com; link shown above

How Canada’s Trolling Map Tweet to Russia Can Remind You of Hetalia: Axis Powers?

Canada’s delegation to NATO posted a pretty hilarious and funny message and map on their Twitter account (CanadaNATO).

It was addressed to Russia and was in response to the news that 10 Russian soldiers supposedly got lost and accidentally found themselves passing the Russian-Ukrainian border and into Ukraine’s territory.

Canada Trolls Russia on Twitter

Canada said:

"Geography can be tough. Here’s a guide for Russian soldiers who keep getting lost & ‘accidentally’ entering #Ukraine."

They included a map showing the country of Russia with the label “Russia” and the country of Ukraine with the label “Not Russia”.

Many found this really amusing and the tweet quickly went viral; it had been retweeted and favorited thousands of times.

I found the tweet funny and amusing too, but it also made me think of or reminded me of something when I saw it, and that just made it even more hilarious to me. What exactly did it remind me of?

Hetalia: Axis Powers Anime Series

Canada’s trolling map tweet to Russia reminded me of this anime series called Hetalia: Axis Powers (#ad) by Hidekaz Himaruya.

Well, to be more precise, it reminded me of two scenes I’d seen from this series (I haven’t seen them all yet). Those scenes were funny, to say the least.

But before that, what is this anime about? All you really need to know is that the characters are all anthropomorphic personifications of the countries of the world (yes, that includes the countries of Russia, Canada, Ukraine, and the United States of America (USA)).

Anyway, you know what’s ironic about this? While Canada’s trolling map tweet to Russia reminded me of Hetalia, it didn’t exactly remind me of the characters of Canada and Russia.

It actually reminded me of America. It’s because he’s really bad with maps and directions. Exactly how bad? His world map shows nothing but the United States of America; beat that! How’s that for global ignorance, huh? LOL 😃.

Let’s take a closer look:

Season 1 Episode 9 (English Dub) of Hetalia: Axis Powers

One scene in this episode showed the Allied Powers (America, Russia, Britain, France, and China) having a meeting and discussing plans on how they’re going to beat the Axis Powers (Germany, Italy, and Japan) and who was going to fight who.

America gets assigned to take down Japan. He has no idea where Japan is located and proceeds to open a “world map” to find out.

His “world map” consists of only the United States of America, so it’s no wonder that he couldn’t find Japan.

"It’s not on the map," America exclaims. No one is the least bit surprised about this as they say “typical American”.

Season 4 Episode 51 (Extra Episode 3, English Dub) of Hetalia: World Series

One scene from this episode features England and America talking about Germany. America opens his trusty “world map” (it proudly features the United States of America as the only country in the world) as he asks Britain if he knows how long it would take him to get from his place to Germany’s if he was driving.

England responds with "perhaps you should try looking at an actual world map instead of that narcissistic nonsense", not that that makes much of a difference as America ignores him in favor of grabbing a laptop.

He says that he’ll just ask Google Maps for the answer to his question. If you’re thinking that laptops and Google shouldn’t have existed in 1942, yeah, you’re right, as England says pretty much the same thing, not that America is listening to him.

Those 2 scenes can really make you grin and smile in amusement. When I saw the map that Canada’s delegation to NATO tweeted to Russia (because of how 10 Russian soldiers accidentally got lost and ended up in Ukraine), it also reminded me of those two scenes from Hetalia.

It was even funnier because America was supposed to be the one who’s bad with maps and directions; if it was him, he’d probably end up getting lost especially if you consider how he’s looking for Japan and Germany on a map of the USA.

Your Thoughts and Opinions

Wouldn’t it be even more amusing if we could see more funny maps and maybe more countries trying to troll each other 😃? What do you think? Feel free and welcome to share your thoughts and opinions about this by leaving a comment below.

The YouTube Video shows the map that Canada tweeted including the message that went with it. It also shows the map that Russia tweeted as well as their response message to Canada’s tweet.

*Notes:
- This was previously published elsewhere
- The last updated date was listed as Oct 21st, 2015 9:18:25pm
- Image with added text was modified by Freya Yuki based on the image by YizelePhantom (CC:BY) from deviantArt
- Image was chosen because it features the Russian flag (we’re talking about Canada’s funny map tweet to Russia); that and the figure shown is actually Russia (Ivan Braginsky) from the Hetalia: Axis Powers anime series
- Second pic is from Amazon.com; link shown above

How Chocolat Is Holding Back Vanilla in Sugar Sugar Rune?

I found this unfinished post in this blog's (Anime Meta (Anime Archives)) drafts list. The post's last updated date is listed as May 14th, 2016 10:59:02pm. Yep, this has been sitting on my drafts list for practically forever already. It's definitely time I got 'round to publishing this.

Besides, like I mentioned in my other blogs, I have a lot of unfinished posts stored on the drafts pages of my numerous blogs (particularly Tumblr and Google Blogger). I'm now trying to finish all these articles, so I can publish them already and decrease the number of my drafts.

Anyway, this post is about the Sugar Sugar Rune anime (#ad) and manga series by Moyoco Anno.

"I'm ashamed. I'm the one holding you back."
- Chocolat Meilleure / Kato

Chocolat, the series' main female character, says the above line in episode 6 of the Sugar Sugar Rune anime. It’s directed towards her best friend, Vanilla. Why does she say that? Is she right or wrong?

Sugar Sugar Rune episode 6 has best friends Chocolat and Vanilla trying to learn how to fence, so they could fight against Pierre Tempête de Neige, the captain of the fencing club. If they win, they’ll be allowed to join the club.

Chocolat Slacks Off

Chocolat Meilleure / Kato was the one who wanted to fence, so she could get a lot of hearts for the queen contest, but she wasn’t taking things seriously at all.

Instead of practicing and doing her best to study and learn fencing, so she has a shot at winning when fighting against Pierre, she does absolutely nothing at all. She just slacks off, relaxing and having fun.

Vanilla Works Hard and Tries Her Best

In contrast to that, Vanilla Mieux / Ice was the one who was taking all this seriously. She’s not even interested in fencing, and she’s only doing this to help out her best friend.

Yet she’s the one who stays up late at night to practice. She even goes home early every day just so she could practice.

Chocolat vs. Vanilla

As such, when the 2 friends have a practice match, it’s Ice who wins. This isn't surprising at all considering all the effort she put into practicing. But Kato gets all upset about losing, and she runs off.

Vanilla runs after her friend, apologizing and saying that her win was probably just a fluke, but she wishes it wasn’t because she doesn’t want to hold Kato back. Oh, Vanilla, if anyone is holding anyone back here, it’s definitely not you.

Chocolat Realizes Her Mistake

Thankfully, Chocolat realizes this and says the quoted line above. It turns out that she’s not as oblivious as she’s made out to be.

Initially, I thought she didn’t even realize the things that Vanilla has done for her (going home early and staying up late at night to practice fencing), but, as it turns out, she’s actually aware of this.

So, yes, IMHO, Chocolat was completely and totally right when she said the quote above and when she told Vanilla that Ice winning during their practice match was not a fluke. It wasn't. Because practice makes perfect.

Vanilla tried her best. She tried really hard, so she definitely had the right to cherish her victory. As for Chocolat, she pretty much just cruised through this, saying that it would work out somehow even though this was her idea.

