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Episode
GuideEpisode 172: Fighting for a Friend, Part 4 (At the End of a Fierce Battle)
Yami, Tristan, and Téa are still running down the street, trying to find Joey. Téa stops, telling the others to hold on. Tristan says there's no time to rest—Joey could be dueling that Valon guy right now. If they don't hurry, Joey could be one soul short. Téa says that's why she stopped. According to the map, he should be nearby. They need to stop running and start looking down each street. Then she notices Yami staring at his Timaeus card, and asks him what's wrong.
Yami says he's not sure, but, a moment ago, he could sense the presence of Joey's legendary dragon. Now it's gone, and he's afraid Joey's dragon was destroyed. Tristan asks if that means Joey lost. Téa says no way, but all Yami says is that he can't be sure until they find him. They take off down the street again.
Back at the duel, Joey's still in his Aura Armor, panting pretty hard. He's down to 200 life points, while Valon, who's in just as bad shape as Joey, has 900. Joey says he still doesn't know how Valon got himself out of that last attack, but Joey still has one more attack to take him down. Too many people are counting on him for him to let Valon walk away with a victory. (Japanese Jounouchi tells Valon it was a good move. He'd thought he'd won.)
Valon says Joey won't walk away with one—it looks like he can barely stand, let alone walk. And there's someone counting on his victory, too. (Japanese Valon tells Jounouchi he's pretty good, too. No one has ever fought him like this before. Jounouchi's the best he's ever met.)
Mai looks on, thinking that each of these numbskulls thinks he's going to save her by winning. But she doesn't need to be saved. All she needs is her victory over Wheeler! (Japanese Mai thinks, what is this duel? It's so intense, but both of them are still in fighting mood. This kind of intense duel—this is what she wanted. She wants to duel, too. This shot of Mai is cut from the US version.)
The Seal of Orichalcos glows in her forehead, and she puts a hand over it, as if it's causing her pain.
Joey says he wants to keep his armor, so he'll have to give up half his life points. Now he's down to 100. He sets two cards face down and ends his turn.
Valon draws, and brings Psychic Armor Head (0 ATK, raised to 500) back from the graveyard again. Then he plays a magic card, Phoenix Gravitation. This card lets him build a suit of armor with parts from his graveyard. (Japanese Valon says it lets him summon four Armor monsters from the graveyard.) He revives Burning Knuckle, Jet Gauntlet, Over Boost, and Active Guard (each 0 ATK, raised to 500 by the Seal of Orichalcos). He proclaims that his ultimate weapon is back, as the armor pieces form around him.
Valon tells Joey it's been fun, but all good things must come to an end. He's going to send him off with a bang right now. (Japanese Valon compliments Jounouchi for making it this far, and says Jounouchi is a real duelist. But because of this, he must beat Jounouchi with everything he's got.) Joey says Valon's helmet must be on too tight—he forgot all about Joey's two face-down cards. Then Joey activates the first one—Graverobber, which allows him to steal a card from Valon's graveyard. He takes Big Bang Blow. (The real Graverobber can only take a magic card from the opponent's graveyard, and it costs 2000 life points to activate that magic card.) Next, Joey activates his second trap card, Take One Chance, which transfers a random card from his graveyard to the field.
Joey closes his eyes, thinking that there's only one card that can save him now. And yes, the card he takes from his graveyard is the Claw of Hermos. Then, he merges Hermos with Big Bang Blow to create Big Bang Dragon Blow. How do you like that, he asks Valon. He took Valon's weapon and made it better.
Valon is impressed. Just when he thinks Joey's at the end of his rope, he comes back with something like this! Valon's never fought a duel like this in his life! Joey's pushing him to be his best—that will make his victory all the more rewarding.
Valon attacks, flying towards Joey with Burning Knuckle Strike. Joey counters with Big Bang Dragon Blow, and their fists meet with a mighty crash. (This shot of Mai bracing herself against the force of the crash is cut from the US version.)
(These shots of the gang running, and Anzu stopping as she sees something down the alley, are cut from the US version.)
