I have reached volume 4 of Memory World Arc (vol.35 of the series overall), as you can notice by the title, it is divided in 4 parts, the first two will be quicker but the last two will be a bit longer because of the number of panels ensembles, but still an achievement, once I'm almost done, it will be 3 volumes to go...
Plot Summary:
Time is going backwards, thief Bakura goes back to life, Ra going back to the shrine of wedju, the gang gets separated from the Pharaoh, the time reverse stops when Dark Yugi and Slifer took a huge blow and becoming very weakened, the gang watching from afar that Slifer was down and defeated, while they're trying to run faster to help Dark Yugi but their path is blocked by Yami Bakura shadow spy....
Yami Bakura shadow spy to block them claims the only way to get through him, they have to defeat him first in a duel, Jounouchi is first to take on the challenge but in vain, while this happens, Dark Yugi tries to talk and ask to the thief Bakura to not kill the citizens...they are in a path of a hill, thief Bakura's Ka hits the path where the pharaoh and his horse is standing and they fall (Dark Yugi and his horse), Dark Yugi is able hold to the edge of the hill, thief Bakura takes the millenium puzzle and step on the pharaoh's hands, the pharaoh falls to the abyss and everything around them goes black...
Key Points:
As the time starts reversing, Dark Akhenaden continues saying half lies, he lied in claiming he was zorc because he couldn't say he was Akhenaden after he made the contract with Zorc, I get this much, it still annoys me, his other half lies annoys me more, there is one in particular in what he says here:
"This world is made of memories, pharaoh! Yours and mine! It is the after-image of our souls trapped in the millenium puzzle!!"
He is half telling truth and lie (it was made of Dark Yugi's memories in the beginning, Dark Akhenaden merged was recent addition since he is connected to Dark Yugi's memories and priest Akhenaden in Dark Yugi's memories) and that he was also trapped in the millenium puzzle, he is in half truth saying what everyone knows, Dark Yugi sealed in the millenium puzzle and the lie part, that dark akhenaden claiming he is zorc, he is sealed in millenium puzzle, double lie, as in previous post I pointed out, he came from a different source due to his recent appearance (and zorc isn't sealed in the millenium puzzle, we already have the hint where and who is it truly Zorc Necrophades...*cough* Yami Bakura*cough*). but then again is just to serve as a distraction to Dark Yugi being busy in recovering his memories.
For a change, he is actually telling the truth in this instance, even though is implied the world of memory is mixed Dark Akhenaden (but is it really? or is Zorc memories merging with Dark Yugi? I think is more Zorc inclined, so is mostly true), since is recent, but there huge differences, the reasons why it makes Zorc or Dark Akhenaden not the ones being sealed in the millenium puzzle, but Dark Yugi, Yami Bakura shadow spy and dark akhenaden, they remember everything because they are mostly bystanders, while Dark Yugi is the one who doesn't remember everything but recovers only by each new event is unlocked, he can't remember what is ahead in each event putting Dark Yugi in this war of memory in a huge disadvantage, but Dark Akhenaden is right that they won't rest until they reach the last battle that took to their deaths, the only change allowed is at the last battle...
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I love the drawn panels on the left, because the perspective was very nice, but also feel bit sad how he was separated from his friends..., Dark Yugi will somehow always priorize Yugi a little more than the others (because he could have screamed "Everyone!" instead of "partner"), not just the feeling regarding his sense of responsibility to protect his host, their close bond is stronger than Yugi and Dark Yugi have with their friends (just a bit more).
Dark Akhenaden claiming as Zorc says:
"I have the power to control time in this playback of your memories...You used the power of your friends to summon the sun god and defeat Bakura and Diabound. But now...time has been turned back...and your friends aren't here...do you know what that means, pharaoh? Bakura becomes my important tool later...I can't let him die now..."