She was the one who wanted to fence and win. Vanilla only got roped into this because she's a good friend. Ice was doing all this for Chocolat while Kato was busy daydreaming and thinking about Pierre.

I'm glad that Chocolat was able to realize her shortcomings. I'm glad that she tried to cheer up Vanilla and was honest enough to admit that she was the one who messed up.

So, yes, surprisingly, I felt kind of sorry for her in this part of the episode. At the moment, she wasn't as bad as she usually was. Could this be a sign that she was getting better in terms of character development? What do you think?

*Notes:
- Pic is from Amazon.com; link shown above

Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal Anime Episode 55-58 Review

Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal (#ad) is an anime and manga series by Kazuki Takahashi. The main character, Yuma Tsukumo, and Astral, a messenger from the Astral World, have joined the World Duel Carnival (WDC). They are looking for the Numbers Xyz cards, which are the pieces of Astral's memories.

Yuma and Astral have gotten past the preliminary rounds of the competition. They are now in the final rounds of the WDC, and they'll be up against tough opponents. But who's worried? It's obvious they're not going to lose because they're the main characters, and the main character favoritism in this show is off the charts.

Which means it's basically a given that they'll be winning the tournament. Meh. It's too bad because I don't want them to win. The truth is I'm not watching this show for Yuma or even Astral (though Astral is way better than Yuma).

The following are my thoughts about episodes 55-58 of this anime show in no particular order. For the sections marked by episode number, I'll be writing my comments and opinions as I watch said episode.

Episode 55

The previews for this episode revealed that Kite / Kaito Tenjo and V / Quinton will be dueling. As I mentioned in my review of Episode 54, I'm worried because I don't want Kite to lose to V. I want him to win. I hope he does. Keeping my fingers crossed. I'm going to be so disappointed if V ends up winning.

I think it's nice how loyal Orbital 7 is to Kaito. He's willing to face Kite's wrath just to stay by his side. I don't mind him being there to watch Kite's duel with V. But unfortunately, it looks like Astral, Yuma, and Kotori Mizuki / Tori Meadows are going to be watching the duel as well. Meh.

I still think those 3 have no business watching these other duels. I wish Yuma would actually suffer a consequence for watching these duels instead of participating in the finals like he's supposed to be doing. But of course nothing bad is going to happen to Yuma because he's the main character.

I'm surprised the V vs Kaito duel has started already, but Yuma and the others have yet to show up. Definitely not complaining though. V manages to summon an Xyz Numbers card in the first turn (Number 9: Dyson Sphere / Numbers 9: Canopy Star - Dyson Sphere).

For now, he has the advantage over his opponent. Am hoping the keyword here is "for now". I hope the fact that Quinton seems to be winning now just means that Kite will find a way to turn things around later on.

This could be similar to how Tron / Vetrix was able to make a comeback and win even though Droite / Dextra had the advantage in the beginning of their match in the previous episode.

Ugh. Should have known Yuma and the others would show up soon. Did not miss them at all. Can we just get back to the V vs Kaito duel already?

When Yuma showed up, Quinton says, "I didn't think all the actors would gather in one place like this. This could very well be the act of fate."

At those words, all I could think of was "LOL. Act of fate? What act of fate? More like this is happening because the plot said this has to happen now. Can we say contrived or what?"

I mean, seriously, Yuma and the others aren't even supposed to be here right now. Yuma is supposed to be looking for the person he has to duel as part of the World Duel Carnival finals.

Yes, he wants to talk to Kaito about Droite, but there's no reason why he couldn't talk to the guy later. Why did it have to be while Kaito was busy dueling V?

Yuma wants Quinton to tell him where his father (Kazuma Tsukumo) is. V agrees to tell him all that he knows without protest, but this doesn't make sense. Why would V be so willing to tell them anything?

What does he gain by telling them what he knows? Why not keep things to himself? It would be a different story altogether if, say, Yuma (or Kite since he's fighting him right now) has to beat him in a duel before he'd tell them anything.

Whoah, Dr. Faker is apparently Kite and Hart / Haruto Tenjo's father. Didn't see this coming. From the few times the viewers have seen Dr. Faker, it didn't seem like he really cared about anyone, much less Kite or Hart. Plus, if he really cared about his sons, would he be using them in this way (like making Kite collect the Numbers Xyz cards)?

I still don't get why V is so willing to tell everyone his story. But, oh well, at least his story is pretty interesting. It's good to learn more about Dr. Faker, Byron Arclight (V's dad), and Kazuma.

Having Yuma's dad look at a picture of his family just makes me wonder how he could possibly be related to Yuma and Akari / Kari Tsukumo since he looks nothing like them. Their hair styles and colors are also completely different.

The same can be said for Yuma and Akari's mother, Mira / Mirai Tsukumo. At least Byron and Chris (V / Quinton) look a bit alike. Even the younger version of Dr. Faker seems to have a bit of a resemblance with Kite, at least in terms of their hair color and part of their hair styles.

I wonder why Dr. Faker wants to find the door to the Parallel Worlds or other dimensions so badly that he's willing to sacrifice people if that's what it would take to achieve his goals.

I suppose with a name like Faker, it shouldn't be surprising that he would betray Byron and Kazuma. I feel bad for Byron though because he considered Dr. Faker a good friend and told Kazuma he would do his best to help Faker achieve his goals.

So Tron / Vetrix is actually Byron Arclight. I still think Tron's crazy, and I still hate him for what he did to Droite. I like him as Byron though.

But it's understandable that he would change considering all that he'd been through. Also, I get that he wants revenge on Faker, but why does he need to take out his anger on Droite who hadn't wronged him?

Kite says he only cares about his little brother, and he didn't really have much of a reaction to V's story. But I wonder what happened to his family? Was Haruto born ill? Where is their mother?

How come Dr. Faker doesn't seem to care about his children? How come Kite doesn't seem to care about his father? This episode brought some answers and a lot of questions. Looking forward to finding out the answers to these questions in the coming episodes.

Episode 56

This episode will be the continuation of the duel between Quinton and Kaito. Still feeling worried and still keeping my fingers crossed. Kite had better win this duel.

So III (Trey) and IV (Quattro) are apparently V's little brothers. But am really not seeing the resemblance at all. III and IV look nothing like V and Tron. They don't even look like each other. Their hair styles and hair colors are so different. At least V and Tron look a bit alike. But what about III and IV? Why do they look so different?

I get that Quinton hates Dr. Faker for what the guy did to his family and for causing his family to break apart, but he shouldn't be taking his anger and hatred out on Faker's kids. Kaito and Haruto (#ad) had nothing to do with what happened. Why should they have to suffer for what their dad did?

Kite reveals that he hates his dad, which isn't all that surprising considering what we've seen so far. V apparently knows about this though, so why does he still blame Kaito for what Dr. Faker did?

Number 9: Dyson Sphere / Numbers 9: Canopy Star - Dyson Sphere is seriously overpowered. Its anime effect is:

"Cannot be destroyed by battle except with "Number" monsters. If this card with Xyz Material is attacked: Negate that attack (this is a Quick Effect). When this card is targeted for an attack while it has no Xyz Material: You can target 2 monsters in your Graveyard; attach those targets to this card as Xyz Materials. You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; this card can attack your opponent directly this turn. Your opponent must control a monster with higher ATK than this card for you to activate and to resolve this effect."