In the street, Téa and the others stop, looking down an alley to see a bright vortex of light rising from beyond the buildings. Yami looks at his Timaeus card, which begins to glow again.
Within the vortex, the two duelists struggle. Joey says Valon can't win—Joey has the power of his dragon behind him. Valon tells Joey he's pretty good, but not good enough. He's afraid it's all over. You wish, Joey says. (Japanese Valon says he's enjoying this so much—it's a great duel. Jounouchi says, for him too.)
Mai thinks it looks like a draw. (Japanese Mai calls out, "Jounouchi!") Then Joey says it's time to activate Big Bang Dragon Blow's special effect. By sacrificing his Red-Eyes Black Dragon, he makes his fist even more powerful. Now it can destroy all of Valon's monsters and subtract their attacks from Valon's life points. Crying out with the effort, Joey finally knocks Valon back, and Valon's armor is destroyed.
Valon tells Joey he won. Valon's life points go to zero, but Valon smiles, congratulating Joey. Then he looks at Mai and tells her goodbye. Mai gasps in shock, and says it's her fault. Valon tells her not to be silly—he caused his own downfall. He thought if he won, he could make her forget about Joey Wheeler. But now he understands why Joey meant so much to her. The guy's got heart. (Japanese Mai says, "Valon! I...." Valon tells Mai not to look like that. No matter who she's thinking of, he thinks she'll return to him in the end. But he lost. Mai saw the awful side of him, but he has no regrets.) Mai tries to go to Valon, but stops at the Seal's barrier. Valon tells Joey it's up to him now to save Mai. (Japanese Valon tells Jounouchi that he leaves Mai in Jounouchi's care.) Joey nods, and Valon collapses to the ground.
The Seal of Orichalcos contracts around Valon, taking his soul. In his temple, Dartz kneels before the Great Leviathan's altar, saying he senses the arrival of a powerful soul. He sees Valon's image appear on one of the stones, and says now it's Ms. Valentine's turn to send him a soul, or give up her own. (Japanese Dartz says to Mai, "Let me look into the darkness of your heart.")
Mai kneels at Valon's side, gathering him into her arms and crying, begging him to come back. Joey says it's too late—the Orichalcos has him now. Mai remembers Valon telling her that she's just like him, lonely and misunderstood, and that's why they need each other. (Japanese Valon had told Mai she's just like him—she only lives for winning. Now he's found someone he can share his victories with. And that's Mai.)
Joey tells Mai that they'll get him back. (Japanese Jounouchi says, "Mai.") She lays Valon's soulless body down, wondering how Valon could do this. He's the one who told her she has to duel for herself. Then he turns around and fights Joey to protect her! How pathetic. She smiles, saying he deserved this. Joey is surprised at the sudden turnaround, and tells Mai that Valon realized that what he told her was wrong. He found out what dueling is really about—determination and heart. He fought like a True Duelist today. (Japanese Jounouchi says Valon gave his best for the duel. Even she can't deny that.)
Mai stands up and turns to Joey, the Seal glowing in her forehead, and says she thought Joey wanted to destroy Valon. Joey protests that Valon might have been annoying, but no one deserves to have their soul taken away. (Japanese Jounouchi says that yes, Valon was an enemy. But Jounouchi respects anyone who fights him with his best.)
Joey says he realizes something now. As long as that Orichalcos thing has control of Mai's mind, he'll never be able to talk any sense into her. The only way he can save her now is to duel her. (Japanese Jounouchi tells Mai, "Come, duel me." Then he thinks to himself that the only way is a duel. He can't accept her feelings without dueling. He tells her, "Let's duel without any regrets for either of us.")
Mai says, so Joey beat this loser and now it's gone to his head? Why else would he be dumb enough to challenge her to a duel? She says he should have learned his lesson from their last duel. (Japanese Mai tells Jounouchi that if he gives way like he did before, she won't care. Cut from the US version are these shots of Jounouchi saying he understands, then looking at Valon and remembering Valon saying that he leaves Mai in Jounouchi's care. Then he looks back at Mai, and tells her to bring it on.)