As you can see, I underlined a few things that are bit separate from one another in subject but linked, the 1st underline - Dark Akhenaden does make it sound his power to control of time is unlimited, but I don't think Dark Yugi believes in everything he is saying even the claim (because is wearing the millenium eye and since he doesn't know who he really is, he just call zorc for now); 2nd underline - he is referring to the sudden boost he got from his friends, from Yugi, his host specifically, since they are part of his new memories, they can have some power in the world of memory (this might be related to as why Dark Akhenaden has some power in the world of memories, since he is part of Dark Yugi's memories but from the time he was alive, it's something related to that, further more implying he is not from the millenium puzzle but from somewhere else...; 3rd underline - it's not difficult to guess, someone is going to take care of blocking them and the memories will go back to the true course of events to the final and decisive battle, I guess Dark Akhenaden don't like the idea of others messing and tampering memories, the final battle is the only time where change for him can be approved (to an extent I agree with him, if this bastard was playing fair, he isn't, so he just irritates me); 4th underline - for him to say that thief Bakura becomes an important tool later implies that he is the perfect distraction to his enemies from their main goal (Yami Bakura shadow spy and Dark Akhenaden) since he makes a powerful tool to defeat and give time to plan and manipulate the situation in their favour...I mean they already have the huge advantage by remembering everything from a bystander power...
As we see Dark Akhenaden still in pretend to be zorc and says zorc is sealed in the puzzle when is somewhere else...(*deep sigh* this kind of dragging villain who keeps saying the same lies, it's just irritating to me), don't expect Dark Yugi to buy everything you're saying, since there is flaws, but he is right he can't seal zorc again since he is already sealed in it's respective millenium item, even himself for the same reason as the latter and being inside the puzzle.
When Yami Bakura shows up to block them from interfering with the true course of events and says:
"Fools...You can't win this war...Do you want to die in this world and be cast into eternal night...?"
That's a bit of an understatement, I think Yami Bakura shadow spy knows better, it's just his ego and determination speaking more or less... while implying the something added in that have been implied before and revealing when he helped them a few times so he could eventually resurrect zorc to modern world, it's not exactly resurrecting...I will approach it a little more ahead in this post....
Bobasa is wondering how did he entered, he doesn't know it was from when he "helped" Yugi in giving one of the "missing" pieces in DDM Arc with "Parasite Mind", in fact, no one really knows about it because Yami Bakura conveniently didn't speak about it (it shows he is not one of those stupid villains that boasts about their powers...), if we noticed about Yugi's reaction to the name "Zorc Necrophades, he is the only one who reacts to it, because probably the "zorc" name is vaguely familiar (Monster World Arc)...
Tsk, tsk, Jounouchi should know better than challenging a millnium item wielder, specially Yami Bakura, he tried to fight with this method above against Yami Marik, we saw how that turn out, Yami Marik paralysed him not being able to move at all, don't charge an attack without thinking, considering when it comes to people who wears or uses magical artifacts...and he has seen Ishizu VS Kaiba (one who wields it and the other who could easily be chosen by a millenium item), the duels of Mai and himself against Yami Marik, they are at disadvantage because Yugi himself is inside the puzzle, the millenium item he wears, the best he can do is giving a boost to Dark Yugi and another few things he has to figure out himself and same for Dark Yugi... (volume 6 and 7).
If we remember Thief Bakura's Ka of one of his special abilities to hide in the darkness, shadows and night, by the way his phrase is preparing where and when to keep watching the timing that is vital where he believes it gives a certain death...
Now what Dark Akhenaden is saying, he is talking to himself...
"That's it, Bakura...Take the millenium items...You are just a cog in the wheel that will reawaken my fate and my truth..."
Since he is talking to himself, this time he is telling the truth, as we will see in in the next post and volume 5, Dark Akhenaden is not referring to Zorc but to himself, the millenium items and priest Akhenaden/his eventual betrayal in making the contract with Zorc...the "my truth" pretty much implies it...
Yugi bugs me a little in this scene and I actually agree with Yami Bakura shadow spy but not for the same reasons as him...
I'll start with Yami Bakura blocking them, Yugi may have thought:
"...!! I trusted you...!"