It's practically invincible. I was really worried that Kite would end up losing especially when his life points kept dropping until he only had 100 left.

I was so glad that he was able to turn things around and win by Xyz summoning Neo Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon.

This was a brilliant duel. I especially like how Kite was able to win without having to resort to a Shining Draw (*cough*cheating*cough).

I mean, I suppose it could be argued that there was still cheating involved since Kite managed to draw the cards he needed at the right moment, but, then again, isn't that the case for all the duels in this show?

All the characters end up drawing the cards they need to draw. This is the case even for characters who are supposed to lose. Those who aren't allowed to win end up drawing the cards they need so they can lose while those who have to win end up drawing the cards they need to win.

Unlike with Yuma and Astral, at least Kaito didn't need to create a card out of thin air to win this duel. Plus, the cards Kaito drew were actually a part of his deck. So there was no blatant cheating involved, definitely nothing that screams deus ex machina.

This was just an overall satisfying and fun duel. I didn't even end up hating V. I'm not sad he lost though. I'm happy that Kite won.

IMHO, Kaito is still the best character in Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal. He is awesome and brilliant. I find him way more interesting and likable than Yuma. There's depth and personality to his character. He's not perfect, and that's great.

His imperfections make him human and relatable unlike Yuma who comes across as way too good to be true. Yuma is too pure and too perfect, so there are times when he does't seem real or human.

Sigh. I really wish Kite was the main character instead of Yuma. I also want him to win the World Duel Carnival, but I'm not holding my hopes up. From the get-go, it's obvious that Yuma is going to win. I'm already dreading having to see that part. Meh.

The next episode preview shows IV and Shark (Ryoga Kamishiro / Reginald Kastle) dueling. I'm hoping Shark wins. After Kite, he's my next favorite character in this show.

Episode 57

Keeping my fingers crossed for Shark to win his duel against IV. I'm going to be so disappointed if Ryoga loses.

Ugh, I'm not surprised that Yuma, Astral, and Kotori have once again ended up watching a duel that should have had nothing to do with them. I'm just really disappointed about this.

Why do those 3 need to be present all the time anyway? Can't we have a duel where Yuma doesn't show up at all (either as a participant or as a watcher)? Why does he need to be around all the time (other than the fact that he's unfortunately the main character)?

Another thing I have to wonder about is why the duels aren't happening simultaneously? All the participants should have arrived at their respective battlefields in more or less the same time.

So how come the Tron vs Droite, the V vs Kite, and the Shark vs IV duels didn't happen at the same time? This sounds so contrived, like the matches had to happen one at a time just so Yuma and the others could watch each duel.

With IV and Shark dueling, it's obvious that Yuma and Gauche will be the ones fighting. It's also already obvious that Gauche is going to lose. Meh.

Not really looking forward to that at all. I'd rather Yuma be the one to lose. Can we just have Kite be the one to defeat Tron and Dr. Faker? Yuma doesn't need to get involved.

Shark manages to Xyz summon a monster (Submersible Carrier Aero Shark / Underwater Mothership Aero Shark) on his first turn. At this point, I'm no longer impressed.

It seems like every other character is able to summon 2 monsters and then use those monsters to Xyz summon, all in the same turn. By now, this has become the norm, and I'm getting sick of how often this play is used. I mean, in the last duel, V also managed to summon Dyson Sphere in the first turn.

Heck, Quattro also managed to Xyz summon Number 15: Gimmick Puppet Giant Grinder / Numbers 15: Gimmick Puppet - Giant Killer in his first turn. I wish they'd change things even just a little bit.

How 'bout the characters don't get to Xyz summon in the first turn? Or how 'bout their summon or special summon is negated? Seriously, doesn't anyone have a counter trap card like Solemn Judgment or Black Horn of Heaven or something?

Since IV managed to summon a Numbers Xyz card, he now has the advantage. I'm hoping this means Ryoga will be able to turn things around later on so he can win.

Jeez, every time Tron shows up, he makes me hate him even more. Sometimes, it's hard to believe he's supposed to be Byron Arclight. Tron is nothing like Byron.

Byron came across as likable. He seems to be a good friend and he seems to care about his kids as well. In contrast to that, Tron doesn't seem to care about anything other than revenge. He has even resorted to using his sons for revenge.

If Tron really wanted Yuma to shut up, he should have gagged him too instead of just tying him up. The whole time Yuma kept going on about his dueling spiel (how dueling shouldn't be used for revenge, how people become friends when they duel, etc), the only thing I could think of was that he was such a hypocrite and should really just shut up now.

Yuma himself said he couldn't forgive Tron and even Dr. Faker for what they did. And now he has the gall to go on about how dueling shouldn't be used for revenge. LOL. What a joke.

Ryoga manages to Xyz summon Number 32: Shark Drake / Numbers 32: Marine Biting Dragon - Shark Drake. I would have been more impressed if he actually managed to get 3 monsters on his field to summon this card.

But what I've been noticing is that a lot of the characters have cards like Bubble Bringer, which allows them to treat one monster as 2 Xyz materials or overlay units for an Xyz summon.

In effect, you end up using only 2 monsters to Xyz summon a monster that requires 3 monsters. This feels like a cop out. I mean, the first few times is fine. But, by now, the novelty of this tactic has worn off.

I want to see something new. What's the point of saying an Xyz monster needs 3 Xyz materials if only 2 will end up being used anyway?

I thought this duel would end in this episode since Ryoga actually managed to destroy Giant Killer with his Shark Drake. IV managed to make a comeback though and even got to Xyz summon Number 40: Gimmick Puppet of Strings / Numbers 40: Gimmick Puppet - Heaven's Strings.

I wonder if this is because IV had 2 Numbers cards, and so the duel couldn't end until both those cards had been summoned.

Things are looking bad for Ryoga now. His life points have been reduced to 500. Am still rooting for him to win though. Keeping my fingers crossed.

At the end of this episode:

• I'm starting to dislike Yuma
• I still want Shark to win
• I still don't like IV, but I did end up feeling a bit sorry for him since he was only following Tron's orders and yet Tron doesn't seem to care about him at all
• I still hate Tron
• I still hate Kotori

Episode 58

The Quattro vs Ryoga duel is continued in this episode. I like how Shark is trying to resist succumbing to the control of his Numbers Xyz card. I like that he's actually struggling and things aren't going easy for him.

Showing him having a hard time and yet still trying will make his victory (still hoping he'll win against IV) even more satisfying. It's times like this where I really wish characters like Ryoga and Kite could be the main characters instead of Yuma.

Because things are always okay with Yuma. He isn't even affected by the Numbers cards even though it would have been more believable if he also had to deal with struggling not to lose himself to the Numbers.

I'm feeling more and more sorry for IV. I'm still rooting for Shark to win, but this episode is showing more depth to IV's character. We're being shown that he's not just some crazy, hot-blooded, hot-tempered bad guy who wants to give people his version of "fanservice".

The audience is being shown that he does care about his father and that he's doing what he's doing (like fighting against Shark, getting Shark's sister hurt, etc) for his father.

Just when I thought I couldn't possibly hate Tron more, he goes and opens his mouth and proves me wrong. He's despicable for using his children in this way.

They all followed his orders, wanting to please him, wanting to go back to how things were, but he's changed. He's not the same man as Byron anymore, which is really unfortunate because Byron is likable.