But Joey just slots his deck into his Duel Disk, repeating that the only way he can get through to her is to duel her. (Japanese Jounouchi says he'll duel her with his best as a duelist.) She accepts his challenge.
Meanwhile, Yami, Téa, and Tristan are still running around looking for Joey. Tristan thinks maybe the tracking system was screwed up. (Japanese Anzu says the light was coming from this way. Honda says, they must be going in the right direction, so where is he?) Yami looks at his Timaeus card, then runs off, telling everyone to come this way.
Kaiba and Mokuba are in their new sports car, driving down another street. Mokuba says they're about a block from Paradias headquarters, and so far the coast is clear. Kaiba says Mokuba may have spoken a little too soon—it looks like they've got company. (Japanese Mokuba says, isn't it strange? There's no one else on the street. Kaiba says it looks like the work of Doma.) The road ahead is blocked by Orichalcos Soldiers. The sports car screeches to a halt, and the Kaiba brothers get out, Kaiba saying he'll handle this. (Japanese Kaiba says it looks like they can't just pass.) He tells the Orichalcos Soldiers he doesn't know what they are, or even if they exist at all, but he doesn't have any time to play games. He tells them to back off. They, unsurprisingly, don't.
Joey tells Mai he'll let her go first, which she says is a big mistake. (Do you ever wonder how they decide who's going to go first in duels on the show? Generally, one of the players just says, "I'll go first!" and does. Nobody ever rock-scissors-papers for it, or flips a coin for it, or argues about it, or anything. I guess whoever calls dibs on first turn gets it. Anyway, in the Japanese, Jounouchi doesn't say anything. Mai says, "My turn. Draw" and starts the duel.) She summons Cyber Harpie (Harpie Lady SB—the "SB" stands for "Cyber Bondage") (1800 ATK) and ends her turn.
Joey's arm shakes as he draws his card. That last duel really did a number on him. He's exhausted. He summons Blue Flame Swordsman (1800 ATK). His eyes go out of focus as he looks at the field, and he worries that this is no good—he's so weak he can't even see straight. But no matter what, he has to stay on his feet and finish this duel. (Japanese Jounouchi asks his body to hang on for just a little while longer.) He tells Mai it's her turn.
She tells Joey he'd better not be taking it easy on her again. She wants a real duel. (Japanese Mai says it's not like Jounouchi to end his turn without attacking. As usual, Mai's cleavage is partly erased in the US version.)
(Cut from the US version is this sequence where Jounouchi says he realized something when he was dueling Valon. He and Valon talked a lot during the duel, without using words. He felt Valon's heart.)
Joey assures her it is a real duel. No one's going easy on anybody—in fact, he's dueling her with all his heart and soul. It's the only way to save her. She says to try saving himself. She's doing just fine by herself. If he cramps her style, he'll end up in a world of hurt. Beyond Mai, Valon lies senseless against the fence where they've put him. (Japanese Jounouchi says that's why he wants a serious duel with Mai. He hopes that, that way, she'll understand his feelings, and he'll be able to understand hers. She laughs and say he won't understand her—she only duels to win.) Joey says he understands everything now. Mai forgot what dueling's all about, so he's there to remind her about the heart of the cards. She grimaces, telling him if he thinks he's going to teach her a lesson about Duel Monsters, he's wasting his time, and hers. (Japanese Jounouchi says that right now he doesn't understand her, but he doesn't want to give up. Mai says no matter what Jounouchi's thinking, she just wants to beat him.)
Mai draws, and summons another Cyber Harpie, then plays the Arrow Nail magic card, which increases the Cyber Harpie's attack by 300, to 2100. The powered-up Cyber Harpie attacks Blue Flame Swordsman and destroys it, reducing Joey's life points to 3700. But when Blue Flame Swordsman is destroyed, its effect activates, summoning the original Flame Swordsman (1800 ATK) in its place. Then Joey asks Mai if her other Cyber Harpie is ready to dance.