This thought is not basing on naiveness in being trusting on Yami Bakura but more the kind of trust by giving the benefit of doubt to him, he was ready in case it would turn out as something like this (it's not this part that bugs me is after what Yami Bakura says this to him:
"You know that this world is a memory created by «the other yugi», the pharaoh...The epic battle over the millenium items is replaying before our eyes, if we do nothing, the events will just proceed as they did 3000 thousand years ago..."
Some of the traits I find interesting in Yami Bakura is that in general he is an honest villain (he does tell the truth most of the times, even about this is telling the truth) to an extent but very cunning, sly and manipulative in omitting details about certain knowledge he gives that is convenient to himself (the full about certain knowledge) knowing but inconvenient if his enemies would know (omission of details)...
Here is where what Yugi says that it bugs me a little:
"We know that! That's why we have to save «the other me» from his cruel fate!!"
Yugi, what is the point? he is already...dead. Besides you would be doing kindness to let him reach the end, we shouldn't look away terrible things happening, even his own truth, he needs to and deserves it too, anyone deserves the truth (it's just that isn't always kind to his subjects but is important nonetheless), it's not even at this event he actually permanently dies anyway, it's sweet that you don't want him to re-experience it, even so he wouldn't be able to being inside the puzzle, since his death was by sealing himself and Zorc in their respective millenium items, since is already the case, the other is that would be pushing around the bush and his journey to recover all of his memories would be halted and that isn't good at all, he isn't also aware that this mission is what will actually save Dark Yugi at the end in this war of memory...Bobasa and Shadi gave you this mission for a special reason...not just for the sake of knowing his real name...
As I have mentioned before in this post he is pretty determined about blocking them by any means necessary, but he gives a small clue of a chance they can turn this around but as something they have to figure themselves for the rest...
"This World of Memory is replaying moment by moment...but the end will be different from 3000 years ago...because...Zorc Necrophades, the high priest of the shadows, will kill the pharaoh...and become the one true ruler!"
That's quite the straight half lie there about zorc the high priest, he is referring to Dark Akhenaden or playing with words to refer to both Zorc and Dark Akhenaden, as I have referred before, he doesn't often tell lies, if he does is rare and mostly half lies..., because to confuse or divert your enemy, what you say must ring some relatable truth... while giving a small hint of how they can turn around (the end can be different since the previous end was sealing his soul and zorc in their respective items and since in this world of memory is between spirits already sealed so the pharaoh can't do it again), speaking of the half lie and half truth...
"Two souls were sealed into the millenium puzzle 3000 years ago!! Only the soul that wins this battle can return to the modern world..."
The half lie and truth is being two souls instead of one, the rest of it he is telling the truth, be it Dark Akhenaden, Zorc or Dark Yugi can return to the modern world, it's slightly a battle royale between them.
That's quite the straight half lie there about zorc the high priest, he is referring to Dark Akhenaden or playing with words to refer to both Zorc and Dark Akhenaden, as I have referred before, he doesn't often tell lies, if he does is rare and mostly half lies..., because to confuse or divert your enemy, what you say must ring some relatable truth... while giving a small hint of how they can turn around (the end can be different since the previous end was sealing his soul and zorc in their respective items and since in this world of memory is between spirits already sealed so the pharaoh can't do it again), speaking of the half lie and half truth...
"Two souls were sealed into the millenium puzzle 3000 years ago!! Only the soul that wins this battle can return to the modern world..."
The half lie and truth is being two souls instead of one, the rest of it he is telling the truth, be it Dark Akhenaden, Zorc or Dark Yugi can return to the modern world, it's slightly a battle royale between them.
Yami Bakura continues his talking:
"But you see, Yugi...when the pharaoh gained you as a vessel, he made friends with people from the modern world! Friends strong enough to make an imprint in his eternal memories! I never expected...that his pathetic friends would infiltrate this world."
It's mostly his ego talking mixed with a small lie saying as if he knew of world of memory way before long, if we go back to volume one of this Arc, he didn't knew about it, besides once he got to know about it, all he had to do was to wait for them to infiltrate so he could infiltrate too followed by his shadow spy right here...he didn't ever doubted, but the fact that the friends of the pharaoh made a strong impact on him was the surprise once he learned it in Monster World, since then he was moving much more discreetly and careful...