Wow, Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal, way to prove me right. Once again, we're introduced to yet another monster (Gimmick Puppet Nightmare) who has an effect that allows it to be treated as 2 Xyz materials. I'm so sick of this.

Can't we have something new? What's the point of requiring 3 monsters to Xyz summon a particular monster when the characters are going to keep on using 2 monsters anyway?

Quattro summons Number 88: Gimmick Puppet of Leo / Numbers 88: Gimmick Puppet - Destiny Leo, but I have to wonder why. What's the point other than because the plot said this has to happen?

I mean, right now, he already has Heaven's Strings on his side of the field, and it has 3000 attack points as well as 1 overlay unit. I wouldn't have minded him summoning Destiny Leo if he didn't have to get rid of Heaven's Strings to do it.

He already used up his battle phase this turn (since he misplayed and wasn't able to damage Ryoga in any way), but summoning Destiny Leo didn't change the outcome for him this turn. If Leo can make him win this turn, then I wouldn't be questioning why he'd summon this card.

But since nothing really changed for him this turn, then what's the point? It's like he just replaced Heaven's Strings with Destiny Leo, so he went from a monster with 3000 attack to one with 3200 attack, which isn't much of a difference.

Yes, Leo does have a pretty good effect, but the point is that summoning it won't win Quattro the duel right away. He still has to wait.

Yuma did the Chaos Xyz Change (Chaos Xyz Evolution) too when he changed his Number 39: Utopia / Numbers 39: Kibou Hope to Number C39: Utopia Ray / Chaos Numbers 39: Kibou Hope Ray, so how come it's supposed to be considered bad that Shark was able to do this as well?

I don't like that Shark ended up succumbing to the influence of Shark Drake (this is all Tron's fault; he kept on goading Ryoga). I was hoping that Shark would keep saying no and then discover a power all on his own without the influence of the Numbers clouding his heart and shrouding it in darkness.

I like that Shark was able to perform a Chaos Xyz Change, but I don't like that this is being viewed as bad or that this happened because of the influence of his Numbers. It's not fair because Yuma was able to do this too, and no one is saying he's bad for doing it. Ugh. The main character favoritism in this show is really something else.

Shark won. But his victory feels bittersweet to me. I didn't really enjoy it as much as I enjoyed Kite's victory over V. Part of this is because of how Shark managed to win by using Number C32: Shark Drake Veiss / Chaos Numbers 32: Marine Biting Dragon - Shark Drake Veiss. Another part is how Quattro ended up being sympathetic.

The last is because Tron heavily interfered in this duel. It felt like Tron was making sure that IV would make a lot of misplays, so he'd end up losing.

Tron also tried to influence Ryoga such as by trying to get him to keep on using his Numbers card. It feels like Ryoga didn't really deserve this victory because if Tron hadn't been around, Quattro would have won.

Argh, Yuma really needs to stop with his hypocritical prattling about how no one should get revenge via dueling. Seriously, how many times has he said he won't forgive Tron for what he did to Droite and to his sons?

He comes across as nothing but a hypocrite when he keeps telling everyone else they shouldn't duel for revenge. How come Yuma can duel for revenge when others can't? Ugh. He's so frustrating.

At the end of this episode:

• I hate Tron even more than I hated him before. He's doing a good job competing with Kotori for the character I hate most in Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal
• Unfortunately for Kotori, Tron wasn't able to beat her. She's still the worst character in this show, and I still hate her with the fire of a thousand burning suns
• I don't really hate IV anymore. Thanks to all the things that have been revealed about him, he's become a bit more likable and sympathetic. There's also more depth to his character now, so he doesn't appear to be just some crazy bad guy. I'm feeling more neutral towards him
• Ryoga is still my second favorite character in this anime, but, as I already mentioned above, I was rather disappointed with his duel against IV
• I'm really starting to dislike Yuma. By now, it's bordering a bit on hate. He'd better stop being a hypocrite and a cheater. Sigh. I wish he'd stop being the main character. Can we just give that position to Kaito? He deserves it way more than Yuma

The next episode preview shows that it's finally Yuma's turn to duel. Didn't miss his duels at all especially since I already know the outcome of this battle. Obviously, Yuma is going to win.

Oh, Gauche is likely going to be taking the upper hand, but Yuma will be able to make a comeback. There's no doubt about this.

I wish Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal (#ad) would prove me wrong, but I also know it wouldn't because things are already set in stone. The main character just can't lose.

If only I actually liked the main character in this show, then this wouldn't be so bad. But Yuma has really been annoying me a lot over the past few episodes. I hope things get better or that we viewers can see Kite soon. I miss him already.

Miscellaneous

• The new opening (Soul Drive by Color Bottle) and ending (Wild Child by Moumoon) songs are growing on me, but I still prefer the first two
• I want to see more Xyz monsters with higher ranks. By now, I'm so sick of seeing the usual rank 4s (this means you, Utopia; you've really overstayed your welcome)
• I want to see the characters Xyz summon monsters that require 3 or more overlay materials. The whole spam 2 monsters on the field then use them to Xyz summon has gotten old. I want to see something different instead of the usual tactic over and over again

Your thoughts and opinions

So, what about you? What do you think about all of this? Feel free to share your thoughts and opinions by leaving a message in the comments section below.

*Notes:
- Pics are from Amazon.com; links shown above
- Text was added to first image using Canva

What Happened to Kurt and Reina After the Hunter x Hunter Chimera Ant Arc?

What happened to Kurt and Reina (from the Hunter x Hunter 2011 anime and manga series by Yoshihiro Togashi) after the Chimera Ant arc?

(*Warning for possible spoilers from the Hunter x Hunter 2011 anime (#ad))

Kurt and Reina are siblings who were first introduced at the very beginning of the Chimera Ant arc. They’re 2 little kids who were the first humans to get eaten by the Chimera Ant Queen.

Yeah, it was really horrible how they died and got eaten. They were too young to die. But let’s not get into that now. Things’ll just get depressing otherwise.

The 2 were actually "reborn" as Chimera Ants. Kurt became Colt. He was loyal to the queen until the end. This extreme devotion towards the queen was what eventually led him to side with the good guys later on.

Reina was later revealed to be Shidore, a servant to Hina, one of the other Chimera Ants. I was happy to see that Reina got reunited with her mother, Haruna, even if she was now a Chimera Ant.

We saw how devastated Haruna was at the disappearance of her children. It was really good that mother and daughter were reunited in the end.

We could certainly use some happy endings at the end of this Hunter x Hunter arc especially considering all the things that happened prior to this (like all the people that died and got eaten thanks to the Chimera Ants).

But I have to wonder about Colt/Kurt. I mean, we know that Morel Mackernasey took him in and that he was taking care of the female Chimera Ant who has Kite’s memories.

What I want to know is if he ever went to visit his mother and Reina? Does he know Reina’s identity as a Chimera Ant? Does he know that Shidore is really his little sister?

Have those 2 ever spoken to each other? Have they met? He does remember his past, right? So, how come he didn’t visit his mother, or did he?

Sure, he doesn’t look human anymore, but that’s the same with Reina, and yet her mother and the other people in their village still accepted her anyway. They even accepted Bloster, the Chimera Ant who brought Reina back to her family.

So, there’s no reason to think that Colt wouldn’t be accepted by these people if he did show up in their village in NGL (Neo-Green Life autonomous region). Why didn’t he then?