She declines. Both of their monsters would be destroyed, since their attacks are equal. (Japanese Mai says she won't attack unless she can reduce his life points.) She sets a card face down and ends her turn. Joey worries that she didn't take his bait. Now she's got two Harpies, and a clear advantage. He needs a strategy, quick! (Japanese Jounouchi thinks that Mai's deck's strategy is different from Valon's, which focuses on attack. Hers has a defensive base, and uses a lot of magic and trap cards.)
Joey has a bad feeling he's seen Mai's face-down card before. (Japanese Jounouchi warns himself that he'll die if he's not careful.) He remembers their last duel, when he attacked with Panther Warrior and she activated her trap card, Harpie Lady Sparrow Formation, which stopped his attack. Last time he dueled her, he thinks, he was letting her beat him because he didn't want her to get hurt, but it completely backfired. His vision goes out of focus again, as he thinks that this time, he's giving it all he's got. (Japanese Jounouchi thinks, if it goes on like this, he might lose, without conveying anything to Mai. This time, he must tell her....) He draws, then sacrifices Flame Swordsman to summon Cyber-Tech Alligator (Cyber-Tech Wyvern) (2500 ATK) in attack mode. He attacks and destroys the equipped Cyber Harpie, lowering Mai's life points to 3600. She laughs, telling him not too bad. Finally, he's giving her a real challenge! But he'll have to do better than that—because before her Arrow Nail goes to the graveyard, it transfers its power to her other Harpie. Joey sets a card face down, and tells her to give him all she's got.
Mai says he's pretty confident for someone who's about to lose. She draws, and smiles, telling him she drew "it." She plays the Seal of Orichalcos.
Yami and company stop when they see the Seal in the sky several blocks away. Tristan exclaims, "Oh, no, Joey!" Yami says it's the Seal of Orichalcos, and they all know what that means. Tristan says it means someone is going to lose his soul. They take off running toward the Seal.
The Seal forms around Mai and Joey, and glows in Mai's forehead. They're locked in the Seal, she says, and only one of them will escape. No one can come to Joey's rescue now. It's just her, Joey, and the most powerful magic card that's ever been created! Joey says he was expecting this, and thinks that now that the Seal of Orichalcos is on the field, the evil that controls Mai has grown ten times stronger. But he knows the real Mai is in there somewhere, and he's going to set her free. (Japanese Jounouchi says he wasn't planning on escaping. He thinks that the Seal of Oreikalkos can call out the power of darkness. Even Yugi couldn't beat it. But, with this duel, he wants to take away the darkness in Mai's heart.)
Mai summons another Cyber Harpie. Thanks to the Seal of Orichalcos, each of her Harpies gets an extra 500 attack points. The new Cyber Harpie's attack rises to 2300, while the other Cyber Harpie's attack becomes 2600. She attacks Joey's Cyber-Tech Alligator with the equipped Cyber Harpie, destroying it and reducing Joey's life points to 3600. Then she prepares to attack him directly with the other Cyber Harpie.
But Joey activates his face-down card, Scapegoat, protecting himself with four goat tokens. Mai says he uses that card in every duel, so excuse her for not being shocked. She activates her own trap card, Nightmare Tri-Mirror, creating a new monster on her side of the field for each monster on his side. (Japanese Mai explains that the trap card creates a Copy Token monster for each monster Special Summoned by her opponent.) Thanks to his Scapegoats, Mai now has four more Cyber Harpies, each with 2300 attack points. Then she attacks and destroys one of the Scapegoats with her original Cyber Harpie. Luckily for Joey, she says, her new Harpies can't attack this turn. She ends her turn, telling Joey he'd better think of some new tricks, because she's seen all his moves before. He says he's got some new twists planned, but she tells him his bluffs won't work on her. She's going straight to the top, and he's going down. There's nowhere to run.
Joey thinks, he doesn't plan on running away. He'll keep fighting until he breaks through to her—or lose his soul trying.
To Be Continued
