#tag4talk

And in case it escaped your notice I care a lot

If they do have a circulatory system then they must also have some sort of exoskeleton because otherwise pieces of them shouldn't be chipping off without them 'bleeding'

They don't have mouths and Durbe is the only one with a nose that might not even be a functional nose, how do they respire, do they have an air filtration system of any kind, how do they speak without being able to vibrate air between vocal cords, why would they even have vocal cords they probably don't but how do they speak

They can't be beings of pure energy because they're tangible, they wear clothes and hold and touch things and gravity effects them, how do they intake energy to continue living

The gems seem to be a source of power for them but do they keep the barians alive as well

Are the gems that decorate their bodies superficial or part of them, many seem to be embedded into their actual bodies, but larger ones are held in place with decorative armor that sometimes serves no other purpose

Maybe all of the gems are energy sources and their bodies are like energy sponges but that would leave them very vulnerable to harmful or destructive energy, maybe the large gems are energy sources and the small gems are conductors and absorb external energy into their bodies

Alit called Mizael "flashy" but Mizael doesn't actually wear many gems like a "flashy" person would if the only function was decoration, and taking/using only what energy source he needs for the sake of barian world is something I think suits Mizael's personality much better (* 'flashy' might not be a perfectly accurate translation)

Vector has the most smaller gems by FAR, if they're a source of energy this could be selfish gluttony, if they are only decorative this could just be vanity unless the smaller gems that seem to be embedded in their bodies are natural, but in that case, why does Vector have so many more

Alit and Gilag appear to be armored beyond what could be part of their actual bodies but is it actually part of their bodies and if it isn't what does that imply socially, Mizael and Vector wear skirts but they're not protective like armor is and they don't seem necessary for the sake of modesty because Durbe wears nothing but a belt, what is the social function of clothing and armor

Why does Vector have wings why does he have two-toned skin, is Mizael's mask part of his actual face, it crumples when he's angry and there doesn't seem to be a raised seam (at least in the caps I remember) but if it is part of his face why is he the only asymmetrical barian, does he part his 'hair' to the side because he's asymmetrical, is this a thing he's owning

Mizael's hair moves and looks like sheet metal or something, it's bundled into three 'chunks' and doesn't flow or go piecey, what is it made out of, is it different than Vector's and Durbe's at all or is it the same material except 'grown out'

He immediately falls for Kotori. He has a very romantic (while ridiculous) daydream of her turning into an angel and taking his hand to show him the sun rising over the earth, except the sun is her smiling face.

Enter Yuuma the Cockblock obliviously sabotaging Alit's every attempt at being a suave coolguy. Alit challenges him to a duel with Kotori at stake, thinking Yuuma is a love rival. Okay, so far this whole setup is pretty typical of shonen anime where the female love interest attracts an admirer. Generally, the protag either has the dokis and fights for her honor and tsuns about it afterward (i-it's not like I like care or anything!) or is completely oblivious to the ~love rival's~ intent. Here we have the latter.

Yuuma fights the good fight and manages to defeat Alit. Alit grunts Yuuma's name as he struggles to his feet and sort of stares at Yuuma with this super serious face while he zones out and has the same romantic daydream where Yuuma turns into an angel and leads him into space to watch the rising sun as Yuuma's smiling face. Also, Alit is smiling during this daydream, while during the Kotori one, he was staring in amazement at her instead ("oh no she's hot"). When he snaps out of it, he is looking at the real Yuuma in complete awe.

Then he pushes Kotori aside REALLY RUDELY so he can stare meaningfully into Yuuma's eyes for a few seconds before saying WOW YOU'RE REALLY COOL AND INTERESTING LET'S BE RIVALS OKAY!

And like I know everyone who watched this episode knows all of this but I really really want to know what the writers were even going for. 

"Dokis are for losers!" /immediately falls in dokis

~Power of love~

"""Love rivals"""

~Fighting for her honor~

Protag wins

Other Guy fantasizes about protag in revealing outfit (js)

And also implicitly ousts Female Love Interest from her ~spot in his heart and replaces it with protag bcos daydream

And just in case that wasn't subtle enough he PHYSICALLY SHOVES HER ASIDE AND TELLS HER TO GET LOST SO HE CAN TALK TO PROTAG?

Without the daydream the theme might've been interpreted as 'caring about relationships will make you lose at card games' IDK like that's a pretty normal theme I think, like don't let yourself distracted from your goals just because there's a hottie around

But THE DAYDREAM HAPPENED SO

????????????????????

Alit is canonically in dokis with Yuuma

And like the theme literally comes across as "don't go for someone just because they have a pretty face because the one who makes your heart beat faster might not catch your eye at first"

Fucking card game shows are queer as fuck

The Yugioh fandom likes to make fun of the card game thing (and I do too because it's absurd in our own universe) but I REALLY REALLY LIKE IT OKAY I like that every duelist constructs their own decks tailored to suit them as individuals and that they put in so much of their soul and energy to bond with those decks because each card is a medium of the supernatural through which you can call and communicate with creatures that exist in other universes

Think like magical artifacts or wands or animal familiars or prayer rituals or totems or shit I don't know

And only a certain few can plainly perceive that magic

All of the protags have ace monsters at 2500atk which is far from extraordinary but the way they and other characters utilize those monsters and how they fit into their decks and what combos they can pull to procure victory in unlikely circumstances man shit's got me fired up

I guess it's kinda like Pokemon except that the creatures with which you are bonding can only be reached through the medium of an inanimate object? And most people can't see their duel spirits following them around and caring for them because they don't have the ability, but they still believe in the bond because it's a matter of faith, and their duel spirits reward that faith by being dependable allies when it matters most. I mean all of the most successful duelists believe in their monsters explicitly and