Perhaps he couldn’t visit right away since he was busy taking care of the female Kite. But what about now that Kite seems to be all grown up already?

She certainly looks like she could take care of herself. Surely, Colt now has more time to go see his mother and sister. So why can’t he go see them then?

What do you think about this? Feel free to share your thoughts and opinions by leaving a comment or by answering the poll displayed below.


*Notes:
- This was previously published on my Soyuz Mir Tumblr blog
- Pic is from Amazon.com; link shown above

Hunter x Hunter 2011 Anime Episode 147 Mini-Review

This is just a mini-review because it mostly focuses on one particular part of episode 147. Needless to say, this post has spoilers for the Hunter x Hunter anime (#ad) and manga series by Yoshihiro Togashi, particularly the 147th episode of the 2011 anime. So what’s wrong with said episode? What’s there to hate about it?

In episode 147 of Hunter x Hunter, there’s this part where this pink Chimera Ant bear thing talks to this female Chimera Ant who has Kite’s (Kaito's) memories. This scene takes what feels like forever to end. Seriously, it felt like it just went on and on, and it honestly seemed so pointless and useless. In short, I totally hated it.

I mean, we didn’t even get the bear’s name (at least, I don’t remember if we did. Did we know him?). Plus, his human self wasn’t even anyone that we’d ever met (we didn’t get his name either or even the girl’s name, the one that the bear was talking about).

If he’d actually been Gyro, it might have been better, but he’s not. So, really, seriously, what is the whole point of this scene? It felt like such a complete and total waste of time. Why did we need to see this anyway?

Since we don’t really know these characters, it’s hard to care about them or what happens to them. The whole time this was going on, I couldn’t help but want it to just end already. Why couldn’t we just get to the part where the female Kite and Gon Freecss talk?

You know what’s even more annoying? Female Kite spent more time talking to the bear than she does with Gon. It’s like Gon and Kite only got to talk for a short bit while Kite and the bear went on and on and on with their pointless and useless conversation. What’s up with that?

Instead of this pointless and useless scene, I wish we could have seen how Gon and Killua Zoldyck got reunited and how the former got introduced to Alluka Zoldyck. I wanted to see Gon’s reaction about finding out about Alluka and how Killua actually has a sibling that he likes, etc.

These scenes would have been far more interesting than this one. Why’d they have to skip the interesting bits in favor of this scene? Ugh. I mean, seriously, Gon and Killua are the main characters, so we naturally care more about those 2 than some pink bear thing.

Besides, are we even going to be seeing this bear again or what? Plus, isn’t the Chimera Ant arc over already? Why’d we need to see this scene?

What do you think about all this? Feel free to share your thoughts and opinions by leaving a comment below or by rating this episode using the widget below. Personally, my rating for this episode is going to have to be a 1 for the reasons stated above.


*Notes:
- This was previously published on my Soyuz Mir Tumblr blog on 11 October 2015
- Pic is from Amazon.com; link shown above

Results Of The Favorite Valentine Poll

I added an Opinion Stage poll to this post where I talked about characters from two different series who happen to share the same last name. The name in question is "Valentine". The characters are Faye Valentine from Cowboy Bebop and Vincent Valentine from the Final Fantasy series.

Cowboy Bebop is an anime and manga series. The anime was animated by Sunrise Studio, directed by Shinichirō Watanabe, and written by Keiko Nobumoto. The manga was published by Kadokawa Shoten and Tokyopop and written by Yutaka Nanten. Faye Valentine (#ad) is one of the main characters from this show. She is a bounty hunter who has no memory of her past.

She was severely injured in an accident, which led to her being cryogenically frozen until a cure could be found for her wounds. After 54 years in suspended animation, she was finally woken, only to find out that she couldn't remember anything and she'd incurred a huge debt. Since she couldn't and didn't want to pay her debts, she decided to run away and become a bounty hunter instead.

On the other hand, Final Fantasy is a series of video games for different platforms including PlayStation and Wii. It was created by Hironobu Sakaguchi and developed by Square Enix. Vincent Valentine (#ad) is one of the characters from this series.

He's the main character in the Final Fantasy VII: Dirge of Cerberus game. He appears to be a loner though he does have some friends. He's a capable fighter whose weapon of choice is a three-barreled revolver called Cerberus.

Anyway, for reasons that I'll talk about in another post on another one of my blogs, I've decided to delete the Opinion Stage poll and replace it with one from SurveyMonkey instead. The poll in question was created on 06 Dec 2014.

On my dashboard on the Opinion Stage site, the statistics page for this poll looks like this:

This is the new favorite Valentine poll from SurveyMonkey:


So, what about you? Who's your favorite Valentine? You can share your thoughts and opinions by voting or by leaving a comment below.

*Notes:
- Pics are screenshots from my Opinion Stage account
- Pics from the first screenshot and photos from the poll are from Amazon.com; links shown above

Faye (Cowboy Bebop) Versus Vincent Valentine (Final Fantasy)

Cowboy Bebop is an anime and manga series. The anime was animated by Sunrise Studio, directed by Shinichirō Watanabe, and written by Keiko Nobumoto. The manga was published by Kadokawa Shoten and Tokyopop and written by Yutaka Nanten.

The story is set in the future (year 2071), and it follows the adventures of a group of bounty hunters as they travel around on their spaceship known as Bebop. The show explores philosophical concepts like existentialism, existential ennui, and loneliness.

On the other hand, Final Fantasy is a series of video games for different platforms including PlayStation and Wii. It was created by Hironobu Sakaguchi and developed by Square Enix. The main plot or storyline of the games is usually centered on a group of characters who are trying to save their world from evil.

What the 2 series have in common?

One of the things that the 2 aforementioned series have in common is how they each have a character who share the same surname. The last name in question is "Valentine" and the characters are Vincent Valentine (#ad) from the Final Fantasy series and Faye Valentine from Cowboy Bebop.

It’s interesting to note that these 2 are both from Japanese anime and yet their last name isn’t really something that one would associate with Japanese or anime. Since it’s a surname which the two share, it’s not really surprising that they are of different genders.

Faye Valentine from Cowboy Bebop

Faye Valentine (#ad) is one of the main characters of the Cowboy Bebop series. Thanks to an accident which killed her parents and severely injured her, she had to be cryogenically frozen until a cure could be found for her wounds.

She spent 54 years in suspended animation. When she was finally woken, she finds out that she has incurred a huge debt and she has no memory of her past. Unable and refusing to pay off her debts, Faye decided to run away and become a bounty hunter instead.

She is a strong and confident person with a bit of an attitude in her personality. She has a very tough exterior, owing to her past and experiences as well as being a bounty hunter. She’s very much capable of taking care of herself.

Vincent Valentine from Final Fantasy

Vincent Valentine is the main character in Final Fantasy VII: Dirge of Cerberus though he also makes an appearance in other games. He appears to be a loner though he does have friends. It just seems like he prefers to be alone.

He comes across as rather cold-hearted who is also wont to brood over his dark and mysterious past filled with secrets. He’s a very capable and powerful fighter as he is very much adept at utilizing his weapon of choice, which is a three-barreled revolver known as the Cerberus.

Your favorite Valentine?

Both characters are interesting and unique in their own way since they are filled with much depth that really add to their persona. So, which one do you like best? What do you think of them?