Yugi response to his "blabbering" (in a sense is blabbering to buy time):
"Bakura...Who in the world...are you?"
You can tell from their expressions they didn't buy most of his blabbering, specially "the two souls sealed inside the millenium puzzle", Yugi and the gang know better than anyone else besides Yami Bakura and Dark Akhenaden due to their experience and understanding so far of the millenium items and Dark Yugi situation, that there isn't two souls sealed in the puzzle, for many reasons...1st if there was really two souls sealed, Yugi would be the vessel of two souls from the beginning, 2nd, they do know two souls sealed in two millenium items, one in the millenium puzzle(Dark Yugi) and the other who are they talking to sealing in the millenium ring (Yami Bakura, remember even though who they're talking to is working as shadow spy, it's still part of the soul of Yami Bakura), 3rd Yugi expression does say if there were two souls, he would have detected and is true .
There is no point in lying to Yugi when it comes to the millenium puzzle and souls sealed in millenium items, because he knows and interacted with both of them, since he knows the only spirits sealed in millenium items being Dark Yugi in M!Puzzle and Yami Bakura in M!Ring (from now on I will refer specific millenium items like this) and his phrasing and reticence question, he has an idea who he is and trying to confirm but fearing the answer being...
"But you see, Yugi...when the pharaoh gained you as a vessel, he made friends with people from the modern world! Friends strong enough to make an imprint in his eternal memories! I never expected...that his pathetic friends would infiltrate this world."
It's mostly his ego talking mixed with a small lie saying as if he knew of world of memory way before long, if we go back to volume one of this Arc, he didn't knew about it, besides once he got to know about it, all he had to do was to wait for them to infiltrate so he could infiltrate too followed by his shadow spy right here...he didn't ever doubted, but the fact that the friends of the pharaoh made a strong impact on him was the surprise once he learned it in Monster World, since then he was moving much more discreetly and careful...
Yugi response to his "blabbering" (in a sense is blabbering to buy time):
"Bakura...Who in the world...are you?"
You can tell from their expressions they didn't buy most of his blabbering, specially "the two souls sealed inside the millenium puzzle", Yugi and the gang know better than anyone else besides Yami Bakura and Dark Akhenaden due to their experience and understanding so far of the millenium items and Dark Yugi situation, that there isn't two souls sealed in the puzzle, for many reasons...1st if there was really two souls sealed, Yugi would be the vessel of two souls from the beginning, 2nd, they do know two souls sealed in two millenium items, one in the millenium puzzle(Dark Yugi) and the other who are they talking to sealing in the millenium ring (Yami Bakura, remember even though who they're talking to is working as shadow spy, it's still part of the soul of Yami Bakura), 3rd Yugi expression does say if there were two souls, he would have detected and is true .
There is no point in lying to Yugi when it comes to the millenium puzzle and souls sealed in millenium items, because he knows and interacted with both of them, since he knows the only spirits sealed in millenium items being Dark Yugi in M!Puzzle and Yami Bakura in M!Ring (from now on I will refer specific millenium items like this) and his phrasing and reticence question, he has an idea who he is and trying to confirm but fearing the answer being...
You can tell by how he is lowering his head and holding the millenium puzzle and saying:
"What if 3000 years ago, Zorc Necrophades sealed part of his soul into this millenium ring...what do you say to that?"
He was probably thinking "oh, yeah, I almost forgotten the pharaoh's friends are pretty sharp, specially the vessel, so no point in trying to lie to them ", for him to say this with a pretty much a rhetorical question, it means he understood very well the true meaning behind Yugi's question and detecting his fear behind the question...
Yugi, asks similar question again, confirming his suspicions...
"Bakura...Are you...?"
It's more of a rhetorical question similarity to "are you who I think it is?" while fearing the answer to fully confirm it...
"That's right... I am Zorc! Zorc Necrophades!"
