The facts:

Title: Yu-Gi-Oh!

Producers: Toei Animation

Directors: Hiroyuki Kakudō

Writers: Toshiki Inoue

First released: in Japan on TV Asahi on the 4^h of April 1998

Series: Yu-Gi-Oh! (5 seasons and 2 spin off-seasons)

Plot summary:

After a teenage boy named Yugi solves the millennium puzzle, he gains an alter ego that is obsessed with gambling and with this alter ego Yugi solves his problems that arise with various games.

What I like most:

What I like most is how the plot is simple, an alter ego that is good at games and fights bad guys. It allows me to really invest in the characters. Being someone that read the manga I really appreciate how the anime is more focused on the Monster Duel card game, this helped make the plot a little simpler. 

What I like least:

On the other hand, I also missed how the manga which was a bit darker. Between the anime being dubbed and censored for kids, it just started to feel like a long ad for the card game. With the once different riddles and puzzles being removed and instead the constant use of the monster dual cards.

Interesting fact:

One of the cards made off the series was developed by the make a wish foundation for a boy named Tyler Greisse. This card is called Tyler the Great Warrior and its model is based on Trunks from Dragon Ball.

Recommended age:

I would recommend this to kids aged 8+. It is a competitive fun anime however I would rate the manga 12+ due to its dark nature with people being tortured and killed. The anime shows the value of friendship with Yugi relying on his friends to help in his battles.  

How to explain to your parents:

This is the story of a young boy named Yugi who solves the Millenium puzzle which is a puzzle that has been dormant for thousands of years, when he solves it, he gains an alter ego of the god of puzzles. With this newfound personality, Yugi begins to solve his problems with a game that uses monster dual cards that his grandfather collects.  When Yugi is in need his new personality takes over the reins and usually wins the game

Film/Tv crossover:

Yu-Gi-Oh has 3 films, 56 video games, the legendary trading card game as well as a manga that has 22 volumes.

In Bibliography:

Takahashi, K. 2022, ‘Yu-Gi-Oh!’, Crunchyroll [image] Available https://www.crunchyroll.com/yu-gi-oh, Accessed 9 October 2022.