You can share your thoughts and opinion by taking the quick poll below. Know another Valentine or like another one who isn't mentioned here? Feel free to tell us about this character. Mention their name and the series they're from in the comments section below.


Aside: this post is part of the Names Series, a series of short articles intended to showcase some characters who just happen to share the same name even though they’re from different shows and series.

*Notes:
- First pic is a screenshot of the favorite Valentine poll from my Opinion Stage account. It was created on 06 Dec 2014
- Pics from that screenshot and from the poll are from Amazon.com; links shown above
- This was previously published on my Tumblr blog on Jun 20th, 2015 4:25:35pm

Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal Anime Episode 47-54 Review

Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal (#ad) is an anime and manga series by Kazuki Takahashi. The story is about aspiring duelist Yuma Tsukumo who wants to become a Duel Champion and Astral who is a messenger from the Astral World. Yuma is helping Astral collect the Numbers Xyz cards. These cards are actually the pieces of Astral's memory.

The following are my thoughts on episode 47-54 of this anime show in no particular order:

Kotori Mizuki / Tori Meadows

She gets a section of her own because she is just that bad. In this post where I reviewed the first 46 episodes of Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal, I talked about hating her. Well, I still hate her. Unfortunately, she hasn't gotten any better. She is still the most useless and unnecessary character in this series.

The worst is how she shows up in pretty much every episode, but she doesn't really do anything. She's not even a duelist. She just stands there, doing nothing. More often than not, most of her dialog consists of her screaming Yuma's name.

I'm still firmly of the belief that Zexal would be infinitely better and way more interesting if she wasn't around. Kotori doesn't contribute to the plot in a meaningful way, so take her away, and the show doesn't lose anything.

It can still go on without her. Sigh. I'm really starting to loather her. I wish she'd either start being more useful or just be removed from this show.

Numbers Club Members

I'm starting to get sick of the characters that make up the Numbers Club. I still hate Kotori more, but these guys are starting to get on my nerves. They come across as extras that seem to exist just to watch Yuma duel. At least they're better than Kotori in that they're actually duelists and it's clear their lives don't revolve around Yuma all the time.

Bronk Stone / Tetsuo Takeda is the one I like best out of all the members of this club. It's too bad he doesn't do much. So far, I think his only major contribution to the plot was when he fought against Number 96: Black Mist (Number 96: Dark Mist) and managed to win. That was a pretty fun duel.

I still hate Flip Turner / Tokunosuke Omoteura. I'm neutral towards the class rep (Caswell Francis / Takashi Todoroki). He's better than Kotori. Well, at this point, every other character is better than Kotori.

I find Cathy Katherine (Cathy or Cat-chan) way more useful and better than Kotori. She has a crush on Yuma too, but at least it doesn't seem like her life revolves around Yuma. She can function without Yuma, and she doesn't need to hang around him all the time. She's also a pretty competent duelist.

Actually, if you really look at it, they're all okay and competent duelists. I mean, Yuma's the inexperienced one when compared to the others, but he manages to win because that's what the plot demands, because he's the main character and can't lose important duels. Since Cat-chan's not the main character, of course she and the others will have to lose their duels.

She can even communicate with cats, and she's used this ability to help Yuma like that time dogs took Yuma's heart pieces and she sent her cats to search for them.

Then there was that time when she was the only one who was able to escape from Jin / Fortuno and warn Yuma about the guy who'd kidnapped the rest of their friends.

She was also the one who was able to reveal that the Kite / Kaito Tenjo watching the duel between Jin and Yuma was nothing but a statue. Compared to all that, what has Kotori done?

IMHO, in terms of likability, I would rate the Numbers Club members in this order with number 1 being the most likable and number 5 being the least likable.

1. Tetsuo
2. Cathy
3. Class rep
4. Tokunosuke
5. Kotori

Episode 47

When Numbers 33: OOPArts Super Weapon - Machu Mach / Number 33: Chronomaly Machu Mech destroyed Gagaga Magician, shouldn't he have been revived because Bound Wand was still equipped to him? Or did I miss something here?

In the anime, Bound Wand's text says:

"Equip only to a Spellcaster-Type monster. It gains 100 ATK × its Level. If the equipped monster is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard, Special Summon that monster from the Graveyard at the end of the Battle Phase."

Episode 48

Once again, Number 39: Utopia / Numbers 39: Kibou Hope shows up. Did not miss him at all. In my review about the earlier episodes, I talked about being sick of Kibou Hope because it shows up pretty much all the time, and I would have wanted to see Yuma use the other Numbers Xyz cards at his disposal.

Well, at least in this episode it made sense why Yuma summoned Utopia. Astral was supposedly dead and had apparently left him with only Kibou Hope.

But I do have to wonder why Yuma didn't use Chaos Xyz Change (Chaos Xyz Evolution) in this episode to turn his Utopia into Number C39: Utopia Ray / Chaos Numbers 39: Kibou Hope Ray. At this point, his life points are already below 1000.

If I remember correctly, his life points are now only 400, so he could have summoned Hope Ray. If he summoned Kibou Hope Ray, it would have had 3 overlay units (the two attached to Utopia and the Utopia card itself).

He could then use Overlay Eater's effect (he already discarded this to the graveyard to activate Flelf / Full Elf's effect) to get the last overlay or Xyz material attached to Machu Mach (Overlay Eater's effect allows it to be banished from your graveyard so you can take one of your opponent's Xyz materials. You can then attach this material to one of your own Xyz monsters).

Doing this would have given Ray 4 overlay units. If Yuma had used up all of those units, Ray's attack would have been increased (it would gain 500 ATK for each Xyz material detached from it) and Machu Mech's attack would have been decreased (thanks to Hope Ray's effect, Yuma can choose one monster his opponent controls and have it lose 1000 ATK for each Xyz material detached from Ray).

Wouldn't this be enough for Yuma to win? Even if it's not, doing this could have given him the advantage since Number 33 would have been destroyed, he himself would still have Hope Ray on his side of the field, and III's life points would have been heavily reduced. So, why didn't Yuma do this? Was he needlessly trying to prolong the fight, or did I just miss something or what?

Also, I wonder if the audience is really supposed to believe that Astral is dead. Well, for me, I don't believe it. I mean, Astral is one of the main characters. He and Yuma are a team. They're partners. Plus, the entire plot is basically about Astral needing to collect the Numbers Xyz cards to restore his memories.

And we, the viewers, have yet to find out the mystery of the Astral World and why Astral was sent to Yuma's world. So, I find it hard to believe that they'll kill off Astral at this point in time. There's just no way that's going to happen. I know he'll turn up again sooner or later.

Episode 49

For this episode (and the ones after this), I'm writing this review while watching it. Or to be more precise, I'm writing the draft of this review while watching this episode. I just pause every time I want to comment on something. I'll just fix up this draft before publishing this post.

Anyway, so Yuma finally summoned Utopia Ray. It just makes me wonder why he didn't do this in the previous episode. Once again, he's in a pinch, but I'm not really worried. For one thing, we already know how this is going to turn out. Somehow, Yuma is going to win. Most likely by cheating via the Shining Draw thing again or by creating yet another new card out of thin air.

Another thing I really have to comment on is how seriously annoying it is to have the camera cut to show the members of the Numbers Club watching the duel between Yuma and III. I'm getting really sick and tired of seeing these extras. Why can't we just focus on the match between Yuma and III? Why do we need to see these other characters anyway?