Here the readers have finally the confirmation of their suspicions, Yami Bakura being Zorc Necrophades sealed in the millenium ring, but is curious he says part of him (zorc) is sealed but not in full, I guess it means that most of his soul is in the world beyond, the intent of Yami Bakura was to restore his full power...
As for Bobasa reaction to this revelation, for him to reduce his name into half, it must mean he must have heard the name before from Shadi, making Shadi even more of a mysterious identity...
The cool part being Yugi's thought reaction...
"Zorc!! Zorc used our friend Bakura to try and steal the millenium items and our lives!!"
This is when Yugi familiarity to the name "Zorc Necrophades" to the origin why it was familiar, the name of the final boss of the Monster World Adventure RPG being Zorc and seeing through how everything was connected...
As the best way to fight him to get through him is duel, I find this scene not only interesting but also pretty amusing too (because of Yugi's and Jounouchi's reaction for how Yami Bakura shadow spy makes the duel disk appear), Yami Bakura shadow spy make a duel disk grow out of his arm and explains why the duel disk was able to appear in this world of memory of ancient egypt...
"Don't look so shocked. Everything that the pharaoh remembers from the modern world also exists here...Even if you can't see something, your mind can will it to appear! Now you try!"
He does give a pretty good explanation, Yami Bakura shadow spy more or less understands the lore of world of memory, he is very intelligent to get there so fast, because pharaoh's memories of the modern world are also in his subconscious and it also shows that he liked the duel disk invention (who wouldn't? the real thing, the versions I like the most are from Zexal (I may not like much this spinoff but the duel disks from this timeline are pretty cool) and Dark Side of Dimensions), because the world of memory is part of the subconscious mind of Dark Yugi that represents his memories, that's why they can make it appear if they wish...here is the very amusing part when Jounouchi and Yugi are trying, their expressions fearing it would grow out of their arms like Yami Bakura shadow spy is hilarious (meaning they found it rather gross) is very funny (lmao).
Start to notice their duel disks begins differently from Yami Bakura shadow spy and be quite relieved how their duels disks and decks appear differently from him (very amusing), it's impressive how well he explains things and give info about how in ancient Egypt, there were duels where Magic and Wizards/Duel Monsters were based on while making comparison between them as duelists of 21st century to the ones in Ancient Egypt..., I find it funny how Jounouchi and Yugi are pumped and excited about it (Jounouchi is the most), but it does reveal some interesting details regarding Honda's and Anzu's reaction...I'll go with Honda first...
"I made one appear too, but...I can't duel..."
With an embarrassed expression, it means Honda doesn't play the referred TCG, also it seems he feels he looks a bit ridiculous wearing the actual duel disk plus that he doesn't play the game...
However Anzu...
"I don't even know what cards I have..."
This pretty much implies she plays Magic and Wizards/Duel Monsters sometimes with them, she likes the TCG but is more of a casual player, she feels a little embarrassed but not as much as Honda though :D
Jounouchi is willing to go first and still blind to the actual danger of Yami Bakura shadow spy (the only times he was defeated were always by a god card (Yami Marik from the most powerful effect of Ra, that says a lot about his skill, Jounouchi experienced Phoenix form and Dark Yugi from Slifer), so far that his only weakness, it shows how highly skilled he is, Yugi and the others are the most cautious...
Here is revealed what has been added-in...when he is warning and reminding Jounouchi of the danger...
"I give you points for guts...but don't forget this is a shadow game."
Yami Bakura shadow spy didn't ever spoke about it until now, because the world of memory was suppose to simply re-experience memories for Dark Yugi, not a shadow game, it became a shadow game only recently since Dark Akhenaden appeared ("war of memory"...), in other words Dark Akhenaden appearance is connected to the shadow game, which makes us remember, where is The Yami Bakura? it was implied he had prepared something related to Dark Yugi's journey in recovering his lost memories... which would explain why Yami Bakura wasn't worried besides having his shadow spy waiting to infiltrate the dimension, this shadow game is made by the Yami Bakura but in what form and how he was able to merge with the world of memory...? (I'll write about it in volume 5-7).
He does add another interesting details in how he emphasises them as Jounouchi is preparing to steel himself for it (since his first duel in form of shadow game against Yami Marik, understands how intense it can be):
"In this world, if you lose 4000 Life Points (LP), you die...True death...eternal darkness...oblivion! and there's no coming back...you understand? Those who lose here, can never return to the real world!"
The way Yami Bakura shadow spy is emphasising and clarifying the result if you lose all your LP to Jounouchi very specifically "true death, no coming back, never return to the real world", he is referring to Jounouchi's NDE after his loss in a shadow game against Yami Marik, no exceptions to the rule this time around, there is other reasons why is the case in the world of memory, for starters they don't have their shell (their physical body), they're here as just spirits, making their spirits much more susceptible to a shadow game than when they're in their body... (the other reasons will be approached in volume 5 and 6).
Thief Bakura and Dark Yugi conversation in this scene, I find really interesting...when Dark Yugi as pharaoh begs thief Bakura to leave the innocent people and stop hurting them. seeing Dark Yugi beg and trying to talk it through, it's a very rare sight, I don't even remember well when was the closest, I think it was Mai VS Yami Marik duel, he might as well have done it, yeah I think he did, that's how rare it is being someone prideful with a big ego...
Here is what thief Bakura says:
"h-heh heh heh...when your god was defeated, you ran out of Ba, didn't you...Now that you can't summon monsters, you've come to lecture me...?"
That's bit harsh don't you think, thief Bakura? he is begging not lecturing, because he thinks peoples lives are more important than his pride or royal power, well he did learn it the hard way in Duelist Kingdom after Yugi and Dark Yugi being scolded by Jounouchi, so yeah, character development :), the lecture will be after thief Bakura gives his outlook in being a thief...
"Look!Do you see the palace? Squatting on the throne and throwing around your power, you've never seen it from afar like this, have you...? A ruler is such a pitiful thing..."
What thief Bakura is implying here, he doesn't fully blame on the pharaoh about Kul Elna, it's that the pharaoh being always inside the palace, doesn't get to know much and with some of his subjects might be doing behind his back when send orders, etc, not being able to know much what is happening outside but only hearing from reports, it gives limited knowledge about what's happening around him, which means he knows something about the former king that Dark Yugi doesn't know...
He continues his speech...
"But...to a thief, anything you see is something you can steal. Royal power...The city...Human lives...Even this view!"
I find pretty interesting his own view of theft, when you think about it, it's actually kinda true, unless you're pretty good...
as he continues...
"If getting everything you want is all there is to being a king...then as king of thieves, I am truly the king of kings! Eh, pharaoh?! h-ha ha ha ha!"
Actually there is more to be a king than just wealth, giving orders to your subjects and creating laws...and "having everything"... Dark Yugi's reply...
"You haven't gotten anything..you're only trampling on the lights of life in this city...on people's hopes!!"
Even though what he said are pretty words,, but is right, getting what you want isn't getting what you need, besides he just randomly hurting others without consideration, Dark Yugi is saying the pharaoh isn't really the light of the people, but their life and it's course with dreams and hopes (be it getting crops to feed himself or his family too, people who may want to get married and raise a family, who wants to travel the world, wants to have a certain job, meet or see a relative, etc), but then thief Bakura answers...
"It doesn't matter what you say...because I win."
Strangely, thief Bakura isn't really disagreeing with him but also he probably see as pretty words and then he strikes, and we see the scene on panels ensemble on the right and takes the millenium puzzle from the pharaoh while he is trying to hold on the edge of a path in a hill...
It's obvious to see that thief Bakura stepped on Dark Yugi's fingers from the only hand he was holding on the edge, Priest Shada did just arrived, thief Bakura was laughing, Jounouchi's progress of the duel against Yami Bakura shadow spy was at a disadvantage and sensed something changed, Yugi noticed it was something that happened to Dark Yugi...
See Ya Next Post!!
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