It's not like they're even saying something useful. They're basically just saying or pointing out things that the audience already knows. For example, they'll be like "Yuma only has 50 life points left" or they'll scream Yuma's name, and I'm like "I already know all of this. I was watching the duel. So there's no need to tell me." Argh!

This is so frustrating and annoying. Can Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal please stop having the camera cut to them after every pause in the duel? Ugh. Honestly, it's like they're just being shown to remind the viewers that, hey, these guys are still around. And I'm like, ugh, yeah, unfortunately, please don't remind me.

Can we just get back to the duel now please? It's infinitely more exciting than watching the Numbers Club members standing there doing nothing, or screaming Yuma's name and giving us commentary we already know.

One thing I like in this episode is how there's a consequence for III (Trey) for obtaining and being able to use the power of Numbers 6: OOPArts Atlantal / Number 6: Chronomaly Atlandis. To use such great power, he has to suffer and feel pain. I wish it was actually like this for Yuma.

Because things are way too easy for Yuma. Supposedly, by using the power of Zexal, Yuma will lose something important. Supposedly, in exchange for great power, Yuma has to give up or lose something important.

But we've seen no evidence of this so far. I want to see Yuma struggle because it will make his victory and triumph over his opponents that much sweeter and more deserved especially if he wins due to his own strength and not because he somehow managed to create a card out of thin air or perform yet another Shining Draw.

Speaking of Yuma cheating- ugh, I'm not at all surprised that Astral's back and Yuma just fused with him. Also, here we go again with the Shining Draw thing and creating yet another card out of thin air. Meh. With this kind of power (*cough*cheating*cough*) on Yuma and Astral's side, then it's no wonder that they'd win their duels no matter what.

Episode 50

My first reaction upon hearing the new opening theme song (Soul Drive by Color Bottle) was that I don't like it. It's nothing when compared to the previous opening songs. The very first OP was amazing. The second was good too. But this one was just meh.

About Yuma forgetting the invitation- I get that this was meant to be funny, but I would have thought that Yuma would have made sure that he had the invitation with him before leaving his house especially since he was so excited to go to the party.

It was nice of Gauche / Nistro to help out Yuma and his friends get into the party by vouching for Yuma. The least Yuma could have done was to thank the guy for his help, not just immediately run off on him.

I missed Kite and Shark (#ad) (Ryoga Kamishiro / Reginald Kastle). They need to show up more often. I still find them way more interesting than Yuma. And, yup, I still think either of them should have been the main character instead.

Kite and Shark need to show up more often. I find their storylines way more interesting than Yuma's. Their characters have depth and personality in a way that Yuma, and even Astral, just doesn't have and can't hope to have because Tsukumo is way too pure and way too good to be true

Tron (Vetrix) sounds insane especially when he's laughing. He's really weird. I wonder if he really cares about III. It seems like he does since he held his hand when III asked him to. But then when he spoke with IV (Quattro), he said he wants results and that if he can't get results from IV and III, then he can get it from other people like Shark. So does he care or doesn't he? And why are III, IV, and V (Quinton) so loyal to him anyway?

It was quite surprising to see that Droite seems to care about Kaito Tenjo. When she and Kite first appeared in the same scene together in an earlier episode, I didn't get that impression at all. It was also a surprise to find out that V and Kite apparently know each other and that V was apparently Kite's mentor.

Much like with the new opening theme song, my reaction to hearing the new ending theme song (Wild Child by moumoon) was that I don't like it. It's better than the new OP, but compared to the previous ending songs, this one just isn't up to par.

Episode 51

There should be a limit to how much of an idiot Yuma can be. There are times when he comes across as way too dumb to live. At this point, it's bordering a bit on unbelievable now. He was so excited to participate in the World Duel Carnival finals that he even slept outside the entrance.

So how could he possibly forget the heart pieces that he worked so hard to collect? Also, when Yuma found out that he didn't have his heart pieces, why doesn't he bother calling his friends and family to ask if they'd seen it?

Kari / Akari Tsukumo, Yuma's older sister, Haru Tsukumo, Yuma's grandmother, and Obomi, the cleaning robot, find Yuma's heart pieces. How come Akari calls Kotori then has Kotori call Yuma instead of calling Yuma herself?

This is ridiculous. Akari could have called Yuma herself. Why does Kotori have to be the one to do it? It's really like the show has to keep on shoving Kotori down the audience's throats.

I thought it was quite touching for Yuma's sister and his friends to help get the heart pieces to him, but I hated that Kotori ended up joining Yuma. The entire incident where she ended up next to him came across as contrived and unbelievable. How come Kotori had to join Yuma and Astral in the Duel Coaster? Why couldn't she stay with the rest of the audience instead of being right there getting in the way?

She's not even a duelist. She's not needed there. She's just getting in the way like the useless character that she is. Ugh. This just makes me hate her all the more especially when she starts screaming. Couldn't Yuma stop the Duel Coaster to drop her off? Am watching this for the duels, not to see Kotori be useless and screaming her lungs out because she's scared of how fast the Duel Coaster is going.

Mr. Heartland says, "The Coasters were originally made for one." If this is really true, then how come the Coasters are two-seaters? It's like they did this just so Kotori could join Yuma. But why does she need to join him anyway? Ugh. Also, why would Mr. Heartland allow Kotori to join Yuma? What would he get out of doing this?

In conclusion, I would have enjoyed this episode more if Kotori hadn't been around. I mean, other than screaming and just sitting there, she doesn't really do anything, certainly nothing useful.

I'm half-dreading the next episode. While it'd be interesting to see a three-vs-one duel (hopefully, there will be no cheating involved in the form of fusion and Shining Draw), there's the fact that Kotori is going to be present. Again. Truly, she is the worst character in Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal.

Episode 52

Still hate Kotori. Nothing new there. As usual, she's useless and doesn't do anything to help. In contrast to that, Anna Kaboom / Kozuki was way more helpful and useful. And her character is way more likable than Kotori's. I also like her deck. It's fun. And I like how Gauche also ended up helping Yuma.

I do have to wonder how Anna managed to get in here though. When Yuma first met her, she'd said she wasn't participating in the World Duel Carnival, and she didn't seem to be interested in it either. So how was she able to get the heart pieces required to power up the Duel Coaster?

I was really surprised when Yuma ended up Xyz summoning a new monster (One-Eyed Skill Gainer). Honestly, I thought he was going to summon Utopia again. I wish Yuma would do this more often. He shouldn't have to rely on Utopia all the time. But without Anna's and Gauche's help, would Yuma have been able to summon this card? Or will this be the first and only time the audience will ever see him use One-Eyed Skill Gainer?

I like that the Fallguys / Triad of Terror really seem to care about each other. With how they're trying to protect and look out for each other, it shows some depth to their personality, so they don't just come across as the usual bad guys or villains.

It looks like Anna now has a crush on Yuma. Well, better her than Kotori. I wish we could see more of Kozuki. She's way more interesting than Kotori. Overall, this was a fun episode, and I think it would have been way better if Kotori hadn't been around.

I'm trying to ignore her, but it's hard when the show seems so keen on shoving her in front of the audience. She's always there, but she's so useless. She's just sitting there, shouting when Yuma gets attacked or saying his name. Ugh. She gives Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal a bad name.

Episode 53

There are 14 duelists left in the World Duel Carnival finals. I look forward to seeing all the duels. Am just hoping that Yuma and Astral wouldn't resort to their usual cheating via Shining Draw and using the power of Zexal.

I still think the finals would be way more interesting without Kotori getting in the way. Can't she just go back to where the rest of the audience are? It'd be easier to tolerate her annoying presence if she wasn't being shoved down the audience's throats all the time in practically every single episode, even the ones where she's not the least bit necessary.

Well, if you want to be technical about it, that would be all of the episodes so far. Truly, she's one of the most useless and annoying characters ever. It's too bad she wasn't the one who got hit by that trap card. Maybe then she could have been ejected out of the Duel Coaster.

I wonder what happened to the One-Eyed Skill Gainer that Yuma managed to summon in the previous episode. Shouldn't that Xyz monster still be on his field? It hadn't been defeated or destroyed in Episode 52.

In fact, it was the one who managed to get rid of Electromagnetic Magnedragon, so where did it go? Is it because two of the Xyz materials used to summon this monster don't belong to Yuma (one belongs to Anna and the other belongs to Gauche)?

Gauche vs V (Quinton) - I think V's going to win this battle, but it should be interesting to see how it goes. I'm disappointed that we didn't get to see this fight from start to finish. This could have been a good opportunity to show just how strong V is.

Also, did V just activate a trap card without setting it first, or did I just miss something? I wish they'd make the rules clearer since it's apparently different from the normal gameplay now that they're on Duel Coasters.

Since Yuma only has 600 life points left, I was disappointed that he wasn't trying harder to increase his life points or, at the very least, keep it from decreasing further. It's like he doesn't even care with how he recklessly activates trap cards that ended up dropping him down to 200 life points.

There should be a limit to how much of a reckless idiot he is. This doesn't make me want to root for Yuma. It just makes me really disappointed in him because his reckless actions seem to show that he just doesn't care. I think he should be taking this more seriously.

When Yuma encountered The Paths of Destiny (toss a coin. If you get heads, you get 2000 life points. If you get tails, you lose 2000 life points) trap card, I already knew that he would end up winning the coin toss and getting 2000 life points because there's just no way he's going to be allowed to lose.

That's what makes his reckless actions even more frustrating and infuriating. It's like Yuma can squander his life points as much as he wants to, but he doesn't have to worry about losing because he's not allowed to.

He's the main character, so he can't lose right now. It's too bad. I would have wanted to see Yuma lose the coin toss, lose his remaining life points and be ejected from the competition. Then he could take this as a learning opportunity and try harder next time.

I thought it was the end for Gauche when V managed to counter his attack. It was nice of Yuma to go and save him (after all, in a previous episode, Gauche did the same for him), but I'm still mad at Yuma for his recklessness and for the blatant main character favoritism he has going for him.

Someone remind me again why Tron doesn't want V to get rid of Yuma right now. Let me guess, it's because he's the main character and he's not allowed to lose this competition. Also, let me guess, Yuma'll end up being the winner of the World Duel Carnival, right? Someone prove me wrong. I'm rooting for Kaito to win. Who cares about Yuma?

I'm surprised to see Kotori be the one to get hit by the trap this time. Yuma just doesn't learn, does he? Is he incapable of learning or what? Why can't he try to pay more attention to what's going on around him? I don't find him losing life points because he keeps running into trap cards amusing because he doesn't suffer from the consequences of his actions.

No matter what, he still manages to get away without losing. This wouldn't be so bad if he actually manages to survive because of his own strengths. But, no, it seems like the only reason he manages to survive is because he's the main character.

They're trying to hype up Tron by having him manage to defeat three people with seemingly only one hit. And these 3 all had monsters with high attack power as well as a lot of life points. Unfortunately, this falls flat for me. I'd be more impressed if they showed us, the viewers, how Tron managed this. What spell/magic or trap card or monster card did he use to defeat 3 people with one hit? This doesn't seem believable.

Looks like IV (Quattro) and Shark are going to be fighting. I'm hoping Ryoga wins. Am worried that the victor might turn out to be IV.

I found it touching that Droite (Dextra) wants to protect Kite by fighting Tron for him. I already know she's going to lose even after spending a lot of time increasing her life points up to 9000 (now 8000 since she used 1000 to get Kaito out of the way).

Episode 54

This episode features the Droite vs Tron duel. Like I said in the previous episode, I can already guess that Droite is going to lose. But this duel's bound to be interesting anyway since there will be no cheating via Shining Draw and there'll be no deus ex machina in the form of using the power of Zexal.

Droite admits that she's in love with Kaito. Initially, I thought it was just a crush. I wonder when this happened. I really didn't get the impression that they were all that close. Kite seems oblivious to her feelings.

Looks like Droite started falling for Kite when he saved her during that duel as shown in the flashback. Kaito was really cool in that scene. Once again, viewers can see just how much he cares about Hart / Haruto Tenjo, his little brother.

The Tron vs Droite duel begins with Droite having the advantage. She has way more life points than Tron. In the very first turn, she was able to Xyz summon a monster (Photon Papilloperative / Photon Butterfly Assassin). Plus, she was able to activate 3 magic/spell cards that can help her. Tron is acting all scared, but I can see right through him. I know Droite will take the lead at first, but Tron will eventually manage to win.

There's no way the outcome could be different because Yuma has already fought against Droite, but he has yet to face Tron. Plus, the show has been hyping Tron and his power practically since his first introduction and particularly in the last episode where he apparently manages to defeat 3 people with a single hit. Still, even if Tron's victory is already assured, I hope Droite still manages to reduce his life points by a great amount before she loses.

Why does Yuma need to be present during Droite's and Tron's duel? How did he even end up in the Jungle Field? Shouldn't he be in some of the other fields so he can duel with the other finalists of the World Duel Carnival? He shouldn't be allowed to be here right now. Sheesh. Is he going to be watching all the other competitors duel?

Nice. Great job, Droite. She actually managed to get Tron's life points down to 100. Looks like it's now time for Tron to retaliate. I still don't like Yuma, Astral, and Kotori being present during this duel. They have no business being here. They should leave already.

I knew Tron would win. I didn't expect to hate him this much though. Initially, I was lukewarm towards him. He came across as weird, crazy, and strange, but I neither hated nor liked him. But now I hate him. He went too far with what he did to Dextra. I feel bad for what happened to Droite. It made me wish that she had won the duel instead.

According to the next episode preview, the next duel is going to be between V and Kaito. I'm worried. I want Kaito to win. I hope he does. Yuma doesn't need to face V. Can we just leave V's defeat to Kaito?

Miscellaneous

I'm still wondering why the dub changed some of the names, but not all. Is it because the names are hard to pronounce? Are they trying to Americanize the names or something? But names like Vetrix and Quinton don't really sound American. And how come only some of the names have been changed, but not all?

Is there something wrong with some of these names? For instance, in the Japanese version, III's archetype of cards are known as OOParts, but in English, they're known as Chronomaly. Why the name change?

The way Mr. Heartland says "Heart burning" is kind of amusing. I like the gratuitous use of English in the Japanese version, like the way some of the cards and attack names use English words.

Share your thoughts and opinions

So, what about you? What do you think about all of this? Feel free to share your thoughts and opinion by leaving a message in the comments section below.

*Notes:
- Pics are from Amazon.com; links shown above